To Love The Moon

by Baxter1984

Rating: mature
Tags: Princess Celestia, Sex, Twilight Sparkle, Main 6, Slice of Life, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Alternate Universe, Romance, Princess Luna, Spike
Length: 511387

Twilight senses something troubling and teleports to Canterlot. This leads to a series of events that force her to face feelings that she had tried to hide.

Twilight senses the return of an old enemy and returns to Canterlot to face it. Afterwards, feelings that were long hidden, by herself and other ponies in her life, come to the surface. What happens in the aftermath will change her life forever.

Sex tag for later chapters

Note* Princess Luna is male in this story

If you have any recommendations for a cover art, message me.

Published 2017-05-16 04:10:01 UTC
Last updated 2020-05-03 00:42:21 UTC

Chapter 2

The throne room had a large number of ponies from the nobility of Canterlot that were running around and screaming like they had lost their heads. Twilight looked off to the side and was surprised to find her former mentor, Princess Celestia, staring at the center of the room with a look of horror on her face. Following her gaze, Twilight had her worst fears confirmed. In the center of the room stood Celestia’s younger brother, Prince Artemis. His normally dark blue coat was slowly turning black. He was turning back into his nightmare form, Night-Terror Knight. He was glaring and slightly growling at a trembling and cowering Prince Blueblood.

"Everypony stop where you are and be quiet!”

Everypony in the throne room stopped and looked over in shock. They had never heard Princess Twilight Sparkle use the Royal Canterlot Voice before.

“Now that I have your attention," Twilight calmly continued "I would like you to move to the edges of the room, but no running.”

Nopony argued. Instead, all of them quickly followed her orders.

Celestia moved to the edge of the room as well. I really hope Twilight knows what she's doing. She was startled when a letter appeared in front of her in a flash of green fire.

Dear Princess Celestia,

I apologize for the interruption, but Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie, Fluttershy and Rainbow just ran into Twi's castle. They told me that Twilight suddenly teleported away from them a few minutes ago. Do you know where she went? Is there a problem? If so, do you need the girls to join Twilight somewhere?

Sincerely,

Spike

After quickly reading the letter, Celestia summoned a scroll and quill.

Dear Spike,

Twilight teleported to the throne room in Canterlot Castle. I'm not sure how she did it, but Twilight must have sensed that there is a problem here. Unfortunately, that's all I can tell you at this time. I will be able to tell you more when things have calmed down.

Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie are ordered to remain at Twilight's castle until further notice.

Sincerely,

Princess Celestia

Celestia sent the letter to Spike before turning her attention to the center of the room.

Now that she had space to work with, Twilight slowly walked towards Night-Terror Knight. He had apparently not noticed her arrive, because his head snapped up as she approached. The ponies at the edges of the room all gasped or screamed as he sent a bolt of darkness straight at her. Twilight calmly erected a barrier around herself that dissipated the dark magic.

Surprisingly, no further attacks were forthcoming. Instead, Night-Terror Knight put up a barrier of his own and waited to see her next move. His eyes widened when she walked right up to the edge of it. “You cannot enter.”

Twilight responded by spreading her wings and passing right through, eyes glowing as she did. She kept going until she was right in front of him and stood there with her wings still flared. “Artemis,” She said calmly, refusing to call him by the name of the form he was currently in, “you don’t have to do this. This isn’t like you. Why don’t you calm down and tell me what’s going on?”

Night-Terror Knight stared at her for a moment before he charged his horn.

Closing her eyes, Twilight focused for a moment before casting her force field so that it surrounded his shield. Opening her eyes, she continued in the same calm voice as before. “I’m sorry, but I won’t let you out until you calm down.”

Night-Terror Knight unleashed his spell in an attempt to break free, but was shocked to find that it had no effect. H-how did she do that? Eyes wide, he turned back to her. “What have you done?”

“I enclosed us in a force field.” Twilight replied “I told you that I wouldn’t let you out and I meant it. Now, answer my questions.”

Night-Terror Knight quickly came to two realizations, that she was serious and he was trapped until she let him out. “You have become truly powerful, Twilight Sparkle. Or should I be calling you “princess”?”

“That is not necessary” Twilight said as she sat down and folded her wings, indicating that she had no intention of leaving. He doesn’t seem interested in attacking me at the moment, so I should try to keep him focused on me. “The last time we met, you spent most of the night trying to kill me. However, this time, you've only launched one attack at me. Why is that?”

Night-Terror Knight remained standing, but he did fold his wings. “I have not launched any further attacks against you because I do not wish to. The first one was an attempt to scare you away." He sighed "I should have known that it wouldn't work.”

“Of course not." Twilight responded "I don't scare easily. This is especially true when it involves my friends. What happened?" She thought for a moment. "Wait, before that, can you let Artemis out or do I have to call the girls?”

Night-Terror Knight nodded before closing his eyes.

The rest of the ponies in the throne room gasped when Night-Terror Knight began to change. He became slightly smaller, his coat returned to its usual midnight blue and his mane went back to the ponytail that looked like it was made of the night sky, placed over his shoulder.

Standing, Twilight walked to Artemis' side before giving him a hug. “Thank you, Artemis." She released the force field before turning to address the crowd. “Night court will be cancelled for the next two days. Guards, please see to it that everypony leaves now.”

Eyes wide, the Captain of the Night Guard replied "Y-yes, Princess Twilight." He bowed low before leaving the room to carry out the orders he had been given.

Twilight glanced around the room. “Celestia?”

Celestia raised an eyebrow as she walked towards her brother and former Faithful Student. "Yes, Twilight?"

“Can you please send a letter to Spike telling him and the girls not to worry and that I will be staying here for at least the next couple of days?” Blushing, Twilight looked up at her former teacher. “Um, if it’s okay with you, that is.”

Celestia and Artemis laughed.

“Of course." Celestia replied "I'd love to have you here.” She wrote and sent the letter to Spike before turning to her brother. “What happened?”

Looking down in shame, Artemis opened his mouth, but was distracted by a loud noise.

Surprised, Celestia and Artemis looked at Twilight.

Blushing, Twilight explained “The girls and I were going to dinner when I sensed trouble here and. . .”

Celestia and Artemis laughed again.

“In that case, I think we should head to the kitchen.” Celestia commented

Author's Note

Many of you are going to be upset at the battle scene because of the lack of a fight. That was not the point. We all know that Twilight is powerful as hell. The point was to focus on her friendship with Artemis.

Chapter 3

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight were seated in the dining room. They ended up eating a late dinner. Twilight and Artemis were both starving and each ate a full meal. Celestia had already eaten dinner so she just ate a couple of slices of cake.

After they had finished their food, Artemis told them of how Blueblood and the rest of the nobility would come every night to his night court with amendments some obscure law that he demanded Artemis authorize. The few problems that came up, they wouldn’t allow him to deal with. They kept telling him that he was not a real prince and was only there to pass messages to Celestia.

When they saw that this wasn’t getting much of a response, they switched to berating his job with the moon and the night sky. Artemis had tried to talk to Celestia but she was always busy with day court and a few peace treaties that required her attention. The final straw came earlier tonight when Blueblood came in with a demand that he give control of the moon and the night sky back to Celestia and renounce his title on the grounds that he wasn’t a real prince. He became so enraged that he lost control.

By the end of the explanation Artemis was in tears but Celestia was furious, as was evident by the fact that she was radiating heat and her mane looked more like a flame than the soft colors that everyone was used to. She took several calming breaths before standing. “Don’t worry, little brother. I'll deal with him.” She nuzzled her brother before pulling him into a hug. “As much as I would like to stay, I must get some sleep. Good night, Artemis and Twilight.”

Artemis’ ears drooped “I understand. Good Night, Big Sister.”

“Good Night, Celestia.” Twilight replied

Artemis was about to say something to Twilight, but paused when he saw that she was clearly tired. I'm not surprised. She went through a lot tonight. His eyes widened when he saw that her horn glowing.

Twilight teleported both of them to the balcony of Artemis’ tower.

Artemis raised an eyebrow. Why did she do that? He was about to ask his question aloud, but stopped when he heard her voice.

“I won’t be able to stay up for much longer but I would like to get in a little stargazing before I fall asleep. Would you like to join me?”

Artemis was so surprised that he couldn’t say anything. Instead, he nodded and lay down. He was even more surprised when Twilight lay next to him, so close that their coats were touching.

Yawning, Twilight mumbled. “It’s beautiful.” She nuzzled him before laying her head on his shoulder. She had planned to move her head to her forehooves after that, but didn’t have the energy.

Artemis stared in shock at the mare that he secretly had a crush on for the last 3 years as she fell asleep against him. His heart was thumping so loudly that he was sure the rest of the castle could hear it. W-what?! N-no . . . Calm down. I-it doesn’t mean anything. She’s just trying to make me feel better. He sighed I should take her to her room, but . . . I don’t want to be alone right now. Noticing that she was starting to shiver, he draped a wing over her.

He watched the stars for a while before developing an overwhelming desire to talk to Twilight. He couldn’t wait until morning but refused to wake her, so he lit his horn and entered her dream.

Chapter 4

Upon his arrival in Twilight’s dream, Artemis looked around and almost fell over in shock. He shook his head and thought This is going to be a night of surprises, it seems.

He found himself on a hill outside Ponyville, looking up at the night sky. He realized that this was the meteor shower he put on the week before. He saw that this was an ideal spot for watching his night sky. He was about to begin searching for Twilight when he heard voices.

Turning towards them, he found himself staring at what must have been most of the population of Ponyville. They were all staring up at the show and each of them was commenting on how pretty the sky was. Off to the side, he saw Twilight standing with the other bearers of the Elements of Harmony and their families. A smile came to his face as he saw that Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow Dash each had a young filly on their back. Pinkie Pie was carrying two small foals on her back, a Pegasus colt and a unicorn filly. Fluttershy had a small bunny on hers and Twilight, herself, was carrying Spike. In this way, even the youngest or smallest of them got a good view of the show.

There was something soothing about the scene in front of him and he found himself calming down. He decided to join them in observing the meteor shower before speaking to Twilight. After a while, the shower ended and ponies started to head to their homes. The dream shifted and Artemis saw Twilight putting Spike to bed and tucking him in. After that, she went out onto her balcony and sat down.

“Aren’t you going to join me?” asked Twilight, without bothering to turn her gaze from the stars.

Stunned by the question, it took him a moment to answer. “You knew I was here?”

“You weren’t very discreet in your entrance or maybe I’m a little sensitive to your magic after tonight. Take your pick. Either way, please join me.”

“You aren’t angry?” he asked as he made his way over to sit next to her.

She cocked her head “Why would I be?”

His ears pinned back as he said “I entered your dream without your permission. Not to mention that I lost control of myself earlier tonight. If you had not come when you did, I don’t even want to think about what may have happened.”

“We’re friends, right? You can come in whenever you want. I mean, we don’t get to see each other very often. If you ever need someone to talk to at night, come on in for a visit.” She shrugged “As for the rest, you already told me and Celestia what happened. While you really shouldn’t let Blueblood get to you like that, I know he has a way of getting to under your skin.”

“But . . . “Artemis stopped as he suddenly found a lavender hoof on his muzzle.

“Stop” Twilight said “If you really want to, we can talk about it later, when we’re both awake. For now, let’s just relax.”

There wasn’t much he could say with his muzzle blocked by her hoof, so he just nodded. They spent the rest of the night relaxing under his night sky and enjoying each other’s company.

After following the orders issued by Princess Twilight and personally seeing to it that everypony from the throne room had left the castle, the Captain of the Night Guard was heading towards the personal chambers of Prince Artemis to inform him of his actions. I’ve heard tales of her power but I never thought she could stand up to Night-Terror Knight by herself. She didn’t even need the Elements of Harmony to stop him! The Night Guard Captain was broken from his thoughts by a shout. He turned to see one of the ponies in the Night Guard galloping towards him. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

“Captain!” the guard gasped out as he skidded to a stop before him “We have a problem!”

“Well, tell me already!” the Captain demanded

“Yes, Sir”, the guard replied “I went to inform Princess Twilight Sparkle that a room had been prepared for her, but she is nowhere to be found.”

“How could you lose one of the Princesses?!” the Captain shouted “Have you checked the library?”

“Twice”

“Dining Room?”

“Yes, the cooks said that she was there for a while with Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis before they went their separate ways after their meal”

“Her old tower? The observatory? The rest of the castle?”

“Yes, yes, and we’re going over likely places a second time.”

“Damn it!”

“Should we wake Princess Celestia?”

“Not yet, you are coming with me while I inform Prince Artemis.”

The Guard shuddered “Y-yes sir”

By this time, they had arrived at the door to the personal chambers of the Prince of the Night. The Captain knocked on the large door, emblazoned with a replica of the Prince’s cutie mark. Surprisingly, they got no response. After a couple more knocks with no response, they got worried. Exchanging a glance, they pushed open the door and entered the room only to find it empty.

He was getting really worried, when the captain suddenly heard a whispered “Sir? Over here.”

Wondering why the guard was whispering, the captain walked over to the door to the Prince’s balcony . . . and stopped with a smile. There, on the balcony, were Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight Sparkle. They were both asleep. Princess Twilight was cuddled under Prince Artemis’ wing with her head on his shoulder. The Prince had his head resting on his forehooves with a calm and content look on his face. It was clear to the captain that Princess Twilight had gone out of her way to try to make Prince Artemis feel better, or at least help him calm down, before succumbing to her exhaustion. Thank you, Princess he thought, with a bow. Raising his head, he smiled “I think we found Princess Twilight.”

The captain started to turn back into the room, when he noticed that both the Prince and Princess were shivering slightly. Not too surprising, he thought it is rather cold tonight. And it is supposed to get colder. He went over to the closet in the Prince’s room and got a blanket. Turning to the guard, he whispered “They might wake if we try to move them. Help me cover them, instead.” The guard nodded and grabbed half of the blanket as they walked over to the sleeping royalty.

Once done, they went back to the door to the Prince’s room and the captain gave his orders. “Go cancel the search for Princess Twilight. Then return here. We will guard them until they wake.”

The guard nodded and left, quietly saying “I’ll be right back” as he did.

Chapter 5

Artemis woke to the gentle pull of the moon, telling him that the night was done and it was ready to be lowered in preparation for the day. He lifted his head, careful not to wake Twilight, and lit his horn. The moon slid below the horizon and the stars faded as his sister’s sun began to rise. His job done, he looked around to find that somepony had covered them with a blanket and there were now a pair of guards posted on his balcony. Surprisingly, one of these guards was the Captain of his Night Guard. He caught the attention of his captain and motioned him closer before asking what had happened last night, aside from the obvious.

The Captain of the Night Guard explained everything that had happened the night before as they both looked at the smaller form cuddled up to Prince Artemis’ side. Artemis quietly told the guards to go get some breakfast and assured them that he and Twilight would be alright for a while until the time they were supposed to meet Celestia for breakfast themselves. They nodded and obeyed their prince, bowing as they left.

Light from the rising sun had gone into Twilight’s eyes causing her to groan a little and turn her face into Artemis’ shoulder as she woke up. After a few moments, she woke up enough to notice that her pillow was warmer than normal and it had a gentle beat that was comforting to hear and feel as she fully woke up. I don’t know what kind of pillow this is, but I wish I could sleep on it every night. Yawning, she snuggled into it a bit more. That is, until she heard and felt a gentle voice saying “Good Morning”.

Not used to her pillows talking to her, she opened her eyes, and saw dark blue. Her head shot up and her face turned bright red as she realized what must have happened.

“Ohmygosh, I am so sorry!” she managed to squeak out. Stupid, stupid, stupid! I came here to help him and ended up using him as a pillow! “I didn’t mean to fall asleep on you, I promise!”

Artemis stared at her Last night was one of the best and calmest nights I’ve ever had and she thinks I’m upset? “Twilight Sparkle, look at me.”

Here it comes she thought as she did as he asked but was surprised to see that he was smiling. She was even more surprised when he nuzzled her. “Thank you, Twilight. I didn’t think I would be able to get to sleep at all last night. I would have spent the whole night drowning in self-pity and hatred if it weren’t for you.”

The only thing she could say was “Huh?”

He sighed, dropping his gaze to the floor “When you and the other Elements freed me 3 years ago, I vowed that I would never let myself be taken over by or turn into Night-Terror Knight again. Yet, here we are but 3 short years later and I made the same mistake and needed you to save me again.” He finally looked at her and she saw that there were tears in his eyes.

Meanwhile, the two Night Guards had just made it to the kitchens. There, they came across Princess Celestia. She was looking around as if she was waiting for someone or something. As soon as she saw them, she asked “Have you seen my brother? I am supposed to be eating breakfast with him and Twilight.”

The guards looked at each other before the captain replied “Prince Artemis woke up to lower the moon. Princess Twilight was still asleep when the prince sent us to get our breakfast. Would you like us to go see what is keeping them?”

Princess Celestia shook her head “I’ll go get my brother, you get some food.” She stood and left the room, heading for her brother’s chambers. She came to the door to his room and entered without bothering to knock. She saw her brother in tears and Twilight trying to calm him.

“There is another reason that my returning to a Nightmare state is a very bad thing.” Artemis managed to choke out “I know what Blueblood is really up to.”

Twilight walked over and stood in front of him, before rearing up to catch him in a tight hug. “What’s he up to this time?”

“He wants me to give into my anger and return to my Nightmare state because he plans to use it to force Celestia to . . . to” he began to shiver uncontrollably “He wants to force my sister to banish me to the moon again, permanently. He thinks that he will be allowed to take my place as Prince of Equestria. My guards found papers outlining his plan.”

Celestia’s mane and tail immediately went full on inferno as her rage threatened to overwhelm her. Before she could say a word, she saw Twilight swallow her own rage and double the strength of the hug she had wrapped Artemis in as well as nuzzle into his neck. None of them saw that Artemis’ guards had followed Celestia back and had heard what was just said. They both had looks of shock and fury plastered on their faces.

“Artemis,” Twilight started, before realizing that he was too terrified to hear her. She saw that her hugs and nuzzles no longer had any effect in calming him. Desperate times call for desperate measures. With that thought in mind, she raised his head and firmly kissed him straight on the lips. His eyes shot open as he realized what was going on before they slowly closed and he returned her kiss. The other ponies in the room smiled at the sight.

“Artemis,” Twilight repeated, once he was calm enough to listen “I won’t let that happen.”

“What can you do to stop it?” he asked miserably

“Plenty” Twilight immediately replied “You forget, your sister needed the Elements of Harmony to banish you. I am the bearer of the Element of Magic now and the other elements can do nothing without me. Even if they were willing to banish you, and I know for a fact that they are not. Whether you know it or not, you have a very powerful group of friends. The girls and I will do anything to keep you here.”

“More importantly, do you really think your sister will banish you again? She has told me numerous times that those 1000 years without you were sheer torture for her. I know that she will do anything to avoid repeating that. But we are not going to let it get that far. Have you told Celestia about Blueblood’s plan?”

He shook his head “I-“was all he got out before a voice interrupted him.

“He just did”

Everypony in the room turned at the voice to find an enraged Princess Celestia. She took several deep breaths and forced her anger down to a level that her mane and tail no longer roared with flames. “Artemis, my dear little brother, why did you not tell me about this sooner?”

Artemis shook his head again as he answered “At first, I thought the plan was utter nonsense, like everything else that comes out of that pony’s mouth. It wasn’t until this morning that I connected the dots, so to speak, and understood the full extent of his plan. He is not going to actually do anything himself, he just wants to push a few buttons, then sit back and watch.”

Celestia walked over to Artemis and Twilight and sat down so that she could envelop them both in her wings before she spoke. “Twilight is right. There is nothing that I will allow to separate us, after so long apart.”

Celestia suddenly got a very mischievous look on her face as she continued “Even if I were to go along with that pathetic excuse for a pony’s plan, which I won’t, Twilight brought up another good point. She is the one that controls the Elements of Harmony now, along with her friends. If she refuses to banish you, there is nothing I, or anypony else, can do about it.”

Celestia cocked her head to the side thoughtfully as she added “Besides, as she proved last night, she doesn’t need them to take care of your Nightmare form. She simply restrained him and asked him to ‘let you out’, as she put it. He actually acknowledged her power, listened to her and did as she asked.”

Artemis looked between his sister and Twilight with more tears coursing down his face. These tears, however, were ones of relief and happiness. They both immediately pulled him into another tight hug.

Celestia continued “Artemis, I want you to give me what you have detailing his plan and both you and Twilight are going to attend day court with me today. We are going to end this,” She retracted her wings and stood “but first, we are going to eat breakfast.”

Chapter 6

Celestia, Artemis, and Twilight Sparkle were back in the dining room as they waited for the cooks to bring their breakfast. Also present, were the captain and guard that had kept watch over Artemis and Twilight through the night. At the insistence of their prince as well as both princesses, they were eating as well.

Celestia was about to say something but smelled their food coming and decided that it could wait. She looked up and saw the cooks in the doorway, waiting for permission to enter. She smiled and waved them in. They came in loaded down with pancakes for Artemis and Twilight and waffles for Celestia as well as orange juice, tea and a selection of muffins and other breakfast pastries for them to enjoy. All three of them wasted no time in stuffing their faces.

After they had each eaten their fill, Celestia cleared her throat, catching the attention of Twilight and Artemis. She smiled “I see that you’ve become quite close to my brother, Twilight.”

“Huh?” asked Twilight, looking up at her.

Celestia’s smile only widened, thoroughly enjoying herself. “In the time since you arrived last night, you’ve saved him, managed to calm him, hugged, nuzzled, and even kissed him. Have you got anything you want to share, Twilight?”

“I . . . uh . . .” was the only answer she received as Twilight’s eyes widened and her mind blanked out.

“Oh my,” Celestia giggled “I think I broke Twilight”

“Sister . . .” Artemis warned

“What? I’m not allowed to tease her?” Celestia started pouting “You don’t let me have any fun.”

“After last night? No, you are not allowed to tease anyone.” Came the tense reply.

Before Celestia could reply, she heard a soft groan and looked to Twilight, who was shaking her head and waking up. “Fine, I’ll be good.” She walked over to Twilight and nuzzled her with a quiet “Welcome Back”.

“Oh . . . Um . . . I” Twilight’s head snapped up, her cheeks bright pink.

“It’s alright, Twilight. I was just teasing you. I’m sorry, I hadn’t realized how stressful yesterday was for you.” Celestia explained softly “However, I do have a question that I would like you to answer.”

“Yes?” asked a rather nervous Twilight

Celestia smiled “It’s clear to me that you hold feelings for my brother. How long have you had them?”

Twilight squirmed and turned an even brighter shade of pink, but answered anyway “S-since the first Nightmare Night he came to P-Ponyville.” She said quietly

“What?” asked a stunned Artemis “Why didn’t you tell me? That was nearly 4 years ago!”

“I saw you being approached by many ponies here in Canterlot whenever I visited Celestia to continue my lessons and heard about even more. I was just a unicorn that lived in a small town, a student and a librarian. I didn’t think I had a chance. So I kept quiet.” Came the answer, in the same quiet voice.

Celestia just stared. “But you became a princess 3 years ago and you’ve been here many times since then . . . “

Twilight shook her head “The only thing that changed was that I was given wings. As far as the nobility are concerned, I am still just a student and librarian from a small town when I come here. I know what most of the nobility here call me.”

Artemis and Celestia exchanged confused glances “And what is that?” he asked

“The Commoner Princess” Twilight paused, then added “From what I heard, it was Blueblood that started it. He apparently said something about me not being a part of the royal bloodline and thus, not a true princess.”

Artemis stared at Twilight with wide eyes as Celestia hugged her. “Oh Twilight”

Twilight shrugged as she hugged Celestia back “He’s been saying it for so long that I’m used to it and besides, I only have to deal with it when I visit Canterlot. They really should treat Artemis better, though. He’s your brother.”

Artemis had heard enough. He stood and walked over to Twilight. Celestia saw him coming and released her from the hug.

“Twilight” Artemis said as she turned towards him. Before she could say or do anything, he pulled her into a deep kiss.

Now, it was Twilight’s turn for surprise. After a moment of shock, she closed her eyes and returned it.

Artemis looked at Twilight as they broke the kiss. “I had become convinced that I would never be able to find somepony to love.” It’s time to make this right. He made sure he had her attention before continuing “Twilight Sparkle, I would like permission to court you.”

Twilight’s eyes filled with tears of happiness as she managed to say a single word. “Yes”

Artemis’ response was to pull her into another kiss. Celestia and Artemis’ night guards looked on happily.

They broke the kiss but Artemis draped a wing over her, making sure to keep her close. They both looked up as Celestia came over to them.

“Twilight,” She began, blinking away her own tears of happiness. “I have always loved you. You were, from the start, the little sister I never had. To think you would, not only save my brother, but also become so close to both of us. You are the only one, in thousands of years to capture the heart of my brother. I am so proud of you and can’t wait to be able to call you my little sister.”

Before they could get any further into the conversation, one of Celestia’s Day Guards came in to remind her that it was time for Day Court. Artemis teleported to his personal chambers to get the documents that his guard found detailing Blueblood’s plan. He was back in a flash of midnight blue light and with a stack of paper floating next to him.

Upon seeing Celestia’s confused look, he told her “Apparently, he accidentally included them in this stack of legal adjustments that he demanded I approve. The plans are in here somewhere.”

Twilight immediately took them and said “I’ll look through it for them.” Seeing their confused expressions, she added “You can tell the nobility that you asked me to go through the proposals to verify them so that the two of you can focus on court. That will fool them into thinking that their requests are being approved or considered. Instead, I will ‘conveniently’ find Blueblood’s plans in the middle of court.”

Artemis grinned and nuzzled her, while Celestia just laughed. “Ooh, that’s evil. And it’s going to be great!”

The captain of Artemis’ Night Guard looked at the young guard next to him and they both nodded. The captain spoke up “If it pleases Your Highnesses, we would like to be present in Day Court as well. We will keep the nobility from disturbing Princess Twilight while she searches.”

Artemis frowned “I appreciate the offer, but you both have been up all night guarding myself and Twilight. Surely you need your rest.”

Both of his guards shook their heads. The Captain answered “We have heard what has been said all night and this morning, not to mention that I was present at Night Court last night, Your Highness. Prince Blueblood cannot be allowed to get away with these actions. We would very much like to see you catch that poor excuse for a pony, let alone royalty. We can rest later.”

Artemis smiled and said “Very well” before they entered the throne room for Day Court.

Chapter 7

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight entered the throne room with a pair of Day Guards escorting Celestia and a pair of Night Guards escorting Artemis. There were many ponies present and waiting for them. Most of them were present the night before. None of the ponies in the room had noticed them enter and were still talking among themselves. Well, mostly, they were looking at and listening to one pony.

Prince Blueblood.

“I’m not sure what happened to the original documents.” He said “Probably a mix up made by one of my servants. It’s not a big problem, though. I can just have another set drawn up.”

One of the ponies in the crowd spoke up. “What about what happened last night?”

Blueblood answered “It went better than I hoped it would. He actually gave into his anger completely and returned to his evil form.”

Another pony in the crowd replied “Yes, but he didn’t destroy anything. Princess Twilight stopped him before he could hurt anypony. In order for this to work, we need him to attack somepony.”

Blueblood looked at the one that had just spoken and replied “Don’t worry about that, I’ll handle the Commoner Princess.”

All three of the royal alicorns felt their blood boil at this, but they each managed to keep their temper.

“Make sure you take notes on what has already been and will be said during today’s court, as well as by whom it was said.” Celestia whispered to her personal assistant.

“Yes, Princess” came her quiet reply, already taking notes.

Celestia cleared her throat and raised her voice “Good Morning, my little ponies. I’m sorry for the late start, something came up.”

“Good Morning, Princess” came as a chorus from everypony in front of her. They looked surprised as Princess Celestia was followed up to the throne by Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight, who had a large stack of paper floating along next to her in her magic.

Princess Celestia saw their confusion and said “I know it is a little unusual but, due to the back log of work, the three of us will be holding a joint court today. My brother and I will handle the topics and issues as they come up. Princess Twilight will be going over the legal requests that have been submitted for approval over the last couple of days. In this way, we will be able to address everypony’s concerns as quickly and efficiently as possible.”

There was no response as they watched Princess Twilight walk a little off to the side before summoning a small table with her magic, as well as a pad of paper, some ink and a couple of quills. A small cushion was placed before the table for her to sit on. She smiled her thanks, sat down and got to work. Princess Celestia sat on her throne and Prince Artemis sat next to it, also on a cushion placed there for him. A pair of Night Guards stationed themselves on either side of Princess Twilight, while a pair of Day Guards stationed themselves in front of the royal siblings.

With that, Princess Celestia officially declared court open.

In a motion of unusual generosity, the nobility allowed the common ponies to present their cases to the court first.

The first several issues presented before the court were the usual debates over which property belonged to which pony or problems that they needed help with because they couldn’t solve them themselves. Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis slipped into a routine as they worked together, slowly and carefully sorting through each case and coming up with the best solution they could for each one.

As they worked, Princess Twilight was sorting through the legal requests. The stack of papers was steadily sorted into smaller piles. The disapproved pile was drastically larger than the approved one. Her list of reasons for each disapproval and notes on each request was rather long as well.

Suddenly, Prince Blueblood flinched and froze. Everypony in the throne room, except for Princess Twilight, looked at him to find that he was several shades paler than usual.

Princess Celestia tilted her head to the side as she asked “Nephew, are you alright?”

Prince Blueblood didn’t respond as he stared in horror at a document written on a piece of parchment that had gold design work embedded into it. The parchment in question was suspended in the magenta glow of Princess Twilight Sparkle’s magic as she read the paper in front of her.

“Celestia, Artemis,” She began, in a carefully controlled, low tone of voice “I apologize for the interruption, but I have something here that you both really should see for yourselves. Right Now.”

Princess Twilight got up and slowly walked over to the throne, the Night Guards following closely, in case anypony were to try anything to stop her. As she did, several ponies suddenly decided that they needed to leave the room. They headed for the large double doors, only to find them encased in more of Princess Twilight’s magic as they slammed shut.

“Nopony is leaving until we sort this out, so make yourselves comfortable.” She said as she made it to the throne and passed the document from her magenta magic glow to Princess Celestia’s golden one. She then went to stand next to Prince Artemis, with him between her and Princess Celestia. The Day Guards moved so that they were both standing to the right, slightly in front of Princess Celestia and the Night Guards positioned themselves so that they were standing to the left, slightly in front of Princess Twilight.

Most of the ponies in the throne room were confused, but willingly followed the order and sat down. These ponies were among the majority that loved Princess Twilight. They were ecstatic when they heard that she had ascended and was now royalty. As far as they were concerned, she earned their respect when she saved Equestria, so many times that they no longer bothered to keep count and was a major force behind the return of their Prince of the Night.

There was, however, a group of ponies that were huddled together and shivering, obviously terrified. They were lifted in the golden glow of Princess Celestia’s magic and deposited in the center of the throne room, right in front of the throne.

Chapter 8

Author's Note

Sorry for the delay but the next chapter is up now.

Chapter 8

Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis leaned over the parchment and gave it a quick read. Prince Artemis’ eyes narrowed as he shifted his gaze to a trembling Prince Blueblood, but he said nothing.

Princess Celestia turned an ice cold glare on the trembling unicorn and demanded “Nephew, you might want to explain yourself. Now”

Prince Blueblood cleared his throat a couple of times, but found himself unable to speak under the furious gaze of the three alicorns.

Princess Celestia said “Well?”

Prince Blueblood looked up at her “It’s all a mistake, Aunt Celestia. That wasn’t supposed to be submitted to any of you.”

Prince Artemis actually laughed “Oh, I’m sure it wasn’t.” The laugh suddenly stopped and turned into a glare. “I highly doubt you wanted me to know that you are planning to force my sister to send me back to the moon.”

The ponies in the room, aside from the group in front of the throne, gasped in horror.

The guards, both Night and Day, glared at Prince Blueblood and shifted into a ready stance. They forced themselves not to simply pounce on Prince Blueblood. They really wanted to run him through with their spears for the threat made to their prince, but held themselves back, waiting for an order from Prince Artemis or one of the Princesses.

Prince Blueblood actually choked “I-it isn’t like that, Uncle Artemis, I promise!

Princess Celestia said “Then, explain”

Princess Twilight stepped in, “Perhaps now would be a good time to mention that we were in the throne room for a couple of minutes before you noticed us this morning and heard everything you said.” She paused, to let that sink in “Do you need a reminder? Let’s see, you said something about how you were going to deal with the Commoner Princess in order to keep her from helping Artemis again. I know that is what you call me, when you think I’m not around.”

Prince Blueblood blanched “Oh”

Princess Celestia cut in “I’m still waiting for an explanation, Blueblood. And I’m running out of patience.”

Princess Twilight thought for a second. “Since he’s clearly having trouble answering your question, Celestia, maybe he’s like to get used to speaking again by answering one of mine. Do you think you can do that, Blueblood?”

Prince Blueblood dumbly nodded, suddenly not able to say a single word.

Princess Twilight nodded “Very Well. When I arrived in this very room last night, Artemis was focused solely on you. What did you do to drive him to that point?”

Prince Blueblood audibly gulped

Princess Twilight glared at him. “You get to pick which one to answer first, but you do have to answer both questions. Oh, by the way, I don’t have nearly as much patience as Celestia does. You might want to start speaking soon.”

Prince Blueblood swallowed, nervously. “Y-yes, princess”

He swallowed again and looked at Princess Twilight. “Last night, I came to Uncle Artemis’ Night Court and demanded that he relinquish control of the moon and give up his title as prince.” He grew bolder, when he wasn’t stopped, and continued in a louder voice “The answer to Aunt Celestia’s question is similar. The reason why, is that he doesn’t deserve to be a prince. He returned to Equestria, after being gone for 1000 years and tried to take over again, and was forgiven, just like that? Then, he was immediately made a prince, simply because he is the brother of the Princess? He doesn’t deserve any of this. I should be ruling as the Prince of Equestria.”

Before anypony could do or say anything else, Princess Celestia surrounded Blueblood with her magic. “You call yourself a prince but that is simply because you are a distant descendant of Princess Platinum. You have done nothing to earn or show that you deserve the power you have, let alone what you are trying to take from my brother. I hereby strip you of your title and position. You are under arrest for treason and conspiracy against the crown.”

As soon as those words left her mouth, two of the guards in the room, one Day and one Night, rushed forward to detain him. She released her magic as soon as the guards had him restrained.

Blueblood glared up at her as he struggled against the guards pinning him down. “You can’t do this to me!” he shouted “I am-“

“Silence!”

The ears of everypony in the throne room (as well as the castle, and quite possibly the whole of Canterlot) were now ringing, as the Royal Canterlot Voice, which came from 3 different mouths, echoed throughout the entire castle.

Blueblood looked up and froze. All three alicorns were glaring at him with their wings flared and horns glowing. He then looked above him and saw a bolt of dark blue magic hovering over his head. Surprisingly, he grinned. This is perfect, he thought, you’re going to do my work for me! Attack me! Then Aunt Celestia will have no choice but to send you back to the moon! Forever this time!

Everypony in the throne room watched in shock and awe as Princess Twilight stepped closer to Prince Artemis’ side and nuzzled into his neck. The sudden contact caused him to blink and glance over at her.

“Please” she said, so softly that only he could hear her “Stop”

He did just that. He released the magic that he had built up and let it dissolve. He then turned to her and returned her nuzzle as he took deep breaths, allowing her presence and scent to calm him. Princess Celestia chose that moment to drape a wing over her brother’s back and nuzzle him as well.

Princess Celestia was the first to speak up. “Blueblood, you tried to dethrone my brother. You also planned to force me to send my brother back to the moon. Regardless of what you may think or feel about it, he is one of your rulers and this will not be tolerated.”

“Guards, please take Blueblood to the royal dungeons and put him in one of the anti-magic cells. Oh, and Blueblood? This is as much for your protection as a punishment. How do you think the rest of Equestria will react when they find out what you have done?” Princess Celestia shook her head, “As much as I’m sure my brother would love to deal with you right here and now, we have to go through the legal process. Your accomplices, as detailed in your plan as well as in accordance with what we witnessed this morning, are also under arrest.”

Princess Celestia took a deep breath. “Guards. Take them away, before one of us does something we might later regret. As for the rest of you, we are going to end Day Court early, I hope you understand. Please bring any concerns you have to Day Court tomorrow. Twilight?”

Princess Twilight nodded and cancelled the spell she placed on the doors, allowing them to open.

Nopony looked even remotely upset at Day Court being closed early. The ponies in the room watched as members of the Day Guard enter the throne room and escorted the conspirators out on the way to the royal dungeons. Then they looked to the throne to see three alicorns that looked to be very angry and upset. Deciding that it would be best to let them calm down and relax, they quietly left. They also decided that this could not be kept quiet. They would spend the rest of the day spreading the tale of what they had seen as well as what Blueblood had tried to do. They would also use this time to come up with a plan to cheer up their prince.

Chapter 9

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 10

Author's Note

This one is a bit longer than usual, but I wanted to get it all into one chapter.

Chapter 10

Twilight just looked at him for a moment “Astronomy is the science of studying the night sky. There are many ponies that do nothing but study the stars and write about the things they discover.”

This time, it was Artemis that froze. “ . . . Ponies stay up at night to study my stars?”

Twilight nodded and pulled him into another nearby store. “This store sells telescopes and other things used for observing the night sky.”

The owner of the store looked up to see who had entered and nearly fainted in surprise at the sight of the Prince and Princess.

Twilight slowly led Artemis around the store and explained what each thing they sold was for and how it was used.

Artemis stopped suddenly and asked “Twilight, how do you know so much about astronomy and this store?”

Twilight blushed “I’ve been an amateur astronomer for years now, ever since I was a little filly.”

Both Artemis and Twilight jumped as laughter boomed around them. They spun to the source to find an aging unicorn behind the cash register. “Princess,” he said “if you are an amateur, I’d like to see what you call the experts. You do realize that the experts still refer to you as a subject-matter expert, right? They have done so for years, since you wrote that book of yours. The first one, I mean.”

Twilight blushed

The first one? . . . Subject-matter expert? Artemis thought before he asked “Books?”

Twilight looked up at him, before turning her gaze to the floor, her face still red. “Just a few papers I wrote while I was in school that got turned into books after some of my teachers read them.”

The store owner chuckled “Still modest, I see.” Turning to Artemis, he said “If you want an introduction to Astronomy, Your Highness, I recommend that you read her books. I have them right here.” With that, he turned to a shelf on the wall behind the counter that the cash register sat on and pulled three books down in his magic.

Without hesitation, Artemis said “I’ll take them” as he paid for the books before taking the first one in his magic, he opened it and began to read.

“What have you gotten me into?” Twilight whispered to the owner.

The store owner was about to answer when they both heard a sharp intake of breath followed by a faint sob. They turned to Artemis to find tears in his eyes.

“Artemis, are you OK?” asked a concerned Twilight before she found herself wrapped in the tightest hug that Artemis had ever given her.

“No one has ever . . .” Artemis choked out before he had to stop. He shook his head and hugged her tighter before continuing “One thousand years ago, I just wanted ponies to look up at and enjoy my night but it was always feared.” He paused to get his emotions under control. “Why didn’t you tell me about this when you were writing it?”

Twilight’s blush returned full force as she said “I wrote the paper that turned into that book when I was twelve . . .”

Artemis’ jaw dropped

The store owner laughed again “Are you going to tell him about your early years studying under Princess Celestia, or should I?”

Twilight stared at him “Don’t you dare!”

This piqued Artemis’ curiosity “What are you talking about?” Seeing that Twilight wasn’t going to say anything, he turned to the store owner for the answer.

The unicorn smiled “Years ago, before you returned, several night guards often frequented this store. They would always have a new story about a small lavender unicorn filly and how they would often find her asleep under a telescope, using star charts as her pillow.”

Artemis just stared at Twilight

She blushed “What? I told you I’ve been an amateur astronomer since I was a little filly. I just had a little trouble staying up late when I was that young. I was only eight at the time.”

Walking out of the store, they decided to head to the park. Once there, they found a spot off to the side and lay side by side as they each read one of their new books. That is, of course, until the foals that were playing nearby noticed them.

“Look!” one of them shouted “It’s Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight!”

The other foals all dropped what they were doing and ran over to them. The parents of the foals looked up, nervous that their foals were bothering the prince and princess. They had all heard about what had happened this morning and were debating calling their foals back.

That changed when one of them climbed onto Artemis’ back and slid down on to Twilight’s. He landed so that his hoof stroked a ticklish spot on her side, causing her to giggle. The foals all squealed in delight before rushing up and tickling both of them. Artemis merely chuckled but Twilight was sent into a laughing fit, as she was very ticklish.

Artemis was broken from his laughter by a soft poke to his chest. He looked down to see a small earth pony filly looking up at him shyly.

“Can I touch your wings, please? My friend has wings but yours are much bigger.” she asked.

The parents were horrified but Artemis merely smiled and stretched out his wings. Twilight did the same as they both suddenly had foals climbing all over them. Those that couldn’t fit on their backs crowded around them so that they could reach.

One of the foals suddenly said “Princess Twilight’s wings are softer but Prince Artemis’ are bigger and stronger!”

Before he could respond, Artemis suddenly felt the tug of the moon. He gently lifted the foals off of his back, stood and walked over to a clear space in the center of the park. He flapped his wings and lifted into the air as his horn began to glow. The moon rose with him and a final pulse of energy from his horn caused the stars to appear. He landed and opened his eyes to find the foals, and some of the parents, all staring at him in awe. He walked over to Twilight and lay back down by her side.

“That was so cool!” one of them shouted

“The stars are so pretty!” exclaimed another

The other foals were all shouting something similar when one of them noticed tears in Artemis’ eyes. “Oh no! We made him cry!”

Twilight smiled at the little pegasus colt “He may be crying, but he is not sad. He is crying because he is happy.”

The little colt snuggled up to Twilight, in between her forehooves, and looked up at her. “Then why is he crying?”

The parents looked on as Princess Twilight nuzzled the little colt before she answered his question. ”A long time ago, ponies were afraid of the night and hid from it. They were also mean to him. Now, he is learning that there are ponies that like his night and believe that his stars are beautiful. He is not used to ponies thinking that way. Seeing the way you and your friends reacted to watching him raise to moon and stars has made him happy because you have given him what he has always wanted.”

The colt looked up at her with wide eyes “Really?”

Twilight nodded “He has always wanted ponies to look up at his moon and stars and enjoy his lovely night sky. He wanted ponies to be able to look at his night sky and not be afraid.”

The foals looked at each other before one of them spoke up “Why would we be scared? It’s too pretty to be afraid of.”

Artemis’ eyes had been slowly filling with tears again as he listened to Twilight explain the situation to the foals. The last statement became too much as he put his head on his forehooves and began to sob quietly. He felt something on his neck and opened his eyes to see Twilight nuzzling him. Then, much to his surprise, the foals gathered around and nuzzled him as well. Those that couldn’t reach from the ground climbed onto Twilight’s back in order to get to him. He was so shocked that he stopped crying.

Unable to stop himself, he turned to Twilight and pulled her into a long and deep kiss. The parents of the foals smiled at this. The foals themselves stared before firing off question after question.

“Ooh, are you two together, like mommy and daddy?”

“When are you going to get married?”

“Are you going to have a baby?”

“Ooh, I wanna be the baby’s friend!”

“Me too! We’re going to have so much fun!”

Artemis and Twilight broke the kiss and stared at the foals before looking at each other and blushing. This gained laughter from the parents as they came to collect their foals, telling them that it was now time to go to bed.

The mother of the pegasus colt, still in Twilight’s forehooves, walked up to get her son. “We heard all about this morning and are so glad you are feeling better, Prince Artemis. Princess Twilight, thank you for putting a stop to Blueblood’s crazy plan.” She held up a hoof as Twilight was about to protest “I know you are going to claim that you did nothing special, but none of us agree with that. My husband was in Day Court today and told us all about what happened. We also talked to a couple of Night guards about what happened last night. We know what you did and we thank you for saving our prince.” She paused “We have pooled our money and paid for a dinner for two at the restaurant behind you. The reservation is in your name, my prince.” She winked “Enjoy your date, Your Highnesses.”

Chapter 11

As Artemis and Twilight lay stunned, the parents guided their foals out of the park. The foals shouted “Good night, Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight!” as they left.

It took a few minutes before they were able to move, but eventually Twilight and Artemis stood and gathered their bags before turning towards the restaurant behind them.

They walked into the restaurant and were greeted by the owner, an earth pony stallion, at the front. “Welcome, Prince Artemis! I heard that you are here on a date tonight. Who are we waiting for?” As Artemis stepped fully into the restaurant and moved over to make room for Twilight, the owner gasped. “Princess Twilight! Welcome back!”

Twilight looked up “Blue Berry! I haven’t seen you in a long time.”

Blue Berry looked from one to the other for a moment before he grinned “So Princess, I see you finally found somepony.” He turned to Artemis “I have known Princess Twilight for many years. Her family has been loyal to this restaurant since long before she was even born. Please make sure you take care of her, your highness.”

Artemis’ eyes widened before he smiled “Don’t worry, I plan to do just that.”

Twilight blushed “Blue Berry, is the table on the balcony available?”

Blue Berry smiled at her “Your favorite spot in the restaurant? Of course, your highness. Please wait a few moments while we get it ready.”

He looked at the bags they each had in their magic “I’ll take and store your bags here.”

After a few minutes, a young unicorn walked up to them. “Good evening, your highnesses. My name is Violet Glow and I will be serving you tonight. Please follow me.”

Artemis and Twilight followed her through the restaurant. As they did, everypony stopped their meals and stood before bowing.

Twilight stopped “Please, everypony go back to your meals. We are just here for dinner.”

As the ponies went back to their meals and conversations, one particular comment could be heard from somepony in the restaurant. “This place must be good! The prince and one of the princesses eat here!”

As they got to the balcony, Twilight heard a sharp gasp from Artemis. She turned to him with a smile. “You can see why this is my favorite spot in the restaurant.”

The balcony was at the back of the restaurant and away from the lights of Canterlot. All that could be seen was the stars and moon in the night sky. In front of them was a small table set for two. The only light came from a few lanterns placed around the balcony and a candle arrangement in the center of the table.

Violet Glow pulled both chairs out with her magic and asked them what they wanted to drink.

“Lemonade, please” said Twilight

Artemis thought for a moment before he said “Iced Tea, please”

Violet Glow bowed and placed a couple of menus on the table. “Your meal comes with an appetizer of a fresh salad. I will be right back with your drinks and the salad.”

After taking a few minutes to look through the menu, Artemis looked up at Twilight “I think I’ll go with the Cauliflower and Broccoli Carbonara.”

Twilight turned her gaze from the stars to Artemis “I always get the Eggplant Parmesan when I come here.”

“Wonderful choices, your highnesses. I’ll get those orders put in right away.”

They both turned in surprise to find Violet Glow walking up with their drinks and salad.

“Is there anything else you need?” she asked as she placed everything on the table. They both shook their heads and told her that there wasn’t anything else they needed. She bowed and left to put in their orders.

Artemis looked over at Twilight “Last night, you said that you had been doing something with your friends. What did you do?”

Twilight nodded and looked up “Once a week, if possible, we get together and spend time with each other. What we do depends on what else is going on and whose turn it is to pick the activity. Yesterday, it was really Fluttershy’s turn, but we all agreed to do Rarity’s favorite. If nothing else, it got her to quit complaining.”

Artemis looked puzzled “What do you mean “if possible”?”

“Well, we’re each normally pretty busy. Applejack helps run Sweet Apple Acres with her family. Fluttershy takes care of the local animals and heals them if they are sick or hurt. Rarity runs her boutique and makes clothes for Ponyville as well as some customers from Canterlot. Rainbow is a part of the Ponyville Weather Team in addition to her training to join the Wonderbolts. Pinkie plans parties for anypony who asks, helps out at the bakery and foalsits the Cake twins. I turned part of the first floor of my castle into a Public Library to replace the one that Tirek destroyed. As well as the fact that Mayor Mare has decided that any major decision for Ponyville must first go through her before being approved by me. We have regular meetings a couple of times a week.”

Twilight paused to drink some lemonade and eat a few bites of her salad.

“Then there are the Friendship Missions that the Cutie Mark Map sends some or all of us on all over Equestria. Plus all of the things that have happened that have nearly destroyed Ponyville that we have to deal with.”

Artemis shook his head “Wow, and I thought I was busy. So what was the activity that Rarity chose?”

Twilight shrugged “Her usual. We went to the Ponyville Day Spa. She is a major fan of hoofacures and she keeps trying to get the rest of us to get them with her. We aren’t as fond of them as she is, but she is usually happy as long as we join her at the spa. The one exception is Rainbow Dash.”

Artemis tilted his head “How so?”

Twilight giggled “She likes her “tough pony” image. She thinks that if she is seen at the spa or anything that she considers “too girly”, nopony will take her seriously again. Rarity has made it a personal mission to get Rainbow change her mind.” She paused “You should ask Celestia if she will let you read the letters I send her. Some of the stuff we get into or have to deal with is pretty funny.”

“Actually,” Artemis responded “she likes to read some of them to me if I have trouble getting to sleep some mornings.”

Neither of them noticed that Violet Glow had returned to check on them.

“The one she read to me the other morning was a little strange. Did you really take on an Ursa Minor by yourself, before you ascended?”

Twilight blushed “Yes. A traveling performer had come to Ponyville and was bragging that she had vanquished an Ursa Major. A couple of foals decided that they wanted to see her do it so they went into the Everfree Forest. They found the Ursa’s cave and let an Ursa Minor chase them back to Ponyville. She tried to get rid of it, but only made it angrier.”

Artemis stared at her “What did you do about it?”

Twilight's blush deepened “I created a lullaby by sending wind through the reeds and plants around the village. Then I emptied the village’s water tower and filled it with milk, turning it into a giant baby bottle. After I gave the bottle to the Ursa Minor, I levitated it back to the cave in the forest.”

Artemis’ jaw dropped

“That’s amazing!”

They both looked over at Violet Glow in the door to the rest of the restaurant. “I had heard that you did something with an Ursa, princess, but I thought it was just a myth. That really happened?”

Twilight nodded, her face still red

“Wow.” Violet Glow shook her head and got back to why she was there. “I just put in your orders and wanted to ask if you needed anything else.”

Artemis shook his head

Twilight looked at the glass she had just drained “More lemonade, please?”

“Of course, your highness! I’ll be right back.”

“So Artemis,” Twilight started “we talked about what’s going on with me. What about you? How do you spend your time?”

Artemis looked off to the side “I mainly spend my time awake either in Night Court or reading. Some of my reading is just for fun, but most of it is either for court or on things I missed over the last thousand years. The other task that takes up my time is dream walking. Though I mainly only enter the dreams of foals.”

She paused thoughtfully “I heard about that from Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. They come to see me once a week for what they call “Twilight Time”. Nothing major, I just teach them random things and help Sweetie Belle with her magic. Anyway, they were talking about a time when they had been going crazy for years because they didn’t have their cutie marks yet. Somehow, the topic switched to dreams and how you had helped each of them with their fears and troubles.”

Artemis stared “They still remember that? It is somewhat unusual for dreamers to remember that I was even there, let alone what we talked about.”

Twilight nodded “It left an impression on them, a good one. They each look back at that as a happy memory of a time when they were having trouble and you were there for them.” She tilted her head thoughtfully “Why only enter the dreams of foals?”

Artemis shuddered “I learned the hard way that most adults don’t like their dreams to be seen by anypony but themselves. If an adult wants to ask for help they come to court, usually my sister’s. So I tend to only enter the dreams of the young.”

Twilight smiled “Mine as well.”

Artemis was about to say something when he noticed Violet Glow walking up to them with their meals and new drinks for both of them. They thanked her and assured her that they didn’t need anything else. They each took a few bites of their meals and sighed in contentment.

Then Artemis went back to what he had been about to say “You remember your dream last night?”

Twilight smiled “I remember telling a certain Prince of the Night that he has permission to enter my dreams as often as he likes. In fact, I think I’m going to make it a requirement.”

Artemis’ jaw dropped “What? Why?”

Twilight reached across the table and laid her hoof on his. “Even though we are dating now, we are both busy ponies, live in different towns and keep different schedules. As a result, we may not be able to see each other as often as we’d like. This way, we can see each other and talk as much as we want.”

Artemis got a rather touched look on his face and smiled “Of course”

After that, they both focused on their meals. As they were finishing, Violet Glow walked up to the table with two large slices of chocolate cake and a large bowl of mixed berries.

“Compliments of the chef, your highnesses.” Violet Glow said as she cleared the table and walked away. Before anything more could be said, she came back to the table with two glasses of milk and a couple of forks. They both thanked her, after recovering from their surprise, and she walked back into the restaurant.

They finished their dessert and walked to the front to get their bags from Blue Berry. Twilight gathered their bags and Artemis put some money on the desk as a tip. Before Blue Berry could protest, he was thanked for a wonderful meal and asked to pass the tip to Violet Glow. They both walked out into the night.

Artemis looked over at Twilight as her horn flared. He blinked as their bags vanished in a flash of magenta magic.

“What did you do?” he asked

“I teleported them to your tower where we will get them later. There is something I want to do with you before we go back to the castle.” She spread her wings “Follow me!”

Before he could ask her anything, she launched herself into the night sky. He was left with no choice but to follow her.

Twilight kept flying until she had reached the highest clouds in the area that could support the two of them. She circled one of them once before settling onto it and folding her wings. Artemis landed and laid down next to her. He was about to ask why she brought him up here when he noticed that she was looking up. He followed her gaze and smiled.

Twilight smiled up at him “This is my new favorite way to stargaze. Up here, it’s like I’m surrounded by the stars."

Artemis didn’t respond. Instead, he curled himself around her, covered her with a wing and nuzzled her. For a while, they just relaxed and looked at the stars.

Artemis thought Twilight had fallen asleep until he heard a quiet “Artemis?” He responded with an equally quiet “Yes?”

Twilight shifted enough to look him in the eye “I- Can you promise me something?”

This made Artemis concerned so he raised his head and turned to her. “What is it?”

Twilight looked up at him “If something happens to make you upset, I want you to visit me and talk about it before it gets that bad, even if it’s just in a dream. I promise, I’ll do my best to help with whatever problem you have.” She stared up at him with tears in her eyes “Please. I-I don’t want to see you turn into Night-Terror Knight again.”

Artemis stared at the beautiful, selfless mare next to him, who saved and helped him multiple times. “Twilight . . . Thank You”. He drew her into a tight hug, before burying his face in her neck “I promise”.

They laid like that for what felt like hours before the night’s chill started to get to them so they decided to head back to the castle.

Chapter 12

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 13

The three of them were walking out of the dining room, when they were approached by a pair of Day Guards. “Your Highnesses, court is about to start.”

Celestia looked at them “It will be just me leading court today. My brother and Twilight will be in the library.”

The guards shifted nervously “With all due respect, your highnesses, the petitioners are demanding that Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight Sparkle be present in court today.

With matching sighs, Artemis and Twilight headed towards the throne room, followed by Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang. Celestia could do little else but follow them, followed by a pair of Day Guards.

Celestia asked Artemis and Twilight to wait outside of the throne room, in case they were not really needed in court. She entered by herself to find the throne room packed. “Good Morning, my little ponies. My brother and Twilight plan to spend the day working on the legal requests brought up in yesterday’s court.”

“Good Morning, princess” responded everypony in the room. The assembled ponies then looked at each other before one of them stepped forward. “With all due respect, Princess Celestia, we humbly request-“

“Demand!” shouted one of the ponies in the crowd

“- the presence of Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight Sparkle.” He finished

At that, the doors to the throne room opened, catching the attention of everypony inside. They looked to the doorway to see Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight Sparkle standing side-by-side. Before either alicorn could say anything, they were greeted by a thunderous cheer. Caught completely off guard, all they could do was stare. It took them a few moments to get over the shock and step into the room.

The pony that had spoken for all of the others turned to them “Good morning, Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight. My name is Arctic Breeze. I apologize for interrupting your plans for the day. The reason we demanded your presences in court today is two-fold. First of all, Prince Artemis, we wanted to see you so that we could confirm for ourselves that you are yourself and not on the moon. The second thing we would like to confirm is the rumor that you, my prince, are in a relationship with Princess Twilight Sparkle.”

Artemis stared at Arctic Breeze for a moment “Thank you for your concern. As you can see, I am just fine and have not been sent to the moon. As for the rumor you spoke of, it is no rumor. I am, indeed, courting Twilight.”

Twilight stepped forward “Before, you ask, I will confirm all three of the stories that were printed in this morning’s paper. The pictures are all real as well.”

The throne room erupted in cheers. Through the cheers, shouts of “I knew it!”, “I told you!”, and “Yes, it’s about time!” could be heard.

Twilight tilted her head “Which one of you said “It’s about time”?”

The crowd parted to reveal two unicorns.

Twilight’s ears perked up and she took off running towards them “Mom, Dad!” as she tackled them in a hug.

“Sorry, Twilight, we can’t stay long. We just wanted to confirm the rumors for ourselves and make something clear.”

“What’s that, Mom?”

“Twilight and Prince Artemis, we expect to see you at our house for dinner tonight. Prince or not, we need to meet the pony who stole our little girl’s heart.” Twilight Velvet held up a hoof as her daughter looked like she was going to protest “We did the same thing with your brother and Cadance. Now, it’s your turn.”

“Mom-” Twilight started, face red, before she was cut off by Artemis as he walked towards them.

“Mr. and Mrs. Sparkle, I cannot say how long court will last, but we will be there as soon as it ends.”

Twilight gave her mother a glare, face still bright red “You did not have to do this in the middle of court. You couldn’t have sent a message or come during the lunch break? I know that’s what you did with Shiny and Cadance.”

Twilight Velvet’s eyes widened before she looked down sheepishly while Night Light laughed “You know how she is when an idea gets into her head. Stopping her was never going to happen. Well, we’ll see the two of you tonight.” He led his wife out of the throne room.

Artemis nuzzled Twilight “Is she always like that?”

Twilight sighed “Yes. She gets an idea in her head and just charges forward. If it involves me or Shining Armor, it doesn’t matter who she’s dealing with or the possibility that they might already have plans.”

Artemis looked at her “Did you have plans for tonight?”

Twilight sighed again and nodded “I was going to surprise you with something, but I guess that will have to wait. And no, I will not tell you what it is.”

Artemis hugged her “Whatever it is, we can postpone it until tomorrow night.”

Twilight smiled “Okay. You’ll like it, I promise.”

Artemis looked up at the crowd of ponies “I’m sorry about that. We can get on with the petitions.” With that, he and Twilight walked up to Celestia and sat next to her as she sat on the throne.

Arctic Breeze smiled “It’s alright, Prince Artemis. We all understand what just happened.” He shook his head “Parents will be parents, even if their children are royalty.” The rest of the ponies in the throne room laughed.

Another pony in the room stepped forward “Good morning, your highnesses. My name is Ice Blossom. First of all, I would like to formally thank Princess Twilight Sparkle for her actions of two nights ago that saved Prince Artemis. Secondly, I would like to congratulate the new couple of Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight Sparkle.” She paused and frowned “Unfortunately, the third topic is much less pleasant. Blueblood. What will happen to him for the horrible acts he committed? Namely, enraging our prince, with the goal of returning him to his Nightmare form and having him permanently banished back to the moon.”

Celestia spoke up, noticing Artemis’ wince and Twilight’s frown. “He and his conspirators have been imprisoned in the Royal Dungeons and are awaiting trial. They stand accused of treason and conspiracy against the crown.”

Several ponies shouted at once.

“Why put him on trial? His plan has already been proven to exist!”

“Yeah, if it wasn’t for Princess Twilight’s actions, we wouldn’t have Prince Artemis here right now!”

“That’s right! He would either be Night-Terror Knight or banished to the moon!”

“Blueblood cannot be allowed to get away with that!”

Celestia stood and stepped forward “Neither he nor any of his conspirators will be getting away with anything. They will be put on trial because they need to be punished via our legal system. This will also show any others that may have similar plans that these actions will not be tolerated and will be dealt with harshly.”

“Very well” Ice Blossom replied “In that case, we request that the trial be a public one. We want to have a say in what happens to the ponies that threatened our prince.”

Artemis’ eyes widened

Celestia nodded “That can be arranged, as long as the legal process is followed properly.”

Ice Blossom nodded as well “The next part of our petition is as follows. As per Princess Twilight’s decree, Night Court was cancelled for the last two nights and is scheduled to restart tonight. We have gotten together and have decided that we would like you to push the cancellation of Night Court out for another week, starting today. We want Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight to get a proper start on their courtship. One week from tomorrow, next Tuesday night, we will return for Night Court.”

Celestia nodded again “That too, can be arranged, and I would be happy to see to it personally. Is there anything else to your petition?

Ice Blossom smiled “There is one last part. We, as a group, have decided that we want Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight Sparkle to leave Canterlot for the week. We believe that Prince Artemis will not be able to properly relax in a location where such a stressful event has happened, so recently. We know that our prince is welcome and loved in Ponyville. Therefore, we would like him to stay there for the week.”

Artemis could do nothing but stare at Ice Blossom.

Twilight saw this and smiled “We will be staying in Canterlot today and visiting my parents tonight. Tomorrow morning, we will head for Ponyville. I would be happy to have him stay with me at my castle.”

Celestia opened her mouth but was cut off by everypony in the throne room cheering.

“Thank you, Princess Twilight” said Ice Blossom before both she and Arctic Breeze bowed.

Celestia got a mischievous smile on her face as she summoned a scroll and a quill. She quickly wrote a letter and sent it to Spike.

Meanwhile, Twilight turned to Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang. “I promise that Artemis will be safe in Ponyville, as there is nopony there that would want to harm him.” She took note of the worry present on both of their faces. ”However, if you wish to ensure the safety of your prince, the two of you are welcome to come as well.”

They both smiled and Silver Shadow bowed. “We would be honored to, princess. Thank you for allowing us to accompany the two of you. After the events of two nights ago, it is imperative that we see to the safety of our prince.”

Meanwhile, in Ponyville, the other five Elements of Harmony had gathered in Twilight’s Castle of Friendship. Mayor Mare was also there.

“Spike,” Mayor Mare began “is there any word on Princess Twilight’s return?”

“Yeah!” shouted Rainbow, right in Spike’s face “Princess Celestia said that Twilight would only be in Canterlot for two days. She should be back by now!”

Spike backed up and was about to answer, when he burped out a flash of green fire. The fire turned into a scroll that he caught, opened and started to read.

“Well?” questioned the girls

“It’s from Princess Celestia.” replied Spike

“We know that, Sugarcube.” Applejack said “What’s she say?”

“Twilight will be visiting her parents today and tonight. Tomorrow morning, she and Prince Artemis will be coming to Ponyville. He will be staying here in Twi’s castle with her for a week.” responded Spike as he looked at the bottom of the scroll “Pinkie, Princess Celestia says that she wants you to throw a party for Prince Artemis, not tomorrow, but Wednesday.”

“Aw, why do I have to wait that long?” Pinkie pouted

“Princess Celestia says that she wants Twilight and Prince Artemis to relax tomorrow,” answered Spike, looking over the scroll again “and that we are not to ask Prince Artemis about what happened. Twilight will explain it.”

The girls and Mayor Mare looked at each other, confused.

“What is that supposed to mean, darling?” asked Rarity

Spike shrugged “That’s all it says. We’ll see Twi and Prince Artemis tomorrow, probably around noon.”

After a pause Applejack cleared her throat “Well, Ah guess that the only thing we can do is wait for tomorrow. Ah know ah will be here early. Ah want to bring those apple fritters that Twi likes so much. Ah think ah’m gonna bring extra, maybe the prince will want to try some.”

The other girls and Mayor Mare agreed, and left to get things ready for Twilight’s return and Prince Artemis’ visit.

Back in Canterlot, the throne room was now practically empty. The petitioners had decided to leave, happy that the prince and princesses had agreed to their petition.

Celestia, Artemis, and Twilight looked at each other before Celestia turned to her guards. “Where are the rest of the petitioners?”

One of the Day Guards turned to her “There are no more, princess. The pony named Arctic Breeze told us that there would be no more petitioners until tomorrow.”

Celestia paused “I see.” She turned to Artemis and Twilight “Why don’t we eat lunch before you two head out to visit Twilight’s parents?”

They both nodded.

Artemis turned to Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang. “Get some rest, both of you. The two of you have tonight off, in preparation for the trip to Ponyville tomorrow morning. Silver Shadow, before you begin your personal preparations, be sure to make the necessary arrangements so that the Night Guard shift for Canterlot is taken care of.”

Silver Shadow and Midnight bowed “Of course, your highness.”

The three alicorns headed to the kitchen.

There, Apple Crunch looked up “Welcome, your highnesses. What would you like for lunch?”

Twilight smiled “A daisy and daffodil sandwich and a fruit salad.”

Celestia said “A lettuce and tomato sandwich and a slice of red velvet cake.”

Artemis paused in thought “Vegetable soup and a side salad.”

Apple Crunch bowed “Right away, your highnesses.”

Ten minutes later, the chefs came in with their meals.

They each dug into their meals. After they were done, Celesta spoke up “You two had better get going. You don’t want your parents to think you are avoiding them, Twilight.”

Twilight nodded and sighed “Let’s get this over with.”

Artemis and Twilight headed to the nearest balcony and took off. They flew to Canterlot and landed in front of Twilight’s childhood home.

Chapter 14

Author's Note

Okay People and Ponies,

I want to get this out there before anyone starts to complain.

They are not being mean or out of character, they are being parents.

This story has an AU tag. I am going to deviate a bit from the show, other than the male Luna.

Chapter 14

They were about to knock on the door, when it opened to reveal Night Light. “Come in, both of you.”

“Thanks, Dad” said Twilight as she and Artemis walked into the house. “Sorry, we are a little late. Celestia wanted us to eat lunch with her before we left the castle.”

“No problem, Twilight” Her father replied “Velvet, they’re here!”

“Just a moment!” came the reply from further into the house. A few moments later, the door opened and Twilight Velvet entered the living room carrying four glasses and a pitcher of lemonade. “Hi, Twilight and welcome, Prince Artemis”

“Just Artemis, please. There is no need for titles here. And thank you” replied Artemis as he and Twilight sat down together on the couch.

Twilight Velvet and Night Light nodded, sat on a love-seat opposite of them and looked at each other.

“Just get it over with” complained Twilight

Artemis looked at her in confusion

Twilight Velvet and Night Light laughed “Never could put one past you, Twily.” She looked at Artemis “Normally, we would ask the usual “What are your intentions with our daughter?” question but I think we can skip that one. However, I have a different question that I want to ask you.”

“Yes, Mrs. Sparkle?” asked Artemis

“First of all, if we are allowed to be informal with you, then the same applies to you addressing us. Please call me Velvet and my husband Night or Night Light.”

“Very well, Velvet. What is your question?” responded Artemis

Velvet nodded “There are hundreds, make that thousands, of eligible mares in Equestria. What made you chose our daughter?”

Artemis paused, glancing at Twilight “For me, it started almost four years ago, the night I returned.”

Twilight looked at him “What do you mean?”

Artemis turned to her “What do you remember about the first time you used the Elements of Harmony?”

Twilight tilted her head thoughtfully “In all honesty, at first, it was just a huge amount of magic and I had to struggle not to be overwhelmed. Then, something strange happened.”

Velvet looked confused “What was that?”

“Well, the girls told me that my eyes shone with a bright white light, but that’s not what I saw.” Twilight began “To me, I suddenly saw things in different colors. At first, everything was pitch black but then, I saw something else.”

Artemis had a very small smile on his face “What was it that you saw?”

Twilight looked off into the distance “This may sound weird, but I saw a deep, almost midnight, blue. It was almost swallowed up by the black around it. I could tell that the black part was pure evil, but the blue part seemed pure and innocent. Somehow, I knew it had to be protected. I didn’t have much time, so I surrounded it with a barrier as quickly as I could. I think I managed it just before the Elements hit because the next thing I saw was a rainbow.” She paused “Why do you ask?”

Artemis faced her completely “The black you described was the evil soul of Night-Terror Knight, before the Elements purified him.”

Twilight sucked in a breath “And the blue?”

Artemis’ smile grew “That was my soul. You could have destroyed both of us or sent us back to the moon but you didn’t do either.” Tears came to his eyes. “The Elements of Harmony saved my life. But you, Twilight, were responsible for saving my soul.”

He turned back to Twilight’s parents “Things moved rather fast right after my return and cleansing by the Elements. Almost immediately, Celestia appeared and I was distracted by seeing my sister for the first time in a thousand years. It wasn’t until Nightmare Night that I was able to go back to Ponyville. At that time, Twilight was the only one that was not afraid of me and didn’t call me Night-Terror Knight. She helped me connect with the ponies of Ponyville and became my first and only close friend in all of Equestria.”

“If somepony did all of that for you, not to mention what happened two days ago, wouldn’t you love them?” He asked as he looked Velvet in the eye, with tears still in his own. “Nopony else, including my sister, has even come close to what Twilight has done for me, all without asking for anything in return. That, Velvet, is why I chose your daughter.”

“O-oh my, I had no idea” was all that Velvet could say.

“Wow” said a wide-eyed Night Light.

They looked on as Twilight snuggled closer to Artemis and nuzzled into his neck, using her magic to dry his eyes.

He smiled, wrapped a wing around her and returned her nuzzle.

Night Light cleared his throat, catching the attention of Artemis and Twilight “Artemis, I will not challenge you or your decision to court our daughter. Especially since she clearly cares for you as well.” He stood and faced Artemis directly. “However, there is one thing I must make clear. If you hurt our daughter . . . “

Much to the surprise of both Twilight Velvet and Night Light, Artemis laughed. “If that were to ever happen, and I’ll do my best to see that it doesn’t, we shall see if there is anything left once Twilight, Celestia, Cadance, and Shining Armor get done with me. If there is, you are welcome to take out your anger on whatever is left.”

That was not the answer that he had been expecting so Night Light just stared.

Velvet smiled “In that case, I’ll make it official. Artemis, welcome to the family and take care of our little girl.

Artemis stared at her for a moment before he smiled “Thank you, I plan on it.”

All four of the ponies in the room blinked as a sound startled them. They all looked to Twilight, who was looking at her stomach.

Velvet smiled “That conversation took much longer than I expected. I’ll go put the vegetable casserole in the oven.”

Twilight started to get up “Do you want help, Mom?”

Velvet smiled “No, sweetie, you stay there and relax. If the story going around about the events of two nights ago is true, you both need and deserve a break.”

“Actually, Mom, Artemis and I are going to Ponyville in the morning. He will be staying with me for a week-long vacation.” Twilight replied

The answer to that came from both Velvet and Night Light.

“Good”

Night Light suddenly smiled, making Twilight rather nervous. He lit his horn and floated a book from a nearby bookcase towards him. Twilight saw which book it was and immediately turned bright red. “Dad, do you have to?"

Artemis looked at her in confusion but before he could ask, Night Light laughed.

“Yes, Twilight” he said “It’s a parents job to embarrass their children. We didn’t get a chance to do this with your brother before he married Cadance. We are going to make up for that by embarrassing you twice as much.”

“Fine” Twilight sighed “But I’m going to kill Shiny for putting me through this.”

Night Light opened his mouth, but the response came from Velvet. “Come on, Sweetie. It won’t be that bad.”

They were interrupted by laughter. The three of them turned to find that Artemis had pulled the book towards him and opened it. It turned out to be a photo album of Twilight’s foalhood. The picture that he was looking at was one from when she was very young, still in diapers. She was also covered in mud and smiling up at the camera.

Over the next couple of hours that it took for the vegetable casserole to cook, Velvet and Night Light showed Artemis the pictures and took great joy in telling him the stories attached to each one, in the most embarrassing way possible. Twilight spent that time laying on the couch, her face bright red and buried in her hooves.

When the timer went off, it was Twilight who stood and went into the kitchen. Once there, she took the casserole out of the over and put it on the dining table. Then, she got a pitcher out of the cabinet and made iced tea. After that, she got out the plates, glasses and silverware needed to set the table. She was just finishing when the laughter from the living room stopped.

She looked up as Artemis and her parents entered the room.

“Twily, I told you that I would take care of dinner.” Velvet told her “You should be relaxing.”

Twilight said nothing. Instead, she cut and served four servings of the casserole. Then she poured four glasses of iced tea as she sat down. Artemis sat next to her and her parents sat across from them.

Throughout the meal, Twilight said very little. When she did speak, it was to Artemis.

After the meal was over, Twilight nudged Artemis towards the living room. “Go finish the book and stories. I’ve got this.”

“Are you sure?” he asked her

Twilight nodded and carried the dishes to the sink.

Artemis gave her one last look over his shoulder as he headed back to the living room, followed by her parents. A few minutes later, she heard the laughter start up again.

After washing the dishes and laying them out on the drying mat, Twilight decided she wanted a few minutes of fresh air. She headed out to the backyard. There, she noticed that the plants had not been watered yet. Smiling slightly, she set about completing her foalhood chore. Once finished, she headed back inside.

She followed the laughter into the living room. Once there, she stopped in the doorway. Velvet paused to catch her breath before finishing the story. The three of them paused when they heard a loud gasp.

Artemis, Velvet and Night Light turned to the doorway to find Twilight standing there with tears in her eyes. She didn’t say anything and went upstairs.

Artemis was thoroughly confused so he looked at Twilight’s parents.

For a moment, they were just as confused. Then Velvet gasped “Oh, no”

Night Light looked at her “What is it, dear?”

Velvet looked at him “This is that story. The one that Twilight and Shining Armor made us compromise on. They agreed to let us keep the picture as long as we promised that we would never mention it or tell the story to anypony.”

Night Light grew pale and echoed his wife “Oh, no” He stood and went upstairs. After a few minutes, he came back down looking troubled. “She’s in her room.”

Velvet looked up “How is she?”

Night Light shook his head “I don’t know. She sealed the room, so I can’t enter and won’t answer me. I used to be able to break her seal and get in anyway. Now that she’s an alicorn, her magic is too powerful for me to break through.”

A sudden movement made them both turn. They saw Artemis stand, a determined look on his face. He didn’t say anything but went upstairs himself. Curious, they both followed. Once upstairs, he looked around and saw a door sealed with Twilight’s magenta magic. He went over and touched his horn to the door to analyze the magic. As he did, he heard her voice.

“What is it?”

“Twilight, can I come in?”

There was a pause “As long as it’s only you. Just walk right through and don’t worry about the door.”

He pulled his horn from her magic and turned to her parents. “She’s letting me in. I will try to calm her.” Without waiting for a response, he turned back to the door and walked straight through it and her magic. As soon as he was through, he lit his horn.

Outside Twilight’s room, her parents jumped as a sphere of dark blue magic appeared right in front of them. As they looked at it, they noticed that they could see something inside of it. They quickly realized that Artemis was allowing them to see and hear what was going on inside Twilight’s room.

His spell complete, Artemis turned his attention to Twilight. He found her laying on a small bed that was positioned against the wall on one side with the head right under a window. She was looking at him with tears running down her face.

“I thought you were downstairs with my parents. Did something happen?”

He stared at her “Your parents realized that you are upset. Your father tried to come in but couldn’t get past your magic. They are both outside the door. Can they come in as well?”

Twilight shook her head “Not right now.”

Artemis used his magic to create a violet cushion on the floor in the center of the room that was the size of an area rug. Then he lifted her in his magic as he laid down on the cushion. He gently placed her next to him and put a wing over her. “Twilight, talk to me. Why are you so upset? The story wasn’t that bad.”

Twilight shook her head again “It’s not about the story. That story was from when we were small. I wasn’t even Celestia’s student yet. It was really important to both of us back then, but I doubt either of us cares about it now. I’m sure we would have allowed them to share it, as long as they asked both of us first. Hay, it’s possible that I might have been the one to tell you myself one day.”

Chapter 15

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 16

Artemis looked around as he backed up a couple of steps “Night? Is that you?” All around him, there was nothing but darkness.

“Yes, Artemis. I would like to speak with you face-to-face, so I entered your dream.”

Artemis turned around to see Night-Terror Knight standing there, smiling. The weird part was that the smile was not mocking or evil. It was actually a genuine smile. He was about to comment on that but he stopped. Instead, he decided that he wanted to do something about their surroundings.

He closed his eyes and lit his horn.

Night-Terror Knight’s eyes widened as the darkness faded. It was soon replaced by a moonlit night and they were both standing in a grassy field.

Artemis opened his eyes and turned to his past self “What did you want to talk about?”

Night-Terror Knight was about to reply when he noticed that Artemis was nervous. Well, the last time we spoke, it was right before I took over his body and power. Then I attacked Celestia and got us both sent to the moon. I suppose it’s natural that he is a bit nervous. I should do something about that first. What is the best way to calm him? He paused as something occurred to him. Yes that might work. He looked at Artemis “One moment, please. I’ll be right back.”

Artemis was startled as his Nightmare form disappeared.

Meanwhile, Twilight was dreaming that she was in the library of her castle. She heard the door open and turned to see Night-Terror Knight standing there, looking at her.

Well, this is unusual, even for a dream. At least he isn’t attacking. “Hello. Why are you here?”

“Would you be willing to come with me? This may sound strange, but I need your help.”

Yup, definitely unusual. “Before I say yes or no to your request, I must ask why. What is it that you need my help with?”

“I am trying to talk to Artemis in his dream. However, he is too nervous for a proper conversation. I would like you to come with me because I believe that having you there will calm him. There is no reason that you cannot hear what I have to say to him.”

This dream keeps getting weirder and weirder. She tilted her head thoughtfully “Do you swear that you have no intention, and will not try, to harm and/or take possession of either Artemis or myself?”

He nodded, understanding her concern “Of course. I have no wish to do either of those things.”

She nodded as well and stood “Very well, I will come with you. However, should you break that promise, I will not hold back.” She walked over to him as his horn glowed and they both disappeared.

Artemis jumped as Night-Terror Knight reappeared. His eyes widened as he saw Twilight standing next to him. He glared at his Nightmare form and was about to demand that she be released.

Before he could say a word, she left Night-Terror Knight’s side and walked over to him.

He sighed in relief “What is going on?”

Twilight nuzzled Artemis and kissed him lightly on the cheek. “He entered my dream and told me that he wants to talk to you but thinks that you are too nervous to hold a proper conversation. He wants me here to keep you calm so that the two of you can talk. I don’t know what he wants to talk about but he said it’s OK if I hear whatever it is.” She paused, then used her magic to gently pull his head down and whispered into his ear “I made him promise that he will not harm or take possession of either of us and I plan to hold him to it.”

She smiled at Artemis before turning to face Night-Terror Knight. Then she moved so that she was standing next to Artemis before laying down. Artemis lay down next to her and covered her with a wing, making sure she stayed close to him.

Surprisingly, Night-Terror Knight lay down opposite of them. Before he could say anything, Twilight spoke up.

“Is there another name you wish to be called? Having to say the whole “Night-Terror Knight” every time we want to say anything to you will get really old well before this conversation is done.”

He nodded “Night is fine”

Twilight said “In that case, Twilight is fine as well.” She paused “Now then, Night, you are the one that brought the three of us into the same dream to talk. Why don’t you start things off?” She noticed Artemis shiver a little and snuggled closer to his side.

He nodded again “I would like to start with an apology to Artemis. I did not mean to scare you, I merely wish to talk.”

Artemis’ eyes widened and he nodded but he didn’t say anything.

“The first reason I wanted to talk to you is simple. A lot happened over the last couple of days. I wanted to make sure you were doing alright.”

At that, both Twilight and Artemis just stared

“It certainly seems that he has been purified, but this personality change is just bizarre. Are we sure we’re dealing with the same pony?” She muttered as she shook her head “It’s going to take some getting used to.”

Artemis nodded in agreement “If you think that is strange, try having him in your head.”

“No thanks” she quickly replied

Surprised, Artemis stared at her for a moment before he burst out laughing.

Night’s eyes widened before he started laughing as well, gaining more stares from the other two. “I’m glad I thought to bring you into this conversation, Twilight. He would never be this relaxed if you weren’t here. It appears that he is just fine, though you probably have a lot to do with that.”

Twilight shook her head “I haven’t done anything special.”

Artemis snorted

Night just stared at her before turning to Artemis “Do you want to tell her or should I?”

“Go ahead”

Night nodded and turned back to Twilight “You do realize that you were the only one to come to his aid, right? And you weren’t even there to see what angered him so much. It would have been one thing if you were visiting Canterlot and came running. Instead, you somehow sensed the trouble from Ponyville and teleported in to help.”

Twilight shrugged “That’s called “being a good friend”. Doing whatever I can to help when a problem comes up. Again, nothing special.”

Artemis nuzzled her “To you, perhaps. There were dozens of ponies in that room, including my sister. None of them even tried to help me. Celestia did come running into the room when she sensed the trouble but she just stared in horror while everypony else ran around screaming.”

He turned to fully face her “You could have brought your friends and used the Elements of Harmony on me, sending me back to the moon.”

Twilight gasped in horror “I never would have done that!”

Artemis smiled “Exactly. You came to face the threat, but did it in a way that also saved me. Then you went out of your way to understand why I was upset. Celestia went to bed after things calmed down, but you tried to stay up and calm me down. By the end of that night, you were so exhausted that you didn’t even have the energy to get into a bed. Instead, you passed out, laying against me out on my balcony.”

Night just stared at them, eyes wide.

Twilight blushed “I didn’t mean to . . .”

Artemis nuzzled her again “I know. That actually makes it better.”

Twilight looked up in confusion “Huh?”

Artemis tightened his wing around her “The fact that you are able to let yourself fall asleep anywhere near me, let alone laying against me, means that you truly trust me.”

“Of course I trust you. Why wouldn’t I?” asked Twilight, even more confused

“No one else does, not to that extent.” He replied “Even Celestia will not allow herself to fall asleep in the same room as me unless I fall asleep first. Subconsciously, she cannot allow herself to completely relax around me. She refuses to admit it, but it’s true. Honestly, you should have the same reaction.”

Twilight stared, now thoroughly confused “Why is that?”

Night spoke up “I think I can answer that one. You are one of only two ponies alive that can honestly say that you have faced me in single combat and survived. The other is Celestia. As a result of that night, you should be terrified of both me and Artemis. Yet, you are not afraid of either of us.”

Twilight tilted her head thoughtfully “In all honestly, at first I was a little scared and intimidated. However, that lasted maybe five minutes. I saw a pony that needed help fitting in. I had been in that position, myself, not long before that. So I knew I had to help. It was then that I realized that there was no reason for me to be afraid of you. Instead, I saw a pony in need of a friend.”

Artemis pulled her closer and nuzzled into her neck. He stayed like that for a moment before pulling back to look at her. “You may think that you haven’t done anything special, but what you have done means everything to me.”

Night smiled “That brings me to the second reason that I wanted to talk to you, Artemis. This mare is very special. You had better take extremely good care of her.” Before Artemis could respond, Night turned to Twilight. “The last topic is for you, Twilight.”

She turned to him “Yes?”

Night got a very serious expression on his face as he looked over at her “I have known Artemis for a long time and have seen much of what he has been through. He does not need or deserve any more pain in his life. DO NOT hurt him.”

Twilight smiled “I won’t”

“Good. If you do, I will personally see to it that every night will be turned into your own personal bit of Tartarus. And no, that is not a threat.”

Artemis watched the exchange in shock. He wasn’t sure what surprised him more. That his Nightmare form, who had made him miserable for a thousand years, was suddenly acting like a protective older brother. Or that Twilight was actually going along with it. He was broken from his thoughts by a comment from Twilight.

“Oh no” Twilight suddenly looked worried “I’m in trouble.”

Artemis looked puzzled “What’s wrong?”

She looked at him “Rarity”

“What about her?” asked a still puzzled Artemis

“She is going to be so mad at me.”

“Why would she be mad at you?”

Twilight looked at Artemis “She told me and the rest of the girls that she has always dreamed of marrying a prince. For the longest time, the only available one was Blueblood. Then you came along. She has had a crush on you almost as long as I have. Neither of us kept it a secret from each other or the rest of the girls. However, since it has always been her dream to marry into royalty, she has called first dibs on dating you. She is going to accuse me of stealing you away from her.”

Suddenly, Twilight wasn’t sure who was laughing louder, Artemis or Night. She looked from one to the other, confused. “What’s so funny?”

Night was able to speak first “Rarity. That is the one who bears the Element of Generosity, correct?”

Twilight and Artemis nodded and Night went back to his laughter.

Artemis looked at him for a moment before turning back to Twilight. “Rarity is a nice mare, but I have no interest in her at all. Twilight, I have admired you since you saved my soul and I have wanted to be with you for about three years now. You are the only one I want to be with and I will make sure all of your friends know that.”

Twilight was about to respond when Artemis looked up into the sky. “It is time for me to lower the moon.”

Twilight looked at Night “Can you please allow us to wake up?”

Night nodded and lit his horn

The last thing he heard was Twilight’s voice “Thank you”

Artemis and Twilight woke up at the same time.

“Oh, thank goodness! I was getting worried”

They both turned to see Celestia standing next to the bed with a worried look on her face.

“The moon should have been lowered five minutes ago. You need to be more careful when you two have your fun.” She paused, surprised when neither of them blushed at all at her teasing.

Instead, they looked at each other and nodded. Artemis lit his horn and lowered the moon and stars.

Celestia stepped up next to him and raised the sun. Then she turned to the two of them. “What is it? Is something wrong?”

“No,” Twilight said slowly “We just had a rather strange shared dream. We were joined by one other pony.”

“What happened? Who was it? Are either of you hurt?”

“No, we are not hurt. We will tell you about the dream, but you should sit down first. You also must promise that you will not interrupt.”

Celestia sat down and started to open her mouth, when she was interrupted by Twilight.

“I mean it, Celestia. You interrupt us even once before we finish telling you everything, and I’m using my magic to keep your mouth shut. This is important.”

Celestia’s eyes widened but she shut her mouth and nodded.

Artemis and Twilight each started with Night-Terror Knight’s appearance in their dreams and how he made it so that the three of them were in Artemis’ dream. Then they took turns relaying the rest of it. To ease Celestia’s mind, they made sure that they told her everything that was said as well as any impressions they got from the dream.

True to her word, Celestia did not say anything until she was sure that they had told her everything. Only then did she open her mouth.

“First of all, thank you for telling me about this. Ordinarily, I would be very worried that he is contacting you again, little brother. However, for now at least, I am willing to believe your impression of him. It does seem like he has changed. I agree with you, Twilight, that the personality change is a bit bizarre. I also agree with your impression, Artemis. He currently seems to be acting like a protective older brother. And yes, that is more than a little weird.”

“However, under no circumstances are either of you to tell anyone else about this.”

Twilight and Artemis nodded

“Second, yes, I did find myself unable to move when I saw you returning to your Nightmare form, much to my shame. Some big sister I am.” She looked down at the floor. “My little brother needed help and, once again, I couldn’t do anything.” She looked up at Artemis with tears in her eyes “You are also right that I cannot shake my fear of or completely relax around, you. It doesn’t matter how hard I try. I can’t shake the fear that I will have to watch you turn back into Night-Terror Knight and I will have to banish you again. Perhaps that is why I could do nothing but watch the other night. I can’t bear to lose you again.”

Artemis walked over and nuzzled Celestia “You won’t lose me ever again, sister. I promise.” He dried her tears with the tip of a wing. “Let’s go eat breakfast.”

Celestia nodded and stood. She walked over to the door with Artemis but stopped as she realized that Twilight had not come with them. The siblings turned to see her sitting at the window, looking out at the sunrise.

Chapter 17

“Twilight?” Celestia asked “Are you coming?”

Not turning her gaze from the sunrise, Twilight shook her head “No. It is important that you two talk about this. It is equally important that it is just the two of you there when you do so. As such, I have no part in this particular conversation and don’t belong in it. Don’t worry about me. I’ll ask a servant to bring me something to eat in a bit.”

Celestia and Artemis looked at each other and lit their horns, only to find that Twilight had surrounded herself in her magic.

“I mean it.” she said “Go.”

Artemis paused “If you’re sure. I’ll be back soon.”

Twilight nodded, still looking outside.

As Celestia and Artemis walked out of his room, the Night Guards posted at the door looked at each other in confusion. However, it was their job to protect their prince, so they fell into step and followed the royal siblings.

As they arrived in the dining room, they saw Apple Crunch, Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang waiting for them.

The three of them looked around for a moment before Silver Shadow stepped forward. “Good Morning, your highnesses. Where is Princess Twilight?”

Artemis looked over at him “She is in my personal chambers.”

Midnight Fang stepped forward as well “Would you like us to go get her, my prince?”

Artemis shook his head “Something has come up that my sister and I must speak about. Twilight has insisted that Celestia and I discuss it alone and has elected to eat breakfast in my chambers.”

Celestia looked at Apple Crunch “Pancakes and fruit for myself and my brother. Please make Twilight’s favorite breakfast for her.” She then looked to Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang. “Once it is ready, please take it to her.”

Artemis joined in “I agree. After that, make sure you stay with her, no matter what she says.”

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang both widened their eyes before bowing. “Of course, your highnesses.”

Celestia and Artemis sat down and waited.

Soon, Apple Crunch came into the room with a couple of chefs behind him. He gave Silver Shadow a covered tray. “Fried Oatmeal Cakes drizzled with honey, for Princess Twilight. I also included a mug of hot chocolate and a bowl of fruit.”

Silver Shadow passed the tray to Midnight Fang and thanked Apple Crunch before he turned to Artemis. “Should we bring Princess Twilight to meet you somewhere after she eats, your highness?”

Artemis shook his head “I will head back to my chambers after I’m done here.”

“Yes, your highness.” With that, they walked out of the room.

Celestia looked at her guards as well as Artemis’ “Please wait outside of the room until we tell you to come in.” she looked at Apple Crunch “The same applies to you and the other chefs.”

“Of course, princess” came as a chorus from all of those she addressed

Twilight was startled as a knock sounded on the door. She turned to it “Yes?”

The door opened to reveal Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang. They walked into the room with a tray. Silver Shadow bowed “Princess Celestia ordered breakfast for you, princess, and asked that we bring it to you.”

“I see. Thank you. You can go back to Artemis now.”

They looked at each other

“Actually, princess,” said Midnight Fang “Prince Artemis specifically told us to stay here with you, no matter what you tell us.”

Twilight’s eyes widened “Oh. Okay.” She shook her head and turned to her breakfast.

Back in the dining room, Artemis and Celestia were just finishing their breakfasts. They looked at each other for a moment before Celestia lit her horn and cast a soundproofing spell on the room. Then they turned to each other.

“I’m sorry, Artemis” Celestia whispered, tears welling up in her eyes “I know you asked me about it a while ago. I didn’t mean to lie to you, I just couldn’t bring myself to admit that I am afraid of you. I don’t think I can bear it if I were to lose you again.”

Artemis moved next to his sister and drew her into a hug. He was slightly smaller than her, so the gesture was a little awkward, but comforting nonetheless. “I am more than a little upset that you lied to me, sister, I’m not going to lie. And it is neither easy nor comfortable to know that my only sister is afraid of me. However, I promise you that you won’t lose me ever again.”

She looked at him “Yes, I will. He took over you just the other night. It’s is clear that he can do so at any time.”

Artemis nuzzled her “You seem to have forgotten something important. Three things, actually. The first is that he has clearly changed since we were both purified by the Elements. Last night, he told Twilight and myself that he has no interest in taking over me. I’m pretty sure that the only reason he did so a few nights ago was that he was even angrier at Blueblood than I was and wanted to do something about it.”

She returned his nuzzle “What is the second thing?”

Artemis smiled “Twilight made Night swear that he will not harm or even try to possess either of us. She told him that if he were to ever break his promise, she will not hold back when she goes against him. I doubt he will try anything.”

Artemis and Celestia were surprised as they heard Night’s voice echo throughout the room. “I won’t. That mare will find a way to kill me and I don’t have a death wish.”

Celestia’s eyes widened and she giggled lightly “And the third?”

Artemis’ smile grew “Twilight and her friends control the Elements now. If, for some reason, the first two fail and I am returned to my Nightmare form, it won’t be for long. Twilight has already promised me that she will do anything she can to keep me here.”

Celestia closed her eyes. “Of course. I forgot that you now mean just as much to her as you do to me, maybe more. She will help me in keeping you safe.”

Artemis’ eyes went wide “I-I mean as much to her as I do to you?”

Celestia let out her first real laugh of the morning. “Of course you do. She has clearly tuned her senses to you or your magic so that she knows when you are in trouble. How else can you explain the fact that you were still turning into your Nightmare form when she arrived? Then there is the fact that she didn’t fly or take the train. She teleported from Ponyville directly to where you were here in the castle. Do you have any idea how much magic it takes to teleport over that distance? I’ve only done it once, and I had to borrow power from the sun.”

Artemis suddenly had to sit down “I-I had no idea”

Celestia hugged him “You are very lucky, little brother. Please, take care of my former Faithful Student.” She looked at him “I will try to work on my fears. I will also do my best to trust you more. But, please remember that I am here for you. You can tell me anything. I don’t care if you wake me up if you need to talk.”

Artemis nodded as he returned her hug “I will, sister.”

Celestia smiled “Let’s go. I want to say goodbye to her and see both of you off. Court can wait.”

She released the spell on the room and they walked out together.

A few minutes later, Artemis opened the door to his room and walked in, looking around for Twilight. He found her lying on his bed, reading one of her new astronomy books, with Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang standing next to the bed. Celestia followed him into the room but stayed by the door as he walked over to his bed.

Twilight looked up as Artemis walked over to the bed. “Artemis? Is everything al-mmph?!” She was suddenly cut off as he pulled her into a kiss and wrapped her in his wings. When he finally pulled back, he was breathing heavily but she was breathless.

She put her head on his chest to keep the room from spinning while she caught her breath. “W-wow” she panted “Where did that come from?” She looked up at him as he nuzzled her.

“Celestia explained exactly what you did for me the other night. Including something I hadn’t noticed.” He whispered

“What do you mean?” she asked quietly, worried that he had found out about what she had done.

“Is it true that you tuned your senses to me or my magic?” he whispered back

Twilight’s eyes went wide and filled with tears, thinking Artemis was angry at her. “I-I’m so sorry, you weren’t supposed to know. I wouldn’t normally do that, it’s just that I was worried about you-” She wasn’t able to get out any more of her apology because he kissed her again to shut her up.

She looked down as the kiss broke and continued “Give me a moment and I’ll cancel the spell.”

“NO!” came his very quick reply “I want you to keep the spell going.”

She looked up in shock “But why-?” she stopped as he pressed his forehead to hers.

“The connection that spell provides is what allowed you to tell that I was in trouble.” he whispered, too choked up to speak any louder “If you hadn’t cast it, it’s quite possible that you would not have been able to help me in time.” He gave her a tight hug “Thank you, Twilight”

She looked up at him, with tears still in her eyes “Y-you’re not mad that I cast it on you without your permission?”

He smiled and nuzzled her again, before wiping away her tears. “Not at all. If you hadn’t, I’d likely be sealed in the moon right now.”

Silver Shadow’s jaw dropped and he just stared at the pony that he was seriously beginning to think of as his princess, just as Prince Artemis was his prince.

He was a bat pony so he could not use magic. However, as Captain of the Night Guard, it was his job to see to the protection of Prince Artemis. To that end, he had read up on the use of magic. As a result, he knew the theory of one pony tuning their senses to the magic of another. The book that he had read said that the spell was immensely difficult, so much so, that it had never been cast. The book was obviously wrong, as it was that spell that had allowed her to save Prince Artemis. So that is how she knew about the trouble here. I wondered about that. She arrived so quickly that I knew there was no way that anypony had sent her a letter requesting help.

Midnight Fang saw the look on Silver Shadow’s face. What’s wrong? He thought as he sent a questioning glance his way.

Silver Shadow gestured to the hallway and followed him out of the room. Once there, he explained what he knew of the spell that Princess Twilight had used.

Midnight Fang’s eyes became as big as saucers “That is how she found out that our prince needed help?!”

Silver Shadow nodded “We are going to have to take very good care of her.”

Midnight Fang nodded as well “No harm shall come to her as long as we are around.”

Celestia heard this exchange and smiled

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang went back into Artemis’ room

There, they saw Artemis and Twilight standing and walking towards the balcony. Celestia, Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang followed.

Artemis suddenly stopped and looked at Twilight. “When did you cast that spell on me in the first place? The last few days are the first time that I have seen you since last Nightmare Night. Any other communication I have had with you has only been through letters.”

Twilight blushed and looked off to the side “When you came to Ponyville this last Nightmare Night. I noticed that you were upset at something and asked you several times throughout the night to tell me about it, but you wouldn’t. You kept saying that you just wanted to have fun. All of Equestria knows what happened the last time you got really upset. That made me worried enough that I decided to take drastic action.”

Artemis laughed “I should have known that you weren’t going to leave it alone.”

Celestia laughed as well “I’m very glad she didn’t. Though, I am confused about that spell. Everything I know about it says that it should work in theory, but no one could get it to work in practice.”

Twilight blushed even brighter “You are right that there is no way that the spell in the book would work. However, I was studying it and figured out what they had done wrong. After that, it was simply a matter of fixing it. The hardest part about the spell now, is how much magic it takes to cast. Not many ponies have enough to do so on their own. In fact, I think that Shining Armor is the only non alicorn that may be able to manage it.”

“Let me get this straight,” Celestia said slowly “you fixed another really old spell?”

Twilight opened her mouth, closed it and just nodded

Celestia shook her head “I’m going to start a book of spells that you have fixed.” She paused “Don’t forget to send me the corrected version of the spell.”

By now, Twilight’s entire face was bright red but she nodded. Every other pony in the room laughed.

Once it had died down and the five of them were on the balcony, Twilight looked at Artemis “How are we going to be travelling?”

Artemis smiled and spread his wings “All four of us have wings, so I thought we would just fly.”

Twilight smiled, nodded and spread hers as well. She looked at the two Night Guards “Is there anything you two need to go get or are we ready to go?”

“Don’t worry, princess. We are ready.” Responded Silver Shadow while Midnight Fang nodded at the spears strapped to their backs and their saddle bags before they both spread their wings.

“Have fun!” Said Celestia “Twilight, you’d better come back next week. You and Artemis owe me a sleepover!”

Twilight and Artemis both laughed as she nodded. I might bring the girls with me. If it’s a sleepover she wants, Pinkie will make sure she gets one. I’ll bring it up to Artemis later. Then, the four of them took to the air and headed towards Ponyville.

The flight was fairly quiet as they just enjoyed the thrill of flying.

As they got close to Ponyville, they saw a large group of ponies waiting for them. All of Ponyville, it turned out. The four of them landed to cheers.

Chapter 18

Rainbow, Pinkie, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy and Spike tackled Twilight in a hug while Pipsqueak, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo did the same to Artemis, much to his surprise.

“Are you really going to be here for a whole week, Prince Artemis?” asked Pipsqueak

Artemis nodded

“YAY!!!” shouted all four of the young ponies as well as Pinkie.

“You had better not be late for your party tomorrow!” she shouted

Twilight tilted her head, puzzled “What party is that, Pinkie?”

Pinkie bounced around Twilight and Artemis “The “Welcome Back to Ponyville” party that Princess Celestia told me to throw for Prince Artemis tomorrow, of course!”

“It’s true, Twi” said Spike “She sent me a letter yesterday.”

Twilight shook her head and raised her voice “Thank all of you for greeting us, but we need to relax for a while. Pinkie, Rainbow, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, Spike and Mayor Mare. I need all of you to come with us. The rest of you, we’ll see you at the party tomorrow.”

Everypony in the crowd nodded “Welcome back, Princess” came as a chorus.

What Twilight and Artemis didn’t notice, was that the crowd didn’t actually go anywhere. They wanted answers and they were willing to wait for them.

The ponies, and dragon, that Twilight had named followed her, Artemis and their bat pony guards into her castle. In the receiving room, they found cushions laid out and a table full of food made by Applejack.

After they had eaten their fill, Rainbow spoke up.

“All right, Twi, what happened?!”

“Rainbow!” shouted the rest of the girls as Twilight looked on.

“What?” Rainbow asked “Celestia said we couldn’t ask Artemis. She never said I couldn’t ask Twi.”

Twilight sighed and shook her head as she lay down in preparation for the long explanation. “Artemis, would you like to go to another room to relax? You don’t need to go through it again.”

Artemis shook his head, lay down next to her and covered her with a wing. “No, I will stay here to help you explain what I have done.”

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang moved to stand behind them.

Everyone else in the room just stared

Twilight looked at each of them individually “Before you ask, I will answer what you are probably thinking. Yes, Artemis and I are dating.”

Rarity looked both hurt and upset “Twilight, how could you do this to me?” she whined

Before Twilight could answer, Artemis spoke up. “She did nothing to you, Rarity. Last night, she told me how you feel. Honestly, though, I fell for Twilight three years ago.” He paused “Yesterday, Twilight’s mother asked me why I chose her daughter. I will tell all of you the same thing I told her.”

The rest of the ponies, aside from Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang, in the room each chose a cushion and laid down. Spike dragged his over to Rarity and settled down next to her.

Artemis cleared his throat “I’m sure you all remember the first time that you used the Elements of Harmony. Do you also remember how Twilight’s eyes shone white?”

The girls nodded

“She tried to explain that she saw pitch black and a little bit of blue. She said something about having to protect the blue. But that doesn’t make sense, why would she have needed to protect a color?” responded Rarity

“Because the colors corresponded to our souls.” Artemis replied “The black was the evil soul of Night-Terror Knight, before the Elements purified us. However, the blue that Twilight saved and protected, was my soul.”

“What?!” exclaimed everyone else in the room, including the Night Guards, looking at Twilight.

Twilight nodded “It wasn’t until yesterday, when Artemis explained what the colors meant, that I fully understood what I had done.”

Artemis nuzzled her “After I first returned, all of the ponies in Equestria, even you girls, were terrified of me and did nothing but scream and cower or run away whenever I tried to approach them. The only exceptions were Celestia, a few of my guards, and Twilight. She went out of her way to help me. That is when we became friends. As time passed, I began to feel more for her but I was afraid to say anything because I feared she would reject me and I would lose my only friend. Then, there is what happened three days/two nights ago. After that, I knew I had to tell her.”

“You said that the Elements purified you both?” Fluttershy asked carefully and quietly.

Artemis nodded “Night-Terror Knight, or Night, as he now likes to be called, is still present within me. Do not worry, he has been purified, just as I have and no longer wishes to cause any trouble.”

“Okay. Ah get all of that and Ah will take your word for it, for now. What Ah don’t get is how Twi knew there was trouble in Canterlot the other day. She was here with us.” Said Applejack as the other girls and Mayor Mare nodded in agreement.

“Do you remember last Nightmare Night?” asked Twilight “How upset Artemis was? Then, how tired I was for the next couple of days?”

The girls nodded

“You told us at the time, that you had cast a very complex spell but you wouldn’t say any more about the spell you had used.” confirmed Rarity

“Well, we all know what happened the last time Artemis got really upset. So, I spent most of the night trying to get him to tell what was bothering him. When he refused, I used the spell I had been researching and just restored, without telling anyone. It links my senses to his magic. That way, if anything happened to him, I would know about it. The main downside to that spell is that it takes an enormous amount of magic to cast. It took two days for me to completely recover from casting it.”

She paused “Three days ago, what I sensed was his magic suddenly disappearing. Naturally, that worried me and I had to go check it out. The link caused by the spell allowed me to sync a teleportation spell to it so that I got sent directly to his last location. In this case, the throne room of Canterlot Castle.” She looked at the girls “What I found was pure chaos. Dozens of ponies were running around, screaming. Celestia was standing off to the side and staring at the center of the room, in horror. I looked to the center of the room, myself, and saw Night-Terror Knight glaring at Blueblood.”

Suddenly, Rainbow was right in Twilight’s face, causing her to rear back a bit. “WHAT?! Why didn’t you get us?! We’re supposed to-“

Just as suddenly, Rainbow found herself thrown back several feet. She righted herself in mid-air and looked back at Twilight.

Twilight, in turn, was looking at the two Night Guards.

They were now standing in front of Twilight and Artemis, wings spread, and glaring at Rainbow.

Twilight smiled “Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang, there is no need to worry. This happens all the time. Rainbow’s heart is in the right place, but she can be impulsive and a bit brash.”

“Very well” responded Silver Shadow

“She had better not try that again.” growled Midnight Fang as they both returned to their places behind Twilight and Artemis.

Twilight looked back at them “I appreciate your concern but I thought Artemis was the one that you two protect like that, not me.”

“He is, my princess.” Replied Silver Shadow “However, we now know the full extent of what you have done for our prince. As well as the fact that we have also been present for everything that has happened over the last few days.”

“Not to mention the fact that you are the one our prince has chosen as his mare.” Continued Midnight Fang “The protection that we provide for him now extends to you as well, my princess.”

They both bowed as Twilight stared, not expecting that answer

“As it should. Twilight, you are my mare and I will make sure you are kept safe.” Artemis put in, tightening his wing around her “I would have asked them to do that soon enough. I am glad they took it upon themselves to begin protecting you.” He looked back at his guards as well. “Though, the ponies and dragon in this room will not cause harm to either of us. You can relax a little.”

The guards both shook their heads “I’m sorry, your highness. We will not relax when there are ponies around that act like that towards the two that we have vowed to protect.” Answered Silver Shadow while Midnight Fang nodded.

Twilight stared for a moment then turned to Artemis “We are not talking them out of it, Artemis.” She looked back at the two guards “Very well, Rainbow will behave herself. Right, Rainbow?”

Rainbow, who had returned to her cushion, nodded. She, and everyone else in the room, were wide eyed and just staring at the Night Guards.

“Anyway, Rainbow, I did not bring you girls with me because I didn’t know what was going on in Canterlot. I didn’t summon you after I got there because there was no time. I needed to contain the threat and calm everypony down.”

Rarity stared “Then, what did you do, darling? How could you have stopped him by yourself?”

“First, I had all of the ponies stop running and move to the edges of the room. Then, I walked to the center of the room, myself. Night responded by launching a bolt of darkness in my direction.” Responded Twilight “He later told me that he did that because he wanted to scare me away so I wouldn’t get hurt.”

Fluttershy squeaked and tried to hide in her mane “W-what did you do?”

Twilight shrugged “I put up a barrier. Then, he put up his own barrier to try to keep me out.”

Applejack smirked “Did it work?”

Twilight smirked as well “No, I walked right through it.” She paused as the girls, even Mayor Mare, laughed. “Then I enclosed both of us in my force field so he couldn’t go anywhere. Yes, he tried. No, it didn’t work. We talked for a few minutes before I asked him if he could let Artemis out or if I needed to call the five of you. He let Artemis out.”

Colorful confetti burst over Twilight’s head “YAY Twilight!!!” shouted Pinkie

Twilight blushed

“No, no, Darling. No modesty for you! You took on a pony that it took the six of us to defeat the first time, and did it by yourself!”

Before Twilight could reply, Mayor Mare spoke up “I agree with Rarity, princess. However, I am confused. What could have caused the situation in the first place?”

“About that . . .” Twilight looked at Rarity “You now have another reason to hate Blueblood, Rarity.”

“Darling, whatever do you mean?”

“He is the one that caused all of this. Every night, for months, he and other members of the nobility would go to Artemis’ Night Court and bother him. They started by demanding that he authorize amendments to the most obscure laws that he could find. Then, he kept telling him that he was only there to pass messages to Celestia and not a real prince. More recently, he started criticizing Artemis’ job with the night sky, telling him that it wasn’t being done right.”

Twilight paused to catch her breath and take a sip of the drink that Spike brought her. She looked up to see that everyone across from her had frowns on their faces. Before she could continue, Artemis pulled his wing tighter around her. She nuzzled him before continuing.

“Then, three nights ago, he went into Night Court and demanded that Artemis give control of the night sky to Celestia and renounce his title as prince on the grounds that he wasn’t a “real prince”. That is what angered Artemis to the point that he lost control and Night came out.” She turned and nuzzled Artemis again.

“What?!” Exclaimed the girls and Spike, Mayor Mare just stared with her mouth open.

Twilight looked up at everyone “It gets worse.”

“Worse? How?” demanded Rainbow

Twilight nodded “Let me tell you about Day Court the next day.”

She shifted a bit closer to Artemis and continued “Celestia insisted on a joint court, all three of us presiding. Right before Day Court started, Artemis pulled out a stack of papers that Blueblood had submitted to Night Court for approval. Somehow, the idiot accidentally included something he didn’t mean to. I just had to look through the stack and find it. Eventually, I found the document that he had drawn up as a plan to have Artemis removed from power. That wasn’t enough for him, though. The plans also included details for a plan to force Celestia banish Artemis to the moon again. Permanently.”

She stopped as she felt Artemis put a hoof around her and pull her in for a tight hug. She noticed that he was shivering uncontrollably again. “Shh, it’s OK” She whispered as she nuzzled him. “I promise, I won’t let that happen.” He nodded, but hugged her even tighter. Everyone looked on in stunned silence as Twilight calmed Artemis. It took several minutes of her nuzzling and whispering for him to calm down to the point where he stopped shivering.

They both felt a surge of power and looked up to see that the girls were each on their hooves. They each, even Fluttershy, had a glare on their faces that would send a normal pony running in terror. Pinkie’s mane and tail were gray and flat. Each of them was shimmering with barely restrained power.

“Whoa, girls! Calm down! You’re about to summon your Elements!” Twilight shouted. After several more minutes, and many deep breaths, she managed to get them to calm down enough that they were no longer glowing.

“Twilight”

She turned to find Applejack, barely maintaining her calm.

“Where. Is. He?”

Twilight shook her head. “Celestia stripped him of his title and position. Then she had him imprisoned in the Royal Dungeons. He is awaiting trial on charges of treason and conspiracy against the crown.”

“Good. If he wasn’t, Ah’d kill him”

“Right” Rainbow growled “I still wanna get my hooves on him. Nopony treats Artemis like that.”

Suddenly, Pinkie bounced over and gave Artemis a hug, causing him to look at her in shock. “What a Mean Meanie Pants! Don’t worry! Now, I’m gonna make sure your party tomorrow is Super-Duper Extra Fun and Special! We also have to celebrate our new favorite couple!”

They looked over at Artemis and noticed that he still looked scared and extremely upset.

“Twilight,” Spike spoke up “Should I prepare a room for Prince Artemis?”

Artemis looked at her, shocked and hurt.

“No, Spike. He’ll be in my room with me.”

She looked at the girls

“Before you get all upset and start saying that “It’s too soon” and other such nonsense, it’s something Celestia started two nights ago. She refused to have a room prepared for me and insisted that I sleep in his room with him, to help him feel better and make sure he wasn’t alone. It’s something of a routine now and one that I have no intention of stopping.” She paused and looked at Spike “You can, however, set up two rooms. One for Silver Shadow, and one for Midnight Fang. Make sure they are both on the same floor as my room.”

“Now, if you don’t mind, Artemis and I are going out onto the balcony for a few minutes. I think we both need some fresh air.” She turned to Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang. “Please, stay here. We’ll be right back.”

They both bowed “Of course, my princess.”

Chapter 19

After the two alicorns left the room, the girls and Mayor Mare gathered around the two guards.

“Do you think they have “gone all the way” yet?”

“Rainbow! It is way too early in their relationship for that!”

“Actually, Miss Rarity, Miss Rainbow, they have not. I believe that they are waiting until they are farther into their relationship. However, Princess Celestia is hoping that they will do it anyway and soon. It is another reason that she did not allow Princess Twilight to have her own room. She told me so herself, when I asked why she would not let me prepare a room for our princess during her visit.” Said Silver Shadow “She believes that the closeness that such an act provides, as well as the boost to their relationship, is exactly what Prince Artemis needs. She told me this, on the day after Princess Twilight arrived, in hopes that I will attempt to nudge them closer together.”

“Given how close they are to each other, I think it will happen soon. If they don’t do anything tonight, it will likely be tomorrow.” Added Midnight Fang

“Sorry, Rarity!” said Pinkie as she bounced around the group “If Princess Celestia likes the idea and is trying to get them to do it, you’re kind of out voted.”

“If it’s going to make him feel better, I think they should do it.” Fluttershy quietly added “We made him feel really bad today. He had to relive all of those awful things, just because we wanted to know what happened.”

“That’s right” muttered Rarity “Now I understand why Twilight wanted him to go to another room for the conversation.” She paused “Why didn’t he want to leave the room? He could have avoided all of that suffering.”

“Ah think Ah get it.” spoke up Applejack “It wasn’t the room that he didn’t want to leave, it was Twilight. Ah think she is the main source of comfort for him right now. Didn’t you girls notice that whenever he got upset, he would pull her closer?”

“Yeah” Rainbow said, in a much quieter voice than usual “Other times, she would scoot closer to him when she knew she was about to get to something he wouldn’t like. Or, when she noticed that he was getting upset, she would stop and nuzzle him.”

They heard hoofsteps and looked up as Twilight and a calmer, but still clearly upset, Artemis returned to the room. He laid down on the cushion that they had shared as Twilight walked up to the group.

“Rarity” she said quietly “Is it OK if Spike spends the night with you and Sweetie Belle?”

Rarity nodded

“I’m sorry, Spike. I don’t mean to make you leave. It’s just that . . .” She paused and looked at Artemis, who was laying down, obviously upset. “Reliving the last few days has upset him far more than either of us thought it would. It seems that it’s brought back unpleasant memories from his banishment.” She sighed “He’s supposed to be here for a vacation.”

Rarity and Spike looked at each other and nodded “Its fine, Twilight. I would love for Spike to help me in the shop tonight and tomorrow, before the party.”

“Applejack, I think there is enough of the food you brought left for dinner for all of us. Can you help me take it to the kitchen so we can warm it up?” Twilight asked

Applejack glanced behind Twilight at Artemis, seeing him lift his head and look over at the mention of her leaving the room. She shook her head “You stay here, Twi, he needs you. Pinkie and Ah got it. Rainbow and Fluttershy can take care of the drinks and Rarity can get the plates, silverware and glasses.”

Spike touched Twilight’s leg “I’ll go set up those rooms for you, Twi. They will be the ones right across from your room. I’ll leave with Rarity, after dinner.” He paused “Are you sure that you don’t want us to leave before dinner, so that you can have your first date?”

Twilight laughed gaining the attention of everypony in the room “We already did that, in Canterlot. Celestia insisted on it, practically shoving us out of the castle, two nights ago. And no, I want all of you here for dinner. You too, Mayor Mare.”

Mayor Mare nodded and opened her mouth to ask Twilight a question but Twilight beat her to it.

“I know you want to talk about the budget. It was due yesterday, right?”

Surprised, Mayor Mare nodded “We are four hundred bits short.”

Twilight tilted her head in thought. “Applejack and Pinkie. I will buy the necessary ingredients for both of you. At tomorrow’s party, make it before, we will hold a bake sale. Rarity, do you still have those outfits from the impromptu fashion show last week? If so, bring them as well. We’ll use the money we make for the budget. I’ll cover whatever amount we are short, if we’re short at all after tomorrow. If we end up making extra, some will go to cover the raw materials expense and the rest will be set aside for the next budget period.” She looked at Mayor Mare “Do you think that will work?”

Mayor Mare nodded, smiling “I think it’s brilliant! If it works, I think we may do something similar for every budget period. We’ll just change the themes to fit the season and/or any nearby holidays. We can add themed clothes to the sale as well. Great idea, princess! I’ll get started on it first thing in the morning!”

Rarity hugged Twilight excitedly “Darling, it’s an amazing idea! It will also bring extra business to my boutique, Applejack’s farm and the Cake’s bakery! Of course I’ll help!”

Applejack smiled “Ah will have to ask Granny Smith, but Ah think she’ll like it!

Pinkie bounced over to and landed on top of Twilight, who saw her coming and braced herself. “I have to ask Mr. and Mrs. Cake, but I bet they’ll say yes! I love it, I think it’s going to be super fun! Ooh, Ooh I bet I can have Pound and Pumpkin help me sell stuff. They both think it is really fun and they’re super cute! I bet the Cakes will let me as long as I’m super-duper careful!”

Everyone looked at Rainbow as her stomach growled.

She laughed “We’d better get dinner heated.”

Spike walked back into the room, followed by Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang, and over to Twilight “The rooms are ready, Twi, and I already showed them where they are.”

“Thank you, Spike.”

Spike hopped onto Twilight’s back and spoke quietly “While we get things ready, you should go sit with Artemis.”

“I feel bad, making you do all of the work. Are you sure you don’t want me to help?”

“That is how you can help.” Fluttershy said “We made him feel like this by demanding that you tell us what happened. We should have waited until you were alone before asking about it. As much as we want to, we can’t make him feel better. You are the only one that can do that.”

The other girls nodded as Pinkie pushed Twilight towards the cushion the two of them had shared.

Twilight turned and walked to Artemis, laying down next to him. Immediately, he curled around her and gave her a tight hug. She nuzzled into the side of his neck and closed her eyes.

Everypony smiled and went off to get dinner re-heated.

It didn’t take long for the girls and Spike to come back with dinner.

Twilight levitated a couple of apple fritters to her and ate one while shoving the other into Artemis’ mouth, gaining laughter from everyone else in the room.

Artemis was shocked but chewed and swallowed the fritter. “That was delicious! What was it?”

Twilight smiled “Applejack’s apple fritters. They are among my favorite things to eat. She always brings me some when she makes them.”

Artemis looked at her “Why did you make me eat it then?”

Twilight nuzzled him “She brought much more than usual. I think she brought extra for you to try. Besides, they are really good and I wanted you to try them.” She paused to eat another one. “Do you want more?”

She looked up in time to see him nod and smiled as she pushed a plate of them towards him.

Applejack also smiled as she saw how quickly the plate was emptied and decided to bring more tomorrow.

After everyone had eaten their fill, they all stood. It was decided that they would meet up at around ten the next morning to set up for the bake sale. With that decided, everypony said their good nights and left.

Once outside, the girls, Spike and Mayor Mare were met by the rest of Ponyville. The looks on their faces made it clear that they were not going anywhere until they were told what was going on.

Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo ran up to their sisters. “He looked upset.” Complained Apple Bloom “Why was he so upset?”

Applejack looked at everypony. Clearly, they wanted answers, too. “We can tell you what happened, but it will have to be under a couple of conditions. The first is that ya’ll have to be quiet. Twilight’s trying to calm him down. He’s even more upset now because he had to tell us what happened. The second condition is that nopony is allowed to ask him about it or mention it to him at all. He’s here for a vacation, understand?”

Everypony nodded

Pinkie walked forward and lay down. Pound and Pumpkin immediately climbed onto her back and lay down. “Foals, come here. I’m gonna tell you guys what happened without all of the big words that we’ll tell the grown-ups, OK?”

The rest of the foals and young ponies gathered around her as she started to speak.

“Three days ago, Twilight teleported to Canterlot. She’s really good at magic, so she could tell that something was wrong with Prince Artemis. When she got there, she saw Night-Terror Knight. He attacked her before she trapped him in her force field. They talked for a little bit and then she asked him to turn back into Prince Artemis. And he did!”

The foals cheered

“Then, two days ago, Twilight, Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis had court together where they listened to the problems of other ponies and tried to fix them. That was when Twilight found a paper that Blueblood wrote.”

Sweetie Belle spoke up “I remember Rarity talking about him! Isn’t he a prince?”

Pinkie shook her head “No, Princess Celestia told him that he’s not a prince anymore and put him in the Royal Dungeons! She did that because he was really mean to Prince Artemis. He told Prince Artemis that his night sky was not right and ugly! He also had a plan to make Princess Celestia send Prince Artemis to the moon forever! Remember, he was trapped there for a thousand years! Thinking that he might have to go back has made him really scared and upset.”

“No Way! We want him to stay here!” shouted Pipsqueak

“It’s OK. Twilight found his plan and stopped it!”

“Yay!” The foals cheered “She saved him!”

Pinkie nodded

“He’s here for a week because he needs a vacation. That’s why we’re having a big party tomorrow! We need to make sure he’s feeling better before he has to go back to Canterlot.”

Meanwhile, the grown-ups had gathered around the rest of the girls, Spike and Mayor Mare. They were told the full version of the events of the last few days. Most of them were shaking with varying levels of anger by the end of the tale.

Pinkie bounced to the middle of the group, Pound and Pumpkin squealing in delight as they hung on for the ride. “Everypony listen up! There is something else you need to know! Twilight and Prince Artemis are dating, now!”

“Good!” said Sweetie Belle “If they get married, maybe he’ll move here! Then, he wouldn’t have to be near those mean ponies anymore!”

Suddenly, the sky got dark as the sun set. Everypony looked up to see Twilight and Artemis on the highest balcony. They watched him raise the moon and stars. Once he had finished, they let out a loud cheer. That caught the attention of Twilight and Artemis, making them look down at the crowd.

After they went back inside, Mayor Mare told everypony about the bake sale that Princess Twilight had come up with to make the extra money for the budget that was planned for the next day, before the party. Everypony decided that it was time to go home and prepare for the next day.

Meanwhile, Twilight and Artemis cuddled together for a long time. After a while, Twilight looked at Artemis “Let’s head to my room, go out onto the balcony and watch the sunset.”

She led them to the top of the tree-like castle and into her room, before walking onto the balcony and sitting down. He followed her out, sat next to her and wrapped a wing around her shoulders.

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang stayed in the hall, guarding the large purple door to the bedroom that their Prince and Princess were sharing.

Artemis and Twilight watched as Celestia’s sun sank below the horizon. Then, Artemis raised his head and lit his horn. They watched as the moon rose and the stars came out.

Then they heard cheers and looked down towards the front of the castle. There, they saw that most of Ponyville was still assembled.

Twilight was about to say something when she noticed that Artemis clearly didn’t want to be around too many ponies at the moment. She smiled and stood, waving to the Ponies below before leading him back into her room and to her bed. They both got under the blankets and he immediately pulled her closer. She smiled and snuggled against him. After a while, he relaxed against her.

Neither of them were that tired, so they just lay there and enjoyed each other’s touch. Eventually, Artemis shifted against her.

“Thank you, Twilight.”

“Hmm? For What?”

“Everything. You have done so much for me.”

She nuzzled deep into his chest “I just wanted to help.”

He smiled and returned her nuzzle “You have. More than anypony else ever has and more than you’ll ever know.”

She shifted her head to look up at him before pulling him into a kiss. One led to another and another. Soon, they were in a desperate make out session. Eventually, Twilight forced herself to stop, though she really wanted more. It’s way too early in our relationship. Soon, though. She promised herself as she panted heavily. She returned her head to his chest and allowed her heartbeat to calm as she stared out the window at the moon.

Artemis found himself very disappointed as she stopped and pulled away. Probably for the best, we’ve only had one date. Soon. He thought as he caught his breath. He felt her put her head back on his chest and smiled. I seem to be her new pillow. She has done this every night since we started sleeping together. I can’t complain, though. Just holding her like this is the most comforting, and comfortable, thing I’ve ever experienced. He felt her shift her head, followed her gaze and his smile widened.

He wrapped his hooves around her in a gentle, but firm, hug. He placed his head on a pillow as he watched her, not the moon. She soon closed her eyes and fell asleep. He closed his eyes, letting her gentle breathing calm him. Soon, he joined her in the dream realm.

Chapter 20

He was awakened by the gentle pull of the moon. Not moving, he lit his horn and lowered the moon and the stars, in preparation for the day. Then, he kissed the top of Twilight’s head, careful not to wake her, and closed his eyes. He was content to keep her in his embrace, letting her sleep as long as she wanted.

Two hours later, he woke again, to her stirring. He watched as she stretched and yawned. She then turned her face into his chest to avoid the sunlight. She stayed like that for a few minutes longer before she yawned and raised her head.

She opened her eyes and smiled at Artemis. “Good Morning”

He nuzzled her “Good Morning, Twilight” He watched as she stood and stretched before she headed into the bathroom at the other end of the room. A few minutes later, a toilet flushed and she walked out.

“Your turn” she smiled “After we both wash up, I thought we’d go out for breakfast before we get things set up for the bake sale.”

He nodded and walked into the bathroom. A few minutes later, he walked back out to see her levitating the large violet cushion that he had made and given to her. He looked on as she put it down on the balcony, before closing her eyes in concentration and lighting her horn. He walked over, curious, and watched as she cast a spell on the the cushion.

She finished and looked up at him, smiling. “There. Weatherproofing spell. I want to keep this cushion on the balcony so that I have somewhere comfortable for stargazing, but I don’t want it to be ruined by the rain.” She nuzzled him “Are you ready to go?”

His stomach growled and he nodded

Twilight giggled as they walked out into the hallway. She knocked on the doors across the hall. Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang each opened the door to their room. “We are going out to Sugarcube Corner for breakfast. Would you like to come with us? We’ll probably be out all day. If you want to rest up a bit more and join us later, that’s fine too.”

Both of the Night Guards shook their heads “We’ll come with you, princess. Good Morning to both you and Prince Artemis” said Silver Shadow as he turned to look at Artemis and stopped in shock. What happened?! He wasn’t even this calm in Canterlot! He looked back at Twilight I don’t know how she does it! This mare is clearly a miracle worker!

Silver Shadow exchanged glances with Midnight Fang, whose eyes were as large as saucers as he noticed the same thing. They fell into step behind the alicorn pair as the four of them walked out of the castle.

There were many ponies already up and getting ready for the day. Each of them greeted both Twilight and Artemis, before continuing on their way.

They walked into Sugarcube Corner and were greeted by Mrs. Cake. “Welcome, Twilight and Prince Artemis! Pinkie told me that you four might be stopping by for breakfast. What would you like to eat?”

Artemis turned to Twilight “How did Pinkie . . .?

Twilight just shrugged “I learned not to question it a long time ago, it’s just going to hurt your head.”

After a moment, Artemis shook his head. “. . . I’ll take your word for it, Twilight”

She looked at Mrs. Cake “Pancakes with powdered sugar and maple syrup.

Artemis nodded “That sounds good. Same for me, please.”

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang both ordered oatmeal and fruit.

They chose two nearby tables and set down. They didn’t have to wait long. Ten minutes later, Mr. Cake brought out their food and asked if they needed anything else.

“No, thank you, Mr. Cake. You can go back to preparing for the bake sale. Thank you for agreeing to participate in it, by the way.”

“Of course, Twilight.”

After they ate breakfast, they walked to the park. This is where the ponies had decided to hold the bake sale. Twilight and Artemis walked through the park, followed by Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang. As they walked around, Twilight kept offering to help any way she could. Everypony politely refused and kept telling her that the two of them just needed to go relax.

With nopony allowing them to help out, there was little else they could do. They walked over to a large tree and lay down side-by-side in the shade. Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang positioned themselves behind them.

Even after the bake sale got started, no pony allowed them to even get up, let alone help out. Every time one of them started to get up, somepony would run over with a snack or a drink.

After four hours, Mayor Mare called it a halt. “Our wares have been selling very well. However, we must stop for the day so that we can prepare for the party tonight. In order to make sure we make it in time, I must ask that everypony pitch in to help out.” She paused as Artemis and Twilight started to stand “Everypony, that is, except Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight. They are supposed to be on vacation. Therefore, neither of them will be allowed to help.”

Twilight and Artemis sighed and settled back down on the grass, watching the cleanup. At one point, one particular group caught Twilight’s attention. That was, of course, the Cutie Mark Crusaders. They were being a little too enthusiastic in their attempts to help disassemble a few of the booths.

Everypony gasped as it looked like everything was going to collapse into a large pile, burying the three young fillies. They stared in shock as the three fillies and the booths were suddenly surrounded in a combination of dark blue and magenta magic. Everypony looked over to see that both Twilight and Artemis had their heads raised, eyes closed as they focused, and horns glowing. It was their magic that had saved the CMC.

The alicorn pair gently sat the fillies down on the ground then used their magic to disassemble the booths and pack them away safely. After that, they looked at each other and laid their heads back down, snuggling together.

Mayor Mare shook her head “We should have just let them help.”

Artemis and Twilight stayed where they were as everypony else left to get ready for the party.

After a while, Pinkie, Rarity, Rainbow, Fluttershy, Applejack and Spike walked up to get them. The group walked to Sugarcube Corner and joined the fun.

A couple of hours into the party, the girls and Spike walked up to Artemis and Twilight as they were heading outside for a bit of fresh air and quiet. Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang had managed to stay near the royal couple, just in case. They walked over as well.

The group walked outside and let out a collective sigh.

“It’s much quieter out here.” said Twilight

Artemis nodded “I can actually hear myself think.”

Suddenly, there was a loud boom. It sounded almost like an explosion. Twilight looked at the girls. “Let’s go see that that was.” She paused, not wanting to involve Artemis in any danger because he was here for a vacation. “Artemis, I’ll be right back.”

The girls ran towards the noise, only to find that they were headed towards the CMC clubhouse on Sweet Apple Acres. There, they found Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo with a chemistry set. At least, they had what used to be a chemistry set.

Twilight stepped forward. “Girls, what happened? Why are you three out here and not at the party?”

“We were, Twilight” replied Apple Bloom “A pony heard us talking about the experiment for science class. He gave us a paper with a recipe for a formula that he said would impress our teacher!”

“Yeah!” shouted Sweetie Belle “We just had to come try it but,” she pouted “we did it wrong.”

Twilight walked up “Let me see this recipe.”

Scootaloo nodded “Sure, here it is.” She hoofed over the paper that they had received from the stranger.

Twilight quickly read it and sighed “Girls, I have good news and bad news. The good news is that you did follow this recipe correctly. The bad news is that the only thing this is ever going to cause is an explosion. That pony lied to you. This is why you don’t take things from strangers, OK?”

“Yes, Twilight” the three answered together

Twilight nodded and was about to continue. Instead, she suddenly froze. “Oh, no! Artemis!”

“Twi, what’s wrong?” asked Applejack

“His magic is disappearing! He’s in danger! Damn! This must have been a distraction to get me away from him!”

She lit her horn and cast a group teleport. All of them disappeared in a flash of magenta magic.

Meanwhile, Artemis was relaxing on a bench, just down the street from the party at Sugarcube Corner, enjoying the peace and quiet. Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang stood nearby, protecting him from a short distance away. He paused as he heard the crying of a foal. Confused and worried, he got up and followed the sound. It led him just down the street to a bush. Using his magic to push the leaves aside, he saw a small Unicorn colt all tied up in a rope. It looked like he had been trying to do some kind of knot and accidentally gotten himself tied up in his own rope. Odd, I thought I knew all of the foals in Ponyville. But I don’t recognize this one. Still, I can’t leave him like this.

“Shh, it’s alright, young one.”

The foal looked up and his eyes went wide “P-prince Artemis?”

“Yes, it’s me. Let me help you, alright?”

The foal sniffed and nodded

“Good. Stay still.” Artemis reached out with his magic to grasp the rope. As he did, the rope immediately unwound itself from the foal and shot towards him. It wrapped around Artemis’ body and clung to him as he fell to the ground.

“What?!”

At Artemis’ shout, Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang came running, only to find themselves caught in a levitation spell.

Also hearing the shout, the rest of the party goers ran outside as well, only to skid to a stop in shock.

Everypony looked down as the foal started laughing. He glowed and suddenly, there stood a stallion. “And so falls the Great Prince Artemis.”

“Who are you?” demanded Artemis “What do you expect to do with me?”

“Who I am is of little consequence, prince. As for your other question, it’s rather simple, really. Someone wants you dead and has asked me to take care of the task.”

The citizens of Ponyville gasped in horror

Pipsqueak stepped forward “Let him go!”

The stallion laughed “Oh, I will. Just as soon as he stops breathing. Funny thing about alicorns. Injuries won’t kill them because they heal too fast, so they are practically immortal. But if they lose all of their magic, they die like any unicorn. That’s where the rope comes in. Because he touched it with his magic, the only way to remove it is for an even stronger magic to be brought into the picture. There aren’t many that are stronger than our “prince”. That means he’s stuck with it until it kills him by stealing all of his magic, draining it from his body.”

He paused

“Just to make sure none of you get any cute ideas about saving him, let me do this.” His horn flashed and a scroll appeared. Another flash of magic and a clone of Night-Terror Knight was suddenly standing in front of him. “The only thing that can stop this clone is the same thing that stopped the original. But the Elements of Harmony are gone!” he laughed again “So say goodbye to your prince.”

He turned to Artemis “Thank you “Prince” for removing the rope from me. Though, in the end, your kindness was your downfall.”

Artemis shuddered as he felt his magic being pulled out of his body. As much as he wanted to, he knew that struggling would get him nowhere. That being the case, he forced himself to stay calm.

Meanwhile, inside of Artemis, Night spoke up “I’m sorry, Artemis. I can’t break us out of this. I must reserve my magic because, once yours runs out, the rope will begin to drain mine. However, that will buy us some time to think of a way out of this mess.”

Artemis smiled “It’s alright, Night.”

“How can you say that?! He’s draining your magic!”

Artemis’ smile only widened “I know that. You know what will happen when he takes enough of it, right? It’s quite likely that the explosion was meant to draw her away. However, I bet she has figured that out by now.”

Night was confused “What?”

“You do know who is on her way, right?”

Night’s eyes widened and he also smiled “Twilight Sparkle” He began to laugh. “This should be good.”

Back in Ponyville, the stallion was confused. He had used this technique to get rid of several ponies that Prince Blueblood believed were in his way. Most ponies whose magic he has removed with this method were screaming for mercy by this point.

He walked up to Artemis “So, prince, why aren’t you panicking? You know I’m killing you, right?”

Artemis smiled “I am simply waiting. Your actions are about to call somepony very special to me. And I will get to watch her tear you, and that clone, apart.”

The stallion sneered “Don’t be stupid. Who could possibly be that powerful?”

“ME”

Artemis’ smile grew as he turned to look at her, settling in to watch his mare, making sure Night was watching too.

Everypony else turned at the voice and a flash of light to see a very pissed off Twilight Sparkle standing there, wings flared. Rarity, Rainbow, Applejack, Pinkie, and Fluttershy, equally angry, stood behind her.

Twilight had Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo held safely in her magic grip. She levitated the CMC over to join the rest of the ponies of Ponyville and cast her force field around them, keeping them safe.

Next, Twilight used her magic to break the levitation spell that Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang were trapped in, caught them in her own, levitated them both into her force field and deposited them there.

The stallion snorted “You think six mares can stop my clone creation?”

He cut himself short as each of them started to glow. His eyed widened and he backed up. “W-who are you? You’re not normal mares!”

The girls each called upon the power of their specific Element, and lit up from within as the Elements of Harmony responded to the call of their bearers.

“We are the bearers of the Elements of Harmony” answered Twilight

The stallion blanched “B-but the Elements were lost in order to save Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis years ago!”

“The physical versions were, yes. However, we were tested, and deemed worthy, by the spirits of the Elements of Harmony themselves. We no longer need to wear the physical versions because the spirits of the Elements come to us when we call for them. Now watch, for yourself, as your only defense is torn to shreds.”

With that, the eyes of the six mares suddenly shone white as a rainbow burst from the girls, straight at the clone of Night-Terror Knight, destroying it in an instant.

The citizens of Ponyville cheered as the clone vanished.

“S-shut up!” shouted the stallion, who had yet to realize that he was now being firmly held in a field of magenta magic. “That was just a distraction! Unless the rope can be removed, your prince will still die!”

“Is that so? In that case, I gather that it is draining his magic and you expect him to die a slow, painful death.”

“That is exactly what will happen, you insolent mare!”

Twilight walked up to Artemis and looked at the rope. Using her Element, she overpowered the magic embedded in it and watched as it fell to the ground.

“H-how did you do that?!” the stallion stuttered “P-prince Blueblood is going to kill me!”

“Only if my sister doesn’t do it first” muttered Artemis and Night agreed

The stallion looked at Twilight, who was helping Artemis to his feet, and watched as she touched her horn to his, sharing some of her magic to replace what the rope stole. “WHO ARE YOU?!” he screamed

Twilight actually laughed as she turned back to him. “You seriously have no idea who I am?”

He paused, taking a closer look at her, and gulped “P-princess Twilight Sparkle?!”

“Very Good”

The ponies of Ponyville laughed as the stallion tried to run and found that he was going nowhere. They watched as he looked around and finally realized that he was being firmly held in her magic.

She took a deep, calming breath and turned to the ponies gathered, releasing her force field. “Please, go back to the party and keep it going. We are going to Canterlot briefly to inform Celestia of this incident and deposit this pony in the Royal Dungeons. We should be back in about an hour. After all of this, we will need to relax and have some fun.”

She paused “Spike, did you already send Celestia a letter?”

He puffed out his chest “Of course, Twi. Princess Celestia is waiting for the two of you in the throne room. She will not keep you there, but wants to see for herself that Prince Artemis is alright as well as hear the full explanation from the two of you.”

Twilight smiled “That’s my Number One Assistant. By the way, where is that rope?”

Rainbow shouted “Over here, Twi!”

“Thanks, Rainbow. I need to bring that with us.”

“Twilight, why are you still using the Element of Magic?” asked Fluttershy, worried

“I’m OK, Fluttershy. I just don’t want to touch that thing with my magic. So I will use my Element to transport us and the rope.” explained Twilight “We’ll be back soon”

With that, and a flash of light, Twilight, Artemis, the stallion and the rope vanished.

Chapter 21

Celestia was worriedly pacing the length of the throne room. “Where are they?!”

Suddenly, there was a flash of magic. She turned to see Twilight, Artemis, an unknown stallion and a rope. The strange thing was that Twilight was using the Element of Magic.

Almost immediately, two spheres of pure magic appeared right in front of her, one purple and one dark blue. She ignored them both for the moment and threw herself at Artemis. “Artemis! Are you alright, little brother?”

He smiled and hugged her back, just holding his sister for several moments. “Yes, sister, I am fine. Once again, all thanks to Twilight.”

He let go of Celestia and turned to Twilight, pulling her in for a deep kiss. “Thank you, Twilight. I am very glad I asked you to keep that spell going. This is the second time, in only four days, that you have been able to save my life because you tuned your senses to my magic.”

The stallion was shocked “Nopony told me she did that!”

Twilight glared at him “Does it matter? If you want him, you are going to have to find a way to get rid of me, first.”

Artemis and Celestia laughed “Good luck with that!”

Celestia then walked back to the two magic spheres and watched the events of the evening, as told through the memories of Artemis and Twilight. Artemis had made sure that his included the conversation between himself and Night.

She let out a sob as she ran back over and pulled Twilight into a very tight hug. “Well done, Twilight! And thank you, Little Sister. I am so glad that my brother chose you as his mare.”

The stallion stared “Nopony told me about that, either!”

Celestia stomped her hoof on the marble floor.

A couple of Night Guards entered the room and stared. “Prince Artemis! Princess Twilight! We thought you were in Ponyville on vacation!”

Twilight turned to them “We were and will be going back soon. This idiot (He won’t tell us his name, so that’s what I will call him until he does) attacked Artemis with a force that required the girls and myself to use the Elements of Harmony earlier tonight.”

She paused as she saw their confusion

“He summoned a clone of Night-Terror Knight and used a rope, with a magic draining spell embedded into it, to try to kill Artemis via magic loss. Don’t worry, the girls and I used the Elements of Harmony to destroy the clone. Then, I was able to stop the magic drain and remove the rope, using my Element of Magic. I have also shared some of my magic with him. That will cover him until his magic recovers on its own, which should happen in a day or two, at most.”

The guards stared at her for a long moment before bowing “Thank you, my princess. You have saved our prince again.”

Twilight smiled “Of course I did.” She nuzzled Artemis as he smiled at her. “He’s pretty important to me, too.”

She turned to Celestia “Earlier tonight, he mentioned that Blueblood will be angry at him for failing to kill Artemis.”

Celestia’s eyes widened “Did he, now?” She turned to glare at the stallion “Well, we’ll just have to talk about that, won’t we?”

He gulped

“Oh,” Twilight said “Make sure nopony touches that rope with magic!”

“Right” Artemis added “It will link to the pony’s magic and drain it from their body, killing them slowly. If that happens, only somepony with a larger amount of magic will be able to remove it.”

Celestia nodded and summoned a bag that was made of a material that would not allow magic to pass through. “Can you put it in here, please?”

Twilight nodded as well and did so.

Then she turned to Celestia “I would like to go back to Ponyville soon, if that’s alright. Are there any other questions that you have for us?”

Celestia nuzzled her “Go enjoy yourselves and get some rest. You’ve certainly earned your vacation.”

Twilight nodded then paused “Oh, can you do me a favor, please?”

“Anything” Celestia promised

“Let my parents, Shining Armor and Cadance know what happened tonight? I want to keep them informed.”

Celestia nodded “I will tell them, personally, first thing in the morning.”

“Sister, can you take care of the moon and stars? I don’t think I have enough magic for it tonight.”

“Of course, Artemis”

She gave Twilight and her brother another hug and a gentle push “Now, go!”

They smiled, wished her a good night and disappeared in a flash of light.

Back in Ponyville, everypony turned at a flash of light to see Twilight and Artemis standing in the center of town. They watched as she left her empowered state. As soon as she did, she collapsed.

Fortunately, Artemis had been expecting this. He fell to the ground with her, making sure that he caught her as they went down.

Everypony gasped in horror.

Cries of “Prince Artemis!”, “Princess!”, and “Twilight!” echoed throughout the air around Ponyville.

Everypony that was even remotely nearby came running. They saw that Artemis was laying on the ground, on his back. In his hooves, laying on his stomach, was Twilight. She had her eyes closed and was barely moving.

Artemis checked her over carefully then his cleared throat and spoke to the town as a whole. “She’s not injured”

There were many sighs of relief and “Oh, Thank Goodness!” was heard in a couple of different voices.

Mayor Mare stepped forward “Prince Artemis, why did she collapse? Are you sure she doesn’t need to see a doctor?”

Artemis nodded “If it makes you feel any better, a doctor can come take a look at her. However, I can tell you, with certainty, that she has simply used a lot of magic. Far more than usual.”

Twilight opened her eyes, looking around for Pinkie. As soon as she saw her, she said a single word “Cupcake”.

Everypony was confused, except Artemis and Pinkie. Immediately, Pinkie tossed a triple chocolate, strawberry frosted cupcake towards the alicorn pair. Artemis caught it in his magic, unwrapped it and shoved it into Twilight’s mouth.

She swallowed it whole.

After a moment of everypony holding their breath, she sighed, raised her head, and answered the unasked question. “It helps begin to replenish energy when magic levels are really low.”

Pinkie bounced over with a tray of half a dozen more. “Especially when they are my special triple chocolate, strawberry frosted cupcakes!”

“Pinkie,” Mrs. Cake began, confused “we didn’t make any of those today.”

Pinkie looked at her and said, quite seriously, “Emergency Stash”, leaving everypony dumbfounded. Then she turned back to Artemis and Twilight. “I’m sorry, I didn’t think I’d need that many today, so I only have six more.”

Twilight smiled as she got off Artemis’ stomach, noticed that her legs were wobbling, and lay down on the grass. “That’s OK, Pinkie. I’m sorry that we’re using up your whole Emergency Stash.”

Pinkie’s answer was to shake her head and shove another cupcake into Twilight’s mouth. “It’s OK, Twilight! You saved us! You can have all the cupcakes you want!”

Twilight shook her head as well, as she pushed a couple of the cupcakes towards Artemis and swallowed the one in her mouth. “We worked together to beat that clone, Pinkie. It wasn’t just me.”

Artemis, now laying next to Twilight, swallowed the last bite of one of the cupcakes and looked over at her. “That’s not true, Twilight. You are the one that saved me, freed our guards, and protected the ponies of Ponyville. You may have had help with the clone, but you did the rest yourself.”

Twilight looked up “Speaking of, where are Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang? Are they alright? I didn’t have time to check them over to injuries earlier. I was so worried about how much of your magic had been taken from you and making sure that the clone didn’t hurt anypony, that I didn’t allow myself time for considering much else.”

“Here, my princess.” Said Silver Shadow as he and Midnight Fang stepped up to take their positions behind the alicorn pair. “No, we are not injured”

She sighed “Good. I’m sorry that I wasn’t able to do more for you at the time. I was a little distracted.”

Midnight Fang snorted “Yes, distracted is one way to put it, princess. However, I prefer “Busy protecting the ponies that live in the town in which you live, destroying a threat to Equestria, saving our prince’s life, and capturing the culprit. Most of which, you did by yourself.” But that’s just my opinion.”

Twilight’s face turned bright red and she looked down in embarrassment as everypony around her burst out laughing.

Artemis, still laughing, put a wing around her and drew her close.

“Princess Twilight, what was that explosion? Was everything there alright?” asked Silver Shadow

Twilight’s head snapped up “Thank you for reminding me.” She raised her voice “Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. Please come here.”

The crowd parted as the three fillies, followed by their sisters, walked up to her.

“Spike?” Twilight asked, looking around

“Yes, Twi?” he asked, walking up with a couple bottles of Apple Family Apple Juice for Artemis and Twilight. He placed the bottles in front of them and looked up at her.

“Do you have a scroll and a quill on you?

“Of course, Twi. But it’s my last one.”

“That’s OK, Spike. I don’t think you’ll need more than that. Please take notes on this next part. If my hunch is right, we’ll need this information later.”

“You got it!” Spike replied as he prepared to take notes

“Girls, first of all, relax. I think you learned your lesson. So, there will be no punishment.” She made sure that she made direct eye contact with Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash. She waited for them to nod before continuing.

The fillies each let out a sigh of relief.

“However, I would like you to tell me about the stranger that gave you that chemistry recipe. What did he look like?”

“Everypony knows what he looks like! He was the one that was standing behind Night-Terror Knight!” answered Sweetie Belle

“You really need to pay attention, Sweetie! That was a clone! He said so himself!” put in Scootaloo, before a jab from Rainbow’s hoof got her back on topic. “Yeah, Twilight. He was the one that gave it to us. He said that it would impress our teacher, but we would have to practice it before we could show her. He even gave us the chemistry set we used.”

“Yeah” added Apple Bloom “He said that it was an extra one and that he didn’t need it anymore. He gave it to us so we could practice, as long as we promised to share it.”

“I thought so.” Twilight said as she nodded

Applejack looked confused “Twi?”

Twilight looked at her “Did you notice that he didn’t recognize me until the end? He didn’t know who you girls are or that we still bear the Elements of Harmony, either. He didn’t even care who we were until we called our Elements.” She turned to Artemis “How did he approach you?”

Artemis paused, confused “He didn’t. I was laying on a bench, waiting for you to come back, when I heard the crying of a foal. Following it, I found a foal wrapped in a rope. I thought that he had been trying to tie some knots and gotten tangled in his own rope. I reached out with my magic to remove it from him. As soon as I did, it unwrapped from his body on its own and shot towards me. It wasn’t until it had already started draining my magic and the ponies of Ponyville came out to see what was going on, that he dropped his disguise.”

“You know, I don’t think he was trying to get us away from Artemis.” Twilight paused, deep in thought, “I think he wanted the explosion to get Artemis away from everypony else, so that he could approach Artemis when he was by himself. When that didn’t work, he took the form of a foal to get Artemis to come to him.”

“Twilight?” Rainbow asked “Why do you think he pretended to be a foal?”

Twilight shrugged “If I had to guess, I’d say that it was to lower Artemis’ defenses.” She saw that most of the ponies around, even Artemis, were still confused, so she asked. “How many ponies expect a foal to try to kill them?”

Everypony’s eyes widened as they understood her point.

She shook her head. “Spike, please send your notes to Celestia when you finish writing them. She may be able to use this information while preparing for the trial.”

“You got it, Twilight” he replied as he rolled up the scroll before breathing out green fire. They all watched as it disappeared towards Canterlot.

In Canterlot Castle, Celestia had just finished questioning the stallion that Twilight captured and brought in. When she was done, she brought him to the Royal Dungeons herself, making sure that he was nowhere near Blueblood, and that they couldn’t talk or get any form of communication to each other. She also made sure that she ordered the guards, both Day and Night, not to even mention one around the other. It’s just a hunch, but I think Blueblood believes that my brother is dead. She smiled Boy, is he in for a surprise.

She turned her thoughts back to the stallion. He didn’t give much information that she didn’t already know. In fact, the only thing that he did tell her was that his name was Blaze.

No matter. I’ll get the truth out of him soon enough. She smiled. Once I tell Shining Armor and Cadance about what happened tonight . . . well, I wonder how long it’ll take them to get here. I have a feeling that he’s going to want to deal with the stallion that attacked his sister, and Artemis, himself.

The question is, how will Cadance react? She’s known Twilight for most of her life and has gotten kind of protective over her. She might be even angrier than her husband.

She was getting ready for bed, after raising the moon and stars, when a bit of green fire appeared in front of her. Surprised, she opened the scroll to find the notes that Twilight had just sent. Reading them, she smiled. Even on vacation, she finds a way to help me. This information may prove useful.

She tucked the scroll safely into her desk and went to bed. Have fun Artemis and Twilight. I hope you’re enjoying the party.

Back in Ponyville, Twilight sighed “I thought you’d be safe here. That’s why I agreed to the petition to have you come out here with me for a week.” She looked over at him, tears welling up in her eyes “I’m sorry, Artemis.”

He stared at her for a moment before pulling her in for a tight hug. “Don’t you dare apologize, Twilight.”

“B-but”

“Shh” He pressed his forehead to hers, cutting her off, before she could continue. “I wouldn’t be able to relax like this in Canterlot. More importantly, it’s clear to me that the safest place for me, in all of Equestria, is wherever you are. This is the second time in just four days that you have saved me. First, you saved me from another banishment. Then, tonight, you saved my life.” He kissed her and wiped her tears away. “There is no way I can thank you enough, for all you have done.”

Before Twilight could respond, Pinkie bounced over. “No more crying, Twilight! We have a party to get back to!”

“So, LET’S PARTY!!!!”

Chapter 22

There were so many ponies that wanted to stay for the restarted party that they couldn’t have it in Sugarcube Corner anymore. Instead, Pinkie moved it outside.

Artemis thought it would take a while to set things up. However, he was proven wrong as Pinkie moved out into the center of town. He watched, curious and confused, as she wheeled out what looked to be a large blue cannon and gave the string protruding from the back a hard yank.

BOOM!!!

Suddenly, there were tables covered with food everywhere. A large blanket was spread out on the ground in front of Twilight and himself. Looking up, he saw that all of the street lamps and trees had streamers wrapped around, and dangling from, them. All of the party decorations were various shades of purple and dark blue, with some pink and silver thrown in. The confetti falling all around was in the same colors, but shaped as either crescent moons or six-pointed stars. Hanging from a nearby tree were two piñatas. One was shaped like the large six-pointed star in Twilight’s Cutie Mark, while the other was a large crescent moon, like his own. Off to the side, was a DJ booth. A white unicorn mare with a blue mane and tail and a music note for a Cutie Mark walked up to the booth and waited, looking at Pinkie.

Artemis looked at Twilight “What the-?”

She just shrugged “She calls it her “Party Cannon”. That’s about as much sense out of what just happened as you’re going to get. We don’t even ask anymore.”

Pinkie, still in the center of town caught everypony’s attention “WELCOME BACK TO PONYVILLE, PRINCE ARTEMIS; CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR NEW ROYAL COUPLE; AND THE DAY WAS SAVED AGAIN PARTY- TAKE TWO!”

Immediately, loud music started playing. Everypony cheered and went over to the food tables. Twilight and Artemis started to rise so that they could join in the fun, when they were approached by Applejack and Apple Bloom.

“And just where do you two think you’re going? You both need to rest for a bit. Apple Bloom and Ah got your food right here. You two just lay back down, ya hear? On the blanket, this time.”

“But-”

“No buts, Twi.” Applejack interrupted firmly “You both need to rest. Ya’ll were so tired when you got back from Canterlot that you needed to eat Pinkie’s triple chocolate cupcakes. Those things have so much sugar in them that we only eat them in emergency situations. And you each ate three of them. Lay Down.”

When neither of them moved, Rainbow flew over, lifted Twilight into the air and gently set her down on the blanket. She turned to Artemis “I’ll go get a few of the ponies on the Weather Team, if I have to.”

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang stepped forward, looking at Artemis. “We’ll help her, if need be.” Silver Shadow told Artemis and Twilight “Your highnesses, they are right. You both really should rest for a while before joining the party. Prince Artemis, much of your magic was stolen and Princess Twilight, you used far more than you are willing to admit when you saved everypony here.”

Twilight opened her mouth, closed it, sighed and shook her head “We’re not talking them out of this, are we?” she asked Artemis

He paused, looked at the determined expressions on the faces of their guards and shook his head as well. “I don’t think so. They can be remarkably stubborn.” He stepped onto the blanket and lay down, pulling Twilight down with him.

Caught by surprise, she landed more on him than next to him. She tried to stand up and move next to him, but found that her legs were trembling so much that she could not. Falling back down, she landed so that she was laying against his side. Looking up, she found Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang staring at her. “Fine.” She sighed “It doesn’t appear that I can move much right now, anyway.”

The four of them smiled and let out sighs of relief as they watched Artemis put a wing over her.

“Good.” Said Applejack “Now that that’s settled, here are your dinners.” With that, she placed two plates piled high with her apple fritters, two side salads, and two more bottles of her family’s apple juice in front of them.

Apple Bloom walked in front of Twilight “Twilight?” she asked, gaining her attention “Pinkie asked me to give this to you.” She turned her head to her back and pulled over a plate with the last of Pinkie’s triple chocolate, strawberry frosted cupcakes.

“Thank you, Apple Bloom.”

“Um, Twilight?” Apple Bloom said nervously “She said Ah’m not allowed to leave you until you eat it.”

Twilight looked up, eyes wide “I’ve already eaten three of them!”

“And you can’t even stand right now!” put in Rainbow “Eat it, or I’ll shove it in your mouth, myself.”

“But-!”

Twilight found herself cut off as Apple Bloom took the situation into her own hooves, pushing the cupcake into Twilight’s mouth.

She turned to Applejack “Ah’m sorry, sis. Ah didn’t think she’d eat it otherwise.” she paused, looking down at her hooves. “You can punish me, now. If you want, Ah'll go home and go to bed.”

Applejack smiled and nuzzled her little sister. “What Ah want you to do, is go play. Don’t worry, Twilight will be OK.” Apple Bloom grinned and ran off towards Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, before her sister could change her mind.

Artemis watched Twilight as she chewed and swallowed the cupcake. She sighed. “I’m going to be on such a sugar high later that I’ll be up for a few days . . . I hate eating that much sugar.” She shook her head and snuggled closer to Artemis “Might as well rest now, while I can.”

“Twilight . . .” started Applejack

Twilight gave her a look “My magic is really weak right now, so I have to wait for it to recover. I know you want me to eat, but I haven’t eaten with my hooves in years and I’m not starting now, in front of everypony. I’ll just make a fool of myself.” She closed her eyes and put her head on her forehooves.

Artemis curled himself around her and closed his eyes as well.

Neither of them actually fell asleep. For a long while, they both just relaxed and listened to the music. The rest of the ponies at the party gave them the space that they needed.

That went on for almost an hour, but then everypony at the party turned as they suddenly heard Twilight laughing.

Twilight was relaxing with her eyes closed, so she hadn’t noticed that Pound and Pumpkin Cake were sneaking up on her. Neither had Artemis. Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang did notice, but recognized the foals, and allowed them to approach.

“Twilight’s not having fun,” Pumpkin complained to Pound “we have to help her!”

Pound nodded and thought for a moment “Tickles! We can make her laugh!”

Pumpkin nodded enthusiastically “Yeah!”

Hearing the foals’ conversation, the night guards grinned and decided to allow them to continue.

Pound and Pumpkin reached Twilight’s side and looked at each other. “Pinkie taught us to count our cookies, remember?” Pumpkin whispered

Pound nodded “One, two-“

“Three!” they said together, pouncing on Twilight’s stomach.

Suddenly, Twilight threw her head back and howled in laughter, gaining the attention of everypony at the party. Artemis raised his head and just stared at her as she rolled over onto her side, exposing the two little tickle monsters. This proved to be a mistake as Pound and Pumpkin now had more access to her stomach and side. It also provided the space for the other foals to come running and join in the fun.

That is exactly what they did. It took almost fifteen minutes for the foals to stop and Twilight to catch her breath.

“OK, OK I’m up!” Twilight giggled as she rolled onto her stomach, which growled, reminding her that it was waiting for her to put something put in it.

She lit her horn and pulled the plate of fritters to her. Applejack smiled as she watched how quickly Twilight went through her dinner.

Artemis chuckled as he ate his own dinner. “Ticklish, are we?”

“Very” giggled Twilight “and they know just how to get me to laugh.”

She paused “Oh no” She said as she slowly turned to Artemis to find that he had a mischievous smirk on his face.

“Don’t worry,” he said as he nuzzled her “I’m not going to tickle you” Yet.

She sighed in relief and returned the nuzzle

“Twilight, Artemis!” They both looked up as Pinkie bounced over. “It’s piñata time! You two are the only ones allowed to break them! Come on, come on, come on!” She pulled them both to their hooves and over to the tree where they were hanging. “You each have to break open the other’s Cutie Mark!”

Twilight looked at Pinkie “Does it matter how we break them?”

“Nope!”

Twilight and Artemis smiled at each other before lighting their horns. The piñatas were released from the tree and floated into the air above the center of town. Then, to everypony’s surprise, they doubled and then tripled in size.

Twilight shot a beam of magenta magic at the crescent moon just as Artemis sent a beam of dark blue magic at the six-pointed star. They both burst open at the same time, in a flash of purple and blue, raining candy over the entire center of the town.

“How was that?” Twilight asked as she turned to the crowd

“Wow! That was beautiful!” squealed Rarity.

Fluttershy stared, eyes wide, and just nodded as some of her song birds flew among the falling candy, singing and chirping.

“YAY!!! Candy!” screamed the foals as they ran to gather up as much of it as they could.

“Pretty!” shouted Pinkie, suddenly next to Twilight. “Now it’s time for cake!”

“Ooh, no, Pinkie.” Moaned Twilight “I don’t even want to think about cake right now. I ate four of your Special Triple Chocolate, Strawberry Frosted cupcakes. If I eat any more sugar, I’m gonna explode.”

“Me too” Artemis quickly added “I may have only eaten three of them, but that is the most sugar that I’ve ever eaten in one sitting, possibly in my entire life. I’m sure your cake is delicious, but I don’t think either of us can handle any more right now.”

The citizens of Ponyville laughed.

Pinkie pouted briefly, before perking up again “It’s OK! I’m just gonna bring some to your castle tomorrow!”

And I’m having Spike get rid of whatever he and the guards don’t eat. Twilight thought as she nodded to Pinkie I don’t want to see cake for at least a week.

“Time to Dance!!!” shouted Pinkie “Turn up the music!”

This time, it was Rainbow that pulled on Twilight and Artemis. “Only if they do it in the air! Come on up!”

The two alicorns just laughed and shook their heads before spreading their wings and joining the many Pegasus ponies that were already in the air as the music started up again, louder than before.

It was at least two hours of heavy dancing before the Ponies of Ponyville allowed them to land and return to their blanket. Neither of them were even remotely tired, thanks to those cupcakes, but they both needed to catch their breath.

As they did, Twilight noticed that many of the ponies present, even their guards were yawning. She exchanged glances with Artemis and raised her voice.

“Thank you, everypony for the wonderful party. However, I think it is time to call it a night. Pinkie, before you complain, look around you. Do you see how many ponies are yawning and tired?”

Pinkie looked around and nodded, a little sad that the party was ending so soon, but quickly brightened. “That means everypony had fun!”

It didn’t take long for the party to break and everypony to head home.

Twilight, Artemis, Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang flew to the balcony to Twilight’s room. Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang walked through Twilight’s room, out into the hallway and to their own rooms. Between the length of the day, and the stress of nearly losing their prince, they were exhausted. Despite the fact that they were usually nocturnal, they both quickly fell into a deep sleep and didn’t wake until the next morning.

Meanwhile, Twilight and Artemis walked over to her bed and lay down, cuddled together. They lay that way for a while before Twilight raised her head, just as he looked down at her. Their eyes met and, after a moment, so did their lips.

Very quickly, they were in another make out session. This one, even more desperate than the one from the night before. They paused, panting, and stared at each other.

We really shouldn’t be doing this. It’s way too soon! B-but . . . No, I don’t care about what other ponies think anymore! I almost lost him today! Suddenly, she no longer cared about anything but the stallion next to her and pulled him into a desperate kiss.

We should stop. It’s too early in our relationship to be doing this, what would the ponies of Equestria think? He paused, startled Why should I care what they think? I’ve been so worried about what other ponies think about me and my actions that I forgot about myself. He looked at his mare as she pulled him in for a desperate kiss. I almost died today! I could have never told her how I feel about her! No, I won’t make that mistake again.

Their lips met again and, this time, their kiss went on for much longer than usual. They opened their mouths and deepened the kiss as Artemis rolled them over so that Twilight was on her back and he was on top of her. Then they broke the kiss.

Artemis looked deeply into her eyes before moving his lips to her neck, leaving kisses and light nibbles as he worked his way down her body.

She moaned lightly as she felt him move down over her stomach. Then, she let out a sharp gasp of pleasure as he took one of her teats in his teeth and pulled a little before sucking on it for a few moments. Releasing it, he nuzzled the other before he moved lower to her marehood, which was already wet.

He smiled as he gave her slit a long lick, earning a loud moan from her. Artemis, not wanting to waste any time, stuck his tongue inside Twilight and licked everywhere he could. After a moment, he pushed deeper as Twilight’s breaths grew shorter and her moans grew louder.

Twilight shook as she moaned loudly. She was starting to feel a heat build inside her. Soon, that heat turned into a raging fire that was driving her crazy. This has to end soon, or I’m going to go insane!

Abruptly, she found herself trembling on the edge. One move, of any kind, from Artemis would push her over. Then his tongue moved, deep inside her. She let out a scream as her whole body shook and she released her fluids onto his muzzle.

He smiled as he pulled away and looked at her. Her eyes were closed as she took deep breaths, still shaking slightly. As she stopped, he made his way back up to kiss her.

She started to sit up so that she could return the favor, wanting to make him feel the same pleasure that he had given her. She was surprised, however, when he pushed her back down, laying on top of her.

“You have done so much for me.” He whispered “For once, let me take care of you.”

Before she could say anything, she felt him move over her as he kissed her.

Suddenly, she felt him pause pressing against her marehood and moaned. The wait was driving her crazy. “P-please” she whined, only to let out a gasp as he slowly entered her. “Ooh”

He had paused, unsure of himself. That changed when he heard her whine. He knew he couldn’t refuse her. Not wanting to hurt her, he pushed slowly and smiled as he heard her gasp and moan. Wanting to bring her even more pleasure, he pushed further. After a moment or two of slowly pushing forward, he suddenly ran into a barrier.

He paused, surprised, before he understood. “Twilight” he whispered “Am I your first?”

She just nodded, enjoying the sensations he was bringing her far too much to speak.

He paused, remembering something his father told him long ago. She has been saving herself for somepony special. Not only is she letting me make love to her, she is giving me the honor of being her first!

“This may hurt. Are you ready?”

She held herself to him and nodded

He pulled her into a deep kiss and pushed through the barrier. She let out a small scream of pain, causing him to pause and look down at her. He saw that there were tears on her face. “Do you want me to stop?” he asked as he wiped her tears away.

“No!” she shook her head “Keep going”

He nodded and kept pushing until their hips met and he felt his tip touch something deep inside her.

The scream she let out when she felt him touch something so deep inside her was so loud that it shook the room. Her wings flew out from her sides.

He smiled, watching as she screamed in pleasure and spread her wings out to their full length, his own flaring as well. He leaned down and bit her gently on the neck.

He paused, giving them both a moment to get used to it. She feels amazing inside! Groaning lightly in pleasure, he felt her passage begin to contract around him. Suddenly, her hips bucked up against his and he snorted in surprise. Alright. Let’s see how she likes this. He didn’t give her any warning as he pulled out, before thrusting back in. He decided that he had had enough of going slow and sped up as he felt pressure begin to build.

Twilight felt the heat starting again as he increased his speed. It kept building, past the point of last time. Suddenly, she fell over the edge and her pleasure exploded. Her scream was at least twice as loud as the one for her previous orgasm. She could barely think, let alone speak. Her breathless screams, the only communication she could manage.

Artemis was focused on maintaining his speed as he thrust in and out of Twilight. He jolted in surprise as she suddenly screamed. Seeing his mare writhe in pleasure under him, something in him snapped. He sped up as he felt the pressure that had been growing in him finally reach the bursting point. With one final thrust, and a groan of pleasure, he released his seed directly into her womb.

Twilight was coming down from her orgasm as she felt her stallion begin pumping his seed into her. He quickly filled her completely, the rest simply had nowhere to go and spilled back out. She moaned in pleasure and held herself to him tightly. The feeling of warmth, spreading through her abdomen and filling her womb, satisfied her on a very deep level. She felt him collapse on top of her, panting and pinning her to the bed. Not that I want to move, anyway. That felt amazing!

As Artemis’ orgasm finished, he collapsed onto Twilight and lay his head next to hers as he caught his breath.

“W-wow” she gasped “That was amazing!”

He chuckled as he gently pulled out and laid next to her, pulling her close. “Oh Twilight, I have wanted to do that for a very long time now.”

She closed her eyes and sighed in pleasure as she snuggled into his chest. She lay there enjoying the warmth, both inside and out, that Artemis had given her. “I love you, Artemis”

His breath caught as those four words bounced around in his head Please tell me I’m not dreaming. He smiled as he lifted her head and drew her into a kiss. “I love you, too, Twilight”

She smiled and nuzzled deep into his neck as she fell asleep.

He pulled her as close as possible and wrapped both his hooves and his wings around her before he allowed himself to do the same.

Author's Note

Don't kill me!
It's my first time at attempting mature content, while still trying to get across that it's their first time.

Chapter 23

Artemis woke to the sun shining in his eyes and turned his head to get out of the sunlight. I have to thank Celestia, she must have lowered the moon and stars for me.

He looked down at Twilight and let out a sigh. “It’s too bad that was just a dream.” He said quietly, not knowing she was also awake.

Twilight woke up to a slight movement and found that Artemis was just waking up as well. She heard him sigh. Why does he sound sad? Does he regret last night? Then she heard him speak in a voice that was just above a whisper.

She smiled as she suddenly understood. I could just tell him that it wasn’t a dream, but I have a better idea. She raised her head and kissed him. Then she pulled away and stood, facing away from him. “I need a bath.” She looked over her shoulder and raised her tail, showing him the aftermath of the night before. “We made a mess last night.” She lowered her tail again and walked over to the door to the bathroom. Once there, she looked back at him, smiling at the shocked look on his face. “Can you join me, please? I’m going to need some help.”

He was startled when she lifted her head and kissed him. Did I wake her? I didn’t mean to . . . When she pulled away and stood, he was disappointed. She doesn’t want to stay and relax in bed?! Why, what’s wrong? He heard her say “I need a bath” and looked up at her. Only be further startled as she looked back at him, lifting her tail. “We made a mess last night” she continued. He noticed, eyes wide, that she had something white and flaky covering her backside. T-that wasn’t a dream?! He could only watch in shock, as she walked over to her bathroom. He saw her pause at the door, smile at him and ask him join her. It was only then that he was finally able to shake himself out of his daze enough to stand and reply.

“Of course.”

They walked into the bathroom together. In the middle of the room, a tub was sunk into the floor. It was large enough for at least five ponies of Artemis’ size to comfortably bathe in at once. Artemis looked on as Twilight used her magic to set the water temperature and began to fill the tub.

His attention, however, was on her. She was absently swishing her tail from side to side as she started to fill the tub. Just watching her, he felt something in him stirring. I-I want her. Now. He walked up behind her, his wings flaring to their full length. “Twilight-” was all he could get out before instinct took over and he mounted her.

Twilight heard him walk up behind her, but didn’t mind. She then heard him say her name. She raised her head and tried to ask “Yes?” Instead, it came out as a scream of pleasure as she felt him enter her. “YES!!!”

He heard her scream and knew that there was no way he could stop now. Immediately, he began thrusting in and out of her.

She instinctively widened her stance and spread her hind legs. Yes, yes, yes! She shivered and moaned under him for a couple of minutes before she suddenly began to shake uncontrollably and let out a scream that echoed around the bathroom, her wings flaring from her sides.

Immediately, the large purple door her room flew open as Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang ran in. They looked around in confusion, seeing nothing. Then Twilight began to moan again. They followed the noise to the closed door to the bathroom.

Eyes wide, they stared at each other for a moment before, suddenly, they understood what was going on and grinned.

“It’s about time they did this.” Silver Shadow muttered, shaking his head.

Midnight Fang nodded

They both walked back out into the hallway and returned to guarding the door to their princess’ room.

Meanwhile, in the bathroom, Artemis smiled, watching his mare scream as she went over the edge. It was then that he noticed that she was shaking so much that she was beginning to have trouble standing. He wrapped a foreleg around her barrel, and held her close, as he kept thrusting.

He looked at her body before leaning down to nibble, lick and kiss his way up her neck, not really sure why he was doing so. He skipped further forward to her horn.

She let out a loud gasp as she felt him lick her horn, from base to tip, before taking the whole thing in his mouth. She moaned loudly as she began to shake again, another orgasm approaching quickly.

Artemis knew he was close, so he sped up his thrusting and sucked her horn harder, swallowing the sparks of magic she was releasing. Suddenly, he let go of her horn. With a loud groan of pleasure, he released his seed into her, filling her womb.

As she felt his seed enter her, Twilight’s entire body shook beneath him and she screamed so loud that she shook her entire castle. She was in so much pleasure, she hadn’t even noticed that she was using her Royal Canterlot Voice.

Their legs gave out and they collapsed into a trembling pile as their orgasms ended. Twilight just lay there, panting, enjoying the fact that she could still feel him inside her. “W-wow! That was incredible, even better than last night!” she paused and laughed “I bet all of Ponyville heard that!”

He laughed as well and kissed her as he gently pulled out “I bet they did.” He looked at their bodies. “Now we really need to take a bath.” He observed

The tub was full, by this point. So Twilight turned off the water and they did just that.

They took their time and made sure they were both completely clean before they dried off. Then they walked out of the bathroom, through the bedroom and out into the hall.

In the hallway, they found Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang waiting for them, both looking very pleased.

“Congratulations, my prince.” Silver Shadow said, smiling. He and Midnight Fang turned to smile at Twilight. “We now have our Princess of the Night.”

Twilight stared, eyes as big as saucers. “W-what?! How did you-? Wait, was I really that loud?”

Artemis laughed “I know you meant it as a joke, but I think all of Ponyville really did hear you.” He paused to nuzzle her “There is little chance that they did not when you screamed in the Royal Canterlot Voice.”

Twilight stared “I-I did what?!”

Artemis, Silver Shadow, and Midnight Fang laughed as Twilight’s entire face turned bright red.

Artemis nuzzled her again before giving her a hug. “It’s alright, Twilight. I’m just glad I was able to bring you such pleasure.”

Twilight took a deep breath and nodded. She paused, realizing something “I’m hungry”. Her stomach very quickly backed that statement up with a loud grumble.

Artemis laughed “I am as well. Let’s go get some breakfast.”

As their prince and princess walked down the hall, Midnight Fang looked at Silver Shadow and muttered “I’d be surprised if they weren’t.”

Silver Shadow laughed and nodded “Come on, we’d better follow them. We don’t want a repeat of yesterday.”

At that, they both quickly caught up to the ones they were charged with guarding and walked out of their princess’ castle.

Like yesterday, they were greeted by everypony that saw them.

The difference was that, this time, there was a group of ponies waiting for them at the base of Twilight’s tree-like castle. The foals shouted their greetings and ran over to give both Artemis and Twilight hugs before going back to their parents.

The adults all had very large grins on their faces as they wished the prince and princess good morning. Twilight noticed this and turned bright red, causing them all to laugh.

None of them asked the obvious question. For them, the fact that she immediately turned red like that, automatically confirmed what they had heard this morning. They weren’t upset at all. In fact, they couldn’t be happier for her. The crowd parted and allowed them to walk to Sugarcube Corner, calling “Congratulations!” to the couple as they walked away.

Artemis and Twilight walked into Sugarcube Corner to find it practically empty, except for one dragon and six mares. They all looked up as Artemis, Twilight, Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang walked in.

Off to the side, was a long table set up with many different types of fruit and breakfast pastries. Another table had several bottles of apple and orange juice.

“See? I told you they were going to come here for breakfast!” shouted Pinkie

They all noticed that Twilight was blushing and smiled.

Rainbow grinned “So, Twi, I heard you had a good time this morning.”

Twilight sighed “You and everyone else in Ponyville. I really should put a soundproofing spell around my room.”

Everypony laughed

She shook her head and looked at each of her friends. “Well, girls? What are you waiting for? I know you all want to tease me about it. Go ahead, get it over with.”

They all stared at her for a moment before Pinkie pouted “That’s not fair. It’s no fun when you’re expecting it!”

The rest of them laughed

Twilight stared at them “You’re not going to complain? I know all of you, especially you, Rarity, think that this was way too soon. We’ve had discussions where we each promised that we would wait at least six months! I wasn’t even able to wait a week!”

“Well,” Fluttershy began “when we promised each other that, we didn’t count on anyone trying to kill the one we love.”

Applejack laughed “Fluttershy has a point, Twi.” Suddenly, she got serious. “Yesterday, for a few moments there, we all thought that Artemis was going to die. Ah’d be surprised if you didn’t have some fun after that.”

Rarity hugged Twilight “In fact, after you went back to your castle last night, we got together and talked. We decided that, if you two didn’t do anything by tomorrow, we were going to lock the two of you in your room until you did.”

“W-what?!” Before she could get out anymore of her question, her stomach growled again.

Artemis laughed “We should probably eat, Twilight.”

She blushed and nodded before going to the food table and putting together a plate before getting a bottle of apple juice and sitting down at the table.

Artemis did the same and sat next to her. Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang made plates for themselves and joined them, sitting at the other end of the table.

After they had all finished their food, Mayor Mare cleared her throat. “Princess Twilight, in the chaos of yesterday, I forgot to tell you the results of the bake sale. We made two thousand, three hundred and forty-three bits.”

Twilight stared “Didn’t you say that we were only four hundred bits short?”

Mayor Mare smiled “Yes, princess. It seems that we made enough to pay for the raw materials that Applejack and Pinkie used to make the baked goods. Additionally, we are already well on our way to being set for the next budget period.”

Twilight smiled as well “Good. We shouldn’t have this problem again.”

Artemis cleared his throat “Twilight, have you decided on an activity or plan for the day?”

Twilight looked up at him “Actually, yes. I just don’t know if you’re going to be OK with it.”

He tilted his head, but waited for her to continue

“After all of the stress of the last several days, I thought it would be good to relax at the spa. I don’t know about you, but I could use a good massage.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever gone to a spa. My sister employs ponies that take care of our wings when we are too busy to do so ourselves, but that’s it.”

“What?!” asked Rarity, aghast. “No, no, no, Darling! That is just terrible!” she turned to Twilight “You simply must get him to the spa!”

Twilight looked up to see that the Aloe sisters, the ponies that run Ponyville Day Spa, walking past Sugarcube Corner. “Let me go ask when their next opening is. I’ll be right back.” She stood, walked outside, caught up to the sisters and began to ask her questions.

Meanwhile, inside Sugarcube Corner, the girls and Spike turned to Artemis.

“Is it alright if we skip the title and just call you Artemis? That’s going to get really annoying after a while.” Asked Spike

Artemis nodded “As long as we’re not in a formal situation, that’s fine. I don’t allow everypony to do that, but the five of you, as the Elements of Harmony, have earned it because of all that you have done for me. As for you, Spike, I hope we can become closer, especially considering my relationship with Twilight.”

“About that,” Spike jumped on the table, walked up to Artemis, and looked him in the eye. “Twilight hatched me, raised me, and has taught me everything I know. She is my mother, big sister and best friend. DO NOT hurt her!”

Before Artemis could reply, the girls chimed in as well.

“Ah was going to say something similar, but Spike beat me to it.” Applejack spoke up “We may not have known her as long as Spike has, but she is important to all of us.” She gave him a look. “If you hurt her, Ah’m gonna buck ya into next week.”

“We are not saying this just because she is a princess,” added Rainbow “So don’t even start with that stuff.” She paused “If she gets hurt, I’ll make sure that you get struck by lightning. A lot.”

“If you hurt her,” started Fluttershy, with an uncharacteristically serious look on her face “I will send my animals after you and they will not be nice.”

Artemis stared at them for a moment but before he could respond, Twilight walked back in.

“The Aloe sisters said that they were expecting this and have cleared the entire day for us, Artemis. In fact, the only ponies they have on the schedule for today are the two of us. They are already waiting for us, so we’ll go after we finish eating.” She paused, looking at the ponies in the room “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, Darling!” Rarity replied, smiling “Come on, eat your food. We need to get Artemis to his first day at the Spa!”

W-wow. And I thought her parents were going to be tough. Artemis noticed Twilight looking at him, smiled at her and took a bite out of a blueberry muffin.

Twilight was confused by their behavior, but decided to let it go. She shook her head and went back to her bagel and fruit.

After they finished their breakfasts, the group walked out of the bakery. Mayor Mare went to Town Hall to get started on work for the day.

Applejack headed to Sweet Apple Acres to get to work. “We used a lot of apples yesterday so I have to go buck some more.” She said as she left.

Pinkie grinned as she bounced around the group. “We sold ALL of the cakes and cupcakes we had yesterday! Now I have to go make more.” She paused “I also have to take care of Pound and Pumpkin today. I know! I’ll have them bake with me!” She waved and went back into the bakery.

“Yesterday’s party has given me some new design ideas that I just have to try out!” squealed Rarity “I’ll see you later!” she paused “Spike can you come with me? I’m going to need your help!”

Spike ran over to her immediately “Sure, Rarity!” They headed to Rarity’s boutique.

“I need to go meet up with the Weather Team about the weather schedule for the next couple of days. We may have to move that storm that’s scheduled for tomorrow.” Rainbow said “I don’t know how long it’s gonna take, so I’ll see you later.” She waved and flew off.

Fluttershy ducked her head “I have to go apologize to my animals. I didn’t spend much time with them yesterday.” She smiled and walked towards her cottage.

Twilight and Artemis stared after them before looking at each other. “That was weird.” She said

Artemis nodded “I agree”

Before they could say anything else, they arrived in front of the Ponyville Day Spa and found the Aloe sisters waiting out front. “Princess Twilight and Prince Artemis, Welcome. Today, we have both of you scheduled for our Whole Body Package. We have thrown in our Wing Special as an added bonus. And, NO, we will not be taking payment for this service.” Not allowing either alicorn to respond, the sisters pulled them inside to get started.

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang took positions on either side of the front door, not willing to allow anything, or anyone, to interrupt the relaxation of their prince and princess.

Meanwhile, in Canterlot, Celestia was having an interesting day.

It had started out normal enough. She woke at the time to raise the sun. Smiling, she lowered her brother’s moon and stars. It’s only fair that, after last night, he gets a chance to sleep in. Once the moon was lowered, she set about raising the sun.

She then walked over to her desk and pulled out the scroll that Twilight had sent her the night before. She paused before pulling out a quill and two blank scrolls and writing two letters.

The first was to Cadance and Shining Armor. In it, she told them that there was an attack on Artemis and Twilight in Ponyville and Artemis’ life had almost been taken.

The second letter was to Twilight’s parents. She simply asked that they come in to the castle for some important information.

Celestia used her magic to send one to Cadance and asked a guard to deliver the other to Twilight Velvet and Night Light Sparkle.

She was on her way to the dining room for breakfast, when there was a flash of light. In front of her, a letter suddenly appeared. Knowing that it had to be from Cadance, she opened it to find the shortest letter Cadance had ever sent her.

“We’re on our way”

Chapter 24

Author's Note

I just want to make it clear. I am not a lawyer and have no legal training. This is just how i wanted to write my story.

Chapter 24

Not sure what to make of that, Celestia shook her head and went into the dining room for breakfast and asked Apple Crunch to bring her usual. After eating, she headed to the throne room for court.

The throne room, as usual, was full of ponies that needed her help. She settled into her normal routine of listening to the petitions and doing what she could for her little ponies.

After an hour or so of this, one of her guards walked up and told her that Twilight Velvet and Night Light Sparkle had arrived to see her.

“Thank you. Please bring them here.”

The guard bowed and left the room. A few minutes later, he returned with the two of them in tow.

Celestia was about to ask for a short recess when there was a loud noise accompanied by a bright flash of light in the center of the room. Everypony looked to see Cadance and Shining Armor, standing side-by-side with their horns crossed. Cadance also had her wings flared.

“Where are they?” Cadance asked Celestia, not caring about the other ponies in the room.

“Who are you talking about?” asked Celestia

“Who do you think?” demanded Shining Armor “Whoever attacked my sister last night!”

“And tried to kill Uncle Artemis!”

The rest of the ponies in the throne room paused for a moment, in shock.

“WHAT?!”

The shout had come from the room as a whole, including some of her Day Guards.

Celestia sighed and turned to Twilight’s parents “That is why I called you here. Twilight asked me to tell you what happened. I was planning to take the two of you to another room so that I could tell you about what happened, in private. However,-”

“Princess Celestia”

She turned to see that Arctic Breeze was back in her court. Once again, he had decided to speak for the other ponies in the room.

Celestia sighed “You all want answers too, I take it.”

“Of course, Princess!” was the response from the room as a whole.

She tilted her head, in thought. What’s the best way to tell them? She paused That’s right, I still have those!

She looked at the ponies in front of her. “Cadance, Shining Armor, Twilight Velvet, and Night Light Sparkle. Please come to my side. Everypony else, stay where you are. I need to use the space in the center of the room.”

Everypony nodded and quickly did as she asked. Then, they paused, waiting for her. They watched, confused, as she lit her horn and summoned two spheres of pure magic. One was purple and the other was a deep, almost midnight blue.

“Last night, Twilight and my brother brought a pony to this very room. Instead of telling me what happened they each gave me some of their magic that had recorded the events of the night. These recordings are from their memories and as seen through their eyes. First, I will show you the events as seen by Twilight.”

With that, she levitated the purple sphere to the center of the room, enlarged it so that everypony could see and let the memory play.

As soon as it had finished, she collapsed it to its normal size and brought it back in front of her. She then levitated the dark blue one to the middle of the room and enlarged that one.

“Now, the events as seen by Artemis”

Everypony was quiet as she allowed her brother’s memories to play. When they had finished, she collapsed it to its normal size and teleported them both back to her room. That done, she turned to the ponies gathered in front of her.

“What are your questions?”

It took a moment for them to shake themselves out of the shock of what they had just seen. Then, they looked up at her.

Arctic Breeze stepped forward. “Our first question is a reiteration of the one Princess Cadance asked. Where is the pony that committed this crime?”

Celestia nodded, expecting that one. “After questioning him myself, I put him in the Royal Dungeons, awaiting trial. He had been charged with Attempted Murder. Evidence points to Blueblood as being the mastermind of the attack. The appropriate charge has been added to the list of charges already filed against him.”

Ice Blossom walked in, having been standing in the door and watching as Celestia replayed the memories. “Princess Celestia, are you absolutely certain that Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight Sparkle are unharmed?”

Celestia nodded “They both came to see me last night, bringing the pony they had arrested. They were tired, but not injured.”

Arctic Breeze spoke up “That other voice in the memory of Prince Artemis, the one that said they were saving their magic to keep him alive so that Princess Twilight could get there in time, who was that?”

Celestia cleared her throat I was hoping they wouldn’t ask that one. “That was the voice of Night-Terror Knight. He was going to give up his magic, to make sure that Artemis survived.” She paused “Before any of you get upset, I will explain. When Twilight used the Elements of Harmony for the first time, against Night-Terror Knight, she saved my brother by protecting his soul. This meant that the Elements could not send Artemis or Night-Terror Knight back to the moon. Instead, the Elements of Harmony purified them both. Now, Night-Terror Knight has taken it upon himself to be another level of protection for my brother, keeping him safe. He is no longer evil and has no plans, other than protecting my brother.”

Everypony smiled

“Good, that’s a relief.” Arctic Breeze said

Ice Blossom stepped up next to Arctic Breeze “Princess Celestia, it is obvious that simply arresting these ponies is not enough. They must stand trial. I know that we have already asked for the trial of Blueblood to be a public one. I am now asking that we move the date for this trial closer. The sooner we get this done, the sooner we can put this behind us.”

Arctic Breeze nodded “And the safer Prince Artemis will be.”

Celestia nodded “I am already working on that. How soon did you want to have the trial?”

Ice Blossom and Arctic Breeze turned to each other and nodded before looking back to Celestia. “Tomorrow”

Celestia’s eyes widened I thought they were going to say next week.

“I know that Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight are in Ponyville on vacation, as per our petition. However, it is becoming increasingly important that the trial and sentencing is done. Now.” Ice Blossom looked around at the other ponies in the room. “We will move Night Court to Ponyville or cancel it for the month, if we have to. This is far more important.”

Celestia looked at her “I understand, and agree with, your point. However, the logistics of setting up a public trial of this magnitude, so quickly, are difficult, to say the least.”

Cadance stepped forward “I will handle that, Aunt Celestia. I’m also setting up a standard trial for the attacker. That will happen today.” She glared at Celestia “He attacked my uncle and little sister. I will not allow that to slide.”

Shining Armor stepped forward alongside his wife “I will help her, princess. I’m also interrogating that bastard myself. I want to get every piece of information out of him that I can.” He looked up at her “No, I will not touch him and will not be in the room alone with him. I will see to it that all of the laws are followed, but he is not getting away with this.”

Shining Armor paused “Before any of that, can you call them here, princess? I want to see for myself that my sister is alright.”

The rest of the room quickly erupted in shouts of “Yes!”, “Us, too!” and “Great idea!”

Celestia looked at them “They aren’t going to be happy about that. They’re on vacation.” She saw that the ponies present were not deterred in the least and sighed. “Very Well” She summoned a scroll, wrote the letter and sent it to Spike. “I do not know what they have planned for the day, so it may take a while for them to arrive.”

Everypony in the throne room sat down.

Meanwhile, in Ponyville, Twilight and Artemis were just walking out of Ponyville Day Spa.

“That was amazing, Twilight! I should have done this a long time ago!” Artemis said, with a sigh of pleasure, stretching out his wings.

“See, Rainbow? If Artemis likes it, there is no excuse for you!”

Twilight and Artemis looked up to find that the girls and Spike had gathered in front of the spa and were waiting for them.

Before anything else could be said, Spike burped out the letter from Celestia.

Twilight caught it in her magic and opened it. As she read it, she grew confused.

“Twilight?” Artemis asked “Is something wrong?”

“I don’t know,” she replied “she wants the two of us to go to Canterlot, immediately.”

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang looked at each other and stepped forward. “We’re coming too, my princess. After yesterday, we are not leaving the two of you unprotected.”

Twilight nodded and turned to the girls “I guess we’d better go see what this is about. I’ll ask Celestia to send you a letter later, Spike, with whatever happens. We may have to stay there tonight.”

She paused and turned to Artemis “I can’t teleport all four of us to Canterlot by myself. I’m going to need your help.”

He nodded and stood facing her, lowering his horn to meet hers. Their guards moved to stand on either side of them. A flash of light later, and they were gone.

In the throne room of Canterlot Castle, there was suddenly a flash of light. Everypony turned to see Twilight and Artemis standing in the center of the room, facing each other. They had their eyes closed and horns crossed. There was a pair of Night Guards as well, one on either side of them.

The room erupted in cheers as they opened their eyes and looked around.

“Huh?” asked Twilight as she found herself tackled in a hug by Shining Armor, her mother and father.

“What?” asked Artemis as he also found himself tackled in a hug, in this case, it was Cadance.

Then they switched. Cadance hugged Twilight and Shining Armor, Twilight Velvet and Night Light hugged Artemis, much to the surprise of them both.

“I’m sorry, Twilight, Artemis. I didn’t mean to interrupt your vacation. ” Celestia said as she walked up to them “Everypony here demanded that I call the two of you.”

“Of course we did!” answered Shining Armor “We had to see for ourselves that you are OK.” He paused and nuzzled Twilight “You’re lucky that you are a princess, Twily.”

“What do you mean, Shiny?” she asked as she returned his nuzzle.

“If you weren’t I’d insist on putting you through the Royal Guard Academy. After everything you’ve done, you’re more qualified for it than I was.”

“Um, I don’t think that’s necessary, big brother.” Twilight replied as she blushed “Besides, I’m not cut out for that kind of thing.”

Everypony in the room just stared at her for several moments before they were suddenly distracted by a loud noise. They looked over at Artemis.

He was laughing

“Twilight,” he began as he nuzzled her “I am, quite literally, living evidence to the contrary. You make a very good guard.”

Everypony else nodded

“So, sister, I assume there is another reason you called us here.” Artemis said, turning to Celestia “What is going on?”

Celestia nodded “The ponies present have decided to hold Blueblood’s trial earlier than we initially planned.” She paused at his questioning look “It will be held tomorrow.”

Artemis stared at her, immediately nervous. “What?”

Twilight moved closer to Artemis and nuzzled into his side. He draped a wing over her but did not turn his gaze from his sister.

Arctic Breeze stepped forward “It is apparent to everypony here that these ponies that mean you harm must be stopped. The best way for us to do that is to put the mastermind on trial and convict him of his crimes. Only then can he be sentenced and truly stopped.”

Cadance nuzzled Artemis “Don’t worry, Uncle. He will have to explain to the entire population of Equestria what he has done. He may be able to convince some of his views, but legally, he has no ground to stand on.”

Twilight sucked in a breath, causing Cadance to look at her. “If he is able to convince ponies that Artemis needs to be banished, Celestia can’t do that. She can’t wield the Elements of Harmony anymore. I am the only one that can and they would try to make me.”

Artemis looked at her, eyes wide, as he understood her point and shuddered.

“Let them try” They looked over to see a determined Celestia “I’ll make sure it’s the last thing they ever do.”

Ice Blossom stepped forward to join Arctic Breeze “I understand your fear, Prince Artemis, Princess Twilight. However, that won’t happen. We won’t allow it.”

Twilight looked unconvinced and was clearly still worried.

Cadance spoke up “We have a lot of work to do for the trial tomorrow.”

Arctic Breeze and Ice Blossom nodded and turned to the ponies around them. “Let’s go, ponies! We need to make today count.” Arctic Breeze said as they all filed out of the room.

Artemis blinked as he realized that they were no longer in the throne room. He looked at Celestia and saw the golden glow fade from her horn. She had used a group teleportation to bring her family to her room. Artemis then felt a tingle of magic over him, looked over and found that he and Twilight were surrounded in the light blue glow of Cadance’s magic. She levitated them to Celestia’s bed and gently laid them in the center of it. He stared at her in surprise before he felt Twilight cuddle into his side, putting herself as close to him as possible. Looking down at her, he saw that she was scared, so he curled his body around her and covered her with a wing. The others looked on as he tried to calm her but it was evident in his expression that he was scared as well.

Seeing this, Celestia lit her horn, causing Artemis and Twilight to look up at her. They both started to move as she lowered her head, making sure that her horn touched both of theirs. Before either of them could say anything, they both fell asleep.

Cadance looked at Celestia “A sleeping spell? Why did you do that? Don’t we need their help?”

Celestia shook her head “They’re terrified and I refuse to allow them to suffer.” She paused, wrote and sent a letter to Spike. Then she looked at everypony else in the room. “They will be safe here. Come. We have a lot of work to do.” She turned to the door to her room.

She opened it to find Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang standing there. She smiled “There is no reason to worry, Silver Shadow. They are both here, in my room. I have cast a sleeping spell on them and they are now resting.” She stepped aside, allowing them to see into the room.

As soon as they saw Twilight and Artemis curled up on the bed, the guards both sighed in relief. “My apologies, Princess Celestia.” Silver Shadow said “However, after the events of yesterday, it is imperative that we remain vigilant and ensure the safety of our prince and princess.”

Celestia’s eyes widened, catching the hidden meaning, and she lowered her head to Silver Shadow “Does this mean that they-?” she whispered

Silver Shadow smiled and nodded “They did”

Celestia sighed in relief “Good. Remain here and guard them. The rest of us have work to do.”

In Ponyville, Spike and the girls were sitting in the park. The girls watched as Spike burped out green fire that turned into a letter.

Spike unrolled it and began to read. After a moment he said “That was fast.”

“What was fast?” asked Rainbow

Spike looked at her “Twilight and Artemis are staying in Canterlot today and tonight. Tomorrow, the trial for Blueblood will be held. Apparently, the attack yesterday scared a lot of the ponies in Canterlot and they want Blueblood convicted ASAP.” He paused, looking back at the letter “A chariot will be here to take us to Canterlot tomorrow morning at eight. If we’re not on time, we’re not going.”

“Oh, Ah know Ah’m going.” Said Applejack

“I’ll be there” put in Rainbow

The rest of the girls agreed and went their separate ways to get ready. Spike went to Town Hall to tell Mayor Mare before heading to the castle to get ready for tomorrow.

Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor, Twilight Velvet and Night Light made their way to the Royal Dungeons. Celestia paused and went over to Blueblood’s cell. She stopped in front of it, causing him to look up at her.

“Your trial is tomorrow, Blueblood.” she told him coldly “You have two hours to decide on your attorney. Once you have done so, I will ensure that whoever you chose arrives today, to help you prepare your case.”

She walked away before he could respond.

That was faster than I thought it would be. He thought with a smile Ponies must have found out about my actions and want me free. This is perfect.

Meanwhile, Cadance was talking to a few other guards about arranging a trial for Blaze. She was just finishing as Celestia walked back over.

Celestia joined her family and they walked to the other side of the Royal Dungeons. There, she told one of the guards to bring Blaze to one of the interrogation rooms.

The guard nodded “Of course, princess” He then walked away. A few minutes later, he walked back over. “He is in interrogation room number one, your highness.”

“Thank you. I will let you know when we are done.”

Blaze was sitting in a simple wooden chair, wondering why he had been brought in here. Princess Celestia already tried to interrogate me last night. I had to give her my name, but that’s all I gave her. He looked up as the door opened and just stared.

In walked Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor, Twilight Velvet and Night Light Sparkle.

“Good morning, Blaze” Celestia started “I trust you don’t need an introduction?”

Blaze paused “I know who you and Princess Cadance are, princess. Who are the others, and why are they here?”

Shining Armor stepped forward “I am Shining Armor, Prince and co-ruler of the Crystal Empire. The ponies behind me are Twilight Velvet and Night Light Sparkle.”

Blaze sneered “Sparkle? Like that meddling purple princess. She ruined everything.”

Shining Armor glared “That “meddling purple princess” is my little sister!”

Night Light joined his son “And our daughter!”

Blaze blanched “Oh”

Cadance joined her husband “Why did you attack my uncle?”

Blaze turned to her “I don’t have to tell you anything!”

Twilight Velvet stepped forward next to her husband, horn glowing. “I disagree. When you attacked Artemis, you also attacked my daughter. Do not underestimate how protective a mother can get.”

Blaze backed up a bit, staring at her horn. “I was ordered to kill the Prince of the Night if a day passed with no results after Prince Blueblood took his petition to Night Court. I had heard nothing about Prince Artemis stepping down, so I figured out where he was and followed my orders, or at least tried to.”

Celestia stepped forward “Did Blueblood tell you why he wanted this done?”

Blaze paused and shook his head “He just told me that he believed Prince Artemis was in the way of his goals and he wanted me to kill him if he didn’t step down.”

Cadance gave Blaze a look “And you agreed, just like that?”

Blaze shrugged “I’m a hit-pony, princess. As long as I get paid, I don’t care.”

Everypony in room jumped as a knock sounded on the door.

“Yes?” asked Celestia, turning to and opening it to reveal a guard.

“Everything is ready, your highnesses.” He told the room as a whole.

“Good” answered Celestia “Please escort him there.”

“Where are you taking me?” asked a concerned Blaze

Everyone ignored him.

They arrived in a courtroom a few minutes later.

Blaze froze. “You can’t do this to me! You have no evidence and I won’t answer any more questions!”

The judge looked at the ponies walking towards him. He waited as they were shown their seats. The jury was already present and seated off to the side.

“I can honestly say that I never thought I would see charges like this.” He looked over at them. “The Attempted Murder charge, unfortunately, is not the unusual part. It’s the pony’s name that caught my attention. Who, in their right mind, would try to kill Prince Artemis?!”

He shook his head “Well, let’s get this trial started.”

He looked at Blaze “The defendant, Blaze, has been charged with the Attempted Murder of Artemis, Prince of the Night. How do you plead?”

Blaze looked up defiantly “Not Guilty”

Celestia suppressed a snort of amusement as she turned to the judge “I would like to submit the evidence.”

The judge turned to her “Of course, princess.”

“I have three pieces of evidence to present to the court.” She explained “Last night, my brother and Twilight used their magic to give me copies of their memories of the night the attack happened. I can say, with certainty that they have not been tampered with.”

The judge nodded “I am willing to take your word for it, princess. Please proceed.”

Celestia nodded and summoned the spheres that Twilight and Artemis had given her the night before. “The first, covers the events of the night as seen by Princess Twilight.”

With that, she let the memory play. As it ended, she looked up at the bench.

The judge just stared “A-and the memory of Prince Artemis?”

Celestia smiled and played the memory.

As it ended, the judge’s eyes widened and his jaw dropped. “Remind me to never piss her off.”

Everypony, except Blaze, laughed.

The judge shook his head and tried to get back on topic. “You said there was a third piece of evidence, princess?”

Celestia nodded “As I’m sure you are aware, the interrogation rooms in the Royal Dungeons all have recording spells cast on them. This is done to record any interrogation session without worrying about a pony tampering with the spell or providing false information.”

The judge nodded “Of course, princess. That spell has been used to close many cases since you ordered it cast.”

Celestia smiled “The third piece of evidence is the recording of the interrogation session that we just had.”

Blaze paled as Celestia played the recording.

As it finished, the judge shook his head. And he plead Not Guilty? “Is there any other piece of evidence that either side wishes to provide?”

Celestia shook her head and sat down

Blaze shook his head “I have nothing to provide to the court.”

The judge nodded and turned to the jury “I’m fairly certain that I know the verdict that you have come to. However, to ensure this is done correctly, I’ll ask anyway. Has the jury arrived at a verdict?”

As one, they responded “Yes, Your Honor.”

“And how do you find the defendant?”

A Pegasus mare stepped forward slightly “After reviewing the evidence presented to the court, we find the defendant guilty of Attempted Murder.”

The judge nodded “The sentence is life in prison, without the possibility of parole.”

Chapter 25

With the trial over and Blaze back in his cell, Celestia stopped by Blueblood’s cell to see if he had decided on his attorney.

As soon as he saw her, Blueblood opened his mouth “I will be representing myself. It would only be a waste of my money to hire an attorney.”

Shocked, Celestia just looked at him for a moment. Is he serious? He just doesn’t get it, does he? Oh well, I’m not going to force him. “Are you sure of this?”

He nodded

“Very Well. I’ll see you tomorrow, then.” With that, she walked away.

She met up with Cadance, Shining Armor and Twilight’s parents. “He has decided to represent himself.”

They just stared at her for a moment before shaking their heads.

Cadance looked at Celestia “Everything is proceeding smoothly. There is only one problem that has come up, so far.”

“What’s that?” Celestia asked

“It seems that word of our arrival and what happened last night has gotten out.” Shining Armor began “Now, there are thousands of ponies that want to be present tomorrow.”

Celestia stared “Thousands?”

He nodded “Many of them are arriving in Canterlot, as we speak. The problem this has caused is that there is no location large enough to hold them all and still have the trial.”

Celestia smiled “That’s alright, I’ll think of something. If that’s the only problem we have, we’re in good shape.”

At that point, they all looked to the side to see Ice Blossom walking up. “Princess Cadance, everything has been taken care of and is ready for tomorrow. There has also been a suggestion of a location for the trial.”

Cadance smiled “Very good, thank you. What was the suggestion?”

“Canterlot Park” Ice Blossom replied “It’s the largest place available, even if it is outside. However, it is still not large enough to accommodate everypony that is coming.”

Celestia tilted her head thoughtfully “I suppose I could cast a spell to temporarily enlarge the park. However, I can only keep it that large for a little over a day. Then, it will go back to its normal size.”

“That’s perfect, Princess Celestia, thank you. I will tell everypony about this and we will get everything ready as soon as the park is expanded.” Ice Blossom replied

Celestia nodded and closed her eyes for a moment. Her horn lit up with its usual golden color, but it was much brighter than usual. After a couple of minutes, she stopped and let out a sigh. “There, it’s done. Around midnight tomorrow, the spell will end.”

“Thank you, Princess. That’s plenty of time. We will go get everything ready.” Ice Blossom paused “Oh, and we have decided that we will not return for court until the day after tomorrow. Have a good night, your highnesses and I will see you in the morning.” With that said, she walked over to a group of ponies to start organizing the location set up.

Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor, Twilight Velvet and Night Light went back to her room and walked in. They were surprised when Artemis and Twilight raised their heads and looked at them.

Celestia just stared “How did you-?”

Twilight giggled slightly “I’m the Element of Magic, remember? My Element gives me some protection from most spells, no matter how powerful they are. Yours did make me fall asleep for a couple of hours, but then my natural resistance to spells kicked in and I woke up. I decided to let Artemis sleep for a while longer. At least, until I got hungry. We did sleep through lunch, after all. That’s when I woke him up but we decided to wait for you.”

Artemis got off his sister’s bed and stretched before moving off to the side to allow Twilight to do the same. After she finished stretching, they walked over to meet their family at the door.

They walked back out and headed towards the dining room, Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang falling into step behind them.

Apple Crunch was waiting for them. “Welcome, your highnesses. I have already prepared Fettuccine Alfredo with Fresh Garden Peas for dinner. For dessert, I have prepared-“

Please, not cake. Twilight and Artemis thought

“One apple pie and one cherry pie.” Apple Crunch finished

They both sighed in relief, causing everypony to look at them.

Twilight looked up “We’re just glad it’s not cake.” She paused and looked at Apple Crunch “Don’t get me wrong, cake is delicious. However, after the attack last night, our magic was so weak that we needed to eat Pinkie’s Triple Chocolate, Strawberry Frosted cupcakes to help us recover.”

Artemis looked over at Celestia “I ate three of them and Twilight had to eat four. I’m pretty sure that neither of us wants to even look at cake for a week. They did help us recover but,” he shuddered “it was way too much sugar.”

Twilight nodded

Everypony, even Celestia, just stared at them for a moment.

Apple Crunch shuddered as well, just imagining having to eat that much sugar. “I completely understand. Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight, I just changed my mind. Dessert for the two of you, is now going to be a bowl of fresh fruit.”

Everypony laughed as they went to the table and sat down as the chefs brought in dinner.

Dinner was fairly quiet as everypony was content to let Artemis and Twilight eat in silence.

As the meal ended, the two of them stood and headed for the door. They realized, suddenly, that they were no longer moving. Surprised, they looked at Celestia to see that she had them in her levitation spell.

“Oh no, you two are not going off on your own tonight. Did you forget that you owe me a sleepover?” she asked them

Twilight stared at her “You said you wanted that next week.” She pouted “I was going to bring the girls and have Pinkie really give us a sleepover.”

Celestia stared at her for a moment before she smiled “I am now expecting exactly that when you return next week. I’ve heard enough about Pinkie’s parties that I know it will be fun.”

She gave Twilight a look. “However, Little Sister, last night I could have lost both you and my brother. I let you go back to Ponyville because I am the one that asked Pinkie to throw that party and I didn’t want you to miss it.” She brought them to her side and put a wing over each of them. “Tonight, I’m not letting either of you out of my sight.”

“Aww, that’s not fair, Aunt Celestia.” Cadance whined “I was going to have them stay with me and Shiny tonight. She’s my little sister, too!”

Twilight Velvet nodded “And I was going to insist that both of my children, and their partners, spend the night with us.”

Celestia paused, thought a moment and nodded with a smile. “Well, my room’s big enough for all of us. We’ll have a family sleepover tonight.”

They all paused, shocked, before grinning and nodding.

Twilight looked over at Artemis “I guess we don’t have a choice.”

He shrugged “Not really. When my sister gets like this, it’s generally best to just go along with it.”

At that, everypony laughed, except for Celestia. She was too busy blushing.

Artemis looked at Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang. “We’ll see the two of you in the morning. Get some rest.”

They both looked offended “Your Highness, your protection-“started Silver Shadow. He cut was cut off by the sound of Twilight laughing. He looked at her, confused. “My princess?”

“We will be spending the night with Celestia, Cadance, and Shining Armor. Plus my parents.” She shook her head, still laughing “Do you really think anypony would be dumb enough to attack us?”

Midnight Fang laughed as well “Not likely, my princess.”

They both bowed “Have a good night, your highnesses.”

With that, the royal family returned to Celestia’s personal chambers. Everypony looked at Celestia.

She shook her head “This is not the fun sleepover. Tonight, I just want cuddle time with my family.”

Twilight and Artemis looked at each other before climbing onto Celestia’s bed and cuddling together in the middle of it. Artemis lit his horn and levitated Celestia to his free side, while Twilight did the same and brought Cadance to hers. Cadance smiled and pulled Shining Armor to her other side. Twilight Velvet snuggled next to her son and Night Light snuggled next to his wife.

Celestia and Artemis didn’t even get up to lower the sun and raise the moon. They just raised their heads, lit their horns and preformed their celestial duty.

Everypony lay like that, until they fell asleep.

The next morning, Celestia and Artemis woke up at the same time, each to the call of their respective celestial bodies. Artemis lowered the moon and stars before Celestia rose the sun.

Artemis was content to snuggle back against Twilight and lay there a while longer.

Celestia, however, stood and lit her horn. The light woke the rest of the sleeping ponies.

“Really, sister?” Artemis asked as he watched everyone wake up.

Twilight giggled as she opened her eyes. “I told you. She always does this whenever somepony spends the night in her room. Why do you think I don’t do it very often?” She yawned and nuzzled him “That’s why she had to put the sleeping spell on those pillows any time she wanted me to spend the night in here.”

Celestia blushed “It’s no fun being the only one awake. Besides, I like having company for breakfast.”

“Ugh, then go back to sleep after you raise the sun and eat breakfast later.” Cadance groaned as she buried her face into Shining Armor’s neck, trying to block out the light. “Some of us like to sleep in.”

“Point taken, should we rest for a while?” Celestia asked

“No, we’re up now.” Cadance answered, while everypony else nodded.

They were walking towards the dining room when a thought occurred to Twilight. “Cadance?” she asked “Where is Flurry?”

“The Crystal Empire. As soon as we got Aunt Celestia’s letter, we arranged for a couple of guards and castle staff to take care of her.” Cadance replied “Don’t worry, we’ll bring her next time.”

In the dining room, they found the table piled high with pancakes and waffles. Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang were waiting for them.

“Good morning, your highnesses. Today is a big one, so we had to make sure you were all well fed.” They turned to find Apple Crunch standing in the doorway.

Artemis and Twilight, reminded of the events scheduled for the day, shivered and cuddled closer to each other.

Celestia shot Apple Crunch a look and nuzzled her brother “Shh, it’s OK. Nopony is going to hurt you, little brother.”

“I’m not worried about getting hurt, sister. I don’t want to go back to the moon.”

“And I don’t want to be forced to send him there.” Twilight said as she shivered again.

Cadance hugged her “That won’t happen, Twilight.”

“You don’t know that.” was her quiet reply

There wasn’t much more that anypony could say. The rest of the words they had planned to comfort them with died in their throats. Everypony just decided to eat breakfast.

After they had eaten, and tried to convince Artemis and Twilight to eat, they walked out of the castle. As soon as they got to the park, Celestia had them stop. “I don’t want the two of you in the “courtroom” at first. I need you two to wait here until after Blueblood enters.”

“Why is that, sister?” asked Artemis, confused

“I’m pretty sure he thinks that you are dead, Artemis. I want the court, and everypony else, to see his reaction when he finds out that you are not.”

Suddenly, Celestia wasn’t sure who was laughing the loudest. She just stared as Artemis, Twilight and Cadance collapsed to the ground, laughing.

“Oh good, they made it.”

Twilight, still laughing, looked up to find that Celestia was looking out into the crowd. “Who made it?” she asked

Celestia looked back down at her and smiled. “Your friends and Spike, of course. I couldn’t let them miss this.”

Cadance looked up, back the way they came, and stood up “Shiny, let’s go. We need to get into the audience. Now.”

They followed her gaze and immediately understood. Blueblood was coming. With a quick teleportation spell, Celestia was suddenly standing in the front of the “courtroom” next to the judge. She looked back in time to see Twilight cast a camouflage spell. She smiled as Twilight and Artemis disappeared.

Blueblood was confident as he was led out of his cell on the day of the trial. Everything will be the set way it should be, soon. My plans were flawless, they always are.

He was a bit surprised as he was led, not into the castle, but out into Canterlot. He paused for a second before he laughed. Aunt Celestia set it up as a public trial? That’s great! Now everypony will know what I have done and why I have done it! They will force her to give me my title back and maybe even put me in power!

Soon, he arrived at a courtroom that had been set up out in the middle of the park. He saw how many ponies were already gathered and smiled. It looks like most of Equestria is here.

He was not that far off, everypony that was able to travel to Canterlot on short notice was here. Word of Blueblood’s actions had quickly spread throughout Equestria. Nopony wanted to miss what was already being called “the Trial of the Century”.

His smile turned to a grin as he looked to the front, near the judge, and saw Celestia standing there. She’s by herself, my plan must have worked. He walked the seat that had been provided in the spot marked “Defendant” and sat down.

He looked over to the spot provided for the prosecution and only saw one lawyer. This will be easier than I thought.

He then looked behind the prosecutor and into the audience. He was surprised to see that the rulers of the Crystal Empire, Princess Cadance and her husband, Shining Armor were present. They were sitting in the front row, right behind the prosecutor. Next to them was a pair of unicorns that he felt that he should recognize, but did not. They must not be important, then.

Behind them, in the second row sat a small dragon and the bearers of the Elements of Harmony. Good. They are all present so they can banish Uncle Artemis as soon as I’m proven right. Wait, where is the Commoner Princess? She’d better show up, she’s not getting out of this!

The judge, an earth pony stallion, raised his voice, catching the attention of the ponies present. “This is a bit unusual, considering the level of severity of the charges, but the citizens of Equestria have requested that this trial be a public one because of the ponies involved.”

Blueblood smiled and nodded, happy with this arrangement.

“I am Straight Arrow. While, I usually do not judge public trials, I simply couldn’t not preside over this particular one.” He paused to take a sip of water.

“If everypony is ready, Princess Celestia, Crimson Justice and Blueblood, I’d like to begin.”

The three of them nodded. The court reporter nodded as well and began taking notes.

“The defendant, Blueblood, stands accused of the following charges: Treason, Conspiracy against the Crown, and Masterminding the Attempted Assassination of Artemis, Prince of the Night and Steward of the Moon.”

Blueblood’s head shot up as his smile disappeared. “Attempted?!”

“Indeed”

Everypony turned at the voice, watching as Artemis and Twilight walked up from the back of the “courtroom” to stand next to Celestia.

“As you can see, Nephew, the attempt was unsuccessful.”

Blueblood’s face flushed with anger as he shouted “How could you have survived?! Blaze has never failed to me! His technique for removing the magic from a pony is flawless!”

He paused as he saw Artemis smile at Twilight. “You! You had something to do with this, didn’t you, Commoner Princess?!”

Celestia noticed Cadance and Shining Armor, along with Twilight Velvet and Night Light, bristle at that comment. She sent them a look, telling them that they needed to calm down.

Straight Arrow spoke up, before Twilight could answer. “I take it, by that statement, that you do not dispute the charges filed against you, Blueblood?”

Blueblood turned to Straight Arrow “I will not dispute the charges against me. Instead, I will reveal to the court, and Equestria, why what I have done is the correct course of action. Why the course of action that I have tried to set into motion needs to be completed.”

Everypony just stared at him.

Straight Arrow, clearly incredulous, nodded. “You will have your chance later. First, your actions must be laid out before the court and Equestria. Do you have any objections?”

Blueblood shook his head “No, Your Honor.” He sat down and patiently waited for his chance.

“Very Well” Straight Arrow said, before turning to Crimson Justice. “The prosecution has the floor. Please, call your first witness.”

Crimson Justice stepped forward “Thank you, Your Honor. However, in light of the many unusual aspects of this trial, I would like to take an equally unusual approach to the handling of my witnesses.”

Straight Arrow looked at him “Please, explain your request.”

Crimson Justice looked at the three alicorns standing at the front, not far from Straight Arrow. “The three witnesses I am prepared to call are standing right in front of us, our Prince and Princesses of Equestria. However, instead of calling and questioning each one individually, I would like to question them as a group. Merely directing questions as needed. This is because, in order to follow the series of events properly, I may be required to constantly have to switch back and forth between them.”

Straight Arrow paused “An unorthodox request. However, I agree that it will be the best way to question your witnesses, in this particular case. You have permission to proceed.”

Crimson Justice nodded “Thank you, Your Honor. I call to the stand Artemis, Prince of the Night and Steward of the Moon; Celestia, Princess of the Day and Steward of the Sun; and Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship and Element of Magic.”

The three alicorns stepped forward, but Crimson Justice shook his head. “Please remain where you are, Your Highnesses. I would like to begin my questioning now, if that is alright with the three of you.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight sat down and nodded.

“Prince Artemis, I would like to begin with the events of Monday night.”

Artemis winced but nodded

“I understand that these events are not easy for you to talk about, so I will attempt to make this quick. Please describe the events that led up to your re-possession, brief though it was, by Night-Terror Knight.”

Twilight exchanged glances with Celestia and moved to Artemis’ other side, placing him between the two of them, before nuzzling him. Celestia moved closer to her brother and nuzzled him as well. The two princesses then looked over at Crimson Justice, daring him to object.

He smiled “I have no problem with your actions, Your Highnesses. That is one of the reasons I wanted to question the three of you as a group.”

Artemis took a deep breath “The cause of the events of Monday night actually began some three months prior. At that time, ponies did not come to my night court. That changed, one night, when Blueblood came to me with a request that I authorize amendments to a couple of fairly old and obscure laws. He began doing this every night, with other nobles joining him. From time to time, events arose that required the attention of at least one of the ruling figures of Equestria. However, I was not allowed to tend to these events, despite my position. Instead, I was told that I was merely there to pass messages to my sister and not a “real prince”. It was demanded of me that I inform my sister and have her deal with the issues. This continued for approximately two months.”

“I can only assume it was noticed that this no longer bothered me, because the ponies coming to my court each night started coming with complaints about my night sky.” Artemis paused “You can understand how much this did bother me. The moon and night sky are mine to control and I take great pride in my work with them.”

“Monday night, Blueblood came to my Night Court with something that wasn’t even a request, but a demand.”

Crimson Justice stared “What was the demand, Your Highness?”

Artemis glared at Blueblood but answered “That I immediately give control of my moon and night sky over to my sister and renounce my title as Prince of Equestria, on the grounds that I “am not a real prince”.” He paused, looking back at Crimson Justice “That is the last thing I remember. The next thing I saw was Twilight Sparkle sitting in front of me.”

Crimson Justice looked at Twilight “Next, I would like to question Princess Twilight Sparkle.”

Chapter 26

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Chapter 27

Pinkie, Rainbow, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy walked over the pony pile that was the Royal Family. The rest of the ponies present stopped what they were doing to watch.

“Twilight,” Pinkie whined “You’re supposed to be partying, not sleeping!”

Celestia looked up and answered before Twilight got a chance.

“Pinkie Pie, we were all worried that we were going to have to send Artemis to the moon today. For now, we just want to snuggle with the member of our family that we thought we were going to lose. We will join the party later.”

“But-!” Pinkie started to protest, before Rarity levitated a cookie to Applejack, who caught it and promptly shoved it into Pinkie’s mouth.

“Of course, Princess Celestia” Rarity answered “We’ll check back later.”

“Do you want us to bring you anything to drink?” asked Applejack

“I’ve already got that.”

The girls turned to see Spike walking up with a bottle of Apple Family apple juice for each member of the royal family.

“Thank you, Spike” said Twilight, sitting up as she passed Artemis a bottle and opened her own.

Artemis sat up, opened his bottle and quickly drained it, downing the whole thing in seconds. “Yes, thank you, Spike. I needed that.” He said before laying back down, pulling Twilight with him.

Twilight squealed in surprise as she fell to the ground, only to find herself pulled into his hooves as the rest of her friends and family watched and smiled.

Spike and the girls walked off to rejoin the party. Celestia drank her apple juice as she moved to the other side so that Twilight was between herself and Artemis. Laying down, she was able to cuddle with them both. Cadance lay snuggled up to Artemis’ other side and pulled Shining Armor down to cuddle with her.

Twilight Velvet and Night Light stood and walked over to the food tables, leaving the alicorns and their son to relax.

Thirty minutes later, Twilight looked up to see Pinkie staring at them. She sighed “If I don’t go join the party soon, I don’t want to even think about what Pinkie is going to do.”

Celestia looked at Twilight “Is she really that serious?”

Twilight looked down at her as she stood “Pinkie is only serious about one thing and that is partying. If you are at one of her parties and are not partying, she gets offended.” She shuddered “The last time we didn’t want to go to one of her parties, she ended up talking to piles of rocks. She thought we didn’t like her or her parties anymore.”

Artemis stood as well “We don’t want her thinking that. Besides, I’m hungry.”

They didn’t notice Pinkie bounce over, excited to see them getting up.

“I just hope she doesn’t get offended when we don’t eat the cake.” He continued

Twilight shrugged “It’s hit or miss. I know she won’t be happy about it. She can eat cake and cookies every day, but hasn’t quite figured out that most other ponies can’t.”

“What?! No cake?! Why?! It’s a party!” Twilight and Artemis turned to see Pinkie staring at them as if they had each grown an extra horn. Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor stood as well and looked over.

“We can’t eat as much sugar as you, Pinkie.” Twilight explained “The Triple Chocolate, Strawberry Frosted cupcakes you made us eat a couple of days ago had enough sugar in them to hold us over for a week. We’re still going to join the party, we just can’t eat any cake or cookies. Our bodies can’t take any more sugar right now.”

“Aww,” Pinkie pouted “but that’s OK.” She paused, looking down before suddenly looking back up and grinning “Oh, I know! I’m gonna make you two an extra special cake next week to make up for what you’re not eating tonight!”

“Alright” Twilight said before Pinkie bounced away, muttering about flavors and color combinations.

Artemis stepped up next to Twilight and looked down at her “She doesn’t get it, does she?”

Twilight shook her head “She never does.” She paused “She once threw a party every night for a week and expected us to be there every night.”

Artemis stared at her “Seriously?” Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor stared as well as they walked up to the couple.

Twilight nodded as they walked over to the food table. She and Artemis each prepared a salad and grabbed some fruit before settling on the grass off to the side to eat their dinner. Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor did the same and joined them. The only difference was that each of them had a large slice of red velvet cake.

After eating, Twilight nuzzled Artemis and stood. “Come on, Artemis, this is your party. What do you want to do first?”

Before he could answer, Pinkie popped up in between them. “Piñata Time! Twilight, help him! You two have to do that trick you did last time! That was so cool!”

Before anypony could ask what Pinkie was talking about, Artemis and Twilight looked at each other and smiled. Then they lit their horns. The piñata left the tree, floated to the middle of the park and tripled in size. Artemis and Twilight each sent a beam of their magic at the center of the piñata. The beams of their magic swirled together into a single beam of purple and dark blue. The beam of their magic hit the piñata and it burst in a flash of purple and blue magic. Candy rained down over the park, gaining cheers from the foals.

Pinkie bounced in excitement next to Twilight “Now we have another game for the foals! Candy Scavenger Hunt!”

“YAY! Thank you, Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight!” shouted the foals. They were already running around searching for, and eating, the candy.

The adults present laughed and shook their heads, not even bothering to try to stop the foals.

Twilight smiled and walked to the center of the park, gaining everypony’s attention. They watched as she closed her eyes and focused. She raised her head and lit her horn. Several bursts of magic flew into the sky. They turned into a small display of dark blue and silver fireworks.

Everypony cheered as she walked back over to Artemis.

Artemis looked at her, surprised. “How did you-?”

Twilight giggled “New spell. I created it yesterday afternoon while you were sleeping. I knew Pinkie would want to throw another party the next time she saw us and I wanted to have a gift ready.”

Artemis had a very touched look on his face as he pulled her close and gave her a tight hug. “Thank you, Twilight” He paused, before continuing in a whisper that only she could hear “I love the fireworks, but I will get my real gift later tonight.” He smiled as she blushed and nodded.

“Y-your welcome” she stammered “I’m glad you like it.”

Cadance walked up to Twilight and gave her a hug. “You have to teach me that spell, Twilight! I want to cast it for Flurry, she’ll love it!”

Twilight laughed “Sure, Cadance. I’ll teach you the quick way.”

Cadance looked at her “The quick way?”

Twilight nodded, used her magic to gently pull Cadance’s head closer and brought their horns together.

Suddenly, Cadance saw everything Twilight did to create the spell for her fireworks and learned how to create them herself. She grinned and quickly taught Shining Armor using Twilight’s “quick method”. Meanwhile, Celestia and Artemis had lowered their heads to Twilight’s so that she could teach them as well.

Celestia and Artemis each felt the pull of their respective celestial bodies. They looked at each other, nodded and walked out to the center of the park. Everypony stopped what they were doing to watch. Celestia spread her wings, lifted into the air, lit her horn and lowered the sun. She landed and looked at Artemis. He nodded, spread his wings as well, and lit his horn. A flap of his wings brought him into the air, the moon rising with him. Then, a flash of magic brought out the stars. He landed next to his sister as the crowd cheered.

Artemis and Celestia looked at each other and nodded before they motioned Twilight, Cadance and Shining Armor over to them. As soon as they were close enough, Celestia whispered “Let’s really give them a fireworks show.” The other members of the royal family grinned and nodded. They smiled at each other as each of them lit their horns.

This caught the attention of the crowd and they paused, waiting to see what was going to happen next.

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Cadance and Shining Armor all cast Twilight’s fireworks spell at the same time. This created a fireworks show that went on for several minutes, in every color of the rainbow. The show shone beautifully against the backdrop of the newly risen moon and night sky.

For several minutes, after the show ended, the party goers were quiet. Then they cheered louder than ever.

Pinkie shouted “Turn up the music! It’s Dance Time!”

As the music grew louder, ponies joined them in the center of the park, the improvised “dance floor”. There were so many ponies present that the alicorns, except for Cadance, had no choice but to take to the air. Cadance stayed on the ground so that she could dance with Shining Armor.

In the air, Celestia and Rainbow each kept an eye on Artemis and Twilight. Whenever they strayed too far from each other, Celestia would push Artemis towards Twilight. Other times, Rainbow would give Twilight a flying tackle, sending her crashing into Artemis. After the first couple of times, it became kind of a game. Artemis would get a little too far from Twilight, making sure Rainbow saw him. After she tackled Twilight, he would fly under and catch her.

After a few hours of this, Twilight and Artemis grew tired. They landed and walked over to the side of the park. Making sure that they were not in anypony’s way, they lay down to cuddle and rest for a bit. Some of the foals noticed this and made their way over to them, Water Lilly and Silver Spark among them.

Artemis and Twilight looked up as they noticed that they were suddenly surrounded by foals. Silver Spark walked up to Twilight and lay down, cuddling up to her chest. Water Lilly did the same to Artemis. They, and the other foals, curled up near, and in some cases on, Artemis and Twilight. After a few minutes, the foals fell asleep.

Pinkie looked around, suddenly noticing that she couldn’t see Twilight or Artemis. She walked around for a few minutes until she saw a bit of lavender laying on the ground, out of the corner of her eye. She saw Twilight and Artemis curled up together, resting. She was about to yell at her friends for not partying but found that she was suddenly surrounded with Celestia’s golden magic. She looked over at Celestia to see her shake her head.

“But it’s a party and Twilight’s not partying!” Pinkie exclaimed, gaining the attention of everypony nearby.

All of the ponies at the party looked on as Celestia shook her head again. “Take a closer look at them, Pinkie Pie.”

Pinkie, and everypony else, looked over at Artemis and Twilight. They smiled as they saw that the foals were all cuddled around, and on, their prince and princess, sound asleep.

“I am sorry to stop the party when everypony is clearly having so much fun,” Celestia began “but it is clear that some ponies have had a long day.”

At that, Artemis and Twilight opened their eyes and raised their heads.

“I’m sorry, Twilight and Artemis. I did not mean to wake you.” Celestia said softy

Artemis shook his head and quietly replied “It’s alright, sister, we weren’t asleep. We initially just wanted to relax and catch our breath from all of the dancing.”

Twilight nuzzled Artemis and giggled quietly, looking at the foals. “Yeah, but as soon as they saw us relaxing, they came over, curled up and fell asleep. We didn’t have the heart to wake or move them.”

Artemis nodded and returned Twilight’s nuzzle “Besides, I do enjoy spending time with foals, even if all they did this time was fall asleep.” He finished softly

The parents laughed quietly as they walked forward to gather their foals, careful not to wake them. Soon, the only two left were Silver Spark and Water Lilly.

Celestia looked over as Straight Arrow and a Pegasus mare walked up to her, slightly panicked. “What’s wrong, my little ponies?”

The mare bowed “My name is Orchid Rain, princess. Have you seen a young Pegasus colt?”

Straight Arrow nodded “I can’t find my daughter.”

They were both startled as they heard Artemis chuckle and Twilight giggle.

“Are you looking for these two?” Artemis asked quietly

Straight Arrow and Orchid Rain looked over to find that the foals they were looking for had cuddled up to their prince and princess again before falling asleep.

Both parents smiled at the sight and sighed in relief. “Yes, Prince Artemis. Those two are exactly who we are looking for.” Replied Straight Arrow

Orchid Rain shook her head in wonder “How in Equestria did you get him to go to sleep, Princess Twilight? He’d normally still be awake for hours. It’s kind of a daily struggle.”

Twilight shrugged, leaning into Artemis’ side “I didn’t do anything special. Artemis and I just cuddled with the foals while we were recovering from all of the dancing.”

Artemis smiled and nuzzled Twilight before looking up at Straight Arrow and Orchid Rain “She’s right. All we did was allow them to lay down and rest with us.”

Cadance walked over with Shining Armor, Twilight Velvet and Night Light. “I have a different theory, Uncle Artemis.” She paused as he and Twilight looked up. “Twilight told them what happened so they could understand it and without hiding anything. You protected them from whatever Blueblood had planned. I think they trust the two of you.”

Orchid Rain smiled “Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight, I agree with Princess Cadance.” She paused to look at the two of them. She smiled as she took a moment to look at her son, still snuggled up to Twilight. “You two are going to make wonderful parents, your highnesses.”

Straight Arrow nodded “I also agree with Princess Cadance, your highnesses. Today, you two have protected and cared for a large group of foals, none of them your own, by yourselves.” He paused and looked down at Water Lilly. He was thoroughly enjoying the sight of his normally shy daughter in Artemis’ hooves, sound asleep. “I cannot wait until you two have a foal of your own. I’m sure he or she will be great friends with Water Lilly and Silver Spark.”

They all smiled as Twilight and Artemis looked at each other for a moment before Twilight turned bright red.

Celestia laughed quietly “I hope that happens soon, I can’t wait to have foals in the castle again. The last foal we had in the castle was Twilight when she first became my student. I would love to have her foal running those same halls.” She lit her horn and levitated Water Lilly and Silver Spark onto their respective parents’ backs. They smiled, thanked Artemis and Twilight and headed home to put the foals to bed.

Artemis and Twilight looked around to see that the park had been cleaned by the ponies that were still present.

Celestia noticed this as well and told them to go home and get some rest. Then she turned to her family and Twilight’s friends.

“All of you are welcome to come to the castle and stay the night. I already have rooms prepared for all of you, except for you, Twilight.” Celestia paused as Twilight looked up at her. “Did you forget? Every time you stay over at the castle from the night you arrived to help my brother, you will be staying with Artemis in his room.”

Before Twilight could respond, her friends and family laughed.

“I know that, Celestia.” Twilight gave her a look “I just thought that you would try to make us spend the night in your room again.”

“Oh, I won’t even try that tonight.” Celestia said with a sly smile “Besides, I’m fairly certain that my brother won’t allow it.”

At that, Artemis chuckled and shook his head. “You are right, sister, I won’t. Tonight is not a night for family sleepovers.”

By this point, they had arrived at the entrance to the castle. They found Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang waiting for them. They fell into step behind the royal family and followed them to the throne room. There, Celestia told everypony which rooms they would be staying in.

She paused “I expect to see all of you for breakfast at eight. Well, except for Artemis and Twilight. I have a feeling they will be sleeping for much of tomorrow.”

“Why would they sleep that long?” asked Applejack

“When something very stressful happens and is finally resolved. The body reacts by resting for a long time. When I got my brother back almost four years ago, I spent most of the next day asleep. In fact, I only woke up to raise and lower the sun. When I did wake, I would just hug Artemis tighter and fall back asleep.”

Artemis laughed “I was much the same. At the time, I was so relieved that I was free of the Nightmare and that I was welcomed back by my sister that I slept for almost two days straight, waking only to help with the moon and stars. This may result in something similar.”

Celestia nodded “When you two do wake up, don’t leave your room. Just have one of your guards send for food. As soon as you eat, go back to bed. I don’t want to see either of you out of your room for two days, Artemis. I just want you two to rest, understand?”

Artemis smiled but Twilight was wide-eyed, not expecting that. She still nodded with Artemis. They said their good nights and left the room, heading for Artemis’ tower.

Everypony on the way that saw them smiled at and congratulated them both, glad the threat was over.

Eventually, they made it to Artemis’ personal chambers and went inside. Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang taking up positions outside, guarding the door to their prince’s room.

Inside, Artemis and Twilight went out to the balcony. After all of the stress and chaos of the day, they just wanted to stargaze for a while. However, it didn’t take long for the chill of the night to get to them, so they went back inside.

They went to Artemis’ bed and lay down.

Chapter 28

Twilight nuzzled Artemis and cuddled into his side before noticing how tense his muscles were. She sat up and looked down at him, frowning.

“Twilight?” Artemis asked “What’s wrong? . . . Oomph . . . What . . . Ooh.”

His questions were stopped with a grunt as Twilight used her magic to flip him onto his stomach. When she spread his wings and ran her magic over the feathers, he tried to ask what she was doing. When he felt her magic warm his feathers and the rest of his wings, starting at the base of each wing and moving to the tips, he moaned. I don’t know what she’s doing, but this feels amazing!

She paused, used her magic to close the balcony doors and cast a soundproofing spell around Artemis’ room. Then she went back to work.

With her magic doing its job on his wings, she used her hooves to massage from the base of his wings up to his shoulders. When she was satisfied with that, she went back to his wings and worked her way down his back. Her actions got her several sighs and moans of pleasure from Artemis, especially as she got to his back.

That done, she paused to admire her work. He lay next to her, still on his stomach, stretched out on his bed. The look on his face was one of pure relaxation. Now for the next part.

She giggled and levitated him into the air, turned him over, and laid him on his back. She was careful not to move or fold his wings because her magic still working on them warming and aligning his feathers.

She climbed onto his stomach and massaged from his chest up to his shoulders. She left light kisses as she worked this time, moving up to his neck. She continued her massage, lighter here because she didn’t want to hurt him, and kisses as she moved up to his face.

There, she stopped her massage and just kissed him.

“I know I’m not as good as the Aloe sisters, but I hope that helped.”

He let out another sigh of pleasure “You have no idea.”

She giggled and kissed him again before attempting to roll off of him.

He noticed this and wrapped his hooves around her. “Oh no you don’t.”

“What?” she asked, surprised as she suddenly found herself flat on her stomach, still laying on his.

He chuckled as he moved his hooves to her back and applied a bit of pressure in one particular spot. “It’s my turn.”

She gasped as her wings flew from her sides before letting out a low moan as she felt a sudden warmth running through them. She could also feel one of his hooves working in little circles at the base of her wings, while another hoof did the same to her shoulders. The combination of the three left her speechless and unable to do anything but lay there, moaning lightly in pleasure.

After a few minutes, he stopped and just held her as she recovered.

“Thank you. That felt really good.” She raised her head and kissed him

Surprised, he just blinked for a moment, before he returned her kiss and held her tighter.

A few moments later, Artemis broke the kiss and looked at Twilight. “I enjoyed the fireworks you made for me earlier. However, right now, the only thing I want is my real gift.” He whispered huskily “I want the mare that I love.”

“I’m right here” she whispered back, desire clear in her voice.

That was the last straw for him. He pulled her as close as possible and kissed her deeply. His forehooves stroked her back, finding their way back to the base of her wings.

She broke the kiss with a moan and stretched so that she could reach his horn. Running her tongue along its entire length, she stretched a little further so she could take the tip in her mouth and sucked on it for a moment. It was too long for her to get the whole thing in her mouth, like he did with hers, so she had to go back to running her tongue over what she could reach.

He gasped as he felt her tongue run the length of his horn and shuddered in delight as he felt her take the tip of it in her mouth. The sensation of her tongue on his horn sending a pleasurable warmth spreading through his entire body.

Having her stretched out to reach his horn, meant that he had access to her neck. He began to lick and nibble at her throat, still rubbing the base of her wings, causing her to stop licking his horn with a long low moan and bury her face in his neck.

She was beginning to pant as she buried her face in his neck. The combined sensations she had received from his teeth at her throat and was currently getting from her wings rendered her unable to speak. It was then that she felt something hard and hot poke her from behind. She moaned and squirmed a little, trying to back up so that he could reach, wanting him inside her. She felt him shift under her before she gasped and shuddered with pleasure as she felt him enter her.

He was surprised when he felt her squirm and back up a little but, before he could ask, he felt his tip touch her backside. Understanding rushed through him and he shifted a little. He smiled, hearing her gasp and feeling her shudder, as he entered her. He wrapped his hooves around her and thrust up, as far into her as he could. This action got him another shuddering gasp before he heard her whisper “Oh yes!” Those two words echoed in his head as he began bucking his hips, thrusting in and out of her. He felt her grip on him tighten and heard her moans grow louder.

After a few minutes of his intense bucking, she buried her face into his chest and let out a scream of pleasure as the orgasm that had been building finally overcame her. Her passage clenching and pulsing around him pushed him over the edge as well. He groaned in pleasure as he thrust into her once more before releasing his seed. Both of them felt their minds go blank with pleasure.

After what felt like hours, they regained awareness. Twilight shifted a little before she realized something important. Not only was Artemis still inside her, what she felt in her was still hard. Her own desire rising again, she raised her head and was met with a fierce kiss. She let out a gasp of surprise as it broke and Artemis suddenly rolled the two of them over, leaving him on top of her.

“I . . . I” Artemis found that he could say no more and pulled her into another fierce kiss.

She moaned into the kiss and held herself to him as it broke. “P-please!” she managed to gasp out, bucking her hips up against his, suddenly desperate.

Immediately, he began thrusting again. Her moans, louder than before, spurring him on. He knew he would not last much longer so he sped up, drawing a gasp from her.

Her moans were growing in number and volume. Her entire body was extremely sensitive now, his every move making her moan and shudder with pleasure. She gasped as she felt him speed up. It didn’t take long for her to reach another peak. The scream that she let out this time penetrated the soundproofing spell she had placed around the room. As she shook and screamed under him, she felt him clutch her tightly and release more of his seed into her.

After his second orgasm ended, he collapsed onto her and couldn’t do anything but lay there, gasping for breath. After catching his breath, he found that he didn’t want to move or remove himself from her. They lay there like that for several minutes before he felt her magic surround him.

She felt him collapse on top of her but didn’t mind, she was still trembling herself. However, after several minutes passed with no movement, she lit her horn. As much as she loved the feeling of having him inside her, he was getting kind of heavy. She gently pulled him out of her and placed him next to her on the bed before snuggling to his side, as close as possible.

Immediately, his hoof wrapped around her and hugged her tight. After a few minutes, he rolled onto his back and placed her head onto his chest.

She sighed in pleasure. “I love you” was the last thing she was able to say before her eyes closed and she fell into a deep sleep.

His eyes lit up and his breath caught as he heard her say that she loved him. Even though she had already said it before, he loved hearing it. He knew that she was already asleep, but that didn’t stop him from replying. “Oh Twilight, I love you too.” He used the last of his energy to pull the blankets over them before joining her in the world of dreams.

On the other side of the door, Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang were getting worried. They hadn’t heard anything from inside the room for a long time. That changed when a sudden scream pierced the calm of the night around them. They jumped, turned to the door and stared at it for a couple of minutes. They both knew what that scream meant as well as who made it.

Midnight Fang suddenly began to laugh, causing Silver Shadow to look over at him. “Don’t you remember what our princess said yesterday morning at breakfast?”

Silver Shadow still looked confused “She said a lot of things during that meal. What are you talking about?”

Midnight Fang nodded, still laughing “She said she was going to cast a soundproofing spell around her room.”

Silver Shadow smiled “You’re right, I bet that’s what she did tonight.” He paused and laughed “And she was still loud enough for us to hear her. Must have been some night.”

Midnight Fang was finally able to stop laughing and shrugged “Can you blame them? Our prince was afraid that he was going to be sent back to the moon today and our princess was afraid that she was going to be forced to send him there.”

Silver Shadow shook his head “Not at all. I bet they’re asleep now, though. It’s been a long and stressful day for both of them. At least it’s all over now.”

Midnight Fang looked at his boss “It better be.”

They both nodded and went back to guarding their prince and princess.

The next morning, the time to lower the moon came and went with no change. Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang looked up at the sound of hoofsteps to see Celestia walking towards them.

“Is my brother awake? The moon should have been lowered almost ten minutes ago.”

Silver Shadow bowed “We don’t know, princess. We haven’t heard anything from his room since last night. Would you like to check on them?”

Celestia nodded and watched as Midnight Fang opened the door. The three of them stepped into the room and looked around.

In bed, still sound asleep, were Artemis and Twilight. They were cuddled together and showed no sign of waking. Celestia walked over and nuzzled them both. “Artemis? Aren’t you going to lower the moon?”

There was no response from either of them. Celestia checked both of them over carefully and smiled. “I thought this might happen.”

She raised her head, lit her horn and lowered the moon and stars before raising the sun. Then she nuzzled Artemis and Twilight again before she and Artemis’ guards walked out of the room, closing the door.

“Princess Celestia?”

Celestia turned to find that Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang were looking at her. She smiled at them “They are both fine, just asleep. He is in such a deep sleep that even the pull of the moon was not able to wake him. It will likely be several more hours before they wake up.” She paused “The two of you should go get some breakfast and sleep. I’ll have a couple of my guards posted here for the day but I’m sure my brother expects to see you both at moonrise. Report back here at that time.”

They both nodded and saluted her “Yes, Princess!” before they walked down the hall, headed for breakfast and their beds.

It was just after three in the afternoon that Artemis opened his eyes and shifted his body a little. He felt something move and looked down as Twilight’s head slid off his chest and onto the bed.

The sudden movement woke her and she, too, opened her eyes. Then she stood and stretched.

Artemis stood and was about to stretch as well but paused as he saw her wince. “Twilight? What’s wrong?”

She nuzzled him “Nothing. Honestly, I expected this.”

“What do you mean?” he asked, putting a wing over her and pulling her close. “Why would you have expected pain?”

She giggled and kissed him “Last night was wonderful, but it got a little rough towards the end. No, don’t apologize, I really enjoyed it. I’m just a bit sore right now.” She blushed “The books that I borrowed from Rarity say this is normal.”

She stopped as her stomach growled “What time is it?”

She looked over at the clock and just stared. “We slept until three in the afternoon?! I never sleep that late!” She paused and thought for a moment “Well, we were pretty tired after the events of last night.”

She walked over to the door and opened it, catching the attention of the pair of Day Guards stationed there.

“Ah, Princess Twilight, you’re awake. Would you like something to eat?” asked one of them

She smiled “Yes, please. Enough for two, though. Artemis is awake as well.”

They both bowed “Of course, princess. We’ll have it sent in right away.”

She thanked them and closed the door “Food is on its way.” She told Artemis

He nodded “After we eat, I was thinking that we should take a long hot bath. Will that help?”

Twilight smiled and nodded “It should. I’m pretty sure the rest will fade by tomorrow.” She nuzzled him, anticipating his next comment. “It doesn’t matter to me how sore I get, I think it’s worth it. And, no, I don’t want you to hold back next time.”

Before he could respond, the door opened to reveal Celestia. She had two trays of food floating next to her in her magic. “What are you two doing up?” she asked as she walked in.

Artemis chuckled and stretched his wings. “We just woke up, sister. After being asleep for so long, we needed to stretch a bit.”

Celestia nodded and placed the trays of food on Artemis’ desk. She smiled as she watched Artemis and Twilight practically inhale their food. After they were done, she just looked at them.

Twilight noticed the expression on her face. “What? Is something wrong?”

Celestia gave her a look “Aren’t you two going back to sleep?”

Artemis shook his head “We’ll do that later, sister. Right now, we decided that we could really use a bath.”

Celestia was about to protest but stopped as Twilight stood. She noticed that Twilight was wincing a little as she walked and her hind legs were a bit stiff.

She grinned as she suddenly understood “I see. Had fun last night, did you?”

Twilight turned to her, shocked, before she turned bright red.

“Sister . . .” started Artemis

“Oh hush, little brother!” Celestia pulled him in for a hug “I’m allowed to tease you two a bit.” She paused for a moment and nuzzled him before she continued in a whisper. “Of course, now that you have started, I expect you to continue until the two of you provide me with at least one little niece or nephew.”

“What?!” he nearly shouted as he turned almost as red as Twilight.

Celestia just laughed as she walked out of the room “Well, I’ll just leave the two of you to your fun. Try to be awake so that you can raise the moon, little brother.”

With that said, she closed the door behind her, still laughing.

His face was still rather red as he looked over at Twilight.

She noticed this and turned to nuzzle him “Is everything alright? What did she say?”

“It seems she wants a little niece or nephew.” He answered, still blushing “She said that she expects us to continue until we give her at least one.”

Twilight immediately turned bright red again. “I-it’s too soon for that!” She looked off to the side. “I-I mean, I do want to bear your foal. We should just wait awhile. We may have been good friends with each other for almost four years, but we’ve only been dating for almost a week.”

He stared at her, stunned. “Y-you want to bear my foal?”

She smiled and kissed him “Of course I do. I love you and want the two of us to start a family.”

She headed towards the bathroom and paused, looking back at him “Aren’t you coming?”

He nodded and walked over to her. Together, they walked into the bathroom and closed the door behind them.

Artemis’ bathroom was decorated in several different shades of blue, mostly the darker ones. In the center, was a large tub sunk into the floor. This one was even larger than the one in Twilight’s bathroom.

As Artemis started to fill the tub, Twilight looked up at the ceiling, not really sure what drew her attention. She gasped in astonishment, unable to do anything but stare, wondering how in Equestria she could have missed this last time she was in here.

Hearing Twilight’s gasp, Artemis looked over at her. He saw her staring up at the ceiling, mouth open in shock. Smiling, he looked up as well. It was one of his favorite things about his room. The ceiling of his bathroom had an enchantment on it so that it resembled the night sky, as seen on a clear winter night.

When the tub was full, he walked in and lay down with a sigh of pleasure. He looked over at Twilight to find that she was still staring at the ceiling. Chuckling, he lit his horn and brought her over to the tub, gently lowering her into the water and placing her by his side.

Twilight was so captured by the beauty of what she was seeing that she didn’t even notice that the tub was full. She also didn’t notice that Artemis had levitated her to the tub. Only when she felt the warmth of the water, did she realize what had happened and look up at him.

“Sorry” she said, blushing “I’ve never seen anything like this inside a building.”

He laughed “It’s alright, I reacted the same way for the first few months after Celestia put the enchantment there. There were days that she had to push me into the water to get my attention.”

Twilight laughed as well, snuggling next to him and just enjoying the warmth of the water.

Artemis looked down at her, his mind still on the conversation they had right after Celestia left his room. “Twilight?”

She stirred and looked up at him “Hmm?”

“When did you start thinking about the two of us starting a family?”

She blushed and looked down “The day after the attack, during our spa treatment.”

She frowned, that particular part of that night was not a pleasant memory. “That night, I almost lost you. For a moment there, I was actually afraid that I was going to have to watch you die. That’s why I reacted to the attack the way that I did. It also made me think of things that, under normal circumstances, I probably wouldn’t have even considered for months.”

He just looked at her “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I didn’t say anything because of how early we are into our relationship.” She responded, still looking away “I wasn’t sure of how you would react to that topic, so soon. I had planned to wait five or six months before bringing it up.”

She kept her head down, not willing to look at him, in case he was angry at her. She was surprised when a blue hoof suddenly entered her field of vision and gently lifted her head. Looking up at him, she was shocked to see that there were tears in his eyes.

“Throughout history, most ponies feared me as they feared my night. They saw me as the evil that chased the sun away.” He paused to get his voice to stop shaking. “It was even worse after my return because ponies only saw me as Night-Terror Knight. Those that did approach asking to court me, in the last few years, didn’t actually care about me. They just wanted access to my power and, more importantly, my throne. They thought I would be an easy target due to my recent return.”

“Twilight, you are the first one to ever tell me that you want me to be a part of your family. You are also the only one, aside from my sister and our parents, to tell me that you actually love me.”

He pulled her close to him and kissed her. “You are right that we should wait awhile, probably at least a year, but that time will come soon enough.” He made sure he had her attention. “When that time does come, you are the only one that I want carrying my foal.”

Twilight’s eyes widened and filled with tears, before she buried her face in his chest and just cried. Her tears were of happiness and, more importantly, relief that he wasn’t mad at her.

He tightened his grip around her, confused and concerned. “Twilight, why are you crying?”

“I thought you would be mad at me for thinking like that when we’ve been together for such a short amount of time.” She sniffed “I’m just relieved that you aren’t.”

“Why would I be mad at you, the mare that has saved me more times than I care to count, just because you want to start a family with me? Yes, we have only been courting for a week, but much has happened in that week. We’re just moving a bit faster than I think we both planned, that’s all.” He nuzzled her and wiped her tears away with a smile. “But I’m not complaining.”

She smiled and laughed a little “Neither am I” She let herself sink a little lower into the warm water and sighed happily, snuggling closer to Artemis’ side.

After a long time of just relaxing, Artemis used his magic to pull over several bottles of shampoo and soap, before pausing. “None of these scents are particularly feminine. Do you want me to ask Celestia to bring something up for you?” When she didn’t answer, he looked down to find her studying the bottles. “Twilight?”

She pulled one of them to her, opened and smelled it. Smiling, she turned to look at him. “I usually prefer lavender scented products, but this peach scent is nice, too. Do you mind if I use this one?”

He smiled and nodded I’m having several lavender scents brought up, first thing in the morning. “Of course not.” He paused, looking at the bottle. “I’ve never even seen that one. From time to time, I find a new scent in here that somepony thinks I might like. However, I normally go with something ocean related or citrus, if I must.”

I’m finding a good ocean scent to have in my bathroom for the next time he visits. Twilight thought as she opened the bottle and pulled a wash cloth closer to her.

They took their time, relaxing and making sure they were clean. When they eventually returned to Artemis’ room, they found Celestia, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and a bat pony stallion that Twilight didn’t recognize waiting for them. In the doorway, there was a bat pony mare, carrying a small foal in a baby sling.

Chapter 29

Artemis smiled at Celestia “Not that I’m unhappy to see you, sister, but I’m confused. I thought you weren’t going to be back until it was time for us to lower the sun and raise the moon.”

Celestia returned his smile and gestured to the trays of food on his desk. “I know. That was my original plan. However, I thought the two of you would be hungry, so I brought more food.” Then she nodded to the unnamed bat pony stallion, clearly a member of Artemis’ Night Guard “Also, it seems that there is somepony here that wants to ask you to do something special. It has been many years since anypony has made this particular request, so there was no way that I was going to miss it.”

Artemis turned to the guard that Celestia nodded to. “Steel Night, is something wrong? I thought I granted you leave to be with your wife as she gave birth to your first foal. I wasn’t expecting to see you back here for another week.”

Steel Night nodded “That is correct, my prince. Everything is fine, my wife gave birth to a healthy colt.” He nodded to the doorway and the mare standing in it.

Artemis smiled and gestured for the mare to enter his room before turning back to Steel Night. “Congratulations, I’m happy to hear that. Though, that doesn’t explain why you are here and not at home with them. And Celestia said something about a request?”

Steel Night smiled as his wife walked up next to him. “The request is my wife’s idea, so I think she should ask you.” He paused, looking at Twilight “But first, I have a couple of questions of my own, if that’s alright with you, my prince.”

Artemis nodded “If it’s about yesterday’s trial, everything said there was true.”

Steel Night’s eyes widened, before he narrowed them and let out a growl, surprising his son, who looked up at him. “That was one of my questions, my prince. The other one concerns Princess Twilight Sparkle.”

Twilight gave him a questioning glance but said nothing.

“If everything said at the trial is true, she saved you twice more in the last week. I have also heard that you are courting her. Is all of this also true, my prince?”

Artemis’ answer was a mischievous smile before he pulled Twilight in for a kiss. “Does that answer your question?”

Twilight let out a squeak of surprise while everypony else laughed.

“Yes, it does, my prince.” Steel Night responded, smiling, as Silver Shadow stepped closer and whispered something in his ear. Surprised, his eyes widened for a moment before his smile became a grin and bowed. “Thank you, my princess, for saving my prince.”

Twilight’s eyes widened before she looked at Silver Shadow and understood. “So that’s what you told him.” Silver Shadow just grinned at her while everypony else laughed. She turned back to Steel Night “I will say the same thing to you that I told the Night Guards present when we brought Blaze, the pony that attacked us in Ponyville, to Celestia.”

Steel Night looked confused “What was that, my princess?”

“Of course I did. He’s pretty important to me, too.” Twilight smiled “It’s nice to meet you, Steel Night.”

Before anything else could be said, Steel Night’s son began to whimper and squirm, before he fell out of the baby sling. Everypony in the room gasped. Steel Night and his wife flinched, expecting their son to hit the floor. After a moment, he wondered why his son wasn’t crying, looked over at his foal and just stared. The little bat pony colt was suspended in mid-air, caught in a field of magenta magic.

Steel Night, and everypony else, looked at Twilight to see her horn glowing as she set the little foal down gently on the floor, in front of his mother.

She sighed “That was close” She heard tiny hoofsteps and looked down as the little colt walked over, staring up at her. She smiled and lay down in front of him.

“Quick reflexes, Twilight” commented Artemis

She looked up at him “You’ve met Pound and Pumpkin Cake. Pinkie likes to bring them to see me when she foalsits them. So I get a lot of practice.”

“That certainly explains it.” Artemis shook his head with a smile before turning to Steel Night. “Steel Night, what is your request?”

Steel Night smiled and nuzzled his wife. “This is my wife, Cherry Blossom. Go ahead, honey.”

Cherry Blossom blushed and looked at her son, who was batting at little sparks of magic that Twilight was releasing from her horn. This made her smile and calm down a bit. “I know this has not happened in a long time, but we have decided not to name our son. We have talked it over and we would be honored if you would chose a name for him, Prince Artemis.”

Artemis’ eyes widened but, before he could respond, he felt the pull of the moon and raised his head before looking at Celestia “Sister, it’s time”.

She nodded, lit her horn and lowered the sun. He stepped next to her and lit his horn. The moon rose and a flash of his magic brought out the stars.

As he finished, he heard Twilight giggling and turned towards her to find that the little foal had climbed onto her back and was stretching up, trying to touch the moon. Artemis just stared at him for several moments before he heard Steel Night speak up again.

“This is why we thought it would be appropriate to ask you to name him, my prince. He is only a week old but already reacts like this every time he sees the moon and night sky.”

Artemis looked over to find Steel Night smiling at him. Suddenly, he heard Twilight laughing again. Looking over at her, he saw that she was waving her tail around. The little foal was pouncing on the moving shadow that her tail was creating.

Twilight looked up, still laughing, as she let the foal catch the shadow. “It’s your call, Artemis. However, if I could make a suggestion,” she paused and waited for him to nod “I would name him “Moonlight Shadow”, or something similar, based on his actions and the fact that he clearly loves the light of your moon.”

Artemis’ jaw dropped as everypony else gasped. He walked over to Twilight and lay down next to her.

Immediately, the foal stopped playing with Twilight’s tail and looked at him. As soon as he saw Artemis’ cutie mark, he pounced on that too. Steel Night and Cherry Blossom were horrified but Artemis just laughed, lit his horn and brought the little foal in front of him. The foal giggled and reached out to bop Artemis on the nose.

“I think you are right, Twilight. Moonlight Shadow seems like a good name for this energetic little one.” He nuzzled her before looking up at Steel Night and Cherry Blossom. “What do the two of you think?”

Cherry Blossom just stared “My son was given his name by Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight? W-what an honor! Thank you!”

Steel Night nodded, nuzzling his wife “I like it, my prince. Thank you.” He watched as Artemis put his son back on the floor before kneeling down. “Come here, Moonlight.”

Everypony watched as Moonlight Shadow looked up at his father and walked over to him. Steel Night picked up his son and nuzzled him before setting him back down.

It was then that Artemis noticed something strange about Moonlight Shadow.

“Steel Night, you said your son is a week old, right?” asked Artemis

“Yes, my prince. Why do you ask?”

“Has he tried to fly or move his wings yet?”

Cherry Blossom looked down “No, my prince. The doctors say that there is nothing to worry about and that he is fine, but I am worried. I know he shouldn’t be a great flier yet, but he should have at least tried by now.”

Artemis and Celestia exchanged glances, worried. Before they could comment, they were distracted as Twilight spoke up.

“May I try something? I promise it won’t hurt him.”

Cherry Blossom nodded “Of course, princess”

Everypony looked on as Twilight used her magic to bring Moonlight Shadow to her, causing him to giggle. Her horn flared and a wave of magenta magic swept over his body, specifically focusing on his wings and the muscles around them. Once she was done, she set him down on the floor in front of her.

Twilight nodded “The doctors are correct. There is nothing physically wrong with his wings.” She paused as Steel Night and Cherry Blossom sighed in relief, her head tilted as a particular thought came to her. “I wonder . . .”

She laid herself flat on the floor and looked Moonlight Shadow in the eye. He giggled and bopped her on the nose. She giggled as well before flaring her wings. “Can you move your wings like me?” She smiled as he spread his wings and began to flap hers. “Good! Can you flap them, like me?” He giggled again, thinking it was a new game, and flapped his wings. “Great! I’m going to make something for you.” She used her magic to create a little ball, made of plastic that had a magenta magic light flickering inside it, and bounced it around in front of him. “Can you catch it?” With surprising speed, he did just that. She used her magic to bring it a couple of feet into the air, still bouncing it around. “Can you catch it now?” He paused for a moment before flapping his wings faster and rising unsteadily into the air.

Twilight let him catch the ball and watched as he landed again. He began rolling his new toy around and running after it.

She nodded again “I thought so.”

Celestia walked over to Twilight and sat next to her. “Twilight, how did you know what to do?”

Twilight looked at her as she sat up “I spent most of my life, aside from the last three years, as a unicorn. When I first ascended and gained my wings, I was uncomfortable with them and didn’t really fly that much. It wasn’t until something came up that made me want to fly, that I began to do it more often.” She shrugged “I thought that, if I presented him with something that he wanted to get, he would fly. It was a little under hoofed of me, but at least we know that he can fly.”

She looked over at Cherry Blossom “He can keep the ball that I made. I made it for him, after all. If you bring it into the air and make him come get it, he can use it to practice his flying.” She paused, looking at Artemis as a thought occurred to her. “You know, if you put a bit of the light from your moon into the ball, I bet he’d be even more motivated to get it.”

Artemis chuckled, nodded and lit his horn. Suddenly, the ball began to glow as the magic inside it became a swirling mix of moonlight and Twilight’s magenta magic. He used his magic to lift it into the air, so that it hovered over Moonlight Shadow.

Moonlight Shadow batted at it a few times before Artemis let him knock it out of the air. As soon as it landed on the floor, he picked it up in his mouth and walked over to his mother. Cherry Blossom picked him up and put him back in the baby sling. He promptly fell asleep, clutching his new ball.

Steel Night smiled, watching his son, before turning to Twilight and bowing. “Thank you, my princess. Without your experience, we never would have known why our son wasn’t using his wings, let alone what to do to get him into the air.”

Cherry Blossom looked over and smiled “Not to mention that our son’s name was your idea.”

Twilight opened her mouth to respond but a yawn came out instead. Artemis joined her. They looked at each other for a moment before Twilight turned back to everypony else. “I’m sorry”

Artemis yawned again “Me too. We’re still tired, I guess.”

Celestia laughed “Of course you are. Yesterday was very stressful for both of you. Come on, eat your dinner so that you can get some sleep.”

Twilight and Artemis looked at each other before heading for the trays of food on his desk. They didn’t inhale it this time, but they did eat rather fast. When they were done, Celestia nudged them towards his bed with a sly smile.

Artemis gave his sister a look “At least wait until the company leaves before you start with that, sister.”

Celestia laughed “Oh come on, little brother. They all either know about it already or just had a foal of their own. You’re not getting out of giving me a little niece or nephew. Maybe two.”

Twilight turned bright red as everypony, except her and Artemis, laughed. “Celestia! We’ve only been dating for a week!”

“So?” Celestia countered “You’re his only really close friend in all of Equestria, Twilight. You two have been meeting up and/or visiting each other for more than three years now. You may have made it official last week, but you’ve really been together for three years.”

Artemis yawned again “I’m way too tired to argue about this right now, so I’ll keep it simple. Twilight’s right, we need to wait a while before starting a family. What would the citizens say?”

Celestia’s eyes flashed “Nothing, if they know what’s good for them.”

Twilight looked at her “What’s the rush? Why are you pushing us so hard?”

Celestia shrugged “I want a large family. I want foals in the castle again. I want you in the family, little sister. Take your pick.”

Twilight smirked “Why don’t you have a couple of foals yourself? And you’ve been calling me “little sister” for almost a week. That’s not enough?”

Celestia shook her head “No, it’s not enough, Twilight. I can call you “Little Sister” all I want, but it’ll be true only when you two get married and/or have a foal. That will really make you my little sister.” She paused “I’m a ruling figure of Equestria, I can’t be a pregnant princess.”

“So you want me to be one?” Twilight fired back, making everypony laugh.

Celestia sighed “Fine. I’ll leave it be for tonight and let you sleep. But you two are not getting out of this.” She watched as Twilight and Artemis yawned again and pointed to his bed. “Go lay down, before you both fall down.”

Artemis and Twilight shook their heads, sighing in resignation, walked over to his bed and climbed under the covers. Everypony watched as Artemis pulled Twilight close. They tried to stay awake but, within a few minutes, they were both sound asleep.

Celestia turned to Silver Shadow “When was the last time they- oh, last night, right?”

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang nodded

Celestia’s eyes widened as a thought occurred to her.

Silver Shadow looked at her, confused “Princess?”

Celestia smiled “Twilight was my personal student for many years, starting when she was a small filly. I know when her cycle starts.” She paused and laughed “It was easy enough to figure out, she would always shut herself in the library or her tower as soon as it started and wouldn’t come out until it was over.”

Cherry Blossom asked “What do you mean, Princess?”

Celestia’s smile became a grin “I doubt she has noticed, with everything as crazy as it’s been lately, between the attack and trial. However, Twilight was supposed to go into heat on Wednesday, the day of the attack.”

Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night’s eyes all widened “You mean that she . . .?” asked Silver Shadow

Celestia nodded, still grinning “She may already be pregnant.” She paused, looking at the guards and Cherry Blossom “Don’t say anything to either of them, or anypony else, about this and don’t change the way you treat her. At least, not until we’re sure, and that may take a couple of weeks.”

Cherry Blossom turned to Steel Night “Honey, you have to make sure she stays safe. After everything she’s done, she deserves the same protection that you give Prince Artemis.”

Steel Night opened his mouth to respond, but Silver Shadow beat him to it. “It’s alright, Cherry Blossom. We have already sworn to protect our princess as we protect our prince. Prince Artemis knows about this and approves. So, you don’t have to worry.”

Cherry Blossom sighed in relief “Good” She turned to her husband “Make sure you let me know when you find out if we are going to have a royal foal soon.”

Celestia smiled and was about to comment on that when a noise made them all look to the bed. They watched as Twilight began shifting restlessly in her sleep, causing Artemis to instinctively wrap a hoof tighter around her and pull her closer. As soon as she felt the increased body heat and the embrace, she calmed and snuggled closer to him.

“We’d better go” Celestia whispered “We don’t want to wake them. Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang, I’ll see the two of you in the morning.”

They walked out into the hall and closed the door to Artemis’ room.

Celestia paused “I will come check on them, first thing in the morning. If they fall into a deep sleep again, Artemis may not wake to the pull of the moon. If that happens, I will lower it and the stars. My brother needs his sleep to recover from the stress of the last few days.”

She looked back at the door to Artemis’ room and shook her head. “I have never seen my brother this content or sleep this deeply, except for those first couple of days when he first returned. The effect Twilight has on him is amazing.”

Midnight Fang nodded in agreement “She doesn’t see it that way, though. Our princess has said that she hasn’t done anything special.”

Cherry Blossom and Steel Night just stared at him while Celestia snorted and shook her head “If this is “nothing special”, I would like to see what she considers special. My former student is, and always was, such a perfectionist and overachiever.”

Celestia turned to Cherry Blossom and Steel Night “You two should get your little one home and put him to bed. Have a good night.”

They both nodded and bowed “Good Night, princess.”

It was time for the moon to be lowered and, once again, there was no change. There was a flash of golden magic in front of Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang. They looked over to see Celestia standing there and shook their heads. “There has been no sound from inside, princess.” Silver Shadow reported

Celestia smiled “Good. Let’s go check on them anyway.” She opened the door to her brother’s room and the three of them walked in, looking at the bed to see that Artemis and Twilight were still in a deep sleep.

Celestia walked to the bed and nuzzled Artemis and Twilight. Neither of them responded or moved at all. She smiled and shook her head, looking down at her brother. Artemis had shifted in his sleep, tucking Twilight’s head beneath his chin and was still holding her tight.

Celestia lifted her head and lit her horn, lowering the moon before raising the sun. She closed the curtains so that the sunlight wouldn’t wake them before turning to Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang and gestured to the hallway. They nodded and followed her out.

“I have a couple of my Day Guards coming up in a few minutes. Go get some breakfast and sleep.”

They both nodded again and saluted “Yes, princess.”

Around two in the afternoon, Twilight woke up and tried to roll over. She squeaked as she felt Artemis tighten his grip on her before raising her head to look at him. She found that he had his eyes open and was looking down at her.

He smirked “You weren’t going to get up without me, were you?”

She laughed “No, I just need to use the bathroom and didn’t want to wake you.”

He laughed as well as he released his hold on her. “Fine, I suppose I’ll let you up.”

She stood, stretched and headed into Artemis’ bathroom. A few minutes later, she walked back out to see Artemis standing at the window, looking outside. Walking up next to him, she looked out as well and saw that he was looking towards an inner courtyard. The girls, Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor were playing some kind of game.

Twilight walked to the door and opened it, surprising the pair of Day Guards stationed there. Before they could say anything she said “Artemis and I are going to the courtyard. Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor and my friends are all there. Could you please have some food brought there for the two of us?”

They both bowed “Of course, princess”

Twilight smiled “Thank you”

Twilight and Artemis walked out onto his balcony and took flight, soaring over the courtyard. Their shadows caught the attention of everypony on the ground, causing them to look over at them as they landed.

Celestia walked over “What are you two doing up and why are you out here?”

Artemis nuzzled his sister “We just woke up, sister.”

Twilight laughed “As soon as we saw what was going on out here, of course we wanted to come join in. It looks like fun.” She paused as Celestia gave her a look and rolled her eyes. “I already talked to the guards you stationed outside Artemis’ room and asked them to have food sent here. We’ll eat as soon as it gets here. Besides, we can’t sleep all day. I don’t know about Artemis, but I need to get out and move a bit.”

Artemis nodded “We’ve been sleeping for much of the last two days, sister. You would want to get out and move a little, too.”

Celestia sighed and nodded “Fine” I can’t tell them that I think Twilight’s pregnant and shouldn’t be playing these rough games. I’ll just have to stay out here and calm things down when they get too rough.

Everypony looked over as Apple Crunch walked out with a covered tray on his back. He walked over to Artemis and Twilight, placed the tray on the ground in front of them and lifted the cover. They saw a couple bottles of Apple Family apple juice, a large salad for them to share, a couple of smaller plates and a large bowl of blueberries.

Artemis and Twilight looked at each other, lay down, and pulled the tray closer. Twilight separated the salad onto the smaller plates. They both quickly devoured their salads before Artemis separated the blueberries, putting half on his plate and giving Twilight the bowl with the rest.

As Artemis and Twilight finished eating, Rainbow and Shining Armor got back into their training. It somehow morphed into a wrestling match rather quickly.

Rainbow gasped as she was flipped onto her back by Shining Armor. “Applejack, come help me!”

Shining Armor laughed “Only if I get to call in a teammate as well!”

Rainbow and Applejack looked at each other and nodded.

Shining Armor grinned “I want Artemis on my team.”

Applejack stared “Why would you-?”

Shining Armor gave Artemis a knowing grin. “He’s probably going to be my brother soon and I want to spend some time getting to know him.

Rainbow’s jaw dropped

Artemis laughed “Of course, I would love to. Besides, after almost two days of sleeping, I could use some exercise.”

With that, the wrestling match was restarted.

Chapter 30

Author's Note

I know that these are not the common names or descriptions, I did that on purpose. I wanted to create my own descriptions and names for them.

Chapter 30

Cadance, Rarity and Pinkie were laying off to the side, talking about fabrics and decorations. Rarity was talking about ideas for dresses for the next Grand Galloping Gala and Pinkie was talking about ideas for the next party she was going to throw.

Twilight walked over to them and sat down. During a lull in the conversation, she spoke up. “Pinkie, I know you threw two large parties recently, but I have a request.”

“Really?”

Cadance, Rarity and Twilight looked at Pinkie to find her practically vibrating in place as she looked at Twilight, excitement clear on her face.

Twilight giggled and nodded “Celestia wants a slumber party and I want you to make sure she gets one. Those attending are all of the ponies present.” She paused “Yes, you girls are all invited.”

“You got it, Twilight!” Pinkie shouted before she paused “When will it be?”

Twilight looked over at Celestia as she walked over to them. “Celestia?”

Celestia smiled “Tomorrow is Monday, the last day of Artemis’ vacation. We’ll have it tomorrow night. That will be a good way to end his vacation before he has to get back to work.”

Cadance, Twilight, Rarity and Pinkie nodded.

Twilight looked around “Where’s Fluttershy?”

Then, she saw her off to the side, looking up into the branches of a tree and walked over. “Fluttershy? Is something wrong?”

Fluttershy let out a squeak and looked at Twilight in surprise.

“I’m sorry,” Twilight said with a smile “I didn’t mean to scare you”

“D-don’t worry, Twilight. It’s alright.” Fluttershy stammered “I was just watching the birds. We don’t have this species around Ponyville and they are really interesting to watch.”

“Oh, OK. I’m sorry I interrupted you. I’ll let you get back to your bird watching.” Twilight replied

She walked back to Celestia, Cadance, Rarity and Pinkie. She lay down next to Cadance and turned to watch the wrestling match. I’m not sure who I’m supposed to root for, my brother, my friends or the pony I’m in love with. Thankfully, nopony asked her who she was cheering for. The wrestling went on for quite a long time, mainly because Rainbow refused to quit and would not accept defeat.

Twilight was beginning to think that she should call an end to the match before anypony got hurt. Before she could think on it any further, it was over. The winners were, of course, Shining Armor and Artemis.

Rainbow and Applejack were panting as they walked over and lay down next to Pinkie and Rarity. Fluttershy walked over and joined the group.

Shining Armor and Artemis walked over and stopped, looking down at Cadance and Twilight. Twilight looked at Cadance for a moment before giggling and scooting over to make room for Shining Armor to lay next to his wife. She felt a sudden weight against her side and looked over as Artemis lay down next to her. Smiling, she snuggled closer to his side as he draped a wing over her.

Suddenly, Twilight looked up. “Where’s Spike?”

Celestia burst out laughing “Pony Joe’s Donut Shop!”

Artemis was about to ask when Twilight fell against him, laughing. “Twilight?”

She shook her head, still laughing “His favorite shop in Canterlot.”

They all looked up at a noise to find Spike walking over, carrying three boxes of a dozen donuts. “I got snacks for everypony!” he announced. He paused as Twilight gave him a look. “What? They were on sale!”

He stared in confusion as Twilight, who had been standing up to help him, fell back against Artemis.

She was laughing even harder this time but managed to gasp out a question. “How many of them are gem encrusted?”

Spike smiled sheepishly “A dozen”

At that, everypony laughed, even Artemis.

As Spike walked up to the group, he sniffed a couple of times and stopped in confusion. A movement caught his attention and he looked over to find Celestia gesturing for him to come over to her side.

The group looked over to see her smiling. “I want my donut first, before the rest of you attack everything.”

They all laughed as Spike walked over to her and opened two of the boxes.

“Is something wrong, Spike?” Celestia asked quietly, pretending to examine the donuts.

“I got five of Twilight’s favorite flavor as a peace offering. Her heat was supposed to start last week.” Spike whispered “The odd thing is, she doesn’t smell or act like she’s in heat. What’s going on? Is she OK?”

Celestia whispered back “I noticed that, too. I think she’s pregnant and doesn’t know it yet. Do not say anything about it to anypony at all, in case we’re wrong and she’s just running late due to all of the recent stress.” Raising her head, she spoke louder. “I’m going to take one of these chocolate glazed donuts.”

Spike raised his eyebrows before raising his voice as well. “But that’s for Twilight! You can’t have it!”

“You got five of them!” Celestia retorted

“So? They’re her favorite! She had a stressful week and I was trying to be nice!”

The fake argument stopped there as they heard laughter and both turned to find Twilight laying against a decidedly amused Artemis. She was laughing so hard, she couldn’t even speak. After calming down a little, she smiled “Thank you, Spike. Celestia, you can have one. The rest are mine.” She shook her head and went back to laughing.

“Well done” Celestia whispered to Spike as she took her donut.

“Thanks. Don’t worry, I’ll keep it a secret” Spike whispered back before raising his voice “You’d better thank Twilight, princess. She almost never shares her donuts!”

Pinkie giggled “Especially not her favorite! I took one once and she threatened to turn me into a bird!” She paused, tapping her chin with a hoof. “Or maybe that’s because she had just woke up and I also took her coffee.”

Cadance also laughed “I bet it was because of the coffee! She doesn’t drink it all of the time but, when she does, watch out!”

Twilight had been about to take a bite of the first of her donuts, when she paused.

“Twilight?” asked Shining Armor “Oh, I get it. You want some coffee now, right?”

Oh no! Thought Celestia and Spike

Twilight shook her head “Hot chocolate”

Nopony noticed as Celestia and Spike each breathed out a sigh of relief.

“Don’t worry, Twilight. I’ll ask a guard to send for some.” Responded Celestia

“Thanks” Twilight replied

Shining Armor looked at Twilight “Since when were you a big hot chocolate fan?”

Twilight let herself lean a little further into Artemis’ side and shrugged “I drank a lot of it last winter and grew fond of it.”

A few minutes later, Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang walked into the courtyard and over to Twilight.

“Here you are, princess. One hot chocolate.” Silver Shadow said as Midnight Fang set a tray in front of Twilight.

“Thank you?” Twilight said, confused “I thought your shift started at moonrise. It’s not that time already, is it?”

Before the guards could answer, Celestia and Artemis felt the pull of the sun and moon.

Artemis shook his head, just as surprised “Apparently it is.”

Celestia lit her horn and lowered the sun.

Twilight tried to stand, or at least move off of Artemis so that he could. She was surprised as he tightened his wing around her, lit his horn and raised the moon. Another flash of his magic put the stars in the sky.

She sighed and settled back against him as she looked up at the stars for a few moments before turning to her hot chocolate and donuts. Using her magic, she lifted one of the donuts and took a large bite. As she chewed, she went back to looking up at the stars. She missed the looks on everypony’s faces because she was focused on the stars.

The look on Artemis’ face was one of pure joy. Celestia’s expression was also one of complete happiness, but for a different reason. Look how happy he is. Just because she is cuddled up to his side and watching his stars. Everypony else chose and ate their donuts. They watched as she ate the rest of her donuts and drank the hot chocolate, not even bothering to turn her gaze from the stars.

Celestia finished her donut, stood and smiled. “Twilight and Artemis, stay out here as long as you want. The later you two stay up, the longer you’ll sleep tomorrow. I want you two up for as much of the slumber party tomorrow as possible. The rest of us are going to bed.”

“Slumber Party?” Artemis asked, looking up at his sister.

Twilight finally tore her gaze from the stars and giggled “Celestia decided that she wants the slumber party tomorrow night. She said she wants the last night of your vacation to be a good one, before you have to go back to work.”

Artemis shook his head and smiled “Good night, sister. Sleep well.” He paused and chuckled “You realize that you are going to have to take an afternoon nap tomorrow if you want to be awake long enough yourself, right?”

Celestia paused “I didn’t think about that, but you’re right.” She laughed “Good Night, little brother.” She nuzzled Artemis “Good Night, little sister.” She nuzzled Twilight

Everypony else called their good nights as they walked into the castle and to their rooms.

For almost half an hour, Twilight and Artemis lay where they were and just watched the stars. Twilight suddenly got an idea and looked at Artemis. “Can we get closer?” She nodded to the stars.

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang looked at her, confused. Before they could ask, Artemis’ face lit up and he nodded.

They both stood and spread their wings. The Night Guards quickly did the same. The four of them took flight, heading towards Artemis’ tower, before climbing higher into the night sky.

Twilight chose a couple of clouds and landed on the larger of the two. Artemis landed next to her and lay down, pulling her down with him so that she was laying against his side. They both looked up at the stars.

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang landed on the other cloud and looked up as well. Immediately, they both gasped.

“How in Equestria have I never done this before?!” Midnight Fang exclaimed “This is amazing!”

Silver Shadow shook his head “I don’t know. I do, however, know that I am definitely doing this again. This is incredible!”

Twilight giggled, causing them to look over at her. “This is my new favorite way to stargaze, for obvious reasons. Artemis and I did this after dinner when we had that date in Canterlot last week.”

Artemis smiled and nuzzled her “What made you think of this in the first place?”

Twilight giggled again and returned his nuzzle. “Rainbow has been helping me improve my flying. We usually focus on my endurance in the air, as well as my speed. One day, after a rather tough lesson a month or so ago, I fell asleep on the cloud that I was resting on. I didn’t wake up until well after sunset. As soon as I woke up, I looked up and saw this.”

Artemis laughed “How long did you stay out there?”

Twilight blushed “I fell asleep again after a few hours, still on the cloud and didn’t wake again until sunrise. That night, I slept among the stars.”

She heard Artemis’ sharp gasp and looked up at him, only to be pulled into a tight hug.

“T-thank you, Twilight. I didn’t know anypony else did that.”

She returned his hug before sighing a little. “I wish I could do that more often. However, the ponies of Ponyville tend to panic a bit if I disappear for too long without telling them or sleep somewhere other than my castle. They think it means that something is wrong.” She shook her head “I’ve only slept among the stars that one time.”

Artemis chuckled, understanding what she meant. “I think my sister would also panic, given the last week or so.” He paused in thought “In fact, I bet we can only get away with staying up here for another twenty minutes or so.”

Twilight let out another sigh “We’d better not tempt it. I don’t want to cause any alarms.”

Artemis also sighed “You’re right. We should head back.”

They both stood, spread their wings and took flight. Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang followed them. The four of them landed on the balcony to Artemis’ room and walked inside.

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang walked through Artemis’ room and out into the hallway, closing the door behind them.

Artemis and Twilight looked at each other for a moment and shrugged before they walked over to his bed and lay down under the covers.

For a long time, they just lay there, side by side. Neither of them moved or said anything. Artemis felt a calm overtake him, simply happy to have her by his side.

Eventually, he rolled onto his back. As soon as she noticed this, Twilight scooted closer and lay her head on his chest. He smiled and wrapped his hooves around her.

She sighed and nuzzled him before snuggling closer and closing her eyes. Roughly thirty minutes later, feeling safe in his embrace, she allowed herself to fall asleep.

Artemis noticed that she had fallen asleep and sighed happily as he gently nuzzled her before turning his gaze towards the windows, watching the stars. He lay like this for about an hour before he fell asleep to the sound of her gentle breathing.

Twilight opened her eyes to find herself standing on a grassy field that was in the middle of a forest. At the edges of the field, just before the trees started, were flowers, of every color imaginable. Looking up, she saw an opening in the trees, granting her perfect view of the night sky.

“Incredible!” she breathed

“Thank you”

She turned with a smile, recognizing the voice, and watched as Artemis materialized in front of her.

He smiled at her as he walked over to her, before laying down on the grass.

She returned his smile as she stepped closer and lay next to him, snuggling close. She let out a sigh of happiness as she felt him drape a wing over her. “Did you want to talk about something?”

He nuzzled her before shaking his head “No, I just wanted to spend time with you.”

Before either of them could say anything further, their surroundings changed. Suddenly, they found themselves in what could only be described as outer space. Twilight looked around to find stars everywhere, even below them. She looked at Artemis and saw that he was just as confused.

“You didn’t do this?”

He shook his head

“What about you, Night?” she asked, knowing he could hear her.

“I had no part in this. Be careful, both of you. Call if you need me.”

Artemis and Twilight sensed the presences of two new beings. They were still far off, but obviously coming closer. Twilight was nervous but Artemis smiled.

“I forgot that it’s that time again. I guess it has been a few months since I last saw them.”

Twilight turned to look at him “What do you mean? Seen who?”

“Two very important ponies in my life that are no longer alive." He answered, smiling "When they died, I placed their spirits in my night sky as stars. Once every three months or so, their combined power builds to a point where they are able to travel to visit me for a night, in my dreams.”

Twilight started to stand. “Do you want me to go back to my own dream, so that you can spend time with them?” She squeaked in surprise when he pulled her back down against him.

“No.” He replied, shaking his head “I'm glad that you're here for this because I want you to meet them.”

She settled against his side again. “If you’re sure.”

Nodding, he nuzzled her before both of them turned towards the approaching ponies.

As they got closer, Twilight could see that they were both alicorns. One was a mare with a white coat and a light blue mane and tail. Her mane and tail reminded Twilight of the blue in Celestia’s mane and tail. The other pony was a stallion. His coat was a very deep shade of blue, even darker than Artemis. His mane and tail were only a few shades away from being called pitch black with a dark blue stripe running through them.

The mare walked over and nuzzled Artemis. “It's been a long time, Artemis.” She gave Twilight a curious glance, and nodded her greeting, before walking back to the stallion. This is the first time that he's brought somepony other than his sister to one of our visits. This mare is obviously special to him. She hid a smile. Perhaps he's finally found somepony to settle down with.

The visiting stallion walked over next. He nuzzled Artemis as well before returning to the mare’s side. He nuzzled her before whispering. “I never thought he would fall for a unicorn, he always preferred those with wings.”

Smiling, Artemis withdrew his wing. Then he and Twilight stood.

Both visiting alicorns gasped when they noticed the wings at Twilight’s sides.

Shocked, the mare whispered "S-she's an alicorn."

Eyes wide, the stallion nodded. However, before he could say anything, both of them looked up when Artemis cleared his throat.

Artemis nuzzled his mare. “Twilight, I would like you to meet my parents. My mother, Sundance, and my father, Midnight Armor." He smiled at his parents. "Mother, Father, this is Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship.”

Eyes wide, Sundance and Midnight Armor stared at Twilight.

Twilight shifted uncomfortably under their combined gaze. “Are you sure you want me here for this, Artemis? You only get to see them four times a year. Surely, you have a lot to tell them. Much has happened in the last week, let alone three months.”

“Yes, I'm sure." Artemis replied "As I said, I want you to meet them.” He laughed “Besides, I already met your parents. It’s your turn to meet mine.”

Twilight laughed as well. “Yes, but my parents are both unicorns. My brother is as well. In fact, I was also a unicorn until three years ago when Celestia tested me and allowed me to ascend."

Sundance suppressed a gasp. "Look at her coat." She whispered to her husband. "It's lavender. I-if she used to be a unicorn . . . do you think she's that unicorn?"

Eyes wide, Midnight Armor quietly replied "I-I'm not sure. However, she does have the same name as the unicorn who saved his soul."

Sundance and Midnight Armor returned their attention to their son's conversation.

"How would you feel if you suddenly had to face two alicorns for permission to court me?” Twilight asked

Artemis laughed harder. “Your parents were bad enough, Twilight. Besides, I also had to face Spike and your friends.”

“What?" Twilight asked, clearly surprised "When did this happen?”

“When you were talking to the Aloe sisters about our spa treatment the other day." Artemis answered, still laughing "Spike told me that I had better not hurt the mare that he considers to be his mother, big sister and best friend. As for the rest of your friends, let’s just say that I hope I never have to go against your fellow Element Bearers. Applejack promised to buck me into next week, Rainbow vowed to hit me repeatedly with lightening and Fluttershy said she’d send her animals after me if I hurt you. Even Celestia got in on the act, telling me that I had better take care of her former Faithful Student.”

Twilight laughed again “I should have expected that." She tilted her head. "However, Celestia’s reaction surprises me. I thought she’d be more concerned about me hurting you.”

Artemis shook his head again. “She practically raised you, so she knows that you’d never do that.”

Both of them looked up when Sundance and Midnight Armor stepped forward.

“Wait a moment, Artemis." Sundance said, speaking slowly "You said that this is Twilight Sparkle? As in the pony that you told us was responsible for saving your soul?”

“You said “fellow Element Bearers”, Artemis?” Midnight Armor repeated That will tell me if this mare is who I think she is.

Twilight stared up at them for a moment. I think they're even taller than Celestia. Taking a deep breath, she turned to Midnight Armor. “I'm the current bearer of the Element of Magic. My friends are the bearers of the other Elements of Harmony.”

Midnight Armor gasped I-I was right . . . This is the mare who saved Artemis' soul. He was pulled from his thoughts when Twilight kept speaking.

“Spike is a dragon that I hatched years ago, when I was just a filly. Ever since, I have been raising him the best I can.”

Sundance's eyes widened. S-she hatched a dragon egg . . . when she was a foal?! She shook herself from her shock as Twilight turned to her.

“I didn’t know that was what I was doing at the time." Twilight explained "Regardless, I did end up protecting his soul.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor stared at her in shock. Both of them were about to say something, but they paused when they heard something they didn't expect. They, and Twilight, turned to see that Artemis was chuckling.

Seeing that he had their attention, Artemis created a large sphere of magic next to him. "Mother, Father, there are a couple of things that I think you should see."

Curious, Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded. They looked on as their son showed them some of what had happened in the last week.

Sundance shook her head. I can't believe Artemis was captured because he tried to help a foal. She glanced at her husband to see that he was shaking his head as well.

Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped in horror when they heard what the attacker planned to do with the rope. Their eyes widened when Twilight, and her friends, suddenly teleported to their son's side.

Midnight Armor's eyes widened even further when he saw the way that Twilight protected the ponies around her. What kind of defensive technique is that?!

Sundance gasped when Twilight and her friends began to glow. What kind of power are they using?! Her eyes widened even further when she heard Twilight's explanation. T-the Spirits of the Elements of Harmony come when those mares call for them?!

Sundance and Midnight Armor watched Twilight use the Element of Magic to remove the rope before sharing some of her magic with him. Both of them suddenly sat down as they were overwhelmed with relief.

"H-he could have died." Sundance said softly

Midnight Armor silently nodded as he watched Twilight apprehend the attacker before taking him to Celestia.

Sundance stared at Twilight for several minutes before glancing at her son. “Y-you certainly picked a good one, Artemis.”

Artemis was about to respond, but paused when his father's horn began to glow. Twilight's eyes widened when she found herself caught in a field of magic that was the same color as Midnight Armor's coat. Midnight Armor pulled the smaller mare closer before placing her in front of himself and his wife. Twilight gasped in surprise when both of them pulled her into a hug.

"T-thank you, Twilight." Sundance whispered "Thank you for saving my son."

Twilight was about to respond, but let out another gasp of surprise when Midnight Armor tightened his grip. Sundance and Midnight Armor finally released her a little over a minute later.

As soon as they did, Artemis levitated her to his side. Then he lay down, placed her next to him and spread a wing over her. “I know, Mother. Trust me, I know.”

Sundance lay down opposite of them. “Normally, Midnight and I would ask you several questions to discover your intention with our son, Twilight. However, you have proven that with your actions. Instead, I only ask that you do not hurt him.”

Twilight smiled “Don’t worry, I won’t.”

“Good” replied Midnight Armor as he lay next to his wife. “I trust I don’t have to ask you to take care of our son?”

Artemis laughed and, before Twilight could reply, said “Not likely! There is no way that I can repay her for all that she has already done for me.”

“Well then, welcome to the family, Twilight.” Sundance said before she smiled mischievously in a way that immediately reminded Twilight of Celestia. Midnight Armor and Sundance looked at each other and smiled. “So, when can we expect grandfoals?”

Artemis stared at his mother in shock.

“That’s where Celestia gets it from.” Twilight groaned “Artemis and I have only been courting for a week. Even so, Celestia spent a good portion of yesterday afternoon, and again in the evening, asking us the same thing and trying to convince us to go along with it. She wants a niece or nephew from us, now.”

Midnight Armor laughed “That’s my girl.”

Chapter 31

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 32

Twilight laughed as she, Celestia, Artemis, Cadance and Pinkie walked into the ballroom. “Pinkie, you do realize that this is a Slumber Party, right? We are going to be sleeping at some point, you know.”

Pinkie bopped Twilight on the nose again. “I know that, silly filly! But that’s not until later! First we’re going to eat so that we have energy for all of the fun!”

Artemis looked over to see that Rarity, Rainbow, Applejack, Fluttershy, Shining Armor and Spike were waiting for them. Off to the side, standing guard, were Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang. They all smiled as Artemis, Twilight, Celestia, Cadance, and Pinkie walked over.

Looking around the room, he saw that about a third of it had been prepared for sleeping. There were cushions of every size and color with piles of pillows and blankets on the right side. In the center of the room but against the wall were four tables. Three of them were piled high with food for a buffet style dinner. The fourth table was strictly for desert and had every kind of desert he could think of. The left third of the room was reserved for the games that they would be playing.

Already set up, just waiting to be played, were several games. Artemis saw dozens of pillows stacked up for a massive pillow fight, a big sign that said “Truth or Dare”, Twister and ingredients for making s’mores. Something tells me that Pinkie may have other things planned.

Artemis and Celestia paused to lower the sun and raise the moon and stars before looking at everyone and nodding, signaling the start of the slumber party.

Pinkie looked at everyone, excited. “Dinner Time!”

Everyone laughed before Artemis looked over at Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang. He saw that they were looking at the food, obviously hungry. “Have you two eaten yet?”

Both of them widened their eyes before Midnight Fang’s stomach growled “Um-”

Before he could finish, Artemis and Twilight looked at each other and nodded. “Come over here, both of you.” Artemis said “I will not have you going without meals.”

“But, your highness!” Silver Shadow tried to protest, before he was cut off by Twilight.

“But nothing! If something happens and we need you to protect us, how effective do you think you’ll be on an empty stomach?” she paused “You both can eat your dinner and still be prepared to protect us at any time.”

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang looked at each other before they heard Artemis’ voice. “Do I need to order the two of you to eat?”

“No, my prince” replied Silver Shadow as he and Midnight Fang walked over to the tables of food and joined everyone else.

Pinkie laughed “Now that everypony’s here, let’s eat! The Prince and Princesses of Honor get to go first!”

Celestia nudged Artemis and Twilight towards the table. “You two first. Go on!”

Artemis and Twilight just shook their heads and started putting food on their plates before they each grabbed a drink.

Twilight walked over to the “sleeping” portion of the room. After looking at the options, she chose a midnight blue cushion, levitated it over to the center of the room and lay down. Artemis looked over and stopped short as he saw the cushion that she had chosen. Not only was it his color, it was large enough for the two of them. As he looked at her, she smiled up at him. “Are you coming?”

Shaking himself out of his surprise, he walked over and lay down next to her. They both looked up as a large yellow cushion placed itself not far from them, watching as Celestia lay down on it.

“Aww, that’s not fair.” Twilight, Artemis and Celestia looked up to see that Cadance was upset.

“What’s wrong, Cadance?” asked Twilight

“There’s nothing big enough for Shiny and I to snuggle on.” She complained, only to stop as she saw Artemis light his horn.

Everyone watched as he created a large cushion that was marbled in pastel pink and white. Twilight grinned and lit her horn, adding their Cutie Marks to the center of it as Artemis laid it on the floor next to them.

Shining Armor just stared as Cadance put her food down in front of the newly made cushion and ran over to hug both Artemis and Twilight. “Thank you! It’s beautiful!”

He smiled at her “I can’t have my niece upset, now can I? Especially not when we’re at a party.”

She returned his smile and nuzzled him before heading to her new cushion and laying down next to Shining Armor.

Everyone else got their food and chose normal sized cushions before laying down to eat.

After they had all eaten their share, Pinkie stood up and walked over to the desert table. A moment later, she came back with a pink box and placed it in front of Twilight.

Twilight looked up at her “Is this what I think it is?”

Pinkie nodded “Yep! It’s a cake! The special one I promised to make for you two. I borrowed the castle kitchen earlier today.” She paused with a pleading expression on her face “You have to eat at least a little of it, this time. Just a little, OK?”

Twilight and Artemis nodded as she opened the box and lifted out the cake. It was small, clearly meant for two. The cake was iced in lavender, the same shade a Twilight’s coat, and had dark blue, the color of Artemis’ coat, trimming and sprinkles. On the top was a large silver crescent moon and nestled inside of it was a pink six-pointed star. Twilight cut it in half to find that it was marbled, a perfect balance of vanilla and chocolate cake. The cake was two layers high and had a blueberry compote in between the layers.

Artemis levitated half of the cake to his plate and picked up his fork in his magic. Twilight did the same with her half. Knowing Pinkie wasn’t going to let it go until they had at least eaten a little of it, they each took a bite. Immediately, their eyes went wide and they kept going until they had eaten the whole thing.

“That was great, Pinkie!” Twilight exclaimed

“That was the best blueberry compote I have ever had! You have to show Apple Crunch how to make that so I can have it with my breakfast. Sometimes I like fruit compotes on my pancakes or waffles.” Artemis added

Pinkie’s eyes lit up and she nodded “Okie Dokie!”

Twilight looked around and was surprised to see that everyone was still laying down, except for Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang. They were both standing on the side, guarding everypony in the room. She looked over at Pinkie and was about to ask but Pinkie beat her to it.

“We’re going to start the first game and we can play it right here. Truth or Dare!”

Cadance and Shining Armor looked at each other smiled. “Us first!” She squealed, turning to Artemis and Twilight “This one is for both Twilight and Uncle Artemis. Truth or Dare!”

Twilight and Artemis looked at each other. “Truth could be a bad idea with Cadance. I don’t want her asking if we’ve had sex yet, she may want details.” Twilight whispered to him “We’d better choose dare.” His eyes went wide before he nodded.

Twilight looked at Cadance and Shining Armor “We’ll go with Dare”

Shining Armor smirked at his little sister. “I dare you to make me an uncle, little sister!”

Twilight and Artemis both groaned while everypony else laughed.

“Why does everypony keep asking us that? We’ve only been together a week!” Twilight asked as she glared at her brother.

“You’ve been talking to Celestia, haven’t you? She has been asking for the same thing for two days now.” Artemis asked, looking at Cadance

Celestia laughed and shook her head. “Don’t bring me into this one, little brother. I haven’t even talked with them about it! This one is all our niece and her husband.”

They all laughed as Twilight buried her face in Artemis’ shoulder and he buried his into her neck. Their faces were both bright red.

Rarity saved them, kind of. “Fine, we’ll leave you be and stop asking about it.”

She paused

“However, just so you know, Twilight, I have already started making clothes and blankets for your foal. I want to have everything ready when you finally have one!” She looked giddy with excitement “The blankets are all of the beautiful starry night skies. However, I’m actually making two sets of clothes. Purple and pink for a filly. Dark blue and silver for a colt.” She paused and looked at Twilight, quite serious “You need to have at least one of each so that they can wear everything. Just imagine it, I get to make clothes for the Royal Foals!”

Rainbow swooped overhead in a circle before returning to her cushion. “I’m making training plans. Both of you have wings, so it’s almost a sure thing that your foals will too. It’ll be so much fun teaching them to fly!”

Fluttershy spoke up, smiling “I’m teaching my songbirds to sing lullabies to help them get to sleep.”

Applejack grinned “Ah’m making a line of baby food from our apples. Your foal will be the first to try it, just as soon as you have one. As Pinkie would say, come on already!”

Pinkie was somehow bouncing while laying on her cushion. “I’m making a special recipe for soft muffins for foals to eat as soon as their teeth come in! You have to have a foal soon, so that they can test it! I want your foal to be the first to try it!”

If Twilight’s face wasn’t red before, it certainly was now and Artemis’ was almost the same shade. “But-!”

Shining Armor laughed as he stood and walked over to nuzzle his sister. “Just be glad that Mom and Dad aren’t here. When Cadance and I visited them earlier, Mom said something about locking the two of you in a room and not letting either of you out until they’re sure you’re pregnant, Twily.”

“W-what?!” asked Artemis, stunned, looking up at Shining Armor.

Cadance laughed “Uncle, you are the only pony that Twilight has ever been interested in. Velvet and Night Light already think of you as their second son, just as I am their second daughter. They almost lost you in that attack the other day and are afraid that it may happen again. They want several grandfoals from Twilight and Shiny and they don’t want to wait for them.”

“I get that when it comes to you and Shiny, Cadance. You two are married!” Twilight protested “Artemis and I began dating last week!”

Cadance nodded “I know, but they don’t care. Honestly, Twilight, neither do I. Given everything that has happened over the last week, it’s clear that you really love him. If you were just friends, you wouldn’t have reacted the way that you did to Blueblood’s actions or the attack.” She paused and gave Twilight a look “I saw those memories that you two gave Aunt Celestia. Your response was immediate and precise.”

Artemis looked down at Twilight as she attempted to hide under his wing, gaining laughter from everyone else in the room. “Can we drop this, please? I know Pinkie has other games planned.” He nuzzled Twilight before looking back up at everyone else. “I think we’ve both had enough of Truth or Dare.”

Pinkie nodded and bounced over to the games “Time for Twister! Artemis and Twilight play first. Cadance and Shining Armor play next. Princess Celestia and Fluttershy, after that. Then, the rest of us will get our turn. Is that OK with everyone?”

They all nodded as they stood and made their way over to where the game had already been set up.

As the game progressed, Twilight became sure that someone was manipulating the spinner. She and Artemis were ending up in the strangest, and most suggestive, positions possible. The game also went on longer than normal. After a while, they were both red-faced and panting. Suddenly, Artemis lost his balance and toppled over, right on top of Twilight. She looked up to see that the spinner was surrounded with light blue magic. “Cadance!” Her shout got a startled squeak from her big sister as the spinner stopped glowing and fell to the ground.

Cadance, and everyone else, just gave them sly smiles. Artemis was still laying on top of Twilight as they both caught their breath. Cadance had been manipulating the spinner with the goal of getting them both worked up and it had clearly worked.

Twilight looked at herself and Artemis to find that they were both covered in sweat and still panting. “Great” she complained “Now, we need a bath.” At that, Artemis’ horn lit up and the two of them vanished.

Everyone laughed, even Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang.

“Well done, Cadance.” Celestia said, still laughing “We probably won’t see them for at least an hour.”

Cadance just grinned “That was the plan.”

The laughter that had been dying down immediately started back up and went on for several minutes.

Celestia looked at Shining Armor “You aren’t upset?”

Shining Armor was still laughing so he just shook his head. After a moment, he was able to speak. “I did dare her to make me an uncle. This may get that done.”

Everyone nodded before Pinkie turned to Cadance and Shining Armor. “It’s your turn but this time, I’m using the spinner! I don’t want to lose anymore party guests!”

Everyone laughed as Cadance and Shining Armor nodded and made their way onto the Twister board.

Artemis and Twilight came out of his teleportation spell in his room, in midair above his bed. He spread his wings and slowed their descent as they fell to the bed. Just before they hit the mattress, he flipped Twilight over so that she landed on her back. They were both still breathing hard, so they just lay there for a few moments, until they were no longer panting.

Artemis lifted himself off of Twilight and looked down at her, only to be pulled into a long, deep kiss. He saw the look on her face, and in her eyes, and immediately knew what she wanted. He was ready, and definitely willing, to give it to her.

They were both so worked up that neither of them could take anymore waiting. Therefore, neither of them complained when he pressed himself to her marehood for a moment before pushing into her as far as he could with a single hard thrust.

“YES!” She screamed, her whole body shaking

He moaned in pleasure, her passage already pulsing and clenching around him.

He paused, leaning down to kiss her again, before he began thrusting in and out of her. He was so worked up that his thrusts were much harder and faster than usual. It was only when he noticed that her screams of pleasure were louder than they normally were, that he realized what he was doing and slowed down. Well, he tried to, anyway.

Twilight noticed the change in speed immediately and looked up with a growl. “Don’t you dare! DO NOT hold back!”

Most of his mind was lost in a haze of lust, but with what little of it that he had left, he stammered “W-what if I hurt you?”

“I don’t care! I know healing spells!” She pulled him into a fierce kiss before gasping in pleasure as he sped up again.

The kiss was the last straw for him. No longer able to hold back, he resumed his hard and fast thrusts, smiling as her screams of pleasure got louder. This went on for only a couple of minutes before he gave one last thrust into her and released his seed.

The feeling of his seed rushing into, and filling, her was what pushed Twilight over the edge. The scream she let out was so loud that they heard it in the ballroom.

In the ballroom, Celestia and Fluttershy were taking their turn playing Twister. Everyone stopped as they heard a rather loud scream. They all knew who made it and why.

Celestia paused, looked up and smiled

Shining Armor looked at Cadance “Do you think that did it?”

I’m pretty sure she’s pregnant already, but there’s no harm in making sure. Celestia thought as she looked at Cadance.

Cadance shrugged “We’ll have to wait a while to be sure. If it doesn’t, we can just keep getting them worked up like that until it does.” She looked at Celestia “I didn’t know she could scream that loud without using the Royal Canterlot Voice.”

Celestia shrugged as well “Neither did I. I guess, if given the right motivation . . .”

Everyone laughed before turning their attention back to the game.

Pinkie gave the spinner another spin “Right front hoof, red!”

Back in Artemis’ room, Artemis had collapsed on top of Twilight as they both panted. He looked down in surprise when he felt that she was still shaking in pleasure.

“T-that was amazing!” Twilight gasped, causing Artemis to smile and kiss her.

After a few minutes of resting, he heard Twilight groan. Worried, he looked down at her. “Did I hurt you?”

She blushed “We forgot the soundproofing spell . . . I think they heard us, well me.”

He groaned as well “Great, now we’re never going to hear the end of it.”

Twilight looked down “I’m sorry”

“No, Twilight, it’s not your fault. If anything, it’s mine.” He chuckled “I am the one who made you scream so loud.” He lifted her head, looking into her eyes “Besides, I should have thought of that as well.” He saw that she was about to protest and kissed her as he pulled out of her. “Come on, let’s take that bath and go back to the party.”

Twilight sighed and nodded “I would really like to stay in here tonight, but Pinkie would never forgive us if we missed the rest of the slumber party.” She paused “I am so making sure that Cadance gets it! I really enjoyed what you and I just did, but I don’t like it when she pulls stunts like that.”

Artemis laughed as he lifted himself off of her. “Let me know what you decide and, as long as it doesn’t hurt her, I’ll help you.” He sobered “I don’t like her recent actions, either.”

Twilight grinned mischievously and said two words “Pillow Fight”

Artemis laughed, even harder this time, collapsing on top of her again. “I’m in!”

After he calmed down, both of them climbed off the bed and stood. Artemis watched her movements carefully, stopping as he saw her wince. Before he could say anything, her horn lit and he saw a healing spell sweep over her body.

She smiled up at him “See? I’m fine.”

He nodded and returned her smile as they walked into the bathroom. As Artemis ran the water to fill the tub, Twilight looked back up at the ceiling.

I think I know what spell Celestia used to cast the enchantment. If I’m right, I’m casting it in my room, right over the bed. It’ll be a nice surprise for him and a great way to fall asleep for me. She was torn from her thoughts as Artemis levitated her over to the full tub and lowered her into the water next to him. She blushed “Sorry”

He laughed and shook his head “It’s alright, it is a beautiful sight.”

Twilight sighed in pleasure, the warm water relaxing her, before looking up. “Artemis?” She asked, causing him to look down at her. “Were you always holding back?”

He sighed and nodded “I’ve been too afraid of hurting you. You’re much smaller than I am.”

She stared at him “Did you hold back tonight?”

He shook his head “As a result of Cadance’s actions, I was so worked up that I found myself unable to hold back.” He smiled. “The one time I tried, you told me not to.”

Twilight nuzzled him “You’re not hurting me. Any soreness I receive either goes away in a couple of days, or I can use a healing spell to take care of it right away.”

“But-”

Twilight kissed him to shut him up. “Now that I know how it feels when you are not holding back, I want you to go all out as often as you want. That didn’t hurt, it was incredible!”

She stared up at him. “More importantly, I want you to enjoy yourself. I now know that you have been holding back your own pleasure because of me. Do you expect me to be happy about that? Not at all. I feel as if I am, or have been, holding you back.”

Artemis gasped as he understood her point “I didn’t mean . . .”

She kissed him again to stop the coming apology. “I know. Just promise me that you won’t do it anymore. I know you want me to enjoy myself but I want the same for you.”

He stared at her, touched that she would even consider this, before pulling her into a very long, deep kiss and holding her tight. “I-I promise, but only on one condition. If you feel any pain at all, you have to tell me and we’ll figure something else out. This is not supposed to hurt you.”

She smiled and nodded “I promise.”

They kissed once more before turning their attention to bathing. They took a quick bath and dried off before teleporting back to the ballroom.

Everyone in the ballroom looked up at a flash of midnight blue magic to see Artemis and Twilight standing in the middle of the room. They all grinned as the couple walked over to join the group.

Celestia smiled at, and nuzzled, Artemis “Well done, little brother.”

Artemis and Twilight both turned red, causing everyone to laugh.

Cadance was standing nearby with a sheepish smile on her face, knowing that Twilight was probably upset at being manipulated. “I’m sorry, Twilight. I just wanted to move things along a little.” She gave them a sly smile “It worked though, didn’t it?”

Artemis and Twilight turned to each other and nodded. Everyone was confused as both of them lit their horns.

Cadance’s eyes widened as all of the pillows in the room suddenly rose into the air, flew towards and hovered around Twilight and Artemis. “Uh Oh” she whispered

Twilight and Artemis gave Cadance matching evil smirks before they began pummeling her relentlessly with the pillows. Cadance tried to escape the barrage by spreading her wings and taking to the air. Artemis and Twilight spread theirs as well and followed her. She looked back to find them both on her tail and let out a squeak before speeding up.

Below them, everyone else was watching the fight and laughing. Rainbow, Applejack and Pinkie began cheering Twilight on and shouting advice. Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang did the same for Artemis.

In the air, Cadance made a mistake that allowed Twilight and Artemis to corner her. She tried to teleport away but Twilight traced the spell and caught her in a levitation spell as she reappeared. Unable to break Twilight’s magic, she could only watch as they attacked her with the pillows from every angle.

This continued for almost ten minutes before Twilight and Artemis landed, bringing Cadance with them. Cadance’s eyes widened as she was placed on the cushion that Artemis and Twilight made for her earlier and held there.

Twilight walked over and gave her a look. “DO NOT do that again, Cadance! It may have gotten the result you wanted, but I hate being manipulated.”

Artemis stepped next to Twilight and gave Cadance a slight glare. “The same goes for me, Cadance. Ever since a certain pony manipulated me, took over my body and got me imprisoned in my moon for a thousand years, I’ve developed a strong distaste for being manipulated, by anypony.”

Cadance gasped “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t think about that. I didn’t mean it like that, I promise!”

Artemis nodded “Apology accepted. Just don’t do it again.” He paused “I care enough about you that I only retaliated with pillows. Most other ponies would not be so lucky.” He and Twilight turned and walked over to the large cushion they had shared when they ate dinner, laying down to rest.

Twilight looked up at Pinkie “We want to rest for a bit. Recent events have tired us out. Don’t bother trying to get us to get up for a while.”

Pinkie immediately looked offended “But-!” She was cut off as Cadance levitated a cupcake over and shoved it into her mouth.

Everyone laughed as Celestia looked over at Twilight. “Don’t worry, its fine. You two deserve a break.”

Artemis looked at Twilight as her stomach growled, loudly.

She laughed and nuzzled him. “We were pretty active recently. I don’t know about you, but I need a snack.”

He laughed as well and nodded “I could use one as well. There is plenty of food left on the table.”

Artemis paused and looked up as Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang walked over. They each had a large plate of food on their back. Silver Shadow laid the one on his before Artemis and Midnight Fang placed the one on his in front of Twilight.

“We thought you might be hungry, so we prepared some plates for the two of you, my prince.” Silver Shadow told Artemis

Midnight Fang smiled and bowed “If I may say so, that was very well done.” He laughed “Even when you’re using something soft, like a pillow, I still don’t want to have to face either of you. Both of you, especially Princess Twilight, can be more than a little scary when you are angry.” He paused as a thought occurred to him. “If I have ever done anything to upset either of you, I’m sorry.”

Silver Shadow visibly shuddered at the thought of having to deal with angry versions of his prince and princess. “Me too.”

Everyone laughed as Artemis and Twilight blushed.

Twilight looked up at everyone “We already had our pillow fight, why don’t the rest of you have yours? Or are you still playing Twister?”

Pinkie bounced over “We finished playing Twister right before you two came back. It’s Pillow Fight time anyway!”

Twilight nodded “Artemis, Cadance and myself are going to sit this one out. Artemis and I need to rest and our pillow fight probably tired Cadance out as well. Let her rest.”

Pinkie was unhappy at that but nodded as well “No sleeping though, it’s not time yet!”

Twilight laughed “I said we need to rest a while, not sleep. Don’t worry, we’ll be awake.”

Chapter 33

Cadance looked over at Twilight “Thank you, little sister. You’re right, I’m way too tired for another pillow fight.”

Twilight laughed “I’m upset at your actions, Cadance, not cruel. I would never make you participate in another pillow fight so soon after ours.”

Artemis looked over “Even if she was willing to allow that, I would have stopped it. Like Twilight, I’m not happy about what you did but I’m not going to make or allow you to fight repeatedly. That would just be cruel.”

Cadance just smiled and watched as Twilight and Artemis turned to their plates and devoured their food. After eating, they both lay their heads on their forehooves and watched as their friends argued over who was on what team.

Twilight waited a couple of minutes before she cleared her throat, catching everybody’s attention. “This is hardly a party if all you do is argue. Since you are clearly having trouble, I’ll decide for you. Celestia and Shining Armor, you two are the team captains. Take turns picking your teams from the remaining ponies.”

Shining Armor grinned “Great idea, Twily! I pick Rainbow Dash.”

Celestia smiled “I like that idea as well. I pick Pinkie Pie.”

“Spike”

“Applejack”

“Rarity”

“Fluttershy”

Twilight turned to Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang. “Do you two want to participate?”

Artemis laughed “Good idea, Twilight.” He looked over at his guards “Go join in, you two. It’s a party, have some fun. We’ll call you if something happens.”

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang grinned, bowed and walked over to the pending pillow fight. Silver Shadow joined Shining Armor’s team and Midnight Fang joined Celestia’s.

Shining Armor, Rainbow, Spike, Rarity and Silver Shadow went to one side that third of the room. Celestia, Pinkie, Applejack, Fluttershy and Midnight Fang moved to the other.

Cadance gathered all of the pillows and divided the pile evenly in half before giving each side their ammunition. “Three, two, one, go!”

Immediately, the air filled with flying pillows.

Artemis turned to Cadance and cleared his throat, making her look up at him “Go get a snack and a drink. I can hear your stomach from here.”

Cadance blushed “I’ll be right back”

A few minutes later, she came back with a plate of food and a drink and lay down to eat. “What do you two want to do next?”

Twilight looked around before her eyes settled on the ingredients for s’mores. She smiled and levitated the tray of ingredients over to her, setting them down in front of herself and Artemis. “As soon as they’re done, they’ll be hungry. I was thinking that we should make these for everyone while they rest.”

Cadance smiled and nodded

Artemis looked confused “What do you make with these, Twilight?”

Twilight stared at him “You’ve never had s’mores?”

“What’s a s’more?”

Twilight exchanged glances with Cadance before she immediately set about making one, using her magic to heat the marshmallow. As soon as it was ready, she levitated it over to Artemis.

He took it in his magic and looked at it for a moment before taking a small bite. Twilight and Cadance watched as his eyes widened and he immediately ate the rest of it. “That was great!”

“No fair! You’re supposed to wait for everyone else, Twilight!”

Twilight looked up to see everyone standing in front of her. Pinkie was looking very upset. “I’m sorry, Pinkie. I found out that Artemis had never had a s’more before, so I just had to make him one.”

“What?!” Pinkie, and everyone else just stared at Artemis “How could you have never had a s’more before?”

Twilight spoke up before Artemis could answer. “Pinkie, the recipe for s’mores was invented while he was still on the moon. Since he came back, he has been busy working. The only exception is usually Nightmare Night and we don’t serve s’mores then, just candy and apples.”

Pinkie pouted “OK” Then she looked at Artemis “It was good, right?” She brightened as he nodded.

Twilight looked at them “You guys just rest for a few minutes. I’m going to make the s’mores for everypony while you recover.”

She laid out the graham crackers to see that there were enough to make two of them for everyone present. Well, three for Artemis. She broke the chocolate into pieces and laid them on the crackers. Everyone watched as all of the marshmallows rose into the air as she ran a magic fire over them, toasting them all at the same time. Then she put the marshmallows on the chocolate and the second graham cracker on top of each treat. Then she levitated two of them to everyone in the room.

She looked at Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang “Yes, you two get some and no, you are not allowed to refuse them.”

Everyone else laughed as both guards immediately shut their mouths and took their treats. “Thank you, princess” replied Silver Shadow

Twilight looked at Pinkie “Was there anything else you had planned for tonight?”

Pinkie shook her head “We did it all! Well, I didn’t count on you two disappearing for a while.”

Twilight blushed as everyone else laughed “That was Cadance’s plan, Pinkie, not mine.” She looked at everyone. “Let’s go the part of the room for sleeping. I’m sure everyone is tired. Even if we don’t sleep yet, we should relax.”

Everyone nodded and followed her over to the right side of the room.

Twilight turned to see that Artemis, Celestia and Cadance were levitating their pillows as they followed her.

Artemis set his on the floor and watched as Celestia placed hers on one side if it and Cadance put hers on the other. He lay down and looked up at Twilight. She smiled as she walked over and lay next to him. He watched as she lit her horn and brought a lavender blanket over, covering them both. Celestia lay next to him so that Twilight was between her and Artemis. Cadance lay on Artemis’ other side and pulled Shining Armor down next to her.

The girls and Spike looked around but didn’t move. After a moment, they looked down in surprise as they saw Twilight’s horn glow. Everyone watched as she created a very large circular cushion. It was designed kind of like a pizza that had been cut into six slices. Each slice was colored for one of the girls and had their Cutie Mark in the center of it. The sixth slice, next to Rarity’s, was purple and had a green flame for Spike. They cheered as Twilight put it on the floor, not far from Cadance and Shining Armor’s pillow.

“It’s beautiful, Twilight!” Rarity exclaimed

“It’s actually cool enough for me to lay on!” added Rainbow

Spike stared at his slice and the green flame that only he could produce. He couldn’t say anything, so he hugged Twilight before walking over and curling up in the spot she made for him. The girls followed, each laying on their Cutie Marks. Rarity chose a large velvet blanket and brought it over, covering all of them.

Artemis felt something move and looked down to find that Celestia had curled herself around him and Twilight with her head nestled against his chest. He watched in shock as she relaxed completely and, for the first time since he returned, fell asleep against him while he was still awake. Twilight noticed the tears welling in his eyes and just smiled.

Cadance, Shining Armor, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang, Spike and the girls looked on in confusion. Before anyone could ask, Twilight spoke up.

“I’ll explain,” she said quietly “Celestia recently admitted to being afraid of Artemis. She feared that he would be taken over by darkness and she would have to face losing him all over again. As a result, she has not let herself completely relax or fall asleep around him while he was still awake since his return, until now.”

Everyone smiled as Cadance nuzzled Artemis from one side as Twilight kissed his cheek on the other.

Twilight brought her head close to his ear and whispered “I’m tired, so I’m going to sleep now. However, I have a request.”

His eyes widened as he looked at her, waiting for her to continue.

She smiled “I want you to come into my dream tonight. There is something I want to talk to you about. I just thought of an idea of how we can spend more time together.” She kissed him on the cheek again before laying her head on his shoulder and snuggling close. She smiled as he wrapped a hoof around her and hugged her tight. After she saw him nod, she closed her eyes, nuzzled him and fell asleep.

Artemis looked over to see that the girls and Spike were already yawning and snuggling together. Within minutes, they were all asleep. He felt something shift on his right side and looked over to see Cadance snuggle closer to him while hugging Shining Armor tight. They both had their eyes closed and, a couple of minutes later, they too were sound asleep.

Silver Shadow and Midnight Fang smiled as they saw how touched their prince was as he looked around at the ponies and dragon that were sleeping around him. They looked on as he nuzzled into Celestia’s neck, hugged Twilight closer and fell asleep himself.

Artemis appeared in Twilight’s dream to find himself in her bedroom in her castle in Ponyville. Looking around, he noticed that she was not in the room with him. He was about to head out into the hall when he glanced over to the balcony. She was laying on the violet cushion he had given her and reading a book by the light of the full moon.

His breath caught as he noticed how beautiful she was under the light of his moon. For a moment, he just stared at her before he walked out onto the balcony and joined her.

She looked up as he approached and smiled, closing her book and levitating it into her room. She watched as he lay down next to her, covered her with a wing and pulled her close. Before she could say anything, she noticed the tears in his eyes. Worried, she nuzzled him “Are you alright?”

He nodded, rolled onto his side, pulled her into his forehooves and hugged her tight.

Suddenly, she understood. “It’s Celestia’s actions, how she fell asleep next to you, isn’t it?”

He nodded again and hugged her tighter. She smiled and nuzzled him before laying her head on his chest. For a while, they just lay like that.

Eventually, he stirred “What did you want to talk about?” He felt her shift her head and nuzzle him again.

“First, I have a question. How busy are your weekends?”

Surprised, he thought a moment before answering. “Not very. There is no court on the weekends. I usually just spend them reading or with Celestia. Why?”

“Good” she replied “I was thinking that we could set up a schedule of sorts. Two weekends of every month will stay unchanged so you can spend time with Celestia. However, the other two are for us. We can visit each other, alternating locations. This weekend, you come to Ponyville and visit me for two days. Two weeks later, I’ll come to Canterlot for two days. After that, we just continue the pattern.” She paused “I know we have the dream realm and letters, but it would be nice if we could visit each other too. What do you think?” She squealed in surprise as he rolled them over and released her.

Before she could say anything, he kissed at her. “I was worried that we’d have to wait until the next time one of us could take a vacation to actually see each other. I love this plan.” He nuzzled her “I don’t care what Celestia says, I’ll be in Ponyville this weekend.”

She smiled and returned his nuzzle. “Good. I was worried that it might not work.”

He hugged her “We’ll make it work, regardless of whatever else happens.”

They spent the rest of the night cuddled together, just watching the stars.

The next morning, Celestia and Artemis woke to the call of the sun and moon. Neither of them got up or really moved at all. Celestia lit her horn but when Artemis did not she paused and looked at him, confused.

He looked at her for a moment before speaking softly. “Do not wake them this time, sister. Please. Just go back to sleep and let everyone sleep in.”

She nodded and watched as he lit his horn, lowering the moon and stars. She rose the sun before drawing the curtains over the windows. Then she nuzzled Artemis and closed her eyes. She didn’t actually go back to sleep, she just enjoyed the company and the newfound feeling of closeness she had with her brother.

Artemis, however, did go back to sleep and returned to Twilight’s dream. Neither of them spoke, they just cuddled together for a couple more hours.

Twilight and Artemis opened their eyes to find that everyone else was already awake and eating breakfast. Looking in front of them, they saw two plates of pancakes sitting there. Twilight’s had maple syrup and powdered sugar and Artemis’ had Pinkie’s blueberry compote.

After breakfast, Cadance and Shining Armor stood. “Mom and Dad want to see us again.” Shining Armor said, looking around “I’m not sure why, but Mom said that there was something she needed to tell me and Cadance about.” With that said, they left.

Celestia looked at Twilight and the girls. “You should get back to Ponyville. You’ve been here for a few days longer than I initially planned. There must be things that you have to take care of at home.”

The girls all nodded

Twilight turned to Celestia “You’re right, we should get home. However, before I leave, I’m making something clear. You pulled Artemis away from his vacation in Ponyville and didn’t let us go back.” She paused and gave her a look. “I expect him there this weekend and will not take no for an answer.”

Artemis spoke up before Celestia could reply. “Twilight has already spoken to me about this, and I agree. She’s just being nice and telling you before I disappear for the weekend.”

Celestia smiled sheepishly at Artemis “I’m sorry, in the aftermath of the trial, I forgot about that.” She turned to Twilight “Don’t worry, I have no problem with that, Twilight.”

Celestia and Artemis walked with Twilight, Spike and the girls to the side entrance to the castle. There was a chariot ready and waiting with two of Celestia’s Day Guards harnessed and ready to go. The girls and Spike climbed into the chariot and waited.

Twilight turned to Artemis and kissed him “I’ll see you, physically, this weekend. Don’t forget to visit my dreams in the meantime.”

He nuzzled her “I won’t. I’ll see you tonight.” He kissed her once more before she turned and climbed into the chariot.

Twilight nodded to the guards. They spread their wings and took off, pulling the chariot into the sky.

The flight to Ponyville was quiet. When they landed, they saw that at least half of Ponyville was waiting for them. After they got off the chariot, Twilight told the guards that they could rest if they needed to before going back to Canterlot. They shook their heads, thanked her for the offer and took off again.

Mayor Mare stepped forward “Welcome back, Princess Twilight. When you have time, I would like to speak with you about what has happened in your absence.”

Spike hopped on Twilight’s back “I’ll go open the library, Twi.” He hugged her before hopping off and heading for the castle.

The girls all called their goodbyes and headed to their homes to get to work.

Twilight turned to Mayor Mare “Let’s head to the Town Hall and discuss this now. If anything went wrong, the sooner I find out about it, the sooner I can fix it.”

Mayor Mare nodded as she and Twilight headed for her office in the Town Hall. It turned out, Twilight discovered, that nothing at all had gone wrong in her absence. Mayor Mare merely wanted to know what had happened at the trial. She had decided not to go to Canterlot for it because it would have left Ponyville with no leader. That being the case, she decided to ask Twilight for the details.

After informing Mayor Mare of the events of the trial, Twilight left the Town Hall and flew to her castle. Once she got there, she went into the library, stopped and just stared. There were so many ponies there that there was a line just to check out books.

That’s never happened before. She thought as she rushed to help Spike. Soon, they had a routine set up where Spike went to find the books and she checked them out. It continued like that all day. By the time the library closed, both she and Spike were worn out.

Twilight and Spike walked out into the hall.

Spike sighed, obviously tired “What do you want me to make for dinner, Twi?”

Twilight laughed and nuzzled him. “You are not making anything, Spike. You’re clearly tired and I’m not going to make, or allow, you to prepare anything. We’re going out for dinner.”

He sighed in relief. “Thank you”

She giggled and summoned something that she quickly hid in a wing as they walked out of the castle, heading for Sugarcube Corner.

Waiting for them, were the girls. Twilight and Spike stopped in surprise. “What the-?” she asked

Rarity smiled “How busy was the library, Darling?”

Spike sighed as he was finally able to sit down, for the first time all day. “Hopping all day. We didn’t even get a chance to sit down.”

“Why did you ask?” asked Twilight

Applejack laughed “It was the same for all of us. It seems that the bake sale and the party Pinkie threw got the word out about Ponyville goods and now everypony wants some. Apple Bloom took a ton of orders from ponies that want Apple Family baked goods. Ah spent all day bucking apples so that we’d have enough to make our family recipes.”

Rarity laughed as well, shaking her head. “The boutique was the same. I came home this morning to find that Sweetie Belle has been quite the little secretary while I was away. She filled an entire notebook of orders for clothes that ponies saw at that bake sale. Word got out and ponies came from Canterlot just to place an order. I wasn’t even able to work on them today because the shop was crowded with more ponies with order requests. I also wasn’t able to allow Sweetie Belle to go play because I needed her help all day.” She shook her head again, amused “I may have to hire her as a secretary until things calm down.”

Pinkie giggled “Us too. As soon as I got home, Pound and Pumpkin pushed me right into the kitchen. I was baking all day! Mrs. Cake also took lots of orders for cakes and even orders for parties that ponies want me to throw for them. I’m booked through next month!”

Rainbow spoke up “Things weren’t as busy for me but that’s only because I don’t have a shop. I just had to deal with the Weather Team. They want to have a major storm planned for tomorrow and need my help.”

Fluttershy added “I wasn’t that busy today, but that will change soon. I found that Scootaloo has been taking orders from ponies that want me to either groom their animals or have my songbirds perform for them. I’m going to be very busy, starting next week.”

Twilight shook her head “Wow”

They all looked up as Mr. and Mrs. Cake walked up with food for everypony.

“Thank you” Twilight said, looking up as a daisy sandwich was placed in front of her. She saw an extra-large portion of hay fries in front of Spike and pulled it towards her.

“Hey! That’s mine!” he exclaimed, only to stop in shock as she pulled a large turquoise out from under her wing and crushed it into small pieces with her magic, allowing the gem to fall onto his dinner.

“Are you still mad at me?” Spike looked at Twilight to see her smiling at him. “I thought you deserved something special for dinner after all of your hard work today.”

He shook his head repeatedly as he licked his lips, looking at his dinner. Twilight laughed as she placed the plate in front of him. “Dig in.”

After dinner, they all went home and the girls went straight to bed.

Twilight wasn’t even able to stay up long enough to see the moon rise. I wish he was here with me. It doesn’t feel right sleeping by myself. She thought as she fell asleep.

In Canterlot, Artemis had gone to his room to get some more rest in preparation for Night Court. I already miss her and it hasn’t even been a day. It’s going to be weird sleeping without her. He lay down on his bed. “At least, her scent is still here.” He muttered before pulling his blanket over himself and casting a sleeping spell.

He woke up several hours later to the pull of the moon. After raising the moon, he briefly checked in on the dream realm and was surprised to find that Twilight, Spike and the girls were all already sound asleep. Shaking his head, he made sure all of them would have pleasant dreams before leaving the dream realm.

He walked out of his room to find that Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night waiting for him. “Steel Night? What are you doing here? You should still be on leave.”

Steel Night grinned at him “Cherry Blossom is adamant that I return to guarding you. She’s afraid of another attack or attempt on your life, my prince. She began talking about it yesterday and wouldn’t leave it alone until I agreed.” He shook his head and chuckled “She wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

Silver Shadow spoke up “It actually comes at a good time, my prince. I must return to my duties as Captain of your Night Guard. Things need to be changed to ensure that something like this doesn’t happen again. If it pleases you, Prince Artemis, Steel Night will be replacing me. He will be your personal guard, alongside Midnight Fang.”

Artemis looked at Steel Night “Are you sure about this? Moonlight Shadow isn’t even two weeks old yet.”

Steel Night nodded “It would be an honor, my prince.”

Artemis nodded “Very well. Silver Shadow, you have permission to return to your duties. Thank you for your efforts in protecting Twilight and myself over the last week.”

Silver Shadow bowed “Of course, my prince” before walking to a balcony and flying to his office to get to work.

Artemis walked down the hall towards the dining room, Steel Night and Midnight Fang falling into step behind him.

In the dining room, Artemis found Celestia waiting for him. “Good Evening, Artemis. Did you sleep well?”

He nodded “With the help of a sleeping spell, yes. I will likely need to do that for a couple of days until I get back into my normal sleeping pattern.”

She smiled at him “At least you’re not going to be missing out on sleep. I asked Apple Crunch to make us some herb and cheese stuffed ravioli for dinner. It should be ready soon.”

“Good” replied Artemis “I’m hungry”

As soon as their dinner arrived, they both ate rather quickly. When they finished, Artemis stood and nuzzled his sister. “I must go to Night Court. Good Night, Celestia.”

She smiled and returned his nuzzle “Good night, Artemis”

They walked out of the room together before going their separate ways.

Artemis thought he was in store for a quiet, boring session of Night Court. He was in for a surprise.

As he got closer to the throne room, he heard voices coming from inside. What’s going on? He thought as he walked up to the door. There shouldn’t be anypony in here, my Night Courts should be empty now that Blueblood and his conspirators have been imprisoned.

Chapter 34

Artemis opened the door and walked into the throne room before stopping in shock. A rather large crowd of ponies were waiting for him, not as many as Celestia’s court normally draws, but far more than he was expecting.

They turned to the doorway as he entered.

“Good Evening, Prince Artemis” came as a chorus from everypony in the room.

“Good Evening” he replied as he walked to the throne and sat down. Midnight Fang and Steel Night followed and took their positions in front of him. “Forgive my surprise, I was not expecting many ponies here tonight, if any at all.”

Ice Blossom stepped forward “That is understandable, Prince Artemis. However, we have talked it over and decided to split our petitions more evenly between Day and Night courts. The two petitions here tonight are ones that you are better suited to pass judgement on anyway. So it works out better this way.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow “Such as?”

Ice Blossom smiled and gestured to the Pegasus next to her.

He stepped forward “My name is Sky Chaser and I am the president of Equestria’s Astronomical Society. It was formed last week and is made entirely of ponies that love to study the night sky. We have purchased a building in Canterlot and are in the process of turning it into a location where the public can come to learn about the night sky as well as observe the stars.” He paused and smiled, looking up at Artemis. “The reason I am here tonight is that we would be honored if you would officially open it to the public when it is ready.”

Artemis’ eyes widened for a moment before he smiled “Of course. Let me know when the building is scheduled to be ready. I would like to see it for myself before it opens to the public.”

Sky Chaser bowed “Thank you, your highness. It is currently scheduled to be ready for the public a week from tomorrow.”

Artemis turned to his personal secretary, a bat pony mare seated at the desk not far from the throne. “Please put this on my schedule, Azure Rose.”

She nodded, already making a note “Of course, Prince Artemis”

Ice Blossom smiled "There is one other petition that requires your attention, Prince Artemis.”

Artemis nodded “Please present it to the court.”

An earth pony mare stepped forward “My name is Rose Petal, my prince. I work in the Royal Archives. Yesterday, I was going through records from roughly eight hundred years ago and found two star charts. Something doesn’t seem right about them. We have seen an influx of fakes recently and can’t tell if these two are genuine or not.”

She pulled two rolled star charts off her back and presented them to Artemis. Midnight Fang stepped forward, took them and opened them before rolling them back up. After determining that they were not hiding anything dangerous, he placed them in front of the throne for Artemis to read.

As he looked them over, Rose Petal continued “These charts are both around eight hundred years old, so I am aware that you can’t personally confirm if they are genuine or not. However, I brought them to you because they concern your night sky and I am also aware that you are courting Princess Twilight.” She paused “Princess Twilight Sparkle is widely renowned as both an astronomer and a librarian, I believe that she can help us.”

Artemis set the star charts next to the throne. “You brought these to my court at a good time. I plan to spend this weekend in Ponyville visiting Twilight, anyway. I will bring these with me and we will work on this mystery together.”

Rose Petal’s eyes lit up “That’s great news! With the two of you working together on this, my prince, I have no doubt that the truth will be revealed.”

Artemis nodded before turning to Ice Blossom “I believe you said that there were two petitions for the court. Yet there are many other ponies present. Is there another issue?”

Ice Blossom nodded “Indeed, Prince Artemis. There were only two petitions for court tonight. The rest of the ponies present came here tonight with a demand.”

At that, Artemis uncontrollably, and unsurprisingly, visibly flinched.

“I understand your reaction, Prince Artemis, but this demand is very different than the one you are undoubtedly thinking of. These ponies heard about what happened but were unable to make it for the trial. They have simply demanded to see you. They have stated that, until they do, they will not believe that you are safe.” Ice Blossom continued

Artemis stared at her for a moment but before he could respond, a noise surprised him.

The crowd parted as he looked over to see a foal that had just woken up and was crying. His mother, a unicorn mare, was thoroughly embarrassed as she tried to quiet her son. “I-I’m so sorry, Prince Artemis. It’s just the two of us. I had nopony to watch him and I couldn’t leave him behind but I had to see for myself that you are safe.”

She stopped her apology as she saw Artemis’ horn glow.

The little unicorn colt on her back suddenly stopped crying as sparks of midnight blue magic started raining down on him. He began to laugh as he tried to catch them.

Artemis chuckled “Much better”

He turned to the colt’s mother “There is no harm done, he was probably just scared.” He saw her stunned expression “Don’t worry, I did not cast any spells on him. What you see falling on your son is merely magic. I have learned that most foals like to try either catching it or batting at it. Whichever they prefer, it is a good way to distract them.”

“I know that you would never hurt my son, your highness. I heard about how you protected the foals after the trial.” She shook her head “I’m just surprised that you got him to stop crying so quickly. That has to be a record for turning the tears of a foal into laughter.”

Before Artemis could respond, everypony else laughed.

Ice Blossom stepped forward, still laughing. “Now that the petitions have been taken care of. I think it is time that we called it a night.”

Artemis nodded and stopped showering the foal with his magic. As soon as he did, the foal began to cry again.

“Hmm”

Everypony turned to see Artemis looking thoughtfully at the foal before he lit his horn again, this time bringing the foal closer and placing him on the floor as he stood and walked over, laying in front of him.

Noticing that the foal was staring at his wings in wonder, Artemis spread one and let him get a closer look. With the foal distracted, Artemis lit his horn again and created a small glowing feather. He floated this over to the little colt and watched as he grabbed it in his mouth before walking back to his mother as she walked over to them. She levitated her son onto her back and smiled as he curled around the feather, falling asleep.

Artemis stood, lighting his horn and bringing the star charts over to float next to him.

“Prince Artemis?”

Artemis looked over to see that the foal’s mother was staring at him. “Yes?”

“How did you do that? It’s usually hard to figure out what he wants, let alone getting him to stop crying. However, you did this twice and in rapid succession.” She explained, with an awed expression on her face.

Artemis smiled “It wasn’t hard. Foals are easy to deal with.”

Before she could reply, everypony turned as the foal on her back began to whimper and squirm, clearly having a nightmare.

Artemis closed his eyes and entered the dream realm, quickly finding and entering the dream of the young unicorn. This one was rather easy, he was scared of the darkness surrounding him. Artemis created a ball of light that followed the foal around, lighting the way, and watched as he bounded off to explore.

Artemis opened his eyes to see that the foal had calmed and was smiling in his sleep. “There is no need to worry, he was just afraid of the dark. I took care of the problem so he should be fine now.”

Everypony just stared at him before an earth pony mare gasped.

She looked up as Artemis turned to her.

“Is something wrong?” he asked

“No, Prince Artemis” she replied, bowing “My name is Mythic Blossom. I was just reminded of something my daughter once told me. She had been having a nightmare for a couple of hours when she suddenly stopped squirming and calmed down before she woke up giggling a little while later. When I asked her about it, she said that she had been chased by a pack of Timberwolves. Then the moon suddenly rose and glowed before you appeared and destroyed the Timberwolves. When she was still scared, she said that you stayed and talked to her for a while to calm her before tickling her.”

Artemis smiled, remembering that particular young dreamer. “Ah yes, little Marigold. That was quite a bad nightmare. I’m sorry I didn’t notice it sooner.”

Mythic Blossom’s jaw dropped “T-that really happened?”

“Yes”

“If I may ask, how did you know about it and enter her dream?”

Artemis took a deep breath, not liking where this was going. “As Prince of the Night, I have the ability to dream walk. For the most part, I only enter the dreams of foals, and only when they are having nightmares. I stop their nightmares and try to help them with their fears.”

Mythic Blossom looked at him in awe “I assume that you do this for all foals?”

Artemis nodded “Every foal in Equestria”

Mythic Blossom paused, curious “Why only foals?”

“I have learned the hard way that most adults do not like their dreams to be seen by anyone but themselves. To avoid conflict, I usually enter the dreams of only the young.”

Ice Blossom spoke up “You said “most adults”, Prince Artemis? Are there adults whose dreams you enter?”

Artemis nodded again “Only one”

Ice Blossom looked confused “Who is that, and why do you enter their dreams?”

Artemis smiled “Twilight Sparkle. She has asked that I enter her dreams on a regular basis because we live in separate towns and keep different schedules. This way, we can still see each other often and not have to rely on just letters.”

Ice Blossom smiled “That is a wise idea and I am not surprised that Princess Twilight thought of it.” She paused “However, I had no idea that you do so much to help the foals of Equestria.”

“Most ponies don’t, I have always preferred to work in the background.” Artemis replied “The adults that require help usually approach my sister in her court and the foals receive help from me in their dreams. This works as a way to ensure that everypony in Equestria receives help from one of us, if they need it.”

Ice Blossom smiled “That’s incredible, Prince Artemis. I am happy to know that our foals are protected as they sleep.”

The other ponies in the room smiled and nodded as they agreed.

“I believe that it is time we called it a night.” Ice Blossom said and she saw a few in the room yawn and nod. “Have a good day, Prince Artemis. We will see you tonight.”

With that, everypony headed home and to bed.

Suddenly, it was just Artemis, Midnight Fang and Steel Night. Knowing that nopony else was coming to court tonight, Artemis decided to retire to his room. He was not ready to sleep, but it would be more comfortable to check the dream realm there than sitting on the throne.

Once in his room, he placed the star charts in his desk and walked over to the dark blue couch against the wall, not far from his bed. Laying down on it, he closed his eyes and entered the dream realm. After checking the dreams of foals for nightmares and finding none, he turned his attention to Twilight’s dream.

Entering it, he found himself on the balcony to her room, staring up. There, he saw a large cloud above her castle. Curious, he flew up to see what was going on. As he drew level with the cloud, he stopped and stared.

Curled up on cloud, sound asleep, was Twilight. He settled next to her and covered her with a wing. Careful to only wake her in the dream, he nuzzled her and smiled as she turned her face into his shoulder as she yawned and woke up.

“Good evening” he said softly, causing her to gasp and raise her head

She immediately pressed herself closer and nuzzled into his shoulder, letting out a happy sigh.

“Rough day?” he asked

“You have no idea.” She replied, her face still in his shoulder “It wasn’t difficult, just long and tedious.”

“What happened?” he asked, nuzzling her

She looked up at him “As soon as we got to Ponyville, we found a large group of ponies waiting to welcome us back. After the crowd dispersed, Spike went to open the library, the girls each went home to get to work, and I went to Town Hall. Mayor Mare had told me that she wanted to discuss what had happened in my absence. There was actually nothing wrong, she just wanted to know about the trial.”

She paused to snuggle closer and nuzzle him again before continuing. “After I was done talking to her, I decided to go check on the library. I found it packed. There was actually a line of ponies just trying to check out books while Spike was running around trying to help others find what they wanted to read. I began to check out the books and Spike kept helping ponies find what they needed. It stayed that busy all day.” She sighed “We weren’t even able to sit down until we went to Sugarcube Corner for dinner.”

She shook her head “The girls had all had similar days. Rarity, Applejack and Pinkie are swamped with orders for baked goods, cakes, parties, and clothes. Fluttershy has the rest of the month booked with ponies that want her to groom their animals or have her songbirds preform for them. Rainbow is already tasked with a major storm tomorrow.”

“After dinner, Spike and I went home. I’m not sure what he did, but I was so tired that I went right to bed.”

Artemis laughed “Wow, and I thought I had a busy night. I did wonder why the seven of you were all asleep so early.”

Twilight looked at him “What?”

He shook his head, still laughing “After raising the moon, I checked on the dream realm before dinner and found that all seven of you were already sound asleep. I didn’t have time to visit, so I made sure that none of you would have nightmares before heading to dinner and Night Court.”

She shifted to look at him. “How was your night? Is Night court over already?”

He nodded “My night was nowhere as busy as your day, but it was far busier than I was expecting.” He saw her confusion and tightened his wing around her before continuing. “Dinner went as it normally does. I ate with Celestia before she went to bed and I headed to court. With Blueblood and his conspirators imprisoned, I expected my court to be empty. That is not what I found.”

She gave him a questioning glance, causing him to smile.

“Ice Blossom was there with a few dozen ponies. They have decided to split the petitions between Day and Night courts. Tonight, there were two. The first was asking me to officially open a new astronomy building for the public in Canterlot next week.” He stopped as he saw the excited look on her face.

“That sounds fun! Is it OK if I come, too?” she asked

He stared at her for a moment before smiling and nuzzling her. “Of course. I’ll send the location and date details to Spike tomorrow.”

His breath caught as he saw her give him a bright smile before kissing him. “Thank you, I can’t wait!”

He smiled back at her before continuing. “The second petition was from one of the ponies that work in the Royal Archives, Rose Petal. Apparently, she found a couple of eight hundred year old star charts. She says that there have been a lot of fakes lately and she wants the two of us to try to discover if they are genuine.”

He stopped as Twilight frowned. “Twilight? What’s wrong?”

“I want to take a look at those.” She looked up at him, suddenly very serious. “When Tirek destroyed the Golden Oaks Library, he also destroyed my star charts. Celestia gave me permission to take the ones from the Royal Archives last month. She told me to make copies for my library before I return them. I’ve been rather busy lately, so I haven’t been able to copy all of them yet.”

She saw the look on his face and nodded. “I have all of the original star charts in my library’s restricted section and have told Spike not to allow anypony to check them out. Most ponies don’t even know that I have them. Either somepony’s stolen them from my library or the ones you have are fakes. I will check on them first thing in the morning and let you know if they are still in my library.”

He nodded “I have them in my room and plan to bring them with me when I come to Ponyville this weekend.”

After that, they just cuddled together for the rest of the night. A few hours later, Artemis raised his head. “It’s time for me to lower the moon.”

Twilight nodded “Wake me up too, please. I’m going to check the library and ask Spike if anyone has even looked at the star charts. I’m also going to try to finish copying them. If I can get them copied today, I’ll bring the originals back to Canterlot. Either way, I’ll let you know.”

He nodded but before he could light his horn, she kissed him and held it for a moment. “I love you”

He smiled and kissed her again “I love you, too” before lighting his horn and waking them both.

He stood and walked onto his balcony and lowered the moon and stars. Then he headed to the dining room for breakfast with Celestia.

In Ponyville

Twilight woke up and smiled. She stayed in bed for a moment and just stretched before getting up and heading to the library. In the hallway, she met Spike and asked him about the star charts.

“No Twi” he replied, confused “Nopony even knows that we have them, let alone has seen or asked to see them. Why do you ask?”

“Artemis came into my dream last night.” She replied “He told me that one of the Royal Archivists found a couple of star charts from eight hundred years ago and wants me and him to find out if it’s a fake.”

Spike stared at her “But we have all of them!”

“That’s the problem,” she replied “and today’s task. The library will have to remain closed. We will check on the star charts now, making sure that we still have them all, and write Artemis with what we find. After breakfast, we’re going to finish copying them. Then, I’m returning them to Canterlot today. Depending on what time we finish, I may spend the night.”

Spike nodded as they headed to the library’s restricted section. They found the star charts exactly where they left them and, thanks to Twilight’s inventory and organization skills, were able to quickly determine that all of them were present and accounted for. Twilight cast a barrier over the entire area, to make sure nopony could enter while they are gone before she and Spike headed to the kitchen. While Spike made fried haycakes, Twilight wrote a letter to Artemis telling him what she found and planned to do. She levitated it over to Spike and watched as he sent it to Artemis.

In Canterlot, Artemis and Celestia were almost finished eating breakfast.

He had told her about Night Court and the petitions. She was excited about the new astronomy building and confused about the star charts that Rose Petal found. She confirmed that Twilight had all of the originals in Ponyville but neither of them had told anyone other than Spike.

They both looked up as a bit of green fire flew in through the window and stopped in front of Artemis before turning into a scroll.

“Ah” Artemis said “This should be the letter from Twilight letting me know if she still has them.” He opened the scroll and read it before breathing out a sigh of relief.

“She has them all.” He confirmed “After breakfast, she and Spike plan to spend the day copying the remaining ones. If she is able to finish it today, she’ll bring the originals here.”

“Good” replied Celestia “Go get some sleep, Artemis. If she comes today, it will probably be around dinner.”

Artemis nodded and nuzzled Celestia “Have a good day, sister.”

He walked to his room and over to his desk. He opened his desk and pulled out the star charts again, taking a closer look at them. If these are fakes, they are good ones. It will be interesting to compare them with the ones that Twilight has. They may be duplicates. If they are, I wonder who made them and why. He put them back, locked his desk and placed a spell on it that only allows him to open it. Then he walked over to his bed, lay down and fell asleep, still needing the sleeping spell to do so.

In Ponyville, Twilight and Spike were hard at work copying the old star charts while the storm raged outside. It was slow going because many of them were very old and required special handling. It wasn’t until almost six-thirty in the evening that they finished. She packed the scrolls in a pair of saddlebags that had an enlarging spell placed on it while Spike wrote and sent a letter to Celestia telling her that they were done copying the charts and Twilight was on her way.

Twilight nodded to Spike “Send the scroll, please. Then let Mayor Mare know that I will likely be spending the night in Canterlot to deal with a clerical issue in the Royal Archives, but do not explain any further. If she asks for details, tell her that Celestia and I told you not to give any.”

He nodded and sent the scroll while he and Twilight walked out the Castle’s front doors. They found that the storm had past and the late afternoon sky was clear. They found the girls and Mayor Mare about to knock on the door. The girls and Mayor Mare paused as they saw Twilight’s saddlebags.

Twilight saw their expressions “Celestia and Artemis have asked me to go to Canterlot to help with an issue in the Royal Archives. It’s nothing serious, they just need my help. I’ll be spending at least tonight there because the issue was brought up in last night’s Night Court and I’ll likely be attending tonight’s.”

“Depending on how things go, I may be there for a few days. Spike is staying here and will be taking care of the library. If anything comes up, tell him and he’ll send a letter to Artemis or Celestia.”

The girls and Mayor Mare nodded

“See ya later, Twi.” Applejack told her

“Fly safely” added Fluttershy

Twilight smiled “I will. See you later.”

They watched as she spread her wings and took off towards Canterlot.

Rainbow smiled as she saw how quickly Twilight was flying. “Yes! Twi’s really getting fast at her flying now. I think that I’m going to continue working on her endurance and add maneuverability to her training.”

Not if Princess Celestia is right and Twilight’s pregnant. At least, not until after she gives birth. Spike thought before he turned to the girls. “Twi and I have been working in the library all day. We were gone for several days and got behind on a few things. I’m really tired, so I’m going to go to bed. I’ll see you all tomorrow.” He turned back to the castle and went inside, closing and locking the doors.

The girls nodded and decided to head to bed themselves. The only reason they were there was that they wanted to ask if Twilight wanted to join them for dinner. They were all a little disappointed that she couldn’t but they all knew that her Princess Duties come first.

In Canterlot, Celestia looked up as Artemis walked into the dining room, carrying the star charts in his magic. She cleared off a part of the dining room table and they both bent over them to get a closer look.

Before they could get a really good look, they both looked up as a swirl of green fire appeared in front of Celestia and turned into a scroll.

She opened and read it before she smiled. “Twilight finished copying the charts and is already on her way here.”

“Really?” Artemis asked “That was fast.”

Celestia laughed “Twilight has always been something of a workaholic. Once she sets her mind to a task, she doesn’t stop until she’s done. I give her thirty minutes before she gets here.”

Chapter 35

Sure enough, just under half an hour later, the doors opened and Twilight walked in. She was only slightly out of breath. I really have to thank Rainbow for all of that flight training. I can’t believe that I got here so fast and didn’t need to take a break on the way. She smiled and walked around the table to hug Celestia and kiss Artemis.

Celestia laughed “I don’t know why I bothered sending you back to Ponyville, Twilight. This investigation may take a few days.”

Artemis smiled

Twilight laughed “I know. I told the girls, Spike and Mayor Mare that I might be here for a few days. If anything comes up in Ponyville, Spike will send a letter to one of you with any information I may need.” She looked at the table. “Are these the charts?”

“Yes” replied Artemis, putting a wing over her and gesturing for Apple Crunch to bring Twilight something to drink.

“Oh yeah, can you ask Rose Petal to be in Night Court, Celestia? I want to ask her a couple of questions.” asked Twilight

Celestia nodded and glanced at one of the Day Guards standing nearby. He bowed and walked out of the room.

Artemis’ eyes lit up “You’re coming to court tonight, Twilight?”

Twilight nodded “I was planning to, if that’s alright with you.”

He smiled and nodded “Of course”

They looked up as Apple Crunch walked over with a glass of water. “Welcome back, Princess Twilight. I hear that you flew here from Ponyville. If so, you should drink this. That was a lot of physical activity.”

Twilight nodded “Yes, I did and thank you.” She lifted the glass of water in her magic and emptied it in seconds.

Apple Crunch walked back to the kitchen to get dinner ready.

Twilight bent over the star charts and studied them closely. Surprised, she pulled out the ones that she had out of her saddlebags and laid them next to what she had thought were fakes. They were identical. “These are not fake, they’re exact duplicates of the originals.”

Artemis nodded “I considered that possibility earlier. They look too good to be simple fakes.” He gave Twilight and Celestia a look “I want to know why anypony other than Twilight is copying my star charts.”

Celestia’s eyes widened “There should be no copies here. The only pony I authorized to make copies was you, Twilight.” She made sure she had Twilight’s attention. “Make sure you ask about this tonight, Twilight.”

Twilight nodded “I will” She rolled the originals back up and returned them to her saddlebags.

Artemis rolled the duplicates back up and set them on the table next to him.

The three of them looked up as Apple Crunch walked in with dinner. “Your highnesses, tonight I have prepared Tomato and Cheese Quesadillas. Desert is a blackberry pie and vanilla ice cream.”

Twilight sniffed the air and was surprised to find that the smell of the food was making her nauseous. Oh no. Please tell me I’m not getting sick. That’s the last thing I need right now. If I still feel like this tomorrow, I’m going to the doctor here in the castle. They should still have my file on record. I want to catch this quick and get it treated before it turns into something serious. I’d better eat anyway, I don’t want Celestia complaining about me losing weight or something equally silly.

Twilight, Celestia and Artemis began to eat their dinner.

Celestia smiled as she watched Twilight eat. If I’m right, she will be far enough along for a pregnancy test in a day or two. Her heat cycle was supposed to start last Wednesday, so it has been a week now and she’s missed it entirely. I wonder if she’s noticed. I just have to find a way to convince her to take the test without revealing that I think she’s pregnant. It’s actually a good thing that she’s here right now. If she is pregnant, I want the doctors here handling her care. “Hungry, Twilight?”

Twilight laughed “Spike and I worked all day to make the copies for my library. We didn’t even stop for lunch. Then I flew here. So yeah, I’m hungry.” She paused, glancing at her empty plate. “Well, I was anyway.”

Twilight looked back up at Celestia. “Where are Shining Armor and Cadance? If they’re still here and I don’t tell them that I’m back, well, let’s just say that I don’t want to do that.”

Celestia laughed “They are visiting your parents. Don’t worry, I’ll tell them about what happened and you’ll see them tomorrow.”

Celestia turned to Artemis. “Brother, it’s time.” He nodded and watched as she lit her horn, lowering the sun. He lit his horn and raised the moon and stars before he and Twilight walked over and nuzzled Celestia. “Good Night, Celestia. We’ll see you in the morning.”

The three of them walked out of the dining room. Celestia headed for her room to get some sleep. Twilight, still wearing her saddlebags, and Artemis, carrying the duplicates in his magic, walked to the throne room.

As they got closer, they heard several voices from inside.

Artemis shook his head “It’s going to take me a while to get used to that.” Twilight giggled as he opened the door and walked inside before following him into the throne room.

Like last night, everypony present turned as they entered.

“Good Evening, Prince Artemis” The ponies present gasped as Twilight walked in behind him. “Good Evening, Princess Twilight”

“Good Evening” Artemis and Twilight both replied as they walked up to the throne and sat side by side in front of it. Twilight removed her saddlebags and set them on the throne as Artemis set the scrolls next to her bags.

Steel Night and Midnight Fang had been there, waiting for Artemis. They weren’t expecting to see Twilight and looked at her in surprise before taking their positions in front of the Royal Couple.

Ice Blossom stepped forward “Welcome back, Princess Twilight” She turned to Artemis “Prince Artemis, tonight should be fairly light. There have been no new petitions presented to either Court today. The ponies present are all here just to see you.”

Artemis nodded “That works out well, actually. Twilight and I have made progress on one of last night’s petitions and would like to spend time tonight working on it further.” He looked around “Is Rose Petal here?”

Ice Blossom nodded as Rose Petal stepped up next to her. “Is there a problem, your highness?”

Twilight looked at her “Possibly. Where did you find the star charts that you brought to last night’s court?”

Rose Petal looked confused “That’s the strange part, princess. They were both in the room that we use for projects that are works in progress. I was a bit curious, so I spent today searching the Archives and Library for the others but was unable to find the rest of them. That is concerning because we should have several dozen.”

Twilight nodded “The reason that you could not find them is that I have them all. Celestia lent them to me last month so that I could copy them and replace the ones that Tirek destroyed a few years ago when he destroyed the Golden Oaks Library in Ponyville. She wanted to make sure that only three individuals, Spike, Celestia, herself, and I knew that I had them. With all of the recent chaos, I wasn’t able to finish copying them until today. I will return them to the Archives after this investigation is finished.”

Rose Petal sighed in relief. “As long as I know that you have them, princess, that is enough for me.” She looked up at Twilight “Were you able to determine anything so far, princess?”

“Yes.” Twilight replied “After careful comparison, I have determined that the star charts that you found are exact duplicates of the originals.”

Rose Petal looked at her in shock “What? There shouldn’t be any duplicates!”

Twilight nodded again “I know. I have already discussed this with Celestia and confirmed that she has not authorized anypony other than me to copy these charts. Like Artemis and myself, she wants to know who made them and why.”

“The duplicates are extremely well made.” Twilight continued “That tells me that they were likely made by one of your fellow Archivists. Few ponies would be able to make such high quality duplicates other than myself, Artemis, Celestia or one of the Royal Archivists.”

“No, I do not suspect that it was you.” Twilight assured her, seeing her expression “If it was, you wouldn’t have brought the issue to Artemis’ court last night.” She paused “Do you know who made the copies?”

Rose Petal shook her head “I’m sorry, Princess.”

“That’s alright” Twilight replied “Celestia has asked me to investigate who made them and why. I will also be trying to figure out why the project was started without the knowledge or permission of Celestia and/or Artemis. Once all of that has been determined, Celestia, Artemis and I will decide what to do next. I will be in the Archives tomorrow as part on my investigation. Do Not tell anypony about this, please. I don’t want anypony panicking or making up stories.”

Rose Petal nodded and bowed “Of course, princess. If I may ask, how did you figure all of this out so quickly?”

Artemis laughed “I visited her dream last night and told her about the petitions brought to Night Court. She immediately noticed something wrong because she has the originals. That means that there shouldn’t be any star charts at all here in Canterlot. After checking to make sure that nopony had stolen the originals from her, she finished copying them for her library and came here to help with this mystery.”

Rose Petal’s eyes widened “Impressive. I didn’t think any progress would be made on this so soon.”

Ice Blossom laughed “After the events of the last couple of weeks, I am not surprised at all. Princess Twilight clearly has a talent for getting things done.”

Twilight blushed “There isn’t anything else that can be done for this mystery tonight. If you would like to go get some sleep, Rose Petal, please do so. I would like to see you in the Archives while I’m there tomorrow. I haven’t spent much time in them lately, so I may need your help.”

Rose Petal’s eyes widened and she bowed “I would be honored, princess. Do you know what time you will be there?”

Twilight thought for a moment. “I was up all day and am obviously here now, so I will need to get some sleep myself. I plan to be in the Archives around noon, or right after lunch. Will that time work for you?”

Rose Petal nodded “That is perfect, princess. I will see you tomorrow.” She bowed to Twilight and Artemis before walking out of the throne room.

Ice Blossom smiled “In that case, we can end Night Court now.”

Twilight shook her head “That’s not necessary, I’m just going to get some sleep. I’m pretty sure Artemis will still be here for a while.”

Artemis nodded “I plan on staying here for a while longer before I need to go check in on the Dream Realm. You did say that there are ponies are here to see me.” He was surprised to see that all of the ponies present were shaking their heads.

Ice Blossom smiled “That’s alright, Prince Artemis. I know that you will be making sure that the foals of Equestria are sleeping safely, but you should rest after that. If the two of you are going to be working together on this mystery, then you will need your sleep as well.” She bowed and turned to Twilight “Princess Twilight, are you going to be present in tonight’s Night Court?”

“I’m not sure” Twilight replied “That depends on how the investigation today goes. For now, let’s just say that I plan on being there.”

Ice Blossom’s smile widened “Good. Then we’ll see you both tonight. Until then, have a good day.”

With that, everypony left the room, except Artemis, Twilight, Midnight Fang and Steel Night.

Artemis and Twilight looked at each other and shrugged. “I guess we should just head to my room.”

Twilight nodded and yawned as she levitated her saddlebags onto her back and began walking toward the door. Artemis levitated the duplicates over as he followed her. They were both followed by Steel Night and Midnight Fang. The four of them walked to Artemis’ room. Artemis and Twilight went inside while the guards stayed in the hall, guarding the door to Artemis’ room.

Inside, Artemis levitated Twilight’s bags off her back and over to his desk along with the duplicates. He turned to see Twilight climbing into his bed and smiled. Walking over and climbing in himself, he wrapped his hooves around her and held her close.

She nuzzled him and snuggled close as she lay her head on his chest. “I missed this” she mumbled before quickly falling asleep in his hooves.

He gently returned her nuzzle before laying his head on a pillow. “Me too, Twilight.” He held her tight as he closed his eyes and entered the dream realm.

In the dream realm, Artemis was surprised to see that many foals were having severe nightmares. He chose the closest one and entered to see that the dreamer, Marigold, was having another nightmare about a creature from the Everfree Forest. She was pressed against a cliff and cornered by a Manticore. Just before the Manticore took a swipe out of the young filly, Artemis flew down and blocked the attack.

After a moment went by where she felt no pain, Marigold opened her eyes and saw Artemis in front of her. She gasped as she watched Artemis toss the Manticore into the air before using his magic to launch it to the other side of the forest. As soon as he turned to her, she jumped on him, knocking him to the ground and clung to him, trembling.

He wrapped his hooves around her, giving her a tight hug and nuzzling her. “You’re alright, Marigold. It’s gone and can’t hurt you.” He saw her sniffle a little and nod before lighting his horn.

Suddenly, the two of them were in a large field of flowers. There were every kind that had ever existed present. He watched as she looked around, eyes wide, before smiling. He lit his horn again, merging Marigold’s dream with Mythic Blossom’s.

Mythic Blossom’s eyes widened as her dream suddenly changed. Looking around, she saw her daughter laying in Artemis’ hooves. Walking over to them, she asked “Was she having another nightmare, Prince Artemis?”

Artemis nodded “It was a Manticore this time.” He looked down at Marigold. “Marigold, why are you dreaming so often about the creatures in the Everfree Forest?”

She shuddered and pressed herself closer to him before he nuzzled her again, causing Mythic Blossom to smile as she watched the way Artemis was comforting her daughter. “W-we’re learning about them in school, Prince Artemis. My teacher is telling us stories about what it would be like if they attacked us. They’re really scary!”

Artemis frowned as he looked at Mythic Blossom “Teaching foals about the dangers of the Everfree Forest is one thing, and a good idea, but purposely scaring them like this? That should not be happening.”

“Schools, and the teaching of foals, fall under my sister’s guidance and she takes that very seriously. My sister will hear about this and it will be taken care of.” Artemis promised them “Who is her teacher?”

Mythic Blossom smiled “Thank you, Prince Artemis.” She paused to smooth Marigold’s mane. “Her teacher’s name is Fire Fly. He is a good teacher and she has learned a lot in his class. However, he seems to have an odd sense of humor and enjoys scaring his students. She often comes home from school scared, sometimes terrified. I was not aware of exactly what was scaring her because she never wanted to talk about it.”

Artemis shook his head and nuzzled again Marigold to get her attention. “The creatures of the Everfree Forest can be scary, but they don’t like to leave the forest and many of them only come out at night. As long as you stay away from the forest, they can’t hurt you.”

He lit his horn again and heard Marigold giggle. Suddenly, there were songbirds and butterflies in the air above them. I’m glad that I’ve spent at least a little time around Fluttershy. I hope she doesn’t mind if I borrow her songbirds for this.

Mythic Blossom smiled as she watched Marigold stand and run around, chasing the butterflies through the flowers, before turning to Artemis. “Thank you, Prince Artemis, for taking care of my daughter.”

He smiled “Of course”

He looked up at the sky and frowned. “Unfortunately, there are other foals also having nightmares, so I have to leave now. However, I have made sure that neither of you will have any more nightmares tonight.” He smiled at them both before lighting his horn and vanishing.

The next dozen dreams were almost identical to Marigold’s. In each one, he found a foal under attack from one of the creatures that live in the Everfree Forest. After stopping each attack, he asked the young dreamer why he or she was dreaming about these creatures. They all, without exception, told him about a scary story that their teacher had told him or her about being attacked by monsters in the Everfree Forest. For each foal, Artemis stopped the nightmare and changed the dream. Then he brought in one of their parents to keep them company for the rest of the night. He explained the situation to each parent, as well as what he planned to do about it. The parents were surprised and upset at the knowledge of what their foals were going through, but happy that Artemis had discovered it and was taking action.

The last dream of the night that Artemis entered was Celestia’s. She was in her private garden relaxing with a cup of tea and looked up in surprise as her brother suddenly appeared in front of her. Even more surprising, he looked absolutely exhausted.

“I’m sorry, sister, for coming into your dream without your permission. However, something has been brought to my attention that you must know about.” Artemis told her, before she could say anything.

He showed her the nightmares of Marigold and her classmates and explained what he knew about Fire Fly. Needless to say, she was not happy about it.

“Thank you for telling me about this, Artemis.” She told him “I’m not upset in the least that you came into my dream.”

She continued “I will have my guards bring him and that entire class on a field trip to the castle this afternoon and deal with it today. I will also summon each foal’s parents to the castle and tell them what is going on. I have an idea of how I want to handle this and want their input before I put my plan into motion.” She shook her head “His job is to teach them, not scare them.”

She looked at him as he stumbled, almost falling over. “Are you alright?”

He nodded “I’m fine, just tired. I’ve used a lot of magic over the last few hours. I can’t remember the last time I dealt with this many nightmares of that severity in one night.” He paused “Unfortunately, I will not be able to lower the moon this morning. I just don’t have the magic for it right now. I will also not be able to meet you for breakfast because I’m going to need to sleep several hours to recover my magic.” He paused and shook his head “It’s a good thing I’m already in bed because I don’t believe I’ll be able to move at all for at least a few hours. I will see you sometime this afternoon.”

“Of course, Artemis. I’ll handle it.” She stood and braced him as he almost fell over again. “Go get some sleep.”

He nodded, nuzzled her and vanished

Artemis left the dream realm and groaned as it felt like he was suddenly hit with a wall of exhaustion. I’m glad I got into bed before going into the dream realm. I was right, I don’t think I can move right now, even if I wanted to. Glad to be holding Twilight in his hooves, he closed his eyes and immediately fell into a deep sleep.

A couple of hours later, Celestia woke to the pull of the sun and went out onto her balcony. She lit her horn, lowering the moon, before raising the sun. That done, she walked through her room and out into the hall. Seeing the captain of her Day Guard, a Pegasus stallion, she motioned him over.

“Good Morning, Princess Celestia. Is something wrong?”

“Good morning, Sapphire Wing. Yes, there is. I need the guard to go out into Canterlot this afternoon and bring Fire Fly and his class to see me on an unscheduled field trip to the castle. Neither he nor the school are allowed to refuse. I also need you to bring the parents of all of these foals to see me at the same time.”

Sapphire Wing bowed “Of course, princess. If I may ask, what is the problem? My son, Cobalt, in one of the students in his class.”

Celestia sighed “Artemis made a discovery about one of Fire Fly’s teaching methods that I don’t like. Every single one of his students had severe nightmares about the same thing last night. After a bit of investigation, Artemis discovered that Fire Fly is telling his students stories about what it would be like if they were attacked by the creatures in the Everfree Forest.”

“Naturally, my brother told me about this immediately. He didn’t even wait until he woke up to inform me. Artemis is taking this so seriously that he entered my dream this morning to make sure that I knew about the situation and could take action today.”

Sapphire Wing’s eyes widened “My wife mentioned that Prince Artemis had brought her into Cobalt’s dream last night after he had a particularly bad nightmare. I didn’t have time to listen to her whole explanation this morning. So that’s what happened.” He nodded “I will make sure they are all present, princess. Is right after lunch alright?”

Celestia nodded “I also need you to make sure that ponies know that Day Court will be ending at eleven-thirty. There will be no exceptions. I want to take care of this today.”

Sapphire Wing nodded and saluted “Yes, Princess” He walked down the hall to give the orders to the rest of the Day Guard.

Celestia continued to the dining room and ate her breakfast quickly. She was not surprised when Twilight didn’t show up. She was up all day yesterday as well as at least half of the night. She probably won’t wake up until lunch.

After breakfast, Celestia went to the throne room for court. The morning flew by relatively quickly, with only the usual disputes between ponies for her to deal with. At eleven-thirty, she closed court and walked towards the dining room for lunch.

Also around eleven-thirty, Twilight woke up. After nuzzling Artemis a couple of times with no response, she decided to let him sleep. She teleported out of the tight grip he had on her and over to his desk. After leaving him a note next to her saddlebags and the duplicates, she walked out of his room. Deciding to get a quick sandwich before going to the Archives, she headed to the dining room and met Celestia, who was already eating.

I was afraid of this. I’m nauseous again, just being around food. I must have caught a stomach bug or something. As soon as I’m done in the Archives, I’m going straight to the doctor. I still need to eat though. Twilight thought before asking Apple Crunch to bring her a lettuce and tomato sandwich.

As they ate their lunches, Twilight and Celestia told each other what they had planned for the afternoon. At noon, they both walked out and headed their separate ways.

At the entrance to the library, Twilight found Rose Petal waiting for her. “Welcome, Princess Twilight. Magic Scrolls found out that you were coming to the Archives from a visitor earlier this morning and asked me to wait for you. He says that he has something to talk to you about and seems rather upset.”

Twilight nodded “Let’s go deal with that before working on the star chart mystery.”

The two of them walked into the Archives section of the library to find Magic Scrolls, the Head Archivist, waiting for them. He was working on preserving what appeared to an ancient book and spoke before Twilight could say anything.

“How could you take all of our star charts without telling me?” he demanded, without looking at her “Nothing in these Archives is allowed to leave without my permission. Not only that, I have an ongoing project that I couldn’t complete because they are gone!”

Suddenly, he gulped as he finally looked up at her and saw that she was glaring at him, wings flared.

“First of all, you will not talk to me like that.” Twilight responded, still glaring at him “Second, I have permission from Celestia to have them in my possession and she is the one that wanted to keep the fact that I have them a secret. Whatever her reasons for the secrecy, I’m pretty sure her authority tops yours.”

Twilight took a deep breath and folded her wings. “Celestia was not aware of any project involving those charts and is not happy that somepony has begun one without informing her, or Artemis, first. She has asked me to figure out what is going on and why.”

Twilight gave Magic Scrolls a look “Are you the one that made the duplicates of two of the star charts? If so, why have you done this?”

“Of course, princess!” Magic Scrolls replied “I am creating duplicates so that the originals can be locked away for the purpose of making sure they are not damaged or destroyed as the public uses them. This is for the protection of the original star charts so I didn’t see any reason to inform Princess Celestia or Prince Artemis.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “You do realize that the night is Artemis’ domain, right? He takes that very seriously and is not happy that the charts of his stars were being copied without authorization from either Celestia or himself. As for Celestia, this is her castle, right? She wants to be aware of the major things that happen here. Duplicating these documents does count as something major because many of these charts are considered ancient and must be managed carefully.”

She shook her head “Magic Scrolls and Rose Petal, both of you are coming with me. Now.”

Rose Petal nodded “Of course, Princess”

Magic Scrolls stared at her “Princess, I’m busy! I have so much to do today and talking to you has already taken a lot of my time!”

Rose Petal’s eyes widened Bad move, boss. She thought, glancing over at Twilight.

Sure enough, Twilight was glaring at Magic Scrolls again. Without saying another word, she lit her horn and teleported the three of them to the throne room, right in front of Celestia.

Chapter 36

Celestia was waiting for Fire Fly to arrive with his class when she saw a sudden flash of light, right in front of her. There stood Twilight, Magic Scrolls and Rose Petal. Celestia was surprised to see how angry Twilight was but, before she could ask, Twilight walked forward and leaned up so that the two of them could touch horns.

As soon as their horn’s touched, Twilight shared the memory of what happened in the library and Archives. Celestia’s eyes immediately widened as Twilight turned to Magic Scrolls and Rose Petal. “Magic Scrolls, your reasoning for why the star charts should be duplicated is good. However, you went about it the incorrect way.”

“Princess Twilight, the Archives are mine to maintain! I don’t need permission to do anything with the items I take care of!”

Celestia spoke in a quiet, carefully controlled tone of voice. “Magic Scrolls, stop there. Twilight was right when she said that this entire castle is mine and I want to be aware of all of the major things that go on here. Twilight was also correct in saying that duplicating those charts is something major, due to their age. My brother takes his night sky very seriously and is not happy about his star charts being duplicated without his or my knowledge or consent. You do not have authorization to copy anything in the Archives. If you want to make duplicates of anything, you must ask me, or my brother, first. Is that clear?”

She turned to Twilight before Magic Scrolls could respond. “Thank you for solving this mystery so quickly, Twilight.” Celestia glanced at Rose Petal “However, I have a question. Why did you bring Rose Petal here? Has she done something wrong as well?”

Rose Petal’s widened as she waited nervously for Twilight’s response.

Twilight shook her head. “Not at all. I brought her here for a very different reason. Artemis told me about how she made the discovery and immediately took it to Night Court because it concerned his night sky. Last night, she told us about her moves yesterday to attempt to gather more information on the mystery. I am pleased that she took those actions. At the very least, I believe she deserves a commendation and at best, maybe a promotion. This is your jurisdiction, so I’ll let you decide. I just wanted to make sure that you knew about it.”

Rose Petal let out a sigh of relief. For a moment there, I thought she was mad at me. I’m not asking for a reward, I was just doing my job. I’m far happier that Princess Twilight is pleased with the way I handled the situation.

Celestia smiled “I will ask Artemis for his input, as well, before making my decision.”

Twilight smiled and turned to Rose Petal. “You can to return to the Archives and get back to work, or whatever else you had planned for today. Thank you, for catching this and for your help.”

That said, she began to walk towards the door.

“Twilight?” Celestia called to her “You’re not returning to Ponyville today, are you?” Artemis will not be happy if she’s not here when he wakes up.

Twilight paused at the door and looked back at Celestia. “No, I’m going to the doctor here in the castle. I think I’m coming down with a stomach bug or something and want to get it taken care of before it turns into something serious. I’ll see you at dinner.”

Celestia sighed in relief and nodded “Let me know how your doctor visit goes, I want to make sure you are alright. If you’re getting sick, it’s probably because all of the recent stress has taken its toll on you.” This is perfect! Go to the doctor, little sister! Stone Steps will almost certainly give you a pregnancy test!

Twilight nodded and walked out of the room.

Rose Petal bowed to Celestia before walking out of the room.

Magic Scroll looked upset “Since you want me to ask, princess, I have a question for you. I believe that the original star charts should be protected. To that end, I would like to create duplicates for the public to use while the originals are locked away. May I have permission to create duplicates of the star charts as soon as Princess Twilight returns them?”

Celestia gave him a look “No. If it is determined that duplicates are needed, Artemis or myself will take care of it at that time.”

She glanced up as Sapphire Wing came in with Fire Fly, his class, and the parents of all of the foals.

“You may leave now,” She told Magic Scrolls “There is a pressing matter that demands my attention.”

He bowed and left, looking highly offended.

Twilight walked into the hospital wing and was met by a nurse, a unicorn mare. “Good afternoon, Princess Twilight. Do you need something?”

Twilight nodded “I haven’t been feeling well the last couple of days and want to make sure I’m not coming down with something. If I am, I’d like to get it taken care of before it gets serious.”

“Of course, princess. My name is Ivy. Please follow me and I’ll get you settled into an exam room before I call the doctor.

Ivy brought Twilight into an exam room before leaving to fetch the doctor. Twilight looked around the room before laying on the examination table, knowing the doctor will want her to move up there sooner or later. She looked up as the door opened and Ivy walked in, followed by an earth pony stallion.

“Good afternoon, Princess Twilight. My name is Stone Steps. I am sorry to hear that you are not feeling well. Can you tell me what symptoms you have and how long you have been feeling like this?”

Twilight nodded “I started feeling this way yesterday, so there’s not much to say for symptoms. The main thing I’ve noticed so far is the nausea. It usually hits around mealtimes or whenever I’m around food.”

Stone Steps glanced over at Ivy to make sure she was writing this down before turning back to Twilight. “I’d like to get the obvious question out of the way, princess. Have you gone into heat yet?”

“No, I haven’t,” Twilight paused thoughtfully “I usually to go into heat . . . wait” Suddenly, her eyes got huge. “That was last week.”

“So you missed your heat cycle, princess?” Ivy asked

Twilight nodded

Stone Steps and Ivy glanced at each other and smiled. They both knew about her relationship with Artemis and thought they knew where this was going. “I’d like to draw some blood for a couple of different tests. The tests should give me a direction in which to go next.”

Twilight nodded and held out a hoof.

Ivy inserted a needle and drew a vial of blood. “We have to do the obvious pregnancy test, simply because you are a mare of foaling age. We are also going to check your white blood cell count to see if you are fighting an infection. Once we rule those two out, we can focus on other possibilities.”

Twilight nodded again and settled down to wait as they both left the room. We did have sex four times during my heat cycle and neither of us thought to use a contraception spell. Did Artemis get me pregnant?

A few minutes later, she looked up as Stone Steps and Ivy came back into the room and closed the door.

He looked at her and smiled “Well, princess, we know why you are feeling this way. The pregnancy test came back positive. Congratulations!”

W-what?! I’m Pregnant?! Twilight stared at Stone Steps for a moment before she was able to respond. “T-thank you. However, please don’t tell anyone yet.”

Ivy looked at her, confused “Why not, Princess? Everypony is going to figure it out soon enough.”

Twilight took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, and shook her head. “That’s not what I meant. I want to tell Artemis, Celestia, my family, Spike and my friends first, before the rest of Equestria finds out. I want them to hear this news from me, not some random pony. Just don’t tell anyone for a few days, that’s all.”

“That’s a wise plan, princess.” Stone Steps replied “Very well, we will keep it quiet until we hear that everypony else knows.”

“Thank you”

“If you don’t mind me asking, is Prince Artemis the father?” Ivy asked

Twilight glanced at her “Yes”

Ivy’s eyes lit up “That’s great news! I’m so happy you two got together, princess.”

Twilight smiled but, before she could respond, Stone Steps stepped forward.

“Princess, I would like to conduct a full physical examination on you today. Canterlot hasn’t been responsible for your medical care for almost four years now. If we are to track your pregnancy properly, we need to record your current condition.” He paused as he saw the look on her face. “Don’t worry, we will be working closely with the hospital in Ponyville. This way, wherever you are when you give birth, we both will know what’s going on.”

Twilight nodded “Good”

Stone Steps and Ivy smiled and began their examination.

In Artemis’ room, he was just waking up. He yawned and rolled over, noticing that Twilight wasn’t in bed with him. Looking around, he saw a note on his desk. After standing and stretching, he walked over to read it and found that she had woken several hours ago but decided to let him sleep. He smiled before placing the note back on his desk, next to her saddlebags. Opening one of the sides, he found that all of the star charts were still present and cast a barrier over his desk to make sure that they stayed put before walking out into the hall. Celestia said she was going to handle the issue with Fire Fly this afternoon. If he, his students, and their parents still here, I want to be a part of it. I want to know why anypony thinks it’s a good idea to scare foals like that.

He went to the throne room and stood in the doorway, watching as Celestia spoke to the foals for a moment before beginning to question a stallion that must have been Fire Fly.

Celestia looked at the foals. “Why don’t you go over to your parents for now? I need to talk to your teacher.” She waited until the foals joined their parents before looking at Fire Fly, a Pegasus stallion.

“Fire Fly, it has come to my attention that you are teaching your class about the creatures that inhabit the Everfree Forest. That can be a rather difficult topic to broach with foals. How do you do it?” Glancing over at the foals, she noticed that they were all shivering and huddling close to their parents.

Fire Fly cleared his throat “I use descriptions of the creature that we are going to focus on that particular day.”

Celestia nodded “Do you use anything else?”

Fire Fly started to sweat a little. “W-why do you ask, princess?”

“You should probably let me answer that one, sister.”

Everypony turned to see Artemis standing in the doorway. He looked around at everypony present as he walked into the room. However, before he got very far, there was a deafening “Prince Artemis!” as the foals ran over and jumped on him. He laughed as he fell to the floor and, deciding to stay there, got into a more comfortable position. Looking around, he noticed that the foals had all decided to snuggle close to him.

He turned his attention to Fire Fly. “Last night, every single one of these foals had a nightmare that was severe enough that I needed to intervene. When I asked what caused them to dream about being attacked by creatures in the Everfree Forest, they all had similar answers. The specific creature attacking them varied from foal to foal, but the source was always the same. Every foal told me that you have been telling stories in your class about what it would be like if they were attacked by these creatures.”

Celestia nodded to Artemis and turned to Fire Fly. “I would like you to explain why you think that scaring your students is an acceptable teaching method, because I certainly don’t.”

Fire Fly looked over to see that all of his students were, indeed, obviously scared and cuddling close to Prince Artemis for comfort. “I had been searching for a way to get them to understand that those creatures are dangerous, princess. After noticing that they seemed to enjoy scary stories, I thought it would be fun to incorporate that into our lessons.”

Mythic Blossom stepped forward “I can tell you that my daughter does not enjoy those stories. There have been many days that she has come home from school either scared or outright terrified. Last night was also the second time she had a nightmare severe enough that it required the intervention of Prince Artemis, because of these stories.” She paused, looking over at Marigold. “If we didn’t have Prince Artemis watching over our foals as they slept, they would be too afraid to go to sleep because of the nightmares they have as a result of these stories. We also wouldn’t have known why our foals are now terrified of the very place that they are supposed to feel safe and be focused on learning.”

Sapphire Wing nodded, stepping forward as well. “I am one of the ponies that help keep Equestria, our prince and princesses safe. Equally important is your job of taking care of, and teaching, the next generation of Equestria’s citizens. I have entrusted Cobalt to your care but this isn’t how I expected you to be treating my son.”

Celestia cleared her throat catching the attention of everypony present. “I am sending you for a month of training, Fire Fly. I understand that you are a good teacher, but I believe you need a refresher course on how to deal with foals.” She looked at the parents. “During that month, the foals will come to the castle for school. Tomorrow, they will be taught by the attending librarians.”

Mythic Blossom looked confused “What about the rest of the month, Princess Celestia? Do you have someone else in mind to teach our foals?”

Celestia nodded “I will need a couple of days to talk to her and have her clear her schedule but I believe the pony I have in mind is one that you will find satisfactory.”

Mythic Blossom was still confused “Who is the pony that you have in mind, princess?”

Celestia smiled “Princess Twilight. I plan to ask her to temporarily move back to Canterlot. There is nopony else that I trust to handle this.”

The parents all smiled but before they could say anything, the foals cheered.

Marigold looked up at Artemis, nuzzling him to get his attention. “Do we really get to learn from Princess Twilight?”

Artemis smiled and returned her nuzzle. “My sister hasn’t asked her yet, but I’m sure she will say yes.”

Twilight walked out of the hospital wing after her physical exam in shock. I can’t believe I’m pregnant. Artemis and I were going to wait a year before we even considered trying. Mom and Dad are going to be so mad at me. They gave Shiny and I tons of lectures about waiting until marriage when we were growing up.

Twilight sighed and stretched her wings. The doctor’s appointment really only took the last couple of hours, but it seemed like it went on forever. Stone Steps and Ivy were very thorough with the exam and had insisted on checking everything.

Twilight shook her head and decided to head to the throne room to see what Celestia was up to. She said something about a problem with a teacher during lunch. I wonder what the problem is. As she got closer, she heard several voices. Curious, she walked towards the door.

Marigold heard hoofsteps in the door and looked up as Twilight entered the throne room. Squealing in delight, she jumped up and ran to her. “Are you really going to teach us, Princess Twilight?”

Twilight looked up at Celestia, clearly confused. What in Equestria is this filly talking about?

Artemis laughed as he stood and walked over to Twilight, lowering his horn to hers. Everypony looked on as she closed her eyes and watched Artemis’s memories of last night’s nightmares and the day’s events play in her mind.

Twilight opened her eyes as Celestia walked over.

“I’m sorry, Twilight” she said, also laughing “I had planned to talk to you about this at dinner tonight. I just didn’t expect that somepony here would be so excited.” She bent down and nuzzled Marigold.

Twilight laughed as well, shaking her head. It may be better if I stay in Canterlot this month anyway. I’m sure that Stone Steps and Ivy will want to check on me often during the first month of the pregnancy. I’m not sure how Artemis will react but Celestia’s going to go nuts when she hears about this. “I will have to return to Ponyville this weekend to make sure that everything is prepared for my prolonged absence. As long as I am able to return there on the weekends to deal with any issues that arise, I don’t have any problem with this. I can be available to teach them starting Monday.”

She looked over at Fire Fly “I will need your lesson plans so that I know what you are teaching them and where you left off. Please bring them to Day Court tomorrow.” She paused, glancing at the foals “I have no problem teaching them about the other creatures that live in the Everfree Forest, but I have a very different idea of how to do it.”

Looking down at Marigold, Twilight smiled “No, it won’t be scary at all.”

Marigold smiled back up at her while the other foals cheered.

Twilight, Celestia and Artemis looked up as Sapphire Wing and Mythic Blossom walked over.

“You’re right, Princess Celestia.” Mythic Blossom said, smiling “I do find your choice of a temporary teacher for my daughter satisfactory.”

Sapphire Wing nodded “As do I, princess. I know my son will be in good hooves.”

The rest of the parents quickly agreed, some of them wishing that Twilight would replace Fire Fly altogether. Though, they were willing to wait a while before bringing that up.

Celestia smiled “Good. Why don’t you take your foals and head home early today? Class starts at nine in the morning. Please make sure you are in the library at that time.”

Everyone nodded and left to relax a bit.

Twilight turned to Celestia “Can you ask Cadance, Shining Armor and my parents to come here for dinner? I want to see them.”

Celestia smiled and nodded before summoning a scroll, writing a letter and sending it to Cadance. The reply came quickly and was short, only saying that they were on their way. She laughed “They must want to see you too, Twilight.”

Twilight laughed as she led the way to the dining room.

While they waited, Twilight told Artemis about what she had discovered about the star charts.

He shook his head “I’m surprised that you were able to figure it out so quickly.”

Twilight laughed “It wasn’t hard when Magic Scrolls began complaining as soon as I walked into the Archives.”

Celestia laughed as well and looked at Twilight “What about the rest of your day?”

Twilight cut her off, before she could say anything else. “That’s another reason I wanted everyone to come to dinner.”

Artemis glanced at her “Is everything alright?”

Twilight looked worried but nodded “I discovered something else today but I want to tell everyone about it at once, to avoid having to repeat myself.”

Fifteen minutes later, Cadance, Shining Armor, Twilight Velvet, Night Light, Midnight Fang, Steel Night and Silver Shadow walked into the dining room.

Artemis looked at Silver Shadow in surprise. “Is everything alright?”

Silver Shadow nodded “Of course, my prince. I heard that Princess Twilight has returned to Canterlot.”

“Ah” Artemis replied “You wanted to say hello.”

Silver Shadow nodded but before he could say anything else, he was interrupted by Celestia.

“Twilight, how did your doctor’s appointment go?” she asked I just want to know if she’s pregnant! The wait is driving me crazy!

Artemis looked between Celestia and Twilight a few times, before settling his gaze on Twilight. “Doctor’s appointment? Is something wrong? You didn’t say anything about being hurt or sick.”

Twilight shook her head “I haven’t been feeling well the last couple of days, but I just thought I was coming down with a stomach bug or something. That’s why I didn’t say anything to anypony. Still, I decided to go to the doctor after I was done in the Archives, just to be on the safe side.”

She looked up, clearly worried “As I answered the doctor’s questions, I realized something important. I was supposed to go into heat last week and didn’t.”

“Are you saying that you no longer go into heat?” Cadance asked “If so, that’s not a problem. I know a spell that can get you restarted.”

Twilight shook her head “That’s not it. It turns out that I didn’t go into heat because of something that happened during your vacation, Artemis.”

“What was that?” he asked

“We didn’t use protection or a contraception spell . . .” She explained, blushing as she looked up at him.

He was about to ask her to elaborate but paused as he suddenly understood what she meant. “Y-you mean . . .?” he asked, eyes going wide.

She nodded and took a deep breath. “I’m pregnant”

Everypony in the room was silent for about a minute before the dining room erupted with cheers.

“Congratulations!!!” Celestia shouted, laughing. Yes! I knew it!

“Yes! I’m gonna be an Uncle!!!” Shining Armor exclaimed

“Yeah, and I’m gonna be an Aunt!” Cadance squealed “Ooh, and Flurry’s gonna get a cousin!”

“Yes!” Night Light pumped his hoof “We’re getting another grandfoal!”

Twilight Velvet couldn’t even speak, she just kept giggling in delight.

“This is great news!” Celestia exclaimed before she paused, looking at Twilight. “Why are you worried?”

Twilight stared at her “We’ve only been dating for two weeks!”

Twilight was startled as her mother hugged her. “You’re right, honey. Ordinarily, it would be way too early in your relationship for this, so I can see why you’re worried. However, Artemis was afraid he was going to be sent back to the moon and you were afraid that you were going to be forced to banish the pony you love. It was clear that the two of you were terrified, especially when the trial date was suddenly thrust on you. You were also afraid that you were going to lose him in that attack.” She paused to catch her breath. “I completely understand the two of you taking things a bit faster than you normally would have.”

Twilight stared at Velvet. W-what? I was certain that Mom and Dad would practically disown me for this! It goes against everything they taught me growing up!

She heard a noise and felt the table move as Artemis bumped into it. She turned towards him and just stared as Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang temporarily abandoned all notion of respect and propriety. They were thumping Artemis on the back as they congratulated him.

Thankfully, they were much gentler with her. The three of them bowed and spoke as one “Congratulations, Princess!” as they pushed Artemis towards her.

He managed to right himself, just in time, and caught her in a hug instead of crashing into her. “It’s alright, Twilight. You don’t have to worry.” He whispered, nuzzling her “We’re just getting an earlier start on our family than we planned.”

“B-but what will everypony else think?” she asked, still worried “We’re royalty, what if ponies get mad because we’re moving so fast?”

“If anypony causes any problems or even dares to attempt to harm you, my princess,” started Midnight Fang “We will deal with them.” Silver Shadow and Steel Night nodded

Shining Armor stepped forward, Big Brother Protector Mode suddenly in full force. “As will I, little sis.”

Celestia and Cadance glanced at each other and stepped forward together. “Us as well, Twilight”

Cadance’s eyes flashed “Nopony messes with our Little Sister, Twilight. You’ll be just fine.”

Twilight just stared at everyone as Artemis hugged her tighter.

“If, by some miracle, anypony manages to get through Shining Armor, Celestia, Cadance, our guards, your friends and probably most of Ponyville, they still have to get past me.” He promised

“And ME”

Everypony’s eyes widened as they heard Night chime in.

Velvet and Night Light laughed “I think,” she said, as she finally stopped and caught her breath “you’re pretty well protected, Twilight. You don’t have to worry.”

Twilight sighed in relief and finally relaxed against Artemis. She was about to ask when dinner was going to be ready, when her stomach asked the question for her. Eyes wide, she stared at it. “That’s louder than usual . . .”

Everypony else in the room burst into laughter.

“We’d better get that little one some food!”

Twilight turned as Apple Crunch walked up to her with a small salad on his back “This should tide you over while we finish getting dinner ready, princess. We can’t have you going hungry now, can we?”

Twilight shook her head “It’s OK, I’ll wait until dinner is ready.”

The answer to that came from everyone else in the room.

“No, you won’t”

Artemis levitated the salad to a spot on the table in front of Twilight.

She looked around as everypony stared at her and realized that they weren’t going to move or say anything until she started to eat. Sighing, she did just that. After a couple of bites, she suddenly realized just how hungry she was and practically inhaled the rest of her salad. She had been so worried about how they would take the news that, now that she knew they weren’t upset with her, she was both relieved and hungry.

As she finished, Artemis pulled her in for another tight hug. Twilight looked around the room to find them all smiling at her.

“Get used to it, Twily.” Cadance shook her head with a smile “They did the same thing to me when I was pregnant with Flurry Heart.”

“Great” She sighed before looking up at Artemis “We can’t tell the nobles, or anypony else, yet.”

“Why not?” he asked

“I wanted you guys to be the first to know, so I haven’t told the girls or Spike.” She paused and laughed “They’d kill me if I told the nobles before letting them know about this.”

Everypony in the room burst out laughing again.

“I bet they would!” said Celestia, writing a quick letter and sending it to Spike. “You’re spending the night here, Little Sister. I’ll send a chariot to get them tomorrow morning. We’ll tell them before we make the announcement in Day Court.”

“Then,” Artemis added “we’re both going to bed. I don’t care if Pinkie sets up a party or not but-”

“She probably will!” Cadance interrupted, laughing

“We’re going to need to get some sleep so we can make the announcement in Night Court too.” Artemis finished. I also need to tell the rest of my Night Guards and rearrange the guard schedule. She may not be too happy about it, but I’m making sure she has guards with her any time she’s not with me or Celestia. Or Shining Armor and Cadance, while they’re here.

His thoughts were interrupted by Twilight nuzzling him. He looked around to find everypony staring at him.

“Are you OK, Uncle?” asked Cadance

Artemis nodded “I’m sorry, I was just thinking about how the schedule for my guards will have to be rearranged.”

Twilight tilted her head “How come?”

Artemis looked at her “Some of them will be guarding you, now.”

“What? Why?! I don’t need guards!”

He shook his head “You will have them, anyway.” He put a hoof on her muzzle as she looked like she was going to protest. “Twilight, please understand. A couple of weeks ago, a group of ponies tried to have me banished again. Another pony actually tried to kill me. There are probably more ponies out there that want me gone. As soon as they find out that you are carrying my foal, they will likely target you as well.” He paused to nuzzle her. “I will not allow you to be harmed.”

Shining Armor, looking very serious, spoke up. “Twily, I know you like your independence, but Artemis is right. Whether you want them or not, you need guards.”

“But-!”

“No buts, Twilight” interrupted Celestia “Our brothers are right.” That sounded weirder than I thought it would. “However, it’s not like you need them all of the time. You’ll only need them when you are not with Artemis, Cadance, your brother or myself.” She smiled “And I have a feeling that my brother will be spending a lot of time with you.”

“I can take care of myself! You should know, you taught me! Besides, how many enemies have the girls and I defeated?” Twilight continued, determined to make her point heard. “I understand having them around when I’m with Artemis, especially after what happened a couple of weeks ago, but nopony has tried to hurt me.”

“I did try to kill you when we first met . . .”

“That’s not helping, Night!”

Everypony, except Twilight, laughed.

“I’m sorry, Twilight, but I agree with the others. It’s one thing to be able to protect yourself. I, of all ponies, know you are quite capable of that. However, it’s an entirely different situation, now that you are pregnant.”

Twilight huffed and looked down at the floor “I don’t have a choice in this, do I?”

“Not really” answered Cadance “But this is not meant as a punishment. It’s meant to keep you, and your unborn foal, safe.”

Twilight glared at her “I practically grew up in this castle. So, I know how the Day Guards treat Celestia. They act as if she’s made of glass and insist on doing practically everything for her. I DO NOT want to live like that! I’m a pony, not a glass figure!”

Everypony just looked at her for a moment before Celestia sighed.

“That’s a fair point, Twilight. They’ve been treating me that way for centuries, so I’m used to it. You, however, are used to handling everything, including your own protection, for yourself. Additionally, as the Element of Magic, you are usually the one protecting others. I understand why you are reacting like this.”

Twilight thought for a moment and sighed in resignation. “Fine. If Artemis’ Night Guards continue treating me as they have been, I will allow them to protect me as they do him. However, the instant they start treating me like I should be in a display case, I’m teleporting somewhere else.” She stared at Artemis, daring him to disagree. “Pregnant or not, I’m still a pony and I expect to be treated like one.”

“Another thing, if the Elements of Harmony are needed, I’m joining the fight. I will be careful, but I refuse to allow Equestria to fall because you are too afraid to allow me to do what only I can.”

Artemis smiled and nodded “Fair enough. I will see to it that my guards understand your conditions and why you have made them.”

Everypony else in the room sighed in relief, glad that was over.

Chapter 37

Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night watched Twilight from across the room. They did not notice Artemis stand and walk over.

“Well,” Silver Shadow said thoughtfully “if our princess was protected like the Day Guards protect Princess Celestia, she wouldn’t have been able to save Prince Artemis a couple of weeks ago. In order to make sure she can function properly, we need to come up with a different approach to guarding her.”

Midnight Fang looked at his boss. “She just said that she will allow us to guard her as long as we don’t change the way we treat her. Why should we come up with a new approach?”

Steel Night nodded “I agree with Midnight, Sir. For now, I think the best thing we can do is stay with her. Any situation that comes up, can be dealt with as it arrives. We should also ask her before doing anything for her, except for guarding her. That way, she will feel a bit more in control.”

“Very Good”

The three guards jumped and turned to see Artemis standing there.

“That is exactly what she wants.” Artemis told them “I’m glad you understand. Midnight Fang and Steel Night, both of you are reassigned to protect Twilight when she is not with Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor or myself, effective immediately. If she is with one of those I just named, protecting her will not be necessary. You both still take orders from Silver Shadow for Night Guard training and other matters. However, if you are actively guarding her, you follow her orders.”

“The two of you are part of half a dozen that I am assigning specifically to guard her. The others will be responsible for guarding her at night. However, the two of you will be with her during the day, no matter where she goes. She knows both of you, so I doubt she will object.” He paused, making sure he had their attention “I am trusting you with her safety when I can’t be there. Do not allow anything to harm her!”

They both nodded but, before they could respond, they saw her stand and head towards them.

Artemis smiled as Twilight joined them.

Midnight Fang looked at Artemis “My prince, if we are to protect Princess Twilight, we may be in Ponyville for extended periods of time. How will we receive our orders and what about living situations?”

Twilight smiled “I can answer both of those questions. For at least the next month or so, I’ll actually be here in Canterlot during the week and in Ponyville on the weekends, starting this weekend. As for a living situation when we are in Ponyville, you will be provided rooms in my castle. I will not make you find a place to stay in town. As for communication, there are three ways to do that. The first, and slowest, method is regular mail. The second is Spike, my assistant and the dragon who lives with me. He can send letters to, and receive letters from, Artemis. The third way is even more direct and probably the preferred method. I know a mail spell, so I can communicate with Artemis, sending and receiving the orders myself.”

She paused

“If any of you have families that you would like to come with you, let me know. There is plenty of room in my castle and I have no problem with some extra visitors. I will not separate ponies from their families because they are seeing to my safety.”

She looked at Steel Night “I’m not going to demand that you move your family, but I expect Cherry Blossom and Moonlight Shadow to visit.” She smiled as his eyes lit up and he nodded.

Before anything else could be said, Shining Armor walked up. “Before either of you goes anywhere, I’m testing you and putting you through a quick training exercise this weekend.” He looked at Artemis “It’s not that I don’t trust you, or how you train your guards, Artemis. It’s just that, they are going to be protecting my little sister. I want to know for myself, that they are well trained.”

Artemis nodded “I expected no less from you, Shining Armor. I will ensure that Twilight stays with me while in Ponyville, so you won’t have to worry for her safety. Besides, I’m certain that the girls will be spending a lot of time with us this weekend, especially once we tell them the news tomorrow. They are rather protective over her as well.”

“Good” Shining Armor said

In Ponyville, Spike and the girls were eating dinner in Sugarcube Corner. The conversation stopped when Spike burped up the letter from Celestia. He opened and read it two, then three, times. It was obvious to the girls that he was confused.

“Spike?” asked Applejack “What’s Princess Celestia say?”

“She’s sending a chariot to bring us to Canterlot tomorrow morning. It will be here at seven and we have to go, no exceptions. She doesn’t say why, just that there is nothing wrong and we will receive the explanation when we get there.”

“You’re right, that is strange” Rarity commented “Regardless, we should go to bed early tonight and meet in front of Twilight’s castle in the morning.”

The girls and Spike nodded and walked out of the bakery. Spike headed to Town Hall to tell Mayor Mare while the others went home to get some sleep.

In Canterlot, everypony had finished dinner. Most of the Royal Family were going to bed in rooms provided for them in the castle. Twilight and Artemis, however, were headed to the throne room for Night court, followed by a very happy Steel Night and Midnight Fang.

I can’t wait to tell Cherry Blossom the news. Steel Night thought with a smile. She is going to be so happy when she hears about this!

As they got closer, several voices could be heard coming from inside the room. Shaking his head, Artemis opened the door before he and Twilight walked into the room.

They were met with cheers.

Confused, Artemis and Twilight stopped for a moment before they walked to the throne and sat in front of it.

Artemis saw Mythic Blossom standing off to the side talking to Ice Blossom. As he looked at them, Mythic Blossom smiled at him.

He shook his head with a smile of his own, as he suddenly understood. “You told them about the events of last night and today, didn’t you, Mythic Blossom?” he asked

“Of course I did!” she replied “I know you said that you prefer to work in the background, your highness, but this kind of thing really needs to be told.”

Ice Blossom smiled “I agree, Prince Artemis. The citizens of Equestria need to know what you do to help and protect our foals.” She turned to Twilight “Is it true that you are going to be taking over the teaching of the foals in Fire Fly’s class, Princess Twilight?”

Twilight nodded “I will be teaching them during the month that Celestia is sending Fire Fly through a refresher course on how to deal with foals, starting Monday. What happens after that is up to Celestia and remains to be seen. However, this means that I will be on a day schedule and not present in Night Court very often.”

Mythic Blossom shook her head “I would far rather you teach my daughter than be here in court, princess. You are going to be affecting the future of those foals, and Equestria, by making sure that they are taught properly, even if you’re only doing it temporarily.”

She shook her head again, smiling “My daughter has been practically bouncing around the house in excitement, it was almost impossible to get her to go to sleep. She can’t wait for Monday.” She paused “I hope you can deal with hyper foals, princess.”

Twilight smirked “Have you met Pinkie Pie? She’s worse than any hyper foal.”

The entire throne room erupted with laughter.

Ice Blossom stepped forward as it calmed down. “Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight, there are no new petitions tonight. The ponies here all wanted to confirm what they had heard about the events of last night and today as well as the fact that you, princess, will be personally teaching our foals. We have done the latter. Now, I would like to ask about the former.”

She turned to Artemis “We have heard about the events of last night from Mythic Blossom, but are aware that there is much more to the story. Prince Artemis, can you please tell us about what our foals have been going through?”

Artemis did better than that. He lit his horn, created a large sphere of dark blue magic in the center of the room and replayed the events of the previous night.

He started with Marigold’s nightmare before moving on to those of her classmates. Artemis had to stop playing the memory as her nightmare came to an end because he heard Mythic Blossom gasp. “I tried asking about it her but she was too afraid to tell me. That’s what happened in her nightmare?!”

Artemis nodded “That’s why I brought you into her dream. There were several other foals also having nightmares, so I couldn’t stay with her but I didn’t want her to be alone.”

She couldn’t even say anything, so she just stared at him.

He played the rest of it, showing each foal’s nightmare, and ending with how he entered Celestia’s dream and informed her of his discovery, along with her reaction.

As the memory ended, everypony just stared at him for several minutes.

“Prince Artemis?” Ice Blossom asked, finally recovering “Why were you so tired at the end of the night? It looked like you were exhausted as you informed Princess Celestia. She actually had to catch you before you fell over at the end of it.”

“I was exhausted” replied Artemis “Moving through the dream realm requires magic, but I’ve been doing that for centuries so I’m used to it. However, affecting dreams, or merging them, requires far more. After over a dozen nightmares where I was required to intervene in such a forceful manner, I was nearly out of magic by the end of the night. I knew that I was going to need to sleep for much of the day, but decided that my sister had to be informed immediately. That is why I entered her dream.”

“Wow” Ice Blossom said, looking up at him “This is not just a problem in the dream realm. All of those foals were having nightmares because of events going on in the waking world. If you weren’t taking care of our foals as they sleep, it is quite possible that this entire situation would have never been discovered and we wouldn’t have known why the foals are afraid to go to school.”

Mythic Blossom shook her head “You call your dream walking “working in the background”, Prince Artemis? I certainly don’t.”

Artemis shrugged “Compared to the work that my sister does, it is in the background. Most ponies don’t even know that I do it.”

Ice Blossom was about to respond before she saw that many ponies were beginning to yawn. “I think it’s time to call it a night. Prince Artemis, Princess Twilight, have a good day.”

Twilight nodded and stood “One last thing. Tonight, Artemis and I will be making an important announcement. We can’t tell you about it now, but I would like you to be here tonight.”

Ice Blossom nodded “Of course, princess. We’ll see you tonight.”

Everypony filed out of the throne room.

Artemis, Twilight, Steel Night and Midnight Fang headed to Artemis’ tower.

Once inside Artemis’ room, Artemis and Twilight walked over to the bed, lay down and cuddled together. Twilight was tired from the stress and the length of her day. As a result, she fell asleep almost immediately, snuggled close to his side.

Artemis, however, did not. As he looked at her, he finally allowed himself to reflect on what she had revealed before dinner. He moved a hoof gently over Twilight’s stomach, causing her to stretch a little and let out a soft sigh. S-she’s really carrying my foal, isn’t she?

The more he thought about it, the more nervous he became. Trying to calm himself, he decided to enter the dream realm a little early tonight. In the dream realm, he did find a few foals that were having nightmares. However, these were the usual nightmares. A couple of small foals were afraid of the dark and one young colt was dreaming that he’d have to go through his entire life with no Cutie Mark. Artemis did what he could for each foal before giving them happier dreams.

He opened his eyes, chuckling lightly. He had paid special attention to the students in Fire Fly’s class and found that many of them were having dreams about Twilight teaching them.

Knowing he had to be up for at least part of Day Court, he pulled Twilight close and closed his eyes.

Opening his eyes, he saw that he had not actually fallen asleep, but was in the dream realm again. Looking around, he saw Twilight curled up on the ground a few feet away. Walking over, he saw that she was asleep. Not wanting to wake her, he lay down and curled himself around her.

There was a flash of magic, causing Artemis to look up. He saw Night standing in front of him but, before he could say anything, Night lay down and looked at him.

“What’s wrong, Artemis?” Night asked, speaking quietly, trying not to wake Twilight

Artemis shook his head

“Don’t tell me that it’s nothing. You seem to have forgotten that I know you as well as you know yourself, sometimes better.” He paused, looking at Twilight “You are worried about Twilight’s pregnancy.”

Artemis sighed and nodded, nuzzling her gently “How can I not? There are several reasons for me to be worried.”

“Such as?”

“We’ve only been courting for two weeks. This is way too fast, even by modern standards. Our families may have accepted this,” he paused and chuckled softly “hay, they’re actually happy about it! The rest of Equestria probably won’t be as happy or accepting.”

He sobered “Then there is what happened two weeks ago. A pony tried to, and nearly did, kill me. As soon as they find out that she is carrying my foal, she may be their next target.” He glanced up at Night “There are other reasons, but those two are the main ones.”

“Given the reaction that the citizens have had to the two of you over the last couple of weeks, I don’t think the first one will be a problem. Yes, the two of you have moved a bit faster than anyone, other than Celestia, may have liked. However, I believe that most of Equestria will be very happy about the announcement tomorrow.” He looked at Artemis

“As for anyone attacking Twilight, she has enough ponies guarding her that there shouldn’t be much to worry about.” He shook his head “Besides, if anyone is foolish enough to attempt to harm her . . . How do you think Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor, and the other Elements Bearers will react? That’s not even including what you and I will do about it. Earlier, I said that I will help protect her and I meant it.”

“More importantly, she is obviously nervous herself and will be looking to you for comfort. You must be there as a source of strength for her.” He paused, looking at them both. “You will likely be having a big day and night. Get some sleep, Artemis.”

Artemis reluctantly nodded and closed his eyes. Within a minute, he was asleep.

Night looked at them for a moment before suddenly sensing somepony else’s presence. Lighting his horn, he put a quick barrier over Artemis and Twilight. That done, he looked around for a couple of minutes before Celestia stepped out of the shadows nearby. Sighing in relief, Night let his magic, and the barrier, fade and waited to see what she wanted. I know Artemis and myself are the only two with the dream walking ability. Clearly, Celestia has developed a spell that does something similar. I wonder why she’s here. He was torn from his thoughts as he heard Celestia speaking softly.

“I thought he would be nervous tonight and it seems I was right. I’m glad I saw this, it calms my nerves a little about Night’s presence in my brother.” She said quietly, not knowing he could hear her. She shook her head “Artemis once said that Night was acting like a protective older brother now. At the time, I thought that was a bit of a stretch but this seems to confirm it. Still, it will be awhile before I feel comfortable enough to talk to Night myself.” She glanced up to see Night watching her and nodded to him before vanishing.

Night just stared at the space Celestia had occupied for a long moment. Well, that was unusual. I don’t think I’m going to tell Artemis about this, though. He’s finally reconnecting with his sister and I don’t want to jeopardize that by making him suspicious.

Artemis woke to the pull of the moon and lit his horn, lowering it and the stars. He then looked down at Twilight and decided to wake her a little early so that they could take a bath.

He nuzzled her and smiled as she turned her face into his shoulder. He heard her mumble something and leaned closer.

“Five more minutes, Mom.”

He stared at her for a moment before he burst out laughing.

Twilight lifted her head to see Artemis laughing rather hard. She was about to ask before she realized what she had just said and turned bright red.

He nuzzled her again, still laughing “Twilight, this time next year, our foal may be saying that to you.”

She stared at him as two of those words echoed in her head. Our foal. That’s right, I’m pregnant. And Celestia wants to make the announcement to Equestria today. She shuddered and cuddled close to Artemis.

He noticed this and pulled her into a hug. You were right, Night, she is nervous.

I knew she would be. He replied. Now go take care of your mare.

Artemis nodded “Come on, Twilight, let’s take a bath. I think that will calm us both. Then, we can go eat breakfast.”

Twilight nodded “A bath sounds nice, but I’m too nervous to eat.”

Artemis looked at her I’m not letting her skip meals. “Maybe the bath will calm you.” He said, before he suddenly laughed, causing her to look up at him. “Besides, I don’t even want to think about what Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor will do if they find you not eating.”

Twilight stared at him for a moment before laughing as well. “If I know Cadance, she’ll try to feed me.” She shook her head, still laughing “No thanks, I’ll eat on my own.”

He nodded Good, I’m glad that worked.

They both stood and walked into the bathroom to take a quick bath. Roughly twenty minutes later, they walked out and into the hall.

Midnight Fang and Steel Night looked up “Good Morning, Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight.”

“Good morning” They both replied as they walked towards the dining room.

In the dining room, Twilight was surprised to find her parents, Celestia, Shining Armor and Cadance. Also present were Spike, Mayor Mare and the girls.

As they walked in, Celestia looked up, just finishing the explanation of what had happened with Fire Fly and the foals and what she planned to do about it.

Mayor Mare smiled at Twilight “Good morning, Princess Twilight. I think it is a good idea for you to be the one teaching those foals, I know you will do a good job. I will make the necessary preparations in Ponyville. You’re right, as long as you are able to be in Ponyville on the weekends, everything will be fine. I’ll move our meetings to Saturday afternoons and will inform you of the events of each week.”

Twilight smiled and nodded “Thank you”

Then, she looked at Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor and her parents. They all shook their heads. “No, Twilight,” Celestia said “we did not tell them the big news. I know you want to tell them yourself.” She paused and laughed “However, if you don’t tell them soon, I think Cadance may spill the beans.”

Twilight looked at Cadance to find her giggling giddily.

Twilight took a deep breath and turned to the girls, Mayor Mare and Spike. “I went to the doctor yesterday afternoon because I haven’t been feeling well for the last couple of days.” She paused, making sure that the girls, Mayor Mare and Spike were all looking at her. “I’m pregnant.”

“We are making the announcement in Day Court after breakfast. The reason Celestia insisted that all of you come here this morning is that I wanted to let you know before we tell the rest of Equestria and I wanted to tell you myself.” She continued before she held her breath, waiting for their reaction.

There was a moment of silence before, suddenly, Twilight found herself at the bottom of a pony pile. The girls and Spike had tackled her in a group hug. They were all squealing in delight and laughing.

As they finally allowed Twilight to stand, Spike hopped onto her back and gave her another hug. “When am I getting my new little brother or sister?”

Twilight laughed and nuzzled him “I just found out yesterday, Spike. Probably between ten and a half and eleven months.”

Rarity squealed again “I’m going to start on the blankets and clothes as soon as I get back! Ten months is barely enough time to make everything!”

Applejack grinned “You’re both coming to Ponyville tomorrow, right?” she waited for Twilight to nod “You’ll have some apple fritters and apple pie waiting for you. Ah’m going to make sure that you’re well fed, Twi.”

Rainbow smiled “I’m going to talk to the doctor in Cloudsdale for flight exercises for pregnant mares and change your training routine, Twi. We still need to make sure you get enough exercise.”

Pinkie bounced in place “Baby Party Tomorrow Night! There will be a special menu for you, Twilight, that’s low on sugar. I’ll even make you some special cookies!”

Fluttershy smiled “I’m going to train my songbirds to sing for you to help you calm down on the weekends. Teaching can be a stressful job and you need to be as stress free as possible.”

Mayor Mare smiled “Congratulations, Princess Twilight! I assume that Prince Artemis is the father?” She paused until she saw Artemis nod “Congratulations, Prince Artemis! The citizens of Ponyville are going to be so happy to hear this!”

Artemis and Twilight glanced at each other before Rarity spoke up. “I know you are going to say something about the short period of time that you have been dating but, frankly Darlings, we don’t care. We are so happy for you both!”

Celestia looked at the clock before gesturing for Apple Crunch to come in with breakfast for Artemis and Twilight. After they both finished eating, everypony stood and walked to the throne room.

As usual, the throne room was packed.

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Cadance walked up to the throne. Celestia sat in front of it with Cadance on one side and Twilight on the other, with Artemis sitting on Twilight’s other side. Shining Armor, Twilight Velvet, Night Light, Mayor Mare, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rarity, Rainbow and Spike stood not far off to the side. In front of the four Alicorns, stood four guards. Two Day Guards on one side, Midnight Fang and Steel Night on the other.

The ponies present stared in surprise, not expecting to see all four Alicorns present and holding a joint court. They knew something special must be going on.

With so many ponies present, nopony noticed that one of them was glaring at Artemis and Twilight. They won’t like my petition, but it is crucial that it is accepted. The unicorn mare thought. This is for the safety of Equestria.

Celestia cleared her throat, catching the attention of the ponies in the room. “I’m sure you are wondering why the four of us are all present today.”

Everypony nodded

Celestia smiled “There are two announcements that we need to make.”

Arctic Breeze stepped forward “Princess Celestia, does one of them have to do with what Prince Artemis discovered about the way that a teacher, Fire Fly, has been teaching our foals?”

Celestia looked at him “Yes. However, before I explain further, there is something I need to take care of.”

Celestia looked at Fire Fly. “Fire Fly, you were asked to bring your lesson plans to court today. Do you have them?”

Fire Fly nodded and stepped forward, opening a pair of saddlebags and pulling out a thick stack of paper. Sapphire Wing stepped forward and took the plans before giving them to Celestia. She set them on the throne behind her. “Thank you, this will help make sure that the education of your students stays on track.”

“Princess Celestia?” Arctic Breeze asked, gaining everypony’s attention “What has happened to our foals?”

Artemis cleared his throat “It may be best if I explain the situation.”

Arctic Breeze nodded and turned to him, waiting for him to continue.

“As Prince of the Night, one of my abilities, aside from taking care of the moon and night sky, is dream walking. I can enter the dreams of sleeping ponies and affect them. However, I only do this when ponies are having nightmares and, except for Twilight and my sister, only enter the dreams of foals.”

“When an adult has a problem and needs help, they come to my sister’s court. However, foals can’t do that. Instead, they receive help from me in their dreams. I stop any nightmares that they may have and help them work on the fears that cause them to have the nightmares in the first place.”

“Two nights ago, I found that several foals, over a dozen, were all having severe nightmares. These foals all had two things in common. First, all of them are students in Fire Fly’s class. Second, each of them was dreaming of being attacked by creatures that live in the Everfree Forest. The reason for these nightmares, I soon discovered, was that their teacher has been telling them stories about what it would be like if they were attacked by these creatures.”

There was a collective gasp from everyone in the room.

“For each foal, I stopped the nightmare, changed their dream to something more pleasant and brought one of their parents into their dream for the rest of the night.” He paused “The education of foals, as you know, falls under my sister’s guidance. Naturally, my next move was to inform her of the situation.”

Celestia nodded and continued the explanation. “I had my guards bring Fire Fly, his students, and their parents to the castle yesterday afternoon and talked to him about this myself. I believe that he is in need of, not punishment, but further training. As such, I am sending him for a month of training on the proper way to deal with foals.”

Arctic Breeze stared “Incredible. Your highnesses, I am very glad that this was discovered. Thank you for taking such good care of our foals, Prince Artemis.”

The rest of the ponies present, except for that one mare, quickly agreed.

Arctic Breeze tilted his head thoughtfully “Your highnesses, I do have one question. If you are sending Fire Fly to further training, who will be teaching our foals?”

Twilight turned to him “Celestia has asked me to temporarily move back to Canterlot for the month that Fire Fly will be gone. I will be teaching the foals, here in the castle, starting Monday.”

Everypony in the room, except the unicorn mare, cheered and stomped their hooves in approval of that announcement.

Arctic Breeze smiled at her “I am glad to hear that, Princess Twilight.”

Arctic Breeze turned to Celestia “I understand that there is one more announcement that you wish to make, Princess Celestia. However, one of the ponies present has come with a petition that she claims is both urgent and for the safety of Equestria, so it actually works out well that all four of you are here right now. Is it alright if she presents it to the court before the second announcement?”

Celestia nodded, curious and concerned, and watched as a unicorn mare stepped forward. Something about this mare is familiar. “I was unaware on anything urgent, other than what was mentioned earlier in court. What is your name?”

“My name is Dahlia, princess.”

That name set off alarm bells for Celestia. “I’ve heard your name before. If I recall correctly, you are the wife of Marble Bolt, one of Blueblood’s conspirators.”

“That is correct, Princess Celestia. You have imprisoned my husband, simply because he was trying to keep Equestria safe.” She glared a Twilight and Artemis “I recently went to visit my husband and Prince Blueblood in the Royal Dungeons. We have come up with a petition that we believe is a compromise.” She pulled out a scroll and read from it. “We will allow Prince Artemis to remain in Equestria and in his role as Prince of Equestria, but only on two conditions. The first, is that Princess Twilight must remain close to him. She has already proven that she can subdue his Nightmare form if he loses control. The second is that he is not allowed to reproduce. We can’t risk his Nightmare form being passed along to a foal that cannot control it.”

She stopped as she saw that all four Alicorns were now standing and glaring at her. However, it was Twilight that responded.

“This petition is denied, for many reasons. I have no problem with the first condition. However, as far as the second is concerned, you are too late.”

She looked around at everypony in the throne room. “The second announcement that Celestia spoke of is this: I am pregnant.”

Before anyone could respond, Artemis spoke up. “The foal she is carrying is mine.”

A sudden shout caused everyone to turn their attention back to Dahlia. “I will not allow the Nightmare to be passed onto another generation!”

With surprising speed, she lit her horn and launched an attack directly at, not Artemis, but Twilight.

Chapter 38

Twilight’s eyes widened as she saw Dahlia’s attack head directly for her. Suddenly, instincts that she didn’t know she had kicked in. She spread her wings, wrapped them around her barrel and dropped to the floor, curling into a little ball.

Artemis instantly put himself between the attack and Twilight, also dropping to the floor, curling himself around her and spreading a wing over her head before lighting his horn. Suddenly, there was also a midnight blue barrier around Twilight. An extremely bright flash of light lit up the entire throne room as he panicked and poured far more magic into his spell than it required.

A split second before the attack hit, a black dome appeared over them both. Dahlia’s attack bounced harmlessly off of it. Celestia lit her horn and, flash of sunlight later, the attack was gone.

Dahlia gasped in surprise as she found herself caught in a field of magenta magic and levitated into the air. She looked to down to see that Prince Shining Armor’s horn was glowing as he glared at her. She looked over in time to see Princess Cadance light her horn as well, casting a spell of some kind, but felt nothing. Shrugging, she attempted to free herself from Prince Shining Armor’s levitation spell but suddenly realized that she could no longer reach her magic. Princess Cadance opened her eyes, smiled and nodded at Prince Shining Armor. She blocked my magic?! Why?!

Looking at the dais, she saw that the other bearers of the Elements of Harmony had placed themselves between the barrier that now covered Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight and the rest of the ponies in the room. The five of them were glowing as they glared at her. A young dragon was standing next to them, also glaring at her, with green flames coming out of his mouth. Royal guards, both Day and Night, stood in front of them in order to form another level of protection between Princess Twilight and everypony else. Why are they stopping me? Don’t they understand that I’m trying to protect Equestria?!

Everypony looked at the space where Artemis and Twilight had been standing and saw the barrier.

“Are they alright?” asked Cadance, worried

“There is no need to worry, they are both unharmed.”

Everyone, other than Dahlia, sighed in relief before Celestia spoke. “Thank you, Night, for protecting Artemis, Twilight and their foal.”

“Of course. I promised that I would help protect Twilight and I intend to keep it.”

She nodded and smiled “It’s safe to let them out, now.”

“Celestia, are you certain that there is no one else present that wishes to harm either of them or their foal? Has the attacker been apprehended? I will not release my barrier until those two questions are answered satisfactorily and I am sure that they will be safe.”

Cadance decided that she wanted to be the one to answer Night’s questions. “Shining Armor has the attacker restrained and I have cast a spell making it impossible for her to use any of her magic for the rest of the day.”

Sapphire Wing flew up and placed hoof-cuffs on Dahlia before nodding to Shining Armor. Shining Armor returned his nod and placed her in front of Celestia.

Cadance lit her horn, sent a wave of magic through the room and, using her abilities as the Princess of Love, tested the emotions of everyone in the room. “There are no other ponies that hold any negative feelings or emotions towards Uncle Artemis or Twilight in the room.”

“Very well”

Everypony watched as the dome faded, revealing that Artemis was still protecting Twilight.

Celestia walked over and nuzzled him. “It’s alright, Artemis. Shining Armor has her restrained and Cadance has blocked her magic for the rest of the day. She can’t harm either of you.”

Slowly, Artemis folded his wing and stood, glancing at Shining Armor. Only after he saw Shining Armor nod, did he release his barrier. Then he turned to Twilight and nuzzled her. “It’s OK, Twilight. She can’t hurt you. Your brother has her restrained.”

She nodded and slowly folded her wings before standing. She didn’t say anything and stayed very close to Artemis.

Celestia nuzzled Twilight and gave her a hug before turning to glare at Dahlia. “You are under arrest for the Attempted Murder of Princess Twilight Sparkle. Sapphire Wing, please take Dahlia to the Royal Dungeons and place her in an anti-magic cell. Effective immediately, none of the ponies in the Royal Dungeons are allowed to have any visitors at all unless I personally authorize it.” I may decide that any visits need to be monitored as well.

Sapphire Wing nodded “Of course, princess. Prince Shining Armor, please levitate her into the air and I will take it from there.”

Shining Armor nodded and transferred Dahlia to Sapphire Wing before turning to see Cadance, Celestia and his parents run over to Twilight and Artemis. They were quickly followed by Spike, Mayor Mare and the girls. He raced over to join them. “Twily! Are you alright, little sister?”

She was trembling, obviously terrified, but nodded as she leaned into Artemis’ side, his wing wrapped tightly around her.

Applejack looked confused “Why did Twilight react like that instead of putting up a barrier? Ah know her magic is strong enough to block that attack.”

“Twilight is an alicorn. Like Aunt Celestia, Uncle Artemis and I, she has the instincts of all three races.” Cadance responded “What you saw was the instinctive reaction that a Pegasus has to an assault on her unborn foal. Uncle Artemis had a similar reaction. However, his was a combination of the instinctive reactions of a Pegasus and a unicorn. Neither of them stopped to think, their instincts took over in order to protect their foal.”

Every Pegasus and unicorn in the room nodded, knowing exactly what Cadance was talking about.

Cadance nuzzled Twilight before continuing

“What you see now is the instinctive reaction of a pregnant mare to danger. She will likely not allow herself to leave Uncle Artemis’ side for the rest of the day, maybe longer.” She paused “It doesn’t matter how far a mare is into her pregnancy. These instincts kick in almost immediately, anytime there is danger, to keep the foal safe.”

Cadance turned to Celestia “I’m setting up a trial for Dahlia today. As well as conducting an investigation to make sure that there is nopony else that is connected to this case that can, or wants to, attack either of them.”

Shining Armor nodded “I will help her, princess.”

Celestia nodded “I agree and will be helping you as well. These attacks on my family must stop!”

“Princess Twilight”

Everypony turned to see Arctic Breeze standing in front of the Royal Family.

He bowed so low that his head was almost touching the floor. “I am so sorry, I promise that I had no idea that she was going to attack you!”

He raised his head “She simply told me that she had an urgent petition that was for the safety of Equestria to present to the court.” He looked at Celestia “It may take longer for petitions to be available for presentation to the court, princess, but I will now be screening them myself.” He turned to Artemis “I’ll ask Ice Blossom to do the same with Night Court, Prince Artemis. This will not happen again.

One of the ponies in the room, another unicorn mare, stepped forward. “Princess Twilight, Prince Artemis, I am so glad that the two of you are unharmed. However, I have a question, if you don’t mind. Why did you choose to have a foal this early in your relationship?”

Twilight looked at her for a moment. Why does she seem familiar? Ah, that might be it. “Are you River Glow?”

River Glow looked at her in surprise. “Yes, princess. How did you know who I am?”

“I heard about your engagement. Congratulations on that.” Twilight responded as she gave her a small smile “As for your question, I would like to ask one of my own first, if that’s alright.”

River Glow nodded “Of course, princess.”

“Imagine that the pony you love was under attack and you seriously thought you were going to have to watch him die, right in front of you. However, you were able to save him before serious harm was done. What would you do the next time you two are alone together?” Twilight asked

Before River Glow could answer, a unicorn stallion walked up next to her and kissed her. “Princess, I can’t speak for my fiancé but, if it were me, I would take her as my mare immediately. After escaping death like that, I would make her mine. Public perception, or opinion, be damned.”

River Glow and her fiancé paused, glancing at each other, as they suddenly realized that they had answered their own question. Looking up at Artemis, they both could only say one thing. “Oh”

Artemis laughed and kissed Twilight before looking at River Glow and her fiancé. “Yes, that is exactly what happened. We were so focused on the fact that I had nearly died, that we were only thinking of one thing, and it wasn’t a contraception spell.”

Twilight blushed “Does that answer your question?”

River Glow nodded, blushing as well. “Yes, Princess” She replied as everyone else laughed.

Artemis looked around the room “Unfortunately, Twilight and I have to leave now. We need to get some sleep so that we can be awake for Night Court. This announcement needs to be made there as well, hopefully without the attack. I think we’ve both had enough of those.”

Everyone nodded “Enjoy your day, your highnesses.”

Celestia nuzzled first Twilight, then Artemis. “Sleep well, you two.” She put her head close to Artemis’. “Make sure you calm her, little brother.” She whispered in his ear. “You’re probably the only one who can.”

Artemis nodded and lit his horn before he and Twilight vanished.

Celestia turned to Artemis’ guards “You should get some sleep as well. I’m sure my brother wants to see you at moonrise.” Steel Night and Midnight Fang nodded and left the room.

Midnight Fang went to his quarters in the barracks provided for members of the guards that chose not to live in Canterlot. After eating an early lunch, he decided to go to bed. I want to make sure that I’m rested for tonight’s shift. If there is another attack, on either of them, I want to be ready.

Steel Night flew to his house at the edge of Canterlot. Landing in the front yard, he opened the front door and walked inside. A sudden movement in the air caused him to look up. A smile came to his face as he saw Cherry Blossom chasing Moonlight Shadow around the living room, both of them flying in circles. Princess Twilight’s idea worked better than I thought it would. It’s amazing how quickly he has improved. He was torn from his thoughts as Moonlight Shadow saw him, flew over and landed on his back. Steel Night turned and nuzzled his son. “Were you a good boy for Mommy today, Moonlight?”

Cherry Blossom laughed as she landed in front of her husband. “He was no more rambunctious than he usually is.” She walked over to give him a kiss. Her smile vanished as she saw how tense and angry he was. “What’s wrong? How was your night?”

Steel Night shook his head “I have good news and bad news. I’ll give you the bad news first.”

Cherry Blossom nodded as she and her husband walked over to the couch and sat down. Moonlight Shadow went over to the toy box in center of the living room and pulled out the ball that Twilight and Artemis made for him. He began to roll it around the floor, chasing after it.

Cherry Blossom smiled as she watched her son play before turning to Steel Night. “The bad news is?”

“There was another attack today.” He responded

“What?” she asked “Prince Artemis was attacked again?”

Steel Night shook his head and growled “No. It was Princess Twilight that was attacked.”

“What?!” Cherry Blossom asked, shocked “Why would anypony do such a thing?!”

“As odd as this sounds, the reason for the attack is also the good news.” He replied

“What do you mean?” she asked, confused

“Princess Twilight went to the doctor in the castle yesterday afternoon. Apparently, she hasn’t been feeling well for the last couple of days.” Steel Night looked at his wife with a smile “It turns out that Princess Celestia was right, Princess Twilight is pregnant.”

“That’s great news!” Cherry Blossom exclaimed, smiling, before she paused and frowned. “Wait, why would anypony attack her for that?”

“The wife of one of Blueblood’s conspirators, a unicorn named Dahlia, came into Day Court today with a petition demanding that Prince Artemis not have any foals because she believes that our prince can pass on the Nightmare to a foal. As soon as she heard the petition, Princess Twilight told Dahlia that it was denied before announcing to everyone in the throne room that she is pregnant. Prince Artemis immediately claimed that the foal she is carrying is his. As soon as she heard that, Dahlia shouted that she wouldn’t allow the Nightmare to be passed to the next generation and attacked Princess Twilight.”

Cherry Blossom thought for a moment “I thought Prince Artemis’ Nightmare form was purified and bound to his body. Isn’t that what he told you and the rest of his Night Guards when he first returned?”

Steel Night nodded “You’re right on both counts. In fact, Prince Artemis protected Princess Twilight and his Nightmare form, Princess Celestia called him Night, protected them both. He put a barrier over them and refused to lower it until Prince Shining Armor restrained Dahlia and Princess Cadance blocked her magic before confirming that nopony else wanted to hurt Prince Artemis or Princess Twilight. There’s no way he would have done that if he wasn’t purified.”

“Good” Cherry Blossom sighed in relief “So she’s alright?”

“Yes” Steel Night replied “She’s not hurt, just terrified.”

Cherry Blossom nodded “I’d be surprised if she wasn’t. I remember when I was pregnant with Moonlight Shadow, everything that could be taken as an attack terrified me. It’s instinct to be afraid of anything that could harm your foal.” She smiled “How close did she stick to Prince Artemis afterwards?”

He looked at her, surprised “As close as possible, unable to stop trembling in fear. Princess Cadance said that Princess Twilight’s reaction was an instinctive reaction of a pregnant mare to danger. Why did you ask?”

Cherry Blossom smiled “Princess Cadance was right. When a mare is pregnant, she instinctively turns to the father of her foal for protection. In dangerous situations, she will stay as close to him as possible. Even after the danger passes, she will remain close to the father of her foal for several hours, in case of further danger. There usually isn’t time to think about it, so it’s become an instinct that kicks in almost as soon as a mare knows she’s pregnant.”

Steel Night stared at his wife “That’s almost word for word what Princess Cadance said.” He shook his head and smiled “There is another bit of news that I have for you.”

Cherry Blossom glanced at him “It’s not more bad news, is it?”

He shook his head again “Prince Artemis has reassigned Midnight Fang and myself to protect Princess Twilight whenever she isn’t with him or another member of the Royal Family. Prince Shining Armor will be testing and training us this weekend before he’ll allow us to guard his sister. I’ll be on day shift, starting Monday.”

Her eyes lit up “That’s great news!” She paused, suddenly nervous “So, you may be spending a lot of time in Ponyville?”

He nodded “Princess Twilight made a request that involves you and Moonlight.”

She looked confused “Really? What could she want from us?”

He laughed “She won’t make us move our family but specifically said that she expects you and Moonlight to visit her in Ponyville. When we’re in Ponyville, she said that she’ll provide rooms for us in her castle. She told us that she doesn’t want to separate those guarding her from their families.”

Cherry Blossom’s eyes lit up “Of course we’ll visit her! I already have plans this weekend but we can go with her the next time she goes to Ponyville.” She wants to make sure that he can still spend time with me and Moonlight. It’s very sweet that she would even consider the families of those protecting her.

She looked at her husband “Is Princess Twilight going to be in Night Court tonight?”

He nodded “Princess Twilight and Prince Artemis told them last night that they had an important announcement to make tonight.” He smiled “I think you can guess what the announcement is going to be. She wanted to tell her family and the other bearers of the Elements of Harmony before they told the rest of Equestria.”

“We need to do something for her.” Cherry Blossom said, determined “I need to talk to a few ponies so I will be going out for a while. I need you to stay here with Moonlight Shadow.”

“What are you going to do?” he asked

She smiled “I have a plan to cheer up our princess.”

With that said, she stood and walked out the front door.

Back in the throne room, Celestia used her magic to send the lesson plans to her room. I’ll give them to Twilight later. I don’t want her to even think about working right now, she needs to relax. I just hope Artemis can calm her down. She looked up at the assembled ponies. “I hope everyone understands, but I am cancelling Day Court for the rest of the day. This matter must be taken care of. Please bring any petitions or concerns to Day Court on Monday.”

Everypony nodded and left, none of them upset at all at the early end to Day Court. Instead, they were trying to think of what they could do to cheer up Princess Twilight. They knew that she would probably be terrified for a while.

After the throne room emptied, Mayor Mare turned to Celestia. “Princess Celestia, is it alright if we return to Ponyville? There is much we need to do to prepare for the return of Princess Twilight and Prince Artemis tomorrow.”

Celestia nodded “I’ll have a chariot prepared to take you home immediately. Thank you for coming.”

Before they could reply, Celestia lit her horn and the rest of the royal family vanished. The girls and Mayor Mare followed Spike to the side entrance to the castle and, once the chariot was ready, they headed to Ponyville.

In Artemis’ room, there was a flash of light as he and Twilight appeared, not far from his bed. Artemis felt something at his side and looked down to see that Twilight had pressed herself as close as possible to him and was trembling again. They walked over to his bed and lay down before he pulled her into his hooves her, holding her tight.

It took over an hour of him nuzzling and just holding her before she was able to stop trembling and calm down enough to fall asleep. As much as he knew that they needed to get some sleep, he didn’t dare to cast a sleeping spell on her. I’m pretty sure that none of them are safe to use on a pregnant mare. However, the moment she fell asleep, he used one on himself.

In his dream, Artemis opened his eyes and looked around to see that he was standing among the stars again. This only happens when Mother and Father visit. But it’s way too soon to see them again, they were just here. What’s going on?

“Artemis, can you hear me?”

Surprised, Artemis looked up “Yes, Mother. Is something wrong?"

“That’s what I would like to know.” Sundance replied “Not long ago, a shockwave went racing through the stars.”

Artemis bowed his head “I’m sorry”

“You did that?” Sundance asked, surprised “You’re usually so careful with the stars. Did something happen?”

“I overreacted to the attack this morning.” Artemis replied, head still bowed

“What?” Midnight Armor asked “You were attacked again?”

“No, Father” Artemis answered, shaking his head “It was Twilight who was attacked.”

There was a moment of stunned silence before . . .

“WHAT?!” shouted Sundance and Midnight Armor at the same time, both in the Royal Canterlot Voice.

Artemis had his eyes squeezed shut, both ears pinned flat to his head and was sure that he had just lost a bit of his hearing. I haven’t heard them do that in over a thousand years. I forgot just how loud they can be!

After his ears stopped ringing, Artemis took a chance and raised an ear. Not hearing any further yelling, he breathed a sigh of relief and raised the other.

“We’re on our way”

“Mother, you were just here. There’s no way you have enough magic for a visit this soon.”

“Yes, there is, Artemis. I gave them mine.”

Artemis’ head snapped up, eyes wide “Star Swirl?!”

“Yes, Artemis, it’s me.” Star Swirl replied “It has been a long time, my old friend.” He paused “Before you ask, I’ve been saving my magic for centuries and have given each of your parents enough to visit you for a week. I have enough left over for a visit of my own in a week’s time.”

“I’m looking forward to your visit, old friend.” Artemis replied, smiling “However, I am confused. Why the sudden interest in visiting me?”

“Your parents have been telling me about Princess Twilight Sparkle.” Star Swirl answered “I would like to meet her.”

Artemis laughed “You will like her. Did you know that she was born a unicorn? She earned her ascension by completing your final spell.”

“She did what?!” asked Star Swirl, in shock “I worked on that for years and was never able to finish it! Youhaveto bring her when I visit next week, I must ask her how she did it!” He paused “I will see you in a week, Artemis. Your parents have arrived.”

Before Artemis could reply, they were both standing right in front of him.

“Where is she?!” asked Sundance, looking around “Is she alright?!”

Artemis nodded “She’s fine. It took me over an hour to calm her, but she’s finally asleep.”

“What happened?!” demanded Midnight Armor

Artemis looked at his parents. “I’ll show you what happened, but I want to do it before bringing her into my dream. She’s terrified enough as it is and I don’t want to make her relive the attack.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded and turned to look at the large sphere of magic that he summoned. They watched as the four Alicorns walked into the throne room to begin Day Court.

“Who is the alicorn with the pink coat?” asked Sundance, causing Artemis to pause the playback.

“That’s Cadance, the Princess of Love and co-ruler of the Crystal Empire. Celestia took her in as an adopted niece at some point during my banishment.”

“Do you see the unicorn stallion over there with the blue mane and tail?”

“Yes” they both replied

“That’s Twilight‘s older brother, Shining Armor. He is Cadance’s husband and the other co-ruler of the Crystal Empire.” He used his magic to show them an image of Flurry Heart. “This is their daughter, Flurry Heart.”

“She had an alicorn foal?” asked Sundance, surprised

Artemis chuckled and nodded “We were just as surprised, trust me.”

He let the playback continue, showing them what happened with Fire Fly.

Sundance shook her head “A teacher was doing that on purpose?”

Artemis nodded “He thought it would be a fun way to make his students understand that the creatures of the Everfree Forest are dangerous but ended up driving them to nightmares instead.” He shook his head “I’m just glad I discovered it before it went on any further.”

Midnight Armor nodded “Your sister is right, Twilight does seem like the perfect one to teach those foals.” He laughed, watching the ponies cheer and stomp their hooves. “It appears that the citizens agree.”

“Why has that mare been glaring at the two of you?” asked Sundance, gesturing at Dahlia.

“You’re about to find out.” Artemis replied

Sundance stared at Artemis “She brought in a petition demanding what?”

They heard Twilight’s, and Artemis’, response and hugged him.

“Yes!” Sundance shouted “I knew it!”

“W-what?!” asked Artemis, stunned, as he hugged them back. “Twilight just discovered that yesterday! How could you have figured it out before we did?”

“I performed a magic scan of Twilight the other night.” Sundance answered, laughing

Artemis groaned and just shook his head before letting the playback continue, showing his parents the attack on Twilight.

Midnight Armor and Sundance were both horrified as they watched Dahlia’s attack head straight for the mare that was now their youngest daughter and carrying their grandfoal.

They smiled, watching the way Artemis protected Twilight.

Sundance saw the flash of light as Artemis overpowered his barrier. So that’s where the shockwave that raced through the stars came from. I don’t blame him for that, I probably would have done the same thing.

When the black dome appeared over Twilight and Artemis, Sundance and Midnight Armor were surprised and confused. Before they could ask, they heard Night speaking.

“Whose voice is that?” Midnight Armor asked before he paused “Oh, it’s his voice, isn’t it? His magic as well?”

Artemis nodded before showing them how Shining Armor and Cadance apprehended Dahlia.

Next, he showed them the response from everypony else.

“Her brother called her “Twily”? Is that some kind of nickname?” Sundance asked

Artemis nodded “She calls him “Shiny”.” He paused “Come to think of it, so does Cadance.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor laughed

Artemis laughed as well and shrugged “Her friends and Spike, he’s the young dragon standing right there, call her “Twi”.”

They shook their heads, smiling, as Artemis continued the playback.

His parents heard River Glow ask her question and both fell over laughing at the way Twilight gave her answer.

“Smart girl” Midnight Armor commented as he finished laughing “Asking a question that made them figure out the answer themselves.”

Artemis nodded, laughing as well. He lit his horn and the sphere vanished before a flash of light signified the successful merging of his dream with Twilight’s.

The three of them looked around, confused.

“Where is she?” asked Midnight Armor

“Ah”

They glanced at Artemis to see that he was looking up. Following suit, they saw a large cloud above them. Artemis spread his wings and flew up to it, knowing that’s where Twilight was. Sundance and Midnight Armor spread theirs as well and followed him. The three of them smiled, seeing Twilight curled up on the cloud, sound asleep.

Artemis landed next to her, lay down and nuzzled her. “Wake up, Twilight.” he whispered “There are a couple of ponies here who want to see you.”

“Hmm?” She mumbled, turning her face into his shoulder. “It’s not time for Night Court already, is it?”

He chuckled “No, we’re both still asleep. My parents want to see you.”

That got her attention. She raised her head, yawning, and looked at him before moving over and snuggling as close to him as she could. “What? They were just here. I thought they could only visit once every three months. Isn’t that what you said?”

“Normally, that is the case. However, I didn’t expect Star Swirl to give them enough magic to come back so soon and stay here for a week.” Artemis replied

“He’s a star in your night sky, too?” asked Twilight, shocked

He nodded “He’s coming for a visit next week. Apparently, my parents have been telling him about you and he wants to meet you.”

Twilight stared at him “W-what?!”

Artemis laughed “I was talking to him earlier and told him that you earned your ascension by completing his final spell. He practically demanded that I bring you into my dream when he visits.”

Artemis saw Twilight’s confused expression and laughed harder. “He worked on that spell for years, Twilight. Can you blame him for wanting to meet the one that finally finished it for him?”

Twilight stared at him for a moment, mouth open, before shaking her head in disbelief. “Why are Sundance and Midnight Armor coming back so soon?”

Artemis sighed “The attack this morning.” His words had the exact effect on her that he thought they would.

Immediately, she shuddered and pressed even closer to his side, if possible. “W-what about it?”

“When I put my barrier over you, I panicked and overpowered it. So much so, that I accidentally sent a shockwave through the stars. After I fell asleep, they asked me what happened. When I told them about the attack, they headed this way.”

Twilight was about to ask when they were going to arrive when she suddenly felt a weight against her other side. Immediately tensing, she looked up and saw Sundance smile at her as she lay down before reaching down to give her a gentle nuzzle. Sighing in relief, Twilight relaxed slightly.

“As soon as Artemis told us what happened, we had to come so that we could see for ourselves that you are alright.” Sundance told her

“Did you think we would do anything less for one of our daughters?” asked Midnight Armor, laying down across from them.

Twilight looked at him, surprised, before turning to Artemis. “Did you already-“

He laughed “They already knew.”

“H-how . . .” Twilight started, before her eyes widened as something occurred to her. “Wait, that’s what you did the other night, isn’t it? A magic scan of my body?” She asked, looking up at Sundance.

Sundance laughed “Yes” I’m impressed she figured it out so quickly. She saw that Twilight looked nervous and gave her a hug. “I know both of you are worried about the short amount of time that you have been courting. However, when we were here the other night, I said that I didn’t care about the length of your courtship and I meant it.”

Midnight Armor leaned over to nuzzle Twilight. “I don’t care about that, either. We have waited a very long time for him to find somepony special and start a family.”

Sundance laughed “Yes, it only took him over a thousand years to finally find somepony to settle down with and give us a grandfoal.”

Artemis laughed “I’m not sure who was going crazier about that, you two or Celestia.” He shook his head “I think the only reason she never pushed me towards Twilight was that, though the two of us have been friends for years, we kept our feelings hidden, even from each other.”

Midnight Armor looked at Artemis “Why didn’t you approach her?”

Artemis shrugged “When I first returned, everypony except Celestia, Twilight and a few of my guards would either cower or run screaming whenever I approached them. Several ponies did come to Day Court, asking to court me. However, they just wanted to have access to my power and throne. Twilight was different, she helped me learn to fit in and catch up on some of the things that I missed over the thousand years that I was gone. After that, we became friends. It didn’t take long for me to feel more for her, but I didn’t want to risk losing the only friend I had, other than Celestia.”

Sundance shook her head, smiling “What about you, Twilight?”

Twilight glanced up at her “At the time, I was still a unicorn. I was also still Celestia’s student and a librarian in a small town. I had heard about all of the ponies that were approaching him and didn’t think I had a chance, so I kept quiet. When Blueblood tried to force Celestia to banish Artemis to the moon again by angering him to the point that he lost control, I sensed the trouble and came to help. Celestia noticed my actions and asked me about the feelings behind them, right in front of Artemis. I’m not complaining now but, at the time, I was so embarrassed.”

Midnight Armor laughed “She gets that from you, Sundance.”

Sundance laughed as well, nuzzling Twilight. “I know, but I’m certainly not complaining. Her actions got us another daughter and a grandfoal on the way.”

Twilight returned Sundance’s nuzzle and sighed “I was afraid that ponies wouldn’t like it that we’re starting a family.” She shuddered, remembering the attack, and pressed herself further into Artemis’ side. “I just wasn’t expecting anypony to attack me, trying to kill our foal.”

Midnight Armor stared at Twilight for a moment before nuzzling her to get her attention. “I think I can guess how Celestia reacted to the news. What about your parents and the other bearers of the Elements of Harmony?”

Artemis laughed and lit his horn. First, he showed his parents what happened the day before, right before dinner. Midnight Armor and Sundance laughed as they watched everypony’s reactions.

“Do you see the three Unicorns in the room?” Twilight asked

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded, already recognizing Shining Armor.

“The stallion with the blue mane and tail is my older brother, Shining Armor. The other stallion is my father, Night Light, and the mare next to him is my mother, Twilight Velvet.”

Sundance turned to her, surprised “You’re both named Twilight?”

Twilight nodded “My mother says it’s a family tradition. Every generation, one of the fillies is named Twilight. Shining Armor didn’t name his daughter Twilight, so our mother expects me to do it, if Artemis and I have one.” She paused, thought for a moment and laughed. “She told me that it’s either that or Shiny and I each have to have multiple foals until one of us carries on the tradition. Personally, I think she’s hoping for the latter.”

Midnight Armor and Sundance laughed as Artemis lit his horn again. The scene changed to right before Day Court. They watched Twilight tell her friends and laughed as they saw the pony pile the girls and Spike buried Twilight in, as well as their reactions.

Sundance looked from Artemis to Twilight “These girls bear the Elements of Harmony?” After they both nodded she asked “Which one bears which Element?”

Twilight smiled “The one with the rainbow colored mane is Rainbow Dash, the Element of Loyalty. The bouncy pink one is Pinkie Pie, the Element of Laughter. The only unicorn in the group, now that I’ve ascended, is Rarity, the Element of Generosity. The quiet one with the yellow coat is Fluttershy, the Element of Kindness. Finally, the one wearing the hat is Applejack, the Element of Honesty. You already know who the Element of Magic is.”

They both nodded

Midnight Armor smiled “You know how your family and friends feel about your pregnancy, Twilight.” He paused, making sure that Twilight was looking at him. “In case you haven’t figured it out yet, Sundance and I are very happy about this and can’t wait for our grandfoal to be born.”

Sundance nuzzled Twilight “Midnight’s right, Twilight. Both of our children are over a thousand years old and we’re finally going to be grandparents. It seems like we’ve been waiting forever for this. Besides, after everything you’ve done for our family, I am extremely happy that our son chose you.” She laughed “Don’t forget, I did ask you two for grandfoals the last time Midnight and I were here.”

Chapter 39

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled as Twilight finally began to relax but noticed that she was still scared and decided to do something about that next.

After giving Artemis a mischievous smile, Sundance turned to Twilight. “The last time we were here, Artemis mentioned that he has already met your parents, Twilight. Did they-”

Twilight glanced at her “Tell him every embarrassing story from my foalhood that they could?” She finished.

After receiving a nod, she continued “You better believe it, they even showed him the pictures. In fact, they purposely embarrassed me twice as much as they had originally planned because they forgot to do it with my brother before he got married.”

Artemis groaned as he saw the looks on the faces of his parents, suddenly understanding how Twilight felt that day.

Midnight Armor smirked “In that case, let me tell you about the time that he . . .”

Twilight spent the rest of the dream laughing.

Meanwhile, in the courtroom, Straight Arrow was at the end of his shift when the next trial of the day landed on his desk. It wasn’t even lunchtime but it had already been a long day. He had come in extremely early to deal with the last of the legal paperwork concerning Blueblood’s trial before presiding over the first few trials of the morning. As such, he was rather tired and looking forward to going home, so he turned to his assistant. “Can we push this trial to Monday morning, Ocean Drop?”

Ocean Drop, the Pegasus mare that had counted votes at Blueblood’s trial, shook her head. “This one came directly from Princess Celestia. She insisted that it had to go to the highest court and be tried today.”

Sighing, he opened the folder and began to read. His eyes widened when he saw the charges. “Bring them in. Now!”

Nodding, Ocean Drop left the room. She returned with everyone a few minutes later. Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor, Twilight Velvet and Night Light entered the room from one side while Sapphire Wing escorted Dahlia in from the other.

Straight Arrow looked around “Where’s Princess Twilight? Please tell me that she’s alright.”

Celestia nodded “She’s terrified, but unharmed. Artemis protected her and Night protected them both. She and my brother are both resting before Night Court tonight.”

Straight Arrow sighed in relief. I’m stopping by Night Court tonight to see for myself that she is alright. Maybe I can get Orchid Rain to come as well. If so, we’ll bring Water Lilly and Silver Spark. I don’t care if my daughter stays up past her bedtime tonight. “Good. Let’s get this trial started.”

The court reporter nodded, making a note of the time and the ponies present.

Straight Arrow cleared his throat “The defendant, Dahlia, stands accused of the Attempted Murder of Princess Twilight Sparkle. How does the defendant plead?”

Dahlia looked at him “I was not attacking Princess Twilight, I was attempting to rid Equestria of the foal of Night-Terror Knight.”

Straight Arrow glanced at Celestia, confused. Foal? Is Princess Twilight pregnant? “I’m going to take that response as a “Not Guilty” plea and move on.”

Celestia looked at Straight Arrow “May I?”

He nodded, already knowing what she was going to do. “Of course, princess.”

Celestia created a large sphere of golden magic and let her memory of the attack play for the court.

Straight Arrow just stared as the memory ended before shaking his head and turning to Dahlia. “Do you have any evidence that proves that you acted in a legal manner?” I doubt it, I just want to hear what the excuse is this time.

She stared, defiantly, at everyone in the courtroom. “You have no idea what you’re doing!” She shouted “You are dooming Equestria to fall by allowing him to, not only remain here, but create foals! There is no way that the Nightmare can be controlled by a foal! Mark my words, his foal will destroy us all!”

Shining Armor stepped forward, into the prosecutor’s spot. “You really think that Artemis can pass his Nightmare form along like that? You believe that Night-Terror Knight can move from pony-to-pony whenever he wants?”

“Of course!” Dahlia replied “That’s what Prince Blueblood told me and he has no reason to lie!”

There was a collective snort of amusement, and disbelief, from everyone in the courtroom at that statement before Shining Armor continued questioning her.

“You are aware of the fact that Princess Twilight Sparkle is far stronger than Night-Terror Knight, right?” He asked Dahlia

Dahlia nodded, not sure where this was going. “Of course, everypony knows that she may be the most powerful pony in Equestria.”

Shining Armor nodded and continued “If Night-Terror Knight could move from pony to pony as he pleases, don’t you think that he would have taken over my sister by now?” He paused, to let that sink in. “Why would he bother inhabiting the body of a foal if he could take over the most powerful pony in Equestria, not to mention one of the Elements of Harmony? There would be nopony able to stop him and he would be ruling Equestria already.”

Dahlia gasped as she understood Shining Armor’s point “Y-you mean, Prince Blueblood lied to me?!”

Shining Armor nodded “You attacked, and tried to kill, Princess Twilight Sparkle, my little sister. Because he put himself in harm’s way to protect her, you also attacked Prince Artemis. My sister is carrying his foal, so he is now my older brother.” He paused as it looked like Dahlia was going to interrupt. “If you want to claim that you were only attacking their foal, fine. You attacked, and tried to kill, the foal of Princess Twilight Sparkle and Prince Artemis. Night-Terror Knight had no part in the creation of the foal that my sister now carries and he can’t leave Artemis’ body.”

Dahlia gasped in horror as she finally realized what she had done. “Y-you have to believe me! I didn’t know that! I was trying to protect Equestria!”

Shining Armor shook his head “I don’t believe that. Even if I did, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that, not only did you try to kill Princess Twilight, you also tried to kill an unborn foal.” He gave Dahlia a glare. “That’s bad enough, but here’s another piece of information for you. The foal that you tried to kill is the future niece or nephew of every Ruling Figure in both Equestria and the Crystal Empire, other than his or her parents. Do you really think that we will let you get away with that?”

Straight Arrow stepped in “I believe we have sufficient evidence to conclude this trial.” He turned to the jury “Has the jury reached a verdict?”

As one, they nodded “We find the defendant guilty of Attempted Murder.”

One of them paused, glancing at the others, before continuing “The only thing we can’t agree on is how many counts to charge her with. We are debating between one and three, for obvious reasons.”

Straight Arrow nodded and turned to Dahlia “Regardless of how many counts of the charge is filed against you, the result is the same. The sentence is Life in Prison, with no possibility of parole. I can’t, in good conscience, allow you to remain free because there is nothing you could say to convince me that you will not try this again.”

He gave Dahlia a hard look. “You should consider yourself lucky that there is no Death Penalty in Equestria. If there was, I’d recommend it. Attacking a pregnant mare because you are attempting to kill her unborn foal is one of the worst crimes a pony can commit. It doesn’t matter, in the eyes of the law, who that mare is. However, the fact that you tried to kill one of our current princesses as well as our future prince or princess just makes it worse.”

Sapphire Wing escorted Dahlia back to the Royal Dungeons.

Straight Arrow looked at Celestia “We need to put an end to this. How many ponies are going to attack those two?”

“We were worried about that as well, but there shouldn’t be any more attacks.” Cadance responded “Shining Armor and I have already spoken to everyone else that is upset at Blueblood’s sentence and confirmed that, while they are unhappy, none of them desire to harm either of them or any foal they have.”

Shining Armor nodded “They have been made aware of what will happen if they even try.”

“Good” Straight Arrow sighed in relief “Now, if you’ll excuse me your highnesses, I’m going to get some sleep. There’s a certain princess that I want to check on tonight.”

Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor, Velvet and Night Light all stared at him for a moment before smiling.

“Enjoy your nap.” Celestia replied

Artemis woke to the pull of the moon and looked down to see that Twilight was still asleep. She had shifted in her sleep and somehow managed to get herself tucked under his wing. I don’t want to wake her yet, but I can’t leave her alone. I don’t even want to think about how she’ll react if I’m not there when she wakes up.

He slowly let go of her and moved his wings, lifting himself off of the bed.

I can’t stand to see her like this. He paused as another thought occurred to him. Now I know how she must have felt last week, when it was me that was terrified and in constant need of reassurance.

As he landed beside the bed, she felt the loss of warmth and woke up. She opened her eyes and, not seeing him next to her, shuddered, whimpering softly.

Immediately, he stepped closer and nuzzled her. “Shh, it’s alright. I’m right here, Twilight.”

She rolled over and snuggled as close to him as she could. “I’m sorry, I-“

Before she got any further into her apology, he kissed her to stop it. “It’s OK, Twilight. Trust me, I understand. I felt the same way most of last week, remember?” He gave her a tight hug. “You have even more of a reason to be afraid than I did. You’re not just afraid for yourself, like I was. You are also worried about our foal.”

She nodded and returned his nuzzle before he raised his head.

“I need to raise the moon. Do you want to go onto the balcony? I think the fresh air will help us both.”

She nodded again and stood, stretching.

They walked out onto the balcony as the just as the sun was setting. Sitting side by side, they watched the sunset before Artemis lit his horn and raised the moon and stars. They watched the stars for about ten minutes before they stood, walked back into his room and out into the hall, heading for the dining room. Steel Night and Midnight Fang immediately fell into step behind them.

Artemis noticed the smiles on the faces of their guards. Glancing back at them, he mouthed “What’s going on?” They both just smiled wider and shook their heads, before looking straight ahead. Artemis was confused but decided not to inquire further.

A few minutes later, they arrived in the dining room to see Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor waiting for them.

The three of them smiled as Artemis and Twilight sat down and began to eat the salads that were waiting for them, glad to see that Twilight looked much calmer.

As they ate, Cadance and Shining Armor told them about what they had done to make sure that there would be no more attacks. Twilight nodded but said nothing on the topic, still keeping close to Artemis.

After Artemis and Twilight finished eating they stood, wished everyone good night and headed for the door. Just as they got there, Twilight paused and used her magic to gently pull Artemis’ head down to hers.

“Make sure you send Celestia to see Sundance and Midnight Armor tonight.” She whispered to him.

His eyes widened, understanding her plan, before he smiled and nodded, quietly saying “I will”

Twilight smiled and looked over her shoulder at Celestia. “Tell them I said “Thank You”."

Before Celestia could ask, Twilight and Artemis walked out of the room.

Cadance and Shining Armor turned to Celestia.

“Do you know what she’s talking about, Aunt Celestia?” Cadance asked

“Not at all” Celestia replied, mystified, before she shrugged. “Maybe she needs to get better at pranks. In any case, I’m going to bed. I’ll see you two tomorrow.”

Artemis and Twilight, followed by Midnight Fang and Steel Night, headed towards the throne room but did not enter it yet. They were waiting for Artemis to sense that Celestia had fallen asleep. Roughly five minutes later, he raised his head and lit his horn for a moment.

“Done” he reported to Twilight

She laughed “She’s in for a surprise.”

Artemis laughed as well and nuzzled her “Yes, she is.”

They turned the door to the throne room and opened it for a surprise of their own.

Sundance and Midnight Armor were cuddled together on the cloud that Twilight had been sleeping on when they sensed a new presence and looked over in time to see Celestia appear.

Celestia opened her eyes and looked around to see that she was surrounded by stars. “What the-?” she started to ask, before pausing as she heard laughter. Turning towards it, she saw Sundance and Midnight Armor relaxing on a cloud, smiling at her.

Her eyes lit up. “Mother! Father!” she shouted as she flew over to give them both a hug. Settling on the cloud next to them, she asked “Artemis told me that you came for a visit a few days ago. How were you able to come back so soon?”

Sundance nodded “We were here the other night and had planned to see you when we returned in three months.”

“However, this morning, your brother overpowered his barrier with enough magic that he accidentally sent a shockwave through the stars. When he fell asleep, we asked him what happened. As soon as Artemis mentioned the attack, Star Swirl practically forced us to take some of the magic that he had been saving up for the last several centuries. We have enough to stay for a week.” Midnight Armor continued

Sundance smiled “I performed a scan of her body the last time we were here, so we already knew about her pregnancy. That’s why we rushed back to check on her.”

“You saw her already?” Celestia asked

They both nodded

Celestia smiled before gasping as she remembered Twilight’s comment at the end of dinner. “That little sister of mine is so going to get it!”

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked at each other in confusion, but before they could ask, Celestia lit her horn. They watched as Celestia showed them her memory of what happened at dinner. As the meal came to an end they saw, and heard, what Twilight had said and done. Understanding her plan, they both burst out laughing.

“She knew you were here and didn’t tell me!” Celestia exclaimed

“If I had to guess,” Midnight Armor said, still laughing “based on what I just saw, I’d say that she asked Artemis to send you to see us and didn’t tell you because she wanted it to be a surprise.”

“She still should have said something.” Celestia grumbled

“She did!” Sundance replied, also laughing “She told you to thank us! That was her hint that you were going to see us! And you thought she needed to get better at pranks!”

“Fine” Celestia replied, shaking her head “Why did she want me to thank you? What did you do?”

Sundance smiled “First, we made sure that she understood that we aren’t upset at all about her being pregnant. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. It’s about time one of you gave us a grandfoal. That made her relax a little. When we saw that she was still afraid, we told her several stories of what Artemis was like when he was young. She spent the end of their dream laughing.”

Midnight Armor nodded “We had to do something to calm her.”

“That explains it.” Celestia smiled as she shook her head “She’s still scared, but much calmer than she was earlier.” She paused, looking at her parents “Right after the attack, she kept herself pressed as close as possible to Artemis’ side, unable to stop trembling. I’ve known her since she was a small filly and have never seen her that afraid, of anything.”

Sundance nodded “I don’t blame her in the least. Artemis showed us what happened during Day Court before bringing her into his dream.”

Midnight Armor turned to Celestia “She told us that she used to be your student. How did you come across Twilight?”

Celestia gave her father a mischievous look. “When did I first meet her or when did I take her on as my student?”

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked at each other before turning to her. “Both”

Celestia smiled and lit her horn, creating a large sphere of golden magic.

Her parents watched as Celestia prepared to raise the sun for the Summer Sun Celebration, several years ago. Suddenly, they gasped as a small lavender unicorn filly pushed through the crowd to make sure that she was in the front row. They watched the expression on her face turn from wonder to a big smile as she watched Celestia raise the sun.

“She was so cute!” Sundance exclaimed while Midnight Armor nodded

Celestia nodded, smiling, as she showed them a slightly older Twilight walking into an auditorium. “Here she is about to take the entrance exam for my School for Gifted Unicorns. She was eight years old at the time.”

They both nodded and watched as it looked like she was going to fail her exam, but was startled into releasing her true power. Their eyes went wide and they both gasped as she was surrounded in a large sphere of her own magic. The dragon egg hatched and Spike rapidly grew. Just as it looked like it was hopeless, Celestia appeared and calmed her. They looked on as Celestia took Twilight on as her personal student and pointed out her new Cutie Mark, smiling as she bounced around in excitement.

“Y-you said she did this at eight?” Midnight Armor asked, stunned

Celestia nodded again “You can see why I took her on as my personal student. It was clear to me that I was the only one who could teach her to handle her magic properly.” She paused “Twilight has done so much since then.”

“What do you mean?” asked Sundance

Celestia showed her parents how Twilight faced Night-Terror Knight, both by herself and with her friends, before they used the Elements of Harmony to defeat him and save Artemis; how she and her friends defeated Discord; how she was the only one who saw through Chrysalis’ disguise at Cadance and Shining Armor’s wedding and was sent to the caves because of it, only to save Cadance and return to help save them all; how she went to the Crystal Empire as it returned and found the Crystal Heart before giving it to Spike so that he could get it to Cadance in time; how she finished Star Swirl’s final spell and earned her ascension; how Discord’s vines captured Celestia and Artemis, only for Twilight to save them both as she figured out that the Elements had to be returned to the Tree of Harmony; and finally, how she and her friends defeated Tirek.

“She did all of that in just the last four years.” Celestia told them, shaking her head. “I still have trouble believing it sometimes.”

“W-wow” Sundance breathed

“I-incredible!” Midnight Armor stammered

“Those are just the major events that she’s had a part in.” Celestia smiled, shaking her head again “I’m not sure how she considers this next one minor. What other unicorn do you know of that can single-hoofedly repel an attack from an Ursa Minor?”

Both of her parents’ heads snapped up at that and they just stared at her.

“She did what?!” asked Midnight Armor

Celestia nodded and showed her parents that little adventure.

They just stared at her for several moments after the memory finished playing.

“Celestia,” Sundance asked slowly “what in Equestria did you teach that mare? I have never met anypony else capable of doing all of that, yet still so kind to others. Artemis told us about how she helped him when he returned. How did you manage that?”

Celestia shook her head “I’m not sure, Mother. But whatever it was, I’m glad I was able to do it.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled his daughter “Well done, Celestia”

Sundance nodded before an entirely different thought occurred to her. “What happened to the mare that attacked Twilight?”

Midnight Armor glanced at his wife before turning to Celestia. “That’s right. Please tell me that the matter has been resolved.”

Celestia nodded “I had her sent to the Royal Dungeons. Her trial was this afternoon. The verdict was Life in Prison with no possibility of parole. The judge doesn’t want her out where she can attack Twilight, or their foal, again.”

Sundance breathed a sigh of relief. “Good”

Celestia noticed that she was starting to fade. “It seems that I’m waking up. I’ll see you tonight?”

They both smiled, nodded and hugged her.

Meanwhile, the night was just beginning for Artemis and Twilight. As the door to the throne room opened, they both looked around. It seemed like it was going to be a very quiet night. Surprisingly, there weren’t even any lights on. Artemis was confused, but shrugged and lit his horn, turning them on himself.

“SURPRISE!!!”

Twilight let out a small scream and pressed herself to Artemis’ side, shaking slightly. Immediately, Artemis draped a wing over her and nuzzled her before looking around to see that the throne room was full of ponies. He had never seen his Night Court so packed.

Still standing in the doorway, Artemis and Twilight looked around the room. It was decorated in lavender, dark blue and silver. Over the throne was a large banner that read “Congratulations!” in large letters. Underneath it was a smaller banner that was half pink and half blue with the words “Will it be a girl or boy?” in the center of it.

“Well,” Twilight said, calming down a bit “I guess we don’t need to tell them.”

Everypony laughed

“No, princess” Ice Blossom answered, still laughing, as she walked forward “I’m sorry, we did not intend to scare you. We just wanted to celebrate the great news!”

“I-it’s OK,” Twilight replied, as she and Artemis walked into the room. “I’m sorry, I’m just a bit jumpy today.”

“That’s completely understandable, princess.” Straight Arrow told her as he walked over to the throne and waited for them. “Especially considering what happened this morning.” He paused as she shuddered “However, I have good news. The attacker, Dahlia, had her trial today and was sentenced to life in prison, with no parole. She can’t attempt to harm any of you again.”

Artemis and Twilight both sighed in relief as they walked over to the throne, finding a large purple cushion for them to share laying in front of it. They looked at each other, confused, before sitting on it and looking at all of the assembled ponies. Steel Night and Midnight Fang positioned themselves in front of Artemis and Twilight.

Before Twilight or Artemis could say anything, Water Lilly and Silver Spark ran out of the crowd and right up to them, stopping next to Twilight. They glanced at each other, nodded and crouched down before pouncing on Twilight, knocking her over so that she was lying down. As soon as she was laying down, they snuggled against her side. Artemis laughed and lay down as well.

Twilight smiled and nuzzled them both before a movement in the air caught her attention. She looked up to see Moonlight Shadow flying, only a little unsteadily, over to land in front of her. He looked up at her before poking at her chest for a moment. Deciding that he liked what he felt, he snuggled close and curled up before nuzzling her.

Twilight looked up at Steel Night in shock. “How did he improve so quickly? We weren’t even sure he could fly at all just last week!”

Cherry Blossom laughed as she walked up to Twilight and Artemis. “We have simply done as you suggested, princess. Every day, we used the ball that you and our prince made for him to coax him into the air to get him to practice and strengthen his wings.” She shook her head “Our doctor is in shock, he’s never seen a foal go from not flying at all to barely stopping, in a matter of days. Yesterday, we had trouble getting him out of the air for bedtime.”

Twilight laughed and looked at the three foals curled up next to her for a moment before she realized just how late it was. She looked up at Cherry Blossom and Straight Arrow. “Speaking of bedtime, isn’t it past theirs?”

Orchid Rain laughed as she stepped forward to explain, but her son beat her to it.

Silver Spark tapped a hoof to Twilight’s side to get her attention. “Mister Arrow and Water Lilly came over after dinner today. He told us that somepony was really mean to you this morning. Then, he and Mommy said that we can stay up as late as we want tonight because you are scared and we have to help you feel better.” He explained, nuzzling her. He paused “He also said that you are “pregnant” and Mommy got really happy.” He looked up at her and pouted “It’s not fair when grown-ups use big words. That’s a really big word, what’s it mean?”

Artemis laughed and leaned over Twilight to nuzzle the three foals. “It means that she has a baby growing in her tummy. She is going to be a mommy soon.”

Silver Spark looked at Twilight, confused “If you are going to be a mommy, who is going to be the daddy?”

Twilight smiled at Silver Spark and nuzzled him “Artemis is going to be the daddy.”

Water Lilly looked up at Artemis, then down at Twilight’s stomach. “But why isn’t her tummy big?”

Twilight laughed “The baby is small right now, but it will grow soon. As it gets bigger, so will my tummy.”

Silver Spark and Water Lilly looked at each other and asked their next question together. “Is it a boy or a girl?”

Twilight smiled “We need to wait a few months before we can figure that out.”

Water Lilly looked up at Twilight and Artemis. “Daddy was really mad earlier when he said that somepony was mean to Princess Twilight. What did they do?”

Twilight froze before glancing at Artemis. “I’d rather not talk about that. Artemis, you explain it, please.” She lay her head against his shoulder, shaking slightly.

Artemis nodded and nuzzled her before looking at everyone in the room. “I’m sure many of you are also wondering what happened.” He paused as almost everyone present nodded. “This is the fastest way to explain it.”

They watched as he created a large sphere of dark blue magic and showed them all the events of Day Court that morning.

Water Lilly and Silver Spark screamed as they watched the attack and looked at Twilight to see that she was shaking again. They nuzzled her for a minute before yawning, snuggling close and falling asleep. Moonlight Shadow had shifted as Artemis showed everyone what happened, snuggling deeper into her chest. Looking down, Twilight saw that he was already asleep.

She felt feathers on her back and glanced at Artemis to see him smiling as he spread a wing over them, looking at her and the foals.

Soon, it will be our foal snuggled up to Twilight like that. He thought before looking up at everyone else in the room.

“I’m sure that, like Dahlia, at least a few of you believe that the foal Twilight’s carrying is either Night’s or Night being born into a body of his own.” He shook his head “Trust me, that foal is mine.”

He paused and gave them all a look. “As for the other part, I want to make something clear. Because of the thousand years that we spent together on the moon and the way that Twilight used the Elements of Harmony four years ago, the souls of Night and myself can’t be separated. Yes, in certain situations, he can take control of my body, but he can’t leave it. There is no longer a need to worry about him controlling me because, after the Elements purified him, he decided that he’d rather protect me. As you saw, if she is close enough, he will also protect Twilight.”

Ice Blossom smiled as she stepped forward. “Prince Artemis, don’t worry, we believe you. I don’t believe that you would lie about something like that. Besides, if he wasn’t purified, he wouldn’t have bothered protecting Princess Twilight like he did. If something were to happen to her, then there wouldn’t be anyone capable of stopping him.”

Straight Arrow stepped up next to Ice Blossom. “Prince Artemis, I’m sure that the foal Princess Twilight carries is yours because, frankly, I don’t believe you would let anypony touch her.” He paused and laughed “I don’t envy anypony that tries because, if she doesn’t kill them, you will.”

Everypony else in the throne room also laughed.

Artemis tightened his wing over Twilight. “You’re right about that, she’s mine.” He glanced at Twilight and laughed “Even if I did nothing to anypony who tries that myself, I would just send them to my sister. How do you think Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor would react to somepony doing anything like that to their little sister?”

Everypony turned to Twilight as they heard her laugh softly. “If I know my brother, he’d break their spine. Then Celestia would heal them and give Cadance a turn before taking a turn herself. Then, if she was feeling generous, Celestia would heal them again and summon my parents, the girls and Spike. She would tell them what happened and let them take turns as well.” She paused and shook her head “I don’t think they’d kill anypony that tries something like that, our family would just make them wish they were dead.”

Artemis laughed and nuzzled Twilight “That does sound like something my sister would do. She doesn’t like killing ponies but she is not against punishing them. This is especially true if she is protecting something, or someone, precious to her. Besides, it’s rather obvious that they are extremely protective over you.”

Mythic Blossom walked forward to stand next to Ice Blossom “If I understand correctly, Princess Twilight is now the younger sister of Princess Celestia, Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor. There is also the fact that she is pregnant with the niece or nephew of all three of them. After what happened this morning . . . Well, I’d be surprised if any of them let any unknown or dangerous pony near her.”

Ice Blossom looked at Artemis “Is there a plan in place to see to it that Princess Twilight is kept safe?”

Artemis nodded “She will be with Celestia, Cadance or Shining Armor fairly often, if I am not able to be with her. For the times that she is not with one of us, I have reassigned half a dozen of my guards to keep her safe. After the events of today, I may assign more to protect her.”

“Good” Mythic Blossom replied “Princess Twilight, are you still planning to teach our foals this month?”

Twilight nodded “The fact that I will be here in Canterlot most of this month is actually a good thing. I’m pretty sure that the doctors here are going to want to keep a close eye on me, at least until things calm down. Besides, teaching the foals will give me something more positive to focus on.”

Mythic Blossom smiled and nodded “Marigold will be happy to hear that, princess. She was crying earlier because she thought that “The mean pony made it so that she wouldn’t get to learn from Princess Twilight”, as she put it.”

Twilight smiled “I have to go to Ponyville on the weekends, including this one, to take care of matters there. Please tell her that I will be back on Monday.”

Ice Blossom turned to Twilight “Princess Twilight, I have a question on a completely different topic.”

Twilight looked at her and nodded, waiting for her to continue

“It is about one of the petitions from a couple of days ago.” Ice Blossom explained

“Ah” Twilight replied “You mean the one about the star charts.”

“Yes, princess” Ice Blossom answered

“I have solved the mystery and turned the matter over to Celestia.”

“Already?” asked Ice Blossom in surprise

“Yes” Twilight replied “It was rather easy to figure out.”

“What do you mean, princess?” Ice Blossom asked

Twilight lit her horn and created a large sphere of magenta magic, showing them what happened in the Archives as well as when she took Magic Scrolls and Rose Petal to see Celestia.

“Like I said, it was easy.” Twilight continued “Especially when he started complaining as soon as I walked into the Archives.”

Ice Blossom shook her head “As I said the other night, you clearly have a talent for getting things done, princess.”

Everypony laughed as Twilight blushed

Ice Blossom looked around and saw that many of the ponies were yawning. “I think we’re going to have to end Night Court here. Either that or we’re going to end up having a massive slumber party.”

Twilight laughed and lit her horn, levitating the three foals onto their parent’s backs.

Everypony wished Twilight and Artemis a good weekend and filed out of the throne room.

Chapter 40

Artemis looked at Twilight “Let’s go to my room. It’s going to be more comfortable for me to check on the Dream Realm there. As for you, I’m not sure if you’ll be able to sleep but you should relax.”

Twilight nodded as they walked out of the throne room. Steel Night and Midnight Fang followed them as the four of them headed to Artemis’ room. The two guards stayed in the hallway as Artemis and Twilight went inside.

Artemis walked into his bathroom while Twilight climbed into bed. A couple of minutes later, he walked back into the room and saw Twilight laying in his bed, shaking slightly. He climbed in next to her and pulled her close. Immediately, she snuggled closer and nuzzled him before closing her eyes. He returned her nuzzle and held her tight until she stopped shaking. Only then did he close his eyes and enter the dream realm. There were a few foals having nightmares but only one of them was severe. He decided to enter that one first.

Artemis entered the nightmare to find that he was in back the throne room. Looking in front of him, he saw that Silver Spark was lying next to Twilight and sobbing. Walking closer, Artemis quickly discovered why. W-what?! N-no, it can’t be! We protected her!

Calm down, Artemis, she’s fine. Remember, you’re in the dream realm.

Artemis lifted his head in surprise as he heard Night’s voice, before letting out a sigh of relief. I-it’s not real, it’s just a nightmare. He told himself, as he looked down at a bloodied version of the mare he loved that wasn’t moving or breathing. Wanting to get rid of the image as fast as possible, Artemis lit his horn. The entire scene faded as he moved closer to Silver Spark and dropped down next to him.

Silver Spark looked up as Artemis draped a wing over him and pulled him into a hug. “P-prince Artemis?” he asked, trying to wipe the tears from his eyes

“Yes, Silver Spark, it’s me” Artemis replied, nuzzling him “You’re alright, you were just having a nightmare.”

“R-really?” Silver Spark sniffed, looking over at where Twilight had been lying a moment ago. “B-but-”

Artemis hugged him tighter “Shh, I promise you that Twilight is alright. You saw her less than an hour ago, remember?”

“A-are you sure Princess Twilight’s OK?”

“Yes” Artemis answered “She’s resting for a while before she goes to sleep.” Suddenly, Artemis raised his head and closed his eyes for a moment. “Actually, she just fell asleep. If you want, I can bring her into your dream for a couple of minutes before I send her into hers.”

Silver Spark looked up at him “R-really? You can do that?”

Artemis nodded “Would you like me to bring her in?”

Silver Spark nodded rapidly “Yes, please!”

Artemis smiled and lit his horn. Twilight appeared a few feet away, looking around in confusion.

Silver Spark ran over and looked up at her with tears in his eyes. “P-princess Twilight! Y-you’re OK!”

Twilight looked down at him, even more confused. “Um, yes?” She sat down and hugged Silver Spark, trying to calm him, before looking up at Artemis. “What’s going on?” she asked

Artemis lit his horn again, merging Silver Spark’s dream with Orchid Rain’s.

Orchid Rain looked around in surprise as her dream suddenly changed. In front of her, she saw Prince Artemis, Princess Twilight and her son. She noticed that her son was in tears while Princess Twilight was hugging him, trying to calm him. As she walked towards them, she heard Prince Artemis speaking to Princess Twilight.

“I had just entered the dream realm when I found a severe nightmare.” Artemis said “It appears that Silver Spark was dreaming that Dahlia’s attack was successful. He was lying next to a bloodied version of you that wasn’t moving or breathing and wouldn’t believe that you are alright unless I brought you into his dream. I’ll only keep you here for another minute or so but it was the best way to calm him.”

He looked down at Silver Spark and nuzzled him. “I’m going to change your dream now. Let’s try something fun instead of scary. What would you like to dream about?”

Silver Spark thought for a moment before looking up as Orchid Rain walked over to stand next to him. “Can Mommy come with me to an amusement park?”

Artemis smiled and nodded before lighting his horn. Suddenly, they were surrounded by the largest amusement park that Silver Spark or Orchid Rain had ever seen. The best part was that they had the whole park to themselves.

“I have to send Twilight into her dream now but I’m sure you’ll see her soon.” Artemis told Silver Spark before he nuzzled Twilight and lit his horn. “I’ll visit your dream as soon as I can.” He whispered to her before she vanished.

Artemis looked at Silver Spark and Orchid Rain “There are other foals that are also having nightmares, so I have to leave as well. Before I go, do you have any questions, Orchid Rain?”

She shook her head “I heard what you told Princess Twilight. Thank you for taking care of my son, Prince Artemis.”

“Of course” Artemis replied as he nuzzled Silver Spark “I’ve made it so that neither of you will have any more nightmares tonight.” The last thing he heard as he left the dream was Silver Spark’s laughter. That’s much better than tears.

Twilight opened her eyes to see that she was standing in an open field, staring up at the stars. I wish he was here with me, but he said he’ll come see me as soon as he’s finished taking care of the other foals that are having nightmares. Knowing that she was dreaming and Artemis would never allow her to be harmed here, she lay down before rolling onto her back to watch the stars.

Fortunately for Artemis, the rest of the nightmares for the night were the usual fears of foals. There were a couple of foals that were afraid of the dark. They were too young for him to really talk to them about it. Instead, he made a mental note to visit their dreams as they got older to work with them about these fears. For now, he created fireflies that followed them around as they explored. That taken care of, he checked the dreams of the foals of Equestria once more before turning his attention to Twilight’s dream.

Artemis appeared in Twilight’s dream and smiled as he saw her lying on her back, looking up at the stars.

She smiled up at him. “Are we going to see Sundance and Midnight Armor?” She asked as she rolled over

Artemis shook his head as he walked over, lay next to her and pulled her into his hooves. “Celestia hasn’t seen our parents in six months. Since they’re going to be here for a week, I decided to let them spend some quality time with her tonight.”

Twilight noticed how tight he was holding her and nuzzled him. “Is something wrong?”

He tightened his grip “I-I know it was a dream, but I- just seeing you like that . . .” He shuddered and buried his face in her neck.

Twilight nuzzled him again “What are you talking about?”

Artemis kept his eyes closed, not wanting to see it again, and showed her Silver Spark’s nightmare.

Twilight gasped as she watched the nightmare. So that’s why Silver Spark reacted like that when Artemis brought me into his dream. I know Artemis told me about this, but actually seeing it is something else entirely. She glanced at Artemis If I saw Artemis in that condition, I’d probably be reacting the same way.

She used her magic to raise his head and kissed him. “I know that wasn’t a pleasant thing to see,” she whispered “but it was just a dream, I promise. I wasn’t hurt in the attack, you and Night made sure of that.”

Artemis’ response was to roll them over and pull her into another kiss. This one went on for a minute. I could have lost her, and our foal, in that attack! He shuddered as he briefly allowed himself to think about it. Suddenly, an entirely different emotion overcame him. I-I want my mare. “Twilight” he whispered, before kissing her again.

“N-not here” She panted, moaning as Artemis began kissing her neck. “I-I don’t want to just dream about-” She paused as she saw Artemis light his horn, waking her, before he left the dream realm. They opened their eyes at the same time.

Before he could say anything, Twilight raised her head and pulled him into another long kiss. As it broke, Artemis lit his horn and cast a soundproofing spell around his room. He saw the look on her face and nuzzled her. “I’m going to make sure you’re screaming by the time I’m done.” He whispered, smiling as she blushed. He rolled them over so that she was on her back, with him on top of her, and pulled her into another kiss.

As it broke, she lit her horn and spread his wings before running her magic through them, warming the muscles and cleaning his feathers. After a moment’s thought, she ran her magic over his shoulders and back, warming those muscles as well. She smiled, hearing him gasp in surprise, before moaning as he ran his tongue along her horn. She let out a gasp of her own as he took it into his mouth.

He sucked on her horn for a couple of minutes, enjoying her moans of pleasure, until he felt another wave of warmth move through his wings, shoulders and back. Releasing her horn, he let out his own moan of pleasure before kissing his way down her body. Stopping at her stomach, he nuzzled the spot above her womb. He smiled, hearing a soft sigh from her in response, before lifting his head and giving her another kiss. Moving over her, he pressed his tip against her entrance and paused for a moment, teasing her a little.

She let out a quiet whine, wondering why he stopped, before gasping as he slowly entered her. She moaned softly as she felt him slowly push deeper. After a minute or so, she screamed in pleasure as their hips met and she felt him touch the entrance to her womb. Wings flaring, she pulled him into a kiss.

He returned her kiss and pulled out as slowly as he entered. He slowly thrust in and out of her for a couple of minutes before gradually increasing his speed. As he did, her moans increased in both frequency and volume. When he suddenly sped up, those moans turned into screams. He noticed that her screams were quieter than usual. Looking down, he saw that she was biting on a hoof, trying to muffle her screams of pleasure. Oh no you don’t, I want to hear those screams. Lifting her head, he pulled her into a kiss as he began to thrust faster.

Surprised, she gasped into the kiss before the sudden increase in speed pushed her over the edge. She let out a scream that shook the room.

He smiled as she screamed in pleasure before moaning as her passage began to pulse and contract around him. A couple of thrusts later, his own orgasm hit. He groaned and released his seed before collapsing on top of her, breathing hard. After catching his breath, he opened his eyes and looked down at his mare, seeing that her eyes were closed and her chest was heaving as she panted. I hope she’s ready for another round. He knew that he wouldn’t be able to stand for a few minutes so he rolled them over. He heard her gasp in surprise as she suddenly found herself on top of him. Not give her a chance to ask, he began bucking his hips.

She gasped in surprise as he rolled them over but, before she could say anything, he began thrusting again.Moaning, she held herself to him as tightly as she could. It didn’t take long, only a couple of minutes, for her to reach another peak. The only reason her scream of pleasure didn’t penetrate his soundproofing spell was that she buried her face into his chest. She felt him wrap his hooves around her and hold her tight as he sped up, no longer holding back. His hard and fast thrusts extended her orgasm, making her scream in pleasure.

He felt her second orgasm hit her even before she screamed and, with her face buried in his chest, felt her scream more than he heard it. Noticing how hard she was shaking, he wrapped his hooves around her as he sped up again, unable to hold back. He smiled as her screams of pleasure grew louder and kept thrusting until his second orgasm hit, much harder than the first. With a final thrust into her, he released more of his seed. It spilled back out almost immediately but, not caring about the mess he was making, he pumped more into her.

Between the fact that her womb had their foal growing inside it and her passage had what he had already pumped into her during his first orgasm, she couldn’t take anymore inside her. His second release had nowhere to go and spilled back out. She let out another scream, shaking in pleasure, as he continued pumping anyway.

He heard, and felt, her scream again and hugged her tighter as her body shook from so much pleasure. After his orgasm passed, he relaxed beneath her, panting.

Catching his breath, he kissed her and held her tight, moaning softly as her passage continued to pulse around him. “I love you, Twilight”

Still shaking slightly, she returned his kiss and nuzzled into his chest, enjoying the feeling of him inside her. “I love you, too”

He looked up in surprise as he felt the pull of the moon. “It’s that time already?” Not bothering to move, he lit his horn, lowering his moon and stars.

They lay like that for several minutes, each enjoying the warmth and closeness that came with the fact that he was still inside her, before he nuzzled her. “We should take a bath before we head to breakfast.”

She reluctantly nodded and shifted, letting him slide out of her. After kissing him, she rolled over, got off of the bed and stretched. Then she walked to the door to his bathroom, waiting as he got out of bed and stretched as well.

He joined her at the door to his bathroom before they walked in together. After starting the water, he looked over at her and saw how much of his seed she had covering her backside and hind legs. “That usually fits inside you.” He commented

She stared at him for a moment before she laughed. “Yes, but I have something, actually somepony, growing inside me at the moment. I’m pretty sure I’m far enough along that my womb isn’t allowing anything else inside it until after our foal is born.”

He smiled, very happy to hear her say “our foal”, before walking over to her and pulling her into a long kiss. “Should we stop until after you give birth?”

She shook her head “We may have to when I get big enough, but that probably won’t happen for at least a few months.” She shrugged “We’ll just be making a mess for a while.” She blushed as she looked up at him. “I don’t know about you, but I don’t think I can wait eleven months before we do that again.”

His eyes widened and his breath caught as he heard her response, especially the last part, before he pulled her into another long kiss. When it finally broke, they were breathing heavily as he rested his forehead on hers.

She noticed that the tub was full and nuzzled him before walking into it, laying down in the center. She smiled as he walked in as well and joined her.

For a few minutes, they just relaxed and enjoyed the warm water. Then Artemis lit his horn and brought several bottles of soap and shampoo over to them. Twilight chose the peach scent and began to wash off his seed before moving on to the rest of her body.

Fifteen minutes later, they walked out into the bedroom. Twilight paused at Artemis’ desk to get her saddlebags and the star charts before they went into hallway and headed towards the dining room for breakfast. Steel Night and Midnight Fang fell into step behind them.

Pausing at the door to the dining room, Twilight turned to their guards. “My brother can be tough, especially when it comes to protecting those he cares about or members of the Royal Family that he feels needs to be protected. At the moment, I am both.” She told them “However, I’m sure that you both will pass his test. Artemis trusts you both enough to be his personal guards and has specifically chosen you to protect me, so I’m sure you can handle whatever my brother throws at you.”

Silver Shadow had walked up and waited for his princess to finish speaking. “I was going to give you a pep talk before your test and training with Prince Shining Armor. However, I think Princess Twilight did better than I would have. She clearly believes that you both have what it takes. Do not let her down.”

Steel Night and Midnight Fang looked at each other, eyes wide, before bowing to Twilight and nodding to Silver Shadow.

They all looked up as Celestia walked up to them, carrying Fire Fly’s lesson plans in her magic. He must have altered his lesson plans after they were approved because these are not appropriate for that, or any, class. Ordinarily I’d handle this myself, but I want to see what Twilight does. If I’m right, she’ll scrap these and come up with her own. If that’s what she does, the only one that will be able to approve them on such short notice will be me.

Twilight smiled as soon as she saw the lesson plans. “Good. I want to go over those this weekend so I have an idea of what I need to do on Monday. I’ll give you the star charts. I’m sorry but, with everything that happened yesterday, I wasn’t able to return them to the Archives.” She pulled the star charts out of her saddlebags and levitated them over as Celestia placed the lesson plans in Twilight’s bags.

Celestia took the star charts from Twilight and teleported them to her room. I’ll bring them to the Archives myself because I want to make sure Magic Scrolls won’t start copying them again.

Celestia also smiled and nodded “That’s alright, I’ll return them to the Archives after breakfast.” She turned to her brother. “Good Morning, Artemis. Why didn’t you two join us last night?”

Artemis smiled and nuzzled her “Good Morning, Sister. It had been six months since you last saw them because you didn’t see them when they were here three months ago either. I thought it would be nice for you to have some quality time with them. I wanted it to be just the three of you. Don’t worry, we’ll join you tonight.”

Celestia’s eyes lit up and she returned his nuzzle “Thank you, little brother.” She turned to Twilight and gave her a slight glare “As for you, little sister, I’m not happy that you didn’t inform me of their arrival.”

Twilight ducked her head “I’m sorry, I wanted it to be a surprise. Especially since you didn’t see them the last time they were here and I did.”

Celestia dropped the act and giggled “I know, that’s what they told me” She nuzzled Twilight “Thank you. That was a very nice surprise.” She looked at Artemis and Twilight “Let’s get some breakfast before you two go to Ponyville.”

Twilight sighed in relief as they walked into the dining room.

In the hallway, Steel Night and Midnight Fang looked at each other in confusion.

“What was that about? It sounded like they were having a secret conversation right in front of us.” Midnight Fang asked

Steel Night shook his head “I have no idea”

Silver Shadow shrugged “Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis have conversations like that every three months or so. Everypony around them has absolutely no idea what they’re talking about but nopony bothers trying to ask them what’s going on. Princess Twilight joined in this one and seemed to know what was going on. Who knows, maybe it’s a royalty thing.”

The three of them shrugged and followed the alicorns into the dining room.

Twilight, Artemis and Celestia found Cadance and Shining Armor waiting for them in the dining room.

Twilight glanced at Artemis before turning to Midnight Fang and Steel Night. “You two should go get some sleep. I’m sure my brother can wait until after lunch for his test.” She looked at Shining Armor “Before you protest, Shiny, they were up all night guarding us.”

Artemis nodded “Twilight’s right. I have nothing against you testing my guards, Shining Armor. However, there is little chance that they’d be able to pass, if you test them without allowing them to get some rest first.”

Shining Armor glanced at the guards before nodding as well. “Fair enough. Steel Night and Midnight Fang, meet me on the training grounds at one o clock. Bring your armor but anything else you need will be provided for you during the test.”

Steel Night and Midnight Fang nodded, bowed and left the room. Out in the hall, they turned to each other.

“Thank goodness Princess Twilight said something to her brother.” Midnight Fang said “There’s no way I’ve got the energy to take any kind of test right now.”

Steel Night nodded “I’m glad Prince Artemis spoke up as well. Otherwise, Prince Shining Armor may have just thought our princess was being too nice to us.” He paused “We should meet up around noon and have a light lunch before heading to the training grounds. If we get there early enough, we can stretch and warm up before the test starts. For some reason, I have a feeling that he’s not going to go easy on us.”

“You’re probably right” Midnight Fang replied, nodding “See you then.”

They had arrived at the side entrance to the castle by then, so they spread their wings and headed their separate ways.

In the dining room, Twilight and Artemis ate the pancakes that were placed in front of them. When they were done, everypony headed for the side entrance to the castle.

“How are we traveling, Artemis?” Twilight asked “Are we flying again?”

Twilight was looking up at Artemis so she didn’t see the looks on the faces of Shining Armor, Cadance and Celestia.

Artemis did. Decided not to push their luck, he laughed “Not this time, Twilight. Celestia might kill me if I let you do that. We’ll take a chariot.”

“What? Why?” Twilight asked “I’m almost two weeks into the pregnancy. That’s not far enough along to affect my flight.” She stopped as she saw the expressions on the faces of her big brother and both of her big sisters. “Are you going to restrict everything I do for the next eleven months?”

Celestia was about to say yes but Cadance spoke up first. “No, Twilight. Trust me, I know what it feels like to be restricted like that because everypony did the same to me when I was pregnant. The reaction we’re having right now has more to do with the attack yesterday.”

Twilight sighed “How long will this last?”

“Eleven months” Celestia immediately replied “Maybe twelve”

Twilight glared at her “Remember what I said about me not being made of glass? I gave in to the demand for guards. In fact, after yesterday, I agree that having them around is a good idea. Do not expect me to give in like that every time you ask for something.”

Celestia looked at Twilight, surprised “But-“

“I agree with Twilight, sister. There’s a difference between protecting her and telling her to sit still for a year.” Artemis told Celestia before giving her a look, anticipating her next comment. “And no, you’re not going to put her in a bubble until our foal is born.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow as she looked between Artemis and Celestia. A bubble? Perhaps it’s best if I don’t ask about that. I have a feeling I don’t want to know the answer to that one. She saw the look on Celestia’s face and stepped closer to her. “Should I ask Sundance and Midnight Armor for their opinions as well?” she whispered “I’m pretty sure they don’t want the pony that they’re already calling one of their daughters living in a bubble for any length of time, let alone a year.”

Celestia’s eyes widened as she bent down to Twilight and quietly asked “Mother and Father called you their daughter?”

Twilight nodded “They both did when Artemis and I saw them yesterday.”

Celestia smiled and raised her head. She was so happy that the sun actually shone brighter for a moment. “Very well” She said in a louder voice “I’ll leave these restrictions on you for one week.” She paused, looking at Twilight “That’s the best you’re going to get, Little Sister. Yesterday, you and my little niece or nephew were attacked and could have been killed. There’s no way that I’m going to calm down from that quickly.”

Cadance looked at Shining Armor before both of them nodded. “Aunt Celestia’s right, Twilight. The three of us are in Protective Big Brother and Big Sister mode right now, and probably will be for a while. We’re not going to allow you to do anything that can be even remotely considered dangerous until we’re certain that you, and your foal, will be safe.”

Twilight saw the expressions on their faces and realized that she wasn’t going to be able to convince her big brother and big sisters otherwise. “I can see that there’s no point in trying to reason with you right now.” She sighed in resignation and shook her head before giving them a look, clearly angry. “The three of you are treating me like I’m a foal, instead of carrying one.”

Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor gasped.

Twilight decided that she didn’t want to start an argument so, before they had a chance to respond, she turned and walked outside.

Artemis looked at the door she had just gone through for a moment before he turned to Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor. “Sister, I will ensure that she is careful and stays safe this weekend. However, I want to make something clear.” He fixed the three of them with a glare. “I do not enjoy being forced to treat her like this. Neither of us will be able to relax if I have to tell her that she’s not allowed to do something at every turn, just to keep the three of you happy.” With that said, Artemis followed Twilight outside.

Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor looked at each other.

“They’re right,” Cadance said, ears drooping “we’ve gone overboard.” She saw Celestia open her mouth, about to protest, and shook her head. “Aunt Celestia, how would you feel if the rest of us told you that you are not allowed to fly, or do something else that you love, just because we think it’s too dangerous? Twilight had more freedom when she was a foal than we’re allowing her now. I was her foal sitter, so I should know.”

Shining Armor sighed “You’re right, Cadance. If I know my sister, she’s only going along with this is because she feels that she has to be a good little sister and do as we tell her.” He looked at Celestia “I bet Artemis is only playing his part because he knows that it’s what you want him to do, princess.” He lowered his head and let out a deeper sigh. “We’ve turned him into the jailer for the pony that he loves.”

Celestia’s eyes widened but she didn’t say anything as the three of the walked outside. Everypony looked up as one of Artemis’ chariots landed in front of them, pulled by a pair of bat pony guards. They both saluted before one of them turned to Artemis. “We’re ready for the flight to Ponyville and await your orders, Prince Artemis.”

Artemis and Twilight turned to Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor.

“We’ll be back either tomorrow night or Monday morning.” Twilight told them “Probably tomorrow night because I don’t want to be rushing before class on Monday morning.” She looked at Celestia “Can you have a room, classroom or otherwise, set aside for me to use? We will likely be making regular trips there, but I don’t want to teach the foals in the library.”

Celestia nodded “Of course, Twilight. I’ll let you know which one it is when you get back.” I was going to suggest that, but she beat me to it. I’m glad that she’s taking things like that into consideration. She was about to say something to Twilight about the restrictions they had placed on her but didn’t get the chance as both Artemis and Twilight turned away. She watched them climb into the chariot before Artemis gave the order to take off. They must be angry, or at least really annoyed, at us. They didn’t even say goodbye or allow us to say anything else.

Shining Armor looked at Celestia and Cadance. “Was it just me, or did they both seem almost angry at us?”

Silver Shadow cleared his throat, catching their attention. “May I say something, your highnesses?”

Celestia nodded, seeing the expression on his face. “You have my permission to speak freely, Silver Shadow.”

“I’ve been the Captain of Prince Artemis’ Night Guard since he returned and have only seen him act like this a few times, including today. Each time, it was because he disagreed with you on something, princess.” Silver Shadow told Celestia, making sure that he was careful with his tone of voice. Princess Celestia may have given me permission to speak freely, but I still have to be careful. I don’t want to anger her because, if I do, it’s Prince Artemis that will have to deal with it. “He tries to avoid doing anything that will anger you so, if he believes that he won’t be able to convince you otherwise, he usually goes along with whatever you say. He has decided not to say anything to you about this because he believes that it will only upset you, something else that he tries not to do.”

Celestia’s eyes went wide as she gasped, but allowed Silver Shadow to continue.

“Prince Artemis truly loves Princess Twilight and has put several measures in place to ensure that she remains safe, while restricting her as little as possible. He began doing this even before we knew of her pregnancy. As soon as he discovered that she is carrying his foal, he turned to his most trusted guards and reassigned them to protect her instead. He trusts very few ponies with his safety, yet he immediately assigned his personal guards to protect our princess because he values her safety above his own. All of the ponies in the Night Guard have already altered our oaths so that they include Princess Twilight. We will protect her, and any foals they have, as we do Prince Artemis.”

Silver Shadow looked Celestia, Shining Armor and Cadance each in the eye before continuing. “As for Princess Twilight, I haven’t known her for very long but I can already tell that she values her family and friends above everything else. I believe that she’s going along with this treatment, only because it’s the three of you doing it. If anypony else even suggested the restrictions you have placed on her, she’d never allow it. It’s obvious that being treated like a foal has angered her. However, with all three of you against her, she knows that there isn’t much she can do about it.”

He paused, glancing towards Ponyville. “It was clear that neither of them wanted to start an argument. I believe that is why they decided to leave before any of you could say anything else.”

With his piece said, he bowed to each of them. “I must head to my office to finish some paperwork before getting some sleep. Prince Shining Armor, if it’s alright with you, I will be checking in on your training of Steel Night and Midnight Fang. If there are any changes to their training regimen that have to be made, I need to know about it so that I can alter their schedules.”

Shining Armor, stunned because of what Silver Shadow had told them, just nodded.

Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor watched as Silver Shadow bowed again before spreading his wings and taking flight. They watched him until he was out of sight before looking at each other.

“I’ll talk to them both tonight. Artemis has already told me that he plans for the three of us to have a shared dream tonight.” Celestia told Shining Armor and Cadance before sighing. “I just hope that we haven’t angered them so much that he changes his mind. If he does, I’ll talk to them when they get back tomorrow night.” I’m not looking forward to tonight’s dream because I may have to tell Mother and Father how I’m treating Twilight. If they truly see her as another daughter, they may be angry with me as well. Still, this must be said and the sooner I do it, the better. “I’m heading to the Archives. Enjoy your day.”

The flight to Ponyville was quiet. Twilight was getting tired, so she snuggled close to Artemis’ side and closed her eyes. Just as she was about to fall asleep, she heard one of the guards speak up. “We are now entering the airspace of Ponyville. Where would you like us to land, your highnesses?”

Twilight opened her eyes and raised her head “In front of my castle, please.”

The guards responded as one “Yes, princess”

As the chariot got closer, they saw that all of Ponyville had gathered in front of Twilight’s castle and were waiting for them. After they got off of the chariot, Artemis turned to the guards. “Please return at five o clock tomorrow afternoon to bring us back to Canterlot.”

“Yes, Prince Artemis” They replied before taking off towards Canterlot.

Artemis lit his horn, levitated Twilight’s saddlebags off her back and teleported them to her room in her castle. Then he and Twilight walked over to greet the citizens of Ponyville.

They were met with cheers as Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Pound and Pumpkin ran forward and tackled Twilight in a hug, knocking her to the ground.

Twilight heard a whimper and looked down to see tears in Pumpkin’s eyes as she asked “A-are you OK, Twilight?” She looked around to see that the foals all had tears in their eyes. Why are they so upset? Wait, did the girls tell everypony about the attack?

She nuzzled Pumpkin “Yes. I’m not hurt at all.” Then, she looked up at the girls and Spike. “How much did you tell them?”

“All of it” Applejack replied

Mayor Mare stepped forward as well before Twilight could respond. “Of course we told them everything, princess! They had to know what happened and why.”

Everypony in Ponyville nodded.

Twilight sighed and returned her attention to the foals, trying to calm them.

A slight movement caught his attention so Artemis looked off to the side and found that Big Macintosh was looking at him. Curious, he walked over. I don’t believe I’ve ever heard this pony say anything, but I think he’s Applejack and Apple Bloom’s older brother. I wonder what he wants to talk about.

“Prince Artemis” Big Mac said, bowing slightly “Are ya sure Twilight’s gonna be safe? Your guards didn’t stay.”

Artemis nodded “I know that there isn’t anypony living here that wants to harm her. Besides, if the girls aren’t with her, I will be.”

They both looked up as they heard a loud boom that was quickly followed by Twilight’s scream. Artemis immediately took off running towards her. Please don’t let it be another attack!

While Artemis was talking to Big Mac and Twilight was calming the foals, Pinkie pulled out her party cannon.

“U-um Pinkie,” Fluttershy stammered, louder than usual, catching the attention of the rest of the girls and Spike. “I-I don’t think that’s a good idea . . .”

“Of course it is, silly!” Pinkie responded “We gotta get set up for the party!”

“Pinkie, no!” Rarity shouted, but it was too late.

Pinkie yanked on the string of her party cannon.

Boom!!!

As soon as she heard the boom, Twilight did three things at the same time. She screamed, instinctively curled herself around Pound and Pumpkin and lit her horn, creating a shield over herself and all of the foals near her.

Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow, Fluttershy and Spike heard rapid hoofsteps and looked up as Artemis ran over to them. Everypony watched as he lit his horn before touching Twilight’s shield with the tip of it. As he walked inside, they turned to their friend. “PINKIE!” they shouted

Pinkie stared, wide eyed, at Twilight’s shield “Oops” she whispered

“Fluttershy said that wasn’t a good idea!” Rainbow yelled, right in Pinkie’s face “Twilight was attacked yesterday! She’s still scared and you made it worse!”

Inside Twilight’s shield, Artemis saw her curled around Pound and Pumpkin, shaking in fear. Dropping to the ground next to her, he covered her with a wing and nuzzled her. “It’s alright, Twilight, it’s not an attack. Pinkie just used her party cannon.”

Twilight nodded but didn’t lower her shield yet. She pressed herself closer to his side and took several deep breaths as she tried to calm down.

Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo saw how scared she was, so they nuzzled her and snuggled close.

A few minutes later, everypony watched Twilight’s shield fade. They saw that she had curled her body around Pound and Pumpkin and pressed herself as close as possible to Artemis’ side with his wing over her. Slowly, she stretched out a little and let Pound and Pumpkin get up.

She’s already instinctively protecting foals near her. Mrs. Cake thought with a smile.

Pound and Pumpkin nuzzled Twilight before walking over to Pinkie.

“That wasn’t nice. Now she’s scared!” Pound complained

“You have to say you’re sorry!” Pumpkin told her

Pinkie walked over to Twilight and lay down in front of her. “I’m sorry, Twilight. I just wanted to get everything ready for your baby party.”

“I-it’s OK, Pinkie. Just warn me next time. What really scared me was that I didn’t know it was coming.” Twilight replied, still shaking slightly

“Actually,” Artemis said “There won’t be a next time. At least, not today.” He paused as Twilight yawned “Twilight and I were in Night court until late last night. I’m alright but I think Twilight could use a nap. It’s going to take me a while to calm her to the point that she’ll allow herself to fall asleep. You can use that time to get ready for the party.”

He nuzzled Twilight before folding his wing. “Let’s find a spot that’s out of the way and lay down. After you fall asleep, I’ll help with the party preparations.”

Twilight yawned again, stood and walked over to a nearby tree before laying down again. Artemis followed her and lay down beside her before covering her with a wing and pulling her close.

The ponies of Ponyville looked on as Artemis hugged and nuzzled Twilight. Deciding to give the couple some quiet time, they went to help Pinkie set up the party the old fashioned way. Almost half an hour later, they looked over to see that Twilight had laid her head on Artemis’ shoulder, eyes closed. They watched as Artemis lit his horn for a moment before he smiled and nodded.

Mayor Mare walked up to the couple, worried. “Prince Artemis, did you cast a sleeping spell on Princess Twilight?”

Artemis shook his head “I don’t know of any sleeping spells that are safe to use on a pregnant mare. I merely calmed her enough that she fell asleep on her own. She was already tired because we were awake for most of last night, so it didn’t take much for her to fall asleep. What you just saw me do was make sure that she won’t have any nightmares.” I also sent her to see Mother and Father. As soon as they notice that she’s scared, I’m sure they’ll help her.

Everypony sighed in relief and smiled, happy to know that Twilight would be able to rest peacefully.

“Artemis, you should stay here with Twi.” Applejack told him as she walked up with a couple of bottles of apple juice. “We’ll take care of the party preparations but Twi’s gonna be scared if you’re not there when she wakes up.”

Artemis looked at her “Are you sure that you don’t want me to help?”

Fluttershy nodded as she walked up to them. “We don’t want her to panic when she wakes up. According to Princess Cadance, the best way to make sure that she doesn’t is for you to be there with her.”

Artemis nodded “Very well. When it’s time for her to join the party, tell me. I’ll go into the dream realm and enter her dream. That way, I can wake her without scaring her.”

“Good idea” Rarity replied, walking up as well. “We should be able to give her at least a couple of hours of sleep. After the party, she can really get some rest. We’ll tell everypony that the two of you will be sleeping in tomorrow.”

Artemis nodded, lay his head on his forehooves and closed his eyes. He didn’t go to sleep, he just wanted to relax.

Chapter 41

Twilight opened her eyes to find that she was surrounded by the stars. Artemis must have sent me to see Midnight Armor and Sundance. Looking around, she saw both of them curled up on the cloud from yesterday. I’m asleep at the moment, so Celestia’s restrictions don’t apply. At least, I hope they don’t. She spread her wings and flew towards them.

As she got closer, she realized that they were both sound asleep. Surprised, she paused for a moment and just looked at them. Well, they’re usually stars in the night sky. When they visit us, they’re spending time with Artemis, Celestia or myself. So this is probably the first chance they’ve gotten, in a really long time, to just sleep. If I’m right, they deserve their rest. I don’t want to wake them, so I’ll get some sleep myself. Hopefully, they won’t mind sharing the cloud. Landing in front of them, she lay down and closed her eyes. Within a couple of minutes, she was also asleep.

Five minutes later, Midnight Armor shifted slightly as he began to wake up. Sensing a familiar presence, he opened his eyes and found Twilight asleep in front of him. He smiled and nuzzled his wife, trying to wake her without also waking Twilight. I know Sundance said she wanted to get some sleep, but she’ll be upset if I don’t wake her for this.

“What’s going on?” Sundance mumbled This better be good. I’m still tired. Yawning, she opened her eyes to see that her husband was smiling at something in front of them. She followed his gaze to see that their youngest was curled up in front of them, sound asleep. Alright, he’s forgiven. Smiling as well, she turned to her husband and whispered “I don’t want to wake her and can still sleep some more.” She carefully levitated Twilight between herself and her husband before spreading a wing and covering their daughter.

Nodding, Midnight Armor moved closer to Twilight’s other side. Getting into a comfortable position, he also spread a wing over Twilight, laying it on top of his wife’s. Both of them gently nuzzled her before laying their heads on the cloud and going back to sleep.

In Ponyville, just under four hours had passed and everything was ready for the party. Everypony watched as Spike walked over to where Artemis and Twilight were resting. He hesitated for a moment before tapping Artemis on the shoulder.

Startled, Artemis tightened his wing around Twilight and opened his eyes. He raised his head and lit his horn, looking around.

Everypony smiled as they saw this, happy to see Artemis protecting his family, especially after everything that happened recently.

Artemis felt something on his neck and looked down as Spike gave him a hug. Sighing in relief, he let his magic fade before spreading his other wing and wrapping it around Spike, returning the hug. “I’m sorry, Spike. I was just startled.”

Spike tightened his hug. “It’s OK, Artemis. You’re protecting Twilight. I just wanted to tell you that everything’s ready but we need both of you to start the party.”

Artemis nodded and nuzzled Spike “I’ll go into the dream realm and enter her dream. I would rather wake her that way. It may take me a while, depending on what she’s dreaming about, but I should be able to wake her without scaring her.” Plus, it’ll be nice to say hello to Mother and Father. This is the first time, in over a thousand years, that I’ll be able to see them for more than a night at a time. They’re here for a week, so I may as well see them as often as I can.

Spike nodded and began walking towards the girls. “I’ll tell everypony.” He paused and looked back at Artemis. “We don’t want her to accidentally scare Twi again, so we’ll make sure that Pinkie stays busy.”

Artemis laughed softly “I knew I could count on you.” He lay his head on his forehooves, closed his eyes and entered the dream realm.

Artemis appeared among the stars and looked over to see that Twilight and his parents appeared to be asleep. He smiled as he noticed that his parents had placed Twilight between them and each had a wing spread over her. As he walked closer, his mother opened her eyes and looked up.

“She arrived almost four hours ago, so it can’t be morning already.” Sundance said quietly “In fact, I’ve been wondering what’s keeping you and your sister.”

Artemis laughed softly as his father opened his eyes and looked over. “It’s actually still the middle of the afternoon. Twilight was tired and scared, so I calmed her before letting her take a nap.”

Midnight Armor gently nuzzled Twilight, careful not to wake her. “We were asleep when she arrived, so we didn’t know. By the time we woke, she was already asleep. Why was she scared? Did something else happen?”

Artemis nodded and showed his parents what happened when he and Twilight arrived in Ponyville.

“Since when was there a castle there?” Sundance asked, staring at Twilight’s castle in confusion. It’s a lovely castle, but I would have remembered a giant tree made of crystal.

Laughing, Artemis paused the memory. “When Twilight returned the Elements to the Tree of Harmony, a chest appeared at its base. It surprised, and confused, all of us because it had six locks and none of us had any idea where the keys were or how to open it. According to Twilight and her friends, the Elements tested each of them individually to see if they were truly worthy of being the bearers of the Elements of Harmony. At the end of those tests, each of the girls received something that turned into a key. Those keys opened the chest, allowing the girls to use the Elements of Harmony to defeat Tirek after he had stolen all of the magic in Equestria.”

He showed them an image of the Golden Oaks Library. “This was Twilight’s home, before Tirek destroyed it. After Tirek’s defeat, the chest grew into that castle. As soon as she saw it, Celestia declared that the castle was Twilight’s.”

Midnight Armor shook his head “That’s one way to get a new home.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor watched as Twilight tried to calm the foals near her. This meant that she was distracted and didn’t notice when Pinkie pulled a large blue cannon from apparently nowhere.

“Oh no, is she going to do what I think she is?” Sundance asked, nodding towards Pinkie I’m not going to bother asking where she got the cannon. Something tells me I don’t want to know. Besides, I’m more concerned about what she’s going to do with it.

Artemis nodded and showed them Pinkie using her party cannon, as well as Twilight’s reaction to it. He also showed them how he and the rest of Twilight’s friends reacted.

Midnight Armor smiled as he saw Artemis, standing off to the side and talking to another stallion, drop everything and run to Twilight’ side. As soon as he heard his mare scream, he immediately went to check on her. Then he stayed by her side to calm her. There may have been no danger this time, but she didn’t know that and was obviously afraid. Well done, Artemis.

Sundance smiled as she watched Twilight protect the group of foals with a barrier and curl her body around the two that were clearly the youngest. That instinct certainly didn’t take long to kick in, probably because of what happened yesterday. She’s already protecting any foal near her.

“Pinkie used her “party cannon” because she insisted on throwing what she’s calling a “Baby Party” to celebrate Twilight’s pregnancy and wanted to get everything ready quickly. She just didn’t think about the fact that Twilight’s still afraid because of the attack yesterday.” Artemis shook his head. “That was almost four hours ago. Everything is ready now and the girls want me to wake her, claiming that they can’t start the party without both of us. I insisted on waking her this way, to avoid allowing them to scare her more than they already have.”

Smiling, Sundance nuzzled her youngest. I haven’t had a chance to do this since Artemis and Celestia were foals. I know that Twilight isn't a foal, but I can’t resist. Her smile widened when Twilight snuggled closer. She's going to be difficult, I see.

Twilight buried her face in Sundance's shoulder.

Laughing softly, Sundance nuzzled Twilight again.

Twilight suddenly felt like she was five years old again. This was how her mother used to wake her when she was a filly, so she responded the same way she did back then. Half asleep, she mumbled “Mom, stop that. I’m tired.” Not bothering to open her eyes, she nuzzled deeper into Sundance’s shoulder and went back to sleep.

Sundance’s head shot up, eyes wide. W-what?! D-did she just call me Mom?!

Artemis and Midnight Armor smiled as they saw the tears of happiness welling up in Sundance’s eyes but neither of them said anything because they were both busy struggling to contain their laughter.

This is too much! Artemis thought, trying not to laugh I’ve never seen her act like this!

This really brings me back. Midnight Armor thought, as he lost the battle and laughed softly. It hasn’t happened since they were very young, but there were times when Celestia and Artemis reacted in a similar manner.

Artemis noticed the wistful expression on his father’s face. It isn’t fair that Mother gets to have all of the fun. If Father tickles her, Twilight will be laughing as she wakes up. Smiling mischievously, he leaned close to his father’s ear and whispered “Twilight is very ticklish, especially on her sides.”

Midnight Armor grinned at Artemis. This should be fun and we don’t have to worry about it scaring her. Using his magic, he folded his wife’s wing before gently running the tips of his feathers down Twilight’s side. He smiled as she squirmed and tried to move out of the way but couldn’t because she had snuggled close to Sundance’s side. Laughing softly, he repeated the process. This time, Twilight giggled quietly but still tried to squirm out of the way.

Twilight found herself waking up again as she felt feathers running down her side. She tried to roll away as her giggles grew louder but, feeling her mother lying next to her, realized that she wasn’t going anywhere. As she felt the feathers run down her side again, she gave in and began laughing. “Dad!” She managed to gasp out “Stop it! I’m awake!”

Midnight Armor immediately pulled his wing back, staring at Twilight in shock. D-did she just call me Dad?!

Sundance saw the shock on her husband’s face, and the tears welling up in his eyes, and just smiled.

Twilight finally opened her eyes, still laughing, to find that Sundance and Midnight Armor were laying on either side of her. Looking up at them, she saw that they both had tears in their eyes as they smiled at her. Confused, she was about to ask about that when a sound distracted her. Looking in front of her, she saw Artemis laying on the cloud, laughing harder than she had ever seen or heard him laugh before.

“What’s going on?” Twilight asked, before turning bright red as she remembered what she had said and done as she woke up. I didn’t mean to say or do any of that! I thought it was Mom and Dad trying to wake me! Sundance and Midnight Armor didn’t say I could call them that! They’re going to be so mad at me! She squeaked and buried her face in her hooves, gaining laughter from the other three.

Artemis leaned over and nuzzled her, still laughing. “Where did that come from?”

Without lifting her head, Twilight replied “When I was really little, until I became Celestia’s student, that’s how my parents would wake me up. Mom would start by nuzzling me. Sometimes that was enough to wake me but, if it wasn’t, Dad would use quills from my desk to tickle me.” She finally raised her head and looked up at Sundance and Midnight Armor. “I-I didn’t mean-” She stopped as Artemis laughed and nuzzled her again.

“I haven’t seen my parents this happy in a long time.” He told her “In fact, not since their first visit after I returned.”

“W-what?” she asked “They’re not mad?”

“Why would we be angry that you called us Mom and Dad?” asked Midnight Armor That must be the current version of Mother and Father. Different though it may be, I’m definitely not angry that she called us that. He glanced at his wife and saw the tears of happiness still present in her eyes. It’s obvious that Sundance isn’t either.

“That’s not how we were introduced. Artemis used your names, so that’s what I thought that’s what you wanted me to call you.” Twilight replied, face still red

Sundance laughed “That may have been true when we first met. However, that changed as soon as we discovered just how much you and our son care for each other. Not to mention the fact that you are carrying our grandfoal.” She nuzzled Twilight “Besides, we have been calling you our daughter. There’s no way that we’d be angry that you called us your parents.”

Before Twilight could respond, Artemis nuzzled her again to get her attention. “I’ve never seen you have that reaction while waking up before.”

Twilight shrugged and returned his nuzzle “For some reason, I felt like I was a foal again. That, combined with the fact that they used exactly the same method to wake me that my parents used to, is why I reacted that way.”

Artemis suddenly appeared to be a combination of upset and annoyed. “I think I know why you felt like that.”

Twilight looked at him, confused, before seeing him glance at her stomach. He’s right. It probably has something to do with how Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor are treating me right now.

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked at each other for a moment before turning to their son.

“What are you taking about?” Sundance asked, confused. She may not be over a thousand years old like Celestia and Artemis, but she’s definitely not a foal.

Before he could answer, Artemis suddenly closed his eyes and raised his head. “Spike and the girls are trying to wake us.” Opening his eyes, he looked at Twilight and laughed. “I forgot that I was supposed to wake you for the party.”

Twilight nodded “We’d better go. Pinkie and Rainbow can get a little, um, creative when they want to wake me. Pinkie likes to jump on me, especially on my stomach. Something tells me that allowing her to do that now is a bad idea. And the last time Rainbow had to wake me, she decided to work on my reaction time by pulling me into the air first. I don’t want her to try that again.” She glanced at her wings and sighed. “Especially since I’m not allowed to fly right now.”

Artemis turned to his parents “We’ll be back in a few hours. As soon as the party is over, we’re both going to sleep.” He paused and laughed “As for tonight, I told Celestia that I’d bring her to see you as well. I hope you’re ready to deal with all three of us at the same time.”

Midnight Armor and Sundance smiled. “I think we’ll be able to manage.” He replied

Twilight turned to Sundance. If they’re sure that’s what they want . . . “As for your question, Mom, we’ll tell you about it later. If Artemis is right, it’s a result of something that happened this morning.”

Sundance smiled, but before she could respond, Artemis lit his horn. He and Twilight vanished. They left behind a very happy, but confused, Sundance and Midnight Armor.

“What could have happened to make her feel like a foal?” Sundance asked

“Why did she say that she’s not allowed to fly?” Midnight Armor responded

The both shrugged and cuddled together.

“I have a feeling that we’re going to have an interesting conversation tonight.” Sundance said, closing her eyes

In Ponyville, Artemis and Twilight opened their eyes and looked around as everypony sighed in relief.

“Sorry that took so long.” Artemis said, chuckling “She was asleep in her dream as well and didn’t want to wake up.”

Spike laughed, immediately understanding what Artemis meant. “It’s usually hard enough for me to wake Twi in the real world. It must have been nearly impossible in her dreams!”

“What?” Twilight asked “I was tired!”

Everypony laughed as Pinkie bounced over and stopped in front of the couple.

“I hope it’s OK with you, Twilight, we had to set up the party in the receiving room of your castle. It’s the only place that’s inside and big enough for everypony.”

“That’s fine, Pinkie, as long as you clean it up afterwards.” Twilight said before giving Pinkie a look. “No, you can’t ask or tell Spike to do it for you.”

Spike sighed in relief and gave Twilight a hug. “Thank you”

She smiled and returned his hug before standing.

Walking inside the castle, Twilight and Artemis headed for the receiving room and stopped in the doorway. Surprised, they both just stood there as they looked around in confusion.

The entire room had been repainted, in dark blue and violet, to look like the night sky. The walls also had silver on them to look like the stars at night. The ceiling had a perfect painting of the moon as well as several of Twilight’s favorite constellations.

Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Rainbow and Spike nervously waited for Artemis and Twilight’s reactions to their not so little surprise.

Wow, this is really pretty. Twilight thought, looking around, before she turned to Spike and the girls. “I like it this way. Once the party is over, please clean up the mess, but I want to keep this design.”

Artemis turned to Twilight and stared at her in shock. Before he could say anything, Rarity squealed in delight and rushed forward to hug Twilight.

“I was hoping you would say that! We thought your receiving room should have the design of something you both love. I already have designs for banners and tapestries to hang on the walls! I’ll make them as soon as I’m done with the blankets and clothes for your foal. You have to tell me as soon as you find out if you’re having a filly or a colt!”

Twilight nodded as she went back to looking around the room. Off to one side, there was a large circular cushion that was clearly made by Rarity. It was the same dark blue as Artemis’s coat, with silver sewn in to mimic the stars in the night sky, and trimmed with lavender. A large table in the middle of the room was piled high with every kind of food that could be brought in, or prepared, on short notice. There was a small table next to it, with a much smaller amount of food on it. She was about to ask about that when Pinkie bounced over to stand next to the small table.

“The food on this table is just for you, Twilight.” She said “It’s all healthy, so it’s OK for you to eat it, even the cupcakes and cookies. Applejack and I made them with fruit and only used a little sugar, so you can have as much as you want.”

Twilight nodded as she walked over to the cushion and lay down. Artemis followed and lay down next to her as the rest of Ponyville entered the room.

“You really like the new colors and design for this room?” Artemis asked Twilight

She nodded

“Why would you want my colors and night sky in your castle?”

Twilight leaned close to him and whispered “The same reason I have your foal in me. I love you.”

She giggled at the stunned expression on his face and continued her explanation in a louder voice. “You’re going to be spending a lot of time here from now on. Whenever we’re not in Canterlot, we’ll probably be here. In fact, we may have to start calling it our castle soon.” She shrugged “This castle should reflect the ponies that live in it, even if it’s only part time.” She nuzzled him. “Besides, after I give birth, I’m going to want to be somewhere quiet. If I don’t have our foal here, I’m pretty sure this is where I’ll want to come as soon as we’re medically cleared to travel.”

She made sure she had his attention. “I don’t care about Night Court or what the ponies in Canterlot will say about your absence. At that point, it’s our family that will come first and I’m going to want you here with us.”

Artemis just stared at her for a moment before, completely forgetting about the other ponies in the room, pulling her into a kiss that went on for at least a minute.

None of the ponies present complained, or were upset, at all. All of them were smiling and many were thinking that they would react the same way if the pony they loved said that to them.

Artemis and Twilight broke the kiss and looked around to see that everypony was looking at them. Everypony laughed as they both lowered their heads and blushed.

Twilight looked up as a unicorn with a cream colored coat walked up to her. She immediately recognized him as a doctor that works in Ponyville Hospital.

“Please bear with me for a moment, princess. I heard that you had quite a scare earlier and would like to check your heart rate as well as the rest of your vitals.” He put a stethoscope to her chest and took hold of one of her hooves. A few moments later, he nodded and put the stethoscope back around his neck. “Good. Your numbers are a little high, but still within the normal range. That probably has a lot to do with the fact that Prince Artemis reacted quickly and calmed you down as fast as possible.” He looked at Twilight “I’ve received a copy of your chart from the hospital wing in Canterlot Castle, including the full physical examination that they did on you a couple of days ago. Stone Steps and I will be working together to track your pregnancy and monitor your care, princess. If anything comes up while you are here, please don’t hesitate to come see me.”

Twilight nodded

He paused, looking around “Its fine to be at this party, princess, but I would advise you not to overdo it. If what I heard about the events of yesterday morning is true,” He paused as Artemis and Twilight nodded “the scare that you had today is nothing compared to the one from yesterday. It may be best if you stay at the party for no more than a couple of hours. It’s far more important that you relax right now.”

Pinkie bounced over “It’s OK! This party is going to be a short and quiet one, nothing exciting at all.” She pouted “Applejack made me promise that it’s just going to be a big dinner party and Rarity made me promise that it’ll only be an hour and a half. We’re going to end the party when Artemis raises the moon so that Twilight can go to bed early.”

Twilight sighed in relief “Good, I’m still tired. And thank you, Doctor. Don’t worry, I’ll be careful.” She lay her head on the cushion and snuggled closer to Artemis as he spread a wing over her.

The doctor saw this, smiled and nodded “Very well. Have a good night, princess.”

Over the next hour or so, most of the ponies in the room mingled and went to the large table to get themselves some food.

Twilight spent most of that time laughing at the antics of Pound and Pumpkin. Both of them had decided to stay near her and were doing anything they could think of to make her laugh. She also spent a lot of time laughing at the minor pranks that Pinkie and Rainbow were pulling on random ponies in the room. Ordinarily, these ponies would be getting really angry but, when they heard Twilight laughing, they couldn’t help but smile. They were willing to put up with the pranks because, after hearing Twilight scream earlier, they decided that they’d rather hear her laugh.

Artemis noticed this and smiled. These ponies aren’t just doing this because she’s a princess, they truly care for her.

Eventually her stomach growled, so Twilight started to stand so that she could go get some food.

“Oh, no you don’t”

Twilight paused and turned to see Applejack and Fluttershy standing next to her, while Rainbow hovered in the air above them. Applejack and Fluttershy each had a plate on their back while Rainbow was carrying a couple of bottles of apple juice and a glass of milk.

“We’ve got your dinner right here, Twi. You just stay put and rest.” Applejack told her

Twilight opened her mouth to reply, but yawned instead. She decided not to argue and settled back onto the cushion. They’re not going to give up unless I agree. I would insist on getting my own food, but I’m not in the mood for an argument right now. The newness of my pregnancy will wear off and they’ll be back to treating me normally soon enough. I just have to deal with it until then.

Artemis nuzzled her “I’ll be right back. I’m going to get some food.”

Twilight nodded to him before turning to look at the ponies in the room. After a moment, she spotted the pony that she had been looking for since the party started. Raising her voice, she called out across the room. “Cheerilee! Can you come over when you get a second, please?”

Cheerilee was halfway across the room and knew it would take her at least a couple of minutes to get over there so she looked at Twilight and nodded before beginning to make her way over.

While she waited for Cheerilee to make her way through the crowded room, Twilight ate her plate of apple fritters and a side salad before moving on to the plate of oatmeal raisin cookies and an apple cupcake. She was just finishing the last cookie when she heard a noise and looked up. Artemis had gotten fed up with trying to walk through the crowd and decided to fly back to her side as Cheerilee finally made it over. Twilight nuzzled Artemis and used her magic to bring over a cushion for Cheerilee to rest on.

Cheerilee smiled “Thank you, Twilight. There are a lot of ponies here.” She lay down on the cushion with a sigh of relief. “What did you want to talk about?”

“Did you hear about Fire Fly?” Twilight asked

Cheerilee nodded “You’re going to be teaching his class, starting Monday, right?”

“Yes” Twilight replied “I have his lesson plans and was wondering if you could help me go through them tomorrow. As far as I can tell, most of the students in his class are around seven or eight years old. You know better than I do what level foals of that age should be at and what they should be learning. I hear that Fire Fly is a good teacher but, given what I know about some of his teaching methods, I’m not sure I should trust his lesson plans. I know his lesson plans were already approved, I doubt they approved the idea of him scaring his students like that. I think he’s either not following his lesson plans or he changed them. However, I’m not trained as a teacher. That being the case, I want a second opinion.”

“Of course, Twilight” Cheerilee smiled “What about tomorrow afternoon at the park? Weather permitting, of course.”

Twilight lifted her head “Rainbow!” she called out to the room as a whole.

Almost immediately, Rainbow was hovering in the air above to them “What’s up, Twi?”

“Do you know what the weather’s scheduled to be like for tomorrow afternoon?”

Rainbow grinned “It’s gonna be sunny with a few clouds all day. Perfect for me to practice my newest trick! The Wonderbolts are gonna love it!”

Twilight laughed “Try not to crash this time, OK? If you have to, try to do it in the park so I can heal you quickly.” Turning to Cheerilee “Meeting in the park sounds perfect. Is after lunch alright?” she paused “In fact, why don’t we meet up for lunch? We can have a picnic as we work.”

Cheerilee nodded “That sounds like fun. I need to do a little work too, so I’ll bring my lesson plans as well. Will it be just the two of us?”

Twilight shook her head “I’m sure Artemis will want to be there with me. After yesterday, well . . .”

Cheerilee smiled “I understand. For now, he doesn’t want to leave your side. That’s alright, he’s welcome to come as well.”

Twilight and Cheerilee turned to Artemis as he raised his head.

He saw this and smiled “It’s time for me to raise the moon.” Looking out the window, he watched his sister’s sun sink below the horizon before lighting his horn. Twilight and Cheerilee watched as the moon rose and the stars appeared.

Twilight yawned again and, to the room and a whole, said “Thank you for coming, everypony. Applejack and Pinkie, please come over here. As for the rest of you, I’m sure I’ll see you tomorrow. Have a good night.”

Twilight looked up as Applejack and Pinkie walked over. She levitated a small bag of bits to each of them. “I know its short notice, but I’d like to put in an order from both of you. This should be enough for the food and materials, based on what I know of the rates you charge. Artemis, Cheerilee and I are going to be having a picnic in the park tomorrow for lunch while Cheerilee and I get some work done. I’d like the two of you to cater the picnic.”

Pinkie and Applejack smiled and nodded. They watched as Artemis nuzzled Twilight.

“I think it’s time we both got to bed.” He told her before he yawned “I don’t know about you, but I’m tired.”

Twilight nodded, yawning as well “Applejack, Pinkie and Cheerilee, we’ll see you tomorrow.”

Artemis cast a teleportation spell, bringing himself and Twilight to her room. He nudged her towards the bed before walking over to her bathroom.

Twilight giggled quietly as she watched him go into the bathroom and close the door behind him. Now’s the time for my surprise. She lit her horn, closed her eyes and focused, casting a certain spell on the ceiling. When she finished, she opened her eyes and glanced up. Yes! Not only was I right about what spell Celestia used, I was able to cast it myself and get the same effect! She smiled I hope Artemis likes it.

A couple of minutes later, Artemis returned to Twilight’s room to find her laying on her back in bed. He noticed that she was smiling as she looked up at the ceiling. Confused, he walked over to the bed before looking up himself.

He almost fell over in shock.

The ceiling of her bedroom was a perfect replica of his night sky. He watched a shooting star move from one side of the room to the other. T-this is incredible! She put more detail into her spell than Celestia did! He heard her laughing and tore his gaze from the ceiling to look at her as he felt her magic surround him. He didn’t struggle as she levitated him into bed next to her. “H-how did you-?”

She saw the expression on his face and giggled “Do you like it?”

He nodded

“I was able to figure out what spell Celestia used for the enchantment in your bathroom and thought it would be a nice addition here. However, I don’t want it in my bathroom. Instead, I want it over the bed so I can watch the stars as I fall asleep.” She nuzzled him “I knew it was going to be something I would enjoy, but I also wanted it to be a surprise for you.”

He was so touched that he couldn’t even say anything. Instead, he wrapped his hooves around her and held her close before pulling her into a kiss. After it broke, he rolled onto his back and placed her head on his chest, just holding her tight as he looked up at the ceiling. A few minutes later, he felt her nuzzle into his chest. Glancing down at her, he saw that she was yawning again. Chuckling, he returned her nuzzle. “Come on, let’s get some sleep. Mother and Father are waiting.”

She smiled and nodded before closing her eyes and quickly falling asleep.

He smiled as well and nuzzled her again before falling asleep himself.

Sundance and Midnight Armor raised their heads and looked over as Artemis suddenly appeared, not far from the cloud they were lying on. They watched as he closed his eyes and lit his horn. Two flashes of light later, Celestia and Twilight were standing next to him. Smiling, they watched Celestia nuzzle both of them before spreading her wings and flying over to the cloud. After hugging Celestia, they turned to Twilight and Artemis to see Twilight speaking quietly to Artemis.

“Do you think it’s alright for me to fly over or should I teleport?” she asked

Artemis nuzzled her “We’re in the dream realm, so it’s alright for you to fly.”

Twilight smiled and nodded before both of them spread their wings and flew over to the cloud, joining their family.

Landing not far from Sundance and Midnight Armor, Twilight looked up to see a stern expression on Celestia’s face.

“Twilight . . .” Celestia warned, looking at her with a slight glare. She didn’t listen to us at all! I’m going to lift the restrictions we placed on her, but I haven’t done that yet!

“You’re not even going to let me fly in my dreams?!” Twilight asked indignantly as she glared back up at Celestia before sighing in resignation and laying down. I can’t believe this! She didn’t even treat me like this when I was a foal!

“What are you doing now?” Celestia asked, wincing as she realized her mistake. Oops. For a moment there, I forgot that we’re asleep. No wonder she’s angry.

“The only thing it seems that you’ll allow me to do.” Twilight snapped, laying her head on her forehooves and closing her eyes. “Resting”

Artemis watched the exchange, wide eyed, before walking over to Celestia. Narrowing his eyes, he spoke in a voice that was nearly a growl. “Sister, you may have restricted nearly everything she does in the waking world, but this is my realm. Those restrictions don’t apply here.”

“But-”

“Do you honestly believe I’d allow anything to harm her?” Artemis interrupted, thoroughly annoyed “Besides, even if something dangerous managed to get past me, don’t you think our parents would stop it? That’s not even including what Twilight would do. She’s not exactly helpless, you know.” Not waiting for Celestia to respond, Artemis turned away and walked over to Twilight, laying down next to her.

Sundance and Midnight Armor watched their children in shock before glancing at each other. “Well, that answers the question from earlier.” She commented

Midnight Armor nodded “Both of them.”

Celestia turned to their parents “What questions? Did something happen?”

Artemis lit his horn, created a large sphere of dark blue magic and played the events of the day. He started with their arrival in Ponyville and showed Celestia how Pinkie had accidentally scared Twilight. Then he switched to what happened when he entered the dream realm to wake her for the party.

Celestia laughed as she saw Twilight’s reaction to Sundance and Midnight Armor’s attempts to wake her. “She used to do the same thing when she was little!” She called them Mom and Dad! That’s great! After hearing Twilight’s explanation for why she reacted like that, and Artemis’ comment afterward, Celestia sighed. Knowing their parents were going to want answers, she lit her horn and created a large sphere of golden magic.

A flash of Artemis’ magic made the dark blue sphere vanish. He looked at the sphere his sister summoned, wondering what she was going to show them.

Twilight kept her head on her forehooves but opened her eyes to watch what was going on.

Celestia showed their parents what happened after breakfast, starting with Twilight asking if she and Artemis were going to fly to Ponyville. She showed how she, Shining Armor and Cadance reacted as well as Cadance’s explanation of why they wanted to put the restrictions in place.

Midnight Armor laughed as he heard Twilight ask Celestia if she should ask himself and his wife for their opinion, but said nothing. I want to see everything that happened before I respond to any of this.

Sundance listened as Artemis made his point to Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor. I wonder why Artemis is going along with this. Is it because he’s trying to be a good little brother and do as his sister wants, even though he obviously doesn’t agree?

Everypony watched as Cadance and Shining Armor quickly realized their mistake. Then they listened as, after Artemis and Twilight left, Shining Armor asked if they thought Twilight and Artemis were angry with them.

Sundance saw Silver Shadow step speak up. Who is that pony and why is he there? Her eyes widened as she heard what he told Celestia. So Artemis goes along with the way Celestia’s treating Twilight because he doesn’t want to make his sister angry? He certainly didn’t have a problem with angering her when they were younger. I wonder what made him change his mind.

Artemis’ eyes widened as he heard what Silver Shadow had to say about the reason behind some of his actions. Why did he tell her that? That’s something I didn’t want Celestia to know about.

Celestia lit her horn and the sphere of magic vanished before turning to their parents, nervously waiting for their reactions.

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked at each other for a moment before they both nodded and turned back to their children.

Midnight Armor cleared his throat “I can understand you being protective over your younger siblings, Celestia. You’ve always gone out of your way to keep Artemis safe, so it’s no surprise that you’ve extended that towards Twilight as well.”

“After the events of the last couple of weeks, I can even understand why you’ve become a bit overprotective.” Sundance continued

“However, this is more than a little excessive.” Midnight Armor said, picking up where his wife left off. “Cadance was correct in saying that you, she and Shining Armor have gone overboard in your attempt to keep your sister safe. Protecting her is one thing, but you must allow her to live her life.” He glanced at Artemis and Twilight “Your brother was right in saying that you can’t tell Twilight to sit still for a year and your sister was definitely correct when she said that we don’t want her living in a bubble.”

Sundance glanced at Twilight “I understand why Twilight said that she felt like a foal. The fact that Midnight and I inadvertently used a familiar method to wake her aside, it would be difficult for her not to feel like a foal when her older siblings are treating her like one while she has done nothing to deserve it.”

She looked at Celestia “We need to talk about these restrictions that you have placed on her and we’ll start with the one we witnessed when the three of you arrived. I don’t blame her for the way she reacted. If I were in her position, I’d probably do the same, if I allowed the restriction at all. Why don’t you want her to fly? There’s not much that’s dangerous about it and it’s a great way for her to get some exercise. Sure, she shouldn’t be flying during the last two to three months of her pregnancy but, at only two weeks along, she’s nowhere near that point yet.”

Celestia sighed “I was already protective over Twilight because she became my personal student when she was a small filly and I watched her grow up. To make matters worse, somepony just tried to kill her. As a result, Cadance, Shining Armor and I see danger in everything that she does.”

“Celestia,” Twilight said, causing everypony to look at her. “That may be a reason for your actions, but I don’t think that’s the real reason. There has to be more to it than what you just said.”

She paused as Artemis nuzzled her. After returning his nuzzle, Twilight looked back up at Celestia. I bet this has more to do with the fact that I’m her little sister now. “Two weeks ago, you said that you have always seen me as the little sister that you never had. After Blueblood’s trial, you told me that you would only be able to say that I was truly your little sister if Artemis and I got married or had a foal. When I told our family that I was pregnant, and everypony got the cheering and congratulating out of the way, one of the first things you did was call me “Little Sister”.”

Twilight glanced at Midnight Armor before turning back to Celestia. “Earlier, Dad said that you’ve always been protective over Artemis. In a rather short period of time, you gained both a little sister and a niece or nephew on the way. Only hours later, your new little sister, and niece or nephew, were attacked. That’s when you became overprotective of me and that’s the real reason you’re acting like this, isn’t it?”

Twilight heard everypony else gasp and looked around in surprise before turning back to Celestia. “None of the things that you’ve restricted me from doing are particularly dangerous. You’re just worried about me getting hurt, aren’t you?”

Celestia nodded, unable to say anything

Twilight stood and walked over to her. “These new instincts that have surfaced because I’m pregnant aside, you know that I’m capable of protecting myself. After all, you’re the one who taught me. Not only that, as you said, Artemis will probably be spending a lot of time with me. For the times that he can’t, he assigned Steel Night and Midnight Fang to protect me. You trust my brother, he was the Captain of your Royal Guard for years, after all. He’s testing the ones that Artemis has chosen to protect me to make sure they’re capable of the task. Besides, when I’m in Ponyville, the girls will also be with me and when I’m in Canterlot, you’ll be nearby. As my mother said the other day, I’m “pretty well protected”. So you can relax.”

Celestia stared at Twilight for a moment, in shock, before pulling her in for a hug. “Very well.” She said “Cadance, Shining Armor and I talked it over after you left and decided to remove the restrictions we placed on you. The only reason I was angry earlier was that I’d forgotten that we’re dreaming and thought that you hadn’t listened to anything we said.”

Twilight nuzzled her “You know me better than that. When we first got here, I asked Artemis if I should teleport or if it was alright for me to fly.”

“She’s right, sister.” They looked up to see Artemis standing next to Twilight. “I told her that it was alright for her to fly because we’re in the dream realm and I was trying to let her have a little fun around your restrictions. I didn’t expect you to get so angry about it.”

Celestia nodded and returned Twilight’s nuzzle.

“I’m glad that’s settled.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight looked over in surprise to see Midnight Armor smiling at them.

Sundance nodded “There’s one more topic that I would like to get out of the way before we can enjoy ourselves.” He won’t like this, but we need to talk about it anyway.

Artemis turned to her “What topic is that, Mother?”

Sundance stood, walked over to her son and nuzzled him as she draped a wing over his back. “What the Captain of your Night Guard said to your sister. Trying not to upset or anger her is a good idea but you’re going overboard.”

Artemis sighed and lowered his head. Of course she wants to talk about that. Unfortunately, I can’t just tell her that I don’t want to talk about it. She’s not going to leave it alone until she feels that she’s gotten to the bottom of the issue.

“That’s right, Mother.” Celestia said, before turning to Artemis “Why don’t you just tell me if you don’t like my actions? When we were younger, you never had problem telling me when I was doing something you didn’t like, especially just before your banishment.”

“That’s the problem.” Artemis replied, shuddering as he thought of his time trapped on the moon.

Celestia and Sundance exchanged confused glances, not sure what he meant.

Midnight Armor noticed that a voice was missing from the conversation. Looking at Twilight, he paused as he saw the thoughtful expression on her face. Standing, he walked to her side and draped a wing over her back before nuzzling her to get her attention. “Twilight? Is something wrong?”

Startled, she glanced up at him before looking around to find that everypony was looking at her. Shaking her head, she replied. “Sorry. I was just thinking.”

“About what?” Celestia asked, curious

Twilight looked down “N-nothing. I’m probably wrong, anyway.”

Sundance kept her wing over her son’s back, but reached over to nuzzle her youngest daughter. “Somehow I doubt that. You were able to figure out the reason behind Celestia’s actions, even though she didn’t want to tell us. I believe that, if you’re thoughts are on the topic that we’re currently discussing, it’s quite possible that you’re either correct or on the right track.”

Twilight shook her head again “I don’t want to bring it up.” It’s just going to upset them.

Artemis nuzzled her as well “It sounds like it’s something you think we won’t like.”

Twilight nodded, still looking down

“That convinces me that you’re onto something.” Midnight Armor replied “This topic is already one that isn’t pleasant. The sooner we deal with it, the better.”

Sundance removed her wing from Artemis’ back and turned to face her daughter, determined to get to the bottom of this. “It’s alright, Twilight. Tell us what’s on your mind.”

Twilight looked nervous “But-”

Midnight Armor lay down, pulling Twilight with him, and used his wing to keep her by his side. Artemis walked over to lay on her other side as Celestia and Sundance lay side by side, facing them.

Twilight looked up, noticing that they were all looking at her. She decided to give them one last chance to avoid the pain this would surely bring. “A-are you sure that you want me to say this?”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded

“A-alright” Twilight took a deep breath “Isn’t this almost the same as what you did, Celestia? You were afraid of Artemis because you thought he would be taken over by darkness again and you would be forced to banish him again, maybe even lose him forever. However, you didn’t say anything about it, even when he specifically asked you to tell him. The two of you have sorted that out, but I believe this may be something similar.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor were staring at her, mouths open in shock, but said nothing. They simply waited for her to continue. Celestia looked upset, but she didn’t say anything either. Glancing at Artemis, Twilight noticed that he suddenly looked nervous but was trying to hide it.

She sighed again, looking down at the cloud beneath her. “The last time you and Artemis got into a fight, he ended up on the moon for a thousand years. Granted, it was Night-Terror Knight you fought instead of Artemis, but the idea is the same. If your roles were reversed, and it was you who came back after a thousand years, wouldn’t you do anything you could to avoid angering him? I’m pretty sure he didn’t tell you about it because he knew that it would upset you. I don’t think he’s afraid of you. Instead, I believe he’s afraid of getting into a fight, or argument that could lead to a fight, with you because of what happened the last time he did that. He doesn’t want to go back to the moon.”

Celestia gasped, tears coming to her eyes “I-I didn’t think about that!”

Twilight was still examining the cloud beneath her hooves. “I may be wrong, but I think that’s what’s going on.” She felt a shudder go through Artemis and looked up to see that he had his face buried in his hooves. She noticed that he was shaking, probably crying, and nuzzled him. This is why I didn’t want to say anything!

Celestia also saw this and lit her horn. A flash of light later, she was laying on Artemis’ other side, nuzzling him as well.

Sundance stood and quickly moved over to Celestia’s other side before lying next to her again.

They lay like that for a long time, until Artemis stopped shaking. Only when he finally lifted his head and laid it on his forehooves, did anypony else move.

The first to move was Celestia. She shifted so that she could spread a wing, draped it over his back and pulled him closer to her. She didn’t notice that this pulled him away from Twilight. Focused on Artemis, Celestia also didn’t notice the shudder that ran through her little sister before she started crying quietly.

Midnight Armor, however, did notice. He pulled Twilight closer to his side and nuzzled her before covering her with a wing.

Unaware of this, Celestia nuzzled her brother. “Artemis, is this true?” she whispered

He nodded, starting to shake again

Celestia tightened her wing around him “I’m so sorry, little brother!” She whispered, crying as well. “I had no idea!” She felt him shudder and hugged him tighter. “I’m not mad at you. In fact, I’m mad at myself for not noticing this. I can’t believe it took four years, and Twilight pointing it out, for me to finally see it!”

They lay like that for several minutes before they realized what Celestia had just said. Celestia, Artemis and Sundance gasped and looked at each other in shock as they suddenly noticed that they hadn’t seen or heard from one particular pony in a while, all three of them saying the saying the same thing.

“Twilight!”

A flash of magic drew their attention. They turned to see Midnight Armor looking at them before he nodded to his side and lifted his wing. They saw Twilight curled up next to him, crying.

Celestia’s eyes widened as she saw this. Why is she upset? After a moment, she gasped as she suddenly understood before sighing and turning to Artemis. “She didn’t want to tell us what was on her mind, remember?” She asked quietly “She must have known that it was going to be painful for us to hear. Mother and Father made her say it anyway and, as soon as she finished, you started crying. I don’t blame you for that, but she probably thinks it’s her fault that you’re upset.”

Artemis stared at his sister for a moment, stunned, before he turned to Twilight and lit his horn.

Twilight gasped as she felt his magic run over her before she was levitated into the air. Believing that they were angry with her, she kept her eyes shut.

Celestia shifted slightly, making room between herself and Artemis, as he gently placed Twilight on the cloud. Immediately, they snuggled closer to her, and each other.

Sundance and Midnight Armor glanced at each other before she snuggled closer to Celestia while he did the same to Artemis. They each spread a wing so that all three of their children were covered with a blanket of feathers.

They lay like that for a while. It wasn’t until Twilight stopped crying that anypony moved. As soon as she stopped shaking, Artemis nuzzled her.

Surprised, Twilight lifted her head, only for both Celestia and Artemis to give her a hug. T-they’re not mad at me? Before she could say anything, Sundance leaned over Celestia’s back and Midnight Armor leaned over Artemis’. They both nuzzled her.

“Twilight, we know that you didn’t want to bring up something so painful for both Artemis and Celestia. However, we need to talk about this.” Midnight Armor said

“Especially since, once again, you were right. Artemis confirmed that what you said is the reason behind his actions.” Sundance continued, nuzzling Twilight again “If you hadn’t brought it up, it’s possible that he would have never told anypony about this.”

“Now that it’s out in the open, we can work through this. Only then will it be possible for either of them to move on.” Midnight Armor said

“Artemis, I understand your fear and agree that you have a powerful reason to keep your sister happy.” Sundance began “Given the reason behind your fear, I no longer believe that you are going overboard.” In fact, I’m surprised that he isn’t going further.

Midnight Armor nodded, agreeing with his wife “Even so, you can’t keep going along with whatever she says, especially if you don’t agree with her. It is important that both of you have an equal say in the things going on around you. This includes both your family and the way Equestria is run.”

Celestia nuzzled Artemis “I don’t blame you for feeling this way, especially after what happened a thousand years ago. However, a couple of weeks ago, I told you that I wouldn’t allow anything to separate us again and I meant it. If I were to get that angry with you again, I’d just tell you to leave the castle for a while. Besides, even if I wanted to, I can’t banish you again.”

Twilight nuzzled him as well “At the moment, I’m the only one that can banish you, or anypony else, and you already know that I refuse to do that. If Celestia tells you to leave the castle in Canterlot, just come to mine. As I told you during the dinner party today, it’ll probably be considered ours soon enough. You’re always welcome here.”

Artemis didn’t respond. Instead, he returned Twilight’s nuzzle before slowly relaxing in his place in the family cuddle.

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked at each other but, before they could say anything, Artemis raised his head.

Celestia raised hers as well “Artemis? Is everything alright?”

He nodded and turned to her “It’s time for me to lower the moon.”

She looked at him, confused “Are you sure? I don’t feel the pull of the Sun.” After receiving a nod from her brother, she expanded her senses, reaching out with her magic. “Ah, there it is. How did you sense the moon before I sensed the sun?”

Artemis shrugged “I’ve got more experience sensing the pull of the moon while navigating through the dream realm. Besides, you’re used to sensing the sun from your own dreams. However, right now you’re in my dream. It can be harder to sense things you’d easily notice otherwise because, instead of just the filter that comes because you’re asleep, you also have the filter that comes with being in somepony else’s dream.”

Celestia nodded “That makes sense.” She glanced at their parents before turning back to Artemis. “Are you willing to set up another shared dream tonight?”

Artemis nodded “I don’t see why not.”

Celestia smiled and nuzzled Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight and Artemis. “I’ll see all of you tonight.”

Artemis looked at Twilight “Everypony’s expecting the two of us to sleep in today, so I’ll be right back.” He lit his horn before he and Celestia vanished.

In Canterlot, Celestia opened her eyes, stood, stretched and walked out onto her balcony. She watched the moon set below the horizon and the stars fade before lighting her horn and raising the sun. When they come back this evening, I want to talk to them both.

She didn’t have anything scheduled for the day, so she decided to get some breakfast before returning to her room for a long soak in a hot bath. After my bath, I think I’ll read the rest of that book.

In Ponyville, Artemis opened his eyes and looked down at Twilight to see that she was still snuggled close to his side. Deciding not to move, he lit his horn and lowered the moon and stars. Pulling the blankets tighter around them, he closed his eyes and went back to sleep.

Chapter 42

In the dream realm, Artemis looked around and smiled as he saw that Twilight was still laying between his parents. They had each moved closer and snuggled next to her. They weren’t saying anything, just relaxing. All three of them looked up and smiled as he walked over to join them. He lay down next to his mother and reached around her to nuzzle Twilight before letting out a sigh.

“Is something wrong, Artemis?” Midnight Armor asked, concerned

Artemis shook his head “I was just thinking.”

Sundance looked at her son. “About what?” Is he concerned about what we were discussing earlier?

“Even though you’ll be in Canterlot most of this month, we’ll still be on opposing schedules. You’ll be teaching the foals during the day while I’ll be dealing with Night Court and the Dream Realm. That means we’ll really only get to see each other for breakfast and dinner. I didn’t like, but was willing put up with, it last week. However, things have changed a lot in the last few days.” Artemis sighed again “I just wish there was another way to handle this.”

Midnight Armor nodded, understanding his son’s point, before smiling at his wife. “When your mother was pregnant, I rarely left her side. True, times were more dangerous back then, but the danger wasn’t the only reason I kept her close.”

Sundance returned his smile before nuzzling her son.

“Actually,” Twilight began, drawing the attention of all three of them “there may be another way.”

“What do you mean?” Artemis asked

“I’ve been thinking about that as well.” Twilight responded “After this month is over, I’m supposed to return to Ponyville while you stay in Canterlot, the only time we’d get to really see each other would be on the weekends. I know that you can visit my dreams, but it’s not the same as really seeing each other. While it annoyed me, like you, I was willing to put up with it last week. Now, not so much. I know we both have responsibilities, but I want you nearby. Especially as my pregnancy progresses.”

“Yes,” Artemis responded “but what can be done to change it?”

“I saw the looks on the faces of many of the parents of the foals that I’ll be teaching.” Twilight answered “If I do well enough, or at least better than Fire Fly did,”

“What do you mean if?” Sundance interrupted, eyebrow raised

Midnight Armor laughed “Don’t worry, she means when.”

Twilight stared at them for a moment before continuing “I have a feeling that at least some of them may request that I teach their foals for the rest of the school year. If I’m right, and enough of them ask, I’m pretty sure Celestia will agree to it.”

Artemis nodded “That will keep you in Canterlot, but what about our differing schedules?”

She blushed “If the results of my research are correct, you and Celestia used to actually rule together a thousand years ago, not separately like you do today.”

Research? I’ll ask her about that later. Artemis nodded again “That’s true, but what does that have to do with anything?”

Twilight smiled “Didn’t you notice that Celestia seems to like it when we hold joint courts?”

Artemis’ eyes widened “Y-you mean?”

Twilight’s smile grew “We’d have to talk to her about it, but I think she’ll like the idea. If I’m right, you two could handle court one of two different ways. The first is simply a joint court, held during the day. Any Night-specific issues can be dealt with by you and Celestia can take care of any Day-specific ones. The two of you can work together on the rest.”

She paused for a moment “If you’d rather keep the courts separated, Celestia can have Day Court in the morning and you can have Night Court in the afternoon. In both cases, we’d all be done by dinnertime and can spend the evenings together. You’d still have to take care of the Dream Realm, but that part of your schedule can remain unchanged because you can only take care of that at night, when most of Equestria goes to sleep. We would also need to keep coming to Ponyville on the weekends so I can take care of matters here. We can take our vacations in Ponyville as well. Not only is it much quieter here than in Canterlot, but this is where Spike and the girls are.”

After thinking for a couple of minutes, Artemis asked “What if Fire Fly takes over his class again or when the school year ends? What would you do then?”

Twilight shrugged “Celestia’s been asking me to set up a court of my own, she calls it “Friendship Court”, for a while now. So I don’t think she’ll have an issue with me joining you two as part of the joint court. If anypony comes in with that sort of issue, I can handle it. Otherwise, I’ll just help the two of you.”

Artemis’ eyes widened before he smiled and nuzzled Twilight. “We’ll have to talk to Celestia when we return to Canterlot this evening, but I like this idea. Besides, there are a couple of options to choose from, so she won’t feel like we’re making such a big decision without her.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor stared at Twilight and Artemis.

“What was it you called her yesterday, Midnight?” Sundance asked, glancing at her husband “I believe it was “Smart”?”

Midnight Armor nodded, still staring at Twilight

Sundance shook her head “I think “Brilliant” is what you meant to say.”

Twilight stared at Sundance for a moment before she was able to stammer out a response. “B-but I’m not-”

Artemis laughed, nuzzling her again “Yes, you are, Twilight. Should I tell them about how you were the only one, other than Celestia, that figured out that I was going to return four years ago? Or how you figured out that the Elements needed to be returned to the Tree of Harmony? What about the other things you’ve done?”

Twilight looked at him, eyes wide, as her face turned bright red. “Don’t you dare!”

Midnight Armor and Sundance laughed, causing Artemis and Twilight to look at them.

“He doesn’t have to say anything, Twilight.” Sundance said “Celestia has already shown us what you have accomplished over the last four years.”

“Yes” Midnight Armor continued, smiling “It was an impressive list of foes and challenges. Especially when you consider that all of it was done in only four years and more than half of those accomplishments you made as a unicorn.”

Twilight buried her face in her hooves, drawing more laughter from Sundance and Midnight Armor.

Artemis started laughing as well. He was about to say something but paused as he raised his head, closed his eyes and focused. “Spike is trying to wake me. I’ll go see what this is about.” He lit his horn and vanished.

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked at each other and shrugged before nuzzling Twilight.

Artemis opened his eyes and yawned as he looked over to see Spike standing on the bed next to him, shaking his shoulder. “Good Morning, Spike. Is something wrong?”

Spike shook his head “Good Morning. I’m sorry to wake you, but it’s getting close to lunchtime. I just didn’t want Twi to miss her meeting with Cheerilee.”

“It’s alright. Thank you for letting me know. I’ll wake her.” Artemis replied “She’ll probably want to take a bath. Can you start the water, please?”

“No problem” Spike answered, jumping off the bed and heading for the bathroom.

“Thank you” Artemis called after him before he closed his eyes and went back into the dream realm.

Artemis reappeared not far from Twilight, Midnight Armor and Sundance. “It’s almost lunchtime.” He said “Spike didn’t want you to miss your appointment with Cheerilee.”

“Oh yeah, that’s right!” Twilight exclaimed as she sat up. She saw the expression on Sundance’s face and nuzzled her. “It’s alright, Mom. Cheerilee is the teacher in Ponyville. I asked her to help me go over Fire Fly’s lesson plans. He was trying to teach his students by scaring them, so I don’t want to trust his plans until I get a second opinion.”

Sundance sighed in relief, smiled and returned her nuzzle “Good idea”

Midnight Armor nuzzled her as well “We’ll see the three of you tonight.”

Twilight nodded “We’ll be back later, but that won’t be for several hours.” She saw his expression and laughed as she returned his nuzzle. “Dad, it means that there’s plenty of time for you two to get some sleep.”

Artemis saw his parents smile and laughed as well before lighting his horn “We’ll see you both tonight. Enjoy your nap.” He and Twilight vanished.

Sundance moved closer to her husband, pausing as she saw the tears in his eyes. “Are you alright?”

He nodded and pulled her into a hug. “It’s going to be awhile before I get used to her calling me that.”

She nuzzled him before relaxing into his embrace. “I know what you mean. She calls us “Mom” and “Dad” now. That’s different than the “Mother” and “Father” that we’re used to. Still, I’m surprised at how happy I am to hear those words.”

They snuggled closer together and lay their heads on the cloud. Sundance fell asleep rather quickly. Midnight Armor smiled at his wife and covered her with a wing before laying his head next to hers and falling asleep as well.

In Ponyville, Twilight and Artemis opened their eyes to see Spike standing next to the bed. “The bath is ready. I would offer to make lunch, but you’re going on a picnic.”

“Thank you, Spike” Artemis said as he reached over to nuzzle him

Twilight glanced at Artemis before turning to Spike. “I’m going to be in Canterlot every weekday during this month, maybe longer. I don’t want to force you to come with me or stay behind. Instead, I’ll let you decide where you’re going to be each week. Each Sunday, I want you tell me where you would like to stay that week. If it’s Canterlot, you’ll come with us. If it’s Ponyville, I’ll leave you in charge of the library while I’m gone.”

Spike stared up at her, eyes wide “R-really?”

Twilight nodded “You may appear as if you’re still a baby dragon, but that’s just because ponies physically age faster than dragons. I believe that you are responsible enough to be on your own for a little while, so I’m willing to give you a chance to prove that you can handle yourself for a week at a time. Besides, if you do run into trouble, the girls are nearby and I’m only a letter away.”

Spike jumped up onto the bed and gave Twilight a tight hug. “Thank you, Twilight! I won’t let you down, I promise!”

Twilight laughed and nuzzled him “I’m sure you won’t, Spike.”

Artemis and Twilight stood and walked to the bathroom. They found a full bathtub waiting for them. With matching sighs of pleasure, they walked in and lay side by side.

After a few minutes, Artemis heard a faint sob and looked at Twilight to see that she was crying. “Twilight? What’s wrong?” When she didn’t answer, he pulled her into a hug. Before he could say anything else, he heard a quiet “I-I’m sorry”.

He was about to ask what she was talking about, when he suddenly understood. “Are you talking about what happened in the dream?” She didn’t respond, but the shudder that ran through her body told him everything he needed to know. He tightened his grip and nuzzled her. “It’s alright, Twilight. I’m not angry.”

“B-but!-”

He silenced her with a kiss “Didn’t you say that nothing is able to stop your mother when she gets an idea into her head?”

Confused, Twilight nodded

Artemis laughed “I’ve met Velvet and can honestly say that the determination your mother has is nothing compared to what mine possesses. If my mother finds something that she feels she needs to get to the bottom of, she allows nothing to stop her. What you saw is but a fraction of what my mother has been known to do to solve a problem.” He nuzzled her “Thank you”

Twilight looked up “Huh? For what?”

Artemis sighed “Mother was right. I had no plans to tell anypony about what I was doing or why I was doing it. And I certainly didn’t want Celestia to know about it. Somehow, you were able to figure out what I was doing and why. You explained it far better than I would have been able to. In fact, I was so upset that I probably would have just turned it into a big mess.” He noticed that Twilight was about to protest and kissed her again. “Let’s just leave it at that. Besides, we need to get ready.”

Twilight reluctantly nodded and levitated soap and shampoo over. She giggled as she watched his expression change when he noticed the ocean scented body wash. When he turned to her, obviously about to ask, she just shrugged. “I gave Rarity the bits and told her your favorite scent for hygiene products. She took it from there.” She paused, looking at the bottle next to it. “It looks like she got a new bottle of my favorite body wash as well.”

After a moment, Artemis just shook his head. “It’s probably better if I don’t ask.”

They quickly finished their bath and returned to the room. Artemis headed out into the hallway but stopped as Twilight called out to him. Turning back into the room, he saw her standing at the door to the balcony, wearing her saddlebags.

“Since Celestia lifted the restrictions on me, I’d like to fly.”

Artemis smiled as he walked over to join her on the balcony. “That does sound like fun.”

They both spread their wings and took flight, heading for the park. As they got closer, they saw Pinkie, Applejack and Cheerilee waiting for them. All three of them were looking towards the castle and jumped when Artemis and Twilight landed right in front of them.

Pinkie giggled “Good job, Twilight! You surprised me!”

Applejack laughed and pointed over to a nearby tree. “We’ve got everything set up for ya, Twi.”

Cheerilee turned to Twilight “I brought my lesson plans and the guidelines for what all eight year old foals in Equestria should be learning. However, I was hoping we could start with the lesson plans you have.”

Twilight nodded “I agree. We should start there.” Her eyes widened as her stomach growled.

Artemis laughed and leaned down to nuzzle Twilight. “It seems like our foal has a different idea.”

Applejack smiled “Ah agree with the little one, Twi. You should eat first. Ya’ll can get some work done after that.”

Cheerilee, Artemis and Twilight walked over to the tree that Applejack pointed to and found that a picnic had already been set up. There was a large picnic basket set on the middle of the blanket. Opening it, Twilight found a small package off to the side. Next to it were two large slices of chocolate cake. The rest of the basket held a plate of apple fritters and a plate of sandwiches. Two of the sandwiches were Twilight’s favorite, daisy sandwiches. The rest were lettuce, tomato and cucumber sandwiches. Next to the basket were a dozen bottles of Apple Family apple juice for the three of them to share.

Pinkie bounced over “Twilight, that package has oatmeal raisin, a few chocolate chip, and a few sugar cookies for you. Mrs. Cake said it’s alright if you also have a couple bites of cake, if Artemis is willing to share and you don’t eat them all at once.” She gave Twilight a hug “I have to get back to the bakery because I have parties to plan! See you later!”

Applejack nodded “Ah have to get back to the farm so ah can help Granny Smith with the baking.”

Pinkie and Applejack waved and walked away before going their separate ways.

Twilight, Artemis and Cheerilee sat down and pulled the food out of the basket.

Artemis glanced at Twilight as he saw her pause. “Twilight? Is something wrong?”

Twilight made a face and shook her head. “I’m just nauseous. This is what made me go to the doctor the other day. Stone Steps said that it’s normal for a mare in the early stages of pregnancy. It doesn’t happen often but when it does, I’m usually around food. For now, it’s just annoying.” She saw the look on Artemis’ face. “Don’t worry, I’m still going to eat.”

Artemis sighed in relief “Good”

There was little conversation, other than somepony asking another to pass something. After they had each eaten their sandwiches and shared the plate of apple fritters, Twilight pulled over her cookies and levitated the slices of cake over to Artemis and Cheerilee. Artemis used his magic to cut the tip off of his slice and give it to Twilight.

Twilight smiled “Thank you” She ate the cake, it turned out to be a couple of bites, and shuddered. “It’s probably a good thing Mrs. Cake said I should only have a couple of bites of that. It’s Pinkie’s Triple Chocolate Special with Chocolate Ganache on top. Even if I wasn’t pregnant, I wouldn’t want to eat much more of that. Too much sugar.” Artemis and Cheerilee laughed as they ate their cake.

After resting for a few minutes, Twilight and Cheerilee looked at each other and nodded. Twilight brought her saddlebags over, opened one of the sides and levitated the lesson plans out. She placed the plans in between them while Artemis laid his head on his forehooves and watched.

Suddenly, Artemis smiled as something occurred to him. Celestia needs to see this. She should know exactly what Fire Fly has been teaching those foals, especially if Twilight is right about it not being wise to trust his lesson plans. Besides, it may help her decide what to do with Fire Fly after he finishes his training. If I know my sister, she won’t immediately put him back in charge of that class. She may also have to change her plans for how to ensure that those foals are taught properly. Unaware of the fact that Celestia has already read Fire Fly’s lesson plans, he wrote a letter and sent it to his sister. Not even a minute later, a scroll appeared in front of him. As he read it, his smile widened. If Twilight knows that Celestia’s watching, it’ll only distract her from the task at hoof. I want her to be able to focus right now, so I’ll tell her about it later. Making sure that Twilight didn’t notice, he cast a communication spell.

Earlier in Canterlot, Celestia looked up as her stomach growled and laughed. I’ve been so caught up in this book that I didn’t even notice that lunchtime was a while ago. Closing her book, she stood and levitated it over to her desk before walking out into the hall.

A few minutes later, she walked into the kitchen and saw Apple Crunch sitting at a table as he waited for something in the oven to finish baking. He immediately jumped up and walked over to her.

Stopping in front of her, he bowed. “Princess, I noticed that you didn’t come in for lunch. Is everything alright?”

Celestia laughed “Everything is fine, Apple Crunch. I just got caught up in a good book and didn’t realize what time it was. Can you bring a daisy sandwich, a small salad and a large slice of chocolate cake to the dining room, please?”

Apple Crunch bowed again “Of course, princess. It will be right out.”

Celestia nodded and went to the dining room to wait. She didn’t have to wait long. Only a few minutes later, Apple Crunch walked into the room with her food and a glass of milk.

After finishing her lunch, she walked into the hallway, trying to decide what she should do next. Hearing hoofsteps, she looked over as Sapphire Wing approached her.

“Sapphire Wing, I thought you had today off.” Celestia asked, surprised “Is everything alright?”

“Everything is fine, Princess Celestia.” Sapphire Wing assured her “I know that there is no court today, but the parents of the foals in Fire Fly’s class have gathered in the throne room. If it’s alright with you, princess, we would like an audience with you before our foals have class tomorrow.”

Celestia raised her eyebrows “You’re sure there is nothing wrong?”

Sapphire Wing nodded “Yes, princess”

Celestia was curious at this point, so she nodded “Very Well”

Celestia and Sapphire Wing walked into the throne room to find a small group of ponies gathered in front of the throne.

Mythic Blossom looked at Celestia and bowed “I’m sorry to bring this up on the weekend, princess. This morning, I asked my daughter about exactly what she is learning in school. What she told me was alarming.”

Sapphire Wing nodded “After Mythic Blossom told us of her discovery, each of us asked our foals similar questions and got the same answer. We like your plan of having Princess Twilight teach our foals, but we don’t like the idea of her going along with the lesson plans that Fire Fly gave her in Day Court yesterday.”

Celestia was about to ask, when a scroll appeared in front of her in a flash of midnight blue magic. “Excuse me, I need to read this. It’s from Artemis.” I hope there isn’t another problem. She opened the scroll and read the letter.

Sister,

Twilight is about to go through Fire Fly’s lesson plans. She believes that it isn’t wise to trust them, so she asked Cheerilee to go through them with her. If you want to know exactly what he’s been teaching his class, I can set up a communication spell.

Artemis

Celestia smiled and sent a quick reply. I’m a little upset that she didn’t come to me about this, but she probably wants to prove that she can handle this herself. I’ve already read those plans but I want to see Twilight’s reaction to them. “It seems that Twilight is about to go through Fire Fly’s lesson plans. My brother believes that I need to know exactly what Fire Fly was teaching your foals and is offering to cast a communication spell so I can watch.” She looked at the ponies in front of her. “I’m going to let him do it and I want all of you to watch it with me. This way, we can see what Twilight does about it. If there are other concerns, I will address them at that time.”

The parents nodded. A moment later, they jumped as a large sphere of dark blue magic appeared in front of Celestia. Gathering around and looking inside it, they saw Princess Twilight, Prince Artemis and a pony they didn’t recognize sitting under a tree next to the remains of a picnic.

Celestia explained “The third pony is a teacher from Ponyville that Twilight trusts. Her name is Cheerilee. Twilight decided to ask her for advice.”

The parents nodded, satisfied with that explanation, and turned their attention to what was going on in Ponyville.

In Ponyville, Twilight chose the page for Monday and read the lessons to be taught in the various subjects.

“Well, science and math look alright.” Cheerilee commented “If he’s actually adhering to this, those foals are learning at a pace that’s nearly a year ahead of their age.”

Twilight nodded as they moved onto the lessons for the afternoon. Both of them gasped, causing Artemis to look up at them.

“What’s this?!” Cheerilee asked, looking at Twilight in shock

Twilight glanced up at her, just as shocked. “Science and math may be alright, but reading and history sure aren’t. There’s almost no time set aside for either subject. Most of the afternoon is devoted to teaching them about the creatures of the Everfree Forest, and we know how he’s doing that.” she paused “Also, there doesn’t seem to be any time for recess. Isn’t it important for eight year old foals to move a bit in the middle of the school day, to get rid of some of their energy so that they can focus?”

Cheerilee nodded “If this is being followed, those foals might be able to pass a standard exam on those two subjects. As for your question, it is important to let foals of that age out to play for at least half an hour. Actually, forty-five minutes would be better for foals that young because the pegasi need to fly a bit to strengthen their wings, the earth ponies should run to release pent up energy and the unicorns need to get in a little magic practice so they don’t have magic surges. Plus, all of them need to just play for a bit to let their minds relax. Otherwise, the foals would have trouble sitting still, let alone focusing, for the rest of the afternoon.” She glanced from Twilight to the lesson plans and back again. “It seems that he’s spending almost all of every weekday afternoon scaring them. No wonder they were having nightmares.”

As she listened, Twilight went through the plans for the rest of the month. “They’re all like this! I’m not following these.” She thought for a moment. “How long does it take lesson plans to go through the approval process?”

Cheerilee was looking through the lesson plans as well but glanced up at Twilight. “Canterlot is probably faster but, here in Ponyville, it usually takes about two weeks.”

Twilight glanced back at the lesson plans with a determined expression on her face. “I’m creating new ones today and I’ll go over them with Celestia tonight. She can approve them directly, without making me go through the approval process. I’m sure she’ll be willing to do it in a hurry, as long as they’re appropriate.”

Artemis looked as shocked as they did for a moment before he smiled. I hope Celestia’s watching this.

In Canterlot, Celestia was definitely watching. So were the parents. They were all smiling, very happy with Twilight’s response.

Celestia turned to the parents “Is this what you were talking about? Or is there something else that I need to be aware of?”

Mythic Blossom nodded “Marigold told me that they weren’t studying history or working on reading anymore.” She looked at the sphere and smiled. “I should have known that Princess Twilight would notice it immediately.”

Sapphire Wing smiled “Princess Twilight was wise to seek the opinion of a teacher she trusts, instead of just going with the plans Fire Fly gave her.”

The rest of the parents nodded as everypony turned their attention back to the sphere.

Meanwhile, in Ponyville, Cheerilee nodded “That’s probably the best way to take care of the problem. I’ll help you, if you want.”

Twilight nodded as well. “Thanks, I’m going to need it. For tomorrow morning, I’m going to get to know them, learn their names and things like that. I’d also like to test them to see exactly where they’re at. In the afternoon, I’m going to teach them about the creatures in the Everfree Forest. I don’t see why I can’t go through all of them in one afternoon. If I can knock all of that out in one day, I’ll have a better idea of what I should be teaching them, starting Tuesday. I’ll also have gotten the creatures of the Everfree Forest out of the way.”

She paused, looking at Cheerilee “I need a standard test for foals of that age to use as a baseline. As for the new lesson plans, what I want to create is an outline that has the basics of what they should be learning. I’ll fill in the specifics once I have a better idea of where those foals are and what they need to learn.”

Twilight shook her head, glancing at Fire Fly’s plans again. “I’ll probably just maintain their science and math while bringing up their reading and history. I’m not sure I’ll be able to get all four subjects to the same level in only a month, but I’m going to try. If I can get them to the right point, I’ll switch to a more balanced approach. That will have them moving forward evenly in all subjects, the way they’re supposed to.”

She thought for a second “I’m also adding a forty-five minute recess. The pegasi and earth pony foals won’t be hard, I’ll set up small courses for them to run and fly on. However, I want to work a little closer with the unicorns. Fire Fly was neglecting reading, history and the foal’s need to play so I can’t imagine that he was doing any different with their magic. I need to make sure that they understand the basics and can apply them. If I’m right, and they still need to learn the basics, I’ll add that to the lesson plans. After their specialized exercises, I’ll have them play tag or something.”

In Canterlot, there were several very happy ponies watching this.

“I knew Twilight was the right choice.” Celestia said, to nopony in particular.

In Ponyville, Cheerilee nodded and went over to the base of the tree, where she had put her saddlebags. Opening one of the sides, she pulled out a piece of paper. “There is a test that’s given to every foal on the first day of school to see what they already know so that the teacher knows what they still need to learn. This one is made for students in their first year of school, so it’s designed for eight year old foals. Unfortunately, I only have one left.”

“That’s alright” Twilight replied as she took it in her magic. A quick copy spell later and Twilight was holding fifteen tests in her magic. She levitated the original back to Cheerilee while placing the copies in her saddlebags. Then she opened the other side, pulling out a large pad of paper, a couple of quills and some ink.

She paused, opened her package and ate a couple of oatmeal raisin cookies before drinking some apple juice. After she finished, she looked over at Cheerilee. “Let’s get started.”

Over the next three hours Twilight and Cheerilee put together the outline. On the schedule for Tuesday through Friday, each subject had standard lessons, usually used for the first week of school. For the rest of the month, there were spaces in each subject for more specific lessons to be added once Twilight had a better idea of what the foals needed to learn.

Twilight and Cheerilee were just finishing the outline as a movement caught Artemis’ attention. He looked up as a pair of his Night Guards walk up to them. They stopped a short distance away and saluted “Reporting as ordered, Prince Artemis.”

Twilight looked up “It’s five already?”

Artemis nodded “We should head to Canterlot. Especially if you want to talk to Celestia about the new lesson plans.”

Twilight stood and stretched “You’re right.” She helped Cheerilee pack up the picnic basket with the little food that they didn’t eat before putting both sets of lesson plans into her saddlebags for the trip to Canterlot. “Thank you for helping me, Cheerilee. I’m sorry we didn’t get to the work that you said you needed to do.”

Cheerilee shook her head “That’s alright, Twilight. I’m happy I was able to help. Please, let me know how this week goes. We can make the adjustments with the more specialized lessons next weekend.”

Twilight nodded as she levitated her saddlebags into the air. However, before she could put them on her back, Artemis took them and levitated them to the chariot as they walked towards it. She smiled at him before looking at the chariot to find Mayor Mare, Spike and the girls standing next to it. As they walked closer, Twilight looked at Spike. “Have you decided where you’d like to spend this week?”

Spike nodded “I’d like to stay in Ponyville this week. I’ll take care of the library and Applejack asked me to help out on the farm in a couple of days.”

Twilight nodded and nuzzled him “If anything comes up, or you need anything, send a letter.”

Spike jumped onto her back and gave her a hug. “Be careful, Twilight. No more getting attacked, OK?”

Twilight shuddered “I didn’t plan for that to happen, Spike, and I certainly don’t want it to happen again.”

Spike hugged her again and hopped off her back, landing next to Rarity.

Mayor Mare spoke up “Princess, I would like to schedule a meeting with you Saturday afternoon. At that time, I would like to discuss the events of the week and our plan for the next budget period. I know that isn’t due for a couple of months, but I would like to avoid what happened the last budget period.”

Twilight nodded “That’s fine, Mayor Mare. Please speak to Spike so that he can put it on my schedule. If we’re going to set up another bake sale, I would like to plan it in advance. We can discuss the details on Saturday.”

The girls looked at each other.

“B-be careful” Fluttershy stammered

“Yeah, Twi!” Rainbow added “That’s enough attacks for a while, OK?”

“Yes, Darling” Rarity said “I think we’ve seen our fair share of trouble.”

“They’re right, sugarcube” Applejack added “We’ve had our 3-month allowance for trouble in the last two weeks.” She looked at Artemis and Twilight “We don’t need any more problems for a while. Ya’ll be careful, ya hear?”

“Yeah!” Pinkie exclaimed “Enough fighting! More parties!”

Artemis smiled at them and nuzzled Twilight. “Don’t worry, we’ll take care of her. However, we’d better get going. We’ll see you next weekend.”

Twilight and Artemis climbed into the chariot as the guards got into the harnesses. After a nod from Artemis, they took off towards Canterlot.

In Canterlot, the parents decided wait for Twilight to arrive. As they waited, they gathered together in a small huddle and discussed how they wanted to handle the situation.

Roughly thirty minutes later, Artemis and Twilight walked into the room. They stopped for a moment, surprised to see so many ponies present.

As she and Artemis walked forward, Twilight asked “Is everything alright? I wasn’t expecting to see most of you until tomorrow morning.”

Sapphire Wing nodded “Yes, princess. Everything is fine. After you created your own lesson plans for teaching our foals, we decided that we wanted to wait for you.”

Twilight stared “How did you find out about that? I haven’t even told Celestia yet.”

Artemis smiled and nuzzled her. “I thought my sister should know exactly what Fire Fly was teaching his students, so I set up a communication spell. I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want to distract you from the work you were doing with your lesson plans.” He looked up at Celestia “However, I didn’t know that there were so many other ponies present.”

Celestia laughed “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to surprise you. They were already here when you sent your letter, Artemis. Apparently, they had been asking their foals about the things they were learning in school and discovered that certain subjects were being ignored. They wanted to make sure that I knew about it. They also wanted to make sure I knew that they didn’t want their foals being taught in accordance with Fire Fly’s lesson plans. When I got your letter, I decided that the easiest way to address their concerns was to allow them to watch Twilight create her new lesson plans with me.”

Twilight suddenly looked nervous. I might as well get this over with. She lit her horn and pulled both sets of lesson plans out of her saddlebags. She levitated Fire Fly’s over first. “These are the lesson plans that Fire Fly brought to court.”

Celestia nodded as she took them in her magic and read the first page. “You said that the rest of it is basically the same as the plan for tomorrow, so I see no reason to go through every page right now. If need be, I’ll refer to it later.” She looked at Twilight as she set Fire Fly’s plans on the throne. “Right now, what I’m really interested in seeing is the plans that you and Cheerilee came up with, Twilight.”

Twilight nodded and levitated them over. She held her breath as Celestia read them, growing more nervous as Celestia carefully read through the first week.

Celestia noticed this and laughed “Don’t worry, Twilight. I watched you create these plans, remember? I already know that they’re much better than the ones you were given. However, I have a request.”

Twilight tilted her head “What’s that?”

Celestia smiled “I want to see these again next week because I want to give you a chance to see what level the foals are currently at. It’s only then that you will be able to complete your lesson plans. For now, I’ll approve the plans for this week and reexamine them as a whole next weekend, after you return from Ponyville.”

Twilight sighed in relief and nodded before taking her plans back and returning them to her saddlebags. Then she turned to the other ponies in the room. “I assume you also have a request. Since you waited for us, it must be for either Artemis or myself.”

The parents nodded

“Well,” Twilight began “if it’s for me, I’ll at least listen to it. I’m usually in Ponyville, so there’s no guarantee that I’ll be able grant any requests here in Canterlot.”

Mythic Blossom smiled “We believe that you can grant this one, princess.”

Twilight and Artemis glanced at each other, confused, before looking at Celestia.

Celestia shook her head I think I know what they want to ask. If I’m right, I want to see how Twilight responds before I do anything about it. “Don’t look at me, they haven’t said anything about a request.”

Sapphire Wing stepped forward “Princess Twilight, we’ve seen the care that you have taken in order to ensure that the foals in your class will be taught properly.”

Twilight looked at him, still confused. My class? I thought I was only teaching the foals for a month. Have they already decided that they want me take over Fire Fly’s class?

Sapphire Wing saw her expression, smiled and continued. “We have discussed the topic.”

Twilight nodded “What conclusion have you reached?”

Mythic Blossom smiled as well “Princess Twilight, we are putting together a petition asking you take over the teaching of our foals for the rest of the school year. This is because, even after he completes his refresher course, we want Fire Fly to prove himself before we return our foals to his care.”

Twilight looked at the parents thoughtfully. “Honestly, I expected you to ask this because I saw the looks some of you were giving me the other day. I understand, and agree with, your reluctance to allow Fire Fly to immediately return to teaching your foals after his training is over. However, I’m surprised you’ve come to this conclusion so quickly. Are you sure you don’t want to wait a couple of weeks to see how I do?”

Sapphire Wing cleared his throat, drawing her attention. “Why do you ask, princess?”

“I’m not trained as a teacher.” Twilight replied “As I said, I have no problem teaching them this month. However, if you’re not willing to allow Fire Fly to return to teaching your foals, it may be better to have a trained teacher take over for the rest of the school year. I say this because I’m not sure if I’ll be able to properly balance teaching with my responsibilities in Ponyville. If something happens, I may need to return to Ponyville for an extended period of time. Foals as young as yours require structure and consistency to learn properly and I’d rather not jeopardize that.”

Mythic Blossom’s smile widened as she heard Twilight’s response. “Princess, you’ve just convinced me that the best course of action is for you to take over the class for the rest of the school year.”

Twilight looked at her, surprised. That’s not the point I was trying to get across. “What do you mean?”

Celestia smiled as she stepped forward, gaining everypony’s attention. That’s more or less what I expected her to say. “I can’t speak for everypony here, but this is what your response told me, Twilight. First of all, you’re unsure of your ability to properly teach the foals. That tells me that you’re taking this seriously. Trust me, I know what that feels like because I was just as nervous when I accepted my first personal student. Second, you are aware that teaching is a full time position and don’t want to risk not being able to give it the attention it deserves. Am I right?”

Twilight nodded “Y-yes. However, there is one other thing. It concerns Fire Fly.”

Celestia tilted her head “What about him?”

“What will he do for the rest of the school year?” Twilight asked “Yes, what he was doing was inappropriate and he probably should prove himself before being placed in charge of young foals again. However, I don’t want him to be out of work because I’ve taken over his job.”

Celestia paused for a moment, surprised. I have my own opinion on this but perhaps I should get hers as well. “What do you mean?”

“It isn’t that Fire Fly is a bad teacher. He was able to get his students to a fairly high level in science and math, despite their young age. That wouldn’t have been possible if he was a bad teacher. His idea of teaching the foals about the dangers of the Everfree Forest was also a good one. He just went about it the wrong way.” Twilight responded “Remember, he said that he told those stories because he thought it would be fun. He needs to prove that he can put what’s best for his students over his desire to have fun, especially if his version of fun scares his students. Besides, I believe that he may be teaching the wrong age group. It’s possible that he’s not meant to teach foals that young.”

Celestia raised her eyebrows I hadn’t thought of that, but perhaps she’s right. She paused, staring thoughtfully off into the distance. “You’ve just given me an idea. I was going to have him work as an assistant for a more experienced teacher for a few months. However, there may be a better place for me to put him for the rest of the school year. There is a class of older foals that are having trouble, specifically in math and science. Those students are at an age where he is unlikely to scare them. I think I’ll have him teach those foals and monitor their progress. He can use that as an opportunity to prove himself.”

Celestia turned her gaze back to Twilight “I’d like to get back to you, Twilight. You’re not saying that you have a problem with teaching the foals for the rest of the school year, right? If I understood you correctly, you want to take some time to make sure that you can balance teaching the foals here with your responsibilities in Ponyville. You also want to make sure you can handle teaching them even though you haven’t gone through the training that we usually give teachers. Am I right in thinking that that’s what you meant?”

Twilight nodded

“That’s a good idea.” Celestia said thoughtfully “Very well. I’ll take their petition when they present it to court. However, I’ll wait the two weeks that you have requested and reassess the situation before I make my decision.”

Twilight nodded again “Thank you”

Artemis and the parents watched this exchange in stunned silence.

“Somehow, this turned into a teacher’s conference.” Artemis commented Twilight may think she isn’t prepared for this but, listening to the way she and Celestia are talking right now, a pony could be forgiven for thinking that they are both teachers discussing the actions of a third.

Everypony else nodded

Celestia and Twilight jumped and looked around in surprise. They were so deep into their conversation that they had forgotten about the other ponies in the room.

“Sorry” Twilight said, blushing “It appears we got caught up in our conversation and forgot about everypony else.”

Mythic Blossom laughed “That may be true, princess. Still, I’m glad we got to see this.”

After looking around at the other parents, Sapphire Wing nodded. “Very well. We’ll wait a couple of weeks before submitting our petition, princess. However, after what we saw today, I don’t believe there is much that anypony can do to convince us that there should be anypony teaching our foals but you.”

Twilight stared for a moment before trying to get back on topic. “Don’t worry about bringing lunches for your foals because their lunches will be made by the kitchen staff. If they have any food allergies, bring a written list of what they cannot eat tomorrow morning.”

Celestia smiled “That’s a good idea, Twilight. We could have them bring their lunches own lunches and store them in the kitchen. However, it’ll be easier if we have just Apple Crunch prepare food for them.”

Twilight nodded to Celestia and looked at the parents. “I’ll meet you, and your foals, at the main entrance to the castle at nine tomorrow morning.” She paused as something occurred to her. “One last thing, while I’m teaching them, your foals will have library cards because I plan to use the castle library as a resource to improve their reading. I’ll talk to the librarians about getting the cards ready by the end of the week.”

The parents’ eyes widened before they smiled.

Sapphire Wing bowed “You may be unsure of yourself, Princess Twilight, but you continue to prove to be an able teacher. And you haven’t even started yet.” He glanced around at the other parents. “We will see you tomorrow, your highnesses.” He, and the rest of the parents, bowed and left for the night.

Celestia and Artemis smiled as they saw Twilight stare after them in stunned silence.

Artemis walked over to his sister’s side. “Do you think she still believes that she’ll fail?” he asked quietly

Celestia turned to her brother “I think that’s exactly what she believes.” She responded, just as quietly “I wonder how long it’ll take her to realize that she won’t. It will be interesting to watch how she does.”

Artemis nodded before raising his voice. “Sister, there is something that Twilight and I must speak to you about. Before we do that, I want to show you what happened when I went back to sleep after lowering the moon.”

Twilight turned as Artemis created a large sphere of magic and showed Celestia their conversation. She held her breath as it got to the part where she told them her idea of combining the courts. Suddenly, Twilight found that her vision had gone white as Celestia pulled her into a tight hug.

After a minute or so, Celestia realized that she should probably let her little sister breathe. Releasing Twilight, Celestia nuzzled her sister as she draped a wing over her. “This is a great idea, Twilight! I would love to return to joint courts. Besides, it’ll be a good idea to have different points of view on some of the more difficult petitions.” Keeping her wing over Twilight, Celestia turned to Artemis. “Which option do you prefer, little brother?”

Without hesitation, Artemis replied “The first one. I would rather combine our courts and just have one that lasts all day. Also, if we time it right, we can have lunch with Twilight and the foals. That way, if we’re having trouble with a difficult petition, we can ask her for her opinion without interrupting her class. Besides, we can also unwind a little by playing with the foals during their recess.”

Celestia smiled “That’s my favorite option as well. I also like the idea of eating lunch with Twilight and her class. Tomorrow, we’ll handle our courts as we have been and tell everypony that starting Tuesday, we’ll be combining our courts.” She paused “However, it’ll mean less sleep for you for a little while . . .”

Artemis shook his head “I’m willing to deal with being tired for a few days as I adjust to a day schedule. If I have to, I can cast a sleeping spell on myself for the next couple of nights.”

Celestia nodded “I bet more ponies will come to see you if you’re available during the day.”

Artemis smiled “That reminds me, Wednesday will be a long day. That new astronomical building is opening to the public, remember?”

“That’s right!” Twilight exclaimed “Is it still alright if I come?”

Artemis laughed and nuzzled her “Of course. I would love to have you there.”

Before anything else could be said, Artemis and Celestia raised their heads. Looking at each other, they both nodded before lighting their horns. Celestia lowered the sun and Artemis raised the moon and brought out the stars. Then they looked at Twilight as they heard her stomach growl, quickly followed by both of theirs.

Laughing, Celestia nuzzled Twilight “We’d better go get some dinner before we go to bed.”

The three of them walked out of the throne room. In the hall, they stopped as they saw Cadance, Shining Armor, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang, Steel Night and Cherry Blossom walking towards them. Moonlight Shadow was sitting on his mother’s back.

Twilight and Artemis exchanged glances as they noticed that Steel Night and Midnight Fang were both limping.

Artemis gave Shining Armor a slight glare. “Why does it appear that my guards are injured?”

Shining Armor gave Artemis a sheepish smile. “They did so well on their test yesterday, that I wanted to see exactly what they were capable of. So I decided to push them to their limits today. It seems that I may have pushed them a little too far. Don’t worry, their injuries are not severe and will heal with a few days of rest. They have at least a few days off, right?”

Twilight sighed and shook her head. When it comes to training, he gets excited and forgets everything else! “Shiny, they’re supposed to start guarding me tomorrow, remember?”

Shining Armor’s eyes widened as he looked at Steel Night and Midnight Fang. “Uh-Oh”

Cherry Blossom stepped forward “Princess Twilight, I was wondering if . . .” She trailed off as she saw Twilight’s horn begin to glow.

Steel Night and Midnight Fang gasped in surprise as they found themselves surrounded with their princess’ magic.

Everypony watched as Twilight closed her eyes.

Unaware of the fact that everypony was watching her, Twilight focused on discovering exactly what was causing her guards’ pain. A few moments later, her horn flared brighter as waves of her magic washed over Midnight Fang and Steel Night.

Both of them sighed as their pain faded, almost disappearing completely.

Opening her eyes, Twilight looked over at Cherry Blossom and Moonlight Shadow. “Moonlight, you’re the only one that can do this next part. Will you help me, please?”

Moonlight Shadow nodded and flew over to her.

Twilight smiled “Thank you. This may sound weird, but I want you to walk on their backs. Don’t worry, you won’t hurt them. This will help your daddy and his friend feel better.”

Moonlight flew over and carefully landed on his father’s back. He walking up and down it a few times. Steel Night sighed in pleasure as his son’s hooves worked a bit of soreness out of his muscles. Giggling, Moonlight flew over to Midnight Fang and did the same thing, getting the same reaction. He looked up at Twilight when he was done.

Twilight smiled at him “Good job. If you want to help your daddy a bit more, you should take a bath with him tonight and do that again. It will make him feel really good.”

She turned to Midnight Fang “You should probably take a long hot bath tonight and make sure you stretch while in the hot water.” Looking at both Steel Night and Midnight Fang, she continued “You’re both probably going to be sore for a couple of days, but there shouldn’t be any more pain.”

Twilight watched as Cherry Blossom flew forward and picked up her son. Then she turned her attention to Steel Night and Midnight Fang. They were both stretching and letting out sighs of relief.

Artemis stepped next to Twilight “How did you know what to do?”

Twilight turned to him “You know that Rainbow trains a lot because she wants to join the Wonderbolts, right?” She paused until he nodded “She also crashes a lot. I know I’m not medically trained, but I decided to learn a few basic healing spells so I could try to help her stay out of the hospital. If her injuries aren’t severe, I usually heal her myself.” She laughed “I do this for everypony’s sanity because she’s a horrible patient.”

Celestia and Artemis laughed “I bet she is!” Celestia replied “It was smart of you to learn those healing spells.” She paused for a moment before giving Twilight a curious look. “It looked like you cast three different healing spells at the same time. Or did you combine them?”

Twilight laughed and shook her head “I’m not crazy enough to combine those spells. I cast the three of them at the same time. Yes, I had to manage them carefully but it wasn’t too difficult.” She paused and glanced at her guards nervously. “Of course, I should have asked them for permission before healing them.”

Silver Shadow laughed as he looked at Midnight Fang and Steel Night. They were both smiling as they stretched their wings. “Princess, I don’t think that’s a problem. If I had to guess, I’d say that they’re happy you took care of their injuries.”

Twilight nodded and turned to her brother. “Shiny, did they pass your test?”

Shining Armor smiled and nodded “With flying colors. Um, pun not intended.”

“So you don’t have a problem with them guarding me?”

Shining Armor shook his head and nuzzled his sister.

“Good” Twilight replied, returning his nuzzle, before turning to her guards. “My brother said that he pushed you to your limits. Which means he probably pushed you past them. It’s alright if you need to take tomorrow off to rest.”

Without hesitation, they both shook their heads.

“We appreciate the offer, princess, but that will not be necessary.” Midnight Fang replied

Steel Night nodded “Between your healing spells and getting some rest tonight, we’ll be fine for our shift tomorrow.”

Twilight searched the faces of both guards and found nothing but determination. “Very well. I want you both to meet me in the throne room at eight thirty. For now, go home and get some rest.”

“Yes, princess” They both bowed and headed back down the hallway.

Cherry Blossom smiled and bowed to Twilight before she and Moonlight Shadow followed Steel Night.

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Cadance and Shining Armor looked at each other for a moment before heading for the dining room. They were met by Apple Crunch.

“Good Evening, your highnesses. For dinner tonight, we have prepared Fettuccine Alfredo, into which we’ve incorporated a vegetable medley. Desert is banana pudding with whipped cream. Everything is almost ready and will be out momentarily.”

“One moment, please.” Twilight said

Apple Crunch turned to her “Yes, princess?”

“Beginning tomorrow, I will be teaching the foals in Fire Fly’s class here in the castle.” Twilight told him “Every weekday, I’ll need you to prepare lunches for them. There are fourteen of them and I believe they’re seven or eight years old.” She paused, looking around “The dining room isn’t set up for several foals to eat in here, so we’ll probably just eat in the classroom until something else can be arranged.”

Apple Crunch smiled “Of course, princess.” While I didn’t see this coming, I’m glad she asked me to do this. I enjoy preparing meals for foals because, in order to get them to eat it, I have to be creative with the flavors and the designs of their meals. He headed into the kitchen to finish preparing dinner and come up with a plan for the foals’ lunch tomorrow.

Celestia smiled “I’ve already thought of that, Twilight, and ordered a picnic table for the foals to be built. Once it’s ready, I’ll have it put in here. That way, we’ll all be able to eat together. After we eat, we can head out into one of the courtyards, or the gardens, for recess.”

Twilight smiled and nodded “My favorite place to play after lunch was the small garden behind the castle. Maybe I’ll take them there.”

“Yes,” Celestia replied, laughing “I remember several afternoons that I actually had to teach you there because you didn’t want to leave.”

Twilight blushed

Everypony else laughed as they moved over to the dining table and sat down. Celestia sat at the head of the table with Artemis on one side and Cadance on the other. Twilight sat next to Artemis and Shining Armor sat next to Cadance.

Cadance looked at Celestia, Artemis and Twilight. “Shiny and I are going to bed early tonight because we’re leaving for the Crystal Empire first thing in the morning. Earlier today, we got a letter from the guards we left in charge of Flurry Heart.” She shook her head and laughed. “Apparently, she’s driving them crazy and they’re begging us to return as soon as possible.”

Celestia laughed and turned to Twilight and Artemis “Something you two will be experiencing yourselves, not nearly soon enough.”

“What do you mean by that?” Twilight asked, nervously Do I really want to know the answer?

Celestia laughed “It means, I can’t wait for my little niece or nephew.”

Twilight stuck out her tongue at Celestia. “Oh yeah? Well, when our foal drives us too crazy, we’ll just bring him or her to you!”

Celestia laughed harder “I’m counting on it!”

Cadance and Shining Armor laughed as well. “You two are going to have to come visit us soon.” She told Twilight and Artemis

Artemis looked at his niece “Why do you say that?”

“Do you really think we aren’t going to tell the crystal ponies that Twilight’s pregnant? Or about what happened here?” she responded

Shining Armor smiled and nodded “As soon as we do, they’re probably going to demand that we bring you two for a visit.”

Twilight looked at him “Why would they do that?”

Cadance laughed “You’re special to the ponies in the Crystal Empire, Twilight. Especially after what you did there.”

Twilight stared “Why? It was Spike that saved them, not me.”

Shining Armor smiled “Yes, but it was you who solved Sombra’s mystery and found the crystal heart. You also found one of the spells needed to put the heart back together after Flurry broke it and helped us put it back together. As soon as they found out about that, they put you on the same level as Spike. Then, there’s the fact that you’re an alicorn and my sister.”

Cadance smiled as well “As for you, Uncle Artemis, many of the crystal ponies can’t wait for a chance to see you again.”

“What?” Artemis asked “Why?”

“They found out about how you helped protect the Crystal Empire, both from Sombra a thousand years ago and the snowstorm when Flurry broke the crystal heart.” Cadance replied “Besides, the Crystal Empire is far to the north. We get a very good view of the stars every night, so many of the crystal ponies are interested in astronomy. They want to get to know the pony who controls the night sky that they admire so much.”

Artemis just stared at her

Celestia smiled as she saw her brother’s shock. It’s about time ponies took a greater interest in his night. And this time, I don’t have to encourage it. She was torn from her thoughts as Apple Crunch and a few other chefs entered the room with dinner.

Dinner was eaten quickly and without much conversation. They ended the meal early so that Shining Armor and Cadance could get to sleep early. After dinner, they headed to their rooms.

After dinner, Twilight and Artemis headed to his room. Artemis was about to ask Twilight what she wanted to do before they went to bed. Before he got the chance, she walked out onto the balcony and sat down. He followed her out and sat next to her. Feeling her shiver, he wrapped a wing around her and pulled her close.

She smiled up at him “Thanks. It’s cold tonight.”

He nodded “We should be getting snow any day now.”

They sat like that for almost half an hour, just watching the stars, before Artemis nuzzled her. “Come on, let’s get some sleep. Besides, we don’t want to keep Mother and Father waiting.”

Twilight smiled and nodded as they both stood and walked back inside. Shivering, she closed the door to the balcony before joining Artemis in bed.

He pulled her into his hooves and smiled as she snuggled close. Noticing that she was still shivering slightly, he pulled a heavy blanket over them. Feeling her lift her head, he looked down in time to be pulled into a kiss. Holding her tight, he deepened the kiss. As it broke, he sighed happily as she laid her head on his chest and closed her eyes. He nuzzled her before laying his head on a pillow and closing his eyes as well. It wasn’t long before they both fell asleep.

Chapter 43

Sundance and Midnight Armor were cuddling together on the cloud when they suddenly sensed a familiar presence. They looked up as Artemis appeared, watching as he closed his eyes and lit his horn. A moment later, Twilight appeared on one side of him and Celestia appeared on the other. As Twilight, Artemis and Celestia flew over, Sundance and Midnight Armor stood so they could hug their children. Afterwards, they both lay back down, leaving some space between them. Celestia lay to the right of Sundance and Artemis lay on the left.

Midnight Armor sighed and started to stand so he could move closer to his son but paused when he felt a weight against his right side. Surprised, he looked down to find that Twilight had decided to lay next to him, snuggling close to his side.

Sundance smiled as she saw the surprised look on her husband’s face. She watched as he smiled and nuzzled Twilight before covering her with a wing. Well done, Twilight. “How did your meeting go, Twilight?”

Midnight Armor nodded “Yes, I’m curious about those lesson plans you wanted a second opinion on. Were they as bad as you thought they might be?”

They were surprised as Artemis and Celestia both laughed and lit their horns. Suddenly, there were two large spheres of magic in front of everypony, one dark blue and one golden. Artemis showed them their meeting with Cheerilee.

Sundance heard Cheerilee’s comment on the lessons for math and science and raised an eyebrow. Perhaps Twilight was suspicious over nothing. It sounds like those plans are fine. She gasped as Twilight and Cheerilee discussed how reading, history and play time for the foals had been replaced with stories about the creatures of the Everfree Forest. Sighing, she shook her head. Never mind.

Midnight Armor shook his head as well, watching as Twilight created her own plans. “It seems you were wise not to trust those plans, Twilight.”

Celestia had already watched Twilight create her lesson plans, but smiled as she watched it again. Before their parents could say anything, she showed them the other side of the events of the afternoon. “These are the parents of the foals that Twilight will be teaching.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded as they watched the parents voice their concerns before the letter from Artemis appeared in front to Celestia.

Twilight stared as she heard what the parents had to say about her actions. Turning to Celestia, she asked “That’s why they waited for me?”

Celestia nodded “They liked what they saw. Your actions were what made them come to their decision so quickly.”

Midnight Armor looked from Celestia to Twilight “What decision are you talking about?”

Artemis laughed and showed them what happened after he and Twilight walked into the throne room.

Sundance smiled as she heard Mythic Blossom’s request. “That didn’t take long.” She listened to Twilight’s response. Why is she so hesitant? She nodded thoughtfully as she heard Twilight’s explanation. I suppose it makes sense for her to be nervous about taking over such a position on a long term basis without the training usually given to teachers. Not to mention her other obligations. She’s right, both could affect her ability to do the job properly.

Midnight Armor and Sundance’s eyes widened as Celestia and Twilight switched to discussing what should be done with Fire Fly.

Hearing his son’s comment, Midnight Armor nodded “Artemis is right. If I didn’t know better, and I heard this, I would think Celestia and Twilight were both teachers that were considering what should be done about a third.”

The rest of his family looked at him. Celestia laughed and Artemis smiled, while Twilight just stared. Midnight Armor saw this and nuzzled her before turning his attention back to his son’s magic.

Sundance and Midnight Armor laughed as they heard Artemis and Celestia’s quiet conversation about Twilight’s belief that she’ll fail.

Twilight opened her mouth but, before she could say anything, Celestia showed their parents the scene in the hallway with Cadance, Shining Armor, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang, Steel Night, Cherry Blossom and Moonlight Shadow.

Twilight looked up at Midnight Armor and Sundance, knowing what they were going to ask. “The bat pony stallions are Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night. They’re members of Artemis’ Night Guard. You already know that Silver Shadow is the Captain. Midnight Fang and Steel Night are the two that Artemis has chosen to protect me. The bat pony mare is Steel Night’s wife, Cherry Blossom, and the foal is their two week old son. Last week, they asked Artemis to choose a name for their son. Artemis took my suggestion and named him Moonlight Shadow. As for why I made that suggestion . . .” She lit her horn, created a sphere of magenta magic and showed them what happened the evening that they named Moonlight Shadow.

Midnight Armor and Sundance laughed as they watched Moonlight’s antics. “You were both right. Moonlight Shadow is the perfect name for that foal.”

Twilight nodded

Everypony turned their attention back to Celestia’s magic. She showed their parents Shining Armor’s explanation of how he had pushed Steel Night and Midnight Fang too far, accidentally injuring them.

Sundance and Midnight Armor’s eyes widened as they watched Twilight heal her guards before listening to her explanation of why she learned the healing spells.

Curious, Sundance turned to Twilight. “Does Rainbow Dash crash that often?”

Twilight rolled her eyes and nodded. Everypony turned to the sphere of her magic as she showed them a collection of Rainbow’s crashes through the years. “Keep in mind, all of these are just from the last four years that I’ve known her.”

As the memory finished, everypony turned and stared at her. “Well,” Sundance began “that certainly answers that question.”

Nodding, Midnight Armor added “I understand why you felt the need to learn those healing spells, Twilight.”

Sundance paused for a moment before she smiled at Artemis and Twilight. “Did you two tell your sister about the idea that Twilight came up with?”

Twilight returned her smile and glanced at Artemis before laying her head on the cloud. I’m sure he wants to be the one to show them. Besides, I’m getting tired.

Artemis laughed and showed them what happened after the parents left, but before they went out into the hallway.

Sundance and Midnight Armor watched as Artemis showed Celestia what they had talked about after he had returned from lowering the moon. Midnight Armor laughed as Celestia pulled Twilight into a crushing hug. They both smiled as they watched Celestia and Artemis decide on a plan to combine their courts and still have time to see Twilight and the foals for lunch.

Midnight Armor smiled at Celestia and Artemis. “Well, that answers the questions your mother and I had for tonight.”

Sundance nodded “There aren’t any pressing issues to discuss this time. What do you want to do now?”

Midnight Armor turned to Twilight, about to ask for her opinion, and gasped in surprise. Sundance, Celestia and Artemis heard him gasp and looked over. They watched as he lifted his wing to reveal that she had fallen asleep. She grumbled something about cold and snuggled closer. Laughing softly, he lowered his wing. Looking at his wife, he quietly replied. “It appears that our youngest has an idea.”

Sundance smiled as she looked at Twilight. “I like that idea. It’s been far too long since we’ve gotten the chance to relax as a family. After everything that’s happened recently, it would be wonderful to just rest.”

Celestia and Artemis smiled and snuggled closer to their mother. Sundance spread both wings, placing one over Celestia and the other over Artemis, and lay her head on the cloud. Midnight Armor smiled, tightened his wing around Twilight and nuzzled her before laying his head on the cloud as well.

A couple of hours later, Sundance opened her eyes and glanced at Artemis and Celestia. She noticed that both of them had fallen asleep, still snuggled close to her side. This hasn’t happened in several centuries. She looked over to see that her husband was watching them. Smiling, she whispered “When was the last time they did this?”

“It’s hard to tell. Close to fifteen hundred years ago, I think.” He answered softly before glancing down in surprise as Twilight stirred.

She yawned and opened her eyes. “Dad?” She mumbled, realizing that she was still lying next to Midnight Armor. “When did I fall asleep?”

He smiled and nuzzled her. “A couple of hours ago. It’s alright, Celestia and Artemis fell asleep not long after you did.”

Twilight returned his nuzzle before laying her head on the cloud.

Sundance watched this with a smile before nuzzling Celestia and Artemis. Both of them immediately shifted slightly, moving closer to her. Celestia opened her eyes, smiled and returned their mother’s nuzzle. Artemis mumbled something about being tired and buried his face into their mother’s neck. Sundance giggled and nuzzled her son a little harder. This is the same thing Twilight did.

Artemis groaned I just want to sleep. He felt another nuzzle, gave up and opened his eyes. The only thing he saw was white. Confused, he raised his head and saw that the white was his mother’s coat. I can’t remember the last time I did this. He was about to apologize when he noticed how happy she was. Instead, he smiled and returned her nuzzle before laying his head on the cloud. Glancing over at their father, he saw that Twilight was also awake.

Giggling, Twilight looked at Artemis “Didn’t you laugh at me when I did that? Now it’s your turn.” She paused “I’m twenty one so the last time I reacted that way, aside from yesterday, was roughly thirteen years ago. What about you?”

Midnight Armor laughed “I believe it was roughly fifteen hundred years ago.” He paused, looking at Twilight. “You’re twenty one years old?”

Blushing, she nodded “I’ve never really considered it until now, but that’s a really big age difference.”

Laughing, Artemis stood, walked over and lay down next to her. “I don’t care about that, Twilight. Besides, there’s only one other living pony that’s as old as I am.”

Celestia laughed as well. “That’s me but, as much as I love him, he’s my brother.”

Sundance nodded “I already said that you’re the best pony for our son, Twilight. Midnight and I don’t care about the age difference either.” She tilted her head thoughtfully. “Celestia was born on the summer solstice and Artemis was born on the winter solstice. Based on what Celestia and Artemis have told us about the current calendar system, that’s June twenty first and December twenty first. What about you, Twilight?”

Before Twilight could answer, Celestia smiled “March thirtieth.”

I’ll be sure to remember that. Sundance nodded before something else occurred to her. “I know you said that you’re named “Twilight” because of a family tradition. Where did the “Sparkle” come from?”

Twilight looked at her “There are two answers to that. The first is simply that Sparkle is my family name. The second is a little different. Mom told me that I was born at night. She saw the stars sparkling in the night sky and decided to use that as the inspiration for my name. She said that she considered “Twilight Sparkling Sparkle”, “Twilight Sparkling”, “Twilight Star Sparkle” and “Twilight Star”. None of them seemed right, so she eventually decided on Twilight Sparkle.

Celestia looked at her little sister. “I didn’t know that. Still, I’m glad Twilight Velvet named you what she did. Those other options sound a little off.”

Artemis stared at Twilight in shock. The mare that I love, and who is carrying my foal, was born under the light of my moon and stars? And she’s named after the way my stars sparkle? I know it’s old-fashioned, but it almost seems like- Artemis was torn from his thoughts as he heard his father’s voice.

“Hmm” Midnight Armor said thoughtfully “Given what Twilight just said about her name, and what she has done for our family, it’s almost as if she was born for Artemis.”

Celestia nodded “You’re right, Father. Especially if you also take into account that she’s been fascinated by the night sky ever since she was a small filly. I can’t even count the number of times that I’ve found her asleep under a telescope, using star charts as a pillow.” She smiled at Twilight “I’m not surprised that she fell for the pony who controls the night sky that she loves so much.”

Twilight blushed and attempted to bury her face in her hooves. She didn’t get the chance as Artemis pulled her into a kiss.

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Celestia smiled

As the kiss broke, Artemis and Twilight looked around and saw their family watching them. Artemis blushed while Twilight turned an even brighter shade of red.

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Celestia laughed

Still laughing, Midnight Armor reached over and nuzzled both of them. “Its fine, you two. Besides, Twilight is pregnant, so we know you’ve done more than just kiss.” He smiled at his son. “Well done, Artemis.”

Everypony laughed harder as Twilight buried her face in Artemis’ shoulder while he just stared at his father.

Eventually, Celestia came to the rescue. “Yes, but they’ve only been courting for two weeks. They had originally intended to take things much slower. In fact, they told me that they were going to wait a year before they even considered having a foal. If I understand correctly, they only moved faster when Blaze nearly killed Artemis. Twilight getting pregnant was completely unintentional. I suppose it’s not surprising that they’re still a bit shy.”

Sundance stood, walked over and lay down by Artemis’ side. She reached over his back so she could nuzzle both of them.

Celestia stood as well and moved to Midnight Armor’s other side before laying down and nuzzling her father.

Midnight Armor smiled at Celestia before nuzzling Twilight and Artemis again. “That makes sense. However, I’m glad things worked out this way. Not that Artemis was attacked, but that it forced the two of you to move faster.”

Sundance nodded “It may have happened sooner than you planned, but we’re very happy that you two are having a foal now.” She paused and smiled mischievously at Artemis and Twilight. “Hopefully, this foal is the first of many.”

Twilight and Artemis looked at each other in shock before turning to her. “W-what?!”

“Mom,” Twilight groaned “will you please let me have this foal before you start asking for more? And don’t give Celestia any ideas!”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Celestia stared at Twilight for a moment before they began to laugh.

After a few minutes, Celestia calmed down enough to speak. “Mother didn’t say anything I haven’t already thought of, Twilight. I told you that I wanted a large family, remember?”

Face still red, Twilight turned to Celestia “Yeah. I also remember telling you that, if that’s what you want, you should have a couple of foals yourself!”

Midnight Armor turned to Celestia “That’s not a bad idea.” He commented “You’ve had more time than your brother. Why haven’t you found somepony, Celestia? Why haven’t you had at least a couple of foals?”

Celestia blushed “Did you have to tell them that, Twilight?”

“Yes”

Sundance and Midnight Armor immediately began laughing again. This time, Artemis joined them.

Twilight continued “Should I tell them what you said after that?”

“No” Celestia immediately replied

“Yes” Sundance, Midnight Armor and Artemis replied, at the same time.

Twilight smirked “Sorry, Celestia. Majority rules.” She paused “Let’s see, I believe it was something about how you are a ruling figure of Equestria and can’t be a pregnant princess.”

Sundance looked confused “Yet you wanted Twilight to be one?”

Artemis laughed “That was the next thing Twilight said!”

Celestia’s face was almost as red as Twilight’s had been earlier. Suddenly, she and Artemis raised their heads as they felt to pull of their respective celestial bodies. Thank goodness this conversation is over. Looking at their parents, she said “It’s time for me to raise the sun.”

Before Artemis could say anything, Twilight turned to him. “Can you wake me as well? I want to make sure everything’s ready, and I still don’t know what room I’ll be using.” She nuzzled Midnight Armor before standing and walking over to nuzzle Sundance. “I’ll see you both tonight.”

Artemis nodded to Twilight before turning to their parents. “I have to rest for Night Court tonight, so I’ll be back soon.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled and nodded, watching as their children disappeared. She turned to her husband “This is turning into a very nice visit.”

He nodded “I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time.”

Artemis opened his eyes, lit his horn and lowered the moon before looking down at Twilight. He smiled as she yawned and nuzzled deeper into his chest. They lay like that for a few minutes before she lifted her head. “Good Morning, Artemis”

He returned her nuzzle. “Good Morning, Twilight”

Twilight sighed and shook her head before returning it to his chest. “We don’t even know whatwe’re having, let alone had our foal yet. I can’t believe Mom’s already talking about multiple foals.”

“I’m not sure where that came from.” He replied, shaking his head as well “When Celestia and I were growing up, she used to tell us that we needed to get married first.”

“My parents did that, too.” Twilight shrugged “Maybe it has to do with the events of the last couple of weeks. It’s changed the way many of us think about that.”

He nodded “I bet you’re right.” They stood and stretched “Let’s go get breakfast.”

Twilight nodded “I want to see Shiny and Cadance before they leave. It may be the last chance I get to see them for a while.”

Artemis laughed as he opened the door for Twilight and followed her into the hall. A pair of Night Guards fell into step behind them as they walked towards the dining room. “Not if they’re right about the Crystal Ponies demanding that we visit.”

Neither of them noticed that Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor were waiting for them in the hallway.

Twilight looked at Artemis “Sure, but when would we go? Things are about to get rather busy for us. Who knows how long it’ll be before they calm down again.”

“You’re right.” Artemis tilted his head “Well, Hearth’s Warming is in a couple of weeks.”

Twilight nodded thoughtfully “That’s true, but don’t you think Celestia, my parents, the girls and Spike are going to want to celebrate it with us?” she paused “Unless . . .”

“All of us go to the Crystal Empire for the holiday?” Artemis finished, not noticing Cadance’s eyes light up.

Twilight nodded again “The girls may not be able to come because they might want to spend the holiday with their families, but we’ll invite them. If they say no, we’ll see them the weekend after the holiday.”

“That’s not a bad idea.” He told her “My only concern is, can you, Celestia and I all leave Equestria for that length of time? Perhaps one of us will have to come back early.”

“Or head to the Crystal Empire later, closer to the holiday.” Twilight said “We should talk to Celestia and see what she thinks.”

“I love the idea”

Artemis and Twilight jumped as they heard Celestia’s voice. They both looked down the hall as Cadance ran forward and pulled them both into a tight hug. Returning Cadance’s hug, they saw Celestia and Shining Armor smiling at them.

Celestia continued “As for the three of us leaving Equestria, it should be fine as long as we’re not gone for more than a week. If we time it right, everypony will be too busy celebrating to care that we’re gone.”

Twilight looked at Artemis, unaware that Steel Night and Midnight Fang had walked up behind her. “I’m giving Steel Night and Midnight Fang the holiday off. I refuse to separate them from their families for Hearth’s Warming, especially since its Moonlight Shadow’s first.” She looked around at her family. “All of us will be together, so there shouldn’t be a problem with safety.”

Shining Armor nodded “Good idea, Twily. Besides, we have our own guards in the Crystal Empire. We’ll make sure you’re safe.” He looked past Artemis and Twilight “Did you two hear that?”

Midnight Fang nodded while Steel Night said “Yes, your highness.”

Twilight turned around in surprise “I thought I asked you to meet me at eight thirty. That’s at least an hour away.”

Before either of them could respond, Artemis laughed “I’m sure they just wanted to make sure that they made a good first impression. Besides, it never hurts to be early.”

Celestia laughed as well “Come on, let’s get something to eat.”

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Cadance and Shining Armor walked into the dining room to find several stacks of pancakes on the table. However, Twilight’s place had a bowl of oatmeal with two smaller bowls next to it. One had light brown sugar and the other had raisins in it. Also present was a mug of hot chocolate and a glass of orange juice.

Seeing Twilight’s smile, Apple Crunch laughed “I know that you like oatmeal on chilly mornings, princess, as well as what you like in it.”

Still smiling, Twilight nodded “Thank you”

Everypony sat down and ate their breakfast. As soon as they finished, they walked to the castle’s side entrance.

Twilight hugged Shining Armor and Cadance “We’ll see you soon.”

Cadance smiled “I can’t wait for your visit. The crystal ponies are going to be so happy to see you.”

Artemis laughed as he hugged Cadance “Hearth’s Warming is in a couple of weeks, Cadance.”

Cadance opened her mouth to respond but was cut off by Twilight.

“Don’t say that that’s not soon enough, Cadance.” Twilight told her “If you use any more of Pinkie’s lines, I’m going to start restricting the amount of time she’s allowed to be near you. One Pinkie is enough, I don’t need you to start acting like her.”

Everypony laughed as Cadance and Shining Armor climbed into a chariot.

“Be careful, Twily.” Shining Armor said “I don’t want to hear about another attack.”

“You too, Uncle Artemis” Cadance added

Twilight and Artemis nodded as the pegasi pulling the chariot spread their wings and took off.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight walked back inside, followed by Steel Night and Midnight Fang.

“Why are we going to the library?” Twilight asked as they followed Celestia through the halls.

Celestia laughed “Your classroom is just down the hall from the library. I thought it would be best for you and the foals to be somewhere quiet, away from any potential chaos that comes with court.”

Twilight nodded and walked into the room they had stopped in front of. Surprised, she looked around, finding it empty, before glancing at Celestia “No desks for the foals?”

Celestia shook her head “None were available on such short notice. Fifteen will be delivered here this evening. Unfortunately, you’ll have to come up with something else for today.” I wonder what she’ll do.

“Hmm” Twilight looked around as she walked to the center of the room. After a moment, she closed her eyes and lit her horn.

Celestia, Artemis, Steel Night and Midnight Fang watched as Twilight used the Solid Illusion Spell to create a long table off to the side of the room that was the perfect height for small foals to sit at. Next, she summoned cushions from various parts of the castle. The cushions rose into the air before spreading out into a half circle and settling around a larger purple one. Another flash of her magic summoned her saddlebags from Artemis’ room and placed them next to the purple cushion. Opening one of the sides, several pencils and a stack of paper floated out and over to the table.

When she finished, Twilight turned to Celestia. “I shouldn’t need more that. Today’s going to be a light one anyway. I want to spend the morning getting to know them and seeing where they’re at. As for the afternoon, I’ll use illusions to teach them about the creatures of the Everfree Forest.” She looked at Artemis “More than half of the foals had a nightmare where they were attacked by a Manticore, right?”

He nodded

Twilight lit her horn again and showed them the one that she and the girls met when they faced Night-Terror Knight, purring and licking Fluttershy. “They won’t be afraid of this, right? I’ll tell them the story about the one we met. If you attack, like Rainbow, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie and I did, it will fight back. However, if you help it, like Fluttershy did, well . . .”

Artemis stared “I’ve never seen a Manticore do that before.”

Celestia shook her head in wonder. “Only Fluttershy could pull that off.”

Twilight nodded “You’re right, and I’ll make sure the foals understand that. The point is, Manticores aren’t always scary. They can be nice, too. Right now, the foals need to see one that isn’t attacking anypony.”

Artemis smiled “Good idea”

Celestia nodded “I like your idea much better than Fire Fly’s, Twilight.”

Twilight smiled “I’ve lived next to the forest long enough that I’ve met several of the creatures that live there. Those that I haven’t met, Fluttershy has, and she enjoys telling us about her animal friends.”

Twilight was about to say something else but paused as she looked at the clock. “I need to head to the main entrance to meet the foals and their parents.”

Everypony left the room and walked out into the hallway. Celestia hugged Twilight before heading to court. Artemis nuzzled Twilight before heading back to his room to get some more sleep.

Twilight, Steel Night and Midnight Fang headed for the castle’s main entrance. They got there with a few minutes to spare. As they walked outside, they saw the parents and foals waiting just inside the castle gates.

The parents bowed as Twilight walked up to them. The foals, however, ran forward and gathered in front of her.

Twilight smiled at the foals before turning to their parents. “Do any of your foals have any allergies to food? What about foods that you’d rather they not eat?”

Mythic Blossom stepped forward and nuzzled Marigold. “The only thing I ask, princess, is that there isn’t too much candy or sweets.”

Twilight laughed “You don’t have to worry about that. I can handle a few hyper foals, but fourteen? No thank you, I’d like to keep my sanity.”

The parents laughed as well, immediately understanding her point.

After she finished laughing, Twilight continued “There’s been a change since I saw you yesterday evening.” She saw the curious glances and smiled “Artemis and Celestia have decided to change the way their courts are run. Starting tomorrow, your foals will be eating lunch, and having recess, with all three of us.”

The parents’ eyes went wide for a moment before they smiled. The foals cheered and started jumping up and down.

A young Pegasus colt asked “We really get recess again, princess?”

Marigold looked up at Twilight “We get to eat lunch with you, Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis, Princess Twilight?”

Twilight laughed and nodded

“YAY!”

Sapphire Wing looked curious “If I may ask, princess, what is the change to Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis’ courts that you mentioned?”

Twilight smiled “They will both be making an announcement in their courts today and tonight. If you hurry, you’ll be able to hear Celestia explain it to the ponies of Day Court. As for your foals, I believe it’s time to get class started. Please return at five to pick them up. I know that’s a longer school day than usual, but I had to extend it to account for the fact that I added a somewhat lengthy recess. Depending on how today goes, I may add a couple of other things as well. Sapphire Wing, I would like you to come with us so that you know where my classroom is. This afternoon, please have a Day Guard bring the parents when it’s time to pick up their foals.”

Sapphire Wing bowed “Of course, Princess Twilight”

Twilight noticed that a few of the parents were looking at Steel Night and Midnight Fang. “I’m sorry. The Night Guards behind me are Steel Night and Midnight Fang. They are the guards that Artemis has assigned to protect me, so they will be with me, and your foals, throughout the school day.”

Mythic Blossom smiled “That means that our foals will definitely be safe with you, princess. We will see you this afternoon.”

As the parents, aside from Sapphire Wing, bowed and walked away, Twilight smiled at the foals. “Let’s go inside so we can get started.”

Twilight and the foals, followed by Steel Night, Midnight Fang and Sapphire Wing, walked into the castle and headed for her classroom.

As they got there, Sapphire Wing paused at the door. “Princess Twilight, I will see to it that the parents of your students are here at five. If it’s alright with you, princess, I would like to head to Day Court.”

Twilight nodded “Thank you”

Sapphire Wing bowed and headed for the throne room.

Meanwhile, Celestia was heading towards the throne room. A few minutes later, she walked inside and looked around. As usual, there were dozens of ponies waiting for her. As she made it to the throne and sat down, a slight movement off to the side caught her attention. She looked over to see Sapphire Wing walk into the throne room. That’s odd, he’s not usually present during court. She gestured for him to approach. When he got close enough, she quietly asked “Is everything alright?”

“Of course, Princess Celestia” he replied “Princess Twilight mentioned that there would be a change to court but said that you would be making an announcement.”

Celestia smiled “I’ll make the announcement momentarily.” She raised her voice. “Good Morning, my little ponies. Before court begins, I have an announcement to make. Due to recent events, Artemis and I have decided to change to the way our courts are run.” Looking around, she continued “I’m not sure how many of you are aware of this but, one thousand years ago, Artemis and I ruled together. We have decided to return to that.” She paused, noticing their confusion, and decided to explain further. “There will no longer be separate Day and Night Courts. Instead, we will have one court, in which we will work together to help the citizens of Equestria.”

Arctic Breeze stepped forward “When will this change take place, princess?”

“The first part will take place tomorrow.” She told him “Artemis will be telling his court tonight and joining me tomorrow. Court will still take place during the day and there will be no change to the hour long lunch break.” She paused, looking around “There is a second part. Once Twilight is no longer teaching, she will be joining us as a part of the joint court. This is not a temporary measure, but a permanent change.”

Immediately, the ponies in the throne room started talking quietly, not sure about the sudden change. They looked up as Celestia cleared her throat.

“I know that this is a bit sudden. However, it is important that this is started as soon as possible. This is because it will address a problem that became apparent during the events of two weeks ago.” Seeing their confusion, she continued “It was only possible for Blueblood to implement his plan because he was able to keep my brother and I focused on separate tasks. With both of us working together once more, such a plan will no longer be possible.”

She looked around at them “Now that the announcement has been made, I would like to get court started.”

A group of nobles huddled together for a moment before a unicorn stallion turned to Celestia and bowed.

Great, it’s going to be one of those days. “Yes, Golden Flash?”

“Princess Celestia, on behalf of the nobility, I would like to express a concern and a complaint.”

We haven’t changed anything yet and they’re already starting to complain. Keeping her expression neutral, Celestia nodded for him to continue.

Meanwhile, Artemis had just made it back to his room. I’m actually tired enough that I can go back to sleep without needing to use a sleeping spell. Yawning, he walked over to his bed, climbed in and fell asleep.

In the dream realm, Sundance and Midnight Armor looked up as Artemis appeared in front of them. They smiled as he walked over and lay down between them.

Artemis lay his head on the cloud and closed his eyes. Just as he was about to fall asleep, he felt a soft nuzzle into the side of his neck. He opened his eyes as Sundance nuzzled him again.

“Is something wrong?” she asked, concerned

Smiling, he shook his head. “I’m probably going to be tired for a few days, while I adjust to a different sleep schedule. So I thought it might be a good idea to get a head start on the sleep I’ll be missing.” He returned her nuzzle “Do you want to talk about something?”

“Yes” she replied “I was thinking about what was said over the last couple of visits.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow and glanced at his father.

He shook his head “She hasn’t said anything to me.” He turned to his wife. “Sundance, what’s going on?”

“I noticed something odd about the events of two weeks ago.” She replied

Artemis looked at her nervously, not sure exactly what had caught her attention. “What are you talking about, Mother?”

“It’s about the night you were briefly repossessed by him.” She answered

“What about it?” Artemis asked, immediately tensing I’d rather not talk about that night at all, but I know Mother. When she thinks that something is suspicious, she doesn’t stop until she figures out exactly what happened.

Sundance moved closer to her son, draped a wing over his back and pulled him into a hug before continuing. “Wasn’t Twilight in a different town when the problem started?” After receiving a nod, she continued “Did your sister ask her for help?”

Artemis shook his head “Celestia froze, unable to do anything but watch as Night took over my body.”

Sundance gasped “What?”

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened Really, Celestia? “I assumed that your sister had the foresight to ask Twilight for help.” He gasped as he suddenly understood his wife’s point. “How did Twilight know that there was something wrong?”

Sundance tilted her head “If I recall correctly, Twilight said that she sensed the trouble. But . . . even as the bearer of the Element of Magic, she shouldn’t have been able to sense things going on in a different town.”

“She did sense what happened from the next town over, but what allowed her to do so had nothing to do with the Element of Magic.” Artemis replied “In fact, she was able to tell that there was trouble because of something she did three months prior to the events of two weeks ago.”

Sundance looked at him “What are you talking about?”

“At some point during my banishment, a holiday formed around my nightmare form. It’s called Nightmare Night.” Artemis explained, pausing as both of his parents gasped. “My friendship with Twilight started on the first Nightmare Night after I returned from the moon.” He created a sphere of magic and showed them the events of that night.

They both smiled as they watched Twilight teach Artemis how to fit in and behave in the modern times. Sundance smiled wider, watching as Twilight didn’t give up on him, even when he gave up on himself.

“What does this have to do with what happened two weeks ago?” Midnight Armor asked

“It’s become a tradition that I go to Ponyville on Nightmare Night and this year was no exception.” Artemis replied “The events two weeks ago were actually caused by something that began three months ago, shortly before last Nightmare Night. During my visit, Twilight noticed that I was upset and asked me to tell her what was going on but I didn’t want to talk about it.”

“Well,” Sundance said “knowing Twilight, she did something about it anyway.”

Artemis nodded “Twilight had just finished researching, and restoring, an ancient spell. My behavior had her so worried that she cast this newly restored spell on me without my knowledge. It was this spell that allowed her to tell that I was in trouble two weeks ago because, when Night took over, she sensed my magic suddenly disappear.” He paused “The spell also allowed her to tell when Blaze tried to kill me by stealing my magic. That’s why she suddenly teleported to my side.”

Midnight Armor looked at Artemis thoughtfully. “The only spell I know of that can do all of that is . . .” His eyes widened as he suddenly understood what Twilight must have done. I hope I’m wrong. “Y-you mean that she-?!”

Sundance looked at her husband in confusion “Midnight?”

Artemis also looked at his father in confusion. “I’m not sure what you’re talking about, Father.” He shrugged “Anyway, to answer your question, Twilight tuned her senses to my magic.”

Sundance’s jaw dropped W-what?!

Midnight Armor stared at his son. Unfortunately, I was right. How was she able to cast that?! “Artemis,” he said slowly “do you realize what that spell does?”

Artemis raised an eyebrow, not sure why his parents were so shocked. “Aside from the obvious?”

“It links the caster to the pony that they cast the spell on, on a very deep level. This is why the caster can tell if the other pony is in danger.” Midnight Armor explained “However, there is something about this spell that I doubt even your sister is aware of.”

Artemis shrugged “Twilight told us about the amount of magic it took to cast the spell. Is there something else?”

Sundance nodded “The amount of magic it takes to cast the spell is one part of why it was never used, until now. When we realized how dangerous that spell is, your father and I made sure that it was written incorrectly before we allowed it to be recorded.”

She saw Artemis’ expression and decided to answer his question before he got a chance to ask. “At the time this spell was invented, you were a newborn and your sister was too young to understand the spell, let alone the dangers of casting it. By the time the two of you were able to cast it, we had already seen to it that nopony knew how to do so correctly. Therefore, we didn’t see a reason to tell either of you about the spell.”

Midnight Armor glanced at his wife before turning back to their son. “We only allowed that spell to be recorded because we knew that the pony who invented it was going to make sure that it was passed to future generations, regardless of what we said. Your mother and I decided that we wanted to have some control over how that was done, so we offered to have it recorded by the historians. However, we slightly altered it before it was recorded, so that it wouldn’t work.” He shook his head “Restoring that spell is one thing, but I can’t believe Twilight was able to cast it.”

Sundance turned to her son. “This spell is dangerous because it requires so much power that there is no way for anypony to use it with magic alone. The caster’s magic gets the spell started but, in order to keep the spell going, it begins to draw its power from a different source. If the second power source isn’t strong enough, the spell will backfire. The backlash will be strong enough to kill both ponies involved, even if those ponies are alicorns. While it’s difficult to find a pony with enough magic to cast the spell in the first place, the second power source is even harder to find. Especially in enough strength to power the spell.”

Artemis was still confused “What’s the second power source?”

Sundance and Midnight Armor answered together “Love”

Midnight Armor looked at his son “We don’t mean the kind that siblings share. Even most married couples aren’t capable of powering that spell.”

Sundance nodded “That’s because the kind of love we’re talking about has to be completely selfless, where the caster is willing to do anything for the other pony. The fact that Twilight was able to cast this on you means that you two must have shared a strong bond, almost from the start.” She thought for a moment “Twilight was the only one able to see your soul when you were possessed by the Nightmare, right?”

Wide eyed, Artemis nodded

“I believe that the bond you two share began when she saved your soul. That one act must have connected your souls, even before you befriended her. Your bond was strengthened when you two fell in love. That is what’s powering the spell. The fact that she’s doing this by herself means . . .” Sundance shook her head in awe, unable to finish her sentence.

Artemis stared at his parents. He was so surprised that, for several minutes, he was unable to move or speak. Suddenly, he lifted his head and lit his horn. He, Sundance and Midnight Armor looked over as Twilight appeared, not far from them.

Shortly before this, Twilight sighed in relief and stretched her wings as she watched Sapphire Wing and Cobalt walk out of her classroom. Cobalt was the last foal to leave for the day.

It had been a long day. The morning went more or less as she had expected. The first couple of hours had been spent getting to know the foals. Then she gave them the test. She smiled, as she remembered how she had to convince them that the test was just a way for her to find out what they still needed to learn and that there was no way for them to fail it.

Lunch had been as quiet as could be expected when dealing with fourteen foals. After everypony had finished eating, she’d taken the foals out into an inner courtyard for recess. After creating small tracks in the air and on the ground for the pegasi and earth pony foals to fly and run on, she’d turned her attention to the unicorn foals.

There were five of them in the class and it had only taken a couple of minutes to determine that her hunch was correct. They knew very little about their own magic and only one of them could manage levitation long enough to write his name. The rest had started to cry when they couldn’t complete the simple task. Twilight had been forced to end the test there so she could focus on calming them. After she got them to understand that it wasn’t their fault, she managed to cheer them up with the promise that she would begin teaching them the basics of magic tomorrow.

Deciding that the foals had been through enough magic practice for one day, she had started a game of hide and seek. Once it ended, she took the foals back to her classroom and spent the afternoon going over the creatures of the Everfree Forest. The illusions had worked much better than she thought they would. None of the foals were afraid of them and, by the end of the afternoon, they could name all of the creatures that lived in the forest. They also understood that they should just leave those creatures, and the forest, alone.

Sighing again, Twilight walked out of her classroom, followed by Midnight Fang and Steel Night. I’m way too tired to deal with court right now, even just the end of it. Instead, I think I’ll go to Artemis’ room and take a nap before dinner.

A few minutes later, Twilight walked into Artemis’ room as Steel Night and Midnight Fang stood guard outside. Setting her saddlebags on Artemis’ desk, she looked to the bed and saw that he was still asleep. Smiling, she climbed into bed next to him and snuggled close to his side. Less than a minute later, she was also asleep.

In the dream realm, Twilight opened her eyes to find herself among the stars. Looking around, she saw that Sundance, Midnight Armor and Artemis were looking at her. That wasn’t surprising, but the shocked expression on Artemis’ face was. Concerned, she flew over and landed between him and Midnight Armor. She was surprised when he didn’t acknowledge her at all. “Artemis?”

When she didn’t receive a response, she grew worried and nuzzled him. Still nothing. Really worried at this point, she closed her eyes and focused on the link between them. With her eyes closed, she didn’t notice that she had begun to glow a bright, but soft, lavender colored light.

Sundance and Midnight Armor watched as Artemis began to glow a bright, and deep, midnight blue in response.

Sundance smiled slightly. Here in the dream realm, it’s almost as if we’re dealing with their spirits while their bodies sleep. Even though this normally wouldn’t be visible, I’m glad we can see it. The problem is, what we’re seeing isn’t representing the true strength of their bond. We need to determine how strong it really is.

Midnight Armor stared at the glow around his children. Their bond is more powerful than I thought. The fact that both of them are still alive means that it’s strong enough to power that spell for now. What we need to do now, is make sure that she can power the spell for the long term. He shook his head I still can’t believe she was able to cast that spell. How powerful is this mare?!

Finding nothing wrong, Twilight sighed in relief and released her focus. The glow around both of them faded. Confused, Twilight opened her eyes and nuzzled Artemis again. This time, he looked at her. “Artemis, is something wrong?”

Using a wing, Artemis pulled her down by his side before pulling her into a fierce kiss. When it finally broke, Twilight had to lay her head on his shoulder. She felt him lay his head on top of hers as they both panted.

Twilight managed to speak first “W-what was that for?”

Artemis kissed her again before raising his head and folding his wing. “It’s probably best if Mother and Father explain it.”

“Um, OK . . . I’ll ask them. Before that, are you sure you’re alright?” Twilight asked “You’re acting kind of weird.”

“Given what we’ve just discovered, I’d say his response is perfectly normal.”

Staying between Artemis and Midnight Armor, Twilight finally looked up. “What do you mean, Dad?” She saw the way that Sundance and Midnight Armor were looking at her and paused. “What’s going on?”

Sundance and Midnight Armor glanced at each other and nodded before turning back to her. There’s a possibility that this will anger her. I’d rather not do that, but we need to make sure.

“The first time you used the Elements of Harmony was to face Night-Terror Knight, right?” Sundance asked

Twilight raised an eyebrow but nodded

“Tell me what you remember about it.”

Surprised, Twilight blinked “What does that have to do with anything?”

“Twilight, please.” Sundance said “This is important.”

Twilight stared at Sundance for a moment, clearly confused, before sighing. “I still don’t see what it has to do with anything, but fine.”

Midnight Armor and Artemis watched as Sundance smiled

Twilight created a large sphere of magenta magic in front of them, showing the images as she spoke. “The day before the Summer Sun Celebration four years ago, I had been reading a very old book and discovered the story about the “Royal Pony Siblings”. It ended with a prediction of when Night-Terror Knight would return. I tried to tell Celestia about it, but she sent me and Spike to Ponyville. She said that she wanted me to oversee the preparations for the celebration taking place the next day and to make some friends.”

Midnight Armor and Sundance shook their heads. “That’s just like her.” He commented

Twilight nodded “When it comes to important things, she usually doesn’t explain much.” Glancing at Sundance, Twilight muttered “I see where she gets it.”

Sundance’s eyes widened but, before she could say anything, Twilight continued.

“I assume it’s safe to skip to when we used the Elements of Harmony?”

Sundance nodded

“When we used the Elements, the girls told me that my eyes shone white, but I saw something else entirely. At first, everything was pitch black but then I noticed a bit of deep, midnight blue that was almost swallowed up by the darkness around us. At the time, I had no idea what it was. I’m not even sure how I knew that I had to protect it. Anyway, I managed to surround it with my barrier just before the Elements hit. The next thing I knew, we were on the floor, the sun rose, and Celestia showed up.” She looked from Sundance to Midnight Armor. “That’s what happened.”

Sundance nodded “I think I understand now.”

Twilight turned to her “Well I don’t. Will somepony please tell me what’s going on?”

“I’m sorry, Twilight.” Sundance replied “I don’t mean to keep you in the dark, but Midnight and I need to make sure of something.”

“What are you talking about?” Twilight asked, trying to keep her irritation out of her voice.

“Artemis told us that the reason you were able to tell that he was in trouble was that you’ve linked your senses to his magic.” Midnight Armor paused as Twilight nodded “There is a reason that the spell in the history books doesn’t work.”

What does this have to do with the first time the girls and I used the Elements? Or the reason Artemis was so surprised when I arrived? Twilight nodded again “It was written incorrectly.”

Midnight Armor nodded as well “We made sure of it.”

“What?” Twilight asked, surprised “Why would you do that?”

“Why did you restore that spell?” Midnight Armor responded

Twilight stared at him for a moment before letting out an irritated sigh. “I guess you’re not going to answer my questions either.” Shaking her head, and ignoring her father’s gasp of surprise, she answered his question. “Ever since I finished Star Swirl’s final spell, I’ve been researching other old spells that don’t work. Some of them, like the Spirit Reanimation Spell, I leave alone because restoring them would be too dangerous. Others, as long as they don’t seem too dangerous, I try to restore.”

“Did you notice anything strange about the Linking Spell?” Sundance asked

These questions are getting annoying. “Aside from the insane amount of magic required to cast it?” Twilight asked

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded

Artemis looked on as his parents questioned Twilight. Why aren’t Mother and Father explaining anything? He glanced at Twilight and paused as he noticed the way she was flicking her ears. She’s getting angry . . . This probably won’t end well. Maybe I should- He was pulled from his thoughts as he heard Twilight’s voice.

“It’s the only spell I’ve ever come across that requires a second power source. Sure, it takes magic, and a lot of it, to cast but it seems that the power to maintain the link comes from something else.” Twilight replied

“Do you know what the second power source is?” Sundance asked

Twilight shook her head “I didn’t have time to finish testing the spell before casting it on Artemis.”

“Why did you cast an untested spell on another pony?” Midnight Armor pressed I hope we’re not pushing her too far. I don’t like doing this, but we need to be sure she has what it takes to power the Linking Spell safely.

“I didn’t feel as if I had any other choice at the time. I knew that I was a taking a risk by casting it before I had finished testing it, but not casting it came with a far greater risk.” Twilight answered, her anger beginning to show.

“What risk could have been great enough that you felt you had to cast an untested spell on another pony?” Sundance asked, pausing as she noticed Twilight’s anger. I don’t like pushing her like this, but there is something in particular that I need to see.

Unaware of this, and fed up with being asked so many seemingly unrelated questions while having her own ignored, Twilight narrowed her eyes. “The night I cast that spell, Artemis came to Ponyville, like he does every year on Nightmare Night. Usually, he’s happy to be in Ponyville. This time, however, he wasn’t. Sometimes I would see him stare off into the distance, muttering something. Other times, his eyes briefly turned steely and the pupils went to slits. At one point, he was startled into anger and his coat began to darken. Each time, I managed to snap him out of it but then he became apologetic and withdrawn.” She shook her head “I asked him several times throughout the night to tell me what was bothering him but he wouldn’t. Instead, he kept saying that he just wanted to have fun.”

Twilight paused to catch her breath “Everypony in Equestria knows what happened the last time Artemis got really upset and I wasn’t going to risk that happening again. It was obvious that he wasn’t going to tell me what was bothering him. So I cast the only spell I knew of that would be able to let me know if something happened to him.”

“Why?” Sundance and Midnight Armor asked together. It should only take a little more . . .

Why does it matter?! Twilight finally lost both her patience and her temper. “I didn’t want to risk losing him!” She shouted, glowing the same lavender from earlier, but much brighter this time. Surprised, she looked down at herself. “This is new.” She remarked, obviously angry. She felt a wing drape over her back and turned to glare at Midnight Armor as he pulled her closer.

Sundance smiled as she saw the strength of the glow around Twilight. This is what I needed to see. The bond between them is definitely strong enough to power the Linking Spell.

Artemis stared at his mare, not even noticing that he was glowing as well. T-that’s why she cast that spell on me?!

Twilight didn’t resist as Midnight Armor pulled her into a hug, but she didn’t relax into it either. Instead, she looked from him to Sundance, glaring at both of them. “I arrived to find Artemis in shock, unable to move. Dad said that his reaction is normal for whatever you had just discovered. But, instead of telling me what you were talking about, both of you insisted on asking me unrelated questions, while ignoring mine. For the third time, what’s going on?!”

Sundance nuzzled Twilight, sighing as her daughter stiffened. “I’m sorry, Twilight. We didn’t intend to ignore your questions or anger you. However, there was a good reason for our actions.” She paused, looked at Twilight carefully, and noticed that her daughter was still glaring as she waited for her to continue. Good. Even though she’s obviously angry, and I don’t blame her for that, she’s still willing to listen. “The Linking Spell is far more dangerous than you seem to believe.”

“Dad said that you two made sure that the spell I restored was written incorrectly.” Twilight started, pausing until she got a nod from Sundance. “If the Linking Spell is so dangerous, why didn’t you also see to it that there were warnings? I’m not crazy. I made sure that my research included looking for anything dangerous about that spell but found nothing about any dangers or side effects. As I said, if a spell is too dangerous, I don’t restore it.”

“What?!” Sundance exclaimed, shocked “I know we created warnings!”

Twilight raised an eyebrow and lit her horn, showing Sundance, Midnight Armor and Artemis the book she found the spell in. To prove her point, she focused on the page with the spell and a few pages on either side of it, showing them that there weren’t any warnings.

Midnight Armor and Sundance stared at the book in shock.

“W-what’s going on here?” Sundance stammered, trying to remember what was going on around the time that the spell was recorded. She paused as something occurred to her and turned to her husband. “W-we didn’t make sure that the historians included the warnings we created, did we?”

Midnight Armor hesitantly shook his head “I-I know we asked the historians to record them with the spell, but I don’t think we went back to make sure they did as we asked.” He told her before turning back to Twilight. “You said you knew there would be risks when you cast the spell before testing it.”

Twilight shook her head “I was referring to the potential danger of casting an unknown spell, nothing more.”

Sundance turned back to Twilight “I understand what happened now and that was an oversight on our part.” She paused, suddenly very nervous. “How many ponies know about the Linking Spell?”

Twilight thought for a moment “I’m not sure. Many of the ponies in Equestria are aware of the spell’s existence because it was mentioned at Blueblood’s trial.” She saw their expressions and decided to answer their next question before they had a chance to ask. “I’m the only one who knows how to cast the corrected version and I’ve only cast it once.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor sighed in relief. “I’m willing to accept that.” She replied

Midnight Armor nodded “I am as well. Please keep it that way, Twilight.”

After a moment, Twilight also nodded “Fine. However, I want to know what’s so dangerous about this spell for two reasons. One, I’ve already cast it so I need to know what potential symptoms or side effects to look out for. Two, I want to add the appropriate warnings.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor immediately smiled and nodded.

“Good idea. You already know about the first danger. The amount of magic that it takes to cast the spell. The Linking Spell was designed so that multiple ponies couldn’t work together to cast it. That meant that only ponies with an extremely large amount of magic could even attempt it.” Midnight Armor answered before he paused, curious “How many ponies have enough magic to cast it, anyway?”

Twilight tilted her head as she thought. “Four, for sure, maybe five. The four that I’m certain can cast it are Artemis, Celestia, Cadance and myself. The one that I’m unsure of is my brother. He has the most magic of any unicorn, now that I’m not one. He may be the only non-alicorn capable of casting it.” She paused “Flurry Heart will probably be able to cast it when she’s older, as will our foal. I was born a unicorn and Artemis was born an alicorn, so I’m fairly certain that our foal will also be able to use magic. For now, however, the list only includes the first five ponies.”

He nodded and continued “The second danger is the second power source. Right now, the only ones that know what that is are right here.”

Surprised, Twilight asked “Celestia doesn’t know?”

Midnight Armor shook his head “Celestia and Artemis were very young when this spell was invented. Far too young to understand the spell, let alone cast it. Anyway, as we told Artemis earlier, the second power source is Love. However, it has to be Love in its purest form because it forms the bond between the pony that cast the spell and the one they cast it on. The bond required is so strong that even most married couples aren’t capable of powering this spell. The problem, and danger, comes if the bond between the two ponies isn’t strong enough to power the spell. If the bond can’t power the Linking Spell, not only will the spell backfire, the backlash will kill both ponies involved.” He paused, seeing the shock on Twilight’s face.

“T-that can’t be right.” She stammered “I cast that spell three months ago!”

Sundance smiled “That’s why we asked those questions. They may have seemed unrelated to you, but they were meant to determine the strength of the bond you two share.” She glanced at the glow around her children. “The bond between you and Artemis is also the reason you’re both glowing right now. The strength of the glow directly reflects the strength of the bond. We needed to make sure that your bond, which is what’s powering the Linking Spell, was strong enough to do so safely.” She paused as Twilight’s glare returned.

“You couldn’t have just told me that?” Twilight asked “I wanted to know why Artemis was so shocked. If you had just answered my question, I would have had no problem telling you whatever you needed to know.” She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. “I assume you told him about the Linking Spell and that’s why he was so shocked.”

Midnight Armor and Sundance nodded. They saw her expression and looked at each other for a moment before turning back to Twilight. Artemis followed their gazes and turned to Twilight as well. The three of them watched as she stared off into the distance for several minutes, obviously deep in thought.

Chapter 44

Several minutes later, Twilight looked around and noticed that everypony was staring at her. “Sorry, I was thinking about the Linking Spell.” She tilted her head thoughtfully. “If it’s really so dangerous, perhaps it would be better if I cancel it.”

“NO!”

The Royal Canterlot Voice came from three different mouths as Sundance, Midnight Armor and Artemis instantly reacted to Twilight’s offer.

Twilight immediately pinned her ears to her head and buried her head under, and into, the closest solid thing she could find. This meant that her head was now under Midnight Armor’s wing and pressed into his side as she shuddered in pain.

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Artemis winced when they saw Twilight’s reaction. Knowing that she would need at least a few minutes, they waited quietly for her to recover.

Several minutes later, Twilight finally dared to pull her head away from Midnight Armor’s side. After a moment of silence, she carefully raised one ear, then the other. Then, she opened her eyes.

Artemis, Sundance and Midnight Armor’s eyes widened as they saw the tears in her eyes.

“W-what was that for?” she asked

Midnight Armor used his wing to give her a hug as Artemis moved closer to her other side.

Sundance moved so she was laying in front of Twilight and nuzzled her. “I’m so sorry, Twilight!” she said quietly “I didn’t mean for that to happen, I promise.”

Artemis nuzzled her as well. “I’m sorry, Twilight” he whispered “I didn’t mean to do that. But I don’t want you to cancel that spell. You were able to save me twice because you cast it.”

“B-but Mom and Dad said it’s dangerous. S-so I thought- eep!”

Twilight was cut off with a squeak as Midnight Armor tightened his wing around her. “I’m sorry, Twilight, I didn’t mean to hurt you. And I agree with Artemis. If you hadn’t cast that spell, it’s quite likely that my son would be dead.” He told her softly “Besides, your mother and I have seen the strength of your bond with Artemis. You won’t have a problem powering the Linking Spell.”

They lay like that for several minutes before looking over as Artemis raised his head.

“It’s time for me to raise the moon.” He paused “Twilight and I should go. I don’t want Celestia to complain and I certainly don’t want Twilight missing meals.”

Twilight turned to Sundance and Midnight Armor “I was tired after teaching the foals today. That’s why I’m asleep right now. It’ll probably be awhile before I can sleep again.” Seeing the expression on Sundance’s face, Twilight slowly shook her head. “Don’t worry, Mom. It shouldn’t be more than a few hours.” She laughed softly “You try dealing with fourteen eight year old foals by yourself for an entire day and you’d be tired too.”

Sundance sighed in relief and laughed as well. “You’re right. When you get back, I want to hear about how your day went.”

Midnight Armor laughed and nodded “You should wait until Artemis and Celestia get here, so you can tell us all at once.”

Twilight nodded as Artemis lit his horn and they both vanished.

In Artemis’ room, he opened his eyes and looked down to see Twilight lying next to him. Smiling, he nuzzled her. As she opened her eyes, he lit his horn and raised the moon. He turned in time to see her close her eyes again with a groan.

“Ugh, my head” She buried her head into a pillow, sighing as she felt the cool fabric on her forehead. “I’m used to you using the Royal Canterlot Voice, because you did it often enough right after you returned, but I am not used to hearing it from three ponies at once. Especially when all three of those ponies are right next to me.”

“I’m sorry, Twilight” Artemis whispered, nuzzling her “I didn’t mean to do that. It was an immediate reaction to the idea of you cancelling the Linking Spell. I know Mother and Father told us about the dangers that come with casting it. However, they’ve determined that you are capable of powering that spell without any trouble.”

“Mm-hm” Twilight mumbled, pulling her head from the pillow. “I wish they hadn’t tested me like that. I was really angry because I thought they were ignoring my questions.” She shuddered “You have no idea how worried I was when I arrived and found you lying there, unable to move. I really thought something was wrong.”

Artemis kissed her forehead before lifting her head and pressing his lips to hers. “Thank you, Twilight” He whispered

“Hm?” She responded, returning his kiss “For what?”

“I . . . You” He choked out, before kissing her again “According to Mother and Father, that spell requires both power sources to be present when it’s cast. That means you were only able to cast it because you loved me, even back then. They also said that most ponies can’t power that spell because the love used as the second power source has to be both extremely powerful and pure.” He pulled her into a tight hug “That spell is proof of how much you love me.” He paused “I’m not sure even Cadance and Shining Armor can power that spell.”

Twilight stared at him “B-but she’s the Princess of Love and everypony saw how much she and Shiny love each other when they stopped Chrysalis!”

“I know that.” He nuzzled her “Cadance’s love magic is powerful, almost in the same league as the Linking Spell, but even that pales in comparison. Remember, your brother was fooled by Chrysalis. If their bond was strong enough to power the Linking Spell, he would have been able to see through her disguise.” He kissed her to stop the protest that he knew was coming. “Don’t tell me that seeing through Chrysalis’ disguise is impossible. We know it can be done because you were able to do it.”

She was about to protest when her stomach growled, quickly followed by his. Laughing softly, they both stood and stretched before walking out into the hall, heading for the dining room.

Once they got there, they found Celestia waiting for them. She looked up and smiled as they walked into the room. “Good Evening, you two. I was hoping to see you for the end of court, Twilight.”

Artemis and Twilight sat down and began to eat the plates of spaghetti with hay balls and side salads in front of them.

After a couple of bites, Twilight laughed softly “After a day with fourteen eight year olds, I was tired. So I went to Artemis’ room for a nap.”

Celestia nodded “I can understand why you would feel that way. How were Mother and Father?” she paused “Artemis, what are you doing?”

Artemis had lit his horn and was casting a soundproofing spell around the dining room. “You should know what we talked about, sister.”

Twilight nodded “Yes, but Mom and Dad have asked that we keep this quiet.”

Curious, Celestia watched as Artemis created a sphere of magic and showed her what had happened. Her eyes widened as she heard their parents talk about the dangers of the Linking Spell.

“What?!”

Celestia saw Artemis jump at her outburst, but Twilight’s response surprised her. She watched as her sister curled into a ball and created a barrier around herself before attaching a soundproofing spell.

Before she could ask, Artemis frowned and showed his sister how he and their parents had just done the same thing. “The only difference is that the three of us did it at the same time, right next to her.”

Celestia winced “That must have hurt. In fact, I bet she has a very bad headache.” She walked over to Twilight’s barrier and lit her horn. Easily passing through it, she nuzzled her little sister. “I’m sorry, Twilight. I didn’t mean to scare you. I was just surprised because I didn’t know that the Linking Spell was so dangerous.” She watched as Twilight slowly lifted her head.

“Why is everypony using the Royal Canterlot Voice today?” Twilight asked quietly as she released her barrier. “And I can’t take medicine for the headache.” She slowly shook her head and turned to Artemis. “Can we head to court, please? I can’t believe I’m saying this, but it might actually be quieter.” After Artemis nodded, she turned back to Celestia. “Mom and Dad asked that I wait till tonight to tell you about my day because they want to hear about it as well.”

Celestia smiled and nodded

Artemis looked at Celestia “Sister, I’m going to let you have your own dream tonight until we go to sleep as well. It shouldn’t be more than a couple of hours because I’m going to make it an early night.”

Celestia nodded again as the three of them walked out of the dining room. Celestia headed to her room while Artemis and Twilight headed for the throne room.

Entering the throne room, Artemis and Twilight looked around in surprise. There was only one pony present.

Ice Blossom smiled as she walked towards them. “Good Evening, Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight. We heard from the ponies that attended Day Court that the courts are merging in to one, starting tomorrow. That being the case, we have decided to hold our petitions until tomorrow morning.” She bowed “Have a good night, your highnesses.”

After Ice Blossom left the room, Artemis and Twilight looked at each other for a moment. “Well,” he finally said “you were right. Court was definitely quieter.” He smiled as she laughed softly. “Let’s go to ourroom. Even if you can’t sleep yet, you should relax.”

Twilight’s eyes widened for a moment before she nodded and headed for the hallway. A few minutes later, they were in their room.

Lying in bed, Twilight groaned as her head throbbed.

Artemis frowned and climbed into bed next to her. “I can’t give you any medicine, Twilight, but maybe I can do something else to help you feel better.”

Twilight closed her eyes with a sigh of pleasure as she felt his hooves on her back. After a moment, one of them moved up to her shoulders while the other stayed at the base of her wings.

He smiled as his massage earned him several more sighs of pleasure. Remembering how she had warmed the muscles of his wings, shoulders and back with her magic, he decided to do the same for her. He paused before deciding to warm the muscles in her head as well, especially around her horn.

She sighed in pleasure as she felt the muscles of her shoulders, back and wings warm and relax. This feels amazing! No wonder Artemis likes it when I do this to him. Her eyes flew open as the muscles in the top of her head all warmed at once. Immediately, her headache began to fade. Sighing again, she nuzzled into Artemis’ side.

He smiled and whispered “I guess that helps?”

“Mm-hm” she replied, moaning softly “Please don’t stop.”

Laughing softly, he returned her nuzzle “I won’t”

Roughly five minutes later, his spell ended. Her headache was still there, but it was at a manageable level by this point. She lifted her head and kissed him. “Thank you”

Surprised, he returned her kiss. As it broke he asked “Is your headache gone?”

“No” she replied “but it’s down to a manageable level.”

His frown returned as he looked at her. It’s partially my fault that she’s hurting right now. I’m not stopping until she’s pain free. We’ve still got some time before we need to go see Mother and Father, maybe there’s something else I can do for her. He watched as she sighed and stretched out next to him. He leaned down to nuzzle her again but, as she shifted, he ended up brushing his lips against her neck instead. After hearing her sigh in pleasure, he kissed her neck.

She had moved to snuggle closer to him when she felt his lips brush her neck. Unable to stop herself from sighing in pleasure, she felt him kiss her neck and moaned.

He smiled as he heard her moan and lifted his head. “Let me help you.” He whispered before returning his attention to her neck. She let out a sharp gasp of pleasure as he nibbled at her throat before moaning as he began kissing his way down her body. He nuzzled her stomach for a moment before moving down to her marehood. Laying by her hind legs, he lit his horn and gently rolled her onto her back. Before she could say anything, he kissed her entrance before licking it as well.

Twilight moaned as she felt his tongue on her marehood before gasping sharply as he pushed it inside her. After a few minutes, she began to shake as her orgasm approached. As her moans grew louder, she realized that somepony might hear her. She had just enough presence of mind left to cast a soundproofing around the room before testing it with a scream of pleasure as his tongue moved, deep inside her. Panting, she shuddered in pleasure as he pushed her closer to the edge. As she lay there trembling, another wave of his magic moved through her wings. The sudden pleasure pushed her over the edge. “A-Artemis!” she screamed as her orgasm washed over her.

He lifted his head to look at his mare and smiled. Making her scream is one thing, but I love hearing her scream my name even more. He lowered his head to clean up the mess that he made, as she continued to shake in pleasure. After he finished, he stood. Surprised, he looked down as he noticed how hard he had become. Now isn’t the time for that! He scolded himself I shouldn’t be thinking about anything but helping her feel better! That did nothing to stop the soft whimper that escaped him as lay down beside her. Trying to keep his mind off his desires, he rolled onto his back.

Twilight had just recovered from the powerful orgasm he had brought out in her when she heard him whimper softly. Glancing over as he rolled onto his back, it was easy to see why. I can’t believe that fits inside me. It’s huge!

She stood and quietly moved closer. I wonder why he hasn’t said anything. She shook her head. Whatever the reason, I can’t leave him like this. He was so focused on controlling himself that he didn’t notice when she climbed on top of him. Looking back, she carefully positioned herself before slowly lowering herself onto him.

He moaned as he felt something warm and wet envelop the tip of his member. Surprised, he opened his eyes to find Twilight on his stomach, lowering herself onto him.

She saw him looking at her and smiled as she slowly pushed lower. “Is this what you want?” She whispered

He shuddered in delight as she continued to slide down his member, sending lightning-like bolts of pleasure coursing through his body. “Yes” He breathed Moon and Stars Yes!

“Don’t worry, my love.” Leaning down, she kissed him as she let herself slide little lower. “You took care of me, now it’s my turn to take care of you.”

He opened his mouth to respond but gasped as she slid lower, sending another bolt of pleasure coursing through him. “Twilight!”

Listening to her name bounce around his room, she was suddenly very glad that she had cast that soundproofing spell. I’m pretty sure this is the first time I’ve heard him yell. It’s almost as loud as when he uses the Royal Canterlot Voice. Smiling, she pushed herself down the last couple of inches.She moaned in pleasure, feeling him touch the entrance of her womb, and rocked her hips from side to side to make sure she was properly balanced for the next part. Before she could do anything else, he moaned and grabbed her hips, pulling her a little lower and holding her still.

The sensations coursing through his body as she finally took the last of his member inside her were so intense that he was unable to speak. In fact, he couldn’t do anything but lay there, shaking in pleasure. Then she rocked her hips. He groaned in pleasure as the movement ground his tip against the entrance to her womb, pushing him over the edge. Grabbing her hips, he pulled her down and held her still as he began pumping within her.

She moaned as he began pumping his seed into her. Ooh . . . Oh stars, does that feel good! Shaking slightly, she let him ride it out. Once she felt his grip on her relax, she used her magic to lift his head so she could kiss him. I’ve never tried this before, so I’m not sure how he’ll react. She began bouncing, slowly raising her body before allowing herself to fall back down.

Still recovering from his orgasm, he moaned as she started slowly bouncing on top of him. Each bounce sent waves of pleasure spreading through his body. The sudden rush of sensations flooding his mind left him unable to form a coherent thought, let alone move. After a minute, he collected himself enough to grab her hips. The next time she came down, he thrust upwards, smiling as she moaned. He loved the sensations that his thrusts was giving him and the moans he was hearing from her. Wanting more of both, he kept thrusting, making sure to time it so that he was thrusting up as she was falling down.

She had gotten into a rhythm and was slowly bringing herself to another orgasm. She smiled when he grabbed her hips. She did not, however, expect him to thrust into her. Surprised, she couldn’t hold back a moan of pleasure. When he kept thrusting, all thoughts fled her mind. Her body began moving on its own as both of them sped up.

The combination of her bounces and his thrusts quickly brought them both to their second orgasms. He groaned as her passage began to pulse and clench around him before pumping more of his seed into her. She screamed in pleasure and pressed down harder, instinctively trying to make sure his seed stayed inside. As their orgasms ended, she fell forward onto his chest. Panting hard, she just lay there, unable to move.

He wrapped his hooves around her, still shaking in pleasure. “Thank you, Twilight. I really needed that.”

She finally managed to lift her head, pulled his towards her and kissed him. “I’m glad I could help.” She squeaked as his grip tightened.

“You did far more than just help, Twilight.” He told her, laying his head on a pillow and sighing in pleasure. “But why did that feel different?”

She blushed and nervously replied “Maybe it’s because I tried a different position than the ones we normally use.”

He laughed “I’m not upset at all. That was incredible!”

She sighed in relief before nuzzling into his chest. “Why didn’t you tell me what you wanted? I only figured it out when I heard you whimper and looked at you.”

He sighed and leaned up to return her nuzzle. “I was trying to help you feel better, Twilight.”

Twilight shook her head before she stood, lifting herself off on him. She saw how much of his seed rushed out and frowned, upset that she wasn’t able to keep it in her. A moment later, she smiled as she realized that she had a much more precious gift from him growing inside her.

Still smiling, she nuzzled him. “You did help me feel better, I’m not in pain anymore.” She heard him sigh in relief as she climbed off the bed. “You don’t have to hide anything from me. Next time, just tell me what you want, OK?”

He smiled at her “As long as you do the same.”

She nodded and glanced at his member before shaking her head, and blushing, as she muttered “I can’t believe you fit inside me.”

“What?” he asked, confused

“I’m usually focused on the sensations you bring me when we do that. This time, however, when I heard you whimper and looked over, I saw your full size for the first time.” Still blushing, she added “You’re much bigger than I thought.”

He blushed as well but, before he could say anything, she walked towards the bathroom. Worried, he asked “Are you alright?”

Glancing back at him, she nodded “I have to use the bathroom.” Her blush deepened as she added “And I need to get cleaned up. I’m a little sticky at the moment.”

He looked down at himself and laughed “I am as well.” Standing, he followed her into the bathroom. “How about a quick bath before we go see Mother and Father?”

She smiled and nodded as she headed for the toilet while he started the water for the bath. Ten minutes later, they walked into their room and returned to the bed. As soon as they lay down, Artemis pulled Twilight into his hooves and held her tight.

She nuzzled into his chest and closed her eyes. “I love you”

He returned her nuzzle and pulled the blanket over them before closing his eyes as well. “Trust me, I know. I love you, too.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked up as Artemis appeared next to them. They stayed where they were, laying on the cloud, and watched as he walked over to nuzzle them. He lay down next to his mother before lighting his horn.

Midnight Armor saw his son’s horn glowing. “Wait, Artemis”

Artemis paused, surprised, as the glow around his horn faded. “Yes, Father? Is something wrong?”

Midnight Armor nodded, clearly upset “How was Twilight feeling when the two of you woke up? I hope she wasn’t in too much pain because of what we did.”

Artemis created a large sphere of dark blue magic and showed his parents how Twilight reacted to waking up.

Sundance winced as Twilight immediately buried her head in a pillow. “She was in a lot of pain.”

Artemis nodded and showed his parents their conversation.

Sundance gasped when she heard what Twilight said about being worried about Artemis. “I was so concerned about making sure she has what it takes to power the Linking Spell that I didn’t think about that! She arrived in your dream to find the pony she loves in shock and unable to move. Of course she was worried!”

Midnight Armor sighed and glanced at his wife. “I was no better. I told her that Artemis’ reaction was normal for what we had discovered, but didn’t tell her what that discovery was. No wonder she was so angry.”

They watched the rest of the memory play, listening as Artemis talked about how, and why, he didn’t think even Cadance and Shining Armor could power the Linking Spell.

Sundance nodded thoughtfully “You’re right, Artemis. If the love between them was strong enough to power the Linking Spell, there’s no way he wouldn’t have noticed that the pony he loves had been replaced. I understand that he was brainwashed, but that’s no excuse.”

Midnight Armor nodded as well “I agree. He must have encountered the disguised changeling queen before the brainwashing started. Even then, he didn’t notice anything different about the mare that was to become his wife. However, I’m surprised that Twilight was somehow able to tell the difference.” He shook his head “I’m starting to wonder if there’s anything that mare can’t do.”

Sundance nodded again “That makes two of us.”

Artemis shrugged “She can’t dance”

His parents stared at him for a moment before they began to laugh. A few minutes later, Sundance managed to respond. “That’s not what we meant and you know it!”

Artemis merely chuckled

Midnight Armor finally calmed down and looked at Artemis, worried. “How is Twilight feeling now?”

Artemis smiled “Her headache is gone, so she’s fine now.”

Sundance suddenly looked worried as well. “She didn’t take medicine, did she?”

Artemis blushed and shook his head “I, um, helped her feel better.”

Sundance looked confused “What do you mean?”

Midnight Armor immediately understood and laughed. “Well done, Son” Seeing that his wife was confused, he whispered something in her ear.

Immediately, her eyes went wide as well before she smiled. “Well done, indeed.”

They both laughed as Artemis turned bright red and ducked his head. A few minutes later, he lit his horn again and brought Celestia and Twilight into his dream.

Celestia looked around for a moment, surprised at the sudden change, before flying over to nuzzle Artemis and their parents. Then she lay down next to their father.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis turned to see that Twilight was standing a short distance away, watching them warily. Sundance and Midnight Armor were about to ask her if something was wrong but, before they got the chance, Celestia turned to them.

“When Twilight and Artemis showed your conversation about the Linking Spell, I was so surprised that I used the Royal Canterlot Voice.” She told their parents quietly “It seems that each of us has nearly deafened her today. I’m not surprised that she’s acting this way.” She turned to Artemis “Does she still have a bad headache?”

Artemis shook his head “I just finished helping her feel better.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled

Celestia stared at him for a minute before she laughed. “That probably worked better than any medicine we could have given her anyway!”

Blushing, Artemis nodded as Twilight flew over and landed next to him. She paused as she saw the look on his face. “Is everything alright?”

Artemis nodded, pulled her down against his side and whispered something in her ear. Immediately, she turned bright red and buried her face into his shoulder.

Everypony else laughed

Celestia decided to start with something neutral. “How was Night Court?”

Twilight raised her head and looked over “What Night Court?”

Artemis laughed as he saw the expression on Celestia’s face. “Twilight didn’t mean it that way, sister. We walked into the throne room to find a single pony waiting for us. Before either of us could say anything, Ice Blossom told us that they were holding all petitions for tomorrow, wished us a good night and walked out.”

Celestia stared at them for a moment before shaking her head. ““What Night Court?” is right.”

Twilight shrugged and turned to Celestia. “At dinner you told me that you were expecting me at the end of Day Court. However, this morning, you didn’t say that you wanted me to come in after class. Did something happen?”

Celestia laughed “The nobles aren’t happy about the change to the courts planned for tomorrow. They spent most of the day whining about the idea as a whole before complaining that the decision was made without consulting them first.”

Artemis snorted and shook his head

Twilight looked at Celestia “They only come to court to see what they can get from you, right? Either that, or they spend hours bragging about some minor thing they’ve done that they think helps somepony. Why do they care that there’s going to be more than one pony present for them to bother?”

Sundance and Midnight Armor laughed “Good question, Twilight!”

Celestia smiled “They think they have power, remember? They believe that all they have to do is put in a petition and we will change the laws.”

Twilight laughed “Have you told them that I denied most of the legal petitions they submitted two weeks ago? Three of them seem valid but need to be researched further before a decision is made. The rest of the petitions were requesting changes to the most obscure laws we have, some decades old. Those petitions were really submitted just so the nobles could take money from the treasury. They know that Artemis hasn’t had time to familiarize himself with all of the legal changes made over the last thousand years and they’re trying to take advantage of it.”

Sundance raised her eyebrows “She caught that and still says that she’s not brilliant?” She whispered to her husband

Midnight Armor shook his head in disbelief, agreeing with his wife, before returning his attention to their children.

Celestia’s smile widened “That’s one of the reasons I was hoping you would come to court after class. Another is that Fire Fly came into court today.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow “I have two questions, sister. First, didn’t his training start today? If so, what was he doing in court? Second, what did he want?”

Celestia nodded “Yes, his refresher course started today. He came in after training was finished, but before court closed for the day. He was worried about his class.”

Twilight looked at her, confused “Why? It’s only been one day. Did I do something wrong already?”

Celestia laughed “It wasn’t you at all, Twilight. He told me that he accidentally gave you the “wrong” lesson plans last week and wanted me to make sure you got the “right” ones.” She shook her head “I was curious, so I made sure to check these plans before I let him leave.”

Artemis, Sundance and Midnight Armor stared

Twilight rolled her eyes “Are these plans any better?”

Celestia nodded “The plans he brought in today are the ones that were approved at the beginning of the school year. It seems that the ones he gave you were created after he decided to teach the foals about the creatures of the Everfree Forest and realized that his original plans didn’t allow enough time for him to tell those stories. He told me that he had planned to teach the foals according to the second set of plans for two or three more months before returning to the original lesson plans.”

Twilight paused “Do you think I should-?”

“No, Twilight” Celestia interrupted, knowing what she was going to ask. “The plans he brought in today were an improvement, but yours are better.”

“But mine aren’t finished!”

“That’s the point.” Celestia replied “Your unfinished plans are better than his finished ones. In fact, I borrowed your lesson plans and showed them to him.”

“W-what?!” Twilight asked, stunned “Why?!”

Midnight Armor laughed “If I know Celestia, it was so she could show him what he should have been teaching his students.”

Smiling, Celestia nodded “I also told him that he didn’t need to worry about that class anymore because you would take care of your students.

Twilight exclaimed “What?!”

Celestia laughed “I told him about the foal’s parents’ reservations about letting him teach their foals again and offered him an option to prove himself. He accepted.”

Twilight looked confused for a moment before she understood. “You mean our plan to have him teach the class of older foals?” She watched as Celestia nodded before her eyes widened “B-but that means-!”

Celestia nodded again “The younger class is yours now.”

“I thought you were going to wait two weeks before making a decision!”

Celestia sighed “That was my plan. However, something happened that I didn’t count on.”

She saw Twilight’s confusion and smiled “After your class ended, the parents brought their foals to see me. They wanted to show me why they believed that you needed to be the one teaching their foals, so they asked the foals to tell us what happened in class today. The foals described how you took the time to get to know them, and what they need to learn, before teaching them about the creatures of the Everfree Forest. To see how much they had learned, I quizzed the foals about those creatures. They got everything correct and weren’t scared at all. In fact, Marigold giggled and said something about a Manticore “purring like a kitty”.”

Sundance stared at Celestia “purring like a kitty”? She glanced at her husband to see that he was just as confused. They both shrugged and looked back at Celestia. I won’t interrupt Celestia’s account of her day. However, I really hope they show us that one because that’s not something you see often. In fact, I’ve never seen that happen.

“The parents were confused until I showed them what you showed us this morning.” Celestia laughed “It’s been awhile since the last time I saw so many jaws drop so quickly. I asked the foals if they had learned anything else.” She smiled at Twilight “They told me that the forest was those creatures’ home and they needed to leave it alone. This confirmed their parent’s suspicions. By the time the unicorn foals told us about the magic test you gave them, and your promise to teach them the basics of magic, the parents had all but made up their minds.”

Sundance smiled and reached over Artemis to nuzzle Twilight, who was staring at Celestia in shock.

Artemis looked at Celestia “Let me guess, that’s when Fire Fly walked in.”

Celestia looked at him, surprised “How did you know?”

Artemis laughed “I didn’t. I said it was a guess, remember?”

Celestia laughed as well “You’re right. After they heard everything that was said, the parents submitted their petition.” She smiled and lit her horn, showing her family a group of fourteen foals that took almost twenty minutes to stop cheering and bouncing all over the place. “In fact, Sapphire Wing had to pull his son out of the wall. Cobalt put more strength than we knew he had into his flying leaps and somehow managed to embed himself into the wall.” She paused and looked at Twilight “You might want to be careful with that one.”

Twilight laughed “I’ve learned a few tricks from dealing with Rainbow Dash, so I should be fine.” She paused and looked off to the side, lost in thought.

Midnight Armor laughed when Twilight muttered something about needing to check Cobalt’s wings for pieces of plaster. “You shouldn’t have to worry about that. If that foal did get something stuck in his wings, I’m sure that his parents have already figured it out and removed it. I know from experience that not doing so can be almost as painful for the parent as it is for the foal.”

Twilight turned to Midnight Armor There has to be a story behind that. “What are you talking about, Dad?”

Midnight Armor shuddered “I still don’t know how he did it, but Artemis got a pebble stuck in one of his wings. He was only five years old at the time but it quickly became obvious that he had mastered the Royal Voice at a much younger age than his sister had. The fact that he wouldn’t hold still didn’t help. As a result, it took me over an hour to find the pebble, let alone remove it.”

“I healed Artemis’ wing and put both of our children to bed. After that, I went looking for Midnight.” Sundance paused and laughed “I found him outside with his head in the coldest part of the lake.”

“I couldn’t help it!” Artemis immediately replied “That really hurt!”

Twilight smirked “If we have a Pegasus, and that ever happens to our foal, you’re dealing with it!”

Artemis looked at her “Twilight?”

Midnight Armor was also confused for a moment before he suddenly understood. With a matching smirk, he turned to his son. “I believe what she means is “It’s your turn”.”

Artemis stared at his father for a moment, still not sure what they meant, before his eyes suddenly widened. “Oh no”

Everypony else laughed

When they calmed down, Sundance turned to Twilight. “We’ve heard about Night Court and Day Court. I believe it’s your turn, Twilight. Why don’t you tell us about your day?”

Twilight nodded and lit her horn, creating a large sphere of magenta magic. Everypony watched a group of foals follow her into her classroom.

“Oh, no you don’t” Celestia said, catching everypony’s attention “You should start at the beginning of your day, Twilight. I’m sure Mother and Father want to see everything you did for those foals.”

Confused, Twilight looked over “That was the beginning of the day.”

Smiling, Artemis asked “Didn’t you do something about your classroom?”

“What else was I supposed to do?” Twilight asked “I wasn’t going to bring fourteen foals into an empty room. Besides, it was just a table and some cushions.” She saw the looks on everypony’s faces, sighed and changed the scene to Artemis, Celestia, Midnight Fang and Steel Night watching Twilight walk into an empty room. Everypony watched as Celestia explained that the desks wouldn’t be available until that evening.

Twilight paused the playback “That reminds me, have the desks arrived?”

Celestia nodded “They’re already in your classroom. However, the ponies that delivered them have little imagination. They placed the desks in three rows of five.” She paused thoughtfully “I should have a chalk board put in there as well.”

Twilight shook her head “The desks won’t stay that way. I like what I did with the cushions. That worked well enough that I’m going to do the same with the desks. As for the chalk board, thanks for the offer, but no thanks.”

Celestia looked confused “Then what will you use to teach the foals?”

“The same thing I used today.” Twilight smiled as Celestia looked even more confused. “Illusions. That’s how I taught them about the creatures of the Everfree Forest. I don’t see why it can’t work for other topics. Besides, we’ll also be using their textbooks and the books from the library.”

Celestia smiled and nodded “If you need anything, let me know.”

Twilight returned her smile and nodded as well before letting the playback continue.

Midnight Armor smiled as he watched Twilight create the table for the foals before summoning a pile of cushions. “That table is a solid illusion, right?”

Twilight nodded “Solid illusions don’t last long, usually no more than a day, but I only needed it for today. The cushions are real, though. I teleported them from a couple of different places in the castle, my old tower and a few of them came from the library.” She paused “I should tell the librarians why some of the reading cushions suddenly vanished. I hope that didn’t cause too many problems.”

Celestia laughed “Rose Petal noticed and came into court to tell me. She thought we had thieves in the castle and couldn’t figure out why they were stealing cushions.” She paused as everypony laughed. “As soon as I explained what happened, she laughed and asked me to tell you that you can keep them in your classroom. I thanked her and told her that I was sure you would be able to find a use for them.”

Twilight smiled and nodded “I know the desks are there now, but that doesn’t mean that we’ll be using them all of the time. Sometimes it’s better to learn while sitting on cushions, instead of at hard desks.”

Celestia smiled “We did that when you first became my student. I remember teaching you on cushions, my bed and in the gardens far more often than in the classroom.”

Twilight smiled and nodded “As I got older, we had many of our lessons in the library as well.”

Artemis laughed “I’m not surprised, though that may be where your love of books came from. If it didn’t start there, those lessons certainly strengthened it.”

Everypony laughed as Twilight blushed.

Twilight glanced at their parents. “Before I forget, I’m sure you’re both curious about the Manticore that was “purring like a kitty”.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded

Twilight changed the scene. “This was when the girls and I were walking through the Everfree Forest, on our way to get the Elements of Harmony so we could face Night-Terror Knight. He sent several challenges that we had to face along the way. This was one of them.”

She showed them how she, Applejack, Rainbow, Rarity, and Pinkie thought it was attacking and tried to fight back. Twilight smiled as Fluttershy stepped forward, found the thorn in its paw and removed it. Everypony watched as the Manticore scooped Fluttershy up in its paws before it began to lick her face and purr.

Sundance stared at the image for a couple of minutes before shaking her head. “I’ve never seen anything like it. That Manticore really is “purring like a kitty”.”

Twilight giggled “Fluttershy goes into the forest a couple of times a month to check on several of the creatures that live there. She always makes time to play with that Manticore. At this point, it’s so friendly that she’s trying to decide what to name it.”

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia and Artemis stared at Twilight. “She plays with it?”

Twilight nodded

Sundance looked worried “Should she be doing something that dangerous? Even if it doesn’t attack her, a Manticore is a rather large creature. She could get hurt.”

Twilight shrugged “Fluttershy is a very careful pony and animals are her specialty. Besides, I played with Cerberus and he’s even bigger.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor's jaws dropped. Celestia and Artemis began to laugh when they saw the expressions on their parents' faces.

Midnight Armor’s eyes were wide as he stared at his youngest in stunned silence. S-she did what?!

“Y-you played with Cerberus?!” Sundance stammered

Twilight nodded again “He left his post and came to Ponyville. We had to get him to leave before he hurt somepony.”

Midnight Armor paused, almost afraid to ask. “W-when did this happen?” Don’t tell me this is something else she did as a unicorn!

Twilight tilted her head “A little over three years ago. Maybe closer to three and a half.”

“B-but that means-” Sundance stammered I don’t believe this!

“Yes, Mother” Celestia managed to say, still laughing “She was a unicorn.”

Noticing their mother’s expression, Artemis laughed harder.

Midnight Armor and Sundance stared at Twilight “What?!”

Twilight shrugged “Fluttershy did the hard part. One minute, Cerberus was eating the buildings and growling at everypony. The next, I heard a thud and looked over to see this.” She showed them an image of Fluttershy hovering above Cerberus, rubbing his belly.

Everypony stared at the image for a moment before turning to Twilight.

Eventually, Sundance asked “H-how did she do that?!”

Twilight giggled “That’s Fluttershy for you. Compared to that, my part was easy.” She showed them an image of her running alongside Cerberus while levitating a ball.

Eyebrow raised, Midnight Armor said “And you did that all the way to the gates of Tartarus.”

Twilight nodded “Once we got there, I threw the ball a few times before leaving it with him. Now he’s got something to play with.”

Midnight Armor nearly choked “I was joking! D-did you really do that?!”

Confused, Twilight nodded again

Sundance shook her head and looked at Celestia. “I know I asked you this already, but clearly I need to ask again. “What in Equestria did you teach this mare?!””

Celestia shook her head as well, eyes wide. “I’m going to tell you the same thing I did before. “I’m not sure but, whatever it was, I’m glad I was able to do it.””

“Huh?” Twilight asked, looking from one to the other

Artemis hugged her “You don’t seem to realize how amazing what you’ve just described is.”

Twilight shook her head “I did what I had to, that’s all.”

They had no response for that, so they just stared at her.

After a few minutes, Twilight looked up at Sundance. “I’m sorry, I never finished telling you how my day went.”

Sundance smiled and shook her head “That’s alright, Twilight. Besides, I’m not sure I can take much more right now.”

Twilight tilted her head “What do you mean, Mom?”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow “Night-Terror Knight, Ursa Minor, Cerberus, Discord, Crystal Heart, Star Swirl’s final Spell, Discord’s Vines, Tirek, Night-Terror Knight again and Blaze.”

Celestia noticed how closely Twilight was paying attention as their father listed off her accomplishments. That’s odd. Did I forget something? Or has something happened that I don’t know about?

As Midnight Armor finished his list, Twilight blushed, causing everypony else to laugh.

“Thank goodness Celestia forgot to tell them about what happened with the Alicorn Amulet.” Twilight muttered “Actually, she probably doesn’t know that happened. Still, it may be for the best. I’m not in the mood to explain that one right now.” She knew that she was far enough away from the others, and thought Artemis was too busy laughing, to hear what she said.

He wasn’t

Artemis noticed Twilight muttering to herself and leaned closer to hear what she was saying. Eyes wide, he froze. The Alicorn Amulet?! When did she come into contact with that?!

Twilight felt Artemis freeze Oh no, did he hear me?

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Celestia noticed their expressions and turned to see what was going on.

Artemis turned to Twilight, watching as she slowly faced him.

“You heard what I said?” She asked quietly, freezing as he nodded.

“Twilight,” he asked slowly “do you want to tell us about that?”

She shook her head

“I may not know exactly what happened, but they need to know about this.” He told her, suddenly very serious “At the very least, Celestia needs to know so she can make sure that whatever happened doesn’t happen again.”

Twilight looked down “It won’t. We already took care of it.”

Celestia sighed as she noticed Artemis’ tone of voice. This probably won’t be good news. That tone usually means that something bad, or dangerous, is coming. “Artemis, what are you talking about?”

Artemis glanced at Celestia before returning his gaze to Twilight. “If you don’t tell them what happened, I’ll have to tell them what you just said.”

“Artemis”

Twilight, Artemis and Celestia looked up to see that Sundance had a serious expression on her face.

“Tell us what you’re talking about.” She told him, unintentionally lacing her voice with magic. “If whatever you’re talking about is as dangerous as you’re implying, we all need to know about it.”

Artemis and Celestia shuddered with pain. Mother hasn’t done that in a long time. I don’t think she knows how much it hurts. Twilight froze, staring at Sundance. W-what the-?

Midnight Armor noticed the expressions on the faces of his children. What’s wrong? Oh, she’s doing that again. He turned to his wife. “Sundance” When she didn’t respond, he kissed her. As it broke, he nuzzled her as well. “Honey, calm down. You’re putting magic into your voice.”

When was the last time Midnight called me that? She returned his nuzzle before turning to their children. She noticed that Celestia and Artemis were shuddering, but couldn’t tell if it was with pain or fear. Looking next to Artemis, she saw that Twilight could very easily be mistaken for a statue and was staring at her in shock. Sundance quickly stopped her magic. “I’m sorry.”

Artemis quickly decided that he didn’t want their mother to do that again. Sending Twilight an apologetic glance, he let everypony hear what she had said.

Twilight saw their expressions change and immediately knew what was coming. She quickly surrounded herself with a barrier and attached a soundproofing spell. Even with her soundproofing spell, she heard Celestia, Sundance and Midnight Armor clearly.

“WHAT?!”

She used that thing?! She better have had a very good reason for that! Sundance didn’t know why she immediately jumped to that conclusion, or why it angered her so much, but she was furious. Despite her anger, she laughed when she saw that Twilight had surrounded herself with a barrier and attached a soundproofing spell. “She learns quickly, that’s for sure. Artemis, can you ask her to release her barrier? I promise we won’t use the Royal Voice anymore.”

“He doesn’t need to, Mom. I can hear you.”

Surprised, Sundance looked back at Twilight as she lowered her barrier.

Twilight immediately noticed Sundance’s anger. Why is Mom angry? Oh, I get it. She probably thinks I’m the one who used the amulet. Not wanting Sundance to put magic into her voice again, Twilight quickly spoke up. “Before anypony yells anymore, I want to make something clear.” She waited for them to nod. “I did not use the Alicorn Amulet, I never even touched it.”

Celestia and Artemis smiled I knew it. She’d never use an object like that.

Midnight Armor nodded, smiling as well. That’s good enough for me. Though I wonder how she came across it in the first place.

Sundance sighed in relief, her anger gone. That’s a relief. I don’t want her anywhere near that thing. She looked at Twilight in confusion. If she didn’t use it, somepony must have used it against her. How did she survive that?!

Twilight saw their expressions and sighed. I guess I have to explain it now. “It was used against me. And, yes, I was a unicorn at the time.”

Artemis, Celestia, Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped but waited for her to continue.

“This one’s going to take a while.” She snuggled closer to Artemis’ side before continuing. “A traveling performer, a unicorn named Trixie, came to Ponyville. Her show was mostly about calling ponies onto her stage so she could humiliate them. After she did this to a couple of ponies, Trixie asked me to be her next “volunteer”. I knew I could stop her, but didn’t want to show off, so I refused.”

“At the time, there was also a misunderstanding on my part. I had noticed that the girls didn’t like her shows, so I thought they hated magic. They really didn’t like Trixie’s bragging, but I didn’t know that at the time.”

“Anyway, after hearing Trixie brag about how she had vanquished an Ursa Major, a couple of foals decided that they wanted to see her do it. They went into the Everfree Forest, found the Ursa’s cave and allowed an Ursa Minor to chase them to Ponyville. Trixie tried to get rid of it, but ended up making it angrier.”

“Spike had been trying to convince me to “show up” Trixie because he believed that I was the only one who could shut her up. I didn’t want to do that so, to get him to stop bugging me, I went into the library for some research. I was actually reading about Ursa in general when he came to tell me that what he thought was an Ursa Major was in the center of town. I went to see what the problem was and ended up solving it myself.” She paused “All of you know how I stopped it, so I’m going to skip that part.”

“The reason I finally acted was because I wanted to protect my friends. Unfortunately, Trixie believes that I purposely humiliated her. For some reason, she also thinks I’m her rival now. As a result, she’s constantly trying to prove that she’s stronger, and better at magic, than I am.”

Celestia, Artemis, Midnight Armor and Sundance shook their heads, but didn’t say anything.

Twilight looked at Celestia “Do you remember the day that you brought the representatives from Saddle Arabia to Ponyville and asked me to put on that magic show for them?”

Celestia nodded

“If you had come a few days, or even a few hours, earlier, you would have found a very different Ponyville.” Twilight sighed “Somehow, Trixie had gotten a hold of the Alicorn Amulet. She returned to Ponyville and challenged me to a magic duel.”

Everypony gasped “What?!”

Twilight nodded “At first, I told her no. When she began to attack Ponyville, I changed my mind and accepted. Naturally, I lost. I didn’t recognize the Amulet at the time. Even if I had recognized it, there was no way for me to have beaten it with my magic alone.” Twilight paused as she saw Celestia open her mouth. “You’re probably wondering why I didn’t have Spike send you a letter.”

Celestia nodded

“As soon as the duel was over, Trixie exiled me from Ponyville. Then she put up a shield that kept Spike and the girls inside. I had no way to reach you.”

Celestia’s eyes narrowed while Artemis glared. Sundance and Midnight Armor also looked angry as they listened to what she went through.

“Instead, I went to see Zecora.” Twilight looked at Sundance and Midnight Armor “Zecora is a zebra that lives in the Everfree Forest. Anyway, Zecora agreed to train me so that I could beat, not Trixie, but the amulet. At the same time, the girls were ransacking my library because they were trying to find anything that could help. Eventually, they found a book that had information on the Alicorn Amulet in it, as well as how to defeat it. They managed to smuggle Fluttershy out of the barrier to get me the information. Fluttershy, Zecora and I came up with a plan to get Trixie to take the amulet off. Then we smuggled Fluttershy back into Ponyville so they could get everything ready on their end. After we made our own preparations, Zecora and I went to the barrier. As soon as I touched it, Trixie came running, mainly because she wanted to taunt me. Instead, I challenged her to a rematch.”

Midnight Armor looked at her, confused “If she still had the Alicorn Amulet on, there was no way for a unicorn, no matter how powerful, to defeat her with magic. Why did you challenge her?”

Twilight shook her head “I had no intention of challenging her with magic. Instead, my friends and I worked together to trick her into removing the amulet herself. As soon as Trixie took it off, Rainbow grabbed it and gave it to Zecora. Zecora has it locked up in the Everfree Forest. Not many ponies know where it really is, and even fewer are willing to go into that forest to get it. Yes, we should probably move it to a more secure location. For now, however, it’s safe. More importantly, it can’t be used.”

Midnight Armor sighed in relief Even though she didn’t have her usual resources, she was still able to solve the problem. She also found the best way to secure the Alicorn Amulet that was available to her at the time. Well done, Twilight.

Sundance bowed her head, clearly upset. What was I thinking? I should have known she wouldn’t have used that amulet herself.

Celestia looked at her little sister “Twilight, why didn’t you tell me about this?”

Twilight shrugged “I had planned to talk to you about it. Unfortunately, the next time I saw you was when you brought the delegates to Ponyville. You were focused on them and I still had to perform that magic show you asked me to put on for them. After the show, we did manage to talk a little. You apologized because things were going to get busy for a while and said that you were going to have to postpone my lessons. In fact, I didn’t get to actually talk to you again until a few months later. I remember thinking that I should send you a letter, but you had just finished telling me about how busy you were. The danger had already passed, and the amulet was secured, so I decided not to say anything.”

Celestia looked upset “I’m sorry. That day, I sent you a letter but got no response. I thought that was odd, but just assumed that you were busy preparing for our visit that evening. Before I could consider it further, the delegates approached me to continue our tour of Canterlot before we went to Ponyville. The rest of my day was spent with them.”

Sundance stood and moved to Twilight’s other side before laying down again, nuzzling her to get her attention. “I owe you an apology, Twilight. The reason I was angry was that I thought you had used the Alicorn Amulet.”

Midnight Armor looked at his wife, clearly upset. Sundance, how could you think that?

Celestia and Artemis gasped Mother?!

I knew it. Twilight gave her a sad smile “It’s alright, I understand. That’s a natural conclusion to jump to. You don’t know me very well, so you couldn’t have known that I would never do that.”

Twilight’s response only made Sundance feel worse. Holding back a sob, she pulled Twilight into a tight hug. What’s wrong with me?! She’s given me no reason to doubt her. I certainly had no reason to think that she would use that thing.

Before either of them could say anything else, Artemis and Celestia raised their heads, both saying the same thing. “It’s time”

Artemis turned to their parents “We have to go, but we’ll be back tonight.” He gave his mother a look that clearly said “We’ll talk about this later.”

Sundance nodded “Have a good day.” As soon as their children vanished, she lay her head on her forehooves and closed her eyes.

Midnight Armor stood, walked over to his wife and lay down next to her. Nuzzling her, he watched as she opened her eyes. I’m sure she wants to get some sleep but we need to talk about this first.

“I don’t know” she said quietly

Surprised, he just looked at her “What?”

She laughed, clearly annoyed. It was equally clear that the one she was annoyed at was herself. “You were going to ask why I thought she would use that thing.”

“You’re right, that’s exactly what I was going to ask.” He pulled her close and covered her with a wing before continuing. “Twilight was also right when she said that we don’t know her very well. However, we know her well enough to be sure that she’d never resort to using the Alicorn Amulet. For one thing, she’s an alicorn herself. Yes, she was born a unicorn. However, we’ve heard enough about her, and what she’s done, to know that she was a very powerful one. We also know that, when she needed more power to face an enemy, she had access to something far more powerful that that amulet.”

Sundance shifted so she could look at him. “What are you talking about?”

Midnight Armor smiled “Twilight is the bearer of the Element of Magic, remember? Even as a unicorn, she had access to that power. Whenever she had to face a challenge that she couldn’t overcome on her own, she had her friends and the Elements of Harmony to help her.”

Sundance didn’t say anything. She couldn’t. She just stared at her husband.

“Throughout history, several ponies have used the Alicorn Amulet.” He continued “None of them were evil. However, most of them had similar traits including arrogance, excessive pride and a strong desire for revenge. As far as I know, Twilight possesses none of these traits, even when angered or in battle. Have you noticed that all of her battles were to protect her friends, Artemis, or Equestria? Even the rematch against Trixie was to stop the Alicorn Amulet, not the unicorn that wielded it. If Twilight wanted revenge, she would have taken it as soon as the amulet was removed.”

He shook his head, even more certain. “She’s not the kind of pony that would use the Alicorn Amulet. Besides, if she had used that amulet, she wouldn’t be able to wield the Elements of Harmony right now. Her Element would have rejected her because the Alicorn Amulet corrupts the ponies that use it.” He paused, looking at his wife. “We can see what kind of pony she really is if we examine what she did the first time she used the Elements of Harmony.”

Sundance looked at him for a moment before she gasped. Of course. If she had any of those traits, she wouldn’t have saved Artemis.

He saw her expression, guessed her thoughts and nodded. “She was facing the most evil pony she had ever heard of at the time.” He nuzzled her “I have no idea why she was able to see Artemis’ soul, but the reason doesn’t matter. What matters is that, during that battle, she was given a choice. She could have killed Night-Terror Knight, and Artemis, or sent them both back to the moon. She had no reason to help any part of her enemy, but that’s exactly what she did. Twilight saved our son’s soul.”

He nuzzled his wife again. “I’m not angry at you, Sundance. However, I must ask you to explain yourself. What made you think she would use the Alicorn Amulet?”

Chapter 45

Midnight Armor felt a shudder go through his wife and looked down to see that she was crying. Sighing, he hugged her tighter.

“How could I have thought she would do such a thing?!” Sundance whispered, burying her face in her husband’s neck. “She’s never shown the sort of corruption that comes from using the amulet, or any corruption at all. Nor has she shown any sign of the traits that we’ve come to expect from those who seek out the Alicorn Amulet. Besides, if she really wanted to, she could have easily used the amulet after they took it from Trixie. The fact that she didn’t speaks volumes for her character.”

“Sundance,” Midnight Armor asked “do you have an answer to my question?”

Sighing, she nuzzled deeper into his neck. “I don’t know. When Artemis let us listen to what she said, I was instantly furious. My first thought was that she better have a very good reason for using that thing.”

“Why were you were so angry?”

Sundance leaned a little further into his side as she thought. “I’m not sure. When she told us that she never even touched the Alicorn Amulet, my anger evaporated. I remember thinking “That’s a relief. I don’t want her anywhere near that thing”.” She paused, surprised “Perhaps that has something to do with it.”

As soon as he heard that, Midnight Armor smiled. That’s the mare I love. “You don’t want her near anything so dangerous.”

She let out another sigh and nodded “That’s still no excuse for thinking that she would use it in the first place. I should have known better.” She closed her eyes and relaxed into her husband’s embrace. I just hope she can forgive me. She snuggled closer to her husband and tried to figure out why the idea of Twilight using the Alicorn Amulet angered her so much.

They lay like that for a long time, Midnight Armor giving his wife the time she needed to think. I’m sure she’ll tell me when she’s ready. A couple of hours later, he heard a soft snore and looked down. He saw that she had fallen asleep and laughed softly as he tightened his wing around her. He lay his head on the cloud and closed his eyes. It wasn’t long before he fell asleep as well.

Meanwhile, Artemis, Celestia and Twilight opened their eyes at the same time.

Celestia glanced outside, watching as the moon sank below the horizon, and shook her head. The sun can wait a minute. She teleported to Artemis’ balcony. Looking into his room, she saw him glance up at her and nod. Returning his nod, she walked inside.

In Artemis’ room, before Celestia arrived, Twilight and Artemis opened their eyes.

Almost immediately, Twilight began to cry. “Is that really what she thinks of me?” She whispered “She thinks I’m the kind of pony who would do something like that?”

Not sure how to respond, Artemis pulled her into a tight hug and lowered the moon before looking up at a flash of golden light. He saw Celestia standing on his balcony and nodded to her.

As she walked into her brother’s room, Celestia lit her horn and raised the sun. Once she was done, she walked to the bed, lay down next to Twilight and nuzzled her.

Twilight felt Celestia’s nuzzle and opened her eyes. She saw white and opened her mouth to ask Sundance what she wanted, but paused as she heard Artemis’ voice.

“I can’t believe Mother thought that.” He shook his head “Do you have any idea why?”

Celestia raised an eyebrow “You’re asking me?”

He gave her a look “You’re the one that can usually tell what she means, sister. Even when she doesn’t want to tell us.”

“That doesn’t mean I can always tell what she’s thinking.” Celestia thought for a moment. “Mother didn’t get angry until you let us listen to what Twilight said. Then she seemed happier after Twilight told us that she didn’t use the Alicorn Amulet herself.” She turned to Twilight. “The first thing you did was tell us that you didn’t use the amulet. Why?”

Twilight laughed softly and wiped the tears from her eyes. “I saw how angry Mom was and guessed that she thought I was the one who used the amulet. I didn’t want her to put magic in her voice again, so I decided to clear that up as quickly as possible.”

Celestia stared at Twilight for a moment before glancing at Artemis. “You thought I was the one who could tell what Mother was thinking? Perhaps we should be asking Twilight instead.”

Twilight shook her head “Both of you know her far better than I do. As for your comment, it wasn’t hard to guess the reason behind her anger. However, I have no idea why she thought I would use that thing.” She sighed “I’m just going to say it’s because she doesn’t know me very well and leave it at that. Otherwise, it’s going to drive me crazy until I figure it out. Besides, it makes sense.”

Artemis looked confused “How so?”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “She met me last week. Both of you have told Mom and Dad several things about me, but that doesn’t mean either of them actually know me. They can only really get to know me by spending time with me. Until that happens, things like this are probably going to keep happening.” She shook her head and sat up. “I’m hungry. Can we go get some breakfast?”

Wide eyed, Celestia and Artemis nodded before the three of them stood and headed for the dining room. Once there, Apple Crunch served waffles with maple syrup, blueberry muffins and orange juice.

Twilight looked next to the dining room table and saw the picnic table. It was small and obviously meant for foals. “I guess the foals and I will be eating lunch in here today. Is noon alright?”

Artemis and Celestia laughed and nodded before the three of them turned their attention to their breakfast.

After they finished, Artemis and Celestia headed for the throne room while Twilight headed for her classroom.

Twilight found fourteen foals and their parents waiting for her in the hall, just outside her classroom. “Good Morning”

The foals and parents responded with “Good Morning, Princess Twilight”.

She saw their smiles and shook her head. “I already know what you did yesterday after class.” Seeing the parents’ shocked expressions, she smiled. “Celestia showed me what happened in the throne room. While I wish you would have waited, I understand your desire to make sure your foals are learning from a good teacher.”

Before any of them could respond, everypony heard a whine and turned to find Cobalt squirming as he stood next to his father. “Daddy!” he whined “It hurts!”

Sapphire Wing sighed “For the last time, Cobalt, there’s nothing in your wing. Your mother and I removed everything last night.”

“Is it alright if I try something?”

Everypony turned to see Twilight standing in front of Cobalt.

Sapphire Wing nodded “Of course, princess”

Twilight lit her horn and gently spread Cobalt’s wings before surrounding both with her magic. Everypony looked on as she closed her eyes and focused. After a couple of minutes, she pulled a small piece of plaster from his right wing and sent a healing spell through that wing.

“That feels good!” He exclaimed, jumping forward to nuzzle her. “Thank you, princess!”

Twilight smiled and returned his nuzzle. “You’re welcome, Cobalt. I thought that might be the problem.” She looked up to see that Sapphire Wing was staring at her in shock.

“I-I thought we got everything out last night!” he stammered

Still smiling, Twilight shook her head. “It was deep in between his feathers and tucked into the bend in his wing, making it easy to miss and hard for somepony to remove without magic.”

Sapphire Wing stared “How did you know what to look for, princess?”

“After Celestia showed me what happened yesterday, I thought it would be a good idea for me to check his wings. I mean no disrespect towards you or your wife, but I know from experience that it can be easy to miss things in your wings if you rely on sight alone.” She laughed when she saw his stunned expression. “I didn’t always have wings, you know. What most pegasi learn as foals, I had to learn three years ago.”

“Thank you for helping my son, Princess Twilight.” Sapphire Wing bowed to her before turning to his son. “I’m sorry, Cobalt. Your mother and I thought we had gotten everything out of your wings.”

Cobalt nuzzled his father “It’s OK, Daddy! My wing doesn’t hurt anymore!”

Twilight looked around at the foals. “Cobalt, Cloud Night, Dazzle, Ruby, Marigold, Moondust, Buttons, Ivory Spirit, Crystal, Thunder Spark, Sunshine, Winter Night, Lightning Sky and Astral Flash. Good, everypony’s here.”

Mythic Blossom blinked “Princess, you already know their names?”

Twilight blinked as well and looked at her. “Yes. Why wouldn’t I?” Mythic Blossom stared for a moment before Twilight continued. “It’s time for class to start. Please return at five to pick them up.”

“Yes, Princess” the parents replied, still in varying degrees of shock.

The foals followed Twilight into her classroom and she closed the door behind them.

The parents looked at each other for a moment before heading for the throne room.

Sapphire Wing led the way I’m definitely telling Princess Celestia about this. I can’t believe Cobalt was in pain all night because we missed a piece of plaster! Thank goodness, Princess Twilight thought to look herself.

The parents arrived in the throne room five minutes before court started. Not wasting any time, they approached the throne.

Celestia and Artemis looked up as a group of ponies approached the throne. They had planned to enjoy a few minutes of peace and quiet before court and were going to ask these ponies to return once court started. Celestia paused as she recognized these ponies as the parents of the foals in Twilight’s class. “Good Morning, my little ponies. Is something wrong?”

“Just the opposite, Princess Celestia” Sapphire Wing replied, with a large smile. “We just dropped our foals off with Princess Twilight. One of the first things she did was find a piece of plaster in my son’s wing that his mother and I missed.”

Celestia’s eyes widened while Artemis gasped.

Sapphire Wing saw this and nodded “He’d been complaining all night, but neither my wife nor I could find anything else in his wings. However, when he complained a few minutes ago, Princess Twilight searched his wings with her magic and found this.” He showed Celestia and Artemis the small piece of plaster Twilight found in Cobalt’s wing. “Apparently, it was in the bend of his right wing, right up against the bridge and deep in between the feathers.”

Celestia winced while Artemis shuddered and twitched his wings. “That’s a rather sensitive part of the wing. Would you like me to send a doctor to look at Cobalt’s wing?”

Sapphire Wing smiled “I appreciate the offer, but that’s not necessary. Princess Twilight healed his wing herself.”

Celestia smiled

Artemis shook his head, smiling as well. Of course, she did.

Before Artemis or Celestia could say anything. Sapphire Wing spoke up. “As I said, princess, there’s nothing wrong. I just wanted you to know what happened.”

Mythic Blossom nodded “Princess Twilight continues to prove us right and this is only the second day. I can’t wait to see what else she does with, and for, our foals.”

The rest of the parents nodded as the throne room began to fill with ponies.

Celestia raised her voice “Good Morning, my little ponies.”

“Good Morning, Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis”

Celestia and Artemis glanced at each other and nodded. “Court is officially open”

Off to the side of the throne room, stood a group of nobles. They were huddled around Golden Flash.

“Do you remember the plan?” he asked them

They nodded before an earth pony mare responded. “We must get the courts separated again. How else are we to get Prince Artemis to approve our petitions?”

Golden Flash nodded and stepped forward “Good Morning, your highnesses. After speaking with Arctic breeze and Ice Blossom, I learned that a large number of petitions have been submitted for approval. Perhaps it would be a good idea for Prince Artemis to review them while Princess Celestia handles court.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow but said nothing. Not many ponies, aside from Blueblood’s group came to my Night court, so I’m still new to dealing with the nobles in the modern era. This is clearly another one of their games, but I’m not sure that they’re after. For now, I think its best if I just listen and see how Celestia handles it.

Celestia raised an eyebrow as well “What makes you say that, Golden Flash?”

Artemis blinked and glanced at his sister. That’s Golden Flash? I’ve seen his name on several of the petitions brought into my court, but had never laid eyes on the pony. He must be the type to have his servants do his work for him.

Celestia glanced at her brother and whispered “Let me”. Returning her attention to Golden Flash, she noticed him whispering to a couple of nobles and cleared her throat. After they looked at her, she asked “Is there a reason you ask for this?”

Golden Flash nodded “I am aware of the fact that a number of those petitions are important. Additionally, many ponies present are here to see you. Therefore, it may prove beneficial for everypony involved if you split the work between the two of you, princess.”

One of the ponies, not in the crowd of nobles, stepped forward. “I don’t know about any petitions, but I’m here to see Prince Artemis.”

Close to a third of the room nodded, causing Artemis’ eyes to widen. What?

The pony, a Pegasus mare, turned to Artemis and continued. “My name is Starlit Daisy and I’m a traveling astronomer. The astronomical center I used to work at was destroyed when Tirek went on his rampage. Unfortunately, the damage was so extensive that we were unable to rebuild it. Ever since, I’ve been travelling around Equestria, looking for another to join. I heard that one was opening here. Unfortunately, I can’t find it. I asked around but nopony could, or would, tell me about it. So, I decided to ask the Prince of the Night himself.”

Golden Flash opened his mouth, about to tell her that no such thing was happening. However, he stopped when Artemis cleared his throat. Surprised, Golden Flash and Starlit Daisy looked at him.

Celestia smiled slightly as she noticed this. This is a good opportunity for ponies to see Artemis at work.

“It’s nice to meet you, Starlit Daisy.” Artemis began “You heard correctly, an astronomical center is currently being prepared. I will be opening it to the public tomorrow night.” He smiled as her eyes lit up. “I’m sorry to hear about the one that was destroyed. However, you’re welcome to join this one. If that’s what you would like to do, I suggest you speak to Sky Chaser.”

Starlit Daisy gasped “Sky Chaser is here?”

Artemis nodded “He came to my court last week and asked me if I’d be willing to open the new astronomical center to the public. He also told me that he is the president of Equestria’s Astronomical Society.”

Starlit Daisy grinned “He finally made it!”

Artemis stared at her, thoroughly confused. What’s she talking about?

Starlit Daisy saw Artemis’ confusion “I’m sorry, Prince Artemis. I’ve known Sky Chaser for years. In fact, he used to work at the same astronomical center that I did. One thing that bothered both of us, and the rest of our co-workers, was that there was no national society for everypony in Equestria. Sky Chaser always swore that he’d create the first one.”

Artemis laughed “In that case, yes, he finally made it.”

Most of the ponies in the throne room laughed as well.

The nobles, however, were getting increasingly irritated. “Now that that’s been cleared up,” Golden Flash started “I’d like to return everypony’s attention to the petitions.”

Artemis was the only one able to tell that Celestia narrowed her eyes before she spoke. “My brother and I will handle court together and go over the petitions this afternoon, after court. If there are too many to review today, we’ll take care of the rest after court tomorrow. Rest assured, your petitions will be addressed.”

Golden Flash, and the rest of the nobility, immediately began to voice complaints. Unfortunately, they were all speaking at the same time. This made it impossible for anypony to tell what they were actually saying.

Artemis took a deep breath, but was stopped by a nudge from Celestia’s wing. He glanced at her as she shook her head. “We don’t do it that way anymore.” She said quietly “I’m sure they’ll tire themselves out soon enough or they’ll realize that we can’t tell what they’re saying. Either way, they’ll quiet down because, as far as they’re concerned, having me listen to them is more important than any grievance they might have. Then we’ll have a chance to speak.”

The nobles did realize that their message wasn’t getting across. Unfortunately for Artemis and Celestia, and everypony else, this didn’t quiet them down. Instead, they got even louder as they attempted to make themselves heard. This continued, and they got progressively louder, for the next fifteen minutes. That was enough time for Celestia to consider giving Artemis’ idea a try.

Nopony noticed that a trio of ponies had walked into the room and stopped in the doorway, looking around. That changed when one of them spoke.

In her classroom, as Celestia and Artemis were starting court, Twilight asked the foals, Steel Night and Midnight Fang to wait by the door and lit her horn. The foals stared in wonder as the desks all rose into the air. One of them was set in a corner, while the rest were arranged in a half circle and set on the floor.

Twilight opened her eyes and walked to the center of the room. “We won’t be using them all of the time, but we’re using the desks today. Come forward and take a seat. Oh, and these are not permanent seating arrangements.”

The foals walked forward and sat down. Because the desks were arranged in a half circle, there was no fighting over who got to sit in the front.

Twilight summoned a stack of standard math worksheets. “If what I heard about the level you’re at in math is true, none of you will have any trouble with the problems on this worksheet. However, the information I’ve received about what you already know is a little confusing so I’m going to use another method to figure that out for myself. This week, your lessons will likely be a little too easy for you.” She paused as she saw a hoof go up. “Yes, Marigold?”

Marigold blushed “Mr. Fly stopped teaching us about . . .” She stopped, apparently too embarrassed to continue.

Twilight walked forward and nuzzled her. “If you’re trying to tell me that he stopped teaching you about history and working on your reading, I already know that.” She paused as all of her new students sighed in relief. “That’s why I’m teaching you this way for this week. I need to find out exactly what he’s been teaching you and where he stopped in all of your subjects. Once I know that, I’ll be able to come up with better lessons for you and start teaching those next week. It might be a little too easy or confusing until then. If I get to something you don’t understand, I need you to tell me, alright? I promise, I won’t get mad. That just means that it’s something I need to teach you.”

They all nodded “Yes, princess”

Twilight smiled and distributed the worksheets. She heard a noise and paused, glancing towards the door. “That can’t be from the library. Court must be louder than usual today.” She shrugged and turned back to her students to see that they were pulling pencils from their saddlebags and getting to work.

After the last foal finished the worksheet, Twilight collected them and distributed the next. “There are four math worksheets for today. Do your best, but it’s alright if you don’t understand something.”

The foals nodded, but didn’t say anything.

The foals were working on their third math worksheet while Twilight listened as the noise from court kept getting louder. “That’s enough.” She muttered before turning to her guards. “Midnight Fang, please go to the library and ask Rose Petal to come in here. If she’s not on duty, just ask any attending librarian.”

Midnight Fang bowed and left the room. A few minutes later, he returned with Rose Petal.

Twilight smiled as she saw the look on Rose Petal’s face. “Don’t worry, you’re not in trouble. I assume you can hear the noise?”

Rose Petal sighed in relief and nodded

Twilight nodded as well “I’m going to see what the problem is and ask them to, at the very least, tone it down. I can’t leave my students unattended and refuse to bring them into court, especially if it’s in that kind of chaos. Instead, I would like you to watch them until I return.”

Rose Petal smiled “For a moment there, princess, I thought you were going to ask me to go to court and tell them to be quiet.” She shook her head “I mean no disrespect, princess, but I’d far rather you do that than me. I’ll watch your class. Is there anything they need to be doing?”

Twilight laughed “I wouldn’t make you do that. As for your question, they have one more math worksheet to do. After that, if I’m not back, please have them begin the science worksheets.” She summoned four stacks and placed them on the unused desk. “I’m trying to find out what they already know so I can figure out what I need to teach them. It may be tedious, but this seems like the best method to do it.”

Rose Petal nodded “Unfortunately, you’re right about that, princess. I’ll see to it that what you’ve asked is done.”

Twilight smiled “Thank you. Steel Night and Midnight Fang, please come with me.”

They both nodded and followed her out of the room. The three of them headed for the throne room. Once there, they stopped in the doorway and looked around.

“What a mess.” Twilight commented. Glancing at her guards, she quietly said “You might want to cover your ears.”

They had been serving Artemis long enough that both of them immediately understood what she was going to do and pinned their ears to their heads as she opened her mouth.

“Silence!”

Surprised, Celestia glanced at Artemis “Did we let it get that loud?” she whispered

Artemis quietly replied “Apparently”

Golden Flash asked “When did Princess Twilight get here? More importantly, what’s she doing here?”

Twilight heard this and looked at Golden Flash. “If you mean the throne room, I got here a couple of minutes ago. As for why I’m here, I was trying to work but couldn’t focus because I could hear ponies shouting from halfway across the castle.” She gave him a look. “This better be important, Golden Flash. I have foals to teach.”

The parents of her students, still standing near the throne, smiled.

Foals to teach? Ah yes, I recall hearing that she’s teaching Fire Fly’s class while Princess Celestia is sending him through training for something. Golden Flash decided to use this as an opportunity. “My apologies for interrupting you, princess. I didn’t realize we were being that loud. However, since you’re here, I’d like to get bring up something that’s troubling the members of the nobility. Perhaps you can convince Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis to return to their separate courts.”

Twilight laughed, as did Artemis and Celestia “I’ll do no such thing.”

Golden Flash looked confused “Why not, princess?”

Twilight smiled “Celestia and Artemis agreed to it, but combining their courts was my idea.”

Every member of the nobility in the throne room shouted “WHAT?!”

Twilight noticed their anger and decided to explain. “For one thing, it’s better if they work together. This is especially true if they are presented with a difficult petition or a lot of petitioners at once.”

“Second, there’s what happened two weeks ago. If I understand correctly, that was only possible because Blueblood was able to keep Celestia buried in paperwork. It’s harder for such a plan to work with court structured as it is now.”

Celestia did say she wanted me be the one to tell them about this. “Third, I know that many in the nobility are trying to take advantage of Artemis’ fairly recent return.” She watched as all of the nobles widened their eyes. “When the three of us held a joint court, I was the one who went through the petitions that were submitted. All of them had been sent to Artemis’ court. Three of those petitions have been set aside for further research before a decision is made. As for the rest, I’ve denied them all.”

Twilight narrowed her eyes. “Before any of you complain, know that I’m aware of your plan to have Artemis authorize amendments to some of our laws that would allow you to steal money from the Royal Treasury. You have been sending your petitions to Night Court because you know that he hasn’t had enough time to familiarize himself with a thousand years of legal changes. That being the case, it would be easy for you to get him to authorize something unneeded or potentially illegal. With Celestia and Artemis working together, it’s much harder for your plan to work.”

“P-princess!” Golden Flash stuttered, staring at her in shock. How did she figure out our plan?!

Twilight ignored him and continued “There is a fourth reason I suggested that they combine their courts. This reason is much more personal. If we kept things as they were, I would only be able to see Artemis for breakfast and dinner.”

Golden Flash raised an eyebrow “What are you talking about, princess?”

Twilight raised her eyebrow as well “Are you aware of what happened during court on Friday?”

Golden Flash nodded “What does that have to do with combining the courts, princess?”

“Clearly you don’t understand.” Twilight sighed “Let’s try it another way. I know you’re married, Golden Flash, but do you have any foals?”

Golden Flash smiled “Of course, princess. I have three strapping colts and a beautiful little filly.”

Twilight nodded “When your wife was pregnant, would she have accepted only being able to see you during two meals a day?”

Golden Flash visibly shuddered as he imagined his wife’s reaction. “N-no, princess. There’s no way she would have tolerated that.”

“Why do you expect me to?” Twilight asked

“What?” Golden Flash asked, surprised

At that, Twilight lost her temper. He just doesn’t get it! Fine. Let’s try it this way. “I’m pregnant. Artemis is the father. The schedule for separate courts meant that I could only see him during breakfast and dinner. I won’t tolerate that.” She glared at the nobles “Any questions?”

Eyes wide, the nobles shook their heads. “N-no, Princess Twilight”

Twilight noticed a movement at the other end of the room and looked up to see Celestia and Artemis walking towards her. “I’m sorry, Celestia and Artemis. I didn’t mean to take over court. It’s just that they were making so much noise that I-”

By this point, Artemis and Celestia were standing in front of her. Celestia nodded to Artemis. He shut Twilight up by kissing her. Everypony in the throne room smiled.

“Its fine, Twilight” Celestia told her “In fact, I was going to thank you. They were being very loud and I was too polite to raise my voice. Artemis wanted to raise his, something I should have immediately allowed him to do, but I stopped him.”

Artemis nuzzled her “Besides, you did a better job explaining it than I would have.”

Celestia nuzzled her as well. “Yesterday, I told you that I wanted you here to explain what you decided to do with the petitions. You handled that nicely.” She paused and laughed “As for court, I think these ponies understand the fourth reason better.”

“What?” Twilight asked

Celestia smiled “If I had gone with my original plan and just used the first three reasons, they would have fought it. However, your fourth reason, which you explained perfectly, is easily understood by everypony.” She laughed at Twilight’s confused expression. “When a pregnant mare wants something, and it has to do with her family, she’s going to get it.”

Everypony laughed as Twilight blushed

Celestia continued “You can head back to your class now. I’m sorry it got so loud, but we won’t let it happen again.”

Artemis nuzzled Twilight again “We’ll see you for lunch.”

Twilight nodded as she, Midnight Fang and Steel Night turned towards the door. As they left, Twilight heard Celestia’s voice “We’re going to talk about your plan to trick my brother into allowing you to steal money from the Royal Treasury.”

Twilight smiled I’m almost sorry that I won’t be here to hear that part. I’m sure I’ll hear about it tonight when she shows Mom and Dad. She paused I still have to figure out how I’m going to respond to the way Mom thought I used the Alicorn Amulet. I’m sure Dad, Artemis and Celestia also want to talk to her about that. In fact, I bet Dad’s doing that right now. I think I should talk to Mom about this before I make my decision. Her mind made up, Twilight turned her attention to the rest of her day.

A few minutes later, Twilight, Steel Night and Midnight Fang walked back into her classroom. The foals all looked up at them and smiled before turning back to their worksheets.

Steel Night and Midnight Fang stood near the door while Twilight walked up to Rose Petal. “How were they?”

Rose Petal smiled “No problem at all, princess. They’re working on their fourth science worksheet.”

Twilight smiled as well “Good. Thank you, Rose Petal.”

Rose Petal bowed “Of course, princess.” She paused “I noticed that it’s much quieter now. If I may ask, what was the problem?”

Twilight laughed “The nobles were complaining about Celestia and Artemis combining their courts. Then they thought they could get me to convince Artemis and Celestia to return things to separate courts.”

Rose Petal raised both eyebrows “I take it that didn’t work?”

Twilight shook her head “Of course not. Mainly because combining the courts was my idea. I gave them four reasons for my suggestion. According to Celestia, it’s the fourth reason that they finally understood and won’t argue with.”

Rose Petal tilted her head “Would you mind if I asked what that reason is, princess?”

Twilight smiled “Not at all. I’ll tell you exactly what I told them. “I’m pregnant. Artemis is the father. The schedule for separate courts meant that I could only see him during breakfast and dinner. I won’t tolerate that.””

Rose Petal immediately gave her a hug.

Surprised, Twilight hugged her back. “Not that I mind, but what was that for?”

Rose Petal blushed “I heard that you were pregnant, princess, but the pony that told me insisted that it wasn’t true.”

Twilight laughed “Yes, it’s true. As is the part about Artemis being the father. If my calculations are correct, our foal should be born roughly a month and a half after the next Nightmare Night.”

Rose Petal smiled “Congratulations!”

This time, it was Twilight who blushed “Thank you. Anyway, before you head back to the library, I’d like to talk to you about a couple of things.”

Rose Petal nodded “Of course, princess”

Twilight smiled “The foals in this class need library cards because I intend to use the castle library to work on their reading. Additionally, I’m going to bring them to the library this afternoon. I want to see what level they’re reading at and the best way to do that is to have them read. We’ll likely be in the foal’s section of the library for at least an hour. Would you please tell the librarians about this?”

Rose Petal nodded again “Of course, princess. I’ll let them know right away.”

“Thank you” Twilight replied as Rose Petal walked out the door and closed it behind her. Twilight turned her attention to her students and noticed that they were all looking at her. Smiling, she said “Thank you for waiting patiently. Has everypony finished?”

The foals all nodded

Twilight gathered the worksheets and teleported all of them to Artemis’ desk. I need to ask Celestia if I can have a desk of my own put in here. I don’t want to keep using Artemis’, he may need to use it for something.

Twilight was broken from her thoughts as she heard several stomachs growl at once. Laughing, she glanced at the clock above the door. “It’s almost time for lunch. In fact, lunch will probably be ready by the time we get to the dining room.”

The foals cheered and headed for the door.

Twilight smiled and headed for the dining room, with everypony following her.

Twilight, Steel Night, Midnight Fang and the foals entered the dining room to find Celestia and Artemis waiting for them.

The foals squealed in delight and crowded around Celestia and Artemis. “We really get to eat lunch with you? Ooh, what about recess, are you really going to play with us?”

Celestia laughed “Yes, my little ponies”

Artemis laughed as he listened to several stomachs growl “Speaking of lunch, I believe it’s time to eat. Why don’t we all sit down?”

The foals looked around for a moment before Cobalt spotted the picnic table. “Is that for us, Princess Twilight?”

Twilight laughed as she, Artemis and Celestia sat down at the bigger table. “Yes. The table that Celestia, Artemis and I eat at is too big for you. So Celestia asked a few ponies to make that one especially for the fourteen of you. Have a seat so we can eat.”

Twilight looked at her guards. “Steel Night and Midnight Fang, this is your lunch break as well. Each weekday, you will have two choices. Eat with us or leave for an hour and return at one. You needn’t worry about my safety for this hour because I’ll be with Artemis and Celestia.”

Steel Night bowed “Cherry Blossom has asked that I return home for meals when possible, my princess.”

Twilight nodded “Enjoy your lunch and I’ll see you at one.”

Steel Night bowed again and walked out of the room.

Midnight Fang bowed “I’d prefer to eat here, my princess. My family lives several hours away, so there’s no way that I could see them and be back in time.”

Twilight nodded again “Then come sit down. I won’t have you going hungry.”

Midnight Fang bowed again and moved to a seat not far from Artemis. I don’t want to cause any misunderstandings by sitting too close to Princess Twilight. It’s safer to sit near Prince Artemis because I’m not as likely to anger anypony that way.

Everypony looked up as Apple Crunch walked into the room, followed by half a dozen other chefs. Everypony was served a small salad as an appetizer. After everypony had eaten their salads, they were served lettuce, tomato and cucumber sandwiches and individual servings of fruit salad. Once those were gone, everypony got a small slice of yellow cake and a glass of milk.

When everypony had finished eating, Celestia smiled at Twilight. “Where did you plan to take them for recess?”

Twilight returned her smile “The garden behind the castle.”

Artemis smiled as well “That’s a good idea. The further we can get from the nobles for a while, the happier I’ll be. Let’s go.”

They walked out of the dining room to find Golden Flash waiting for them in the hallway. “Prince Artemis, I-” He suddenly cut himself off as he found himself on the receiving end of glares from Artemis and Twilight.

“Didn’t I make myself clear?” Twilight asked

Before Golden Flash could say anything, Artemis continued. “The meaning behind Twilight’s words was that she wants to spend as much time with me as possible. You clearly didn’t understand that, so I’ll make this as simple as possible. Mealtimes, and any other time outside of work, are for family and those we allow to accompany us. You don’t fall into either category, so you can wait for court to resume at one.”

Without waiting for a response, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and the foals walked past Golden Flash, heading for the gardens.

Celestia paused as she heard Sapphire Wing’s voice. Curious, she turned to observe them, making sure that neither of them saw her.

“There you are, Golden Flash. You’re not authorized to be in this part of the castle. Please tell me that you didn’t interrupt the prince and princesses as they were eating their meal.”

“Of course not!” Golden Flash scoffed “I waited in the hall for them to finish and tried to approach Prince Artemis as they left.”

Sapphire Wing narrowed his eyes “The prince and princesses are on their lunch break. Like most ponies, they do other things than just eat. Dealing with situations like the one you caused this morning has undoubtedly stressed them out. If I had to guess, I’d say that Princess Celestia just wants to spend time with her younger brother and sister. Prince Artemis isn’t usually awake during the day so he probably wants to rest. I’m sure he also wants to spend time with his sister and Princess Twilight, the mare that is carrying his foal and will soon be his wife. Princess Twilight clearly wants to spend time with her older sister and the stallion she loves. They’re allowing the foals she teaches to join them because, if I understand correctly, there are things that Princess Twilight plans to teach those foals, even as they play.”

Not giving Golden Flash a chance to respond, Sapphire Wing escorted him down the hall. “You can wait in the throne room. Starting tomorrow, you’ll have to leave the castle during the lunch break. As the Captain of Princess Celestia’s Royal Guard, I have the authority to demand that. If you require further authority, I’m certain that Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis will have no problem authorizing it for me.”

Celestia smiled I know you asked for a week-long vacation for Hearth’s Warming, Sapphire Wing, but you’ve just earned a two week vacation instead. She hurried to catch up with her little brother and sister. She found them, and the foals, in the garden.

Twilight looked up “If it’s alright with you two, I’d like your help with the first part.” Celestia and Artemis smiled, nodded and allowed her to continue. “Artemis, you take the earth ponies and Celestia, you take the pegasi. I’ll take the unicorns. After fifteen minutes, we’ll all get back together and play a game. Every day, the three of us will switch groups so that the foals get to spend time with, and receive help from, all three of us.”

Celestia nodded “That’s a good idea, Twilight.”

Artemis nuzzled her “What were you thinking of playing today?”

Twilight returned his nuzzle “We played hide and seek yesterday, so I was thinking of playing tag today.”

The foals began to jump up and down. “Yay!”

Twilight turned to the foals “Cobalt, Cloud Night, Dazzle and Ruby. You’re with Celestia today. Marigold, Moondust, Buttons, Ivory Spirit and Chrystal. You’re with Artemis. Thunder Spark, Sunshine, Winter Night, Lightning Sky and Astral Flash. You’re with me.”

The foals split into their assigned groups and moved to stand in front of the appropriate alicorn.

Celestia spread her wings and took to the air, the pegasi foals following suit. She began a gentle game of midair tag while making the foals weave around the clouds to work on their maneuverability.

Artemis moved to an open part of the garden and created a track on the ground. There were objects that had to be jumped over and others that had to be ducked under. He showed the foals how it worked and asked them to run through the course one at a time.

Twilight lay down where she was and pulled several small rocks over to her. Each foal was given two of them and asked to levitate them both at the same time. None of them could do it at first but she patiently explained how it worked. Soon, all five of the unicorns were levitating three rocks each.

“Well done, everypony!” She said “Now we’re going to work on your control.” She levitated three rocks of her own and moved them around as if they were riding a roller coaster. “With enough practice, you’ll be able to do this too. You can practice with whatever you have around you rocks, toys, stuffed animals, leaves or feathers.” Suddenly, thirty more rocks rose into the air around her before joining the first three on the invisible roller coaster. “Eventually, you will be able to do this as well. Right now, you just need to work on your control. Step one is a circle.”

The foals stumbled a little but eventually got the hang of it. At the end of the fifteen minutes, Celestia and Artemis walked over with their groups. They watched as the five unicorn foals sent their rocks around the garden in a big circle.

“That’s very good, my little ponies.” Celestia told the foals before turning to Twilight “How many of them could do that fifteen minutes ago?”

Twilight was paying close attention to the flow of magic in each unicorn. Not looking up, she answered “None of them could levitate two rocks at the same time.”

Celestia smiled I thought so.

Artemis looked up at the rocks and noted which ones were surrounded with the magic of which unicorn. “Unless my eyes deceive me, they’re each levitating three right now.”

“That’s right” Twilight responded, eyes still on the unicorns

Artemis and Celestia exchanged glances and smiled

“Alright, that’s enough. You can stop now.” Twilight said

Thunder Spark, Sunshine, Winter Night, Lightning Sky and Astral Flash immediately lowered their rocks to the ground and looked at Twilight, not even breathing hard.

Twilight smiled at them “I want you to practice this tonight, but only for fifteen minutes. Make sure you have your parents time you. You’re still learning so, while you need to practice, you also need to rest. Otherwise you’ll overuse your magic. Trust me, you don’t want to do that because it really hurts.”

“Yes, princess” they replied

Twilight nodded and looked around at all of the foals. “Good. Now who’s ready to play tag?”

The air was suddenly full of shouts of “Me!” and “I wanna play!”

“This is a ground game and don’t leave the garden.” Twilight waited for all of the foals to nod before she gently bopped Ivory Spirit on the nose. “You’re it!”

The foals squealed and took off running in every direction.

Twilight looked up as Artemis lay down next to her. Smiling, she leaned into his side and sighed in pleasure as he spread a wing over her.

Celestia lay on Twilight’s other side and nuzzled both of her siblings before turning her attention to the game. When a couple of foals started to get a little too rough, she called out for them to stop. Otherwise, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight just watched them play.

After each foal had been “it” at least once, Twilight sighed regretfully and stood. “I guess we’d better get back to class. I’ll see you a little after five.” She paused and turned to Celestia “Oh yeah, I thought of something I need in my classroom. A desk. Right now, I’m teleporting the papers I need to grade to Artemis’ desk but it’d be better if I had my own.”

Artemis kissed her “I don’t mind. You can use mine as long as you need to.”

Twilight returned his kiss “What if you need to use it and can’t because it’s covered with things for my class?”

Celestia laughed “Don’t worry, Twilight, I’ll have one made for you. It may take about a week, so you’ll just have to share yours until then, Artemis.”

Artemis stuck his tongue out at his sister. “I said I don’t mind, sister. So that’s not a problem.”

Celestia nudged her brother with a wing.

The alicorns paused as they heard laughter and turned to see that the foals were watching them. As one, the foals stuck their tongues out at Artemis and giggled when he returned the gesture.

Twilight lit her horn but paused, looking at Celestia “Are you expecting me in court after class? If not, I’ll be in Artemis’-”

“Our” he corrected

“room, grading papers.” Twilight finished, nuzzling him

Celestia laughed “Not this time, Twilight. You took care of what I wanted you to tell the nobles earlier. One of us will come get you for dinner.”

Twilight nodded and teleported herself and her class to her classroom.

Celestia and Artemis stood and walked back to the throne room.

Twilight found Midnight Fang and Steel Night waiting for them in her classroom. The foals walked to their desks and sat down, looking at Twilight.

Twilight smiled “There are four history worksheets. I understand that Fire Fly hasn’t been working with you on history, so it’s alright if you don’t know the answers. I just need to know what you already know so I can focus on what you need to learn.”

“Yes, princess” the foals replied.

It took the foals much longer to work through these worksheets and, when she looked at the completed ones, Twilight noticed many blank and wrong answers. This worksheet was for foals four months into the year. The fact that they don’t know the answers to these questions means that Fire Fly must have started telling those stories a couple of months into the school year. While they know some of the major events, I don’t see any dates.

She collected the second set of worksheets and noticed the same results. Sighing, she looked at her students. “Instead of giving you any more worksheets, I’m going to try something different. Do any of you know what month it was the last time you learned history in class?”

Ruby raised her hoof.

Twilight looked at her “Yes, Ruby?”

Ruby blushed “It was right after Nightmare Night, princess.”

At that, Twilight raised both eyebrows. What?!

“Yeah” Lightning Sky added “That next Wednesday. I remember because it was my birthday! I thought he was telling the story as a birthday present.”

Steel Night’s eyes widened “Really?” He whispered to Midnight Fang

Midnight Fang shook his head “That’s no way to teach foals.”

“So that’s one and a half months into the school year.” Twilight said thoughtfully “It’s no wonder you can’t complete these worksheets. They’re meant for students to use as homework after four months of learning. Did he stop working on your reading the same day?”

The foals all nodded “Yes, princess”

“Not the ideal answer. At least I now have a starting point for both subjects.” Twilight said slowly before noticing tears in her students’ eyes. She smiled at them “It’s not your fault that your teacher wasn’t teaching you the way that he was supposed to. Don’t worry, I’m going to fix that.”

The foals smiled and nodded

Twilight paused “We’re going to make today’s history lesson easy. Everything we’re going to talk about happened one thousand years ago. Can you tell me something that happened at that time?”

Moondust raised his hoof “Mommy said that’s when Princess Celestia sent Night-Terror Knight to the moon!”

Sunshine also raised her hoof “My mommy told me that’s when, Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis turned Discord to stone!”

Dazzle raised her hoof “Daddy said that’s when the Crystal Empire disappeared!”

They learned more about history from their parents than their teacher. Twilight shook her head in disbelief before smiling at the foals. “You’re all correct. Everything you said happened one thousand years ago. However, there is one more. Who knows the name of the centaur that stole everypony’s magic?”

Together the foals said “Tirek!”

“Very good” Twilight replied “One thousand years ago, he came to Equestria with his brother. They both wanted to steal our magic, but Tirek’s brother became friends with a unicorn. After that, he decided that he didn’t want to take our magic and tried to get Tirek to stop his plan.” She paused as she noticed that her students were taking notes. “When Tirek refused, his brother told Celestia and Artemis about what Tirek wanted to do. Then Tirek’s brother went home while Celestia and Artemis sent Tirek to Tartarus.”

Twilight waited until the last foal finished his notes before looking at the clock. “Please put your notes away. We’re going to the library to work on your reading.”

The foals did as she asked before going to stand by the door. Twilight smiled and opened the door and walking out into the hallway. The foals and her guards followed her down the hall to the library. Steel Night and Midnight Fang stood guard outside the library while Twilight and the foals walked inside.

Inside the library, Twilight smiled as she noticed that the foals’ section had been set up for her and her students. On the table was a note. Reading it, Twilight smiled wider and looked at the foals. “It seems that your library cards will be ready tomorrow, after lunch. This means that you’ll be able to check books out and take them home.” Noticing that the foals were about to cheer, Twilight quickly told them “I understand that you’re happy, but you need to be quiet in the library. We don’t want to disturb other ponies, do we?”

The foals shook their heads “No, princess”

Twilight smiled “Good. Choose a cushion and wait here, please. I’m going to get a few books and be right back.”

Wordlessly, they did as she asked.

A few minutes later, Twilight returned with five books of varying difficulty and asked her students to read the first one. After they finished that book, Twilight jumped to the third. This one should be more of a challenge. A few minutes into this book, she was proven right. Good. I found their average reading level. A couple of them are comfortable with this level, but most are slightly below it. She glanced up at a librarian and nodded.

The librarian returned her nod and walked away. A couple of minutes later, she returned with three more books of the same difficulty level.

“Thank you” Twilight said to the librarian before turning her attention to the foals. “We’re going to use a reading technique where everypony reads from the same book. One of you will read a page out loud. As soon as you finish the page, pass the book to the pony next to you. We’ll keep doing this until we finish the book. Cloud Night, read the first page, please.”

This continued for the next two and a half hours. Whenever the foals came to a word they couldn’t pronounce or didn’t understand, Twilight would explain it.

At five o clock, the parents arrived at Twilight’s classroom and were surprised to find the room empty.

Mythic Blossom looked around and spotted Steel Night and Midnight Fang guarding the door to the library. “Aren’t those Princess Twilight’s guards?”

Sapphire Wing looked over and nodded “Yes. They’re guarding the library, so that must be where Princess Twilight and our foals are.”

The parents walked down the hall and entered the library. They looked in the foals’ section and smiled at what they found. Twilight and their foals were all laying on cushions and passing a book around. Each foal read a page before passing the book to another. Anytime they had a question about a word, they would look at Twilight. She would give them the definition and explain how the word was used.

Mythic Blossom gasped softly when Marigold took her turn. “She couldn’t read half of those words when I read with her a few days ago.”

Sapphire Wing’s eyes widened when Cobalt took his turn next. “He couldn’t either. I’ve never seen this teaching method before, but it clearly works.”

Crystal took her turn and stumbled over a long word. Twilight opened her mouth to help but, before she could say anything, Astral Flash spoke up.

“That’s not how you say it, dummy!”

Crystal’s eyes quickly filled with tears.

Astral Flash’s mother gasped and stepped forward to reprimand her son but was stopped by Sapphire Wing’s wing. Surprised, she looked up at him “Why are you stopping me, Sapphire Wing?”

Sapphire Wing glanced at her “This is likely to happen again when we’re not around to scold our children, Amber Gem. I want to see how Princess Twilight handles it.”

Amber Gem blinked and nodded, understanding his point. The parents returned their attention to their foals in time to hear Twilight speak quietly.

“Astral Flash, that’s enough.”

Astral Flash looked up at Twilight as she continued.

“You’re friends with Crystal, right?”

Astral Flash nodded

“Is that how we treat our friends?”

Astral Flash's eyes widened. “N-no, princess.”

“Do you know what you’re supposed to say and who you’re supposed to say it to?” Twilight asked, pausing as Astral Flash nodded. “Good. Please do so now.”

Astral Flash stood, walked over to Crystal and gave her a hug. “I’m sorry, Crystal. I have this book at home and Mommy reads it to me all the time. I’ll help you read it. Do you want to come over this weekend, if Mommy says it’s OK?”

Crystal paused “I have to ask Daddy. If he says it’s OK, do you want go to the park? I can work on my reading and you can do those floaty exercises that Princess Twilight told you to do. There’s lots of rocks in the park.”

Astral Flash nodded “That sounds fun! I’ll ask Mommy and you can ask your Daddy when they come to take us home. Mommy said she wants to take me to the park on Saturday.”

Twilight smiled “Much better. Friends are supposed to help each other. It’s no fun when they’re mean.”

Astral Flash bowed his head “Yes, princess. I won’t do it again.”

The parents just stared at Twilight in shock.

“Wow” Mythic Blossom said softly “She did that without raising her voice at all. I suppose that’s why she’s the Princess of Friendship.”

Eyes wide, Amber Gem nodded. “I usually struggle to get him to apologize and have to explicitly say who he has to apologize to. She just asked him if he knew and he did it on his own."

The parents looked back at Twilight as she glanced up and saw them.

Confused, Twilight turned to look at the clock above the checkout desk. “Oops. I didn’t mean to keep them here so long.” She turned back to the foals “I kept you here almost an hour longer than I planned. Your parents are here to pick you up.”

The parents of the foals watched as Twilight and their foals stood and stretched before heading to meet them.

Crystal walked up to her father but, before she could say anything, he nuzzled her. “You don't need to say anything, Crystal. I’ll take you to the park on Saturday afternoon, right after lunch.”

Amber Gem nuzzled Astral Flash “We’ll be at the park at that time as well, and we’ll bring the book.” She gave him a look “However, I expect you to keep your end of the deal and help Crystal with her reading before you practice your magic.”

Astral Flash nodded “Yes, Mommy”

The parents looked up as Twilight walked up to them and showed them what happened during recess. The parents of the pegasi smiled as they watched Celestia’s game of aerial tag. The parents of the earth ponies grinned as they watched Artemis work with their foals. The parents of the unicorns watched as Twilight taught their foals how to levitate a few rocks at the same time before gasping as their foals levitated those rocks several feet into the air before sending them in a large circle. They were even more surprised when they noticed how long their foals managed to maintain it. They heard what Twilight said about the need to practice without overdoing it and nodded.

Amber Gem bowed “T-thank you, princess. It’s amazing how quickly my son has improved. My husband and I are usually too tired to teach Astral Flash after our long workdays. However, we will be sure to make time to help him practice.”

Twilight smiled “I appreciate the compliment, but I can’t take credit for these exercises. They’re the same ones that Celestia used to give me when I was the same age as your foals. I just modified them a little so that I could work with several foals at once.”

Sapphire Wing gave Twilight a skeptical look. “Did Princess Celestia use that technique to teach you to read as well, princess?”

Twilight blushed “No, that was my idea. I thought it would be a good way to work with the foals individually while also allowing them to learn from each other. Having me, or anypony else, read to them can only help so much. The best way for them to learn to read is for them to read. They need a little guidance and practice, but they’ll get there.”

Sapphire Wing smiled “I thought so. It may be an unusual method, princess, but it clearly works. Today, I heard my son read words that he couldn’t even pronounce last week.”

Twilight glanced at the foals. “They’re still behind where they should be, but at least now I know what level they’re at. This week, their lesson will likely be too easy in math and science while too difficult in reading and history. This is because, when I made my lesson plans, I was working under the assumption that they had four months of learning built up. I now know that they stopped learning about reading and history a month and a half into the school year. Celestia has already approved the lesson plans for this week and I don’t want to change them again. Instead, I’ll use the lesson plans while taking into account the fact that they’re two and a half months behind where I thought they would be.” She smiled at her students “It’s not their fault that they’re behind in their lessons. I’ll get them to where they should be, it’s just going to take a little time. For now, they should just head home.”

The parents smiled and nodded while the foals called “Good Night, Princess!” as they walked down the hall.

Twilight giggled as she turned to the area that they had been using, intent on cleaning it up. She stopped in surprise when she saw that, not only was it already clean, Artemis and Celestia were sitting there. “I’m sorry, I know I said I’d be grading papers. It’s just that I-”

As he had done in court, Artemis kissed her to shut her up. After the kiss broke, he nuzzled her. “It’s alright, Twilight. Celestia thought something like this might happen, so we came here at five.”

Celestia laughed as she led her siblings out of the library, heading for the dining room. None of them noticed that Twilight’s students, and their parents, stopped and looked back as they heard Celestia’s voice. “I’m glad we saw what you did. Not only did you come up with a unique, and effective, way of teaching those foals to read, you also broke up a fight before it really got started.” She shook her head “And the nobles wonder why you’re the Princess of Friendship.”

“You thought you were going to fail.” Artemis reminded her “Though, I think you’re the only one who thought that.” He nuzzled Twilight “I hope you don’t think that now.”

Twilight answering the question by saying “It’s only been two days. Ask me again at the end of the week.”

Celestia and Artemis looked at each other and shook their heads. A little further down the hall, the parents of her students did the same. Their foals, however, ran up to Twilight.

“Princess, we left our saddlebags in the classroom! Can we go get them, please?”

Twilight used her magic to unlock the door. “Go ahead, it’s unlocked. I think I hear a monster in your tummies, you’d better get home so you can feed it!”

The foals giggled and ran for the classroom while Celestia, Artemis and the foals’ parents laughed at her joke. A minute later, wearing their saddlebags, the foals ran up to Twilight again and nuzzled her before running back to their parents. All of them were laughing as they tried to figure out what kind of monster they had in their tummies. Twilight stared after them for a moment before shrugging, locking the door to her classroom and heading for the dining room.

Dinner was quiet because, after the kind of day they just had, they were all tired. After dinner, Celestia went to her room while Artemis and Twilight went to theirs.

Chapter 46

Author's Note

This chapter, and the next two or three, I'm trying something a little different. Please let me know what you think.

Chapter 46

Artemis watched the sunset while Twilight sat at his desk and began to grade papers. After raising the moon and stars, he turned to Twilight and saw what she was doing. “Oh, no you don’t. You’re coming to bed.”

Twilight gasped as he levitated her to the bed and climbed in after her. “But I-”

Artemis silenced her with a kiss. “You fought for us to be able to spend our evenings together. I’m not going to let you spend them doing paperwork.”

Twilight opened her mouth to respond but he kissed her again, pulled her into his hooves and lit his horn. She moaned as the muscles in her back and shoulders warmed and immediately relaxed. His magic also reminded her how tired she was. As her eyes began to close, she mumbled “That’s cheating”

Artemis laughed softly “I’m sorry, my love, but it’s for your own good. You need your sleep. Not only did you deal with fourteen foals today, mostly by yourself, you also helped with court. There’s also the fact that you’re carrying our foal.”

“Only two weeks.” She mumbled “Not far enough to be tired.”

He chuckled as she struggled to stay awake. “Your body says otherwise.” Smiling, he watched as she finally gave in and fell asleep in his hooves. He pulled a blanket over them and cast a sleeping spell on himself.

In the dream realm, Midnight Armor looked up as Artemis appeared next to the cloud, lit his horn and brought Celestia and Twilight into his dream. The three of them flew over to give their parents a hug but paused as they noticed that Sundance was asleep. They looked at Midnight Armor as he shook his head. Instead of saying anything, Twilight stepped closer and nuzzled their father. Celestia and Artemis followed suit. Midnight Armor smiled at them before lighting his horn.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight watched the conversation their parents had this morning, after they left the dream realm. As their father’s memory ended, Celestia and Artemis looked at Twilight. Noticing this, Midnight Armor did the same.

Twilight had a thoughtful expression on her face as she looked at Sundance, noticing the tear tracks on her face. I need to talk to Mom about this. It doesn’t seem like she knows why she thought I used the amulet. Still, I want to know what she thinks about all of this. I need to hear it from her, but I don’t want to wake her. Instead, I think I’ll join her. Yawning, she walked over and lay down next to Sundance. Looking up, she saw that everypony was looking at her. “The memory of Mom and Dad’s conversation was one thing, and I’m glad I saw it. However, I need to talk to her about this before I make up my mind on what to do next. But I’m not going to wake her. Instead, I’ll get some sleep as well. Somepony wake me when she’s awake and ready to talk about it.” She closed her eyes and fell asleep.

“I’m not sure why I didn’t expect that from her,” Midnight Armor said slowly “but I should have.”

Celestia and Artemis looked at their father, both asking the same thing. “What?”

Midnight Armor smiled as he looked at his youngest. “She may not be fifteen hundred years old, like the two of you, but she’s repeatedly shown wisdom beyond her years.” He looked at Celestia and Artemis “I’m referring to how she was able to figure out the reasons behind both of your actions as well as come up with the plan to combine your courts so you can actually spend time together. If I add everything else that she’s done and consider the intelligence it must have taken to accomplish all of that . . .”

Celestia smiled “You’re right, Father”

Before anypony could say anything else, Sundance opened her eyes and saw Celestia and Artemis sitting in front of her. Glancing to either side of them, she was immediately saddened when she didn’t see Twilight. Sighing, she closed her eyes again. I don’t blame her. After all, I- She was pulled from her thoughts by a soft nuzzle and a gentle voice.

“Mother”

Sundance opened her eyes again as Artemis nodded at something to her right. Curious, she looked in that direction. Her eyes widened when she saw that Twilight was lying next to her, sound asleep. “What?!” She winced when she realized how loud her outburst had been. Holding her breath, she watched her youngest carefully. I hope I didn’t wake her!

Fortunately, Twilight just buried her face in Sundance’s shoulder before mumbling. "Too loud."

Sighing in relief, Sundance turned to the rest of her family before whispering “What's going on?”

Celestia smiled “Don’t worry, Mother, I’ll show you.”

Sundance closed her eyes as Celestia leaned forward. As soon as their horns touched, Celestia shared her memory of what happened after they arrived in the dream realm. As the memory ended, Sundance opened her eyes and looked at Twilight. I’m not sure why I’m surprised by this. Midnight’s right, she clearly has more wisdom than the average twenty one year old. She was torn from her thoughts when she felt magic surround her. Looking up, she saw that Artemis was in the process of casting a shield and soundproofing spell. “What are you doing, Artemis?”

Artemis paused his spells, and glanced at Celestia, before turning back to their mother. “Twilight once told us that a conversation needed to be held with just the two of us and she didn’t belong in it. I was confused at the time, but now I understand what she meant. This is something the two of you have to discuss on your own.”

Sundance stared at her son “Twilight said that?”

Artemis nodded

Celestia nodded as well “It was when she discovered that I was afraid of Artemis. She said that Artemis and I had to talk about it alone.”

Midnight Armor smiled and shook his head “That just proves my earlier statement. She’s wise beyond her years.”

Artemis nodded “You’re right, Father. But there are other times, like this morning, when she-” He suddenly stopped, glancing at their mother. I shouldn’t have said that!

Sundance simply said “Show us”

Artemis shook his head “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Mother.” I doubt they’ll listen, but I have to try. Mother’s obviously upset and this will only make her feel worse.

Midnight Armor sighed “That means this is something we should see. Perhaps you’re referring to Twilight’s real reaction to what happened last night?”

Artemis hesitated for a moment before nodding.

Sundance’s eyes widened “I need to see it before I talk to her.”

Artemis didn’t respond

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow “Should we ask your sister?”

“You could, but it wouldn’t help you. She didn’t hear what Twilight said. I’m the only one that did.” Sighing, Artemis looked at their mother “You’re not going to like this.”

Sundance shook her head “That doesn’t matter, I need to see it.”

Artemis reluctantly nodded and lit his horn, showing them what happened.

Sundance and Midnight Armor winced as Twilight began to cry as soon as she woke up.

“I thought she took it a little too well.” Sundance said, ears drooping Now that I think about it, she didn’t seem surprised when I told her that I had thought that she had used the Alicorn Amulet. In fact, it’s almost as if she was expecting it. She returned her attention to Artemis’ magic and gasped as she heard Twilight’s questions. Each word felt like a knife through her heart.

Artemis saw his mother’s eyes fill with tears and paused the memory. I’ll show them the rest later. He quickly finished his spells and glanced at Celestia.

Celestia nodded and lit her horn as well, turning her brother’s shield opaque. She saw the expression on their father’s face and explained. “Twilight stayed in a different room for our conversation. We can’t do that here so these measures are to give them a little privacy.”

Midnight Armor nodded “Well done, both of you.”

Artemis looked at his shield, clearly upset. He glanced up in surprise as he felt a weight against his side but didn’t resist as his father pulled him into a hug.

Midnight Armor nuzzled his son before spreading a wing over him. “You did the right thing, Artemis. They need to talk about this.”

Celestia moved to lay on their father’s other side and smiled at him as he spread a wing over her as well. She looked at the shield and sighed “Now we wait.”

Artemis and Midnight Armor nodded

Inside Artemis’ shield, Sundance considered waking Twilight right away but shook her head. I need to get control of my emotions first. This conversation will be hard enough without me crying before we start it.

After a few minutes, Sundance felt that she was calm enough. She leaned down and nuzzled Twilight, smiling slightly as Twilight snuggled closer. So we’re doing that again. She nuzzled Twilight a little harder and watched as Twilight yawned. Maybe not.

Twilight opened her eyes and looked around. After blinking a few times to make sure she wasn’t seeing things, she turned to Sundance. “Why did Artemis put us in a shield? Is that a soundproofing spell? I think I sense Celestia’s magic as well. What’s going on?”

At least those questions are easy to answer. Sundance gave Twilight a small smile. “Yes, that’s a soundproofing spell. I’m not sure what Celestia did because she did it after the shield was completed. Artemis put us in a shield because he wanted to make sure we’d be able to speak privately.”

Twilight examined the shield, trying to give herself a chance to collect her thoughts. “I see what Celestia did. She turned Artemis’ shield opaque. They can’t see in and we can’t see out.”

Sundance’s eyes widened “I’m not sure what impresses me more. That she did that or that you figured it out so quickly.”

Twilight shrugged “Shields are my brother’s specialty. Shiny made sure I can identify almost every kind of shield and taught me how to break several of them.”

Sundance just stared at Twilight for a minute. “Is there anything you can’t do?”

Blushing, Twilight muttered something about being a horrible dancer.

Sundance shook her head “That’s not what I meant. I was referring to your abilities with magic."

“Oh” Twilight responded “I can’t cast my brother’s most powerful shield, that’s why I created my force field. When we faced Night-Terror Knight for the first time, the girls and I got separated. I wasn’t able to defeat him by myself and had to wait for the girls to find me. The first time we faced Discord, he tricked us into behaving exactly the opposite of our Elements so we couldn’t use them. I had to cast a memory spell on each of the girls to get them back to normal so we could turn him back to stone.”

“I wasn’t able to prove that Chrysalis had disguised herself as Cadance. As a result, all of my friends turned on me and left me alone with her. That allowed her to send me to the caves below the castle. It was just luck that she placed me near the real Cadance.” Twilight paused “Maybe that wasn’t luck. Chrysalis taunted me into attacking the reflections of her. One of my attacks broke the wall between the real Cadance and myself. At first, I thought it was the imposter and attacked her. It wasn’t until Cadance started singing a song we made up when she was my foal sitter that I realized it was really her. It’s possible that Chrysalis wanted me to kill Cadance.”

Twilight saw Sundance’s stunned expression and mistook it for impatience. “Sorry, I got a little off track.” Twilight told her. She shook her head, trying to clear it. “Anyway, Cadance and I worked together to escape the caves. After that, we interrupted the wedding of my brother and Chrysalis, still disguised as Cadance. After she revealed herself, Chrysalis used the strength she gained by feeding off of my brother’s love for Cadance to defeat Celestia.” She paused as Sundance gasped “Celestia sent me and the girls to get the Elements of Harmony. We fought through one swarm of changelings, but were stopped by another and brought back to Chrysalis. It was Cadance and Shining Armor that used the power of their love for each other to defeat Chrysalis.”

“What happened next?” Twilight asked thoughtfully “Oh yeah, Celestia sent me to the Crystal Empire as a test.”

“What?” Sundance asked, surprised

Twilight nodded again “I was supposed to be the one to find the Crystal Heart and get it to Cadance. I was able to figure out where Sombra had hidden the heart and find it. Unfortunately, when I removed it, I got caught in his trap. At the time, Sombra’s spirit, or ghost, was attacking and we needed the Crystal Heart to stop him. That’s why I told Spike to bring it to Cadance. Even though I wasn’t the one who brought the Crystal Heart to Cadance, Celestia told me that I passed the test anyway. She was happy that I understood the meaning of self-sacrifice.”

Sundance wasn’t sure what to say, so she just looked at Twilight.

Twilight thought for a moment and continued. “When Tirek attacked, Celestia, Artemis and Cadance didn’t want me to face him because they were afraid that he would steal my magic. Instead, they sent Discord. We thought he had been reformed and was on our side. We were wrong. He joined Tirek and helped him steal magic from ponies all over Equestria. As soon as they realized this, Celestia, Artemis and Cadance transferred their alicorn magic to me.”

“WHAT?!”

Twilight blinked and looked over to find Sundance staring at her in half shock, half horror. “P-please tell me you weren’t a unicorn for that.”

Twilight nodded “I had ascended fairly recently and was still adjusting to the changes, but I was an alicorn.”

Sundance sighed in relief “Good” She paused “Wait. That means you had the magic of . . .”

“Four alicorns, including my own.” Twilight finished, nodding “They didn’t want Tirek to get their magic and, at the time, Tirek didn’t know that there was a fourth alicorn. For a while, he didn’t know where the alicorn magic had gone. Then Discord told him about me. He also told Tirek about my friends. Tirek captured them and stole their magic before finding and challenging me. Tirek had the magic of everypony in Equestria, minus the alicorns, and Discord. Yes, he stole Discord’s magic too. I had the magic of four alicorns. Somehow, we were evenly matched. That’s when Tirek brought out my friends and Discord and offered to trade them for my magic. I couldn’t let him kill my friends, so I agreed. Once he was released, Discord gave me a medallion in gratitude. That’s what turned into my key for the chest at the base of the Tree of Harmony.”

“That’s when something strange happened. The girls and I still represent our Elements, but we seem to have awakened a new type of power.” Twilight paused “We still call it the Elements of Harmony, mainly because it’s easier for everypony to understand. However, I’m pretty sure that what we use now is called Rainbow Power.”

Sundance gasped “You’ve awakened the Rainbow Power?”

Twilight nodded again “That’s what we used to defeat Tirek and return everypony’s stolen magic.” Twilight paused for a moment, trying to get her thoughts back on track. “My point is, I wasn’t able to do any of that by myself. I tried and found that I needed my friends.”

Sundance shook her head “I see your point, but that doesn’t change the question. When something you tried failed, you were able to find a different option. As for Night-Terror Knight, you may have had help the first time, but I know you faced him by yourself for the second.”

“Yes, I did face him alone that time.” Twilight replied, blushing “I blocked the only attack he launched in my direction. After that, he put a barrier, trying to keep me out.”

Sundance raised an eyebrow “I hope you don’t expect me to believe that stopped you.”

Twilight’s blush deepened as she shook her head. “I walked right through it.”

Sundance laughed “I thought so”

“A-anyway,” Twilight continued, still blushing “I enclosed both of us in my force field so he couldn’t go anywhere. But it wasn’t my magic that stopped him. We talked for a few minutes. He told me that he didn’t want to attack me and the first attack was an attempt to scare me away. When I asked him if he could let Artemis out or if I needed to call the girls, he went with the first option.”

Sundance stared “Y-you asked him to release Artemis? And he listened to you?”

Twilight nodded “I thought it was weird, but wasn’t going to ask questions.” She paused “There’s another thing I couldn’t take care of with my magic or by myself.”

Why does she seem nervous? Sundance tilted her head “What are you talking about?”

Twilight looked at the cloud under her “The Alicorn Amulet”

Sundance flinched “That’s true.”

“Dad showed us the conversation you two had after we left this morning.” Twilight looked up at Sundance “I don’t want to decide something like this by going off of somepony else’s memory, regardless of who that pony is. It’s not that I don’t believe him, it’s just that I’d rather talk to you about this before I decide what to do next.”

Twilight sighed “If you can’t tell me why you thought I would use the Alicorn Amulet right now, that’s fine. For now, I’m willing to say that it’s because you don’t know me very well. Eventually, I would appreciate an answer because I need to know what it is about me that made you think I would do that. It’s obviously something that I need to change, but I can’t do so until I know what needs to be changed.”

Hearing this, Sundance’s eyes filled with tears. What have I done? She thinks there’s something wrong with her because of what I said? Using her wing to pull Twilight closer, Sundance whispered “No, Twilight. You don’t need to change anything.”

Tightening her wing around Twilight, Sundance continued in a louder voice. “After thinking about it, I realized that my reaction had to do with the amulet itself.” She saw Twilight’s confusion and nuzzled her. “I’m not sure who created it, but that amulet has been around for a very long time. Over the years, I’ve seen it corrupt several ponies so deeply that their original selves were lost. Midnight and I had to kill those ponies because they were a threat to everypony around them.”

Twilight turned to Sundance “Why weren’t you able to save those ponies?”

Sundance shook her head “When the corruption gets to a certain point, there’s no way to save the pony using the amulet. The only thing that can be done is to make sure they can no longer harm those around them. The amulet had given those ponies so much power that, each time, we were the only ones that were powerful enough to stop them. As for Trixie, she hadn’t been wearing the amulet for very long when she challenged you. That meant that the corruption in her was still at a point where it could be reversed. That’s why you were able to save her. She may not know it, but she’s a very lucky pony.”

Twilight laughed “I would tell her that, but she’d never believe me.”

Sundance nuzzled Twilight, trying to get back on topic. “I was angry because I thought you had put yourself in danger. I don’t want you anywhere near the Alicorn Amulet.” She shuddered “I don’t want you to have to die because of that thing.”

Twilight returned Sundance’s nuzzle “There are many dangers that I won’t be able to avoid. Bearing the Elements of Harmony means that the girls and I have to face the most dangerous enemies that come to Equestria. But I promise you that the Alicorn Amulet is something I’ll never use.”

Sundance pulled her into a tight hug. “Thank you, Twilight” she whispered

“Of course, Mom” Twilight closed her eyes and relaxed into Sundance’s hug. She didn’t notice Sundance’s eyes fill with tears again, of happiness this time.

They lay like that for several minutes before Sundance glanced at the shield. “We should ask Artemis to release his shield. I’m sure they’re wondering what’s taking so long.”

Twilight nodded and stood, moving over so Sundance could stand as well.

Sundance touched her horn to the shield for a moment before turning to Twilight. “I don’t sense anything. Can you try?”

Twilight touched her horn to the shield. After a moment, she shook her head. “I don’t sense anything either.” She sighed “I’m going to have to break the shield. I just need a minute to figure out exactly which one he used. Hopefully, it’s one of the ones that Shiny taught me to break. If it’s not, I’m going to have to figure out how to break it myself and that could take hours.”

Sundance nodded and lay down, watching Twilight carefully.

Twilight touched the shield again, analyzing the magic. A little over a minute later, she groaned. “Of course he used that one.” She glanced at Sundance “The good news is that I know how to break it. The bad news is that it’s the hardest one to break.”

Sundance sensed that something wasn’t being said “Is there anything else?”

Twilight nodded “This is going to take a lot of magic.”

Sundance smiled “That’s not a problem.” As soon as it appears that she needs help, I’m adding my magic to her spell. I will not allow her to drain herself.

Twilight returned her smile, closed her eyes and lit her horn again.

Sundance watched as the magic surrounding Twilight’s horn doubled, then tripled, in strength. A minute later, the shield shuddered and began to dissolve.

Outside the shield, Artemis was getting worried. “I should have felt or heard something by now.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled his son “I’m sure they’re fine. Your mother would never allow Twilight to come to any harm.”

All three of them looked over as the shield shuddered before beginning to dissolve. Their eyes widened as enough of the shield disappeared for them to see Sundance carefully watching something next to her. As more of the shield disappeared, they saw Twilight facing them with her horn glowing brightly.

“She broke my shield” Artemis whispered in awe “That’s my most powerful defensive technique!”

Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis gasped as Twilight collapsed as soon as the shield vanished completely.

“Don’t worry, she just needs to rest. It took a large amount of magic to break Artemis’ shield.” Sundance levitated her daughter to her side and covered her with a wing before looking at Artemis. “We tried to ask you to release your shield, but you didn’t notice when either of us touched our horns to your magic. Twilight had no choice but to break your shield. Thank goodness you used one of the shields that her brother taught her how to break. Otherwise, we may have been trapped for hours.”

Artemis winced “I’m sorry, Mother. I must have forgotten to include that part.”

“That’s alright” Sundance answered before looking at each of them. “I’m sure you want to know what happened.”

Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis nodded

Sundance nodded as well “I’ll show you but you’re going to have to come closer.” She nuzzled Twilight “I have no intention of getting up right now.”

Midnight Armor folded his wings and stood before walking over to lay next to his wife. Artemis lay next to Twilight and Celestia lay next to Midnight Armor.

Sundance nuzzled each of them and lit her horn. A sphere of light blue magic appeared in front of everypony as she played her memory of their conversation.

When it got to Twilight’s comment about Chrysalis possibly wanting her to kill Cadance, Celestia nodded thoughtfully. “I wondered about that. The rest of Chrysalis’ plan was executed flawlessly. If she just wanted Twilight out of the way, she wouldn’t have put those two where they could find each other. If Twilight’s theory is correct, it answers a few questions.” She paused “I’m sorry, Mother. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

Sundance smiled “It’s alright, Celestia” She let the memory continue.

Midnight Armor gasped “They’ve awakened the Rainbow Power?! We thought that was gone forever.” He paused, looking at Artemis “Didn’t you tell us that Twilight and her friends were tested by the Elements after she returned them to the Tree of Harmony?”

Artemis nodded

Midnight Armor said “Only ponies that truly embody their Elements would have been able to pass those tests. The Tree of Harmony must have believed that they would be able to properly wield that power.”

Sundance nodded “It was quickly proven right as the first thing those girls did with that power was defeat Tirek and return everypony’s magic.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow as Twilight told his wife about the second time she faced Night-Terror Knight. “She asked him to release you, Artemis?”

Artemis shrugged “I’m not sure. I don’t remember what happened while Night had control of my body.”

Celestia turned to her brother. “Twilight appeared out of nowhere, used the Royal Voice to tell everypony to stop running and move to the edges of the room, approached Night, didn’t bat an eye when he launched a bolt of darkness at her, dissipated it with a barrier, walked through his like it didn’t exist, enclosed them both in her force field, talked to him for a few minutes and asked him if he could “let you out” or if she needed to call the girls. He immediately released you.”

Midnight Armor shook his head “Every time I think I’m done being surprised by this mare, I hear something like this. Where did you find her again, Celestia?”

Celestia laughed harder “My school for Gifted Unicorns, Father. She hatched a dragon and sent his head through the roof.”

“I couldn’t help it! I had a magic flare!”

Everypony gasped and looked next to Sundance as Twilight yawned and looked at the sphere of Sundance’s magic. She glanced up at their mother. “You’re showing them what happened?”

Sundance nodded “Is that a problem?”

Twilight snuggled closer “No. Celestia and Artemis were going to ask me as soon as we woke up, anyway.” She giggled as Artemis and Celestia smiled sheepishly.

Midnight Armor laughed “She certainly knows you two well.”

Sundance smiled and moved onto the part of the conversation where she explained what happened to the other ponies who used the Alicorn Amulet and her reason for not wanting Twilight anywhere near it.

As the sphere of Sundance’s magic disappeared, Midnight Armor nodded thoughtfully. “When you put it that way, your reaction was actually normal. We never wanted anypony to use that amulet but you always had a rather severe reaction to the possibility of our children using it. The fact that you instantly reacted that way, without knowing why, means that we truly do have a second daughter.” He chuckled as Sundance blushed “Didn’t you say Celestia was being overprotective?”

Sundance immediately turned to him “There’s a big difference between an older sister and a mother!”

Midnight Armor kissed his wife “I never said there wasn’t.”

“You said-” Sundance stopped as she felt a gentle nuzzle into her neck, just above her shoulder, and looked down at Twilight.

Twilight giggled “Works every time”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis said the same thing. “What?”

Twilight shrugged. “It’s something I learned as a filly. Every time it looked like my parents or Shiny were going to raise their voices, I’d do that. It always stopped them.”

Artemis shook his head “I wish I knew that trick when we were foals.” He shuddered “You don’t know what it’s like when your parents get angry at you and both of them can use the Royal Voice.”

“You’ve never heard my mother yell.” Twilight paused, glancing up at Sundance. “Um, I mean the one that’s a unicorn.” She thought for a moment. “You’ve never heard Shiny yell either. They can’t use the Royal Voice, but I’m pretty sure they’re both about to learn it.”

Celestia laughed “I know what you mean. One time, I asked your brother to personally train a couple of troublesome teenagers that had just entered the Royal Guard Academy. I still don’t know what they did to anger your brother. All I know is that they were in the training yard and I clearly heard Shining Armor from the throne room.” She shook her head “As for Twilight Velvet, she visited me shortly after you moved into the castle because she wanted to know exactly what I was teaching her daughter. She didn’t like the plan I had come up with.”

Twilight laughed as well “I remember that!”

Celestia smiled at Twilight “You really helped me that day.”

Midnight Armor looked between Celestia and Twilight “What do you mean?”

Celestia laughed “It’s better if I show you what happened.”

- -Celestia’s Flashback- - -

Velvet’s eyes widened “It’s much too soon for Twilight to learn such complicated magic! There’s no way she can master teleportation yet, she’s only eight years old!” She glared at Celestia “She looks up to you and she’s going to be heartbroken when she can’t do as you’ve asked!”

Celestia opened her mouth to respond but was distracted when a little lavender unicorn teleported into the room.

Before either of them could say anything, Twilight turned to her mother. “Stop it, Mommy! I’m trying to do my homework and you’re being too loud! Besides, it’s not nice to yell at Princess Celestia! She taught me new magic today. I can teleport!”

Smiling, Celestia walked forward and nuzzled Twilight. “I’m sorry, Twilight. We didn’t mean to interrupt your studies. You can go back to your room and finish your homework. We’ll eat dinner when you’re done. I asked the chefs to make macaroni and cheese with broccoli tonight.”

“Yay! Thank you, princess!” Twilight nuzzled Celestia and teleported back to her room.

Velvet just stared at the space where her daughter had been standing. She looked up as Celestia cleared her throat.

“I trust you no longer believe that your daughter is unable to master teleportation, Mrs. Sparkle?”

Velvet opened and closed her mouth a few times. “H-how did you teach her that?”

Celestia smiled “You seem to have underestimated your daughter’s abilities. It’s easy to make such a mistake when a parent focuses on their foal’s age. However, I am well aware of young Twilight Sparkle’s abilities and intend to use them to her advantage. I promise that I will not ask anything of her that she isn’t capable of doing.”

Velvet bowed “My apologies, princess. I shouldn’t have raised my voice.”

Celestia nodded “It’s alright, Mrs. Sparkle, I understand. You want what’s best for your daughter.” She glanced at the clock “Twilight should be done soon, if she isn’t already.”

A couple of minutes later, a guard walked into the room and bowed. “Princess Celestia, your student is waiting for you in the dining room.”

Velvet winced “She’s not causing any trouble, is she?”

The guard laughed “Not at all, Mrs. Sparkle. She’s going over the armor of the guards stationed there, naming each piece and pointing out what parts need to be cleaned and oiled. She’s a very smart filly.”

Velvet smiled “She used to help Shining Armor clean and oil his armor.”

Celestia laughed “In that case, I’d better get there before she decides to clean their armor herself.”

Velvet nodded “Have a good night, princess.”

- -End Flashback- - -

Artemis grinned at his sister “You needed help from a filly, sister?”

Celestia gave her brother a sad smile and nodded. “That night, she helped me again, far more than she knows. If I’m right, you did as well.”

Artemis paused, nervous at the sudden change in his sister’s mood. “What do you mean?”

Sundance and Midnight Armor glanced at each other before turning to their oldest child. “This sounds important. Please show us what happened.”

Celestia nodded and created a sphere of golden magic, much larger than usual. Everypony turned their attention to the memory.

- -Celestia’s Flashback- - -

Celestia was standing on a balcony, crying as she looked up at the silhouette of her brother on the moon.

A pair of Night Guards stood behind her. One turned to the other and whispered “I don’t like this, Silver Shadow. She does this almost every night but won’t tell us what’s wrong.”

Silver Shadow, clearly a new guard, nodded “Even if we can’t help, I wish she would tell us what’s bothering her.”

Both of them turned at the sound of tiny hoofsteps.

The first guard stared “What’s the princess’ student doing up at this hour? Should we stop her?”

Silver Shadow shook his head “Leave her be. There’s something special about that filly. Besides, she may be able to help Princess Celestia.”

Twilight walked up to Celestia, reared up and hugged her foreleg.

Startled, Celestia looked down before gently nuzzling her. “What are you doing up, Twilight?” she asked softly

Twilight put her hooves back on the floor as Celestia lay down and used a wing to bring her closer.

Twilight nuzzled Celestia “Why are you crying, princess?”

Celestia returned Twilight’s nuzzle and looked up at the moon. “A very long time ago, somepony very special to me had to go away. Even though it makes me sad, I come out here to make sure I don’t forget him.”

Twilight shifted nervously and quietly asked “A-are you talking about your brother?”

Celestia couldn’t believe her ears. “H-how did you know I have a brother?” she whispered, staring at Twilight

Twilight looked down “P-promise you won’t laugh?”

Celestia gently lifted Twilight’s head and nuzzled her “I promise”

Twilight smiled at her teacher “I was having a scary nightmare when it suddenly stopped. Everything was black except for something dark blue in front of me. It told me that it wanted me to do it a favor. It sounded like a colt’s voice. I said that I would help him if I could. He said that his sister was sad and I was the only one that he could count on to help her feel better. I asked how I was supposed to find his sister because there are lots of ponies in the castle. He laughed and said that I already know who she is. Then he said that his sister’s the only mare that’s still awake.” She shrugged “I woke up and started walking around. That’s when I saw you crying, princess.”

That was definitely Artemis, he’s the only one that could have entered her dream. Celestia smiled and hugged Twilight tighter “Thank you, Twilight. Let’s get some sleep.”

“Yes, princess” Twilight stood, turned and started to walk to her room but suddenly found herself caught in Celestia’s magic.

Celestia smiled “How would you like to sleep in my room? We can have a sleepover.”

“I-it’s really OK if I do that?” Twilight asked nervously

Celestia laughed and placed Twilight on her back as she walked off of the balcony. “Yes, my little student”

A few minutes later, they were in Celestia’s room. Celestia levitated Twilight to her bed as she took off her royal finery.

Twilight watched in wonder “I’ve never seen you without that stuff on, princess.”

Celestia laughed “I take it off at bedtime because it’s really hard and uncomfortable to sleep in.” She climbed into her bed, lay down next to Twilight and covered her with a wing.

After a moment, Twilight’s head popped up from under the blanket of feathers. Specifically, in between the feathers.

Celestia giggled “What are you doing, Twilight?”

Twilight giggled as well “Hide and seek! You have to find me!” She pulled her head under Celestia’s wing again, only to pop up somewhere else.

The game continued until Celestia lifted both wings but couldn’t find Twilight. She was getting worried when a lavender hoof reached out of her mane and bopped her on the nose. Celestia laughed and pulled Twilight into a hug. “You win, Twilight.”

“Yay!”

Smiling, Celestia nuzzled her little student “It’s time for bed now.”

Twilight curled up next to Celestia, yawning. “Good Night, princess.” She lay her head on the bed, but didn’t close her eyes.

“Good Night, Twilight” Celestia replied, looking at the moon. “Thank you, Artemis” She whispered, laying her head on a pillow and falling asleep.

Twilight smiled, snuggled closer and fell asleep as well.

- -End Flashback- - -

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled at each other before she reached over Twilight to nuzzle their son. “Well done, Artemis. Even though you were possessed by the Nightmare and trapped on the moon, you still found a way to help your sister.”

Artemis had a strange look on his face, as if he was straining to remember something. Suddenly, there was a flash of black magic and his eyes widened. How could I have forgotten this?!

Twilight gasped as Celestia’s memory brought another memory rushing back to her. “How could I have been so stupid?” She asked “I can’t believe I didn’t remember this, or the dream that followed, until now!”

Celestia looked down

Midnight Armor glanced at his wife. “What was that about?” he whispered

Sundance shrugged and turned to Twilight “You’re not stupid at all, Twilight.” She said, nuzzling her. “Perhaps it’ll help if you tell us what you’re talking about.”

Twilight returned Sundance’s nuzzle and created a sphere of magenta magic. “This is the dream that I had after I fell asleep again.”

- -Twilight’s Flashback- - -

Twilight opened her eyes and looked around to see that she was surrounded by darkness again. “H-hello? Is anypony there?” she called

“Shh! I don’t want him to find us!”

Twilight turned to see the dark blue thing from before next to her. “Who are you talking about?”

“What’s a filly doing here?”

The blue thing gulped and moved in front of her.

“You think you can protect your little friend? You can’t even protect yourself.”

Twilight looked around, trying to figure out where the owner of the voice was. “This pony isn’t being nice. I’m gonna make him say he’s sorry!”

“I don’t know where you’ve been hiding, but it doesn’t matter. Now that you’re here, I’ll destroy the last piece of you.”

Twilight’s eyes widened as she saw the blue thing in front of her shudder and heard him whimper. Still trying to figure out where this pony was, she lit her horn and glared at the darkness around them. I won’t let him hurt anypony!

“Go away, you big meanie!” Given extra power by her anger and desire to protect the one next to her, Twilight’s magic flared. Suddenly, the darkness was gone.

Looking around, Twilight noticed a blue pony with a light blue mane and tail lying in front her. She thought it was a Pegasus but, as she walked closer, she saw a horn. “Hey, you look like the princess! She has wings and a horn, too!”

The blue pony shuddered “Shh!”

Twilight lay down next to him. “It’s OK, the scary voice is gone.”

The blue pony lifted his head a little and looked at her. “R-really?”

Twilight nodded “I told him to go away and he did.”

He stared at her, eyes wide “H-how did you do that?”

Twilight shrugged “I just did.” She paused “My name’s Twilight. What’s yours?”

For the first time, he smiled “Artemis”

That’s the same name Princess Celestia said. Twilight smiled “Are you the one who asked me to help your sister, Artemis?”

Artemis nodded “Were you able to help her?”

Twilight nodded “I found Princess Celestia on a balcony. She was looking at the moon and crying.”

Artemis looked scared “D-did she say why she was crying?”

Twilight nodded “She told me that somepony special to her had to go away a long time ago and she doesn’t want to forget him. So she looks at the moon, even though she gets sad when she does.”

“B-big sister hasn’t forgotten me?” Artemis asked hopefully

Twilight smiled and shook her head “She said she wanted a sleepover, so she brought me to her room tonight. I played with her and made her laugh. Before we fell asleep, she looked at the moon again and said “Thank you, Artemis”.”

Artemis gave Twilight a tight hug. “T-thank you, Twilight!”

Twilight returned his hug and nuzzled him. Suddenly, she noticed that she was starting to disappear. “W-what’s going on?”

Artemis let her go and smiled sadly “You’re waking up.”

Twilight looked at him “Will I see you again?”

Artemis’ smile became wistful “I hope so. You’re nice.” He blushed “Can I ask you to do one more thing for me?”

Twilight nodded

Artemis gave her another hug “Please give my sister a hug and tell her that I’m alright.”

Twilight returned his hug “I will” As soon as she said that, she woke up.

- -End Flashback- - -

Sundance and Midnight Armor stared at Twilight for several moments.

“Y-you repelled the Nightmare?” Midnight Armor shook his head “That must have been a very powerful magic flare.”

Before Twilight could say anything, Artemis turned to their parents. “Yes, she did. The space she created protected me for the next nine years.”

Twilight stared at Artemis “I-I did that?!”

“Yes, Twilight” Artemis kissed her “I’m starting to lose track of how many times you’ve saved me.”

Midnight Armor smiled as he saw Twilight’s stunned expression. “I could count them, but I’m not going to bother. Instead, I’m just going to say that I’m very glad our son chose you, Twilight.” He paused “Though, after hearing about all of the things you’ve done, I don’t think it’s possible for him have chosen anypony else.”

Wide eyed, Sundance nodded

Celestia looked at Artemis. “The next morning, the first thing Twilight did was tell me that she had met a pony “with wings and a horn like me” named Artemis in her dream. She gave me a hug and told me that you were alright, saying that you had asked her to do so. I asked her to tell me everything she remembered from her dream. As she did, I became certain that she was the bearer of the Element of Magic. For the first time, in a very long time, I had hope that I would see you again.”

Celestia turned to Twilight “It’s not your fault you didn’t remember this, Twilight. After you told me about your dream, I suppressed your memory of what happened. I knew you would eventually face Night-Terror Knight. I also knew that, if I didn’t do something, you would figure out that Artemis was trapped inside him. If that happened, you wouldn’t have been able to bring yourself to use the full strength of the Elements of Harmony because you would have been afraid of hurting Artemis.”

Sundance nodded thoughtfully “You’re right, Celestia. As under hoofed as it seems, you made the right choice.”

Celestia nodded to their mother and turned back to Twilight. “I didn’t want to permanently take the memory from you, so I wove a trigger into the spell. When you heard my memory of that night, you would regain your memory. I wanted to tell you a long time ago, but I couldn’t find the right time to bring up the topic.”

Midnight Armor looked at Twilight thoughtfully “I believe this is why Twilight was able to see Artemis’ soul when she faced Night-Terror Knight. Even though she didn’t remember it, she had already met him in that form. Additionally, she protected him once before, so some part of her must have known that she needed to do it again.”

Sundance nodded “That makes sense. In fact, that may have been what connected their souls. That would also explain why the bond between them is so powerful.”

Celestia looked at their mother “How can you tell how strong the bond between Artemis and Twilight is?”

Midnight Armor smiled “I could answer your question, Celestia, but I have a better idea.” He smiled at his wife before they both turned to their youngest. “Twilight? Will you show you sister what we’re talking about, please?”

Twilight nodded and focused on the link between Artemis and herself.

Celestia’s eyes widened as her siblings began to glow. “I didn’t think it would be this powerful.”

Sundance’s eyes also widened as she noticed how bright it was and turned to her husband. “Does it seem like their bond stronger than it was yesterday?”

Midnight Armor nodded, staring at Artemis and Twilight.

As they stopped glowing, Artemis nuzzled Twilight. “What did you think would happen after we regained such powerful memories?”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Celestia smiled

“Speaking of those memories,” Artemis said slowly “Celestia explained why Twilight didn’t remember, but why did I forget? I only remembered what happened after Celestia told us how Twilight helped her.”

“That was my doing, Artemis. Twilight’s magic flare made it impossible for me to get to you. However, I was able to make you forget what happened. After hearing Celestia’s tale, I decided to return your memories.”

Sundance immediately lifted her wing and spread it over Artemis and Twilight.

Midnight Armor spread his over Celestia and lit his horn “Stay away from my children!”

There was a pause before Night replied.

“I understand why you feel that way, Midnight Armor. However, I no longer mean your son any harm. The Elements of Harmony have purified me as they purified Artemis. They also bound our souls together, making it impossible for me to leave his body. However, here in the dream realm, I have a little more freedom. As such, I will leave his dream. Good Night.”

Artemis closed his eyes I’m sorry, Night. It’s probably going to be a long time before my parents are willing to talk to you.

It’s alright, Artemis, I understand. We can talk about this later. For now, you should enjoy your time with your family.

Artemis opened his eyes “He left my dream.”

His parents sighed in relief before his mother shook her head. “Purified or not, I’d like to keep him as far away as possible.” She said “Especially after everything he put you through, Artemis.”

We should talk about something else. Twilight nuzzled Sundance “Why don’t we tell you how our day went? Some of it was kind of funny.”

Sundance smiled, immediately understanding the reason behind her daughter’s suggestion, and returned her nuzzle. “Thank you, Twilight”

Midnight Armor also smiled “Good idea. We didn’t get to hear how your day went last night, so why don’t you go first?”

Twilight shook her head “We’re going to have to take turns. Artemis or Celestia should start.”

Artemis smiled and continued playing his memory of what happened when they woke up.

Sundance smiled as she heard Artemis and Celestia talk about which of them was better able to figure out what she was saying and laughed when it was Twilight that figured out the reason behind her anger.

Twilight showed them what happened when she met the foals and their parents.

Midnight Armor heard a young Pegasus whine and gasped as Twilight pulled a piece of plaster out of his wing. “Is that the foal that had to be pulled out of the wall?”

Twilight nodded “Yes, that’s Cobalt. His parents had gotten most of the pieces of plaster out of his wings. They missed that one because it was deep in between his feathers and tucked into the bend of his right wing.”

Midnight Armor reached around his wife to nuzzle Twilight. “It seems that it was wise for you check that foal’s wings after all, Twilight.”

Celestia showed them the beginning of court and how the nobles tried to separate Artemis and Celestia.

Sundance shook her head as the nobles got louder. “You should have let your brother yell at them, Celestia. It’s clear he wanted to.”

Celestia nodded and paused her memory. “At the time, I was trying to explain that we don’t do that anymore. Besides, they don’t usually do this.”

Midnight Armor looked at her “Why did they do it then?”

Artemis smiled “You’ll find out. Twilight, I think it’s your turn.”

Twilight nodded and showed them her arranging the desks in her classroom.

Celestia smiled “I like that set up. I wish I had thought of it years ago.”

Artemis frowned as he heard Twilight comment on the noise from court. “I can’t believe it got that loud.”

Celestia shook her head as it got louder. “You weren’t kidding. You really could hear them from halfway across the castle.”

Twilight nodded and paused her memory.

Artemis showed their parents how the nobles suddenly stopped as they heard a loud voice. Everypony turned to see Twilight and her guards standing in the door.

Sundance laughed “That certainly stopped them. Well done, Twilight.”

Midnight Armor nodded “I see. They must have thought that, if they were loud enough, they could separate the two of you. That would have allowed them to trick Artemis into approving something he shouldn’t.”

Celestia smiled “Yes, but Twilight was louder.”

Everypony listened as Twilight listed her first three reasons for her idea to combine the courts and smiled as they heard her fourth reason.

Artemis shook his head “I still don’t see why that was so hard to understand.”

Sundance was about to ask Artemis what he was talking about but paused as Twilight lost her temper and simplified her fourth reason to words that everypony understood. Eyes wide, Sundance just stared at the image for a moment. Then she fell against her husband, laughing so hard that she was unable to speak for a couple of minutes. Finally calm enough to speak, she nuzzled Twilight. “Well said!”

Midnight Armor laughed as well “Well done, Twilight. I don’t think they’ll try that again.”

Twilight blushed “I-I didn’t mean to lose my temper, but they weren’t listening.”

“It’s completely understandable, Twilight.” Sundance replied, still laughing. “Your father’s right about them not trying that again. Though, if they do, they’ll learn a very important lesson.”

Twilight looked at her, confused “What lesson is that?”

“A lesson the nobles of our day learned the hard way.” Midnight Armor replied, smiling at his wife

Sundance laughed “When a pregnant mare wants something, she’s going to get it. This is especially true when that pregnant mare is an alicorn. We thought they learned that lesson when I was pregnant with Celestia.”

“They learned, or relearned, that lesson very quickly when she was pregnant with Artemis.” Midnight Armor added, laughing as well “For some reason, your mother had quite the temper for the entire length of that pregnancy. Even I had to be careful.”

Sundance turned to him “You did not!”

“Yes he did, Mother! I did as well!” Celestia told her, laughing

Sundance blushed “You try dealing with those nobles, and a young daughter, while pregnant. You’d have a temper too.”

Artemis shuddered “I hope Twilight doesn’t develop a temper like that. Can you imagine a pony with Twilight’s power and abilities having that kind of temper?”

Twilight looked at him “Huh?”

Wide eyed, Celestia looked at Twilight as she thought back to just before Artemis had been born. Remembering how their mother had acted, she imagined what it would be like if it was Twilight instead. “Oh no”

Midnight Armor shuddered as well “Your mother was bad enough. I don’t even want to think about Twilight having that kind of temper.”

Artemis shook his head and nuzzled Twilight “Getting back to our day, I’d like to move on to recess. I think Mother and Father would like to see that.”

Celestia smiled “I bet they would.”

Twilight smiled and showed their parents how she separated the foals by race and asked Artemis and Celestia to help her.

Sundance smiled as she saw Celestia’s game of aerial tag. “Having them weave between the clouds was a good idea, Celestia. Even though clouds aren’t usually fast, they do move. That will help those foals.”

Midnight Armor laughed as he watched Artemis work with the earth pony foals. "The best way to get them to build their strength is to have them move. Even though things are more peaceful, it’s a good idea for them to learn those skills.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor’s eyes widened as they watched Twilight work with the unicorns. “Where did you come up with that idea?” Sundance asked, nuzzling Twilight

Twilight returned her nuzzle “That’s one of the exercises Celestia made me do when I was their age.”

Celestia laughed “I came up with that a few centuries ago.” She gave Twilight a mischievous smile. “I like the technique you came up with.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow “What’s she talking about, Twilight?”

Artemis smiled “Twilight came up with a unique way to help the foals improve their reading.”

Sundance immediately said “Show us”

Midnight Armor smiled “I’d like to see this as well.”

Celestia smiled and showed their parents what happened in the library. Once the memory was over, Sundance and Midnight Armor stared at Twilight for a long moment.

Sundance shook her head “I’ve never seen anything quite like it.”

Midnight Armor smiled “Yes, but it clearly works”

Everypony laughed as Twilight blushed

Midnight Armor reached around his wife and nuzzled Twilight. “I have a question about something that was said last night.

Twilight looked at him “What’s that, Dad?”

Midnight Armor smiled at her “How did you get those foals to understand that they needed to leave the Everfree Forest alone?”

Twilight shrugged “I asked the foals how they would feel if they found a stranger in their house. Several of them said that they would fight to get the stranger to leave. I told them that those creatures would do the same thing because the forest is their home. They immediately said that they needed to leave the forest alone because it isn’t nice to go into somepony’s home.”

Midnight Armor and Sundance stared at Twilight for several minutes before turning to each other.

“I wish we had thought of that, it would have made things much easier.” Sundance commented “How many foals did we save from the creatures of that forest?”

Midnight Armor shrugged “There were so many that I stopped counting.”

Artemis turned to his sister “That doesn’t include the ones we saved.”

Celestia nodded

Sundance raised an eyebrow “We never allowed you two to help us.”

“No,” Artemis replied “but you let us play with the foals that lived in that small village. Whenever somepony went missing, we had to go into the forest to save them.”

Sundance gasped “What? Why didn’t you tell us?”

“We tried to tell you,” Celestia answered “but you didn’t let us explain whywe were going into the forest. You just spent the night yelling at us because we disobeyed you.”

Artemis nodded “We never brought it up again.”

Midnight Armor glanced at his wife “We stopped receiving requests to save ponies from the forest and assumed that they learned to stay out of it.”

Sundance’s ears drooped “Instead, our children were doing our job for us.” She paused “That explains why the mayor of that village thanked us every time he saw us.”

Midnight Armor nodded thoughtfully “I just thought he was happy that we were allowing our children to play with the village foals. Instead, Artemis and Celestia were saving the villagers.”

Sundance nodded

Midnight Armor had the feeling that he was missing something. After thinking for a moment, his eyes widened “Now it all makes sense.”

Sundance turned to her husband “Midnight?”

He looked at his wife “I think it’s best if I show you what I’m talking about. Besides, I’m sure Celestia and Twilight would also appreciate an explanation.”

- -Midnight Armor’s Flashback- - -

Midnight Armor stood in a small clearing in a dense part of the forest. He was breathing heavily and bleeding from a large gash on his left side. There was also an injury to his left wing, making it impossible for him to fly. Undeterred, he glared at the three Manticores in front of him. Growling, the largest one spread its wings and flew straight at him.

Midnight Armor glanced at the four foals behind him. He’d been forced to use the last of his available magic because, when he found the fillies, they were just about to be attacked by five Manticores and pack of Timberwolves. Here in the clearing, he’d thought they were safe, but then the three Manticores suddenly appeared. I’m not sure how we’re going to get out of this, I don’t even have enough magic for a shield. Making sure he was in front of the foals, he closed his eyes and braced for the impact.

Nothing happened.

Suddenly, one of the fillies shouted “Prince Artemis!”

What?! Midnight Armor’s eyes flew open. He noticed that the Manticores were looking to the right. Following their gazes, he saw his thirteen year old son standing not far from them. He was horrified when all three of the Manticores turned towards his son. This is bad, he hasn’t had any combat training!

Artemis created a shield around his father and the foals before turning his attention to the Manticores. He dodged the first Manticore by taking to the air. Immediately, the other two charged him. Artemis used his magic to launch one of them to the other side of the forest and put up a shield to block the second. Glancing behind him, Artemis saw the first Manticore rise into the air.

The larger Manticore tried to bite Artemis’ neck while the smaller one tried to take a swipe out of his right side. At the right moment, Artemis flew up so that the Manticores attacked each other. Both of them were bleeding heavily but they still turned to Artemis and charged. Artemis fired a beam of dark blue magic directly at them. Once the light faded, everypony on the ground looked around to find that there was no trace of either Manticore.

Midnight Armor stared at his son. When did he learn to do that?! He should only know defensive and healing spells! Sundance wanted them to focus on their studies, so she forbid me from teaching either of our children combat skills until they turned sixteen.

Artemis landed in front of Midnight Armor, released his barrier and cast a healing spell on his father. Then he turned to the fillies. “Why did you come into the forest?”

As one the foals bowed “We’re sorry, Prince Artemis.”

One of the foals lifted her head “We wanted to pick mushrooms and everypony knows that the best ones grow in the forest.”

Sighing, Artemis lit his horn. A couple of minutes later, over a dozen mushrooms were floating next to him. “These are all of the mushrooms that were growing nearby. Well, the ones that are safe to eat, anyway. Are any of these what you’re looking for, Strawberry Breeze?”

Strawberry Breeze, an earth pony filly, nodded “Mommy wants the big ones for dinner and Lily’s mommy asked her to get the small ones.”

“Do you have a basket?” Artemis asked

Lily stood, revealing her saddlebags

Artemis placed the mushrooms in the saddlebags. “We need to leave. It’s going to get dark soon and we don’t want to be in the forest at night.”

The fillies nodded “Yes, Prince Artemis”

Artemis examined his father’s injuries. “Celestia needs to take a look at this, she’s better at healing spells than I am.” Raising his head, he looked at his father. “She should be in the village, making sure nopony else enters the forest. Can you walk, Father?”

Midnight Armor nodded. He may only be thirteen, but I’m going to try to convince Sundance to let me train him. If he hadn’t arrived when he did, I’d probably be dead.

A little over an hour later, they finally made it out of the forest. They found Celestia and the parents of the fillies waiting for them. The fillies immediately ran to their parents, who bowed to the alicorns and took their children home.

Celestia walked forward but, before she could say anything, Artemis spoke up.

“It was three Manticores, sister.” He told her “Father was injured and apparently out of magic. I launched one of the Manticores to the other side of the forest and destroyed the other two. As for Father’s injuries, you need to take a look at his left side and wing. I tried to heal his injuries, but you’re better at it.”

Celestia nodded and surrounded their father’s left side and wing in her magic.

Midnight Armor sighed in relief as his injuries fully healed and the pain faded.

Artemis noticed and bowed his head “I’m sorry, Father”

“No, Artemis, don’t apologize.” Midnight Armor nuzzled his son “I don’t care that you weren’t able to heal my injuries. Instead, I want to thank you. If you hadn’t arrived when you did, those fillies and I would all be dead.”

Artemis still looked nervous “You’re not angry with me?”

Midnight Armor shook his head, confused “Why would I be angry?”

“I went into the forest.” Artemis sighed, looking at the forest. “Mother is going to kill me.”

Midnight Armor smiled “Leave your mother to me.”

- -End Flashback- - -

Chapter 47

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 48

Twilight looked at Midnight Armor “What roar?”

Celestia shuddered “The roar of a creature that never should have existed.”

Artemis looked at Twilight “How much do you know about the creatures of legend?”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “Technically, you are a creature of legend.” She paused as her family laughed. “Which one are you talking about?”

“I don’t want to say its name so I’ll describe it instead.” Artemis replied, shuddering as well “It had the body of a lion, the wings of a dragon and a snake for a tail. The lion head could breathe fire with a strength that only the strongest dragons could match. That would have been bad enough, if the snake didn’t have its own power. There was only one thing the snake could do and that was eat. The problem was the snake’s food source. The lion part of the creature killed anything that lived and ate their bodies while the snake ripped their souls from their bodies and ate them. That made the entire creature stronger.”

Everypony looked at Twilight, expecting to see a look of shock, or horror, on her face, but that’s not what they saw. Surprised, they glanced at each other before turning back to her.

“Hmm” She said, looking down as she thought “The creature was clearly a Chimera. However, the fact that the snake ate souls means that it wasn’t a normal Chimera. I read that there was only one that could do that. The roar must have come from the Chimera Anima.”

“WHAT?!”

Twilight jumped and looked up, unintentionally echoing their mother. “What?”

Sundance stared at Twilight in shock. “H-how do you know about that creature?!”

Twilight shrugged “There was a description of it in a book.”

Celestia hesitantly asked “When did you read about it? And where did you find this book?”

Twilight tilted her head “Five years ago and it was in the castle library.”

Celestia gasped “Why didn’t you tell me about this?!”

Twilight blinked “I couldn’t have told you anything at the time. You had gone to the Griffin Kingdom to solve a dispute of some kind. I don’t know anything else about it because you refused to tell me. You just said that the trip was critical and that I wasn’t to send you any letters unless it was an emergency. You left a bunch of work for me to do, but I finished it all in the first two days. After that, I got bored and went to the library.”

“When I got to the library, I was approached by the previous head Archivist. She had just finished translating a shipment of ancient texts. She told me that one of the texts was a little strange and she couldn’t figure out what section to put it in.” Twilight paused “I believe she had an appointment with you to discuss the matter but it was cancelled because of your emergency trip to the Griffin Kingdom. Anyway, she asked me to read the book and give her my opinion on where she should put it.”

Celestia’s eyes were wide “W-what was it that you read?”

Twilight stared off into the distance as she thought. When she finally spoke, her words weren’t directed at any of them. Instead, it was almost as if she was thinking out loud. “The book didn’t have a title and was a record of a major battle. However, it clearly wasn’t an official record. Instead, it seemed like it was made by an average citizen. The fact that the tale had four alicorns in it made me question its authenticity because the only alicorns we knew of at the time were Celestia and Cadance. Still, I was curious enough to keep reading. The tale included physical descriptions of all four of the alicorns, but none of them were named. They were simply referred to as King, Queen, Prince and Princess. As for their descriptions . . .” She paused, looking at the ponies around her, before slowly giving voice to her new train of thought.

“Dad fits the description for the King, Mom fits the one for the Queen, Artemis fits the one for the Prince and Celestia is obviously the Princess.” Eyes wide, Twilight gasped as she suddenly understood. “T-that means . . .!”

Midnight Armor pulled her into a hug, trying to stop the panic attack that had clearly already started. “Shh, it’s alright. Calm down, Twilight.”

“B-but-!”

“Shh” He repeated, hugging her tighter. It took him awhile, but he eventually managed to calm her to the point that her breathing returned to normal. Fearing that she would have another panic attack, he used a wing to keep her by his side.

Realizing that he wasn’t going to let her move, she lay her head on his shoulder and took several deep breaths. “I-I’m sorry”

Midnight Armor nuzzled her “It’s alright. It’s a lot to take in.”

Sundance nodded “Especially since you didn’t know that what you read appears to have been a recording of history. You clearly thought it was fiction so I’m not surprised that you reacted that way.”

Celestia hesitantly asked “Did the tale say who we were fighting?”

After thinking for a moment, Twilight nodded “The Chimera Anima and a unicorn stallion. Like the alicorns, the unicorn wasn’t named. Instead, he was referred to as the Advisor to the Crown.”

Artemis growled, surprising Twilight “That was Golden Thunder’s official title. In fact, he was the last one to hold that title because we no longer use it. Anypony who knows this would know exactly who it was referring to.” He turned to Celestia. “If that book is still in the library, who knows how many ponies have read it by now. It’s possible that Golden Flash has read it as well.”

Celestia nodded “If he has, it will have been my fault.”

Midnight Armor turned to his oldest “How could it have been your fault? There’s no way for you to control if he read something or not.”

Celestia took a deep breath and shook her head. “It is my fault, for two reasons. When I returned from the Griffin Kingdom, Twilight told me that I needed to see the head Archivist about an unusual book. The head Archivist also came to see me, probably about the same book. Unfortunately, I had other things on my mind at the time.”

“I was focused on ensuring that what happened in the Griffin Kingdom didn’t cause trouble in Equestria because it could have started a war. I was so focused on preventing a potential war, I forgot about what they told me. If I had gone to see the head Archivist, I could have made sure that book was put somewhere safe.” She turned to Twilight “Have you told anypony about what you read?”

Twilight shook her head “Even though it mentioned you, I thought the story was fiction. This is the first time I’ve mentioned it to anypony.”

She nodded to Twilight “That’s good. Anyway, the second reason is worse. Roughly six months ago, Golden Flash said something in court that annoyed me. He kept making some claim about “the way things used to be done”. Instead of telling him why he was wrong, I sent him to the library because I wanted him to figure it out for himself. I remember being surprised when he didn’t come to court for almost a week. When he finally returned, he was behaving slightly different and had brought the first of many petitions requesting legal changes. He also asked me for a grant, requesting research funds.”

Sundance shuddered “That sounds disturbingly familiar. Did you grant his request?”

Celestia shook her head “Even after all these years, I haven’t forgotten what happened with Golden Thunder. Whenever anypony asks for research funds, I make sure they tell me exactly what they’re researching and what they plan to use the money for. If they refuse to give me that information, I don’t give them the funds. Golden Flash refused to tell me what he was researching, so I denied the grant.”

Sundance nuzzled her daughter “You had your hooves full at the time. Not only were you trying to keep Equestria together and teach Twilight, you were also trying to prevent a war. Additionally, you were doing all of this by yourself. Not to mention the fact that your brother was due to return soon. That must have been on your mind as well. While I wish you had done as Twilight and your head Archivist had asked, I don’t blame you for not doing so.”

Midnight Armor nodded “I agree with your mother, Celestia. I also agree with, and applaud, another of your actions. I’m glad you learned from our mistake with Golden Thunder. If you hadn’t begun to take more care with who research funding is given to, this would likely have been much worse. As it stands now, even if he knows the truth, you should still have time to prevent him from using Golden Thunder’s plan.”

Twilight had been thinking as she listened to her family. She suddenly spoke up. “If what I read was correct, Golden Thunder’s plan depended on him being able to use the Chimera Anima. Is this true?”

Surprised, Celestia nodded

Twilight smiled “Golden Flash can’t use that plan right now.”

Artemis paused “What do you mean?”

Still smiling, Twilight replied “There was only one Chimera that could eat souls. If the battle in that book really happened, and that book is an accurate record of said battle, then the Chimera Anima was destroyed.”

Sundance gasped “You’re right, Twilight. It was destroyed.”

Midnight Armor sighed in relief, understanding her point. “It was the only one in existence because it wasn’t born, it was made by ponies. That’s what Golden Thunder used the money he took from the treasury for. He had been researching a way to give a chimera that he had captured the ability to steal and eat souls.”

Sundance nodded “He was also researching control spells so he could make the Chimera Anima obey him.” She turned to Celestia “What about those spells? How many ponies know about them?”

Celestia smiled “I’ve classified them as forbidden and banned ponies from learning them, let alone casting them. Most ponies, other than Artemis and myself, don’t even know those spells exist.” She paused, looking at Twilight.

Twilight quickly shook her head “I don’t know any spells that can do that.”

Sundance thought for a moment. “How many Chimeras still exist?”

Artemis blinked “I’m not sure. I haven’t seen any since my return.”

Celestia smiled, but Twilight beat her to the answer.

“None” Twilight said, also smiling “According to what I read, the last one died roughly two hundred and sixty years ago.”

Celestia nodded “She’s right”

Midnight Armor grinned “Good. That means he’ll have to create one if he wants to turn it into a Chimera Anima. That could take years.”

Sundance nodded “If he wants revenge, he’ll have to come up with something else. In fact, that may be why he wants the funding.”

Celestia tilted her head “If so, that may be why he won’t tell me what he’s researching.”

Artemis sighed “Of course, all of this is assuming that he knows what happened and wants revenge.”

Midnight Armor nodded “You’re right, Artemis. Even though he’s clearly up to something, it could be harmless. Perhaps he’s just greedy. However, he could also be out for revenge or anything in between. Because we don’t know which one it is, your mother and I want to make sure you’re prepared for the worst.”

He turned to Twilight “To that end, I’d like to get back to the original topic. You may have read about that battle but, without reading it for myself, I don’t know how accurate that account is.” He nuzzled her “You’re right, this is a sensitive topic for us. However, we believe you need to know what happened and would prefer to tell you ourselves.”

Sundance smiled at her youngest “We’re the ones that brought this up, so don’t worry about us getting offended.”

Celestia saw Twilight’s expression “If you’re worried about how Artemis and I will take it, don’t. We need to see this. I’m sure that, like me, Artemis has pushed as many of the memories of that day as possible to the back of his mind.” She looked at her brother in time to see him nod. “We’ve probably forgotten things that we shouldn’t have.”

Twilight grimaced but nodded

Sundance looked at her husband “I’ll take it from here, Midnight. After we heard the roar . . .”

- -Sundance’s Flashback- - -

Sundance and Midnight Armor tensed as they looked around, searching for the source of the roar. Seeing nothing, they took to the air, heading towards the sound.

“Was that what I think it was?” She asked, flying at top speed next to her husband

“It had to be a Chimera.” He replied “No Manticore sounds like that. But I don’t understand why a Chimera would be here. We chased all of them from Equestria decades ago.”

Looking in front of them, she gasped “We’re headed for the castle!”

Both of them stopped in shock as a wall of their daughter’s magic appeared in front of the castle before reaching back to form a dome, protecting the castle and everypony in it. Another roar shook the forest but this one was accompanied by an intense blast of flames, aimed directly at their daughter’s shield.

Midnight Armor gasped “I’ve never seen a shield like that. It’s almost as powerful as my barrier!”

Sundance nodded “I don’t know where she learned how to do that, but you’re right. Unfortunately, even a shield as powerful as that one won’t be able to hold off a Chimera for long. We need to hurry.”

He nodded as they began flying again, still heading for their castle.

As they got closer, they watched the Chimera’s attack get close enough to touch Celestia’s shield. They gasped as a beam of dark blue magic met the flames. For a moment, it appeared as if the attacks were evenly matched. Then the beam of magic began to push the flames back. Eventually, the Chimera was forced to stop its attack in order to avoid getting magic in its mouth.

“That was Artemis!” Sundance breathed “H-how did he do that?!”

“When did his magic get that powerful?!” Midnight Armor asked, stunned

Before either of them could say anything else, they arrived above the castle. Easily passing through their daughter’s shield, they landed near their children.

“Celestia! Artemis!” Sundance shouted, racing over to them “Are you alright?!” She took a good look at her children, noticing that both were injured and clearly tired. Celestia had a small gash on her right flank and Artemis had one to his chest.

“What’s going on?!”Midnight Armor demanded as he reached his son’s side.

Celestia and Artemis glanced at each other

“We would tell you,” Artemis began “but we both know you won’t believe us.”

“Agreed” Celestia continued “You should ask somepony you will believe.” Seeing the expressions on the faces of their parents, she nodded at something on the other side of her shield. “Him”

Midnight Armor and Sundance looked at each other, confused, before turning to look in the direction she indicated. Both of their jaws dropped as they saw a large Chimera standing near Golden Thunder.

Sundance turned back to her daughter. “I know you don’t like him, but that’s no reason to allow him to die! That Chimera will kill him!”

Artemis snorted “No, it won’t. He created that thing, Mother, and has been using it to attack us for several hours now.”

“W-what?!” Midnight Armor exclaimed “Golden Thunder, is this true?!”

“King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance” Golden Thunder sneered, taking them both by surprise “Welcome back. I thought the dragons would be able to keep you busy longer. In fact, I had hoped to greet you as Equestria’s new king, but your children have proven to be a more formidable defense than I expected.”

“I wish I had been able to fool your children like I fooled the two of you, but they’ve been suspicious of me for as long as I can remember. In fact, they’ve been trying to warn you about me for years.” He saw their stunned expressions and laughed. “Of course, they’re too young to understand what’s going on. Isn’t that right?”

The Chimera Anima chose that moment to launch a close range attack against Celestia’s shield. Caught by surprise, she barely managed to hold her shield together long enough for the attack to end. Then it shattered.

Midnight Armor tried to raise his barrier but cursed when he realized that he didn’t have enough magic.

Golden Thunder saw this and laughed “I guess the dragons were useful after all.” He lit his horn. The Chimera Anima launched another attack.

Midnight Armor and Sundance’s eyes widened as they watched the flames head for their family. Just as they were about to use the last of their magic to protect their children, they felt two surges of powerful magic beside them.

Everypony’s attention was suddenly drawn to the sky. The sun, which had been about to set, rapidly returned to the highest point in the sky. A bright light drew everypony’s attention to Celestia.

She was glowing, so much so that she could be mistaken for a second sun. When the light faded, her mane and tail were no longer pink. They had been replaced with a gently flowing river of soft pink, blue and green. On her flank, there was an image of the sun.

Before anypony could comment on Celestia’s new look, their attention was drawn back to the sky. The moon quickly rose and blocked the sun, forming a solar eclipse. A dark flash of light drew their attention to Artemis.

He was glowing as well. In his case, they felt like they were looking into a piece of the night sky. When the darkness faded, what they saw left everypony stunned. His coat was darker than it had been, now a deep sapphire. His mane and tail were no longer light blue. Instead, it looked like they were made of the night sky and, like his sister’s, they gently flowed in an invisible breeze. On his flank, there was a dark patch with a silver crescent moon.

Working together, they raised a shield that easily blocked the attack.

Midnight Armor stared at their daughter “C-Celestia!”

Sundance gasped as she looked at their son “A-Artemis!”

Together they said “They earned their Soul Marks!”

Golden Thunder paused “I have to admit, I didn’t see this coming. Congratulations, Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis. It’s not every day that one meets ponies who can control the heavenly bodies. I must say, it’s quite an honor.”

He studied their shield and sighed. “This calls for a change in strategy. I was hoping I wouldn’t have to do this, but it’s time for me to reveal my creation’s hidden ability.” He summoned two dozen ponies to his side. All of them had been bound and gagged.

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened “Release them at once!”

Golden Thunder chuckled “I’m afraid I can’t do that, my king. They are an important part of my strategy. I won’t bore you with the details. Nor will I subject you to the gruesome sight of my creation feeding.” He lit his horn. The Chimera Anima turned and pounced on the captive ponies. Just as it reached them, all of them vanished. When the Chimera Anima reappeared, it was alone and glowing.

Sundance glared at Golden Thunder “What have you done to them?”

He smiled “Me? Nothing. My Chimera Anima? That’s another story. It can eat the bodies and souls of living creatures. Every soul that it eats makes it stronger. It should be strong enough to destroy any defensive spell now.” He shook his head “It took many years of research to discover how to make this possible. I must thank you for the generous funding, your majesties. This wouldn’t have been possible otherwise.”

Midnight Armor matched his wife’s glare. “We funded your research into a defense system for the kingdom, not this.”

Golden Thunder’s smile widened “That’s where you’re mistaken, King Midnight Armor. This Chimera Anima is a very effective defense system and will do a great job of defending my kingdom.”

With that, the Chimera Anima launched an attack that was strong enough to melt Celestia and Artemis’ shield, the castle behind them and everypony in between.

Golden Thunder’s eyes widened “That’s too strong! I want to take over the castle, not destroy it!”

Artemis and Celestia’s eyes turned white as they poured all of their available magic into their shield. Unfortunately, even their new powers weren’t enough. Their shield was starting to give.

Midnight Armor jumped in front of his children, his horn glowing.

Sundance gasped “Midnight, No! You don’t have enough magic for that!”

Midnight Armor smiled at his wife “Yes I do, Sundance. I will protect our children, even if it kills me.”

For a moment, Sundance stared at him in horror, immediately knowing what he was going to do. Then her expression turned to determination as she joined him. “You won’t be doing it alone!”

He kissed her one last time before both of them turned to Golden Thunder and the Chimera Anima. Their eyes turned white as both of them released the last of their magic, adding it to their children’s spell.

Celestia and Artemis watched in horror, but could do nothing to stop their parents. “Mother, Father, No! If you use the last of your magic, you’ll die!”

The shield blocked the attack but shattered as half of the magic powering it suddenly vanished.

Sundance and Midnight Armor collapsed, dead before they hit the ground.

The Chimera Anima moved closer, sniffing the bodies of Midnight Armor and Sundance. The snake slithered forward, eyes glowing. As it hissed, the souls of Midnight Armor and Sundance were torn from their bodies.

They looked down at their bodies before turning to each other. When they spoke, everypony was somehow able to hear them. Both of them asked the same thing.

“What?”

Golden Thunder laughed “This is perfect! Now my creation will gain so much power that nothing will be able to stop it!”

The Chimera Anima leapt towards the bodies of the fallen alicorns, only to be repelled by a shield made of sunlight.

“I don’t think so.”

Everypony turned towards the voice to see a very angry Celestia. They stared in shock. None of them had ever heard her use that tone of voice before. Tears streamed down her face, but her mane and tail had been replaced with flames. Her horn glowed as she used the sun’s power to protect the bodies of her parents.

Golden Thunder stared at her for a moment before shrugging. “Fine. You can keep the bodies of your parents. Consider them a final gift. Besides, it’s their souls that I really want.” He turned to the Chimera Anima. “It’s time for your feast, my creation. Devour their souls!”

The snake part of the Chimera Anima hissed again.

Sundance and Midnight Armor’s eyes widened as their souls were pulled towards the creature.

“No”

Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped as their souls were surrounded with their son’s magic. Caught in his unbreakable grip, they found themselves pulled away from the Chimera Anima and towards their children.

Again, everypony turned towards the voice. This time, it was Artemis that they stared at.

Like his sister, he had tears streaming down his face as his horn glowed. The moon also glowed as a beam of moonlight shone down on him, feeding his power. What surprised everypony the most, was the power present in his voice.

Golden Thunder glared “Give me those souls!”

Artemis returned his glare “You may have taken our parents’ lives, but I will not allow you to take their souls.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled

Golden Thunder scoffed “You’re just a spoiled foal that can’t accept the fact that he’s lost. Your parents are dead!” He paused as Artemis’ glare deepened. Deciding to try a more diplomatic approach, he switched to a worried tone of voice. “Besides, it isn’t possible to return their souls to their bodies. If you don’t allow my creation to eat them, they’ll disappear forever.”

Artemis shook his head “I won’t allow that either. In fact, I have a better idea.” He closed his eyes and followed the instincts that had come with his new powers. The souls of their parents began to glow.

Golden Thunder gasped “W-what are you doing?!”

Opening his eyes, Artemis looked at Golden Thunder. “I will place their souls in the night sky as stars. You will never be able to get your hooves on them again.”

Midnight Armor and Sundance stared at their son in shock.

“H-how will he do that?!” He whispered to his wife

She shrugged “I may have no idea, but clearly he does.”

“Should we-?”

She cut him off. “No, Midnight. If we had trusted our children, we wouldn’t be in this mess. No matter what happens, I will trust our son now. Besides, I would far rather place the fate of my soul in the hooves of our son than allow Golden Thunder and his monster to have their way with it.”

Midnight Armor smiled “You’re right. Let’s see what he does.”

Throwing diplomacy out the window, Golden Thunder growled at Artemis. “You’re crazy! Even with your new abilities, there’s no way you have the power to do that! You have control over the moon! Nothing else!”

Artemis gave Golden Thunder a grim smile. “Not quite. I am the Prince of the Night. As such, I have control over the night sky and everything in it. Placing a couple of new stars in my night sky is well within my power.”

Celestia nuzzled her brother “I like your idea much better than the one he came up with. How long will it take?”

Artemis turned to his sister “I’m not sure. I’m going to take this slowly because I want to make sure it’s done properly. If it was any other star, I’d be done in a few minutes. But these two are different. They are going to be made from our parents’ souls.”

Celestia nodded “I trust you, little brother.” She turned to Golden Thunder as he glared at them.

“It doesn’t matter what you think, princess.” He snarled “As soon as I take the throne, you’ll both be following my orders. The first thing I’m going to do is order your brother to give me those souls.”

Celestia gave him a look “I assume you mean to take the throne because the law states that if the King and Queen die before their oldest child comes of age, the Advisor to the Crown takes it instead.”

Golden Thunder smirked “Of course. Why do you think I convinced your parents to pass that law?”

Celestia actually laughed “You really should have paid attention to the change Mother and Father made to that law before passing it. You can only take the throne if the oldest child plans to take the throne alone and isn’t old enough. However, if the late King and Queen had more than one child, their children can take a dual throne if their combined age is above thirty-five.” She smiled “I’m twenty-nine and Artemis is twenty-three. We meet every requirement to take the thrones of our parents.”

Midnight Armor laughed “By killing us, all you did was force our children to take the throne.”

I’m suddenly very glad we made that change. Sundance smiled “You may have fooled us, but our children have foiled your plan. You will never rule Equestria, Golden Thunder.”

Golden Thunder laughed “I’ll just have my creation kill them. They have no foals. Once they’re dead, I’ll take the throne.”

Celestia shook her head “Ah, yes. Your creation. Unfortunately for you, I’ve come up with a solution to that little problem.” She channeled the sun’s power again. This time, it wasn’t sunlight. It was the true fire of the sun. A towering column of solar flames engulfed the area where the Chimera Anima was standing. When it finally died down, the Chimera Anima and Golden Thunder had both disappeared. All that remained was an after image. Not even a minute later, that disappeared as well.

She turned to Artemis “Oops.” She said innocently “I guess I used too much of the sun’s power. I am new at this.”

Artemis shrugged “I’m not upset at the outcome. Are you?”

Celestia shrugged as well “No”

Midnight Armor laughed “We may never know how many ponies he’s killed with that creature’s fire. Regardless, I find it rather ironic that he was killed by the strongest fire in existence.”

Celestia and Artemis turned as they heard a thunderous cheer. At some point during the battle, the ponies that were taking shelter in the castle had gathered behind them.

“All hail King Artemis and Queen Celestia!”

“NO!”

Everypony turned to Artemis, who had fresh tears in his eyes.

“Father lost so much today. I won’t take his title too!”

Celestia quickly spoke up, tears in her eyes as well. “The same goes for me. My brother and I will take the dual throne, but we refuse to take our parents’ titles. There will never be another King or Queen of Equestria.”

- -End Flashback- - -

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked at each other for a moment. Both had tears in their eyes. Looking at their children, they saw that Twilight had tears in her eyes as well. Celestia had buried her face in their mother’s shoulder, her body shaking as she sobbed. Artemis had leaned over Twilight and buried his face into their father’s side, sobbing as well.

Celestia whispered “Why didn’t you listen to us?”

Artemis nuzzled deeper into their father’s side. “Y-you didn’t have to die”

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked at each other. Not sure what to say, they held their children tighter. Fortunately, Celestia and Artemis didn’t seem to be expecting a response. For a long time, nopony moved.

Eventually, their tears stopped. Celestia lifted her head and lay it on their mother’s shoulder. Twilight lay her head on her forehooves. Artemis rested his chin on top of Twilight’s head, with the rest of his head leaning against their father’s shoulder.

Sundance nuzzled Celestia and draped a wing over her back. Midnight Armor nuzzled his son as he lifted his wing before laying it over both of them. It was a long time before anypony spoke.

“Hmm.”

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia and Artemis looked at Twilight to see a thoughtful expression on her face.

Midnight Armor shook his head I can almost see the wheels turning. What’s she thinking? “Twilight?”

“I noticed something strange about Golden Thunder.” She said slowly “Don’t you think it’s odd that he was so interested in souls? That was the strange part about the Chimera Anima as well. I mean, why did he create a creature that ate souls? He didn’t seem to care when Celestia stopped his creature from eating your bodies. In fact, he gave them up without a fight. But he was almost livid when Artemis stopped it from eating your souls. Then he demanded that your souls be given to him. He even tried to reason with Artemis, but only about that one thing.”

Sundance gasped “I never thought about it like that, but you’re right. He clearly had an obsession with souls, especially ours.”

Twilight glanced up “I’m not sure why that caught my attention, but it did.”

Midnight Armor shook his head “You’re able to look at things differently because you weren’t involved. This allowed you to see something that we probably never would have even thought to question.”

Celestia nodded thoughtfully “I’m going to look into those spells he used. Maybe they’ll tell us something.”

Artemis nodded as well “That’s a good idea. I don’t know how much help I’ll be, but I’ll join you.”

They both looked at Twilight

Twilight shook her head “You don’t seem to want me to know those spells, so I won’t be able to help. It’s alright, there’s something else that I want to look into. I don’t want to say anything else yet, just in case I’m wrong.”

Celestia smiled, relieved that she wasn’t going to press the issue. “Let us know what you’re researching, and how it’s going, when you’re ready. One more thing. We’re going to the library after breakfast. I want you to show me that book.”

Artemis made a face “If it’s alright with everypony else, I’d really appreciate it if we could talk about something else.”

Midnight Armor looked at his son “Do you have something in mind?”

Artemis shook his head “Anything but this”

“Well,” Twilight began, turning to Artemis “I do have a question for you.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow “Does it have to do with Mother and Father’s deaths? What about Golden Flash or Golden Thunder?”

Twilight shook her head

“Then it’s fine with me.” Artemis replied “What’s your question?”

“Remember when Mom and Dad tried to wake me for the baby party?”

Sundance and Midnight Armor laughed, remembering how she had reacted.

Artemis nodded, laughing as well

“When I woke up, you said that the last time you had seen them so happy was their first visit after you returned.” She shrugged “I’ve been curious about it ever since.”

Celestia’s eyes lit up “That’s right! You mentioned that they visited but never told me what happened.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled his son “I’d like to explain this one, if that’s alright with you.”

Artemis nodded I’m not sure why Father wants to be the one to explain it, but I don’t have a problem with letting him do so.

Midnight Armor smiled “Thank you. The first thing I should explain is that your mother, Star Swirl and I are able to talk to each other, even as stars. I’m not sure how that works, but I’m glad it does.”

Artemis shrugged “It wasn’t intentional, mainly because I didn’t know I could do that at the time. Don’t worry, I won’t change anything.” He paused as both of their parents smiled. “As for your ability to talk to each other, Star Swirl said something similar when I talked to him. He told me that you two have been telling him about Twilight.”

Sundance laughed “Did you really think we wouldn’t?”

Artemis shook his head, laughing as well “Thanks to whatever you told him, he’s coming for a visit. Not to see me, but to meet Twilight.”

Celestia looked at her brother “When is he coming?”

Artemis shrugged again “Sometime next week. He practically demanded that I bring Twilight into my dream but I don’t think he’ll complain if I bring you as well.”

Celestia smiled “Thank you. It will be nice to see him again.”

Meanwhile, Twilight was looking up at a star that was flashing quite a bit. “That star’s clearly trying to get our attention. That’s Star Swirl, isn’t it?”

Artemis followed her gaze “Yes, that’s him. You’re right, it seems that he has something to say.” He paused “Star Swirl, I won’t be able to tell what you’re saying unless you slow down.”

The star slowed down.

After a minute or so, Artemis turned to his family. “He says that he would like to see Celestia as well as meet Twilight, asked me to thank Twilight for noticing that he had something to say and wants to congratulate both of us on Twilight’s pregnancy.”

Twilight smiled and looked up again “He’s still talking.”

Artemis looked up as well. A couple of minutes later, he laughed. “He says that he expects to meet our foal when he or she is born. Additionally, there’s a lesson that he wants to teach our son or daughter when he or she is old enough.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Celestia laughed as well.

Twilight stared at the star for a moment “A-alright. I don’t see why he can’t.”

The star glowed brightly for a moment.

Artemis smiled “He said “Thank you”.”

Midnight Armor shook his head, still laughing “I’d like to get back to Twilight’s question. I brought up the fact that we can talk to each other in our star forms because that’s where this starts.”

- -Midnight Armor’s Flashback- - -

In the large expanse of space, there were several stars. However, three of them were grouped fairly close together, close enough that they could talk to each other.

At the moment, they were resting. Being stars, they couldn’t really sleep. However, when they weren’t needed in the night sky, they lowered their brightness to conserve magic.

As a familiar spell swept across them, they brightened to their usual nighttime levels and prepared themselves to be raised into the night sky. However, tonight they were in for a surprise. The magic that brought them into the night sky was different than usual.

One of the stars turned to another “That didn’t feel like our daughter’s magic.”

The second star replied “Your right, Midnight. That wasn’t Celestia’s magic, but it was definitely familiar.”

The third star shifted thoughtfully “I’ve felt that magic before, just not in a very long time.”

After looking around for a moment, Midnight Armor made another comment. “Is it just me, or are we in a different part of the sky than usual? Star Swirl, you know more about this than I do. What are your thoughts?”

The third star, Star Swirl, replied “You’re right, Midnight Armor. I recognize this part of the night sky because it’s where he placed us. This is where we were supposed to be all along.”

The second star gasped

Midnight Armor turned to it “Sundance? What’s wrong?”

Sundance turned to her husband “I finally recognized the magic that brought us out tonight! We didn’t recognize because we haven’t felt it in ages!”

Star Swirl gasped. “Y-your right! It’s his magic!”

Midnight Armor gasped as well “B-but that’s impossible! He was possessed by Nightmare forces and sealed in the moon!”

Sundance began to glow. A moment later, she took the form she had when she was alive. The form of an alicorn mare.

Midnight Armor asked “Where are you going, Sundance?”

She turned to him “Where do you think?! I’m going to see if our son has truly returned! Are you coming with me or not?”

Midnight Armor paused “What if we’re wrong? Where will we go then?”

Happy to hear the “we”, Sundance smiled as she watched her husband take the form he had when he was alive, an alicorn stallion. Stepping closer, she nuzzled him. “We were able to visit Celestia last time. If we’re wrong, we’ll visit her again.” Turning to Star Swirl, she asked “Are you coming with us?”

“No” Star Swirl replied “It would be nice to see Celestia again, and even better if I could see him again. However, if we’re wrong, and it’s not him . . . I don’t think I would be able to bear the disappointment.”

Midnight Armor tilted his head “What if we’re right?”

Star Swirl brightened as he allowed himself to consider the possibility. “If that is the case, he will need his family and friends. However, after everything that he must have gone through, too many ponies will probably overwhelm him right now. I will wait to hear from you when you return.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled at him and turned to the path that lead to the Dream Realm. For the first time in a very long time, they spread their wings and took flight.

They landed in one particular pony’s dream and looked around. At first, they didn’t see anything.

Then Sundance gasped softly. “Midnight, look!”

Midnight Armor glanced at his wife before following her gaze. What he saw took his breath away. “It is him!” he breathed “But why is he in that form?”

In front of them, lay a blue alicorn colt with a light blue mane and tail. The Soul Mark on his flank depicted a silver crescent moon set on a black background. He was curled into a ball and shaking, clearly terrified.

Sundance shook her head “I-I’m not sure. Regardless, we have to help him.” She walked forward and lay down next to her son, before gently nuzzling him.

He yelped and tried to jump to his hooves. Instead, he was pulled into a feathery embrace as another pony lay on his other side. He knew who these ponies were, but that didn’t make him feel any better. Instead, it terrified him because he was afraid to face them after what he had done.

“It’s alright, Artemis” Sundance whispered

Midnight Armor nuzzled him “Calm down, son. There’s no need to be afraid.”

Artemis whimpered “M-mother, F-father” Still shaking, he tried to hide under his mother’s wing.

Smiling, Midnight Armor looked at his wife. “You were right. Our son has finally returned.”

Also smiling, Sundance nodded

Neither of them pushed their son. Instead, they just held Artemis close until he finally calmed to the point where he was no longer shaking.

Realizing that they were waiting for a sign from him, Artemis nuzzled into his mother’s shoulder. When she lifted her wing, he nuzzled his father as well.

Sundance draped her wing over her son once more and pulled him closer. “When did you return?”

Artemis sighed “It hasn’t even been a day.”

Midnight Armor tilted his head “How were you able to escape the Nightmare?”

Artemis shook his head “I didn’t. I was freed.”

Sundance raised an eye brow “What do you mean?”

Artemis shuddered “When I first returned, I was still in the grip if the Nightmare. He attacked Celestia and sent her to the sun before heading to a village near the forest. The ponies that lived there had been preparing for a celebration of some kind. At first, it appeared that he was going to kill those ponies, but a unicorn stopped him.”

Midnight Armor blinked “How was a unicorn able to do that?”

“He was angry because he thought nopony knew who he was. Fortunately for everypony, a unicorn mare recognized him. She stopped him by saying his name. To him, that was enough. He declared that he would bring about Eternal Night and headed to our old castle, which now lies in ruins. My memory gets a bit hazy at that point, so I don’t know what happened next.”

Sundance nuzzled her son “How were you freed?”

Artemis shuddered again “The Elements of Harmony”

Midnight Armor gasped “Your sister told us that she’s no longer capable of wielding them!”

Artemis shook his head “The Elements of Harmony have chosen new bearers. They each wielded one of the Elements and worked together to defeat the Nightmare.”

“T-that’s incredible!” She stared at her son “But there has to be more to it. If that was all it took, your sister would have done it . . . How long were you gone?”

“S-sister told me that it’s been a thousand years . . .”

Both of his parents gasped “What?”

Taking a deep breath, Artemis nodded “You’re right, Mother. There was something else that saved me. Actually, it was somepony. I haven’t told sister about this because I’m not sure how to tell her what happened. I don’t even understand it myself.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled his son “Tell us what happened. We’ll help you figure it out.”

Artemis hesitated, looking down “Even I have trouble believing what happened. T-there’s no way that you’ll believe me.”

Sundance gently lifted her son’s head. “We’re not going there. Not again. Your father and I died because we didn’t believe what you and your sister tried to tell us.” She saw him wince and nuzzled him. “Besides, we both know that you have no reason to lie to us.”

Midnight Armor’s voice shook “Your mother is right, Artemis. Regardless of what you tell us, we will help you understand what happened to you.”

After a moment, Artemis nodded “Very well.” He took a deep breath. “At first, I only saw things in flashes. I vaguely recall looking into a library, rushing through a forest, and something about a river serpent before finding myself in what used to be our throne room. Not long after we got there, six ponies walked into the room. They were an even mix of two earth ponies, two pegasi, and two unicorns, all mares.”

“One of the unicorns was different. It was easy to tell her from the rest because her coat was lavender. More importantly, her Soul Mark reminded me of something. I recognized it later but, at the time, I struggled to place it. Anyway, the others turned to her and asked what they should do next. She pointed to the Elements of Harmony. The pegasi lifted the five stones and placed them in front of her.”

“Fives stones?” Midnight Armor asked I know it’s been awhile, but I’m certain that there are six Elements of Harmony.

Artemis nodded “There were only five of the Elements present and they had been turned to stone. The Element of Magic was missing.”

Sundance tilted her head “How did they stop the Nightmare? The Element of Magic is required in order to use the Elements of Harmony.”

Artemis shrugged “I don’t remember all of what happened, so there are several holes in the story. I’m not sure how much time had passed, but the next thing I remember was noticing that we were in a different part of the castle. The Nightmare had just shattered the stone Elements.”

Both of his parents gasped

“I thought all hope was lost.” Artemis continued “Fortunately for all of us, I was wrong. The shattered Elements glowed and began to circle the other five mares before the lavender unicorn somehow summoned the Element of Magic. That’s when I realized why her Soul Mark was familiar. It’s a pink six pointed star.”

Sundance gasped “The same as the Element of Magic!”

Midnight Armor stared “She summoned her Element?!”

Artemis nodded “At the time, I was still trapped within the Nightmare while he used my body. Some of the time, I was able to see things going on around us but I didn’t even have a form. When I couldn’t see out, everything around me was pitch black. As the mares prepared to use the Elements of Harmony, everything went black again. I was actually grateful for that because I didn’t want to have to watch the Elements hit me again. I fully expected to either be sent back to the moon or killed outright. However, with the Nightmare in control of my body, all I could do was wait for the end to come.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow “Obviously neither of those happened.”

“Yes,” Sundance replied “but something else clearly did. What happened next?”

“This is the part I don’t understand.” Artemis paused “I sensed another presence and turned to find the lavender unicorn standing behind me. Both of us were inside the Nightmare. Before I could say anything, she surrounded my soul with a spell of some kind. Then the Elements hit. The next thing I remember was hearing Celestia’s voice.”

“What?!”

Artemis looked up to find his parents staring at him in shock.

Voice shaking, Sundance asked “W-who is that mare?”

“Celestia called her Twilight Sparkle.” Artemis replied “I haven’t had a chance to really talk to her, or any of the new bearers, yet. Unfortunately, that’s all I know.”

Midnight Armor let out a shaky breath “The next time you see Twilight Sparkle, make sure you thank her.”

Sundance took a deep breath and nodded. “She saved your soul.”

Artemis gasped “W-what?!”

Midnight Armor nodded “I don’t know what spell she surrounded your soul with. Nor have I ever heard of a unicorn able to do something like that. What I do know, is that her actions are what kept you safe while the Elements removed the Nightmare. You wouldn’t be here if she hadn’t done that.”

Artemis stared at his father for a moment before gasping again. “I just remembered something else! Celestia called Twilight Sparkle her “Faithful Student”!”

Sundance blinked “You said “Faithful Student”? I haven’t heard that title in a long time. In fact, I’m surprised your sister hasn’t changed it to something else.” She laughed “Regardless, this Twilight Sparkle has certainly earned that title.”

“That’s for sure.” Midnight Armor smiled “Celestia certainly found herself a good student.”

Sundance nodded “I’ll say.” She nuzzled her son “You’re really back, right? Not just your soul?”

Shaking himself out of his shock, Artemis returned his mother’s nuzzle. “Yes, Mother. In fact, I’m in Celestia’s room right now, asleep next to her in her bed.” He laughed “I know we’re too old to share a bed, but I had no choice because she won’t let me out of her sight.”

“I’m not surprised.” Midnight Armor replied, laughing as well “Nor do I blame her. If you truly have been gone for a thousand years, she’ll probably be acting like that for a long time.”

Artemis shook his head “After being separated for a thousand years, she can be as clingy as she wants and I won’t complain.”

Smiling, Midnight Armor turned to his son “If you don’t mind me asking, why are you in that form?”

Artemis shrugged “Celestia was worried about that as well, so that she cast several diagnostic spells on me. As far as she can tell, much of my magic was tied to the Nightmare and stripped away by the Elements. She believes that my magic, and proper form, will return with time.”

Sundance smiled “Good.”

Before anything else could be said, Sundance and Midnight Armor noticed that they were starting to fade. They both stood.

Artemis stood as well.

Midnight Armor hugged his son “I wish we could stay but, unfortunately, we have to leave now.”

Sundance hugged him as well “Yes, but we’ll be back in three months.”

They smiled at their son as they were pulled towards the stars. Unable to hold back any longer, Sundance preformed several backflips in the air. Laughing, Midnight Armor did the same. Just as they were getting out of range, they smiled as they heard a sound that they had been afraid they would never hear again.

Their son’s laughter.

They were still smiling when they returned to Star Swirl.

“Well?” he asked, trembling in anticipation

“He’s back!” Sundance shouted, grinning at her husband

“R-really?!” Star Swirl stammered, brightening considerably “H-how did he-?!”

Midnight Armor pulled his wife into a kiss before they returned to their forms as stars. “We have much to tell you, Star Swirl.”

- -End Flashback- - -

Celestia smiled at her brother “That explains why you were so calm the next morning.” She paused and laughed “Well, once I convinced you that you weren’t dreaming and that you were really home.”

Twilight looked at Artemis “I’m not sure how you can compare me calling them Mom and Dad to that.”

Sundance giggled “I can think of one way. I recall being told that we have a lavender unicorn to thank for saving our son’s soul and helping to return him to us.”

Midnight Armor chuckled and nodded “We were told about all of the other things that she has done for our son. Then we found out that, not only has our son fallen in love with this mare, but she’s carrying his foal. Our grandfoal.”

Sundance reached around her husband to nuzzle Twilight. “Imagine how we felt when that mare referred to us as her parents.”

Not sure what to say, Twilight stared at them for several moments. Before she could think of a response, Celestia and Artemis raised their heads. “It’s time.”

Artemis turned to their parents. “We’ll be back tonight.”

Midnight Armor nodded “If you figure anything out, please let us know.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nodded before they vanished.

Ten minutes after she woke up, Celestia sat down at the dining room table. A couple of minutes later, Artemis and Twilight walked into the dining room and joined her at the table. They looked up as Apple Crunch walked into the room with three plates of pancakes.

Celestia and Artemis smiled but Twilight froze, her stomach already voicing a complaint. Knowing Celestia and Artemis were going to insist that she eat, she poured a small amount of maple syrup onto her pancakes before beginning to slowly work her way through her meal. A few minutes later, her eyes widened before she teleported out of the room.

Artemis winced I was afraid of this.

Apple Crunch immediately tried to apologize but Celestia cut him off.

“It’s not your fault, Apple Crunch. Unfortunately, morning sickness tends to start rather early in alicorn pregnancies.” She paused “Our mother had it really bad. In fact, when she was pregnant with Artemis, there was roughly a month where she was unable to hold down any food at all. It looks like it might be the same for Twilight.”

I’ve never heard either of them mention their parents before. Apple Crunch paused “Do you know what Princess Twilight might be able to keep in her stomach, princess?”

Celestia shook her head “What works is different for each pony, even alicorns, so it’s probably going to take a bit of trial and error to figure that out.”

Artemis tilted his head “If I recall correctly, Father said that the only thing Mother could keep down during that month was apple juice.”

“You’re right, Artemis.” Celestia replied “That’s as good a place as any to start. If you have any Apple Family Apple Juice, try giving her that.”

That makes sense. Apple juice is gentle on the stomach. Apple Crunch nodded “I believe we still have a couple of bottles, princess.” He bowed “I’ll be right back.”

Several minutes later, Twilight walked back into the room and sat down next to Artemis.

Apple Crunch walked over to her with a bottle of apple juice. “Here you are, Princess Twilight. Hopefully, this will be a bit better.”

Twilight nodded, opened the bottle and hesitantly took a sip. After a couple of moments, she took a larger one. Realizing that it was going to stay down, she smiled and finished the bottle. “Much better. Thank you, Apple Crunch”

Apple Crunch sighed in relief. “I’ll contact the Apple Family and ask for another shipment of their apple juice. It may take me awhile, but I’ll find meals that you’ll be able to eat, princess.”

He bowed and headed back to the kitchens. “I know I put that book of recipe suggestions for pregnant mares around here somewhere. I ordered it for when Princess Twilight began to experience morning sickness. I just didn’t expect to need it this soon. Ah, there it is. Now then, let’s find something to make her for lunch.”

Not daring to eat anything else, Twilight waited patiently for Celestia and Artemis to finish their food before standing. The three of them walked into the hallway.

“We have over an hour before court starts.” Artemis began “What do you want to do now, sister?”

Twilight turned to him “Didn’t Celestia say that we were going to the library?”

Celestia nodded “I want to find that book.”

A few minutes later, they walked into the library. One of the librarians, not used to ponies coming in so early in the morning, turned to ask the visitors to come back in an hour.

She stopped, shocked, as she saw the three alicorns. Recovering from her surprise, she walked over to them and bowed. “Is there anything I can help you with, your highnesses?”

Twilight nodded “There’s a book that I read a few years ago. I was telling Celestia about it and she decided that she just had to read it for herself.”

Celestia smiled at the librarian and nodded. Leave it to Twilight to find a way to make this sound like something innocent. That will help us keep what we’re doing a secret until we’re ready for anypony else to know about it. She was pulled from her thoughts as her sister continued.

“Unfortunately, it didn’t have a title. That means it may be a bit difficult to find.” Twilight paused “There’s a spell I developed when I lived in the Golden Oaks library that will speed things along. Do you mind if I use it now?”

“Oh my! Twilight, is that you?”

Twilight turned towards the voice to see an aging Pegasus mare. After a minute, her eyes lit up. “Frost Blossom! I haven’t seen you since you retired!” She turned to Artemis “She was the head Archivist before Magic Scrolls.”

Frost Blossom walked closer and bowed “You’ve grown quite beautiful, Twilight! Becoming an alicorn certainly didn’t hurt matters, your wings are lovely.” She laughed as Twilight blushed and turned to Artemis, bowing again. “Good Morning, Prince Artemis. I don’t believe we’ve been properly introduced. As Twilight said, my name is Frost Blossom.”

Artemis smiled “Good Morning, Frost Blossom. It’s nice to meet you.”

Frost Blossom leaned closer to Artemis “If you don’t mind, your highness, I have two questions. Are you really courting Twilight? More importantly, is she really pregnant?”

Artemis kissed Twilight “The answer to both questions is yes. I’ll also answer the question that I’m sure is coming next. The foal she’s carrying is mine.”

Frost Blossom’s eyes lit up “That’s great! Congratulations to you both!”

Twilight smiled at Frost Blossom “Thank you. By the way, do you remember the book that didn’t have a title? I told Celestia about it last night. Now she wants to read it for herself. Unfortunately, I never asked you where you put it.”

Artemis shook his head I have to admit, she’s good at this. She hasn’t lied to anypony. She’s just not going into detail. Celestia taught her well.

After thinking for a moment, Frost Blossom nodded “You mean that strange one, right? I believe I ended up putting it in the battle portion of the history section. Even though I was convinced it was fiction, I couldn’t bring myself to put it in that section.”

“Thank you” Twilight smiled and quickly headed for that section. A few minutes later, she returned with a frown. “I couldn’t find it. It looks like I’m going to have to use that spell after all.”

Standing in the middle of the library, Twilight lit her horn. Every book in the library was surrounded with her magenta magic and floated into the air. Most of them were put back on the shelves she took them from. Some of them were put back in slightly different places. She frowned as most of the books in the library were put in their proper places without her finding the one she was looking for. Her last hope was a large stack of books that were behind the counter, waiting to be re-shelved. As she began to put those books away, her frown turned to a smile. A single book floated towards her while the others were returned to their proper places. She opened the book, read a page somewhere in the middle, smiled and nodded. “This is the book I was looking for.”

Frost Blossom stared at Twilight for a moment before shaking her head. “I wish we had known that spell when I worked here. Do you know how long it usually takes to re-shelve all of these books?”

Twilight laughed “I created this spell a couple of years ago. It took a while to re-shelve the books in my library as well so I decided to make a spell that would take some of the stress off of Spike.”

Celestia smiled as she saw the looks on the faces of the librarians. “It might be a good idea for you to teach that spell to a couple of the unicorns who work in the library, Twilight. While I’m sure they’re happy that you did the re-shelving for them this time, I think they’d appreciate being able to do it themselves.”

Twilight followed Celestia’s gaze and laughed as three librarians walked towards her. “Sure, it’s a fairly simple spell. However, due to the number of books in this library, the three of you will probably need to cast it together.”

All three of them stopped in front of her and bowed “Yes, princess”

Twilight took a few minutes to teach them her spell. Smiling, they thanked her and bowed again before heading back to the checkout desk to get started for the day. Frost Blossom wished them a good day and walked out of the library.

Nopony noticed a pony walk into the library and pause at the sight of the alicorns before vanishing between the bookshelves.

Twilight turned towards Celestia and Artemis. Before she could say anything, she felt something unexpected. Surprised, she looked at the book as somepony tried to take it from her. Strictly on reflex, she strengthened her magical grip and pulled it towards her. She blinked as somepony with a red magic aura strengthened their grip as well.

“That’s a new one.” Celestia remarked “Somepony actually thinks they can overpower Twilight?”

Artemis shook his head in disbelief “That would be difficult, even for us. I don’t believe that any other pony is capable of doing it. Does this pony know who they’re dealing with?”

“Probably not.” Celestia replied “Even though she’s not using anywhere near her full strength, whoever this is doesn’t have any hope of succeeding. Though I have to wonder who is brave, and foolish, enough to try.”

More curious than anything, Twilight traced the magic and levitated the pony it belonged to towards them. Once he was pulled from in between the bookshelves, Twilight was so surprised that she nearly dropped him.

It was Golden Flash.

Author's Note

Before anyone says anything, i researched the ancient Greek monster, Chimera. There is a version that has wings. Anima is another word for Soul. That creature is a Chimera that eats souls.
It wasn't until after I'd written that chapter, and was taking a break, when I realized that it's the same name as the creatures from the anime "Tokyo Mew Mew". These are in no way the same thing, nor did I take the name from the anime.

Chapter 49

Golden Flash glared at Twilight as she put him down in front of Celestia, Artemis and herself and continued his attempt to take the book from her.

Twilight raised an eyebrow “Why are you trying to take the book from me, Golden Flash?” I’d better be careful. I almost said Golden Thunder.

Golden Flash’s glare deepened “That book belongs to me, princess.”

Twilight raised the other eyebrow as well. “This book belongs to the castle library.”

Golden Flash shifted his gaze to Celestia, and noted her neutral expression, before looking at Artemis. He was surprised to see that Artemis’ expression was fairly neutral as well. That’s odd. He’s usually easy to read.

According to Mom and Dad, this book is a recording of history. It’s just been mislabeled because we thought it was fiction at the time it was translated. However, the fact that he’s acting this way means that he may know the truth. Maybe I can get him to reveal something. Twilight strengthened her magic, overwhelming his, and floated the book to her side.

Surprised, Golden Flash turned to her.

“Why did you say that this book is yours?” Twilight asked “It’s clearly marked as a library book.”

Golden Flash glanced at the librarians. “I’ve been trying to buy that book for months, princess. The librarians keep telling me that I must get permission from Princess Celestia before permanently removing anything from the library.”

Those ponies deserve a raise. Celestia nodded “Every book in this library is for everypony to read, Golden Flash. I have never allowed a book to be sold from this library, and don’t intend to start now.”

I think I know what Twilight is trying to do. Let’s see if I can give him another push. “Golden Flash,” Artemis began “you didn’t answer Twilight’s question. Why did you say that the book is yours?”

Aware of the fact that they weren’t going to let him leave without answering the question, Golden Flash’s glare returned. “That book belongs to me because it chronicles the last day of my ancestor’s life. Even if you won’t give it to me today, that book will be mine.” He lowered his voice to a menacing growl. “I know that you killed him, just because he wanted a chance to rule Equestria. At least he got rid of your parents first.” Not waiting for a response, he turned and left the library.

For a moment, none of them could say or do anything.

Finally, Twilight managed to shake herself from her surprise enough to teleport them, and the book, to her classroom. Looking at the clock, she saw that they still had fifteen minutes before class, and court, started. Making sure they were alone, she locked the door and cast a soundproofing spell around the room.

Once they were sure that nopony could walk in on them, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight immediately slumped to the floor.

Taking a deep breath, Celestia gave Twilight a weak smile. “Well done, Twilight.”

Shaking himself out of his shock, Artemis looked at Celestia “I’ll be right back, sister.”

Raising an eyebrow, Celestia turned to him. “Where are you going?”

Artemis closed his eyes “To tell Mother and Father about this.” Without waiting for a response, he entered the dream realm.

Sundance and Midnight Armor were relaxing on the cloud, just watching the stars. They looked up as Artemis appeared next to the cloud. Smiling, both of them stood and walked over to him. Their smiles vanished when they saw his expression.

“What’s wrong?” Sundance asked

Artemis looked at his parents. Taking a deep breath, he said two words. “He knows” Before they could ask, he showed them what happened in the library.

Eyes wide, Sundance had to sit down.

Midnight Armor growled, especially when he heard Golden Flash’s last comment.

“W-where is the book?” Sundance hesitantly asked

Artemis smiled slightly “Twilight has it. She made sure to bring it with us when she teleported us out of the library.”

Sundance breathed a sigh of relief. “Good.”

Shaking his head, Artemis muttered “I can’t believe he tried overpower her.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “That was a foolish move on his part. I doubt he could have overpowered her when she was a unicorn. Now that she’s an alicorn, he doesn’t have a chance.”

Nuzzling his parents, Artemis sighed “I can’t stay any longer because court is about to start. I just wanted to let you know what happened.”

Sundance nodded “We’ll see you tonight.”

Midnight Armor nodded as well “Thank you for telling us.”

As Artemis vanished, Sundance turned to her husband. “I’m glad we told Twilight what happened. It seems that we were right to be worried.”

He pulled his wife close “You’re right. We now know that Golden Flash knows what happened and it’s clear that he’s angry.”

She nodded and leaned into his side “We just don’t know what, if anything, he intends to do about it. It’s quite possible that our children are in danger.”

He sighed “Golden Flash probably only told our children what he did because he knew that they weren’t going to let him leave without giving them some kind of answer.”

She laughed “Remind me not to underestimate Twilight. Based on what I saw, she purposely made him reveal some of what he knew. And she managed to do it without revealing anything herself.”

He nodded “Agreed. It looked like Artemis helped as well, by making Golden Flash answer her question.”

Artemis opened his eyes to find that Twilight had moved next to Celestia. He saw that his sister had used a wing to pull Twilight close, obviously needing comfort. He moved to her other side and gave her a hug.

Celestia buried her face in her brother’s neck and took several shaky breaths.

Twilight nuzzled Celestia before turning her attention to the book. She locked it with a password, placed a barrier around it and teleported it to Celestia’s room. Then she whispered the password to Celestia.

Celestia giggled at the password that Twilight had chosen. That’s something that happened during her first lesson with me. There’s no way that anypony, other than the two of us, would even think of it.

Before any of them could say anything else, somepony knocked on the door. Celestia stood, dried her eyes with a spell and settled her usual carefully neutral expression onto her face. Artemis also stood as Twilight walked to the door, cancelling the soundproofing spell as she did.

On the other side of the door were her students and their parents.

Steel Night and Midnight Fang were standing behind them. Both of them breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that Celestia and Artemis were in the room with their princess.

Twilight smiled “I’m sorry. Celestia, Artemis and I were discussing something and lost track of time.” She gestured to the desks. “Come on in and we’ll get started.” She looked at the parents “We’ll be in the library for the last couple of hours of the day, so please be there to pick them up at five.”

As the foals walked over to their desks, Celestia smiled at them. “We have to go now, but we’ll see you for lunch.”

Artemis nodded before teleporting himself and his sister to the throne room.

In the throne room, as usual, there were several dozen ponies present and waiting for them. Surprisingly, Golden Flash stood in the group of nobles.

Suppressing a smile, Celestia watched as he looked both of them over carefully. He’s probably looking for the book. Does he really think we would bring it to court? “Good Morning, my little ponies”

“Good Morning Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis”

Golden Flash stepped forward, quickly removing a small smirk from his face and bowing. “Good Morning, your highnesses. We understand that, with the new court system, both of you will be working together to address our petitions. As such, we would like to submit the ones that we’ve been holding on to.”

Celestia briefly raised an eyebrow “Why have you been holding back petitions?”

Arctic Breeze stepped forward “I can answer that question, princess. The nobles were reserving their petitions until they were certain that decision to hold combined courts wouldn’t be reversed. Now that it’s clear that it won’t, Ice Blossom and I have received several new petitions as well as requests for status updates on others that have already been submitted. We will finish screening them today and present the appropriate ones to you tomorrow.”

Ice Blossom joined him “It’s our understanding that most of the petitions submitted before Blueblood’s trial have been denied. We have already informed the petitioners of this, as well as given them Princess Twilight’s reasons for why she denied those petitions.”

Artemis smiled “Thank you, Ice Blossom. I’m glad that you’ve decided to transfer from Night Court and help Arctic Breeze.”

Celestia smiled as well “As am I. With our courts combined, and Artemis’ increased availability to other ponies, I’m sure that the number of petitions we receive will increase to a point where it will be very difficult for Arctic Breeze to screen them by himself.”

Ice Blossom smiled “Of course, your highnesses. Thank you for offering me this position, Prince Artemis.”

Artemis laughed “With everything that you’ve done for us over the last couple of weeks, how could I not? I knew that I had to find a way to keep you on the team. There was only one thing that worried me. I thought that Arctic Breeze might feel like he was being replaced.”

Arctic Breeze laughed as well. “That thought never even crossed my mind, Prince Artemis. Instead, I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to keep up with the new numbers. So I was very glad to see Ice Blossom and even happier when she told me that you had transferred her from Night Court so that we could work together.”

Ice Blossom nodded “There’s another benefit that made this position something I couldn’t refuse.”

Artemis paused, thoughts of Golden Thunder flashing through his mind. “If you don’t mind me asking, what benefit are you talking about?”

“I don’t mind at all, Prince Artemis.” She replied “I’m now free to spend the evenings with my daughter. In fact, we’ve already begun a new routine. After dinner each night, I help her work on the magic exercises that Princess Twilight assigns her.”

Artemis’ eyes widened “Your daughter is a student in that class?” He paused for a moment, mentally reviewing the unicorns in Twilight’s class. Suddenly he gasped “Winter Night is your daughter, isn’t she?”

Smiling, Ice Blossom nodded “That’s right. My husband used to take the more active role in caring for her because I was always asleep during the day. Even now, he’s the one that brings her to and from class, so I’m not surprised that you didn’t notice. He’s also the one that you brought into her nightmare last week because I wasn’t asleep at the time.”

She paused “In fact, I didn’t put two and two together until I noticed the improvement in her magic yesterday and asked her what her teacher was doing differently. As she levitated her stuffed animals around her room, she told me that she had a new teacher. Then she told me that she’s very happy that she gets to learn from Princess Twilight because she’s actually learning how to use her magic.” She bowed “I know it’s a little late, but I want to thank you for what you’ve done for my daughter, Prince Artemis.”

Artemis smiled “Of course”

Celestia smiled as well “It must have been difficult for you to have so little time to spend with her. I’m glad to hear that you have more time for your family, Ice Blossom.”

Ice Blossom raised her head, still smiling “Thank you, princess.”

Celestia cleared her throat “Let’s get on with court. Since the new petitions have yet to go through the screening process, we will move onto the other ponies present. We’ll take the most serious case first.”

Several hours later

Celestia sighed as she walked into the library.

Artemis turned to her “Is something wrong, sister?”

She shook her head “No. I’m just glad court is finally over.” She heard Artemis laugh and glanced at him. She noticed that he was looking into a corner in the back of the library. Following his gaze, Celestia saw Twilight sitting at a table and counted seven open books floating in front of her little sister, while at least a dozen more sat on the table in front of her. Laughing as well, she shook her head. “She said that she wanted to look into something, so that must be what she’s doing. When she researches something, she gets kind of . . . Well, I call it her “Research Mode” and she can spend hours like that.”

Laughing again, Artemis turned to his sister. “We should leave her alone for now. After all, we have our own research to do.”

Celestia nodded as she led her brother to a room in the back of the library and nodded to the head librarian. “My brother and I have research to do. Please see to it that we are not disturbed.”

The Pegasus mare bowed “Yes, Princess Celestia.”

Once inside the room, she closed and locked the door. As Artemis cast a soundproofing spell around the room, she summoned a book from her room. She released Twilight’s barrier and entered the password before placing the now open book on the table in front of them. Exchanging glances, they bent over it and began to read.

Three hours later, they had managed to get a fairly large amount of research done by working together. They had long since finished the book, it had turned out to be an accurate account of that battle, and had moved onto the spells that Golden Thunder had used. They only stopped when they each felt the pull of their respective celestial bodies. Once they had lowered the sun and raised the moon, they stood and stretched before Celestia teleported everything they were using to her room.

She saw the expression on her brother’s face and shook her head. “I won’t do any research without you. I just don’t want anypony to touch our research materials.” Artemis nodded as they walked out of the room.

Looking around the library, his eyes widened as he saw Golden Flash sitting at a table against the opposite wall. There was an open book in front of him but he wasn’t looking at it. Instead, he was staring intently at the table in the corner. Nudging Celestia, he whispered “Sister, look”

Surprised, Celestia glanced at her brother before following his gaze. She gasped softly “What’s he doing?” She followed Golden Flash’s gaze to Twilight and smiled as she saw that her sister had enclosed that entire corner in a combination of a barrier and soundproofing spell. Twilight had clearly decided that she wasn’t going to move or stop her research. Instead, she came up with a simple way to make sure that he couldn’t bother her. Nudging her brother, she used a wing to point at Twilight and whispered “Twilight knows he’s there.”

He gasped “What?” Following the tip of his sister’s wing, he smiled as he saw what his mare had done. Suddenly, he got an idea. Smirking at his sister, he whispered “This should be fun.”

Artemis raised his voice. “Are we finally in agreement on what to do for that petition, sister? I can’t believe you made me go through thirty years’ worth of tax changes. Couldn’t you have just told me what you were talking about?” Glad that his head was turned, he smiled as Golden Flash jumped and turned to them.

Celestia was equally glad that Artemis’ head was turned because it was blocking Golden Flash from seeing her smile. “Of course not, little brother. You need to know that information for next time. The best way for me to make sure that you learn it is to ensure that you read the necessary books. Why do you think we’ve been holed up in the library all afternoon? As for your first question, yes, I believe we agree on the best course of action for us to take.”

She made a point of looking over at Twilight. “So that’s where Twilight’s been. We need to tell her that it’s time for dinner.” She laughed “Come on, it may take both of us to get her out of “Research Mode”.”

Ignoring Golden Flash, they walked over to Twilight, and easily passed through her barrier. They both knew that Twilight sensed them immediately, but she didn’t move until they were right next to the table.

Feigning surprise, Twilight looked up, making sure that Golden Flash could see her move but making equally sure that she didn’t look at him. Instead, she looked at Celestia as she lowered her barrier. “Is it dinnertime already?”

Celestia laughed “Yes, it’s time for dinner. Are you going to leave your mess here?”

Twilight shook her head and teleported everything she’d been using to Artemis’ room. “I’ve already gotten permission to take these books to our room. I’ll continue my research after class tomorrow.”

Continuing the act, Artemis groaned “Great, you’ve made a mess of my desk. How am I supposed to use it when you’ve covered it in books?”

Twilight gave him a mock glare “You said you’d share yours until mine is finished!”

“Fine” Artemis sighed “Try to leave me a little bit of free space, please. I need somewhere to put the petitions that Celestia and I looked into this afternoon.”

Still playing along, Twilight nodded “I’ll move a few things when we get to our room after dinner.”

Twilight paused and made a face, this one genuine. “Do I have to eat?”

“Yes” Artemis immediately replied I wondered when she’d ask that. I don’t blame her for not wanting to eat, but she needs to do it anyway.

“I’m probably not going to be able to hold anything down.” Twilight argued, standing and stretching her wings “I haven’t been able to keep anything solid in my stomach for two days now.”

“That doesn’t matter.” Artemis told her “You still need to try.”

“Artemis is right.” Celestia added “You’re pregnant, Twilight. I won’t allow you to skip meals.”

“Fine” Twilight grumbled, walking past Golden Flash without even looking at him.

Golden Flash was actually glad that Twilight had ignored him. Instead, he shuddered as he remembered his wife’s pregnancies. I don’t envy Prince Artemis right now. Princess Twilight seems to have it far worse than my wife did. It’s probably a good idea for me to avoid angering her for a while. I’ll just move on with a different part of my plan. My research has advanced far enough that I’ll finally be able to cast that spell tomorrow. I just have to figure out where I’m going to be when I cast it. The location must be perfect. Hearing Artemis’ voice, he looked up.

Artemis sighed and turned to Celestia “I hate having to do that.”

Celestia nodded “Me too. But she needs to eat. Besides, Apple Crunch has been experimenting with new recipes. He’s trying to find something she can keep in her stomach. Maybe tonight’s attempt will be successful.”

“Are you coming?” Twilight asked, standing in the doorway “I want to get this over with. If I have to throw up, the sooner I do it, the better.”

Celestia winced “Good luck, little brother. I have a feeling you’re going to need it.”

Artemis rolled his eyes “Thanks” He and Celestia walked past Golden Thunder, also without looking at him.

Golden Flash waited until the alicorns left the library before closing the book and standing. He left the book on the table and walked out of the library. I should get some dinner as well. After that, I need to get some rest so I’ll have enough magic for tomorrow.

A few minutes later, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight walked into the dining room and found Apple Crunch waiting for them. Dinner that night was tomato soup and sandwiches. Celestia and Artemis had grilled cheese sandwiches while Twilight had a cucumber one. Celestia and Artemis had glasses of milk and Twilight had a bottle of apple juice.

As they sat at the table, Twilight looked at Celestia. “If I have to leave the table, I’m not coming back tonight.” She turned to Artemis “If that happens, take your time. I’ll wait for you in our room.”

Artemis opened his mouth, clearly going to object, but Twilight cut him off. “No” she insisted, shaking her head “There’s no reason for both of us to go hungry.”

Seeing that there was no point in arguing, and not in the mood for a fight, Artemis sighed. “Very well”

Twilight nodded and turned her attention to her meal. After slowly eating half of the sandwich, she sighed in relief as it seemed that it would stay down. Unfortunately, the first spoonful of soup changed that. She dropped the spoon and teleported to the bathroom attached to their room.

Apple Crunch sighed and pulled out a pad of paper, placing an “X” next to the meal he prepared for the night.

Artemis looked at his sister. “How long does she have to go through this?”

Celestia sighed “You know it could be up to a month. Then again, that’s how it was for Mother. It may be completely different for Twilight.”

Shaking their heads, the siblings went back to their dinners. When they finished, Artemis levitated the bottle of apple juice to his side.

“At least we know that she can keep this in her stomach.” He told his sister “I’ll make sure she drinks it before we go to bed.”

She nodded “Good idea. Sleep well”

Artemis nodded as well “You too, sister.” He teleported to the room he shared with Twilight.

Twilight looked up at a flash of Artemis’ magic. Closing the book she was reading, she climbed off of the couch and placed the book on his desk. Turning to him, she paused as she saw a bottle of apple juice hovering on front of her.

“You forgot something.” He said, nuzzling her “We already know you can keep this down, so you should drink it now.” He held his breath, watching her carefully.

Twilight smiled “Thanks” Knowing he wasn’t going to move until she drank the apple juice, she opened the bottle and drank everything in it. After a couple of minutes, it was clear that it was going to stay down.

He sighed in relief and teleported the empty bottle to the kitchen.

In the kitchen, Apple Crunch looked over as an empty bottle appeared on the counter. Above it were a few sentences in Artemis’ magic.

Twilight managed to keep the apple juice down so far. Perhaps it wouldn’t be a bad idea to try making a meal with apples. Since she can tolerate the juice, maybe she’ll be able to keep apples down as well.

Apple Crunch nodded thoughtfully “I can’t believe I didn’t think of that. Prince Artemis is right. That’s not a bad idea. I think I’ll make her some applesauce for breakfast. That would be a good test of the idea. If it works, there are several apple dishes that I can make for her.”

In Artemis’ room, he opened his eyes to find Twilight looking at him. He walked over to their bed and lay down. “I told Apple Crunch that you were able to keep the apple juice down.”

Twilight nodded, climbed in as well and settled next to him.

He pulled her closer and covered her with a wing. For a while, they lay like that. After roughly half an hour of relaxing, Artemis heard a soft snore. Looking at Twilight, he smiled when he noticed that she had fallen asleep. Laughing softly, he closed his eyes. It wasn’t long before he fell asleep as well.

Sundance and Midnight Armor were both asleep when Artemis appeared in the Dream Realm.

Smiling, he brought Celestia and Twilight into his dream. As soon as they appeared, he turned to them. “Shh” He whispered “Mother and Father are asleep.”

Glancing at their parents, Celestia quietly replied “What do you want to do?”

After a moment, Twilight shrugged “Why don’t we join them?” she asked softly “I’m sure they’ll wake us when they want to talk.”

Celestia nodded “We might as well. Besides, I don’t want to be the one to wake them. Father is one thing, but Mother always did like her sleep.”

Laughing softly, Artemis lay down next to their mother. Celestia lay next to their father and Twilight lay between their parents. It wasn’t long before all three of them were also asleep.

A little over an hour later, Sundance tried to roll over, but found that she couldn’t move. Surprised, she opened her eyes and looked around. Not believing what she saw, she rubbed her eyes and looked again. Assured that her eyes weren’t playing tricks on her, she reached over Twilight and nuzzled her husband.

After a second nuzzle, he mumbled “What?”

“Look around us” she quietly told him

Still half asleep, he repeated himself, louder this time. “What?”

“Shh!” she whispered “Do you want to wake them?!”

Taking the hint, he lowered his voice. “Wake who? What’s going . . . on?” Opening his eyes, he suddenly noticed that their children were sleeping next to them. “When did they get here?”

She shrugged “I found them like this when I woke up a couple of minutes ago.” Looking at their children for a moment, she sighed. “As much as I’d rather not, perhaps we should wake them after all. We need to know what else happened today.”

He reluctantly nodded “I agree. I’d like to know as much about the situation as possible. Perhaps we’ll be able to see something they miss. At this point, that’s the only way we can help them.”

Sundance flinched “That wouldn’t have been the case if we had listened to them when they tried to warn us about Golden Thunder.”

Ears drooping, he sighed “I know. We learned our lesson the hard way. It’s only thanks to Artemis’ power and determination to protect our souls that we can talk to our children today. We have to make sure that they don’t meet the same fate we did.”

“Let’s wake them then.” She nuzzled Artemis while he nuzzled Celestia.

“What’s going on?” Artemis mumbled

“Hmm?” Celestia asked

Both of them opened their eyes as their parents turned to Twilight, nuzzling her as well.

She grumbled something about being hungry and buried her face in Midnight Armor’s shoulder. After a moment, she yawned and lifted her head.

Sundance raised an eyebrow “Didn’t you eat dinner?”

Twilight winced

Seeing this, Celestia answered their mother’s question. “She tried to, Mother, but it came right back up.”

“She hasn’t been able to keep anything solid in her stomach for two days now.” Artemis explained, sighing “After what you said last night, we tried apple juice this morning. Twilight is able to keep that down but . . .”

Midnight Armor grimaced “That’s the same problem you had, Sundance.”

Shuddering as she remembered her own experiences, Sundance nodded. “I know she said that she wasn’t able to hold anything down yesterday, but I was hoping that it was a temporary issue.” She nuzzled Twilight and sighed “You might want to pay attention as well, Celestia. I don’t want either of you to have to go through what I did.”

She thought for a moment “I don’t remember either of my parents, so I’m not sure if this is normal for an alicorn pregnancy or not. However, I do know that it happened for both of my pregnancies.”

Midnight Armor shook his head “Unfortunately, I don’t remember my parents either. That means we don’t have any other alicorn pregnancies to go back to for information.” He paused as something occurred to him. “Actually, there is another alicorn you can ask. Cadance. If she had the same problem, maybe she found a solution. Even if she didn’t have that problem, she may have an idea that’ll help.”

Artemis blinked “You’re right. I can’t believe we didn’t think about that. Hearth’s Warming is next week and we’re going to be in the Crystal Empire for the holiday. We’ll ask her then.”

Celestia smiled “I’ve been thinking about when we should head to the Crystal Empire. If I recall correctly, the winter break starts on Monday for the students.”

Twilight nodded “Tomorrow is the last day of class. Then we have a two week break.”

Surprised, Artemis looked from Celestia to Twilight. “Really?” When both of them nodded, he frowned. “Sorry, I guess I haven’t been paying attention.”

Twilight laughed “What reason would you have to pay attention to the school calendar? After all, our foal hasn’t even been born yet, let alone reached school age.”

“As for court,” Celestia began “with everything that’s happened lately, you’ve had a lot on your mind. Besides, there have been a few major changes in your life. I’m not surprised that you’ve been distracted.” She shook her head. “Anyway, I’ve taken the liberty of contacting Cadance. She and Shining Armor are expecting all of us, minus Twilight’s friends, to arrive on Monday around dinner time.”

Twilight tilted her head “Why aren’t they expecting the girls?”

Celestia smiled “They can come with us if they want, but we’re working off of the assumption that they’ll probably want to stay with their families for the holiday.”

After a moment’s thought, Twilight nodded “That makes sense, but I’m still going to ask them. Mainly because I don’t want them to be offended if I don’t.” After another pause, she continued. “He loves going to the Crystal Empire, so I’m sure that Spike will want to come. But I have to warn you, every time we go, he tells the story of how he saved the crystal ponies. Several times.”

Artemis blinked “Every time?

Celestia raised an eyebrow “Several times?”

Laughing, Twilight nodded again “The girls and I have saved the day many times, but he’s really only got this one thing to brag about.” She shrugged “So we indulge him a little. When we get there, Spike goes off to be treated to as many gems as he wants. Meanwhile, the rest of us go our separate ways and try to clear our heads. It’s a nice story, and Spike does a good job of telling it, but there’s only so many times we can take hearing it in a row.”

“I didn’t know he does that.” Celestia replied “He certainly didn’t say anything to us when we went to the Crystal Empire last time.”

“You didn’t travel with us. Even though Rainbow, Fluttershy and I could fly to the Crystal Empire, we like to travel together.” Twilight shrugged “That means the girls, Spike and I have to take the train. It also means that he has plenty of time to tell the story.”

Chuckling, Artemis shook his head “Celestia and I usually either fly or take a chariot.” He looked at his sister “I think we should take the enclosed one this time.”

Celestia laughed “I agree. It gets really cold at altitude and I’m certainly not going to expect, or allow, Twilight to fly for three hours in those temperatures. Besides, if Spike decides to come with us, that probably wouldn’t work out well.”

Twilight shook her head “He likes to ride on my back while I’m flying but, like most dragons, he hates cold weather. I’m sure he’d appreciate taking the chariot.”

Everypony looked at Midnight Armor as he cleared his throat. “Your mother and I would like to talk about what happened today.”

Sundance nodded “We don’t have much time left in our visit, only one more day. After that, we’ll have to wait three months before we’re able to talk to you again. So we’d like to make sure that we know as much about what’s going on as possible.”

Twilight, Celestia and Artemis nodded.

“We already know what happened in the library this morning.” Midnight Armor began “I’d like to start by saying that you did a good job, Twilight and Artemis.”

Sundance nodded “We noticed that you made Golden Flash reveal some of what he knew.”

Sighing, Twilight glanced at their mother “I thought I might be able to get him to reveal something, I just didn’t think it would be that.”

Artemis shuddered “Me either. I just saw what Twilight was trying to do and wanted to give him another push.”

Midnight Armor shook his head “At least we know that he knows the truth. What we don’t know, is what he plans to do next.”

Sundance turned to Celestia “Did Golden Flash cause any trouble in court?”

Celestia shook her head “Aside from a few smirks sent in our direction, he was actually well behaved.”

“That’s . . . odd.” Sundance commented “Especially considering his comments in the library.”

“It was definitely strange.” Artemis replied “He stayed with the other nobles and didn’t say much to us for the duration of court today. In fact, we didn’t see him alone again until after court. Celestia, Twilight and I went back to the library for some research. Twilight took over a corner of the library while Celestia and I went into the back room.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow “He was there as well?”

Twilight shook her head “Not at first. In fact, I was there for almost an hour and a half before he walked in.” She sighed “Unfortunately, he noticed me right away.”

Taking a deep breath, Artemis asked “Did he bother you?”

Glancing at him, she asked “Why do you think I enclosed that entire corner in a barrier and soundproofing spell? I refused to let him force me out of the library, but wanted him to leave me alone.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled her “What did he want?”

“A few things” Twilight replied “First, he wanted me to give him that book. I told him that, even if I wanted to, I couldn’t give it to him because Celestia had it.”

Celestia laughed “I assume he didn’t like that answer.”

Twilight shook her head “He said, and I quote, “How dare you! She has no right to read that! You have no idea what they, and their parents, did to my ancestor!”” She giggled “I didn’t correct him, so he has no idea that I know what happened that day.”

“Well done, Twilight! That may be useful later.” Sundance hugged her youngest. “What else did he want?”

Twilight returned the hug before replying “Once he realized that I wasn’t going to give him the book, he switched to complaining about the fact that I denied the petitions from a couple of weeks ago. I reminded him that I knew those petitions were meant to trick Artemis into allowing the nobles to steal money from the treasury. There wasn’t much he could say to that, so he switched topics again.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow “To what?”

“My research” Twilight answered “He wanted to know what I was working on and even offered to assist me.”

Artemis laughed “Really?”

Laughing as well, Twilight nodded “I politely declined, of course. Fortunately, that’s when a few librarians walked over with several books that I had asked for. He told me that he needed to go get a book and would be right back. As soon as he walked away, I put up a barrier. When he came back, he demanded that I let him in.” She shrugged “I cast a soundproofing spell instead.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “I wish I could have seen that.”

Twilight smiled at him “I can help with that.” She showed them what she had done, as well as Golden Flash’s response. As she expected, everypony laughed.

Sundance turned to Twilight “You had no intention of allowing him to help, did you?”

Giggling, Twilight shook her head before turning to Celestia. “How did your research go?”

“Well,” Celestia began “we’ve determined that the book is an accurate account of that battle. As for the control spell, it’s extremely complex. It seems that Golden Thunder was able to tell the Chimera Anima what to do by making it think that its actions were its own. Instead, he was controlling what it wanted to do.”

“You’re right,” Midnight Armor commented “that’s a very complex spell. I’m surprised that he was able to create a spell like that.” He paused, worried “Does it work on ponies?”

“Yes and no” Artemis answered “Yes, because it can be used to control some ponies. No, because anypony that is smart or powerful enough will be able to escape the control, unless they willingly allow it. That’s probably why he used the Chimera Anima to attack us.”

Midnight Armor sighed in relief

“Speaking of that creature,” Sundance began “were you able to figure out how he gave it the ability to steal and eat souls?”

Celestia nodded “If you think the control spell was complex, you should have seen the one for stealing souls. The only good thing about it is that it’s impossible for that spell to take the soul from a living pony. I believe that’s why he gave the ability to a Chimera. The lion part had to kill the ponies before the snake could take their souls.”

“I see.” Midnight Armor thought for a moment “What is the possibility that Golden Flash knows of these spells?”

Celestia looked at their father “On one hoof, I’d say that the chance of him knowing about them is rather small because I classified those spells as forbidden over a thousand years ago. On the other, I think it’s safe to assume that at least some of Golden Thunder’s research was passed on to his descendants.”

Artemis also turned to their father. “If he knows those spells, wouldn’t he have used them by now?”

Sundance nodded “You’re right, Artemis. The fact that he hasn’t used them, leads me to believe that he doesn’t know about them. Or maybe he doesn’t possess the ability to cast them.” She turned to Twilight “What were you researching?”

Twilight turned to their mother “I wanted to see if I could figure out what he was doing with the souls that he had his creation steal.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow “It gained power by eating the souls of ponies. What else is there to figure out?”

Sundance, Celestia and Artemis nodded.

Twilight shook her head “Something about that seemed a bit off, so I looked into what would happen if one living creature ate the soul of another. The reason living creatures can’t eat souls is simple . . . none of them are supposed to. Any creature that does ingest the soul of another, with or without the aid of magic, would have to be able to digest the soul or get rid of it rather quickly. This is because living beings are only supposed to have one soul in them. Their own.”

Artemis opened his mouth. Twilight saw this and shook her head.

“Before you say anything,” She told him “the situation with you and Night is different because neither of you ate the soul of the other. In your case, it’s two souls bound together and sharing the same body. Besides, the Elements of Harmony had a major part to play in your particular situation. If there were negative side effects, you’d know about them already.”

Artemis realized that she was right and nodded for her to continue.

She looked at Sundance. “In your memory, the Chimera Anima ate two dozen souls at once. Yes, those souls gave it a lot of power, but it had trouble controlling that power. Remember how Golden Thunder said that the Chimera Anima’s next attack was too strong? The Chimera Anima having that many souls in it had to have been a temporary plan because no living creature is equipped to handle that many souls in its body for long. That means there must have been a place to put those souls later.”

“There was another thing that I thought was strange.” She continued “Golden Thunder alternated between asking Artemis to allow his creation to eat your souls and demanding that Artemis give them to him. That led me to believe that he had a different plan for your souls. I wanted to see if I could figure out what it was.”

For several minutes, Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis just stared at her.

Finally, Celestia asked “W-were you able to figure out what it was?”

Twilight hesitated before admitting “I discovered a couple of possibilities, neither of them pleasant.”

“I doubt that pony had anything pleasant planned for us.” Midnight Armor said, shaking his head “Please tell us what you discovered, Twilight.”

Reluctantly, Twilight nodded “I realized that there was something familiar about the name Golden Thunder. It drove me crazy all day because I couldn’t figure out where I heard the name before. In fact, it wasn’t until I started my research this afternoon that I finally figured it out.” She looked at Midnight Armor and Sundance “Do you remember the spell I told you that I wouldn’t restore because it was too dangerous?”

Sundance thought for several minutes. Finally, she said “I believe it was called the Spirit Reanimation Spell.”

Twilight nodded “Golden Thunder is the one that created that spell. Basically, it allows the caster to call another pony, or ponies, back from the dead. That would be bad enough, if it wasn’t for a crucial detail. Whoever is brought back by that spell would be under the control of the caster, potentially forced to do things against their will.”

Artemis’ eyes widened before he shuddered “He could have cast it on Mother and Father. Then he would have sent them against us.”

Celestia gasped “That would have been very bad. There’s no way we would have been able to bring ourselves to fight them.”

Twilight nodded “Fortunately, he wasn’t able to get the spell to work, so that never happened. As for using it now, even if Golden Flash manages to restore that spell, he can’t do anything to them because it calls souls from the Realm of the Dead. Mom and Dad never entered that realm because their souls live on as stars. That means the spell won’t affect them.”

Midnight Armor hesitantly asked “How hard would it be to restore that spell?”

Twilight thought back to what she’d read about it. After a moment, she replied “Not very. Golden Thunder was close to getting the spell right. If he’d done a little more research, and maybe an experiment or two, he probably would have discovered the problem and been able to fix it.”

Celestia gave Twilight a look “I know you, Twilight. I’m sure you looked for a spell that would counter the Spirit Reanimation Spell.”

Twilight nodded “There are too many dangerous ponies that could be brought back.”

“Did you find one?” Artemis asked

Twilight shook her head “Once a pony has been brought back by that spell, they’re here until they die again. The reason that spell can’t be countered is that it works in two stages. The first stage calls the soul of the dead pony from the Realm of the Dead. The second stage either uses their original body or creates a new one, identical to the one they had when they were alive, for the soul to inhabit.”

Sundance gave Twilight a look that was similar to Celestia’s. “Twilight, I may not know you as well as Celestia does, but I do know that you wouldn’t have left it there.”

Twilight blushed “You’re right, I didn’t leave it there. It’s not possible to counter the Spirit Reanimation Spell, but I did create a spell to stop it. If I can get to the pony casting the spell in time, I can stop the spell and shut it down. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to reverse the spell. For example, if I get there during the second stage, I can stop the body from being summoned or created. However, I wouldn’t be able to do anything about the soul that had been summoned in the first stage. We would have to come up with another plan for that.”

“Twilight . . .”

She saw the look on Midnight Armor’s face. “Don’t worry, Dad. I tested my spell as thoroughly as possible. It’ll take a lot of magic to stop the Spirit Reanimation Spell, but I can do it.”

Midnight Armor sighed in relief and hugged his daughter. “Good.” He paused “You said that you discovered a couple of possible plans that Golden Thunder might have had for our souls. What’s the second possibility?”

Twilight looked down. “This one might actually be worse.”

Celestia looked over “What do you mean?”

Twilight glanced at her “Back then, nopony thought it was possible for a pony that wasn’t born an alicorn to become one. That being the case, fortunately for all of us, Golden Thunder didn’t bother trying that route. However, according to my research, he was looking for a way to take the immortality from your souls and transfer it to his. Then, he would have just needed to find a way to keep his body going.” She heard them gasp and hurriedly finished her explanation. “There was nothing in what I read that suggested that he found a way to do that. However, I believe that may have been one of his goals.”

“Y-you’re right.” Sundance stammered “That one’s worse.”

Shuddering, Midnight Armor nodded “Were you able to find a way to stop that from happening? I know that can’t happen to the souls of your mother and I, but that doesn’t mean somepony can’t try it with one of you.”

Twilight shook her head “I had to stop my research for the day. I’ll continue it after class tomorrow.”

Celestia and Artemis looked at each other before she turned to Twilight. “Once we finish dealing with the new petitions, we’ll help you. If the petitions take too long, please make sure you tell us what progress you make tomorrow night.”

Twilight nodded

Sundance sighed “Now that that’s settled, I think that’s enough for tonight.”

Midnight Armor nodded “I don’t know about you, but I’d like to relax for a while.”

Everypony else nodded. They spent the rest of the dream relaxing and watching the stars around them. After a couple of hours, Artemis and Celestia raised their heads and looked at each other.

Knowing what that meant, Midnight Armor smiled “We’ll see you tonight.”

Sundance nodded “Make sure you tell us anything that happens as well as what you discover.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nodded and vanished.

When Twilight and Artemis walked into the dining room, they found Celestia and Apple Crunch waiting for them. At Twilight’s place at the table, sat a bowl of freshly made applesauce and a bottle of apple juice.

Twilight walked closer and smelled the applesauce. She was surprised when her stomach growled. Cautiously, she lifted her spoon and took a bite.

Celestia, Artemis and Apple Crunch held their breaths. After a couple of minutes, they sighed in relief as she slowly ate her breakfast before drinking the apple juice.

A few minutes later, she also sighed in relief as it became clear that her breakfast was going to stay down. “Thank you, Apple Crunch.”

Apple Crunch smiled and bowed “I can’t take credit for this, princess, it’s Prince Artemis that you should be thanking. He’s the one who suggested that I make you a meal from apples because you were able to keep down the juice.”

Twilight smiled “The idea may not have been yours, but you still made the food. Thank you.”

She turned to Artemis and pulled him into a kiss. “Thank you” She whispered, burying her face in his neck.

He smiled and wrapped a wing around her. “It’s my fault you were feeling like that. Of course I was going to do whatever I could to help.”

“How is it your fault?”

He tightened his wing around her. “Unless I’m very much mistaken, it’s my foal in you that’s making you feel like that.”

Twilight shook her head “You mean our foal. Besides, morning sickness is a part of being pregnant. It happens to every mare and its nopony’s fault.”

He smiled and kissed her again before turning his attention to his breakfast, making quick work of his cheese and spinach omelet. They waited for Celestia to finish her waffles.

Once all three of them had finished eating, they headed for the throne room. Pausing in the doorway, Twilight nuzzled Celestia and Artemis before continuing towards her classroom.

Celestia and Artemis walked into the throne room. As usual, it was full of ponies needing their help. Under the cover of looking around at the ponies in the room, they looked at Golden Flash. He was standing with the group of nobles that were usually in court and one of the few ponies not looking at either of them.

Filing that away for later consideration, Celestia walked up to the throne and sat in front of it. She smiled as Artemis sat next to her. “Good Morning, my little ponies.”

“Good Morning, Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis”

Celestia glanced at Artemis and nodded before turning back to the other ponies in the room. “Before court begins, my brother and I would like to make an announcement. As we usually do at this time of year, there will be a two week break for Hearth’s Warming. However, there will be a change this year.” She paused as everypony in the room began to talk quietly among themselves.

Artemis cleared his throat, catching their attention. “The change that my sister spoke of is this . . . Celestia, Twilight and I have been asked to travel to the Crystal Empire on Monday. We will be there for a week but will return well before court is scheduled to resume.”

“In an effort to make sure that everypony takes time to spend the Holiday with their families,” Celestia continued “we’re going to close the castle when we leave.”

Artemis nodded “We’re aware that some ponies don’t want to take a vacation, regardless of who offers it. This year, we’re not taking “No” for an answer. The castle will reopen when we return.”

Celestia smiled “Now that that has been taken care of, I would like to get to today’s petitions.”

The rest of the day went fairly smoothly until just before five o’clock. Celestia and Artemis had closed court early, citing the desire to give ponies more time with their families for the holiday season. They headed for the training yard to discuss castle security with Sapphire Wing and Silver Shadow for the week that they were going to be in the Crystal Empire.

Most of the ponies had left the castle when court ended for the day. However, there was one pony that hadn’t left yet. Now that the throne room was empty, he walked towards the throne. Stopping a few feet in front of it, he lit his horn and prepared to cast the spell that he’d spent the last five and a half months researching and restoring. I can’t think of a better place to bring him back. Still, I’m going to have to hurry if I want to get this done before Princess Celestia or Prince Artemis come back. I’m not worried about Princess Twilight because she said that she’d be doing research today. That should keep her occupied.

He cast his spell. A few minutes later, he smiled as he saw his ancestor’s soul take shape in front of him.

Twilight sighed as she walked out of the library. It was a little after five and the last of her students had just left. Deciding to see if Celestia and Artemis would be willing to help her, she headed for the throne room.

Once she got there, she noticed that Golden Flash was standing in front of the throne, casting a spell of some kind. What’s he doing?

She was horrified when Golden Thunder’s soul appeared. This is not good! Not only did he cast the Spirit Reanimation Spell, he’s already reached the second stage! I have to stop him from finishing that spell! She quickly did three things . . . held Golden Flash’s body and Golden Thunder’s soul firmly in her magic, cast her spell to shut down the Spirit Reanimation Spell and sent a message to Artemis. I need time to shut the Spirit Reanimation Spell down. While I can stop the spell from progressing any further, I’m going to need Celestia and Artemis’ help to shut it down completely. Hopefully, they get my message and come quickly.

Celestia and Artemis were in the training yard, each talking to their respective Guard Captains.

Artemis and Silver Shadow looked up as the message from Twilight appeared in front of them. Their eyes widened as they read the words.

Artemis immediately raised his voice “Sister!”

The urgency in his voice made Celestia and Sapphire Wing turn. They saw Artemis and Silver Shadow staring at a short message written in Twilight’s magic.

Throne Room NOW! Bring Celestia!

Knowing that it had to be an emergency, Celestia used the power of the sun to cast her teleportation spell, taking herself and her brother straight to the throne room.

Both Captains immediately took flight, headed for the throne room as well.

In the throne room, Golden Flash was beginning to panic. Why can’t I move?! Damn, I’m losing control of the spell! This is bad, I’m not done yet!

Meanwhile, Golden Thunder had been looking around, wondering where in Equestria he was. This is obviously a throne room, but it doesn’t look like the one in the Everfree Castle. Regardless, he smiled One of my descendants must have fixed my spell and brought me back. I should have my body soon. Before he could consider anything else, he found his soul caught in powerful magic. This isn’t the magic of Celestia or Artemis. Who in Equestria, other than those two, is powerful enough to catch souls in their magic?! This isn’t good! Whoever this is, they’ve also stopped the Spirit Reanimation Spell!

Both of them were forced to close their eyes as the throne room was suddenly filled with sunlight. When they opened them again, they found themselves staring at Celestia and Artemis.

Golden Thunder’s eyes went wide. They’ve certainly grown.

Celestia and Artemis were shocked as they took in the scene in front of them. Twilight was standing near the door, facing them, wings flared and horn glowing. In front of her, stood Golden Flash and the soul of Golden Thunder. They were both being held in her magic while she tried to stop the Spirit Reanimation Spell.

Twilight sighed in relief when she saw them. “T-this is taking too much magic!” she panted “I-I need your help!”

Celestia and Artemis immediately added their magic to her spell.

Golden Flash gasped as control of the Spirit Reanimation Spell was taken from him. Held by Twilight’s magic, he had no choice but to watch as the spell was stopped.

Golden Thunder watched the same thing, noticing that his soul was suddenly surrounded with three different colors of magic, gold, dark blue and magenta. He instantly knew what they had done. They’ve stopped my body from forming, so I’m stuck as a soul. The gold magic is Celestia’s, the dark blue magic is Artemis’, but who does the other magic belong to?! It’s far too powerful to belong to a unicorn. He was torn from his thoughts as Celestia and Artemis gasped in horror. He looked up to see similar expressions on their faces. The odd thing was that neither of them were looking at him. Instead, they were both looking past him.

As soon as the spell was completely stopped, Twilight collapsed. As she fell towards the floor, everypony heard rapid hoofsteps as two ponies raced into the room. Before she could hit the floor, they rushed to her side and braced her.

“My princess!” Silver Shadow shouted

“Princess Twilight!” Sapphire Wing exclaimed

The Guard Captains didn’t notice Steel Night and Midnight Fang follow them into the throne room.

Golden Thunder tried to turn his head to see who they were talking to, but found that he couldn’t move. Who is Princess Twilight? He looked up as he heard Artemis’ voice.

“Twilight!” He levitated her to his side and placed her between himself and his sister.

Golden Thunder’s eyes widened as he saw her. Is she the daughter of Celestia and Artemis?! That’s disgusting! They’re siblings! He sighed in relief as Artemis kissed the lavender alicorn. Thank the heavens. He’s not in a relationship with his sister. Instead, he’s clearly in a relationship with this new princess.

Not caring about Golden Flash or Golden Thunder, Artemis kissed Twilight as his magic swept over her body. He sighed in relief when he noticed that her magic levels hadn’t gone low enough to put her life in danger. “Are you alright?!”

Still panting, Twilight nodded as she leaned into his side. “Thanks for coming so quickly. I couldn’t have held that on my own for much longer.” She turned to Celestia “What do you want to do with them?”

“Give me a moment.” Celestia whispered, nuzzling Twilight, before turning to the ponies in front of her. She noticed that Golden Flash was trembling. “Are you alright, Golden Flash?”

Golden Thunder raised an eyebrow Golden Flash?

Golden Flash struggled to catch his breath but nodded. “Y-yes, princess”

Golden Thunder smiled as he heard the voice. This stallion must be one of my descendants. How fitting. I was brought back by one that was named after me.

Why did he call Celestia “Princess”? Shouldn’t she be the Queen now that her mother is dead? If she kept her old title, I bet her brother did as well.

Celestia nodded “Now you understand one of the reasons this spell was never completed. It’s too dangerous to cast. The amount of magic required means that it has to be cast by either a team of ponies or an alicorn.”

Artemis narrowed his eyes “You should be grateful. By stopping that spell before it drained your magic, Twilight saved your life.”

After another flash of sunlight lit the room, Celestia turned back to Golden Flash. “You should also consider yourself lucky that the Spirit Reanimation Spell wasn’t classified as a Forbidden Spell when you cast it, but it is now. You know what will happen if you cast it again.”

Finally, she turned to the soul. “Hello, Golden Thunder.” She began coldly “I haven’t seen you since the day you killed Mother and Father.”

The guards gasped. They weren’t sure which horrified them the most, her tone of voice or her words.

Golden Thunder laughed “It’s nice to see you, too, Princess Celestia. You’ve grown into a beautiful mare. In fact, you look very much like your mother.” He turned to Artemis “Prince Artemis, it’s been a long time. You may not be as big as your father, but you’re clearly more powerful than he ever was.”

Artemis glared and spoke in the same cold tone as his sister. “Yes, Golden Thunder, it has been a while. I can’t believe you have the nerve to mention Mother and Father, especially after what you did to them.”

Celestia turned to Twilight “You can shut the spell down now, Twilight. But don’t use your magic, we’ll lend you ours.”

Celestia and Artemis touched their horns to hers. Twilight used their combined magic to shut the Spirit Reanimation Spell down. Doing so created a bright flash of light that required everypony present to close their eyes. It also required all of her focus. She had no choice but to drop the spell that was holding Golden Flash and Golden Thunder.

Seeing his chance, Golden Thunder entered the body of Golden Flash. Remain calm, Golden Flash. I will not harm you. Unfortunately, without one of my own, I must take shelter in the body of another. Do not tell anypony where I am.

Golden Flash’s eyes widened Y-yes, ancestor.

Everypony opened their eyes to find that Golden Thunder had vanished.

Celestia sent a wave of magic through the room. I know he’s still here because I can sense his presence. He doesn’t have a body because Twilight managed to stop the spell before one was created for him. That means that Golden Thunder has probably entered the body of another. If I had to guess, I’d say that he’s in Golden Flash’s body. However, I can’t tell for sure right now. There are spells I can use to find him and I’ll try them tomorrow, once my magic has recovered. Until I figure out where he’s gone, I’ll just have to observe everything closely. This also means that we’re going to have to take a rather extreme measure to closing the castle when we leave.

The Spirit Reanimation Spell wasn’t forbidden when he cast it. While his actions are troubling, Golden Flash hasn’t done anything illegal. I have to let him go.

Celestia turned to Golden Flash. “You should go home and rest, Golden Flash. I suggest you do so now, before I change my mind. We will discuss your actions when we return from the Crystal Empire.”

Golden Flash bowed “Yes, Princess Celestia.” Staggering slightly, he turned and left the room.

Chapter 50

Using his magic, Artemis tracked Golden Flash as he walked through the castle and sighed in relief when he left. Opening his eyes, he looked at Celestia. “He’s no longer in the castle.”

Hearing this, Celestia sighed in relief as well before laying down, pulling Twilight down with her. “Well done, Twilight. If it wasn’t for you, he would have completely revived Golden Thunder.”

Artemis lay on Twilight’s other side as their Guard Captains walked closer. “How did you know what he was doing? I didn’t sense anything.”

“I didn’t either.” Twilight replied, shaking slightly “I wanted to ask at least one of you to help with my research today and walked into the throne room just as Golden Thunder’s soul formed.” She bowed her head “I’m sorry I wasn’t able to stop it.”

Celestia lifted her sister’s head “No, Twilight. If you hadn’t acted so quickly, and contacted Artemis, Golden Thunder would have his body by now and we wouldn’t have even known that he was back.”

Artemis nuzzled his mare “Celestia’s right. Things aren’t nearly as bad as they could have been. Not to mention the fact that you invented the spell that stopped the Spirit Reanimation Spell.”

“Princess Celestia?” Sapphire Wing hesitantly asked

Celestia looked up at him “Yes, Sapphire Wing?”

“I’m sorry, but could you please explain what just happened?”

Silver Shadow nodded “I have heard of the Spirit Reanimation Spell you mentioned. That means I understand some of what we saw. Unfortunately, there is one thing that I don’t understand. I apologize, because I know this sounds insensitive, but I have a question about something else that was said.”

Artemis flinched “You mean the comments about our parents.”

Both Captains nodded

Celestia sighed “Fifteen hundred years ago, Golden Thunder killed our parents because he wanted the throne. He also tried to kill Artemis and myself. To stop him, I had no choice but to kill him.”

The guards gasped

Silver Shadow tilted his head thoughtfully “When I first became the Captain of the Night Guard, I thought it would be a good idea to learn from the past. To do that, I read every book in the history section. I recall reading about the previous rulers of Equestria, I believe their names were King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance. One book said that they disappeared under mysterious circumstances. Another told of a battle in which they were killed. In both books, Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis took the throne after that. To be honest, I believe both books are fiction and placed in the wrong section because there is no other evidence that those ponies ever existed.”

Artemis turned to Celestia “I didn’t know anything with Mother and Father’s names survived all of these years.”

W-what?! D-did I just tell them that I believe their parents never existed?! Silver Shadow gasped “M-my prince?! Those were the names of your parents?” He paused, suddenly nervous “Does that mean that the battle was true as well?”

While it hurts to hear that he believes Mother and Father never existed, it’s not his fault. Unless they know the truth, most ponies probably believe the same. "Yes, Silver Shadow” Artemis replied, trying to hide a wince “Those were Mother and Father’s names and titles. As for your other question, if you read what I think you did, that’s exactly what happened. That’s also exactly how they died.”

Recalling what he’d read, Silver Shadow shivered. That had to be a horrible way to go. According to that book, the late King and Queen used all of their magic to protect their children. After they died, the Chimera Anima ripped their souls out of their bodies and tried to eat them.

Even though they were in the history section, I was certain that those books, and ponies, were fiction. Until now, that is.

Celestia nuzzled her brother “As a result, we were forced to take the thrones of our parents.” Without even looking at Sapphire Wing, she knew what he was going to ask. Not in the mood to tell the story, she summoned the book and let him read it.

Roughly twenty minutes later, Sapphire Wing shuddered and lay the book on the floor in front of her. After Celestia teleported it back to her room, he finally spoke. “The soul we saw today was the pony who did this?”

Celestia nodded

Shuddering again, Sapphire Wing turned to Twilight “Princess Twilight, if you don’t mind, I would like to ask you a question. How did you know what to do?”

Twilight sighed “Ever since I fixed Star Swirl’s final spell, I’ve been looking for other ancient spells that I could restore. That’s when I read about the Spirit Reanimation Spell. After researching it, I discovered that it was far too dangerous to restore. However, I knew that somepony might want to use it at some point. That’s when, and why, I decided to create a spell to stop it.”

Sapphire Wing and Silver Shadow gasped

Seeing their expressions, Twilight nodded. “The spell you saw me cast is the one I created to stop the Spirit Reanimation Spell and shut it down. However, it takes a lot of magic to stop that kind of spell, even for an alicorn. That’s why I needed Celestia and Artemis to help me. Unfortunately, while I can stop that spell, I can’t reverse it. We’ll have to come up with another way to send Golden Thunder’s soul back where it belongs.”

Celestia nodded and turned to the guards. “I’d appreciate it if you’d keep this to yourselves. For now, we need to see what Golden Thunder plans to do next.”

Both Captains bowed “Yes, princess”

Twilight looked at the pair of stunned ponies standing near the door. “The same applies to you, Midnight Fang and Steel Night. Don’t tell anypony what you heard or saw today.”

They both walked closer and bowed “Yes, my princess”

Something that was said reminded Midnight Fang of something important. For a few minutes, he had no idea what it was. Everypony turned to him when he suddenly gasped.

Twilight raised an eyebrow “Is something wrong, Midnight Fang? Other than the obvious, I mean.”

Shaking his head, Midnight Fang replied “No, my princess. I just remembered something my mother told me when I was a foal. The other foals had been making fun of me because Midnight wasn’t a common name. She told me that, just before I was born, she read about a powerful but kind King named Midnight Armor. She wanted me to grow up to be like him so, even though she thought the story was fiction, she decided to name me after him. That’s where the “Midnight” in my name comes from.”

Celestia and Artemis gasped “What?!”

Twilight smiled “I’d say she got her wish.” She thought for a moment. “You’re going to see her for Hearth’s Warming, right?”

Confused, Midnight Fang nodded “Yes, my princess”

Twilight’ smile widened “Tell her that, not only was Midnight Armor a real pony, he was Celestia and Artemis’ father. Make sure you also tell her that you used to guard his son and, because you’re one of my guards, you currently help protect his grandfoal. I’m sure she’ll appreciate hearing that.” And I don’t think Dad will mind.

Midnight Fang’s eyes widened “Y-yes, my princess.” I may not be able to do anything for the pony I’m named after, but I’ll do my best to protect his son, the mare he has chosen for his wife and any foals he and Princess Twilight have. He smiled Mom is going to be so happy when I tell her about this. Especially when I tell her that Princess Twilight believes that I fulfilled her wish.

Artemis smiled I can’t wait to tell Father about this.

Shaking himself from the shock of this new revelation, Silver Shadow turned to Celestia. “Do you know where Golden Thunder is, princess?”

Celestia shook her head “I can sense his presence, so I know he’s still here. While I have my suspicions, I have no way of proving exactly where he is at the moment. I’ll search for him tomorrow, once my magic recovers.”

Twilight turned to Celestia “I’d like to at least try to eat dinner before we leave, but Artemis and I need to go to Ponyville. I have to check on things there before we go to the Crystal Empire and inform Mayor Mare that I’m going there. Even though they’ll probably say no, I’m going to ask the girls if they want to come.” She paused “I’m going to close my castle as well. I don’t know nearly enough about Golden Thunder to be able to predict his actions and I don’t want him to try anything in Ponyville while I’m gone.”

Celestia nodded “Good idea, Twilight.”

Artemis stood before helping Twilight to her hooves. “I could use some food as well. All three of us used a lot of magic.” He looked at Twilight “We’re taking a chariot. As much as I enjoy flying, I’m in no mood for it right now.”

Twilight nodded before turning to Celestia “Should I tell the girls what happened? We may need their help.”

“That’s not a bad idea, Twilight.” Celestia replied, standing as well “For now, we should keep this to ourselves because we need to see what Golden Thunder has planned. However, you have my permission to tell them as soon as it becomes clear that they need to know. If they get angry at you for hiding this, tell them that I told you to do so and that they can take their anger out on me.”

As everypony walked out into the hall, Artemis spoke up. “I know you too well to even think that you’re just going to wait to see what Golden Thunder and Golden Flash have planned for us. What’s your plan?”

“You’re right.” Celestia replied, smiling at him “We’re not going to just sit back and wait. There are a couple of ponies that we need to talk to. Additionally, we should help Twilight with her research. We may be able to figure something else out about his previous plan. Even though he can’t use it this time, it might tell us what his overall goal was. Aside from taking the throne and the deaths of everypony in our family, I mean.”

Twilight nodded thoughtfully “I see. Once we know that, we can figure out different ways to reach that goal. That will allow us to develop ways to counter whatever he comes up with.” She looked up at Celestia “I’ll wait to tell the girls, but we should tell Shining Armor and Cadance. They may be able to help us.”

Celestia laughed “I did say that we were going to tell a couple of ponies, right?” Lowering her voice she whispered “You’re right, I meant Mother and Father when I said that, but our guards are here right now.”

Twilight nodded before hesitating “Shiny isn’t going to like it, but I’m doing some research in the Crystal Empire. Their library hold many books that aren’t available in Equestria. They might have something that will help us.”

Artemis shrugged “Once we tell them about what happened today, I’m sure he’ll understand.”

Their conversation stopped as they reached the dining room.

Twilight turned to her guards “Your vacation starts today. I want you to spend this time with your families. Make sure you get some rest as well. We may not know what those two are planning, but I want you ready to help us deal with whatever it is.”

Celestia turned to the captains. “The same applies to the two of you. ” She paused “Once your vacation is over, it may be a good idea for the four of you to get some extra training in.”

Twilight smiled as an idea came to her. “Silver Shadow and Sapphire Wing, you can always say that you’re working together to give Steel Night and Midnight Fang some special training. Even if Golden Flash asks what you’re doing, I doubt he would question that. If he does, remind him that somepony attacked me and tried to kill my foal.” She shrugged “You’re training my guards, that’s all.”

Sapphire Wing chuckled “That’s a great idea, princess.”

Turning to Celestia and Artemis, Twilight laughed. “I think Shiny’s rubbing off on me.”

Artemis smiled “In this case, I’ll consider that a good thing.”

Celestia nodded “You just gave our guards a very good reason to get a lot of training in.”

Silver Shadow smiled at Twilight. “And a great excuse to give anypony that decides to question us.”

Then the four of them bowed. “Have a safe trip, Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight. We’ll see you on Sunday.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight sat at the table as their guards left the room. Dinner was a quiet meal because none of them were in the mood to talk much.

Twilight wasn’t able to hold down the main meal but, when she returned to the dining room, she was given a bowl of applesauce. She managed to keep that, and a bottle of apple juice, down.

After dinner, they headed for the side entrance. Celestia hugged her siblings before they got onto the chariot. “When will you be back?”

Twilight summoned her saddlebags, lesson plans and the worksheets her students had completed from their room. Then she glanced at Artemis before answering Celestia’s question. “Sunday evening”

Artemis nodded “We want to be back in time to help you secure the castle. Besides, I don’t think either of us wants to rush on Monday morning.”

Celestia nodded “I’ll see you tonight.”

Artemis nodded and gave the order to take off.

Celestia smiled as she sent a letter to Spike before heading to her room for the night.

Half an hour later, Twilight and Artemis arrived in Ponyville. They found the girls, Spike and Mayor Mare waiting for them. Twilight climbed off the chariot and levitated her saddlebags onto her back while Artemis told the guards to return an hour before moonrise Sunday. As the chariot took off towards Canterlot, Twilight and Artemis turned to their friends.

Spike ran up and jumped onto Twilight’s back, giving her a hug. “Your meeting with Cheerilee is scheduled for tomorrow morning. However, Mayor Mare has family visiting for Hearth’s Warming and they’re arriving tomorrow. So I had to schedule your meeting with her for a different time.”

Twilight glanced at him, not liking his tone. “When is it?”

Spike looked down “Now”

Twilight gave him a look before sighing and turning to Mayor Mare. “Very well. However, this meeting will have to be a short one. Artemis and I have had a long day, so we really need to relax.”

Mayor Mare nodded “Yes, princess”

Twilight turned back to her friends and Spike. “We’ve made an annoying discovery. Unfortunately, morning sickness starts rather early in alicorn pregnancies.” She looked at Pinkie. “That means no parties for me for a little while, Pinkie.”

Pinkie pouted “OK, but you’re having one as soon as you’re feeling better.”

Twilight smiled at her “I have a better idea. You get to plan and throw the party when Artemis and I discover if our foal is a filly or a colt. That usually happens around three months into a pregnancy, so my stomach will likely have calmed down by that point.”

Everyone laughed as Pinkie’s eyes lit up before she began babbling about party plans.

Twilight turned to Applejack. “For the last two days, the only things I’ve been able to keep in my stomach have been apple juice and applesauce. I was hoping you could help me find other things that I’ll be able to eat. Apples seem to be a common theme, so I can’t think of a better pony to ask.”

Smiling, Applejack nodded “You got it, Twi. Granny Smith and ah will find something for ya.”

“Thanks” Twilight replied “One more thing. Celestia, Artemis, my parents, Spike, and I will be going to the Crystal Empire for the week of Hearth’s Warming. We’re leaving on Monday.” She paused, looking at each of the girls. “All of you are invited.”

Spike’s eyes lit up “R-really? I can come too?”

Twilight nuzzled him “Yes, Spike. I want you to come with us. Is that alright with you?”

He nodded repeatedly

Fluttershy lowered her head “M-my brother’s coming, so I-I can’t go.”

“We’ve got family visiting from Appleloosa, so ah can’t go.” Applejack added

“I’m sorry, Darling. Our parents want a quiet holiday with me and Sweetie Belle. We’re not going anywhere.” Rarity replied

Pinkie bounced in place “I’m staying with the Cakes! They want me to throw a Hearth’s Warming party so we can make it super fun for the foals!”

Rainbow shook her head “Scootaloo’s parents have already left town and won’t be back until the New Year starts. As soon as she told me about it, I promised that I’d spend the holiday with her.” She snorted. “No sister of mine will be left alone like that.”

Twilight nodded “I’m glad you’re doing that for Scootaloo, Rainbow.” She frowned “My current reaction may be influenced by the fact that I’m pregnant, but I don’t care. I want to know why her parents left her alone.”

“Good point” Artemis commented, glancing at Twilight. “We have to ensure this doesn’t happen to her again.”

“What do you mean by that?!” Rainbow asked, getting right in Artemis’ face. “You’re not going to take her away, are you?!”

Using his magic to gently push Rainbow back, Artemis nodded. “After informing Celestia of this, we might have to. I have no doubt that my sister will insist on speaking to Scootaloo’s parents herself. Once she does, she may determine that they’re not caring for their daughter correctly. There are several ways for us to deal with this, but I can’t say any more about it until we get more information and talk to my sister.”

He shook his head “I don’t care what reason her parents have for their actions. There’s no excuse for leaving a foal to fend for herself. It doesn’t matter if that foal is capable of taking care of herself, the law doesn’t allow it. You said that her parents aren’t going to return until the New Year, right? That means she would have been on her own for almost three weeks. Scootaloo is simply too young to be on her own for that length of time.”

Twilight nuzzled Rainbow to get her attention. “Don’t worry, even if we have to take her from her parents, we’re not going to put her in an orphanage. If I have my way, your adoptive sister will become your adoptive daughter.” She paused “Perhaps she’ll still be your adoptive sister, but you’ll be the one raising her. If Celestia doesn’t agree to either of those, I’ll have Scootaloo move into my castle. When I’m in Canterlot, the five of you can help Spike take care of her. That way, she won’t be alone, miss school or have to leave her friends.”

“Oh” Rainbow replied, smiling sheepishly at Artemis “Sorry, Artemis.”

Chuckling, Artemis shook his head “That’s alright, Rainbow. I know you didn’t mean anything by it.”

Applejack smiled “Scootaloo can also spend a few nights with Apple Bloom while you’re gone, Twi.” She looked at Rarity “Sweetie Belle can come over too.”

Rarity nodded “That’s a good idea, Darling. I’m sure our parents will agree to it when I explain everything. In fact, they may insist that she spends time with our family as well.” She turned to Twilight and Artemis “Don’t worry, we’ll take care of her.”

“REALLY?!”

Artemis and Mayor Mare jumped

Recognizing the voices, Twilight, Rainbow, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie turned to a nearby bush as three young fillies tumbled out of it.

“You’re not going to make me go anywhere?!” Scootaloo exclaimed, staring up at Twilight and Artemis

“Scoots can really sleepover?!” Apple Bloom shouted, jumping on Applejack’s back

“You think Mom and Dad will let her spend time with us during the Holiday?!” Sweetie Belle squealed, bouncing up and down in front of Rarity

Artemis and Mayor Mare looked on as Twilight and her friends shook their heads and let out a collective sigh.

“First of all,” Twilight began “Are you supposed to eavesdrop on other ponies?”

The CMC bowed their heads “No, Twilight. We’re sorry.”

“Now that that’s out of the way . . .” Twilight nuzzled Scootaloo “Don’t worry, Scootaloo. We’re going to make sure you stay here.”

“Ah said she can sleep over at our house and ah meant it.” Applejack told her sister “Apples are known for our hospitality. Plus she’s your friend. We’re not going to let her be alone for the holiday, or any other time.”

Rarity used her magic to hold her sister still. “I’ll explain the situation to our parents, Sweetie Belle. Once they know what’s going on, I’m sure they’ll demand that she comes for a visit. If she does, Scootaloo will just have to behave herself.”

All three fillies shouted the same thing. “YAY!!!”

Scootaloo looked around at all of them and quickly replied. “I’ll be good!”

Twilight turned to Scootaloo “I won’t ask you about it right now, but you will have to tell us why your parents did this. We won’t be able to help you unless we know what’s going on.” After receiving a nod, Twilight looked up at everypony else. “We’ll meet at my castle Sunday morning and discuss this in greater detail. Until then, Rainbow will take care of her. If you need help, Rainbow, let us know.”

Artemis smiled “Good idea, Twilight. I’m glad that’s settled.” He turned to everypony else. “I’d like to get back to our trip to the Crystal Empire. The information about Scootaloo and her parents was a surprise, but the rest wasn’t. We thought you were going to respond like that, but Twilight wanted to ask you anyway. It’s alright, we’ll see you when we get back.”

Everypony nodded

Before anything else could be said, Rarity turned to Twilight. “Darling, I’m going to borrow Artemis for a while.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow “Didn’t you hear Twilight say that we had a long day and need to relax?”

Rarity smiled “Of course I did. Don’t worry, you don’t need to do anything. Just let me do all of the work. Come on, Sweetie Belle.” With that said, she pulled him towards her boutique with Sweetie Belle excitedly bouncing along next to her.

Applejack and Apple Bloom walked towards their farm.

Rainbow knelt down on the ground. “Climb on, Squirt, and hold on tight. We’re going home.”

Scootaloo’s eyes lit up before she nodded and scrambled onto Rainbow’s back. Rainbow turned to the girls as she rose into the air. “We’ll see you tomorrow or Sunday morning.” Grinning at her passenger, she did a back flip before heading for her cloud home.

Twilight sighed and walked towards the town hall. “Let’s get this meeting started, Mayor Mare.”

Mayor Mare nodded and followed her.

The rest of the girls headed home while Spike walked inside the castle.

In the boutique, Artemis was trying very hard not to yell at Rarity. During the last two hours, she had measured nearly every inch of him and was now draping several different types and colors of fabric over his body. She didn’t even stop long enough for him to lower the moon. Instead, he’d been forced to perform his celestial duty while she measured his horn. Why does she care how long my horn is? Finally, he’d had enough.

“Rarity.”

“Not now, Darling. I’m in the zone.”

“Rarity,” He all but growled “I’ve been standing here for two hours! You knew that I wanted to relax tonight. This is not relaxing!”

Surprised, Rarity looked up “Two hours couldn’t have passed. The moon isn’t even up . . .” She looked out the window “yet.”

Artemis raised eyebrow “I was trying to raise the moon while you were measuring my horn, remember?”

Rarity gasped “I’m sorry, Artemis! I didn’t mean to keep you this long. Can you ever forgive me?”

Far past the point of caring about appearances, Artemis rolled his eyes at the dramatics. “Its fine, Rarity. However, I have a request and it must be completed this weekend.”

“Of course!” She immediately replied “What is it?”

“I need you to make a couple of cold weather dresses for Twilight and they need to be heavy.” He told her “She doesn’t know it, but I plan to show her something during our trip to the Crystal Empire. Unfortunately, it will require us to travel outside of the Crystal Heart’s protection from the winter weather. I’m asking for two because I’m fairly certain that one of them won’t survive the trip, due to the extreme conditions.”

“That’s not a problem.” Rarity told him “I’ll use the measurements I got from her the other day. Winter dresses are fairly easy to make, especially for Twilight. She never cared for anything frilly, so they just need to keep her warm.” She glanced around the room. “I already have everything I need, so they’ll be ready by Sunday morning. I’ll give them to you before you head to Canterlot.”

Artemis nodded, levitating the pieces of fabric off of his body and depositing them in a pile on the floor. “Thank you. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to get some sleep.”

“Of course, Darling” Rarity absent mindedly replied, already getting to work. “Have a good night.”

Shaking his head, Artemis walked outside before spreading his wings and taking flight.

After taking some time to patrol Ponyville and the Everfree Forest for any dangers, Artemis landed on the balcony to Twilight’s room. Shivering, he opened the door and he walked inside. Looking to their bed, he saw Twilight lying under a thick blanket, reading a book. Closing the door, he walked over and silently slid under the covers. Then he pulled her close, smiling as she gasped and dropped her book.

“Y-you’re freezing!”

Laughing, he pointed at the balcony with a wing.

She looked outside and gasped again “It’s snowing!”

He nodded, sighing happily as her body heat began to warm him.

“What did Rarity want?” She asked “Wait. Let me guess. She wanted your measurements, right?”

“Yes” he sighed “I spent the last two hours standing in her boutique as she measured almost everything, including my horn. She’s still working, but I convinced her to let me leave.”

Laughing, she snuggled closer and wrapped the blanket tighter around them. “That sounds like her.”

He nuzzled her “What did Mayor Mare want to talk about?”

Twilight rolled her eyes “The budget and a new building she wants to build in town. She thinks Ponyville needs another restaurant and wants me to decide on what type of food they should serve as well as exactly where we should put it. Honestly, I don’t think we need another one because Mr. and Mrs. Cake have never complained about having too many customers. I asked her to prove that it would be a valid use of the money and resources. Unless she can prove we need it, I don’t think I’ll approve that request.”

Artemis nodded “You’re right. Ponyville is a small town so there isn’t a need for another restaurant just yet. This town may need another one within five years, but that depends on how the population increases.”

Twilight yawned and lay her head on his shoulder. “Are you ready to get some sleep?”

He nodded, yawning as well “I was ready two hours ago.”

She laughed and closed her eyes. He did the same. Within a few minutes, they both were asleep.

In the dream realm, Midnight Armor and Sundance looked up and smiled as Artemis appeared in front of them. He immediately brought Celestia and Twilight into his dream. Before they could say anything, their children walked over, nuzzled them and lay down facing them, with Artemis in between Celestia and Twilight. They glanced at each other, surprised at the change from the way things had gone the rest of the week, before turning back to their children.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight didn’t wait for their parents to ask how their day went. Instead, they looked at each other and nodded. Twilight showed their parents what happened when she walked into the throne room after class. Artemis also showed them that part of the day, from his point of view. Celestia showed them everything that happened after she and Artemis returned to the throne room. Celestia, Artemis and Twilight held their breaths, waiting for their parents to respond.

For several minutes, they were speechless. Sundance simply looked horrified. Midnight Armor stared at his children. I can’t believe I’m thinking this, but I hope they’re lying to us. Holding his breath, he carefully studied his children. T-they’re serious . . .

After a few minutes, Sundance collected herself enough to move. Only one part of what she’d just seen truly scared her, and it wasn’t Golden Thunder’s return. She cast a teleportation spell.

Twilight gasped in surprise as she suddenly found herself lying between their parents and looked up when something touched her horn. That something turned out to be Sundance’s horn.

Not willing to trust anything other than an advanced magic scan, Sundance checked her daughter’s magic levels and sighed in relief when she saw the results. She needs to take it easy for a couple of days, but she’ll be fine.

After a moment’s thought, Sundance did something that would probably be useful later. With everything that’s going on in the waking world right now, she may forget what I’m about to tell her. This measure may be extreme, but I don’t care. I have to make sure she doesn’t use too much magic until she recovers from casting that spell. That done, she nuzzled Twilight and waited until her daughter looked at her. “Make sure you use as little magic as possible over the next couple of days, Twilight. If you can do that, your magic will recover on its own.”

Hearing his wife’s words, Midnight Armor sighed in relief as well. Sundance is an expert on magic scans. In fact, she invented most of them. If she believes Twilight just needs some rest, I have no reason to doubt her.

Artemis glanced at Celestia before turning to their parents. “Twilight and I are in Ponyville for the weekend. That means she’ll be able to relax and I plan to make sure she does.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled “Good”

Twilight nodded, but felt that there was something else she should say. Her ears drooped “I-I’m sorry. I wasn’t able to stop Golden Flash from bringing Golden Thunder’s soul back.”

Sundance immediately shook her head “No, Twilight, don’t apologize. If you hadn’t acted so quickly, things would have been much worse.”

Midnight Armor draped a wing over Twilight’s back. “Your mother is right. Golden Flash wasn’t able to completely revive Golden Thunder because of what you did. You also alerted Celestia and Artemis to the situation as soon as you discovered it, while taking steps to stop the Spirit Reanimation Spell. Additionally, it was wise for you to ensure that Golden Thunder couldn’t go anywhere.”

Twilight looked down “But I had to drop that spell so I could focus on shutting the Spirit Reanimation Spell down. That’s when Golden Thunder got away.”

“That wasn’t your fault, Twilight.” Sundance replied “It was far more important for you to stop Golden Flash’s spell. Yes, it had an unfortunate consequence, but you made the right choice. Besides, you kept him there long enough for Celestia and Artemis to arrive. As a result, all three of you know for sure that he’s back.” She nuzzled their youngest before turning to their older children. “Where is Golden Thunder’s soul now?”

Celestia sighed “I believe he entered Golden Flash’s body. Unfortunately, I can’t prove it. There are spells that I can cast to search for him, but I won’t be able to do so until my magic recovers. In fact, I’ll probably have to wait until tomorrow evening. Artemis and I gave much of our magic to Twilight so that she had enough to stop and shut down the Spirit Reanimation Spell without draining her own.”

Twilight looked up at Midnight Armor “Unfortunately, I never got to my research today. So I don’t have an answer to your question from last night.”

He smiled at her “After what happened today, that to be expected.”

Sundance looked at Celestia “I’m sure you already have a plan of some kind. What do you intend to do about this?”

Celestia showed their parents what happened after Golden Flash left the castle.

“I see.” Midnight Armor replied “Informing all of the alicorns, alive and dead, while continuing the research that your sister started. You’re right, Celestia. That’s a good place to start. As for the guards, I know that two of them are Twilight’s and one is the Captain of Artemis’ Night Guard.” He looked at his oldest “I assume the Pegasus is the Captain of your Day Guard?”

Celestia nodded “That’s Sapphire Wing”

Midnight Armor nodded thoughtfully “I wouldn’t have seen a point in keeping them informed, but that’s probably because we didn’t have guards when your mother and I were alive. In your case, it might be a good idea to involve them, but only if you’re sure you can trust them.”

Artemis laughed “Don’t worry, those four can be trusted.” Turning to their father, he smiled “In fact, there’s something you should see, Father.” He showed their parents what Midnight Fang told them.

Midnight Armor stared at his son “Y-your guard was named after me?!”

Sundance also stared at Artemis for a few moments before smiling. Talk about a sign. That stallion was meant to be one of Twilight’s guards. He even has Midnight’s protective tendencies.

Still smiling, Artemis nodded “I allowed him to be one of my personal guards because I trust him. During the last few weeks, he’s proven that my trust has not been misplaced. Twilight’s right, he now helps to protect your grandfoal.”

“V-very well” Midnight Armor replied, recovering from his shock. After a moment’s thought, he laughed. “I like your idea for your guards to get some extra training, Celestia. As well as the excuse you gave them, Twilight. Anypony that decides to question their actions will be given a valid reason for their need to train. They just won’t be told what else is going on.”

Smiling, Sundance nodded “I agree that the other bearers of the Elements of Harmony should be told about what happened today, but there’s no reason to do so right now. You should get more information and have a solid plan before bringing them into this. As for further research, Twilight’s right. The Crystal Empire has many old writings that will probably be able to help you.”

Celestia laughed “It’s just like Twilight to think of that. When there’s a problem, she usually turns to a book for the answer.”

Sundance laughed as well “In this case, that’s a good thing. You should be able to get a fair amount of research done without worrying about Golden Flash trying to disturb you.”

Artemis chuckled “That’s an understatement.” He showed his parents an image of Twilight’s research two days ago. “Celestia calls this Twilight’s Research Mode. When it comes to research, she runs circles around both of us.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor’s jaws dropped as they counted the number of books that their youngest had hovering around her, as well as the amount that was sitting next to her. Eyebrows raised, they turned to her.

“What?” Twilight asked defensively “It works!”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis laughed.

Midnight Armor hugged his youngest “I’m sure it does, Twilight. It’s just that your mother and I have never seen anything like it.”

Sundance nodded before turning to Artemis “I just thought of something. How much does anypony know about what you’ve done with our souls?”

Surprised, Artemis thought for a moment before turning to Celestia. She shook her head “I haven’t told anypony about what you’ve done.”

“Now that I think about it,” Artemis began “we never told anypony that you’re able to visit us. We didn’t mean to keep it a secret, we just don’t mention it. Even if we did, most ponies wouldn’t know who we’re talking about. After fifteen hundred years, you’re only mentioned in the oldest recordings of history.”

Celestia nodded “Today, I purposely kept it quiet around our guards, but we normally don’t bother. Even when we talk about something that was said during your visits, we don’t use any names.” She laughed “Everypony else looks at us like we’re crazy, but they don’t say anything.”

Midnight Armor glanced at his wife before smiling at their children. “That doesn’t bother us at all. Golden Thunder probably thinks your mother and I are completely out of the picture. We may not be able to actively participate, but we can still help you.” He looked at Artemis “After tonight is over, we’ll have to wait three months to see you again, but that doesn’t mean we won’t be able to talk to you. If you bring your sister and Twilight into your dream, we’ll be able to talk to all three of you. Yes, we’ll have to use our magic, but I think it’s worth it.”

Artemis paused “On certain nights, I could put more magic into the spell for bringing out the stars. That might give you enough to talk to us without using your own.” He looked at them “Unfortunately, it’s not something I’ll be able to do often because it’ll probably take a lot of magic.”

“That’s alright, Artemis.” Sundance replied, smiling at her son “Even doing that once or twice between visits will allow us to help you.”

Artemis nodded, already thinking about how to make this work. Lost in thought, he muttered “I’ll have to take a closer look at that spell so I can figure out the best place to put the extra magic. I don’t want to unbalance the spell because that would cause problems with all of the stars.” He paused as an idea came to him. “Maybe I can find a way to send specific stars extra magic instead. That should give Mother and Father enough to talk to us without running the risk of messing up the rest of the stars.”

Celestia nuzzled her brother

Startled, he jumped and looked at her. “Yes, sister?”

“Sorry” she giggled “I just wanted to let you know that I already found a way to do that. While you were gone, I was able to let Mother and Father enter my dream because I sent a large amount of my magic to their stars when I raised them. Unfortunately, I was only able to do that once because their stars resisted my magic after that. I can raise and lower the stars, but that’s all I can do with them. As far as I can tell, they don’t want anypony but you doing anything else with them. That means you shouldn’t have a problem.” She paused “I’ll send the spell I used to Spike in the morning.”

Midnight Armor looked at his oldest “I didn’t know that’s why we were able to visit you.”

Celestia nodded

Twilight looked at Celestia, head tilted as she thought. “If it’s merely a matter of sending extra magic to Mom and Dad’s stars, we should be able to help. If we give Artemis some of our magic, he could use our combined magic to boost theirs. Their stars shouldn’t resist that and it wouldn’t drain nearly as much of his magic.”

Artemis tilted his head as he thought. “They’re both good ideas. I’ll take a look at that spell tomorrow morning. I may need to change a few things, but Twilight’s library should have all the information I need. You’re right, sister. Mother and Father have never resisted anything I’ve done with their stars. Twilight’s right as well. We shouldn’t have any trouble giving our parents enough magic to talk to us because, as long as I’m the one that does it, it shouldn’t matter where I get the magic.”

Sundance stared at their children for a moment before shaking her head in wonder. “I-I’m not sure how to respond to that . . .”

“You’re right, Sundance.” Midnight Armor said slowly “I can’t believe they were able to come up with a solution so quickly.”

Celestia sighed “I think that’s enough of that. We’ve had a rather stressful afternoon so I’d like to relax, or at least have some fun.”

Artemis smiled “I vote for fun”

Midnight Armor laughed “That’s a good idea. What would you like to do?”

Twilight hesitantly spoke up “I’ve flown with Celestia and Artemis but . . .”

Immediately understanding what Twilight wanted, Sundance’s eyes lit up while Midnight Armor smiled and nodded. Celestia smiled and nuzzled her brother. Artemis grinned, nodded and lit his horn.

A couple of minutes later, they were laying on a grassy field. The sky above them was that of a clear summer morning. There were a couple of fluffy white clouds in the sky but it was mostly clear. There was even a pleasant breeze rustling the tops of the trees at the edge of the field. Smiling, the five of them stood, spread their wings and took flight.

Midnight Armor watched Twilight carefully. “You gained your wings three years ago, right?”

Twilight nodded

“All things considered, you fly rather well.” He commented “However, I noticed that you fly more like a Pegasus than an alicorn.”

“I didn’t know there was a difference.” Twilight replied “Rainbow has been teaching me to fly.”

He turned to Celestia and Artemis “Why didn’t you two help her when she ascended?”

Celestia glanced at their father “Artemis was still on a night schedule at the time. He was usually either in Night Court or reading up on what he missed over the thousand years he was gone. As for me, I had a new problem to deal with, in addition to the usual difficulties that come with running Equestria. That problem was Twilight’s ascension.”

Sundance raised an eyebrow “How did that cause a problem?”

Twilight sighed “I can answer that one, Mom.” She paused as their parents turned to her. “Once news of my ascension reached them, the nobles went crazy. Most of them complained that a commoner was chosen to become royalty instead of one of them. What I had done didn’t matter to them. Instead, they focused on the fact that I’m not part of a royal bloodline. They even came up with a name for me.”

Celestia frowned “I still can’t believe I didn’t know about that.” She paused “How did you find out about it?”

“I made several trips to Canterlot for “Princess Lessons”, remember?” Twilight answered, pausing until Celestia nodded “After each one, I went to the library to read more about what you taught me in that day’s lesson. I would usually run into at least a few nobles on the way. They refused to accept that I was anything other than your student and a librarian, so they ignored me. As a result, I heard what they were saying. At the time, all of them were trying to find a way to make sure I never saw a throne.”

Artemis narrowed his eyes

Twilight laughed “They went even crazier when, not only did I get a throne, I got my castle. That’s when Blueblood came up with that name. He tried to make everypony believe that I would never be a “real” princess.”

I probably won’t like the answer, but I’ll ask anyway. Sundance moved closer to Twilight. “What have they been calling you?”

Twilight glanced at their mother “The Commoner Princess.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor’s eyes widened for a moment before quickly narrowing. Both of them stopped in midair, staring at their youngest. Celestia, Artemis and Twilight saw this, stopped as well and turned to them.

Seeing their expressions, Twilight decided to explain further. “They’re more careful about saying it now. They usually only call me that when I’m not around, or they think I can’t hear them. In fact, Blueblood’s only said it to my face once.” She shrugged “They’ve been doing it for three years now, so I’m used to it.”

Midnight Armor was obviously angry. Everypony else was just glad that his anger wasn’t directed at them. Shaking his head, he muttered “It’s probably a good thing I can’t say, or do, anything to them.” After several deep breaths, he turned to his youngest. “Come with me, Twilight. I’m going to teach you the difference between the wings of a Pegasus and those of an alicorn.” With a flap of his wings, he rose higher into the sky.

Curious, Twilight followed him while Sundance, Celestia and Artemis settled on a cloud to watch. Celestia and Artemis glanced at each other and smiled, remembering when their father had given them this lesson.

As Twilight drew level with him, Midnight Armor turned to her. “I’m sure you’ve noticed that your wings are different than the ones a Pegasus has.”

Twilight nodded “They’re more powerful than Rainbow’s. I always thought that was weird because she’s a very strong flier. I mean, she’s the only Pegasus I know of that can pull of the Sonic Rainboom.”

“What?” Midnight Armor asked, surprised “That technique is very difficult to pull off successfully because the speed required is practically unheard of for a Pegasus to achieve. She can really do that?”

Twilight nodded “As far as I know, she’s done it three times so far.”

“You certainly found yourself a good flight teacher.” He shook his head “You said your wings seem more powerful. How so?”

“Even when both of us put the same amount of effort into moving our wings, I go farther or higher, depending on what we’re doing.” She told him

He paused as something occurred to him. How should I bring this up without it coming out wrong? After a couple of minutes, he came up with an idea. She’s very smart, so that might work. “The reason that an alicorn’s wings are stronger than a Pegasus’ has to do with a physical difference between alicorns and almost every other pony. Aside from the fact that we have both wings and a horn.”

“Physical difference?” Twilight asked, pausing to think for a few minutes. “You mean size, right? Every alicorn, other than me and Flurry Heart, is larger than most ponies. Flurry’s still a foal, so we’re not sure how big she’s going to get. As for me, I’m not growing very fast, but I am getting bigger.” She laughed “For some reason, Rarity’s very happy about that. In fact, she seems excited about the prospect of designing clothes for me as I grow.”

I’m glad that worked. I’m also glad I don’t have to tell her that she’s going to get bigger. And I’m not referring to her stomach. Sighing in relief, Midnight Armor laughed. “You’re right. The amount of magic that an alicorn has means that we’re naturally larger than most other ponies. The reason you’re growing is that your body is simply too small for the amount of magic you have. Staying your current size won’t hurt you but, as time goes on, it would put a strain on your body. To avoid this, you’re going to keep growing until your body is the right size for your magic.” He paused thoughtfully “If I had to guess, I’d say that you’re going to be larger than Cadance, but smaller than Artemis.”

“Really?” Twilight asked, surprised “Y-you think I’m going to get that big?”

“Given how much magic you have, I believe so.” He nuzzled her “I’d like to get back to your wings. They’re already stronger than a Pegasus’ and will get even stronger as you grow. For now, there’s nothing wrong with you using the flight techniques of a Pegasus. However, once you reach a certain size, you’ll find that those techniques are no longer effective.” He saw that she looked worried and nuzzled her. “It’s alright. I’m going to show you a few techniques that will help you now. As you grow, I’ll teach you the right ones to use for that particular size.”

Sundance spoke up “When you get far enough into your pregnancy, your foal will begin to throw off your balance. When that happens, I’ll teach you some flight techniques that I learned when I was pregnant.”

Glancing at his wife, Midnight Armor paused. I’m glad we’re doing this in the dream realm. If we were in the waking world, I’d have to be careful not to allow things to get too rough. That isn’t a concern here because she’s actually resting in bed. Even so, she’ll remember this and be able to use what I teach her later.

He spent the next hour teaching her various flight techniques. I’m impressed. We’ve only been training for an hour, but she’s already got a good grasp of the proper flight techniques for her current size. “That’s enough for now. Well done, Twilight.”

Panting slightly, she smiled and nuzzled him. “Thanks, Dad”

He returned her smile as they flew to the cloud where their family was waiting. He landed and lay down in between his wife and Celestia.

Twilight saw Sundance gesture to her other side. Curious, she went to their mother’s side and lay down.

Sundance smiled “It’s best to take care of your wings when you finish a tough flight training session.” She paused “Did Rainbow Dash teach you how to take care of your wings?”

Twilight shook her head “Fluttershy did that.”

“I see.” Sundance replied “Spread your wings, please.”

“Alright” Twilight replied, spreading both wings and laying them on the cloud.

Sundance carefully examined Twilight’s right wing and gently pressed a particular spot.

Twilight gasped as that wing began to shake uncontrollably. “Ah!”

Sundance nodded “I thought so”

“W-what did you do?” Twilight asked, trying to get her wing to stop shaking.

“Give me a moment . . .” Sundance answered, focusing on Twilight’s wing. She smiled as her gentle massage drew several sighs of pleasure from her daughter. She did the same to Twilight’s left wing, getting the same reactions. “That should feel better.”

Twilight nodded, sighing in pleasure as her wings completely relaxed. “Does that mean the techniques I use to care for my wings need to change as well?”

Sundance shook her head. “In this case, the techniques that pegasi use work just fine on alicorns. However, because our wings are stronger, more effort needs to be put into those techniques when they’re used on us.”

“That explains it.” Twilight said thoughtfully “I always have to ask Fluttershy to press harder when she does anything to my wings because, if she doesn’t, I don’t feel anything. Even so, I never thought it was my wings. Instead, I always thought it was because of how gentle she is.”

Sundance smiled “I applied a bit of pressure to a certain spot on each of your wings. A Pegasus wouldn’t have felt anything because, while they can fly and walk on clouds, that’s the extent of their magic." She paused "Well, some of them can also control the weather. Regardless, on an alicorn, that’s where the different types of magic meet with the nerves in the wing. It’s the addition of our alicorn magic that makes that a sensitive place for us. Even though it’s sensitive, we need to apply a little bit of pressure there once in a while. Otherwise, it gets tense. If it gets too tense, we begin to have trouble flying.” She nuzzled her youngest “After such a stressful day, I thought you might need that. Even if your friend helps you relax, there’s little chance that a Pegasus would think of pressing there.”

Smiling, Twilight sighed again before returning their mother’s nuzzle. “Thanks, Mom.”

“Ah!”

“Ooh . . .”

Sundance turned and smiled as she saw both of her older children relaxing on the cloud with their wings spread. Glancing at her husband, she noticed that his horn was glowing.

Seeing that his wife was looking at him, Midnight Armor returned her smile. “It seems they needed that as well. After all, it was a stressful day for all three of our children.”

Suddenly, Twilight got an idea. Turning back to Sundance, she whispered “Where’s that spot again? I want to do that to Artemis when we wake up.”

Sundance used her magic to warm the right spot on both of Twilight’s wings. “That’s a great idea, Twilight. I’m sure he’ll enjoy it.” She whispered back. I’m not going to tell Artemis to return the favor because I’m certain he’ll do it anyway. Besides, I don’t want to ruin the surprise.

They made an unspoken agreement to relax for the rest of the night. A few hours later, Sundance and Midnight Armor noticed that they were beginning to fade. Both of them stood and faced their children.

“It appears that our time is up.” Sundance said sadly

“You’re right” Midnight Armor replied

Celestia sighed “It’s time for me to raise the sun.”

Artemis looked down “You’re right, sister. I have to lower the moon.”

Twilight stood, walked over to their parents and nuzzled them both. “We may have to wait three months to see each other again, but we’ll be talking to you soon.”

Artemis smiled “Twilight’s right.” He thought for a moment before smiling at their parents. “I’m going to test that spell on Hearth’s Warming for two reasons. One, I want to make sure we won’t have any trouble on a night that we have some important information for you. Two, even though we won’t be able to spend the holiday with you, at least we’ll be able to talk to you.”

Midnight Armor’s eyes lit up. Our visits rarely fall on that holiday, so we haven’t been able to talk to our children on Hearth’s Warming in centuries.

Sundance hugged her son. “Even if you aren’t able to get the spell to work,” she whispered “the fact that you’re going to try means far more to us than you’ll ever know.”

Artemis smiled and nuzzled their mother before nuzzling their father as well. Celestia stepped forward and followed suit. Finally, Twilight stepped forward and did the same.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight watched as their parents were pulled towards the stars. Only after they were out of sight, did Artemis allow them to wake.

Sundance and Midnight Armor returned to Star Swirl.

“How did it go?” He asked

Sundance turned to her husband and kissed him before they returned to their forms as stars. Only then did she answer the question. “It was a very nice visit.”

“Yes.” Midnight Armor added “Thank you for forcing us to take your magic, Star Swirl.”

Star Swirl laughed “You’re welcome. I can’t believe both of you were going to wait for Artemis to tell you what happened. It’s a good thing that the shockwave he sent out gave us enough magic to talk to him.”

Sundance laughed “He was surprised to hear our voices, that’s for sure.”

“I know I was able to get a message to her through Artemis,” Star Swirl began “but I’d like to hear it from you anyway. How is Princess Twilight Sparkle?”

Midnight Armor brightened to his nighttime level.

Laughing, Sundance asked “Excited, Midnight?” A minute later, she dropped the act and brightened as well. “Who am I kidding, I’m just as excited as you are.”

Midnight Armor laughed as well “She wasn’t harmed in that attack, so there’s no need to worry.” He flickered, the equivalent of shaking his head. “Our youngest daughter is something else. Through our children’s stories . . .”

Surprised, Star Swirl interrupted “Youngest daughter?”

Sundance laughed “Yes, Star Swirl, he called her our youngest daughter. We’ve been calling her that since Artemis confirmed that she’s carrying his foal. In fact, she calls us the modern version of Mother and Father, Mom and Dad.”

He gasped “Really?”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened before returning to normal resting levels, the equivalent of a nod. “She was asleep and we were trying to wake her. The method we chose was apparently the same one her parents used when she was young. Because she was still half asleep, she thought we were her parents and called us the appropriate names.” He laughed “When she fully woke up, and realized what she’d said, she was actually worried that she’d upset us. Once she discovered that we were happy that she referred to us as her parents, she began calling us that all of the time.”

Star Swirl laughed “I’m happy that he finally found somepony. Did he tell you why he chose her?”

Sundance briefly brightened “Do you remember what we told you when we returned from visiting Artemis the night he returned? In this case, I’m referring to how he was able to return.”

“Yes” Star Swirl replied, confused “You told me that Artemis had been saved by the Elements of Harmony and a lavender unicorn. What does that have to do with Princess Twilight Sparkle?”

Midnight Armor brightened again “Would you believe me if I told you that the lavender unicorn is now an alicorn? Or that she ascended after she managed to complete your final spell?”

“W-what?!” Star Swirl exclaimed, suddenly understanding what they meant. “You’re telling me that she’s the one who saved Artemis?!” He paused “No, that can’t be right. The unicorn’s name was . . .”

“Twilight Sparkle” Sundance supplied, laughing as Star Swirl gasped in shock “Yes, Star Swirl, that’s exactly what we’re saying.”

“I-incredible!” Star Swirl stammered “Now I really can’t wait to meet her!”

“Anyway,” Midnight Armor began “I hope you’re ready to listen.”

“Yes” Sundance continued “Midnight and I have much to tell you. You can ask questions as you think of them, but there’s no guarantee we’ll answer them right away. Instead, we’d like to start at the beginning of the visit. Any questions that we haven’t answered during our tale, we’ll answer at the end.”

“I understand” Star Swirl replied, briefly brightening

“Now then,” Midnight Armor started “one week ago, we arrived to find ourselves standing in front of Artemis . . .”

In Canterlot, Celestia opened her eyes and looked out the window. After watching the moon set below the horizon, she raised the sun. That done, she stood and headed for the dining room. After breakfast, I’ll take a long hot bath. Then I think I’ll take a nap. I need to recover as much of my magic as possible before attempting the spells that will allow me to search for Golden Thunder’s soul.

In Ponyville, Artemis and Twilight opened their eyes at the same time. She watched him lower the moon. Once he had finished, she pushed him onto his stomach.

Still groggy, he didn’t resist when Twilight rolled him over and climbed onto his back. Instead, he mumbled “What’s going on?” He felt her spread his wings. What’s she up to? A moment later, he gasped. “Ah!” Both wings shook uncontrollably as she gently pressed the spot that their mother had shown her the night before. Now wide awake, he sighed in pleasure as she used her hooves to gently massage his wings. As soon as his wings calmed, he folded them. Then he rolled over so quickly that he accidentally knocked her off his back, and the bed, sending her towards the floor. Realizing his mistake, he caught her in his magic.

Twilight giggled as she was surrounded in his magic, brought back onto the bed and placed next to him. “If you wanted me to get up, why didn’t you just say so?” She started to stand “Spike’s probably still asleep, so I’ll go make breakfast.”

He used a wing to pull her back down by his side, making sure that she was lying on her stomach. Before she could say anything, he gently pressed the same spot on both of her wings.

She gasped “Ah!” I thought it was intense last night but it’s even more so when it’s done to the physical body. As he gently massaged her wings, she leaned into his side and nuzzled him. “Thanks. Mom was right, I definitely needed that.”

He pulled her into a hug. “I did as well. Thank you, Twilight.”

She giggled “We should do that to Celestia when we see her tomorrow night.”

Artemis laughed “Good idea. I bet she needs it as much as we did, maybe more.”

They relaxed in bed for another twenty minutes before his stomach growled. Laughing, Twilight stood. “I’ll go make you some breakfast.”

Standing as well, he nuzzled her “What about you?”

“I know we have apple juice,” She replied “so that part isn’t a problem. Unfortunately, I don’t think we have applesauce so I’m not sure what I’m going to eat.” She shrugged “I’ll wait until I see what we have before I decide.”

“Fair enough” He replied, nuzzling her again “As long as you’re aware of the fact that I’m going to make sure you eat something. I know there’s a chance that you won’t be able to keep it down, but you still have to try.”

Twilight winced “I know.”

Artemis sighed in relief, happy she wasn’t going to argue. Now I know how Father must have felt when this happened to Mother. Hopefully, she’ll be able to go back to eating normally soon.

Chapter 51

Artemis and Twilight went downstairs and walked into the kitchen. Neither of them were surprised when they didn’t see Spike.

Artemis sat at the kitchen table and watched as Twilight began to make something with flour, eggs, salt, milk, butter, sugar, baking powder and a brown liquid that she called vanilla extract. After mixing everything together, she added fresh blueberries. They smelled so good that his stomach growled again. Hearing her giggle, he looked up to find a few blueberries floating in front of him. Smiling, he ate them while she put whatever she made into an odd looking piece of metal and put that in the oven. I have no idea what she’s making, but it’s interesting to watch.

Soon, the kitchen smelled amazing. After a timer went off, she opened the oven and pulled the pan back out. Taking a sniff, she grimaced. “These came out well, but you’re getting most of them. We just have to save a few for Spike.”

“It smells delicious,” Artemis tilted his head “but what in Equestria did you make?”

Turning to him, Twilight raised an eyebrow “I know you’ve had blueberry muffins.”

Surprised, he nodded “Yes, but I’ve never seen anypony actually make them.”

She giggled again as she walked over and placed the pan on the table. “Pinkie taught me how to make them. They’re really good when you eat them fresh out of the oven.”

Curious, he levitated one over to him and took a bite. He looked at the rest of it for a moment before shoving the whole thing in his mouth. After chewing and swallowing, he turned to her. “They taste even better than they smell!”

Laughing, Twilight shook her head as she placed a glass of orange juice in front of him.

“I smell blueberry muffins.”

Twilight and Artemis turned to find a sleepy dragon standing in the doorway. Twilight set another glass of orange juice, and a bottle of apple juice, on the table while he walked over and sat next to Artemis.

Spike grabbed a muffin but, before he could take a bite, he suddenly burped out a letter from Celestia. “Ugh” he grumbled, placing the scroll on the table “Can I eat now?” After a moment without any more letters coming out, he took a large bite of his muffin. “This is much better than burping up a letter.”

Chuckling, Artemis lifted the scroll in his magic and opened it. After reading it, he looked at Twilight. “This is the spell Celestia told us about last night.” Setting it on the table next to him, he returned his attention to the muffins. “I’ll take a closer look at it after breakfast.”

With Artemis and Spike taken care of, Twilight walked into the pantry to see if she could find something for herself to eat. Glancing around, she muttered “I was right, we don’t have any applesauce. We don’t have any apples either. I’ll have to buy both later. Let’s see, what might I be able to keep down?” Not seeing anything, she returned to the table and pulled a blueberry muffin towards her. “I couldn’t find anything in the pantry, so I don’t have a choice. I just hope I don’t regret this.”

Artemis and Spike watched as she slowly ate the muffin. When she finished, but didn’t take another, they glanced at each other before turning back to her.

Raising an eyebrow, Artemis watched her for a moment. When she didn’t move, he levitated another muffin over to her.

Seeing his expression, she sighed. “Fine” Ignoring the complaints from her stomach, she took a couple of bites. When it became clear that her breakfast was coming back up, she let the muffin fall to the table and began gathering magic for a teleportation spell.

In the stars, Midnight Armor stopped mid-sentence when Sundance suddenly gasped. He and Star Swirl turned to her. “What’s wrong?”

“Twilight’s doing exactly what I was afraid she would." She responded "Sorry, I won’t be paying attention to the conversation. Instead, I have to stop her.”

Aware of what she had done, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl immediately understood what she was talking about. They watched as she brightened, focusing her magic.

“It’s alright” Midnight Armor replied “Make sure she doesn’t drain herself.”

Star Swirl paused “I have an idea.” There was a flash of magic around them.

Midnight Armor turned to him “What did you do?”

“Good. It looks like it worked.” Star Swirl commented “I tapped into the link that Sundance’s spell created between her and Princess Twilight. My spell should allow us to hear her as well.”

Midnight Armor brightened “Good idea. Thank you, Star Swirl.”

In Ponyville, Twilight had gathered the necessary magic for her teleportation spell. She was about to cast it, but paused when she heard a voice in her head.

Teleporting isn’t a good idea, Twilight. Don’t forget, you need to use as little magic as possible for a couple of days.

Cursing under her breath, Twilight released her magic and ran to the trash can in the corner of the kitchen. Once she was sure that her stomach was empty, she raised her head and looked out the window. I have no idea how you did that, Mom, but thank you. I did forget that I need to take it easy for a couple of days. After listening for a few minutes, she was disappointed when she didn’t get a response. Shrugging, she returned to the table. I must have imagined it.

Her eyes widened when she heard Sundance laugh. You didn’t imagine it. Last night, when I cast the magic scan, I also cast another spell on you.

Don’t worry, while it can only be used for two weeks at a time, it’s safe to use on a pregnant mare. In fact, it was cast on me while I was pregnant with Artemis. She laughed again Your father needed to travel to another part of Equestria, but refused to go anywhere unless there was a way he could be sure that Celestia and I were safe. That’s why I created this spell.

Seeing the expression on Twilight’s face, Artemis reached over and nuzzled her. “Are you alright?”

Startled, Twilight gasped before turning to him. “Y-yeah.”

“I’m sorry,” Artemis began, nuzzling her again “I didn't mean to make you lose your breakfast. I just wanted to make sure you ate more than one muffin.”

That’s an understandable reason. Sundance commented Your father used to do the same to me. Unfortunately, like you, I wasn’t able to keep whatever he made me eat in my stomach.

“It’s alright.” Twilight told Artemis “I understand why you did that, but I’m not eating anything else.” She sighed “It’s clear that nothing solid is going to stay down right now. Can you open the apple juice? I’ve never done that without magic.”

Raising an eyebrow, Artemis whispered “You’d better explain this later.” After she nodded, he continued in a louder voice. “Sure.” Opening the bottle with his magic, he set it in front of her.

He’s right. Sundance remarked I hope you’re not planning to hide this from him.

Of course not. Twilight replied This is way too important to keep from him.

Sundance sighed in relief Good. Secrets between partners don’t make for a very strong relationship.

There are a few things I’m keeping from him. Twilight answered However, they’re all surprises that I have planned for him and he’ll find out about them soon.

Sundance laughed That’s different. It’s also completely understandable.

“Thanks” Twilight replied, smiling at Artemis. She used her hooves to raise the bottle to her lips and quickly drank everything in it, glad that it put a better taste in her mouth.

Spike opened his mouth, clearly about to say something, but paused when somepony knocked on the front door of the castle.

Twilight glanced up “That must be Cheerilee. She’s earlier than I thought she’d be. Can you let her in, Spike? It’s too cold to work in the park, so we’ll be in the library.”

Spike nodded “Sure thing, Twi.” He drank the last of his orange juice, stood and left the room.

Twilight turned to Artemis “Can you teleport us to our room?”

Artemis used his magic to pick up the letter from Celestia and did as she asked. Once they got there, he turned to her. “What’s going on?”

Twilight placed her saddlebags on her back before answering him. “I can hear somepony’s voice in my head.”

Narrowing his eyes, Artemis growled “If Golden Thunder hurts you . . .”

I should have seen that coming. Sundance said Please calm him down. I’m definitely not Golden Thunder and have no intention of harming you.

Twilight quickly shook her head “It’s not him.”

“Alright,” he responded, clearly not convinced “who is it?”

“Mom”

He was so surprised that he just stared at her. After a moment, he asked “H-how is she doing that?!”

She leaned into his side. “I’ll tell you what I know, but you have to calm down first.”

Sighing in relief, he nodded and wrapped a wing around her.

A few minutes later, Twilight answered his question. “When she cast that magic scan last night, she also cast another spell on me. Whatever the second spell is, it allows her to talk to me.”

In the stars, Sundance sighed in relief “I’m glad she managed to calm him.”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “I am as well." After a moment, he continued. "I’m not surprised that he was angry. Remember, he thought Golden Thunder’s soul had entered her body. If somepony’s soul had entered your body, especially while you were pregnant, I would have been angry too.”

“Midnight Armor’s right” Star Swirl remarked “Regardless, I bet he’s much calmer now that he knows that you’re the one communicating with Princess Twilight.”

In Ponyville, Twilight looked out the window while she listened to their mother.

Don’t worry, I’ll cancel the spell in a few days. I just wanted to make sure that I’d be able to stop you from using too much magic before you recovered.

Twilight nodded “She says that she’s going to cancel her spell a few days. The only reason she cast it on me is that she wanted to make sure I didn’t hurt myself by using too much magic.” She tilted her head “Hold on, I want to check something.”

Artemis nodded, already knowing what she wanted to look at. Mother would never hurt one of her children, but I don’t blame Twilight for wanting to know what spell was cast on her.

After a minute, Twilight spoke again. “I’ve seen this spell in a couple of ancient texts. It’s not in use today because it’s so complex that most ponies aren’t able to understand it, let alone cast it.”

“What spell did Mother cast on you?” Artemis asked

“It’s an advanced communication spell.” She replied “The historians called it the Thought Sharing Spell, and it does exactly what the name implies.” She paused “You know, I don’t think this spell was recorded correctly.”

Sitting down, Artemis waited for her to elaborate.

Seeing this, Twilight continued “The ancient texts don’t mention this, but it also allows the caster to hear what’s going on around whoever they cast the spell on.”

He raised an eyebrow “What makes you think that?”

Twilight nuzzled him “When you said something about Golden Thunder hurting me, Mom told me to calm you down. Then she said that she’s “definitely not Golden Thunder” and has no intention of harming me.”

He winced “Please tell her that I’m sorry. I didn’t know it was her.”

Twilight giggled “She just started laughing, so I don’t think you need to worry.”

In the stars, Sundance laughed “That spell wasn’t recorded correctly because the historians didn’t understand it. I lost count of how many times I tried to explain my spell to them. They just didn’t get it.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “If I recall correctly, you gave up after two dozen tries.”

Her star flickered “Twilight has access to far less information than I gave the historians and still figured it out.”

Midnight Armor’s star briefly brightened, agreeing with his wife, before flickering. “She really needs to stop denying it when somepony calls her brilliant.”

Star Swirl flickered as well “After everything you’ve told me so far, I’m not sure even “brilliant” is the right word to describe her. However, lacking a better word, it will have to do.”

In Ponyville, Artemis smiled and shook his head “We should head to the library before Spike starts to worry.”

Spike and Cheerilee looked up at the flash of Artemis’ magic to see Twilight and Artemis standing in front of them.

“I’m sorry. I left my things in our room and had to go get them. I used a lot of magic yesterday so I have to take it easy for a couple of days.”

Spike nodded “Do you want me to help you?”

Twilight shook her head “Cheerilee and I should be fine. Artemis doesn’t know this library very well, so I’d like you to help him instead.”

“Sure, Twi.” He replied “Let me know if you need anything.”

Twilight giggled “Thanks, Spike” Turning to Cheerilee, she said “Let’s get started.”

Cheerilee nodded, setting her saddlebags on a nearby table. “Were you able to get a good idea of what level those foals are at?”

“Yes” Twilight replied “Unfortunately, Fire Fly stopped teaching them history and reading earlier than we thought.”

“What do you mean?” Cheerilee asked “I thought he started telling those stories four months into the school year.”

“That’s what I thought as well.” Twilight replied “However, I discovered that he started telling them a month and a half into the school year. That means they’re further behind than we thought.”

Cheerilee gasped “What?”

Twilight nodded “You were right about math and science, though. They really are almost a year ahead.”

Cheerilee nodded “What about the unicorns’ magic?”

Twilight sighed “When I tested them on Monday, most of them couldn’t levitate a pencil long enough to write their name." Seeing Cheerilee's expression, she shook her head. "Don't worry. Celestia, Artemis and I have already started teaching them.”

Cheerilee smiled “They won’t be behind for long.”

She’s right about that. Sundance remarked Between the three of you, those foals will be where they should be in no time.

Twilight laughed “That’s the plan” That answer was meant for both of you, Mom. She smiled when Sundance laughed as well. “I asked the foals to complete worksheets in math, science and history. I didn’t bother doing that with reading, I took them to the library instead. As for the other subjects, while they had no problems in math and science, history was a different story. They seem to have learned more from their parents than their previous teacher.”

Cheerilee raised an eyebrow “Previous teacher?”

Twilight nodded “That class is mine for the rest of the school year.” Smiling, she shook her head. “The parents of the foals sent a petition to Celestia and she accepted it.”

Laughing, Cheerilee shook her head “I should have seen that coming. What do you want to do about history and reading?”

“Reading will be easy.” Twilight answered “We spend the last two hours of every school day in the library. They still have a ways to go, but they’ve already improved dramatically.”

Cheerilee stared at her for a moment before shaking her head. “That’s just like you, Twilight.” She laughed when Twilight blushed “So it’s just history that we need to make new plans for.”

Twilight shook her head “The current lessons for math and science are way too easy, so we also need to change those plans.” She thought for a moment “I’d like to maintain, or at least slowly improve, those two subjects while bringing up their history and reading.”

Cheerilee nodded “Let’s take care of math and science first because those will be the easiest.”

A few tables away, Artemis carefully read Celestia’s spell. When he finished, he tapped his chin thoughtfully. “There's nothing wrong with this spell. Celestia had trouble with it because she’s not supposed to be the one casting it.”

“What do you mean?” Spike asked

Artemis glanced at the baby dragon sitting on his back. “You know that my sister can raise and lower my moon and stars, right?”

Spike nodded “Everyone knows that.”

“What most ponies don’t know,” Artemis continued “is that I can raise and lower her sun.”

Spike blinked “Really?”

Artemis nodded “However, that’s all we’re able to do. Her Day doesn’t like me messing with any other aspects of it and my Night doesn’t like it when she tries to do anything with the finer aspects of it.”

Spike looked over Artemis’ shoulder at the spell. “Why didn’t the spell work?”

“Several hundred years ago,” Artemis began “she wanted to do something with a couple of the stars in my Night Sky. This spell worked once but, the next time she cast it, the stars resisted her.”

“I see.” Spike said slowly “You’re the only one who can truly affect your Night because, in some ways, you are the Night.” He tapped a claw to his chin. “That means the stars only resisted her because she’s not you. If so, you should be able to cast this spell without fixing anything.”

Artemis blinked “That’s right. I must say, you understood that rather quickly. In the past, I’ve tried to explain why our domains act the way they do to several ponies. It took them hours to understand what you picked up in a matter of minutes, if they understood it at all.”

Spike blushed “I grew up with Twi so, even though I can’t cast it, I know a lot about magic. As I got older, I began helping her with her spells and research.” He shrugged “I do that a lot now.”

“I see” Artemis replied, shaking his head “No wonder she calls you her “Number One Assistant”.” Artemis wasn’t sure how Spike was able to get any redder, but he did. Laughing softly, he reached back and nuzzled the little dragon. “Now, I just have to see if I can find a way to put more magic into this spell.”

Spike blinked “Why?”

Artemis glanced at him again “Celestia created this spell because she wanted to send extra magic to a couple of stars. I need to do that now.”

“Okay . . .” Spike slowly replied “Why?”

“Twilight, Celestia and I will be explaining this to several ponies, and you, in a couple of days.” Artemis answered “For now, I ask that you be patient and keep this to yourself. Until we tell you otherwise, if you must talk about it, make sure that only Twilight, Celestia and I can hear you.”

After a moment, Spike nodded “I may not know you very well yet, but Twi loves and trusts you. That’s enough for me. I’ll wait.”

Artemis stared at Spike for a minute before nuzzling him again. “Thank you, Spike” He turned back to the paper in front of him. “Now, let’s get to work.”

Neither of them noticed that Twilight was watching them.

Twilight and Cheerilee had finished the plans for math, science, reading and the unicorns’ magic training. Instead of tackling History right away, they decided to take a break. Cheerilee was resting on a cushion in the front reading section, reading an adventure novel. Twilight was wandering between the bookshelves, trying to decide what she wanted to read.

She heard a couple of voices speaking quietly and looked over to see Spike sitting on Artemis’ back. Even though she couldn’t hear what they were saying, Twilight smiled. Good. I was hoping Artemis and Spike would spend some time together. Both of them are important to me and I don’t want to have to choose one over the other. She was startled when she heard Sundance’s voice.

You said Spike, right? Isn’t that the name of the dragon you hatched?

Yes Twilight replied

How long have you been caring for him?

Twilight thought for a moment. It’s been almost thirteen years.

I heard him speak earlier. You’ve done a wonderful job raising him.

Twilight shook her head, turning to look out the window. I didn’t do it alone. I had a lot of help from my parents and Celestia, especially when I was younger.

Sundance thought for a moment. Artemis mentioned that Spike sees you as his mother, big sister and best friend. Is this true?

Twilight nodded Because of the way he grew up, he sees me as all of them. As for me, he’s a son, little brother and best friend rolled into one, yet none of them at the same time. I began calling him my Number One Assistant because I couldn’t figure out exactly what I should call him.

Twilight laughed softly He seems to think of my parents as his grandparents. They treat him the same way they treat Flurry Heart, so they probably see him as a grandson.

In the stars, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl flickered, shaking their heads in disbelief.

“If she was able to do that with a dragon, while growing up herself, I can’t wait to see how she’ll raise our grandfoal.”

Sundance brightened “You’re right, Midnight”

Star Swirl brightened “I still can’t believe she was able to hatch a dragon’s egg at only eight years old. It’s almost unheard of for a grown unicorn to possess that kind of power, let alone a filly.”

“You’re right about Twilight being able to hatch a dragon’s egg at eight years old.” Midnight Armor replied “That surprised me as well.”

Star Swirl flickered again “Even though she’s clearly done well, I wonder why Celestia allowed her to raise that dragon.”

Midnight Armor paused, trying to decide on the best way to explain the actions of his oldest. A couple of minutes later, he explained. “Dragon hatchlings form a close bond with the first creature they see. Usually, that’s whoever hatches them. Because of this, Celestia probably had no choice but to keep them together. Trust me, you don’t want an upset baby dragon on your hooves.”

“I see” Star Swirl replied “That makes sense.”

In Ponyville, Twilight jumped and looked down when Spike laid a claw on her shoulder. “Is something wrong?”

He shook his head “I came to get a book for Artemis and saw you staring out the window.”

“I’m fine, just thinking.” Twilight replied “We got a lot of work done and decided to take a break. Cheerilee found a book pretty quickly, but I’m not sure what I want to read.”

After thinking for a moment, her eyes widened. That book might have the information I need . . . Even if it doesn’t, I haven’t read it yet. I might as well do so now. “Can you get me that book on the composition and qualities of crystals, please?”

Spike raised an eyebrow “Sure, but why the sudden interest? I thought you said you weren’t going to read it until we found the second book.”

“I’m not sure why it’s there, but the second book is in the Crystal Empire.” She shrugged “I plan to read it when we go there next week, but I need to read the first book before we get there. As for why I’m interested, I’m researching something and believe it might be related.”

How might the composition and qualities of crystals be related to your research? Sundance asked

I’m sorry, Mom. Twilight replied I need one more piece of information before I can answer your question.

Eyebrow arching higher, Spike stared at her for a minute before shrugging. I’m sure she’ll tell me what’s going on soon. He placed the book he was holding on her back and ran off. A minute later, he returned with the book in his claws. Then he jumped onto her back and sat between her wings, holding both books.

Laughing, Twilight walked towards Artemis. As she got closer, he looked up.

Spike laid the book Twilight wanted on her back and jumped from her back to Artemis’. “Here’s the book you wanted, Artemis.”

“Thanks, Spike” Artemis replied, smiling at him and taking the book in his magic, before turning to Twilight. “How are things going?”

“Fine.” She answered “The only subject we still need to fix is history, so we decided to take a break. How’s the spell?”

Before Artemis could answer, Spike spoke up. “There’s nothing wrong with the spell. It didn’t work for Princess Celestia because she wasn’t supposed to be casting it.”

“I see” Twilight commented, turning to Artemis “Were you able to figure out if we can help you power it?”

Artemis smiled “We still need to test it but, as far as I can tell, it’ll work if you two give me the necessary magic before I cast it. What I’m doing now, is trying to figure out if the three of us can cast the spell together instead. I’ll be one of the ponies casting it, so the stars might not resist.”

That’s a good idea, Sundance began but I’m not sure it would work. Our stars might naturally resist any magic that doesn’t come from him. It would be better for the two of you to give him the magic he needs.

Twilight looked off to the side, chewing her lip as she thought. “If they resisted Celestia before, won’t they do it again? As for me, it might work the first time but I bet the stars will resist if I try it a second time.” She shook her head “We should just give you our magic.”

Artemis leaned closer and whispered “Did you include Mother’s reaction in your response?”

She nodded

He nuzzled her and opened the book. “That’s a good point, but I’ll read this anyway.” He shrugged “The information may be useful for something else.”

In the stars, Sundance laughed “She managed to get my message to him while making it seem like it came from her. In fact, part of it did come from her.”

Star Swirl was also laughing “She’s clearly much smarter than she’s given herself credit for.”

“You’re right, Star Swirl.” Midnight Armor responded. Then he turned to his wife. “Most ponies aren’t able to tolerate hearing another pony’s voice in their head. Do you think she’ll be alright?”

“I was worried about that as well.” Sundance replied “However, it wasn’t long before I realized that she wasn’t going to have any problems.” She hesitated for a moment, but continued. “Unfortunately, there’s something else that worries me.”

Concerned, Midnight Armor replied “What’s wrong?”

She sighed “I didn’t ask for permission before I did this. Even though I did it so I’d be able to help her, it’s very intrusive.”

“I understand why you feel like that,” Star Swirl began “but I don’t think you need to worry. I haven’t detected any anger in Princess Twilight’s responses.” He laughed “If I had to guess, I’d say she likes being able to talk to you.”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “I agree with Star Swirl. If Twilight had a problem with your actions, I’m sure she would have said something.”

Sundance’s star dimmed “I’m still going to talk to her about it.”

In Ponyville, Artemis turned to Twilight. “Is there something I can write on and with?”

Before she could answer, Spike jumped to the floor. “I’ll go get them for you.” Not waiting for a response, Spike left the library.

Twilight turned to Artemis before pausing when she heard their mother’s voice.

When you have a moment, I’d like to discuss something.

Noticing Twilight’s expression, Artemis nuzzled her. “Is something wrong?”

She glanced at him “Mom wants to talk about something and sounds worried.”

He raised an eyebrow “You should listen to what she has to say.”

Glancing around, Twilight nodded “I will. I just need to find a way to do it so that, if anyone sees me, they won’t suspect anything.”

Artemis thought for a moment. “Let’s take a break. Cheerilee’s using the reading section in the front of the library, so we’ll use the one in the back. If you close your eyes, everyone will think you’re sleeping.” He shrugged “If Spike or Cheerilee comes over, I’ll tell them that you need to relax for a bit.”

Twilight nuzzled him “Good idea”

They walked to the reading section in the back of the library and lay down together on a large cushion that he placed next to the window.

Twilight snuggled closer to Artemis’ side and smiled when he covered her with a wing. Then she lay her head on her forehooves and closed her eyes. Is something wrong, Mom? Aside from the obvious, I mean.

Sundance hesitated I need to apologize.

Huh? Twilight asked For what?

I . . . Sundance hesitated, confused Do you understand what I’ve done?

Yes, Twilight replied but that doesn’t explain why you’re apologizing.

Sundance didn’t respond

After considering things from their mother's point of view, Twilight thought she understood. You think I’m angry because you didn’t ask before casting that spell on me.

Sundance was silent for several minutes. In fact, she took so long to respond that Twilight heard Spike return.

“We’re taking a short break.” Artemis quietly told Spike “Can you put the writing materials on the table, please?”

Spike nodded and walked away, heading for the front of the library.

After a few more minutes of silence, Sundance cautiously replied. Y-yes

Well, I’m not. Twilight told her

Surprised, Sundance asked What?

I’m not angry. Twilight repeated Yes, what you did was rather invasive. In fact, if it had been done by almost anypony else, I’d be furious. However, you’re one of the few ponies that I’ll allow in my head.

Besides, if you hadn’t done this, I’d be in a lot of pain right now. I’d forgotten that I need to take it easy and was about to use too much magic.

After thinking for a moment, Twilight decided that one more thing needed to be said to get her point across. Remember, I’m the Bearer of the Element of Magic. Even though I have to take it easy, I can still use my Element to terminate your spell. I haven’t done so because I don’t want to.

In the stars, Sundance was too stunned to say anything.

Midnight Armor was laughing so hard that he was unable to speak. Eventually, he managed to say five words. “We tried to tell you.”

Star Swirl brightened “The fact that she can, but won’t, terminate your spell tells me that she likes being able to talk to you.”

Still in shock, Sundance didn’t respond.

Midnight Armor and Star Swirl quieted down when they heard Artemis’ voice.

In Ponyville, Twilight opened her eyes and nuzzled Artemis.

“Why was Mother worried?” He asked softly Golden Thunder is enough of a problem. Hopefully, there isn’t something else that we need to worry about.

Twilight whispered “She thought I was angry because she cast her spell on me without asking.”

Sighing in relief, he laughed “I assume she’s no longer worried about that.”

“I hope not.” she replied “I told her that I could use my Element to remove her magic from my body, but haven’t done so because I don’t want to.”

They stood and walked towards the front of the library, ready to get back to work. Before they could get started, Twilight, Artemis, Cheerilee and Spike looked up when somepony knocked on the front door of the castle. Not long after she moved in, Twilight cast a spell on the front door. No matter where they are in the castle, they know when somepony knocks.

“That’s odd.” Spike commented “We’re not expecting anypony else today.” He shrugged “Oh well, I’ll go see who it is. Hopefully, it’s nothing dangerous.” He returned a minute later, followed by Applejack.

Twilight raised an eyebrow when she saw that her friend was wearing saddlebags. “Hi, Applejack” She said “Is something wrong?”

Applejack shook her head “Nothing’s wrong, Twi. Ah just though ya might be hungry.”

Twilight nodded “I wasn’t able to hold down breakfast, so I would definitely appreciate something to eat. Something I can keep in my stomach, I mean.”

Applejack smiled “Then it’s a good thing ah came over. Granny Smith and ah baked something that we want ya to try. We also made ya some applesauce and fresh apple juice.”

Twilight’s eyes lit up as Applejack pulled several bottles of apple juice, a few jars of applesauce and a couple of packages out of her saddlebags and set them on the table.

Applejack saw this and smiled wider “We’d like you to try our newest recipe. They’re apple muffins that we made with the apples from our orchards. We also made some dried apple slices for ya to try.”

Twilight pulled one of the muffins closer and sniffed it. Everyone laughed when her stomach growled. Blushing, she took a cautious bite. After a few moments, she took another. Once it became clear that it was going to stay down, she ate the rest of the muffin before pulling the dried apples towards her. After a couple of slices slowly disappeared, it was clear that those would stay down as well. Sighing in relief, she turned back to her friend. “Thanks, Applejack. I really needed that.”

Applejack snorted “No friend of mine’s going hungry.”

“I know that,” Twilight replied, laughing “but I’m still going to thank you.”

“Ah know.” Applejack answered, laughing as well. She saw the look on Twilight’s face and shook her head. “Granny Smith’s been wanting to make food for pregnant mares for a long time and says this is a good opportunity to do it. You’re the taste tester for our new products. Taste testers never pay for the food because it might come out bad.” She shrugged “She said that it’s a good thing your stomach is acting up because, if you can eat it, other pregnant mares should be able to as well.”

Twilight stared at Applejack for a moment before shaking her head. “I should have known you two would do something like that.” She paused, listening to several stomachs growl. “Everyone but me is going to the kitchen. I just ate, so I’ll read a book.”

Artemis, Applejack, Spike and Cheerilee nodded and left the room, taking the rest of the food Applejack brought with them.

Twilight walked back to the reading section in the back of her library, lay down and began to read. Twenty minutes later, she sighed and stretched her wings. That’s definitely a potential answer.

What do you mean? Sundance asked

Twilight paused Do you remember when I said that I was looking into where Golden Thunder was planning to put the souls the Chimera Anima stole?

I wondered when you were going to get back to that. Sundance responded You told us that you were researching the topic, but never said what you discovered.

I haven’t found a definitive answer yet, Twilight hesitantly told her but I may have discovered a couple of possibilities.

That’s alright. Sundance replied Tell me what you’ve discovered.

A-alright. Even with Sundance’s encouragement, Twilight found herself hesitant. One of the options was to store the souls in crystals and bring them out when they were needed. That didn’t work very well, so he didn’t use it often. In fact, I can’t find anything that says he ever used it.

Sundance waited for her to explain the second option. When Twilight stayed silent, she asked. What’s the other option?

Not sure how her mother was going to take this information, Twilight paused. This was, and still is, only possible if the crystals being used were incredibly pure. However, once certain spells were cast on them, he was able to use those crystals to store magic. Once he had enough stored magic, he was able to cast a spell that created a field of magic in which he could trap souls.

After several minutes of stunned silence, Sundance asked H-how did you discover this?!

A couple of days ago, one of the archivists was having trouble translating an ancient scroll. Twilight explained She knows that I can read the ancient texts, so she asked me if I would mind translating it for her. I thought it would be a nice break from my research, so I agreed. However, I quickly discovered that it contained information that I’d been searching for. Unfortunately, while the scroll was obviously part of a set, she only had the first one. Because of this, there’s information that I don’t know yet.

Twilight hesitated Even so, there’s one more piece of information that I was able to get from the first scroll. It was barely legible, due to its age and several poor attempts to preserve the scroll, but I was able to make out the first word of the author’s name. It’s “Golden”.

Knowing what Sundance’s next question was probably going to be, Twilight quickly continued. I didn’t see anything about what spells he used, but I believe that information is on the second scroll. Unfortunately, I have no idea where that scroll is. Hay, I don’t even know if it still exists. I do know that I’ve never heard of any spells that can do that. I’m going to ask Celestia and Artemis if they know what spells he used. If they don’t, the library in the Crystal Empire may be able to help.

After a few minutes, Sundance finally managed to speak. W-why didn’t you tell us about this the other night?

Sighing, Twilight lowered her head I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hide anything. It’s just that I was missing an important piece of information. Because of that, I didn’t understand what was going on. That meant there was no way that I would have been able to explain it to anypony else.

What information were you missing? Sundance asked, half concerned and half curious.

I don’t believe that a unicorn has enough magic available to them at any given time to trap souls. Twilight answered Instead, multiple ponies would have to work together. Even then, they’d have to continuously power that spell if they wanted to keep the soul, or souls, trapped. The only way that Golden Thunder could have done it alone is if he was storing his magic in something. Once he’d collected enough, he would have been able to cast the spell using his available magic and use the stored magic to keep the spell going.

I understand the theory, Sundance began but what made you think of it?

We saw how strong the Chimera Anima became after eating the souls of those ponies. Twilight replied That means souls have a lot of power. This is especially true if they belonged powerful ponies.

Like a couple of alicorns . . . Sundance slowly replied. He would have needed a lot of magic if he wanted to keep the souls of your father and myself trapped for long.

Exactly Twilight cautiously responded I have yet to find anything that even remotely suggests that he had knowing accomplices and we know that the control spell isn’t really effective on ponies. That means he was probably storing magic in something. It wasn’t until I read the book on crystals, that I realized what it probably was. I need to read the second book to be absolutely sure but, as of right now, I feel certain enough to say that Golden Thunder may have been using crystals. Especially if he had access to ones that were pure enough.

Twilight was surprised when Sundance didn’t respond, or at least ask another question. After waiting a few minutes, she raised an eyebrow. Mom?

It was several more minutes before Sundance realized that Twilight was waiting for her to respond. When she finally replied, she was unable to keep her voice from shaking. T-there were times when your father and I weren’t able to leave Equestria ourselves. Instead, we sent Golden Thunder to other countries, including the Crystal Empire, on our behalf.

Eyes wide, it took Twilight a moment to reply. That means he had access to all of the crystals he could have ever needed. Additionally, his role as Advisor to the Crown meant that he was probably given the best ones they could find.

Voice still shaking, Sundance finally said. Give me a few minutes. I need to discuss this with your father.

Twilight glanced up as Spike, Cheerilee and Artemis walked into the library. That’s alright, Mom. I need to finish my lesson plans anyway.

In the stars, Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl looked at each other in silence.

Eventually, Sundance said. “I’m glad she thought to look into this. If she’s correct, Golden Thunder had a way to keep our souls trapped as long as he wanted.”

“No wonder he kept trying to get Artemis to give him our souls.” Midnight Armor replied, voice shaking. “He probably planned to either revive us right away or experiment on us so he could take our immortality for himself. We only escaped those fates because Artemis was determined to protect us.”

“Y-you’re right.” Sundance responded, her voice shaking as well “We may have more to thank our son for than we thought.”

“I have a couple of questions.” Star Swirl began “Is there a way to stop him from trapping the souls of others? If not, how hard will it be to create one?”

Midnight Armor laughed “I’m sure that, if necessary, it won’t be hard for them to come up with a plan. Still, you should ask Twilight, Sundance. Make sure she discusses this with Celestia and Artemis.”

Sundance brightened briefly “She told me that she was going to talk to them about this, remember? Regardless, I’m mention it to her later.”

In Ponyville, Twilight and Cheerilee finally finished the new lesson plans. Cheerilee had brought her lesson plans with her and showed Twilight where her class was a month and a half into the school year. Twilight used them to help her come up with appropriate plans for her class.

Cheerilee sighed and stretched “I’m glad we got that done.”

“Yes,” Twilight replied, stretching as well “thank you for your help.”

“Of course, Twilight.” Cheerilee answered, placing her saddlebags on her back. “I’m glad I’m the one you turned to for help. If you need anything else, please let me know.”

Twilight smiled. “You too. I may be newer to teaching than you are, but I’ll help you if I can.”

Cheerilee returned the smile and left the library.

After Cheerilee left, Twilight walked over to Artemis and Spike. Looking at the scrolls lying on the table, she noticed that both of them had spells written on them. One was written in Celestia’s horn writing. That must be her spell for sending extra magic to Mom and Dad’s stars, but what’s the other one?

The second spell was written in Artemis’ horn writing. Curious, she studied the spell. This seems to be the spell that allows Mom and Dad to visit his dreams. He must have embedded it into their stars, so they can visit whenever they have enough magic. She took a closer look at it. That’s odd. This spell isn’t finished. It’s complete enough that they’re able to visit his dreams, but it looks like there’s something else he wants them to be able to do as well. It almost seems like he’s planning to . . . Yes, that’s exactly what he has in mind. She tilted her head. He stopped at a rather difficult part, so maybe he’s having trouble finishing it. Deciding that it could be useful later, she memorized the spell. Maybe I could . . .

Sorry, I didn’t mean to take so long. Maybe you could do what? Sundance asked, giggling when she felt Twilight’s surprise.

Twilight hid a smile. Sorry, Mom. I can’t tell you about this one because I don’t want to ruin the surprise. However, I will tell you this. If I’m right about what he has planned, you and Dad are in for a big surprise. I think you’ll both really like it.

Surprised, Sundance replied A-alright. Thank you, I think.

This time, Twilight was unable to suppress her laughter.

Hearing her laugh, Artemis pulled the spells towards him.

Twilight laughed harder “Too late for that, I’ve already read both spells.”

“W-what?!” Artemis asked, instantly horrified. This isn’t good! She probably understands what I want that spell to do. I hope she didn’t tell Mother!

When she heard her son’s voice, Sundance was confused, curious and concerned, all at the same time. What was in that spell?

I’m not spoiling the surprise, Mom!

Startled, Sundance paused for a moment before she began to laugh.

Also laughing, Twilight walked over to Artemis’ side and nuzzled him.

Lowering his head to hers, he whispered “D-did you figure out what I have planned?”

“Of course” she replied, also whispering “Don’t worry, I didn’t tell Mom. She knows you’re planning something, but has no idea what it is.”

Sundance’s curiosity grew when Artemis sighed in relief. What does he have planned for us?

“Thank you” he replied, returning Twilight’s nuzzle “I’m not ready for either of them to know about that yet.” In fact, I don’t think I’ll ever be ready for them to know about it because it doesn’t look like I’ll be able to make the spell do what I want it to.

Twilight smiled at him before turning to the door to the library. As the three of them walked out into the hall, heading for the kitchen, she turned to Spike. “It’s time for dinner. You and Artemis should figure out what you’re going to eat.”

Spike thought for a moment before looking at Artemis. “How about Macaroni and Cheese with Broccoli?”

Smiling, Artemis nodded “That sounds good.”

Hearing Twilight sigh, Artemis and Spike looked at her. “Is something wrong?”

Before she could answer, Spike realized his mistake and winced. “Sorry, Twi.” He gave her a hug before moving around the kitchen, gathering the ingredients he needed to make dinner.

She turned to Artemis “It’s one of my favorite meals, but I’m not going to be able to eat it.” Seeing his expression, she shook her head. “I’ll eat in the library.”

Artemis opened his mouth, but Twilight cut him off. “With my stomach feeling the way it is, just the smell of that meal will cause problems.”

Before either of them could protest, she pulled her dinner out of the refrigerator and left the room.

Sighing, Artemis turned to Spike. “Let’s get started. I’ve never made this before, so you’ll have to show me what to do.” If this is one of her favorites, I’d like to be able to make it for her when she’s feeling better.

In the library, Twilight pulled an apple muffin closer. After slowly eating it, she moved onto the bowl of applesauce. Once she drank a bottle of apple juice, she headed over to the bookshelves.

That’s one of the few unfortunate parts of being pregnant. Sundance commented At least you’re able to eat something. Hopefully, you won’t have to deal with this for long.

Looking through the other books she had on crystals, Twilight just nodded. She pulled a book off the shelf, lay down on a cushion and began to read. Twenty minutes later, she let out an irritated sigh. This one’s no help at all. The author has an interesting, but completely incorrect, idea of what crystals are capable of. They can’t cast magic on their own.

Sundance laughed You’re right. That’s both interesting and incorrect. Crystals can only be used to store, amplify or channel magic. Typically, crystals are only capable of handling a moderate amount of magic. She paused thoughtfully I've never tried to increase the amount of magic a crystal is capable of storing, but I don't see why it can't be done.

After a moment, she sighed It's just like Golden Thunder to think of something like that.

Not sure how to respond, Twilight said nothing. Instead, she stood and put the book back on the shelf. Spreading her wings, she rose into the air and hovered next to the bookshelf. Not seeing anything helpful, she landed again and wandered around the library. I won’t have enough magic for my usual research method until tomorrow . . .

Twilight paused, staring at a random bookshelf. I don't need to read anything right now. Instead, I should be looking at this differently.

In the stars, Midnight Armor turned to his wife. “Looking at it differently?” He asked "What does she mean by that?"

Star Swirl flickered “I believe she’s doing that already.”

Sundance briefly brightened “You’re right, Star Swirl. Even after fifteen hundred years, Midnight and I never thought to question the things she’s researching. It’s clear that Celestia and Artemis didn’t either. However, when we showed her the events that preceded our deaths, Twilight immediately asked “Why” certain things happened.”

Star Swirl paused “I think it’s a good thing that Princess Twilight is asking those questions. After all, her discoveries may save their lives and souls.” He flickered again “To be honest, I would have asked similar questions. Eventually. The difference is, it probably would have been at least a year before I thought of them.”

In Ponyville, Twilight walked back to the cushion she’d been reading on and lay down. Laying her head on her forehooves, she closed her eyes.

I don’t understand how you can look at this another way. Sundance commented You’re already researching things that the rest of us never even thought to question.

I’ve been looking at his actions in past because they should tell us what he had planned back then. Twilight slowly replied, trying to put her thoughts into words. That doesn't tell us what he plans to do now. Remember, there are parts of his original plan that he can’t use anymore. Perhaps I should take what happened in the past and compare it to what’s possible, now. That, combined with Golden Flash's recent actions, may tell us something.

In the stars, Star Swirl was the first to comment. “She has a point.”

“Agreed” Midnight Armor responded “The conditions of today are different than the ones from fifteen hundred years ago. The most notable difference is the fact that Chimeras are extinct. That means Golden Thunder can’t use the central part of his plan. Unless he plans to make one of those creatures from scratch, or bring one back from the dead, he’ll have to try something else.”

Sundance briefly brightened “We should let her speak. Once we have a better idea of what's going on, we can discuss it tonight.”

Midnight Armor and Star Swirl briefly brightened as well, agreeing with her, and turned their attention back to Twilight.

In Ponyville, Sundance waited a few minutes for her daughter to continue. When Twilight didn’t say anything, she spoke up. What’s on your mind?

I’m not sure how to explain it, Twilight replied so this is probably going to seem at least a little disjointed. I’m sorry if I confuse you.

That’s alright. Sundance immediately responded Tell me what you’re thinking.

Well, Twilight began Golden Thunder probably has the same goal he had fifteen hundred years ago. It’s possible that Golden Flash has the same goal and tried to bring Golden Thunder back to help him achieve it. The best evidence for this is the fact that Golden Flash chose to cast the Spirit Reanimation Spell in the throne room, only a few feet in front of the throne.

Sundance gasped, but said nothing.

Twilight shook her head None of us sensed anything when he cast that spell. It was just a coincidence that I walked into the throne room when Golden Thunder’s soul formed. If he had cast it anywhere else, we wouldn’t have known what he was doing, let alone been able to stop him. Despite the risk of being caught, Golden Flash went out of his way to make sure that the first thing Golden Thunder saw was the throne. I believe that says something about their current goal.

Sundance sighed You’re probably right.

Twilight opened her eyes and looked out the window. Golden Thunder is many things, but stupid doesn’t appear to be one of them. I don’t think he’ll use the Chimera Anima again.

What makes you say that? Sundance asked, surprised

Even if he manages to make another one, Twilight replied all Celestia has to do is channel solar flames and that’ll be the end of that.

Y-you’re right! Sundance exclaimed Celestia can easily destroy that creature and he knows it!

Twilight nodded He clearly wanted your souls and, unfortunately, that part of his plan probably hasn’t changed. We know he can’t get his hooves on the two of you, but I bet he doesn’t. I’m sure he remembers that Artemis protected your souls, so it’s likely that he’ll spend some time searching for you and Dad. Once he discovers that he can’t find either of you, he’ll undoubtedly turn to us.

I’m the only alicorn that wasn’t born one. Golden Thunder could try that route, but Celestia’s the only one who knows how to help a pony ascend. I’m certain that she’d never tell him how it’s done, let alone help him do it.

Sundance laughed You’re right about that!

That means Golden Thunder will be back to trying to remove the soul from the body of an alicorn. Twilight continued The most vulnerable alicorn is Flurry Heart, for obvious reasons. However, if he goes after her, he’ll run into a very big problem. That filly is the daughter of the most powerful unicorn in Equestria and an alicorn. She’s also the niece, or grandniece, of the other three alicorns . . . Let’s just say that I pity the fool who tries to harm my brother’s daughter.

Sundance laughed even harder. I don’t even want to think about what would happen to Golden Thunder if he tried to harm that filly.

For a moment, Twilight laughed as well, before her expression turned serious. The only other vulnerable alicorn is me because they can turn my pregnancy into a weapon and use it against us. This is especially true if they wait until I’m further along before making their move.

If it comes to a battle, the only way that Artemis and Celestia will let me participate is if the Elements of Harmony are needed. That’s the main reason I’m doing what I am right now.

What do you mean? Sundance asked, surprised

Twilight shrugged Celestia’s better at observing things than I am and has centuries of experience in coming up with effective plans. Artemis also has more experience in those two categories than I do. That means the best way I can help them is to handle the research.

Another thing, Twilight said Celestia and Artemis are the ones who foiled his previous plan. I’m sure I caught his attention when I stopped the Spirit Reanimation Spell, but I think they’re the ones that he’s really worried about.

Sundance laughed again I’d be surprised if he wasn’t worried about those two!

Twilight laughed as well. Even if he no longer wants the soul of an alicorn, which I seriously doubt, he still has to find a way to get rid of Celestia, Artemis and I if he wants the throne. I doubt he’d go the magic drain route because I have yet to find anything that even hints that it was part of his plan.

Sundance didn’t respond

Twilight immediately noticed this. I know you and Dad died when you used the last of your magic, but he didn’t seem to be planning for you to die that way. Instead, he wanted his empowered Chimera Anima to kill you, Dad, Celestia and Artemis.

Sundance thought for a moment. You’re right. Using the last of our magic was our decision, not his.

Not willing to voice an agreement, Twilight just nodded. I’m sure he noticed that it achieved part of his goal, so he may try that this time. However, because of what Blaze did, we’re already looking out for that. That’s why I’m currently focusing on the soul stealing part of his original plan.

I see. Sundance replied I agree that there’s little chance of him using the Chimera Anima again.

Twilight flicked an ear when she heard the door to the library open. She looked over as Artemis and Spike walked inside.

In the stars, Star Swirl, Sundance and Midnight Armor were silent for several minutes.

“Thank goodness she’s on our side.” Star Swirl eventually remarked

Sundance’s star flickered “I can’t believe she’s already analyzed the memories that we’ve shown her and the events of the last couple of days.”

“Agreed” Midnight Armor responded “She’s obviously put a lot of thought into this.” His star brightened “She’s already figured out different options that Golden Thunder could use, discounted three and is looking into the one that he’s most likely to try.”

Star Swirl laughed “I’d love to see Golden Thunder’s expression when he finally puts his plan in motion and finds that they’re basically just waiting for him.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor laughed as well.

“That will be hilarious and I’m sure they’ll show us after it happens.” Sundance finally replied. Her star dimmed for a moment. “I wish there was a way we could help them.”

“Me too” Midnight Armor sighed “Once again, it’s our children who must deal with the consequences of our mistake.”

For a few minutes, they sat in silence.

Sundance suddenly gasped “Maybe we can help. I just thought of something that I’d like to try. Midnight, what do you think about . . .”

In Ponyville, Artemis smiled when he saw Twilight relaxing on a cushion. She’s probably talking to Mother. Knowing them, they were probably discussing the events of the last couple of days.

Twilight smiled “Did you finish dinner?”

Artemis and Spike nodded

In the stars, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl were laughing so hard they couldn’t speak.

Finally, Midnight Armor calmed slightly “That’s a great idea, Sundance! It should keep Golden Thunder focused on us for a while, buying our children the time they need to come up with a plan.”

Still laughing, Star Swirl added “That will also let him know that, while no longer alive, the two of you haven’t actually gone anywhere. That should confuse, maybe even scare, him.”

Also laughing, Sundance replied “I’ll ask Twilight tomorrow. Hopefully, she’ll allow it.”

Midnight Armor brightened “I’m sure she will. In fact, knowing her, she’ll probably find a way to help you.”

In Ponyville, Twilight stood and walked over to Artemis and Spike.

Artemis nuzzled her “We should go to bed early tonight. Not only do we have a busy morning tomorrow, you should get some rest if you want to have enough magic to close your castle before helping Celestia and I close the one in Canterlot.”

Twilight nodded “My magic is recovering remarkably fast. At this rate, I’ll be back to full strength by lunchtime tomorrow.”

You’re closing your castles? Sundance asked

Yes. Twilight responded Some might call the measures that we’re planning to take extreme, but we don’t want Golden Thunder to try anything while we’re gone.

Good. Sundance replied I don’t think it’s possible for the three of you to be too careful, especially now that he’s back.

Twilight turned to Spike “You don’t have to go to bed early, just don’t stay up too late.”

Spike nodded “Don’t worry, I’ll go to bed at the usual time.”

Twilight smiled and nuzzled him “In that case, have a good night.”

Artemis turned to Spike “Sleep well”

Spike nodded “I’ll see both of you in the morning.”

Artemis smiled at him before teleporting Twilight and himself to their room.

Chapter 52

Once they were in their room, Artemis turned to Twilight and saw that she had closed her eyes.

I’m sorry. Sundance began, sighing regretfully I won’t be able to visit your dreams because the spell I cast on you only allows me to speak with you during the day. The main reason for that is, after being gone for a week, your father and I need to focus on our stars. That’s not necessary during the day, but it’s a different story at night.

That’s alright, Mom. Twilight replied, trying to hide her disappointment. I was hoping to see you tonight, but I understand. I’ll ask Artemis to set up a shared dream between the two of us and Celestia so I can tell them what we’ve talked about.

Sundance laughed Your father asked me to make sure you tell Celestia and Artemis about that. I’m glad you’re already planning on it. If you come up with anything, please let me know.

I will. I’ll talk to you in the morning. Have a good night, Mom.

Sleep well, Twilight. Sundance replied

Twilight opened her eyes and saw Artemis looking at her. “Mom says the spell she cast on me only lets her talk to me during the day, so we were saying goodnight.”

He nodded “I’ll be right back.”

Twilight climbed into bed while he walked onto the balcony, closing the door behind him.

Artemis raised the moon before bringing out the stars. His job done, he took a few minutes to just look at his stars. I could stay out here and watch my night sky. It’s easy to withstand the cold, so I could stay out here all night. Smiling, he turned and walked back inside. But why should I? I’m not alone anymore.

Twilight tore her gaze from the stars when Artemis climbed into bed and paused when she saw his expression. “Artemis?” When he didn’t respond, she nuzzled him.

He pulled her into a deep kiss. As it broke, he sighed happily and pulled her close before wrapping his hooves and wings around her.

Not sure what he was thinking, but glad that he was happy, she snuggled closer and lay her head on his chest. For several minutes, they lay like that.

“What do you want to dream about tonight?”

She nuzzled him again “As long as we see Celestia, I don’t care.”

Surprised, he stared at her for a moment. “Why do you want to have a shared dream with Celestia?”

“I need to tell her that Mom’s talking to me,” she responded “Mom wants me to tell both of you what we talked about today and we should tell her what Scootaloo’s parents did.”

He laughed “I was expecting one reason, but you gave three very good ones. Alright, I’ll set something up.”

Giggling, she closed her eyes. It didn’t take her long to fall asleep. Smiling, he returned her nuzzle and closed his eyes as well. Knowing that they needed to talk to Celestia, he cast a sleeping spell on himself.

In the dream realm, Celestia opened her eyes to find herself relaxing in bed. Before she could consider anything else, she heard a knock on the door. Curious, she used her magic to open the door and was surprised to see her brother. “Come in, Artemis.” She watched him walk over to stand next to her bed. “Is something wrong?”

“A couple of things have come up.” He told her “Twilight wants to have a shared dream so the three of us can discuss them.”

“That’s fine.” She replied “Why don’t you bring her in here?”

He nodded. A flash of magic later, Twilight appeared next to him.

Surprised at the sudden change, she looked around for a moment, before walking forward to nuzzle Celestia. Artemis followed suit.

Looking at her younger siblings, Celestia said “This may take a while. Why don’t both of you lay down?”

They nodded and climbed into her bed. Twilight lay to Celestia’s right and Artemis to her left.

Artemis turned to his sister “Only one of the topics we’d like to discuss doesn’t have something to do with what happened in Canterlot. We should start with that.”

Celestia nodded “Very well.”

Twilight showed Celestia what Rainbow told them about the actions of Scootaloo’s parents. She and Artemis glanced at each other when Celestia narrowed her eyes.

“You’re right, Artemis.” She began, not bothering to conceal her anger. “I will be talking to her parents. There’s absolutely no excuse for their actions. Especially when you consider the fact that it only took a few minutes for the two of you, and your friends, to come up with a decent plan.” She nuzzled her sister. “While I need more information before making a final decision, I don’t have a problem with any of your ideas. If it comes to that, Rainbow Dash is old, and mature, enough to care for a filly. I have no doubt that she’ll take good care of Scootaloo.”

Artemis nodded “That much is obvious. Besides, if Rainbow Dash needs help with anything, she knows that all she has to do is ask.”

Celestia turned to Twilight “You’re talking to Scootaloo about this tomorrow morning, right?”

Twilight nodded “Everypony’s gathering in my castle.”

“Do you mind if I come as well?” Celestia asked “I’d like to hear this for myself.”

Smiling, Twilight shook her head. “Of course not. We won’t start the conversation until you arrive. That way, you won’t miss anything.”

Returning the smile, Celestia nuzzled her little sister “Thank you”

Artemis nuzzled his sister “I’m sure you can guess the next topic. Were you able to locate Golden Thunder?”

Sighing, Celestia shook her head “I cast six different spells in an attempt to locate him, but none of them revealed anything. While I’m certain that he’s in Golden Flash’s body, I can’t prove it.”

Artemis nodded “I’m not surprised. Golden Thunder had to know that we were going to search for him. We had to wait for our magic to recover, so he’s had plenty of time to figure out a way to hide from us.”

Twilight nuzzled her big sister “Don’t worry. I’m sure that, between the four of us, we’ll think of something.”

Artemis nodded

Confused, Celestia looked at her little sister. “Four of us? I thought only you, me and Artemis would be involved in the research, planning and search for Golden Thunder.”

Twilight shook her head “There’s a fourth pony that we can rely on and I’m sure you’ll have no problem trusting her.”

Raising an eyebrow, Celestia asked “Who are you talking about?”

Smiling, Twilight replied “Mom”

Definitely not expecting that answer, Celestia stared at Twilight for a couple of minutes. Eventually, she managed to ask. “H-how will Mother be able to help?”

“Remember when she cast that magic scan on me last night?” Twilight asked, pausing until Celestia nodded. “She thought I might forget and try to use too much magic before I recovered, so she also cast a second spell on me. It only works during the day, but that spell allows to talk to me. It also allows her to hear what’s going on around me.”

Celestia gasped “That sounds like the spell she made when she was pregnant with Artemis!” She gave Twilight a look. “If Mother felt that she had to get involved, you must have done something you shouldn’t have. What did you do?”

“That’s exactly what spell she used.” Twilight replied “As for your question, I was about to teleport to the bathroom because breakfast was coming back up. She told me that teleporting wasn’t a good idea and reminded me that I needed to take it easy.”

Celestia sighed in relief “Thank goodness she was paying attention.”

Twilight nodded “Anyway, we’ve been discussing the situation all day. She asked me to make sure I tell both of you what we talked about.” She paused “I think it’ll be better if I just show you. That’s what I’d like to do now.”

Artemis and Celestia immediately nodded. Twilight showed them how her day went, making sure they could hear their mother’s voice.

After Twilight’s memory finished, Celestia and Artemis were silent for several minutes.

Eventually, Celestia nuzzled Twilight “You have no intention of terminating Mother’s spell, do you?”

Twilight shook her head “Of course not. I want to use this as an opportunity to get to know her better.”

Artemis laughed “Good idea”

Celestia smiled “I know this is off topic, but after watching you finish your lesson plans, I don’t need to go through them. I’ll officially approve them when we get back from the Crystal Empire.”

Twilight smiled as well “Thank you”

Artemis glanced at Celestia “I’d like to get back on topic.”

Celestia nodded to her brother and looked at Twilight. “At the time, Artemis and I looked into his plan. As far as we could tell, he acted alone.”

“Using crystals to store enough magic so he can power a spell to create a field of magic in which he can trap souls . . . That’s certainly a plan that Golden Thunder would come up with.” Celestia thought for a moment “I don’t remember seeing any crystals during that battle. The Chimera Anima killed ponies to get the souls it needed.”

Twilight chewed her lip “Didn’t Golden Thunder say that he was hoping to keep the Chimera Anima’s ability a secret?”

Celestia nodded “That may be why he didn’t use any trapped souls.”

Artemis winced “I bet that’s also why he destroyed that small village before coming to the castle.”

Celestia’s ears drooped “You’re probably right. He didn’t think we would be able to stop him, but was ready to increase that creature’s power if we did.”

Artemis turned to Twilight “Crystals are the most likely object for him to have stored magic in. With pure crystals as easily accessible as they are, it’ll be easy for Golden Thunder to use that part of his plan again.”

Twilight nodded “I thought so as well.”

Celestia thought for a moment “I don’t know what spell he was using to trap souls. Regardless, if it has something to do with crystals, the library in the Crystal Empire should have the information we need.”

Eyebrow raised, she glanced at her brother “What do you plan to do with the spell that allows Mother and Father to visit your dreams?”

Artemis looked down “I want it to be a surprise for as much of our family as possible.”

Celestia nuzzled her brother “In that case, I look forward to the surprise.”

Smiling, Artemis returned her nuzzle “Thank you, sister.”

Turning her attention to the next part of Twilight’s memory, Celestia laughed. “I knew the pony who wrote that book! No matter how many times I told him that he was wrong, he insisted that crystals were capable of casting magic on their own.”

Artemis laughed as well “What made him believe that?”

“He told me that it was something he saw in a dream, so it must be true.” Celestia replied

Artemis laughed harder. “I’m not going to bother commenting on that.” After calming slightly he turned to his sister “Instead, I’d like to talk about Twilight’s analysis of things so far.”

Celestia nodded “Good idea” Sighing, she looked at Twilight. “You’re probably right about them wanting the throne. I also agree with you reasoning. That has to be why he cast that spell in the throne room.”

Artemis sighed in relief “You’re right about something else. Golden Thunder probably won’t use the Chimera Anima again. I was so afraid of seeing that creature again that I wasn’t thinking clearly.” He nuzzled Celestia “We have a way to get rid of that thing.”

“You’re right.” Celestia replied “We already know he can’t stop solar fire.” She began to laugh “I’ve had fifteen hundred years to practice. If Golden Thunder tries that again, he’ll be in for a rather large surprise.”

A few minutes later, she sobered. “You’re also right about the only vulnerable alicorns being you and Flurry.”

Artemis nuzzled his sister “That may be true, sister. However, we already know that, as long as they’re alive, he can’t take their souls. Twilight was right about Flurry Heart being protected. With the recent attack, we’re careful with Twilight’s safety as well. I think they’ll both be fine.”

“You’re right” Celestia replied, sighing in relief. She suddenly laughed “You’re right about another thing, Twilight.”

Twilight tilted her head “What’s that?”

Celestia nuzzled her “There’s no way that I’ll help Golden Flash or Golden Thunder ascend. In fact, I have no intention of telling them how it’s done.”

Twilight laughed as well “I didn’t think so”

Artemis nodded “I know you want to help but, if it comes to a battle, Celestia and I have no intention of allowing you to fight.”

Twilight sighed “I know”

“Research really is the best way you can help us." Celestia told Twilight "As for us, Artemis and I will try to keep Golden Thunder focused on us.”

“That shouldn’t be hard.” Artemis commented “Twilight and Mother were right. Golden Thunder has probably been focused on us since he returned.”

Twilight nodded “I don’t think he’ll try the magic drain route, but we should come up with a way to stop it anyway.”

“I doubt Golden Thunder's dumb enough to try draining our magic," Celestia shuddered "especially when you consider how Mother and Father died.”

“Regardless, I already have a couple of ideas that should be able to prevent him from draining our magic.” She hugged her brother “I came up with them when Blaze tried to kill you. I’ll let you know when they’re ready.”

Returning his sister’s hug, Artemis turned to Twilight. “We have no proof that he wants our souls, but it’s as good a place to start as any.”

For the rest of the night, they discussed various ideas for trying to locate Golden Thunder. Eventually, Celestia and Artemis looked up.

Celestia smiled “I’ll see both of you soon.”

Artemis and Twilight nodded before he woke all three of them.

In Canterlot, Celestia opened her eyes, stood and walked out onto her balcony. After watching her brother’s moon sink below the horizon, she rose the sun. Then she walked through her room and out into the hall, headed for the dining room. For breakfast, she ate a cheese omelet and a small stack of pancakes.

When she was done, she headed for the main entrance of the castle. In the hall, she ran into Sapphire Wing.

As soon as he saw her, he bowed. “Good morning, Princess Celestia.”

Smiling, she replied “Good morning, Sapphire Wing. I’m heading to Ponyville for the day. Don’t worry, my siblings and I will be back before sunset.”

He still looked worried “Is something wrong, princess?”

Frowning, she nodded “Artemis and Twilight have discovered that a couple of ponies left town and aren’t planning to return until the New Year starts. That wouldn’t be a problem, if they hadn’t left their young daughter to fend for herself.”

His eyes widened “What?!”

She nodded “Don’t worry, my little brother and sister have it taken care of. One of Twilight’s friends, Rainbow Dash, is caring for the young Pegasus until her parents return.”

“The Element of Loyalty?” He smiled “You’re right, princess, there’s nothing to worry about if she’s involved.”

She smiled as well “Twilight’s friends, the young filly, Twilight, Artemis and I are meeting in her castle to try to figure out what’s going on. I would like you to look after the castle while we’re gone. I don’t care what reason he gives you, Do Not allow Golden Flash inside. If you find him inside, escort him out. If he comes in again, arrest him.”

He snapped to attention and saluted “Yes, Princess Celestia!” He escorted her the rest of the way to the main entrance to the castle. “Would you like me to have a chariot prepared for you, princess?” When she didn’t respond, he looked at her. Following her gaze, he saw Golden Flash walking towards the main gate.

Golden Flash saw them, walked closer and bowed. “Good morning, Princess Celestia. I was hoping to speak with you.”

Celestia made sure her expression was neutral. “Good morning, Golden Flash. I have business in Ponyville. Artemis, Twilight and I will return shortly before sunset. Meet us at the main gate at that time. Whatever it is that you would like to talk about, we will discuss it then.”

Golden Flash bowed again “Yes, princess”

Celestia turned to Sapphire Wing “Nopony, other than castle staff and guards, is allowed inside the castle until we return. You know what to do.”

He saluted again “Yes, Princess Celestia! I’ll see to it personally.” He spread his wings and took flight, heading into the castle.

Celestia nodded to Golden Flash, spread her wings and took flight as well. In her case, she headed for Ponyville.

Interesting. Golden Thunder commented, watching her fly away. I see she learned from what I did fifteen hundred years ago. That’s fine. It would be rather boring to simply repeat history.

After a moment, he made another comment. I find it strange that I wasn’t able to revive those two. I know they died, so that spell should have worked.

W-why did you do that, ancestor? Golden Flash asked nervously I know you borrowed magic from my wife and myself, but you just told me that you needed to make sure you had enough for a spell. I didn’t know you were going to cast that one. That spell’s forbidden.

That’s why I'm the one who cast the spell. Golden Thunder explained You may not be allowed to cast it, but Princess Celestia has no way to stop me. Even though it appears that we can’t revive them, their souls are essential for the other part of our plan. That means I must find them.

Regardless, make sure we’re at the main gate when they return. I want to hear what they have to say.

Yawning, Golden Flash nodded Yes, ancestor. Until then, I believe I’ll get some sleep. Even though I got plenty of sleep last night, I’m still tired.

In Ponyville, Twilight and Artemis opened their eyes. Not bothering to move, he lowered the moon and stars. They watched the sunrise from the comfort of their bed.

A few minutes later, Twilight heard their mother’s voice.

Good morning, Twilight.

Smiling, she said her response aloud “Good morning, Mom”

Artemis smiled as well “Good morning, Mother”

Sundance laughed Please tell him I said “Good morning”.

Twilight nuzzled him “She says “Good Morning”.” After a moment, she spoke again “We should get some breakfast before everypony gets here.”

He nodded, released her and stood. “You’re right.”

As they walked downstairs, Twilight turned her attention to their mother. Do you mind if I try something, Mom?

Curious, Sundance asked What do you have in mind?

I’d like to show you the shared dream I had with Artemis and Celestia last night. Twilight answered It’ll be easier than having me repeat the whole conversation.

That’s a good idea. Sundance responded I’m not sure how you’re going to accomplish that, but I certainly don’t mind if you try.

I have an idea. Twilight focused on that memory and allowed their mother to see it.

Remarkable. Sundance commented I have no idea how you did it, but it worked. Please give me a few minutes, I’d like to discuss this your father and Star Swirl.

In the stars, Sundance described the memory that Twilight had shown her. When she finished, her star flickered “She’s right. That’s much easier than asking her to repeat everything.”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “I’m glad she decided to try that.” He turned his attention to what his children had discussed. “I find it troubling that even Celestia doesn’t know what spell Golden Thunder used to trap souls.”

Star Swirl flickered “Princess Twilight’s research revealed what that spell does. They can use that information to create spells that counter the effects.”

Sundance briefly brightened “You’re right, Star Swirl. Besides, I think Celestia is doing something far more important right now. I really hope she can find a way to keep him from draining their magic. I know Golden Thunder isn’t likely to try that route, but I’d feel much better knowing that there’s a way to counter it.”

Midnight Armor sighed “Now we know why that village was destroyed.”

Sundance briefly brightened, sighing as well “If they’re right, he used those ponies’ souls to increase the power of that creature so he could keep the fact that he was using crystals hidden from us.”

They were silent for a few minutes before Star Swirl spoke up. “I’d like to end this discussion on a lighter note.”

"What do you mean?” Sundance asked

Brightening, Star Swirl replied “Now we know why Princess Twilight doesn’t want to terminate your spell.”

Sundance’s star flashed, showing her confusion. “What do you mean?”

“She plans to use this as an opportunity to get to know you.” Midnight Armor reminded her, laughing

“B-but that’s-” Sundance stammered

Curious, Star Swirl asked “Do you have a problem with her doing that?”

“No!” She instantly replied “I-I just . . .”

Midnight Armor laughed harder “You’re still surprised that she isn’t angry.”

Not sure what to say, she just briefly brightened.

In Ponyville, Twilight and Artemis were surprised to find Spike already in the kitchen. He looked over as they walked into the room.

“What are you doing up so early, Spike?” Twilight asked

He shrugged “I woke up and wanted pancakes. There’s a bottle of apple juice and a bowl of applesauce on the table for you.”

“Thanks, Spike.” She nuzzled him before sitting at the table.

Artemis helped Spike finish preparing their breakfast. A few minutes later, they joined Twilight at the table. Once they had finished eating, they went into the receiving room to get things ready.

In the receiving room, working together, they were able to get everything set up in fifteen minutes. All three of them looked up when they heard a knock on the front door. Walking over to it, they opened it to find Celestia smiling at them. Before she could say anything, the four of them looked up as Rainbow flew over. She bowed to Celestia and turned to Twilight.

“We have a problem.” She said “Scootaloo’s parents showed up at my house this morning and had the nerve to claim that I foal napped her!” Rainbow glared back towards the center of town. “They tried to take her somewhere, but Scootaloo told them that you wanted to see her this morning.” She shook her head “They said they won’t disobey an order from a princess, but told me that they’re in a hurry.”

Twilight narrowed her eyes “Where are they?” She was answered by a shout from Scootaloo.

“She didn’t foal nap me! She found out that I was going to be by myself for Hearth’s Warming and told her friends! Twilight and Prince Artemis said I’m not old enough to stay by myself and told me to stay with Rainbow Dash!”

They heard a male’s voice respond but weren’t able to make out the words.

“You always leave me alone!” Scootaloo shouted “I don’t want to do it anymore!”

Spike ran towards her voice while the alicorns took flight.

What’s going on?! Sundance demanded

Remember the first thing Celestia, Artemis and I discussed last night? Twilight asked

Yes Sundance replied A young filly being left home alone for the Holiday.

I don’t know why her parents came back early, Twilight responded but I’m glad they did. Celestia, Artemis and I want to talk to them, for obvious reasons.

Good Sundance replied

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight arrived above the center of town. Rarity, Rainbow, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Applejack, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle were already present. They had been on their way to Twilight’s castle, but stopped when they saw what was going on. Spike skidded to a stop next to Sweetie Belle and looked at Scootaloo.

She was standing a few feet in front of everyone else but hadn’t noticed them arrive because she was being yelled at by two pegasi, a mare and a stallion.

“You’re supposed to stay in the house!” the mare yelled

The stallion snorted “Because you couldn’t do that, we have to figure out what to tell Princess Twilight.”

The mare laughed “That shouldn’t be too hard. We just have to act like we’re sorry and she’ll let us go.”

Sundance laughed I seriously doubt that.

The stallion and mare stopped when they heard somepony clear their throat. Startled, Scootaloo’s parents looked up to see Twilight watching them.

“Actually,” Twilight began “we’d like to talk to you.”

The mare bowed “What do you mean, princess?” Her eyes widened when she saw who was behind Twilight.

Celestia and Artemis landed near Twilight’s friends. Neither of them said anything. Instead, they waited to see how Twilight would handle the situation. Before Twilight could say anything else, Scootaloo’s father made a sudden move.

“This is bad.” The stallion said “Fly!” He spread his wings and took flight, quickly heading north.

Shaking her head, Celestia glanced at a certain cyan Pegasus. “Rainbow Dash, would you mind bringing him back? Just don’t hurt him, please.”

Rainbow grinned “You got it, princess!” She took off after him, leaving her usual rainbow-colored trail in her wake.

Twilight was about to land next to Celestia when she saw the mare place Scootaloo on her back and take flight, heading in a different direction. “Oh no you don’t!” With a few powerful flaps of her wings, she caught up to the mare.

Scootaloo saw her “Twilight!”

Her mother glanced over her shoulder and let out a frightened squeak. She was forced to stop when Twilight moved in front of her.

“Why are you running away?” Twilight asked “Let’s go back to town so we can talk about this.”

Not bothering to respond, the mare dove into the forest and began weaving in between the branches. “It took me several years to learn how to do this. There’s no way she has enough flight experience to follow me.” Looking over her shoulder, she saw that Twilight was keeping up with her, but making sure to stay a safe distance away. “What?!”

“We just want to talk!” Twilight told her “Stop running and let’s deal with this like reasonable adults!”

Ignoring Twilight’s words, and realizing that the forest wasn’t going to help her, the mare rapidly ascended. In fact, she flew up so quickly that Scootaloo lost her balance and fell off her back. Scootaloo’s mother was so focused on her flight that she didn’t notice until she heard her daughter scream. Turning in midair, she watched as Twilight allowed Scootaloo to land on her back.

What happened?! Sundance asked I heard the filly scream!

She fell off her mother’s back. Twilight answered That usually isn’t a problem for a Pegasus, but Scootaloo is unable to fly.

What?! Sundance exclaimed, horrified Is she alright?!

Don’t worry, Mom. Twilight responded She may have fallen off her mother’s back, but I made sure she landed on mine.

Sundance sighed in relief. Well done!

“Are you alright, Scootaloo?” Twilight asked, looking at the filly on her back.

Nodding, Scootaloo nuzzled Twilight “Thanks, Twilight!”

“Good” Twilight replied “Hold on tight.”

Scootaloo nodded again and wrapped her forehooves around Twilight’s neck.

Twilight glanced back at her again “What’s your mother’s name?”

“Lightning Drop” Scootaloo answered

“Lightning is right.” Twilight muttered “I can barely keep up with her!” If I can’t catch her using Pegasus flight techniques, I’ll use alicorn ones instead. I’d like to see her out fly those.

In the stars, Midnight Armor brightened “This should be good. I’m glad I taught her the right ones for her current size.”

Sundance briefly brightened “You’re right, Midnight. I can’t wait to see how she does.” Her star flickered “Regardless of whether Twilight catches the mother or not, I’m glad she was able to save that filly.”

Star Swirl flickered as well “I’m glad she saved the filly, but I really hope Princess Twilight catches the mother. She has a lot to answer for.”

In the airspace around Ponyville, Twilight made a slight change to the way she angled her wings and gave an experimental flap. Good. Now to try what Dad taught me.

Lightning Drop glanced back in time to see Twilight suddenly shoot towards her. Stunned, she stopped and stared. W-when did she get that fast?!

I get it. Everypony knows that Scootaloo can’t fly, so Princess Twilight must have been afraid of knocking her off my back. Now that Scootaloo’s safe, Princess Twilight no longer has a reason to hold back. Tearing herself from her thoughts, Lightning Drop gasped. Damn, she’s already on top of me!

Sorry, Mom. Twilight told Sundance I need to use magic to actually catch her.

It’s alright. Sundance replied Just don’t overdo it.

I won’t Twilight promised A Levitation Spell should be enough because I’m going to tire her out a little before I catch her. If I make sure she’s tired enough, she’ll be less likely to struggle.

Lightning Drop started weaving in between clouds and trees alike, only to find Twilight blocking her at every turn. She’s good! I can’t believe she’s only been flying for three years! She gasped when she suddenly found herself caught in a levitation spell.

Without a word, Twilight headed back to Ponyville, bringing the two of them with her.

In Ponyville, Twilight landed in the square and placed Lightning Drop in front of Celestia. “If you run again, I won’t be the one going after you.” She smiled “I’m sure you can guess which pony I’ll send.”

As Twilight released her levitation spell, Rainbow smirked and flapped her wings a few times.

Knowing that there was no way she could out fly the only pony able to do a Sonic Rainboom, Lightning Drop nodded. “Y-yes, princess.”

Not seeing Scootaloo on her mother’s back, Rainbow turned to Twilight. “Where’s Scootaloo? Is she alright?”

Poking her head around Twilight’s neck, Scootaloo grinned at her big sister. “I’m fine! Twilight caught me!”

Rainbow looked from Scootaloo to Twilight and back again before raising an eyebrow. “Why did she have to catch you?”

Twilight showed everypony what happened. Not wanting her mother to feel left out, she also allowed Sundance to see the memory. She wasn’t surprised when everypony shouted the same thing.

“WHAT?!”

Artemis nuzzled Twilight “I’m glad you were able to catch Scootaloo.”

Smiling, Celestia also nuzzled her sister. “Well done.” Making sure only Twilight could hear her, she whispered. “Father taught you well.” Looking around at everypony, she raised her voice. “We should move this conversation inside.”

Twilight nodded “The receiving room is ready.” She glanced at Rainbow “Can you take Scootaloo? I’m sure she’ll be more comfortable with you nearby.”

Rainbow nodded, flew over and hovered next to Twilight. “Hop on, Squirt.”

Scootaloo jumped from Twilight’s back to Rainbow’s.

Twilight looked at Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. “I’d like both of you to come inside as well. You need to be there for your friend.”

Both fillies eagerly nodded and joined the group as they walked into Twilight’s castle.

In the stars, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl listened while Sundance described the memory that Twilight had shown her.

When she finished, she turned to her husband. “That was amazing! She was doing well with Pegasus flight techniques, but when she started using what you taught her . . .”

“If she’s able to accomplish that with only an hour of training,” Midnight Armor flickered “I can’t wait to see what she’ll be capable of after I really take the time to train her.”

Star Swirl brightened “It sounds like she flies very well. Especially when you consider the fact that she spent most of her life as a unicorn.”

In Ponyville, everyone settled onto the cushions that had been laid out in the receiving room of Twilight’s castle. Twilight and Artemis were resting on the cushion that Rarity made for the baby party. Celestia was laying on one that she’d placed next to Artemis. Twilight’s friends, their little sisters and Spike were laying across from them. Applejack and Rarity made sure to place their cushions next to Rainbow’s so that their little sisters, who were laying in front of them, could comfort Scootaloo. All of them were laying in a large circle. Scootaloo’s parents were sitting on cushions in the center of the circle, facing the three alicorns.

Celestia cleared her throat. “I’d like to begin with your names.”

Lightning Drop bowed “My name is Lightning Drop, princess.”

Scootaloo’s father bowed as well “My name is Wild Gust, princess.”

Artemis nodded “You already know who we are, so I’ll skip that part. Instead, I’ll ask the first question.” He narrowed his eyes. “Why did you run? The first thing Twilight did was tell you that we want to talk to you.”

Wild Gust lowered his head “We were afraid, Prince Artemis. We know it’s wrong to leave our daughter alone, but we don’t have a choice.”

I highly doubt that. Sundance commented

“I’ll ask more about that in a moment.” Celestia replied, turning to Lightning Drop. “I’d like to know why you placed your daughter’s life in jeopardy.”

Lightning Drop looked down “P-princess Twilight forced me to . . .”

Obviously angry, Sundance spoke up. She dares to blame you for her actions?!

Interrupting Lightning Drop, Artemis growled “Don’t you dare blame Twilight for that! She purposely stayed a safe distance away so she wouldn’t place either of you in danger. Instead, she repeatedly asked you to stop running and talk to her. You refused to listen.”

“Then you ascended far too quickly.” Celestia continued “To make matters worse, you didn’t notice that your daughter had fallen off your back. If Twilight hadn’t caught Scootaloo, your daughter would be dead right now.”

Celestia fixed Lightning Drop with a slight glare. “I don’t take kindly to you trying to place the blame for your actions on my little sister.”

Confused, Wild Gust replied “Princess Twilight isn’t your sister, Princess Celestia.”

Applejack snorted “What rock have ya been hiding under?”

Sundance laughed Good question, Applejack!

Artemis raised an eyebrow “Twilight’s carrying my foal. That makes her Celestia’s younger sister.”

Lightning Drop gasped “I made a pregnant mare chase me at those speeds?!” That must be why she kept asking me to stop running. I bet the only reason she chased me at first was because she was worried about Scootaloo. In fact, she didn’t even try to catch me until Scootaloo’s life was placed in danger. Even then, she made sure that Scootaloo was safe before stopping me.

Celestia nodded “Thankfully, she’s not far enough into her pregnancy that this endangered my niece or nephew.”

Shaking her head, Celestia turned to Scootaloo. “I want you to answer the questions we ask you truthfully.”

Scootaloo nodded “Yes, princess”

“Do your parents leave you alone often?” Celestia asked

Scootaloo hesitated, glancing at her parents, before nodding.

“Where do they go?” Celestia continued

“Work” Scootaloo replied, wincing when Apple Bloom poked her in the side.

“Princess Celestia said to tell the truth!” she hissed

Applejack raised an eyebrow “What are ya talking about, Sugarcube?”

Apple Bloom lowered her head, only for her sister to lift it and look into her eyes.

“What did ah tell ya about being honest?” Applejack gently asked

“Ah’m not supposed to lie unless it’s to keep one of Pinkie’s surprise parties a secret.” Apple Bloom answered

“Good girl” Applejack told her “Hiding important things like this is also lying. If ya know something, ya need to speak up. We have to tell the prince and princesses what’s going on so they can make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

Is Applejack is talking to her daughter? Sundance asked.

You’re not far off. Twilight replied Applejack is talking to is her little sister, Apple Bloom. Unfortunately, not long after Apple Bloom was born, their parents died. Applejack and their older brother, Big Macintosh, help their grandmother run their family farm and raise Apple Bloom.

That’s . . . incredible! Sundance replied

You’re going to hear the voice of one other filly. Her name is Sweetie Belle and she’s Rarity’s younger sister. Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo are really good friends.

Is that why you asked them to be present for this? Sundance asked

Yes. Twilight replied They may be rambunctious, and get into all kinds of trouble, but I knew they’d be able to help her.

“Yes, Sis” Apple Bloom replied before turning to Celestia. “Scoots told us that her parents don’t always go to work when they leave her alone. Sometimes, they go to Las Pegasus for vacation.”

Twilight noticed the expressions on the faces of the young fillies. “I can tell that there’s something else. Don’t worry, you won’t get in any trouble.”

Artemis nodded “Please tell us everything you know.”

Sweetie Belle lowered her head “They don’t take her with them because they’re embarrassed. One time, Apple Bloom and I heard them tell Scootaloo that they don’t want her anymore because she’s a Pegasus that can’t fly.”

What?! Sundance exclaimed, obviously furious That’s no way for a parent to treat their foal!

Scootaloo buried her face in Rainbow’s neck and began to cry. Rainbow pulled her into a hug while Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle scooted closer and nuzzled their friend.

Artemis and Twilight glared at the pair of nervous pegasi in front of them but, deciding to let Celestia start, said nothing.

Celestia also turned her attention to Scootaloo’s parents. Finding it impossible to keep her expression neutral, she narrowed her eyes slightly. “With the help of her friends, we’ve heard your daughter’s side of this. Now I will give you a chance to tell yours.” She paused “Where do you work?”

Lightning Drop shifted nervously “Both of us work at the Cloud Factory in Cloudsdale, princess.”

Raising an eyebrow, Celestia asked “Why don’t you live in Cloudsdale?”

Wild Gust glanced back at his daughter before replying. “We have two houses, princess. One in Cloudsdale and one here in Ponyville.”

Lightning Drop nodded “We tried to keep her in Cloudsdale with us, but she kept falling off the clouds. To minimize the risk of her getting hurt, we moved her to Ponyville. However, our jobs require us to stay in Cloudsdale most of time.”

Wild Gust returned his attention to Celestia “Even from an early age, Scootaloo was very self-sufficient. She’s capable of caring for herself, so we only need to come here a couple times a month. My wife and I see to it that she has enough food and water for a couple of weeks and leave some money for emergencies. After that, we head back to Cloudsdale so we can be at work on time the next day.”

Artemis shook his head “It doesn’t matter how self-sufficient she is, Scootaloo is too young to be on her own.”

Well said, Artemis Sundance commented

Wild Gust opened his mouth “Prince Artemis, Scootaloo is-”

Celestia cut him off. “Your opinion is irrelevant. The actions that you and your wife have taken aren’t in accordance with our laws.”

Sundance laughed Nicely done, Celestia

Artemis raised an eyebrow “I have another question for you.” He waited until both of Scootaloo’s parents looked at him. “Why did you tell your daughter that you don’t want her?”

I’d also like to know the answer to that question. Sundance said

Wild Gust smirked “We never said that.”

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle immediately shouted “Hey!”

Celestia smiled at the fillies before casting a spell on the room. “As long as this spell is active, we’ll all know if somepony isn’t being truthful. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, I know you already said this, but I’d like you to tell us what you heard.”

Sweetie Belle immediately looked at Celestia. “Apple Bloom and I went to Scootaloo’s house to get her because she was late for a Crusader Meeting. That’s when we saw her parents. He told her that they couldn’t take her anywhere because they were embarrassed to have a daughter that couldn’t fly.”

Apple Bloom stood, also looking at Celestia. “She told Scootaloo that she didn’t want her anymore. She also said that Scootaloo wasn’t allowed to leave Ponyville. They got really mad when ya brought her to Canterlot and the Crystal Empire.”

Celestia watched both fillies carefully. There’s no indication that either of them is lying. I need to ask Scootaloo’s parents something that will reveal if they’re also telling the truth. Before she could say anything, she looked up when she heard Twilight’s voice.

“If you didn’t say any of that,” She began “you would have immediately denied Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom’s claims. The fact that you didn’t, tells me that it’s the two of you who are lying and not the fillies.”

Unfortunately for her, Lightning Drop took the bait. She lifted her head and glared at Twilight. “I did not say that I don’t want my daughter!” She began to glow when Celestia’s spell detected the lie.

Thank you, Twilight. Celestia smiled slightly before turning to the pegasi in front of her. “It’s clear that what you just said isn’t true, Lightning Drop. Now then, I would like you to answer my brother’s question.”

Now that they knew the truth, Wild Gust no longer bothered hiding anything. Instead, he glared at everyone in the room. “You have no idea what we go through! There are several pegasi that are weak fliers, including her.” He pointed at Fluttershy. “But at least they can fly!”

Fluttershy turned red and hid her face in her mane.

Wild Gust continued “Our daughter is the only Pegasus that can’t! Lightning Drop and I are exceptional fliers so there were high expectations of our daughter. Instead, we’re the laughing stock of Cloudsdale!”

“So what?!” Rainbow demanded, barely able to keep herself from flying over and knocking their heads together. “That doesn’t mean you get to treat her like that! She’s your daughter! Help her, for pony’s sake!”

Who said that? Sundance asked

That was Rainbow Dash. Twilight answered Even though they’re not related, she’s taken Scootaloo under her wing. We call them adoptive sisters.

Good. Sundance replied I’m glad Scootaloo has her to turn to.

Lightning Drop glared at Rainbow “It’s not that easy! We’ve done everything we can think of!”

“U-um,” Fluttershy mumbled “I-I was wondering . . .”

That’s Fluttershy Twilight told Sundance She’s even shyer than she sounds but, when she’s determined, good luck stopping her.

Sundance laughed

She’s acting shyer than usual, but that’s probably because of Scootaloo’s parents. Twilight continued Fluttershy has a tendency to see things that others miss, so maybe she noticed something.

“What do you want?” Lightning Drop snapped

Fluttershy squeaked and tried to hide in her mane.

“It’s alright, Fluttershy.” Twilight said, smiling at her “Tell us what you’re thinking.”

“O-okay, Twilight” Fluttershy quietly replied “I-I was wondering if Scootaloo had been injured as a foal.”

Eyebrow raised, Celestia turned to her “Why do you ask?”

Fluttershy squeaked again “I-I’m treating a bird that fell from its nest. There aren’t any visible injuries, but it can’t fly. I-if something like that happened to Scootaloo, and her injuries weren’t treated, that might be why she can’t fly.”

“Well, you’re wrong.” Lightning Drop snapped

“Actually,” Wild Gust said slowly “she might be right.”

Surprised, Lightning Drop turned to her husband “What are you talking about?”

He looked at her “Remember when Scootaloo fell out of the stroller and through a gap in the clouds?”

“Yes,” she replied “We found her in a treetop. She didn’t seem injured, so we took her home.” She gasped as she suddenly understood. “Y-you mean that’s why she can’t fly?!”

“I don’t know” he answered “I’m just saying that it’s possible.”

W-what kind of parents are these ponies?! Sundance asked, anger clear in her voice

Not very good ones. Twilight replied, just as angry. It’s no wonder Scootaloo’s so self-sufficient. With parents like these, if she wasn’t, she’d be dead.

Struggling to remain calm, Artemis took a deep breath and spoke slowly. “An infant fell through the clouds, probably hundreds of feet, and landed in a tree. Why didn’t you immediately take her to the hospital?”

Lightning Drop looked up at him “We couldn’t find any injuries on her!”

I can’t believe these ponies! Celestia shook her head “It doesn’t matter. Artemis is right. That should have been the first thing you did.” The teaching and treatment of foals falls under my guidance, so I’d like to handle this myself. However, I don’t want to step on Twilight’s hooves. I’ll ask her about that later. For now, I want to hear what she has planned. She looked at Twilight. “I’d like to hear your thoughts on this, little sister.”

Meanwhile, Twilight had turned her attention to what she’d read about the laws regarding the treatment and care of foals. Once she was reasonably sure she had the right charges in mind, she nodded to Celestia.

Twilight turned to Scootaloo’s parents. “Lightning Drop and Wild Gust, you are accused of the following charges . . . Child Endangerment, Child Abandonment, Medical Neglect of a Child and Emotional Abuse. These charges are subject to change as more information becomes available.”

She gave them a look. “Under normal circumstances, because Ponyville falls under my jurisdiction, I would handle this myself. However, these charges depict serious infractions against a foal. As I’m sure you know, the treatment of foals falls under Celestia’s jurisdiction. Therefore, I will turn the matter over to her.”

That’s what I was hoping she’d say. Celestia returned Twilight’s nod “I officially accept the case. Once everything has been resolved, I will inform you of my decision.” She turned to Scootaloo’s parents. “Both of you are under arrest for the aforementioned charges.”

She’s right, those charges will probably change. At the very least, I need to look into the Child Abandonment charge. I also need to examine their activities in Cloudsdale. For now, the ones Twilight listed are a good place to start. After a moment, Celestia continued “This case isn’t serious enough to justify calling ponies away from their Holiday vacation. Therefore, both of you will remain in the Royal Dungeons until the Holiday is over.”

Lightning Drop glared at Celestia “What will you do to our daughter?!”

I doubt they truly care about what happens to her. Sundance remarked Regardless, her question is valid. Do you have a plan for the filly?

Of course. Twilight replied In fact, I have four. One to use now and three options to choose from later.

Sundance laughed

Twilight cleared her throat, drawing everypony’s attention. “Scootaloo will be cared for by the ponies known as the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony. I speak, of course, of Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy and myself. Your daughter will live with Rainbow Dash, but the six of us will work together to take care of her until your case has been settled. This way, she won’t have to leave Ponyville, her school or her friends.”

Good idea. Sundance told her Scootaloo has clearly been through enough. At least, this way, she’ll have some sense of normalcy.

That’s the plan. Twilight replied, turning to Celestia “Do you find this plan acceptable?”

Smiling, Celestia nodded “Your plan is perfect, Twilight.”

Wild Gust thought for a moment. “What about after our case goes to court, Princess Twilight?”

Twilight turned to him “That depends on the outcome. If it’s deemed appropriate, your daughter will be returned to your custody. However, if it’s decided that she’ll be better off in the care of somepony else, we will decide what to do at that time.” She saw his expression and continued. “If that is the case, I’ve come up with three options and have already discussed them with Celestia and Artemis. We’ll decide which one to use at that time.”

Artemis nodded “Regardless of the outcome, we will see to it that your daughter is taken care of.” Something you clearly have no interest in doing yourselves. He turned to Celestia “Sister, are you ready?”

Nodding, Celestia touched her horn to his. They used their combined magic to cast a teleportation spell that sent Lightning Drop and Wild Gust directly to the Royal Dungeons.

In the Royal Dungeons, four Day Guards noticed a flash of magic and looked over. They saw a pair of pegasi standing in the center of the room. Looking in the air above the new arrivals, they saw Celestia’s magic appear and form words. As soon as they read the words, all four of the guards bowed and escorted the pegasi into cells.

In Ponyville, everypony sighed, relieved that it was finally over.

“I don’t know about everyone else,” Twilight began “but I need something to eat.”

“Yes,” Artemis agreed “it seems we missed lunch.”

Celestia smiled “We should eat an early dinner before returning to Canterlot.”

Applejack, Rainbow and Rarity looked at each other before turning back to the alicorns.

“Sorry, Sugarcube” Applejack said “We need to get going. Rarity, Rainbow and ah were planning to surprise our little sisters with a slumber party tonight.”

Everyone laughed at the excited expressions on the faces of Scootaloo, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle.

Rarity nodded to Applejack before turning to Twilight. “She’s right, Darling. After what happened today, I think they need it more than ever.”

“Yup” Rainbow added “We’re gonna have it at Applejack’s place and need to go set it up.”

Applejack stood and looked around at everyone present. “Of course, everyone’s invited.” She turned to Pinkie “We’ll need the help of Ponyville’s very own Party Pony.”

Pinkie stood as well, somehow bouncing without her hooves leaving the floor. “You bet! It’s going to be so much fun!”

Standing, Fluttershy nodded “I-I have to go home first, so I can feed my animals, but I’ll bring my songbirds. They can help Scootaloo feel better.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight looked at each other and nodded.

“I’m sorry, but we won’t be able to attend this one.” Celestia began “There’s something we need to take care of in Canterlot tonight before we leave for the Crystal Empire tomorrow.”

“Okie Dokie!” Pinkie chirped “I’ll throw one for you when you get back!”

“Artemis” Rarity began, levitating a carefully wrapped bundle to him. “Here’s what you asked me for.”

He smiled “Thank you, Rarity. How much do I owe you?”

“I’m tempted to say “nothing”,” She smiled when she saw his expression. “but Twilight knows the rates I charge. You can pay me when you get back from the Crystal Empire.”

Before he could reply, everypony left.

Entering the kitchen, the alicorns sat at the table while Spike brought over some applesauce and apple juice for Twilight. Then he made sandwiches for the rest of them.

Celestia took a bite of her sandwich and sighed. “Golden Flash approached me as I was leaving, but I told him to return just before sunset. He’ll be meeting us at the main gate.”

Artemis and Twilight looked at her but said nothing. Even Sundance was silent.

In the stars, for several minutes, they just looked at each other.

Eventually, Sundance’s star flickered “I can’t believe parents would treat their daughter like that.”

“Twilight was certainly right when she said that they’re not very good parents.” Midnight Armor commented “In fact, I believe that assessment is a bit generous.”

“Agreed” Sundance responded “Perhaps we’re just old-fashioned, but I’m not sure they deserve to be called parents.”

Star Swirl briefly brightened “On a different topic, I wonder what Golden Flash wants to talk about.”

In Ponyville, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike were getting ready to leave. Twilight made a quick detour to get her saddlebags and, after placing Artemis’ package from Rarity inside, walked outside. Celestia, Artemis and Spike followed her.

A pair of Artemis’ guards were waiting outside and already harnessed to the chariot.

Celestia levitated Spike onto her back and turned to her siblings. “I’ll fly alongside the chariot.”

Artemis and Twilight nodded

Celestia looked at Twilight. “How do you plan to close your castle?”

Twilight smiled “I have an idea” She looked at Spike “Are you sure you have everything you want to bring with us?”

He nodded and patted his backpack.

Sundance suddenly spoke up. Sorry I took so long. I was talking with your father and Star Swirl. Did I miss anything?

No Twilight replied I’m about to close my castle. Don’t worry, my magic has fully recovered, so I won’t have any problems.

Artemis, Celestia and Spike watched carefully. Sundance couldn’t see what her daughter was doing, but paid close attention to her magic and whatever spell she was going to use.

Closing her eyes, Twilight cast her force field. Then she changed the shape and size so that it perfectly matched the exterior of her castle before embedding the spell into the walls. Once she was done, she opened her eyes and smiled. “I’d like to see him get through that.”

Wide-eyed, Celestia stared at Twilight’s castle for a moment before turning to her sister. “So would I.”

Equally wide eyed, Artemis nodded “I don’t think anypony is getting inside.”

After a moment, Sundance spoke up. What spell did you cast?

My force field. Twilight told her I cast it around my castle and embedded the spell into the exterior walls.

Artemis is right. Sundance said slowly I don’t think anypony is getting through something like that.

Twilight laughed “That’s the point.”

“Twilight,” Celestia asked slowly “would we be able to do the same for the castle in Canterlot?”

“We’ll just have to combine our magic.” Twilight replied

Celestia glanced at Artemis before turning back to Twilight. “That’s exactly what I’d like to do.”

Artemis nodded “Celestia and I were planning to cast our most powerful shield, but this is a much better option.”

Celestia smiled "Father taught Golden Thunder how to disable barriers, but I highly doubt he has the ability to break this."

Twilight and Artemis climbed onto the chariot before Celestia and the guards took off towards Canterlot.

In the stars, Sundance flickered “I didn’t expect her force field to be that powerful.”

“Twilight’s force field seems to be a combination of a shield and a barrier." Midnight Armor remarked "It may not be as powerful as my barrier, but it’s probably one of the strongest defenses in existence.”

"I'm glad Celestia remembers that I taught Golden Thunder how to disable barriers." He sighed "I never thought he'd use the things I taught him against our children."

Star Swirl brightened “It doesn't sound like it'll be a problem. If Princess Twilight’s spell is even half as powerful as Sundance told us it is, I don’t think Golden Thunder will be able to break it.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor sighed in relief "Thank goodness"

In Canterlot, Celestia and the guards landed in front of the main gate. As Twilight and Artemis climbed off the chariot, she teleported her saddlebags to their room. The guards took off again, intent on putting put the chariot away.

Twilight levitated a small bag of bits to Spike. “Golden Flash probably wants to talk about a petition. If so, you’re going to be bored out of your mind. Why don’t you go to Pony Joe’s?”

Spike’s eyes lit up “R-really?!”

Laughing, Twilight nodded “Just be back in a couple of hours.”

Grinning, Spike nodded “Two hours. Thanks, Twi!” He jumped off of Celestia’s back and ran off before Twilight could change her mind.

Once he was out of earshot, Twilight sighed in relief. “That should keep him occupied. I don’t want him anywhere near Golden Thunder.”

Artemis nuzzled her “Good idea. We don’t know what Golden Flash wants.”

Celestia, who had been watching the main gate, quietly said. “Here he comes.”

Artemis and Twilight glanced at her and followed her gaze. Sure enough, Golden Flash was walking towards them. Celestia stayed where she was, Artemis moved to stand between his sister and Twilight. Instead of saying anything, they just watched Golden Flash approach.

When he was close enough, Golden Flash stopped and bowed. “Good evening, your highnesses.”

“Good evening, Golden Flash.” Celestia replied “What did you want to discuss?”

Golden Flash glanced at Artemis and Twilight before returning his attention to Celestia. “Actually, Princess Celestia, I was hoping to speak to you alone.”

Seriously?! Sundance asked I can’t believe he thinks my children are that stupid!

Twilight’s body shook slightly as she struggled not to laugh.

Celestia raised an eyebrow “The three of us rule together, Golden Flash. Anything that you have to say to me can be said in front of my siblings.”

Why did she refer to Princess Twilight Sparkle as her sibling? Golden Thunder asked King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance only had two children.

Princess Twilight is pregnant with Prince Artemis’ foal. Golden Flash responded

What?! Golden Thunder exclaimed They’re not married!

Golden Flash had to stop himself from shrugging. Nopony's complaining.

Confused, Golden Thunder asked Why not?

A few weeks ago, Golden Flash replied a unicorn tried to kill Prince Artemis.

What? Golden Thunder asked, surprised Why did they do that?

The unicorn I told you about last night ordered him to do it. Golden Flash replied

Ah, yes. Blueblood, if I recall. Golden Thunder laughed That stallion isn’t very smart. Princess Celestia would never permanently banish her brother.

After thinking for a moment, he continued. How did this unicorn attack Prince Artemis? What does it have to do with Princess Twilight’s pregnancy?

He tried to drain Prince Artemis’ magic. Golden Flash answered Princess Twilight was able to stop the magic drain and save his life. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out what happened soon after.

After a moment, Golden Thunder slowly replied. You're right. I can certainly understand that. In fact, after going through something like that, I’d be surprised if they weren’t in their current situation.

“Yes, Princess Celestia” Golden Flash replied, bowing to all three alicorns “I was hoping to learn more about the Spirit Reanimation Spell.” He paused when all three of them narrowed their eyes. “I’ve been extremely tired. So much so that I spend most of my free time asleep. I was hoping that one of you might know of a way to counter this. Additionally, I’d like to learn what other side effects I should expect.”

Well done Golden Thunder said I bet they’ll tell you what we need to know.

Twilight, Sundance began I’d like to try something. If it works, I may be able to help you figure out if Golden Thunder’s soul truly is in Golden Flash’s body. However, I need your permission, and help, to try it.

Curious, Twilight asked. What would you like to do, Mom? After listening for a moment, while making it appear that she was thinking, she walked forward. Stopping a few feet in front of everypony, she turned to face them. “There are a few potential causes for your extreme fatigue, Golden Flash.”

He immediately gave her his full attention.

Seeing this, Twilight continued. “First, you used quite a bit of magic. In fact, you used far more than is recommended for a unicorn to put into a single spell. Second, it’s possible that the spell you cast wasn’t restored correctly. Third, having a spell forcefully taken from your control can be dangerous if it isn’t done carefully. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to be gentle when I took control of the Spirit Reanimation Spell.”

Well done. Sundance stated They’re all valid concerns, so he shouldn’t suspect anything. As for the third, I’m certain that you didn’t harm him. Instead, I believe that Golden Flash is exhausted because Golden Thunder’s soul is placing a strain on his body.

After a moment, she continued. I’m creating a spell that will produce the effect we want, but I need a minute to finish it. Try to keep his attention on you.

Alright Twilight replied, turning back to Golden Flash. “Of the three, the third possibility is the most likely cause.” She sighed “This may be my fault, so I’ll be the one to help you.”

“Thank you, princess” Golden Flash replied “Is there a way to figure out the exact cause?”

After pretending to think for a minute, Twilight replied. “I’d like to try something. If it works, we’ll be able to discover the cause right now.”

Golden Thunder was instantly concerned. DO NOT allow her to scan your body! If her Soul Mark is any indication, her specialty has something to do with magic! That means she’ll be able to detect my presence!

Princess Twilight’s specialty is magic. Golden Flash replied

Golden Thunder gasped Just like Queen Sundance!

“W-what would you like to do, princess?” Golden Flash asked, clearly nervous

Twilight smiled “Don’t worry, what I have planned isn’t invasive at all. The only thing I need you to do is look at me.”

I’m not sure what she intends to do, Golden Thunder said, sighing in relief but it doesn’t sound like anything we need to worry about.

Golden Flash nodded “Yes, princess”

Celestia and Artemis looked at Twilight as well, watching as she closed her eyes and lit her horn.

I finished the spell, but there’s a problem. Sundance explained My spell created a link between us that allows me to tell what's going on around you. Unfortunately, it doesn't let me to send you magic.

According to what I read, Twilight responded your spell allows you to use my magic.

Yes. I built that into my spell because your father needed to be able to use my magic in order to protect me. Suddenly understanding what Twilight meant, Sundance gasped. A-are you saying that you'll allow me to use your magic?!

Of course. Twilight replied I trust you.

Surprised, it took a moment for Sundance to reply. Thank you, Twilight

Chapter 53

Opening her eyes, Twilight looked at the ponies around her. Everypony gasped when they saw that her eyes weren’t their usual violet. Instead, they were a beautiful combination of blue and green.

Sundance’s hazel eyes.

Wide-eyed, Celestia and Artemis glanced at each other. Both of them mouthed “What is she doing?!” before returning their attention to Twilight.

Golden Thunder was so shocked that he took control of Golden Flash’s body. “Q-queen Sundance?!”

Celestia, Artemis and Golden Thunder couldn’t tell if they were looking at Princess Twilight Sparkle or Queen Sundance. As such, they made an unspoken decision to wait for her to say something. When she spoke, while the voice was Twilight’s, the words clearly came from Sundance.

“Hello, Golden Thunder. I haven’t seen you in fifteen hundred years. Even so, I have no doubt that you still plan for my children meet the same fate that my husband and I did.” She narrowed her eyes. “Consider this a warning. Midnight and I are watching.”

Everypony watched as Twilight’s eyes closed. When they opened again, they were violet.

When Celestia recovered from her shock, she stepped closer and nuzzled Twilight. “Are you alright?”

Surprised, Twilight blinked a few times “Of course, Celestia. Why do you ask?”

Walking forward, Artemis nuzzled her as well. “Y-you just . . .”

After a moment, Twilight asked “Oh, you mean that?”

Celestia, Artemis, and Golden Thunder nodded.

“I heard the voice of a mare." Seeing their expressions, she shrugged. "She told me that her name is Sundance.”

Celestia and Artemis pretended to be shocked. Golden Thunder really was shocked. All three of them gasped. “What?!”

Twilight nodded “Sundance asked if I could help her speak to one of the ponies near me. She promised that she wouldn’t hurt me, and seemed sincere, so I agreed.”

Still using Golden Flash’s mouth, Golden Thunder stammered “I-is this new princess the reincarnation of Queen Sundance?!” Realizing his mistake, he let Golden Flash have control of his body again.

When she heard that, Twilight struggled to suppress her laughter. Somehow, she managed to keep a straight face and turned to Golden Flash. “She had to leave before she was able to say her entire message. Don’t worry, she asked me to tell you the last part.”

Obviously worried, Golden Flash gave Twilight his full attention. “Y-yes, princess?”

Twilight cleared her throat “The extreme fatigue is caused by the fact that your body is struggling to cope with the presence of more than one soul.”

Golden Flash gasped “I-I see.”

Twilight tilted her head “The obvious way to stop the extreme fatigue is to remove the extra soul from your body . . . No, that’s far too dangerous, for both of you. Besides, what would we do with the other soul?” She shook her head “There has to be another option . . . I need to do some research, but I’ll figure something out.”

Celestia and Artemis didn’t say anything because they were struggling to keep their expressions neutral.

Twilight made sure not to look at either of them. I have to act like I don’t know what’s going on. I’ll blow the whole thing if I start laughing. Instead, she gave Golden Flash a stern look. “Do not cast any major spells until I find a way to counter your fatigue. I know this is rather blunt, but I need to make sure you understand . . . In your weakened state, the exertion could kill you.”

She’s right. Golden Thunder commented I’ll need to borrow your magic from time to time, but you should leave the majority of the spellcasting to me.

“Y-yes, princess” Golden Flash stammered, eyes wide “Thank you for the warning.”

In the stars, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl were laughing so hard that it was a few minutes before they were able to even think about saying anything.

Star Swirl was the first to speak. “That was great!”

Still laughing, Sundance flickered “He thinks she’s my reincarnation? That wasn’t part of the plan.”

“Who cares?” Midnight Armor replied, also laughing “That was hilarious!” Calming slightly, he flickered “I told you that, not only would Twilight allow it, she’d help you! She even found a valid reason to keep him from casting any major spells!”

Sundance flickered again “I know I said this the other day, but we really shouldn’t underestimate her.”

Star Swirl laughed again “Now Princess Twilight has a great excuse for all of her research! She just has to claim that she’s looking for a way to help him!”

In Canterlot, Celestia and Artemis looked at each other, both saying the same thing.

“It’s time”

This is perfect. Golden Flash told Golden Thunder Now you’ll see them do it for yourself.

Don’t be ridiculous. Golden Thunder replied I know that Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis have some sort of connection with the sun and moon respectively, but there’s no way that they’re doing it by themselves. The first time must have been a fluke.

Twilight looked at Artemis and Celestia but, before she could say anything, she heard Sundance’s voice.

Thank you, Twilight. That went far better than I hoped it would. Now we know where Golden Thunder is. She paused I’d like to ask you to do me a favor.

Sure Twilight replied What is it?

Please pass a message to Celestia and Artemis. Sundance answered Your father and I want them to allow Golden Thunder to watch them lower the sun and raise the moon. He needs to know that they’re both far more powerful than he remembers.

Suppressing a smile, Twilight responded I will. Good night, Mom.

Good night, Twilight. Sundance replied

Twilight stepped closer to Artemis and Celestia. Nuzzling them both, she whispered “Mom and Dad want you two to allow Golden Thunder to watch you lower the sun and raise the moon because they want him to know that you’re both stronger than he remembers.”

Smiling, they returned her nuzzle.

Spreading her wings, Celestia lifted into the air, lit her horn and lowered the sun.

W-what?! Golden Thunder gasped

Prince Artemis is next. Golden Flash replied

Celestia landed next to her brother and nodded to him.

Returning her nod, Artemis lit his horn and spread his wings. As he lifted into the air, the moon rose with him. Then a flash of his magic brought out the stars. His job done, he landed next to his sister.

I-incredible! Golden Thunder exclaimed It used to take over two dozen unicorns to control each of the heavenly bodies! How in Equestria are they doing it alone?!

Golden Flash shrugged They’ve been doing that for as long as anypony can remember.

Shaking himself from his shock, Golden Thunder searched the area with his magic. That’s strange. We just saw Queen Sundance in Princess Twilight, but I don’t sense her presence. Perhaps Princess Twilight isn’t her reincarnation after all. If so, I need to find their souls.

Looking at the stars, Golden Flash tilted his head. How are you going to search for the late King and Queen?

That spell should be sufficient. Golden Thunder responded. After a moment, he began to laugh. If I’m right, the Spirit Reanimation Spell failed because King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance’s souls are still alive. Unfortunately for them, they have no bodies to protect their souls. That means, no matter where they are, I’ll be able to pull them right to me.

Once he’d finished laughing, he continued. Actually, there might be a problem. Their son protected their souls fifteen hundred years ago. It’s possible that he’s still protecting them. I need to make sure he doesn’t get in my way.

How will you stop Prince Artemis? Golden Flash asked

I’ve known Prince Artemis, and his sister, since they were very young. Golden Thunder answered As a result, I know quite a bit about both of them and intend to use one specific piece of that knowledge against them.

After a moment, he spoke again. You should go to bed early tonight.

Surprised, Golden Flash asked. Why do you say that, ancestor?

Queen Sundance is very knowledgeable. Golden Thunder responded Like Princess Twilight, her specialty is magic. He paused thoughtfully In fact, that might be how she was able to contact Princess Twilight.

Anyway, Queen Sundance is especially talented with magic scans. I didn’t feel anything, but she must have scanned your body. That’s the only way I can explain how she knew where I was.

Regardless, she believes that you’re exhausted because you’re struggling to cope with my presence in your body. That means you need to get some rest.

Y-yes, ancestor. Golden Flash answered. He looked up at a flash of moonlight to find that Celestia, Artemis and Twilight had vanished. Glad that he wouldn’t have to make any excuses, he headed home.

Artemis’ teleportation spell put them in his room. As soon as he cast a soundproofing spell, the three of them collapsed to the floor and began to laugh. It was several minutes before they were calm enough to speak.

“That was great!” Celestia giggled

Artemis pulled his mare close and kissed her. “How did you do that?! Did Mother possess you?”

“No” Twilight replied, returning his kiss “She created a spell that temporarily made my eyes look like hers. When she was ready, I let her use my magic to cast it. Then she told me what to say. I just acted like she was the one speaking.” She laughed “Mom wanted to see if it would get a reaction from Golden Thunder.”

Celestia laughed “It certainly worked! Thanks to the two of you, we know exactly where he is.”

Smiling, Twilight stood and walked to Celestia’s side. I want to do this now, before I forget.

Looking over her shoulder, Celestia watched her sister climb onto her back. She looked on as Twilight carefully spread her wings. “What are you doing?”

Knowing exactly what Twilight was doing, Artemis laughed.

Confused, Celestia looked at her brother. “What’s so funny? I just-” Before she could finish her sentence, her attention was drawn back to her wings.

Celestia gasped “Ooh . . .” Her wings shook uncontrollably when Twilight gently pressed the spot their mother had shown her. She sighed in pleasure when her little sister gently massaged both wings. When her wings stopped shaking, she folded them and pulled Twilight into a hug. “Thank you. I really needed that.”

Smiling, Twilight returned the hug. Artemis moved closer and nuzzled both of them. They cuddled together for several minutes before Celestia stood and walked to the door to his room.

“I want to get some reading done before going to sleep.” Celestia said “I’ll see both of you in the morning.”

Artemis nodded “Sleep well, Sister.” As Celestia closed the door, he turned to see Twilight climbing into their bed. He was about to join her but paused when he suddenly sensed something.

Settling under the covers, Twilight looked up to see Artemis looking out the window with a strange expression on his face. “Are you coming to bed?”

Glancing at her, he shook his head. “I’d like to look at the stars first.” Something’s happening to Mother and Father’s stars. I don’t want to alarm her, but I need to figure out what’s going on. He saw her start to stand and shook his head again. “It’s alright, stay there. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

Nodding, Twilight lay back down while he walked outside.

On the balcony, Artemis turned his attention to the stars of their parents and noticed that both of them were flickering. Looking closer, he gasped, suddenly horrified. They’re unstable! What’s going on?! They’ve never had stability issues! Closing his eyes, he focused his magic on their stars, searching for the source of the instability. Somepony is trying to pull their souls out of their stars! Knowing that he had to act quickly, he lit his horn and vanished.

In the stars, the night started as it normally did. After setting the brightness of their stars to nighttime levels, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl turned their attention to their conversation.

A few minutes into the discussion, Sundance and Midnight Armor suddenly gasped. Star Swirl stopped, mid-sentence, and looked over at them. “Is something wrong?” He was about to say something else, but paused when he saw that their stars were flickering uncontrollably.

“T-this isn’t good!” Sundance said, clearly struggling “I-I’m having trouble controlling my star!”

Midnight Armor was struggling as well. “M-me too.”

Horrified, Star Swirl stared at them. W-what’s going on?! I’ve never heard of them having any trouble!

Midnight Armor gasped again “Someone is pulling our souls to them! The only reason we’re still here is that Artemis bound our souls to our stars.”

“Y-you’re right!” Sundance panted “It has to be Golden Thunder. He probably doesn’t know it, but he’s trying to remove our souls from our stars. That’s making them unstable . . . I-if enough stability is lost, our stars will die. T-then he’ll be able to bring our souls right to him!”

He needs to know about this! I just hope he gets my message in time to help. Star Swirl gathered some of his stored magic and prepared to contact Artemis. Before he could send the message, he heard a powerful voice.

“I won’t allow that”

Surprised, they looked over as Artemis appeared next to them.

Incredibly happy to see him, Sundance and Midnight Armor waited to see what their son planned to do about this. The first thing he did was firmly anchor their souls to their stars. The effect this had on their stars was obvious, they instantly stopped flickering and calmed. Sundance and Midnight Armor sighed in relief when Artemis also boosted their magic, giving each of them triple the amount they used to fight Golden Thunder’s spell.

Midnight Armor was confused. Why did he give his mother and I so much magic?

Sundance was equally confused, but didn’t want to interrupt her son. I can ask questions later. For now, I’ll just watch him work.

Assured that his parents weren’t going anywhere, Artemis turned his attention to the magic that was trying to remove their souls from their stars. T-this is . . .! I’m not going to leave that spell active! When he tried to stop it, he discovered that something was blocking him.

Cursing under his breath, he analyzed the situation. There is a way to make sure that other ponies can’t help with, or stop, a spell in progress. This is only possible if the caster knows the magic signature of the pony they wish to block and the right spell. Unfortunately, Golden Thunder knows both.

Since he’s blocking me, I need to bring somepony else into this. Due to our unique circumstances, Night’s magic signature is nearly identical to my own. That means he won’t be able to help. Golden Thunder knows Celestia’s magic signature, so he’s probably blocking her as well. He thought for a moment. I should call her anyway. Who knows, maybe he’s so focused on me that he hasn’t blocked her. He focused his magic on his sister.

Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl looked over in surprise when they heard Celestia laugh.

“What is it, Artemis? We need to go to sleep soon, but you can come to my room if you want to talk.”

Despite the dangers of the current situation, Artemis laughed. “I know that, sister. However, I’m not in the castle right now.”

“Really?” She asked “Did you take Twilight out for a night flight or something? If so, don’t stay out too late.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor laughed

Laughing again, Artemis replied “That sounds like fun, but no. I’m in the Night Sky.”

“What do you . . . I see. You mean your Night Sky.” Her tone turned serious. “Is there a problem?”

“Unfortunately, yes.” He replied “Somepony, I believe it’s Golden Thunder, is trying to pull Mother and Father’s souls to them.”

Horrified, Celestia gasped “What?!”

“Don’t worry,” he told her “I’ve anchored their souls to their stars. However, when I tried to stop his spell, I found that he’s blocked my magic signature.”

Sighing in relief, she asked “What do you plan to do about it?”

“I was hoping you could try.” Artemis replied “Even though he knows your signature, it’s possible that he hasn’t blocked you.”

“That’s not a bad idea.” Midnight Armor remarked

Without hesitation, Celestia responded “I’ll be right there.”

A flash of sunlight later, she was standing next to her brother. Not wasting any time, Celestia searched the area for foreign magic and located the spell that Artemis was talking about. W-what?! This spell is . . . .! No wonder Artemis asked me to help. We have to stop this spell. Unfortunately, I can’t move as fast as I’d like because I have to make sure that Mother and Father’s stars don’t come into contact with the power of the sun. She started to shut the spell down but suddenly found herself blocked.

Celestia turned to her brother. “You’re right, it’s Golden Thunder. I was able to detect his magic signature before he blocked mine.” She thought for a moment “There’s no way he can block the power of the sun, so I could use that to stop his spell. Unfortunately, doing so would burn those at both ends of the spell. Golden Thunder is one thing, but forcing the power of the sun into contact with other stars . . . Well, it isn’t a good idea.”

“You’re right” Artemis replied “We just have to think of something else.” Suddenly he smiled. I know he saw her magic when he returned, but he was distracted at the time. That means Golden Thunder probably doesn’t know Twilight’s magic signature. If I’m right, he won’t be able to stop her. He searched for the link connecting him to Twilight. After a moment, he found it and touched it with his magic.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Star Swirl were startled when they heard Twilight’s voice.

“What’s wrong, Artemis?”

“Golden Thunder is trying to pull Mother and Father’s souls to him.” He replied

There was almost a minute of stunned silence before . . . “WHAT?!”

He quickly reassured her. “Don’t worry, I’ve anchored them to their stars.”

Twilight sighed in relief.

“Celestia and I tried to stop his spell,” he continued “but found that he’s blocking our magic signatures.”

Surprised, Twilight said “Most unicorns can’t do that.”

“If I recall correctly,” Artemis answered “Mother taught him how.”

Sundance’s star dimmed “I-it seemed like a good idea at the time.”

“Regardless," Artemis continued "I don’t think he’s familiar enough with your magic to be able to block your signature. If I’m right, you should be able to stop his spell.”

“I’m on my way.” Twilight immediately replied

Star Swirl stared at the lavender alicorn that suddenly appeared in between Artemis and Celestia. Her Soul Mark really is symbol for the Element of Magic!

“I hope you don’t mind,” Twilight began “but I used the link created by the Linking Spell to teleport directly to you.”

Artemis nuzzled her “Not at all. Thanks for coming so quickly.”

She gestured to the stars in front of them. “These two?”

Celestia and Artemis nodded

Twilight searched for any magic that didn’t belong to their parents, Celestia or Artemis. She found two magic signatures, but noticed that only one was currently casting a spell. Dad told us that he and Mom can talk to Star Swirl. That means his star must be nearby and that the other magic signature is probably his. After analyzing the spell being cast by the first unknown magic signature, she released her magic and turned to Artemis. “I can stop the spell, but there’s a problem.”

“What’s the problem?” He asked

“The backlash from forcefully terminating that spell will hurt those at both ends.” Twilight replied “The best way to avoid that is for me to take control of his spell. Then I’ll simply shut it down.”

“Are you sure there isn’t better way?” Artemis asked “That’s going to take a lot of magic and you just recovered from stopping the Spirit Reanimation Spell.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “How much magic did you use to anchor their souls to their stars?”

“As much as I needed to!” Artemis instantly replied “What does that . . . I see your point.”

“I don’t care how much magic it takes.” Twilight continued “I’m going to terminate that spell in a way that doesn’t hurt Mom and Dad.”

Celestia reached over Twilight to nuzzle both of her siblings. “It doesn’t matter how much magic you use because, as soon as you’re done, we’re going to give you some of ours.”

Artemis nodded

Twilight was about to respond but paused when she heard two unexpected things. Laughter and a voice.

I’m glad she already knows the safest way to stop that spell. I wish she could . . .

Twilight sighed “I like talking to Mom, but I’m not happy about hearing anypony else's voice in my head.”

The owner of the voice gasped. You can hear me?!

Twilight hesitantly replied “Yes, I can hear you.”

That’s great!

Twilight heard the owner of the voice laugh again. “I don’t understand why you’re laughing.”

It seems that Sundance has done me a favor. Speaking to her for the last two days must have increased your sensitivity to spirits enough that you can hear my voice. Please tell her that I said “Thank You”.

“I can do that,” Twilight replied “but I still need to know who you are.”

Look at your Soul Mark.

Glancing at her Cutie Mark, Twilight noticed that the pink star was glowing. That’s odd, it looks like my Cutie Mark is trying to say hello. Wait. My Cutie Mark . . . Her eyes widened as she suddenly understood who she was talking to. “Y-you’re the spirit of the Element of Magic?!”

Artemis, Sundance, Celestia, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl gasped. “What?!”

Laughing again, the voice replied. Yes, but please call me Magic. Having you constantly say the long version of my name will annoy both of us.

“A-alright.” Twilight replied, voice shaking “Why did you contact me, Magic?”

The soul that was brought back . . . What’s his name?

“Golden Thunder”

Thank you. Anyway, the first thing he did was cast the Spirit Reanimation Spell, trying to revive those two.

“What?! Celestia’s supposed to be notified whenever that spell is cast!”

She didn’t receive a notification because the attempt was unsuccessful. As for why it didn’t work, you were correct. Sundance and Midnight Armor never entered the Realm of the Dead. Their souls are alive, so that spell has no effect on them.

Twilight sighed in relief “That’s good.”

When I discovered that he had cast the Spirit Reanimation Spell, I tried to tell you. Unfortunately, you weren’t sensitive enough to spirits to hear my voice. Thanks to Sundance, that’s no longer a problem.

Anyway, he tried something different tonight. He cast a spell that, under normal circumstances, would have allowed him to bring their souls to him. Because of the way their souls were bound to their stars, they were able to fight his spell long enough for Artemis to notice.

“I get the impression that you want me to do something. I’m sorry, but I’m a little busy at the moment.”

You don’t need to apologize. We’re trying to accomplish the same thing.

“What are you talking about?”

Both of us want to protect the souls that are anchored to the stars in front of you. I’m a spirit, so I can’t do that without the help of my bearer.

“Alright. What can I do to help you?”

Now that I can talk to you, I can ask you to act on my behalf.

“What do you have in mind?”

I like your idea. If you take control of his spell, you’ll be able to stop it without harming the souls of your parents.

“That’s the plan.”

Good. Use my power to do it.

“What? I thought that power was only supposed to be used for . . .”

Maintaining harmony. Don’t worry, that’s exactly what you’ll be doing. I’ll explain why at a later date, but it’s vital that their souls are kept safe.

I don’t have a magic signature because my power is pure magic. That means, when you use my power, he won’t be able to block you.

“Very well” Closing her eyes, Twilight called on the spirit of her Element.

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl gasped as she suddenly lit up from within. Instantly understanding what she was doing, Celestia and Artemis smiled.

“I’ve never seen anything like that before.” Star Swirl remarked “What kind of power is Princess Twilight using?”

“The Element of Magic” Celestia replied

Star Swirl gasped “What?!”

Paying no attention to what was being said around her, Twilight focused on Golden Thunder’s spell. She noticed that he immediately tried to block her and giggled when she felt his confusion once he saw that he couldn’t.

She felt him increase the casting speed, trying to finish his spell before she could stop him. She laughed when she felt his shock as he realized that he couldn’t do that either. Clearly not wanting the spell to drain anymore of his magic, he gave up. No longer receiving any resistance, she took control of his spell. Not bothering to hide her actions, she terminated the spell.

In Canterlot, Golden Thunder’s soul stood next to the bed of his descendant. He was trembling, but couldn’t tell if it was from fear, exertion or exhaustion. It’s probably all three . . . What the hay just happened?!

He recalled the events of the last hour. After several fruitless searches, I finally found the magic signatures of King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance.

I hate to admit it, but Prince Artemis found a very good way to protect his parents. While I can sense their magic signatures, I have no idea where their souls are.

He thought for a moment. If I recall correctly, fifteen hundred years ago, he said he was going to put them in the night sky. I don’t, even for a second, believe that he has the power to do that.

Anyway, I cast the spell to pull their souls to me. At first, it was working. Even though they fought my spell, their souls were slowly being pulled to me. Then all of the progress I’d made was suddenly undone and their souls were being firmly held by somepony. I’m sure that was Prince Artemis because the next thing I felt was him trying to stop my spell. He realized that I had blocked his magic signature and called in his sister. I should have seen that coming but, for some reason, I didn’t.

I almost wasn’t able to stop Princess Celestia. In fact, I was only able to block her because she seemed hesitant. That’s probably because she didn’t want to harm her parents. If she truly controls the power of the sun, she could have easily destroyed their souls.

This is where things get extremely confusing. Suddenly, another magic signature appeared, but it wasn’t in contact with my spell long enough for me to figure out who it belonged to. As soon as whoever owned it analyzed my spell, the signature vanished. Just when I thought I wasn’t going to receive any more resistance, somepony began to take control of my spell. I tried to block them but, because their magic had no signature, I had nothing to block.

He shook his head. How is it possible for a pony to not have a magic signature?!

A-anyway, I heard somepony giggling. That made me angry enough that I tried to race this new magic. If I could have finished my spell before they took control, I would have gotten those souls. To my surprise, they were moving fast enough that I couldn’t finish my spell in time. I made no attempt to hide my shock.

The new pony must have sensed this because they actually laughed at me! In order to prevent my spell from draining my magic, I had no choice but to give up and watch as . . . whoever that was . . . took control of my spell. They even made me watch them terminate it.

He glanced at the bed, seeing Golden Flash sound asleep next to his wife, before turning to look out the window. The view of Canterlot at night was nice, but it did little to calm him. I need to think about this carefully. The magic that stopped me may have had no signature, but it’s far too powerful to belong to a unicorn.

I blocked the magic signatures of Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis. As far as I know, the only other alicorn in Equestria is Princess Twilight Sparkle. I haven’t had a chance to learn her magic signature yet, but I’m sure she has one. That rules her out as well . . . actually, maybe it doesn’t. Even though they’ve clearly gotten stronger, and certainly wiser, I have a rough idea of what Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis are capable of. However, I have no idea what Princess Twilight can do.

Whoever terminated my spell is extremely talented, especially with magic. Golden Flash told me that Princess Twilight Sparkle’s specialty is magic. It’s unlikely, but I suppose it’s possible that she’s the one who stopped me.

Golden Flash told me that he’s supposed to see the prince and princesses off tomorrow. I’ll just have to pay close attention to all three of them. That might tell me something.

For now, I need to get some rest and recover my magic. He entered Golden Flash’s body and allowed himself to fall asleep.

In Artemis’ Night Sky, Twilight had just finished terminating Golden Thunder’s spell. She paused when she heard Magic’s voice.

I made sure that Golden Thunder heard your laughter.

Eyes still closed, Twilight asked “Why did you do that?”

I believe that it’s important for him to know that you’re the one who stopped him. A moment later, she continued. Golden Thunder will probably try this again. If he does, I want you to help Artemis protect them.

“You don’t have to tell me to do that.”

Good

Opening her eyes, Twilight looked at everyone around her. “I took control of his spell and terminated it.”

Celestia and Artemis smiled while Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl brightened considerably. All of them sighed in relief and said the same thing. “Good”

You should tell them what happened, but please make sure that no one else is told. The main reason is that I don’t want Golden Thunder to figure out that I’m involved. At least, not yet.

Twilight nodded and left her empowered state. “I will”

One more thing, it may be a good idea keep Golden Thunder as confused as possible. The events of this evening were a good start.

“What?”

Magic laughed Seeing his reaction to what you and Sundance did . . . I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time.

Well done, Twilight Sparkle. I’ll be talking to you soon. Until then, go well.

“You as well, Magic.”

After Magic left, Twilight shook her head. “That was . . . interesting. I know the spirit of my Element tested me, but I had no idea that she could talk to me.”

Artemis nuzzled her “What happened?”

Twilight leaned into his side. “It’ll be easier if I show everypony what happened, but from my point of view. That will tell you everything I know.”

“Good idea” Artemis replied, turning to his sister “We should get some sleep.”

Celestia nodded “Should we head back to the castle?”

“No, we’ll sleep here.” Artemis answered, creating a cloud in front of them. “In addition to replacing what they used to fight Golden Thunder’s spell, I used the spell you made to give Mother and Father extra magic. That, combined with our close proximity to them, should allow them to talk to us.” He paused “Give me a moment.”

Star Swirl was surprised when Artemis boosted his magic as well. I guess he wants me to participate.

Moving onto the cloud, Artemis, Celestia and Twilight lay down and snuggled together. Tired from the stress of the day, and channeling so much magic, Twilight fell asleep as soon as her head hit the cloud.

Midnight Armor laughed softly “I’d be surprised if she wasn’t tired.”

“You’re right, Midnight.” Sundance whispered “She certainly earned her rest.” Her star flickered “That was incredible!”

Star Swirl’s star flickered as well “You’re right.” He commented, keeping his voice low “All three of them did an excellent job.”

Smiling, Celestia and Artemis gently nuzzled Twilight before laying their heads next to hers. As Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl looked on, Celestia and Artemis followed Twilight into the Dream Realm.

In the Dream Realm, Artemis opened his eyes and saw that he was standing among the stars. “Mother, Father, Star Swirl? Can you please say something? I need to know if it worked.”

“Well done, Artemis” Midnight Armor replied “I’m glad you noticed what he was doing.”

“Yes” Sundance briefly brightened “Thank you for acting so quickly.”

“Thank you for allowing me to participate.” Star Swirl added

Artemis sighed in relief “I’ll bring in Celestia and Twilight.” Two flashes of light later, they were standing next to him. Knowing that this might take all night, he created another cloud for them to relax on. This time, they were already standing on it.

Celestia lay down, using a wing to pull Twilight down with her. Laughing, Artemis lay down on Twilight’s other side.

Once they were settled, Twilight showed them what happened, making sure that they could hear Magic’s voice. When her memory finished, everyone was silent for several minutes.

Eventually, Sundance spoke. “The next time you speak to Magic, please tell her that I said “you’re welcome”.”

Twilight nodded “I will”

Celestia nuzzled her sister “Magic doesn’t need to worry about us telling anypony what happened because we’re planning to keep this between us anyway.”

She looked at her brother “I find two things disturbing. One, Golden Thunder immediately tried to revive Mother and Father. Two, I didn’t notice the attempt. I know Magic told Twilight that it’s because the spell was unsuccessful, but the implications aren’t good. I need to look into that.”

Artemis nodded “At least we know that the Spirit Reanimation Spell doesn’t work on Mother and Father’s souls.”

“You’re right. That is good to know.” Sundance commented, sighing in relief “However, I’d like to know why Magic believes that keeping us safe is vital.”

“Yes” Midnight Armor added “How are our souls important to maintaining harmony?”

“I’m also curious about that,” Twilight replied “but I’m not complaining. Magic helped me stop Golden Thunder’s spell because she believes that the two of you need to be protected.” She shrugged “I’ll let you know when, and what, she tells me.”

Sundance’s star brightened “Thank you”

Twilight sighed “Unfortunately, what happened tonight confirms my theory.”

Star Swirl hesitated, not sure if he should enter the conversation, but decided to ask his question anyway. “Which one, princess?”

Surprised, Twilight looked at his star. For a moment, she had no idea who had spoken. Then she smiled “Star Swirl, right?”

He briefly brightened “Yes, princess”

Twilight laughed “I’m sorry. This is the first time I’ve heard your voice, so I didn’t recognize it.”

He hesitated “Do you mind if I ask questions?”

She shook her head “Not at all. In fact, it’ll probably be helpful to have another point of view.”

He brightened “Thank you”

“To answer your question, Golden Thunder is obviously still after souls.” Twilight replied “Not only that, he clearly has a special interest in Mom and Dad’s souls.”

Midnight Armor was about to ask Twilight what she meant, but paused when he saw her expression. “I wonder what she’s thinking.” He said quietly.

Hearing this, everyone else turned to Twilight as well.

For several minutes, Twilight stared at a random star. Then she turned to Artemis. “Did he go after Mom and Dad’s stars or did he specifically target their souls?”

Artemis thought for a moment before his eyes widened. “He never touched their stars, it was their souls that he went after. Remember how the snake part of the Chimera Anima had the ability to pull souls to it so it could eat them?”

Everyone nodded, or briefly brightened, and waited for him to continue.

“That’s the spell he used to call Mother and Father’s souls tonight.” Artemis thought for a moment “Mother and Father’s souls were bound very closely to their stars. Because of this, Golden Thunder’s attempt to pull their souls to him made their stars unstable.”

“I was afraid of that.” Twilight sighed “He knows he can’t revive them. That means he wants their souls for a different reason. Unless I find another option, I’m going to work off the assumption that he wants their immortality. I have no idea how he’d be able to take that from them, but at least I have something specific to look into.”

Celestia tilted her head “Perhaps he doesn’t know either. In fact, that might be why he went after Mother and Father’s souls tonight.”

Sundance paused “What do you mean?”

Celestia reluctantly replied “He probably needs somepony to experiment on . . .”

Everypony was silent for several minutes.

Suddenly, Twilight laughed “We have at least one thing going for us.”

Surprised at the sudden change of topic Star Swirl asked. “What are you talking about, princess?”

Still laughing, she replied “I don’t think he knows where Mom and Dad’s souls are.”

Artemis turned to her “I told him what I planned to do with them fifteen hundred years ago.”

Twilight shook her head “Golden Thunder may know what you planned to do with Mom and Dad’s souls, but he didn’t live long enough to see you do it.” She smiled “He saw Mom in me this evening. Remember his comment about how I might be her reincarnation?”

Artemis grinned as he understood her point. Celestia, on the other hoof, was laughing so hard she couldn’t speak.

“That stallion must be extremely confused.” Star Swirl commented, laughing as well. “I almost feel sorry for him.”

Sundance laughed “Making him think that you’re my reincarnation wasn’t part of my plan, but I found it hilarious.”

Star Swirl brightened “You weren’t the only one who found that hilarious, Sundance. I did as well.”

Sundance’s star flickered “I don’t think he believes that anymore.”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “You’re right. If he believed that Twilight is your reincarnation, he wouldn’t have tried to call our souls to him.”

“Even if he doesn’t believe that Twilight is Mother’s reincarnation,” Celestia commented “he probably thinks that she protected your souls.”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened again “He would be correct.”

“You’re right, Midnight.” Sundance replied “Regardless, why would Golden Thunder believe that, Celestia?”

Celestia laughed again “Magic made sure he heard Twilight’s laughter.”

Artemis nodded, laughing as well. “Even if he doesn’t connect the laughter he heard to Twilight, the magic that stopped his spell didn’t belong to me or Celestia. Additionally, it took a lot of magic to stop him, far more than unicorns are capable of using. It won’t take him long to figure out that he was stopped by an alicorn.”

“I see” Star Swirl said thoughtfully “The natural assumption for him to make is that his spell was stopped by Princess Twilight.”

Twilight thought for a moment “I’m going to tell him that I’m the one who stopped him.”

Confused, Sundance asked “Why would you do that?”

“Magic wants him to know that I’m the one who stopped him, remember?” Twilight shrugged “I’m not going to wait for him to figure it out.”

Midnight Armor laughed “I wonder how he’ll react to the news. Please let us know what he does.”

Before Twilight could respond, Celestia laughed. “You’ll be able to hear that for yourself, Mother. He’s one of nobles that are going to see us off tomorrow.”

Sundance flickered “Unfortunately, I won’t able to communicate with Twilight anymore. My spell was cancelled because the events of tonight disrupted my magic.”

Celestia sighed “I wish there was a way for Mother to cast her spell on Twilight again.”

Artemis thought for a moment. “Mother, if I give you enough magic, will you be able to cast that spell on her again?”

Sundance turned to Twilight “This time, I’m not casting anything on you without your permission.”

Without hesitation, Twilight nodded “Go ahead.”

“A-alright” Sundance answered “I’ve never cast a spell of that complexity in this form, but I suppose it’s worth a try.” She gasped when all three of her children lit their horns.

Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl watched as Celestia and Twilight gave some of their magic to Artemis. He added some of his own and sent their combined magic to their mother.

Sundance’s star glowed for a moment as she received such a large amount of magic at once. Then she cast her spell on Twilight.

After focusing for a moment, Twilight looked at Artemis. “I think it worked.”

Celestia smiled “Then you’re going to hear Golden Flash’s reaction for yourself.” She laughed “You might get to hear Golden Thunder’s reaction as well.”

Artemis sighed “I hate to admit it, but Golden Thunder was smart about this. I didn’t sense Golden Flash’s magic or magic signature.”

“I didn’t either.” Celestia responded, sighing as well “Golden Flash wasn’t involved, so we won’t be able to punish him for this.”

Twilight smiled “We may not be able to punish them, but I bet we can scare them.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl laughed.

“I can’t wait to see what you have in mind.” Midnight Armor replied

Artemis turned to Star Swirl’s star “I sense your magic. Was there another problem that I need to know about?”

Star Swirl’s star flickered “I tapped into the link that Sundance created with Princess Twilight so that Midnight Armor and I could hear what was going on as well.”

Twilight’s eyes widened “Both of you heard everything as well?”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “Everything that was said during the day.”

After a moment, Artemis smiled. “That’s not a bad idea. This means we don’t have to tell you what’s going on. You should cast your spell again. Do you need more magic?”

Star Swirl flickered “You've already given me enough.” After a flash of magic, he continued. “I linked my spell to your mother’s so your father and I will be able to hear what’s going on as well.”

Before Artemis could respond, he and Celestia looked at each other. “It’s time”

They said farewell to their parents and Star Swirl. Then Artemis woke himself, Celestia and Twilight and brought them back to the castle in Canterlot.

In Canterlot, Celestia looked around to find herself in her room, lying in bed with an open book in front of her. Standing and stretching, she walked onto her balcony. After watching her brother’s moon sink below the horizon, she raised the sun. Her job done, she walked back through her room and headed for the dining room.

In Artemis’ room, Twilight opened her eyes and noticed that she was back in bed. Looking outside, she saw that Artemis had already lowered the moon and stars. His job done, he was watching the snow fall. After standing and stretching, she walked onto the balcony and nuzzled him. “It’s way too cold to be standing out here.”

He returned her nuzzle “Alicorns can withstand cold temperatures, remember?”

“That doesn’t mean you have to.” She countered

Sundance laughed You’re right, Twilight.

Good morning, Mom. Twilight stuck her tongue out at Artemis, catching a snowflake as she did. “Mom just said I’m right. I’m saying come inside before you freeze!”

Sundance and Artemis laughed

“Very well” Artemis replied, turning towards the door to their room. “We should head to the dining room, anyway. I’m sure Celestia’s waiting for us.”

They walked through their room and out into the hallway. Looking around, Artemis remarked “I know the guards started their Holiday Vacation today, but it feels strange to not see any of them around.”

As they headed towards the dining room, Sundance spoke up. About last night . . .

Twilight froze, instantly beginning to panic. “D-did I do something wrong?!”

No! Sundance hastily replied In fact, you couldn’t have done anything more right!

Twilight sighed in relief “I thought you were going to say that I did something wrong.”

Glancing at her, Artemis asked “What did Mother say?”

“I-it’s alright,” she replied “I just panicked for no reason. She started to say something about last night and I automatically assumed that I did something wrong.”

Draping a wing over her back, he pulled her into a hug. “That’s not panicking for no reason. When I first placed them in the Night Sky, I had the same reaction. No matter what Mother and Father told me, I was terrified that I’d hurt their souls. It sounds like you’re going through the same thing I did.”

“I was only able to stop Golden Thunder because he couldn’t block Magic’s power." She shuddered "There are many ways that last night could have gone horribly wrong. ”

He nuzzled her “That may be true, but you were still able to stop him.”

By this point, they had arrived at the dining room. Walking inside, they jumped when they heard laughter. Looking up, they saw Celestia smiling at them.

“I was starting to think you two had gone back asleep.”

They walked to the table and sat down. Before either of them could say anything, Spike walked into the dining room. “Good Morning”

“Good morning, Spike” they replied

One of the castle staff entered the room carrying a goblet of rubies and emeralds. Spike licked his lips and sat on Twilight’s other side.

Apple Crunch walked into the room. He placed plates of waffles and glasses of milk in front of Celestia and Artemis before turning to Twilight. “I’ve made an apple filled breakfast pastry for you, Princess Twilight.”

Smiling, Twilight nodded. “Thank you, Apple Crunch.”

Apple Crunch? Sundance asked

He’s the head chef. Twilight replied

Apple Crunch placed her food, along with a bottle of apple juice, in front of her and watched as she took a cautious bite. Several bites later, with half of the pastry gone, he smiled. I’m definitely making that for her again. Happy that she would be able to keep her meal down, he went back to the kitchen to get lunch ready. I have to make sure they head to the Crystal Empire with full stomachs. Only then will I allow myself to focus on my own vacation.

After they had finished eating, they walked into the hall.

Spike turned to everyone “I want to buy the comic book that came out yesterday. Then I’m going to stop at Pony Joe's. He promised to make me some gem encrusted donuts for the trip.”

Twilight looked at him “Do you have enough bits?”

He blushed “Only for the donuts . . . I was going to ask-” He stopped when a piece of paper suddenly appeared in front of him, suspended in her magic.

“I wasn’t going to tell you until we got back,” Twilight began “but I already paid for it. I reserved it at the store here in Canterlot so you wouldn’t find out about it. Here’s the reservation slip.” She shrugged “I guess you’re getting your Hearth’s Warming present a little early.”

Eyes wide, he just stared at her for almost a minute. Then he jumped on her back and gave her a hug. “T-thank you, Twilight!”

Smiling, she returned his hug. “You’re welcome, Spike. You’d better hurry, you know there’s going to be a long line. Make sure you’re back in time for lunch because we’re leaving after we eat.”

“Okay!” Jumping off her back, he ran down the hall.

For several minutes, Celestia and Artemis stared after him. They turned to Twilight when she began to laugh.

Sundance was also laughing. He certainly seems happy with what you got him. But I have to ask . . . what’s a comic book? I mean-

It’s alright, Mom. Twilight interrupted, stopping her before she could say anything else. I know what you mean. Artemis went through the same thing when he returned. I didn’t laugh at him when he asked questions like that and I won’t laugh at you.

Sundance sighed in relief Thank you

Twilight smiled A comic book is a type of book where the story is told using drawings. There are several books in a set and it takes the whole set to tell the story. They usually focus on superheroes.

I’m not sure I completely understand, Sundance replied but it sounds like he really enjoys them.

That’s an understatement. Twilight responded

Artemis noticed the confusion on Celestia’s face as she looked at Twilight. “She’s talking to Mother.” He whispered

“Ah” she replied

Twilight glanced up and saw that both of them looking at her. “She wanted to know what a comic book is.”

Artemis chuckled “Spike’s trying to get me to understand that as well.”

Sundance laughed

He nuzzled Twilight “Can you stay with Celestia for a while? There’s something that I need to take care of.”

Celestia smiled at her brother “That’s not a problem. We’ll be in my room.”

Artemis smiled “Thank you, sister. I’ll join you when I’m done.”

Celestia nuzzled him before teleporting herself and her sister to her room. Then she walked over to her bed and lay down. “Come join me, please.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “No sleeping pillows?”

Celestia laughed “I promise”

What’s a sleeping pillow? Sundance asked

Twilight climbed into Celestia’s bed and snuggled close to her big sister before replying. It’s a normal pillow with a sleeping spell cast on it. She used to give me one whenever she wanted me to spend the night in her room. I didn’t like to because she would always wake me when she raised the sun. She paused for a moment. I like to sleep in.

Sundance laughed

Celestia nuzzled Twilight “What are you two talking about?”

Laughing, Twilight returned her nuzzle “I was telling her what sleeping pillows are and why you used to give them to me.”

Celestia blushed

Sundance was about to say something but stopped when Twilight asked a question.

Can you please tell me more about the spell you cast on me?

It will be easier for me to show you. Sundance replied Are your eyes closed?

Yes Twilight responded. She watched as their mother showed her the spell. Is it possible to alter the spell after it’s been cast?

To a limited extent. Sundance answered. Why do you ask? Is there something you don’t want me to hear?

No Twilight replied I’d like to add something to your spell.

Sundance thought for a moment. I’ve never tried to add anything after the spell’s been cast, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be done.

I think it’ll work. Twilight focused on their mother’s spell and made a small change. That should do it.

W-whoa! Sundance exclaimed D-did you do what I think you did?

Twilight giggled “Yes, Mom. You should be able see what’s going on around me now, instead of just listening to it.”

Sundance gasped

Smiling, Celestia nuzzled her sister “Good idea. Hold on, I’d like to try something.” Touching her horn to Twilight’s, she found their mother’s spell. Carefully examining it, she found the spell that Star Swirl had linked to it, made a small change to it and added some of her magic. “That should allow Father and Star Swirl to see it as well.”

Stunned, it took Sundance a moment to reply. G-give me a moment and I’ll see if it worked.

In the stars, Sundance turned to her husband and Star Swirl.

Midnight Armor flickered “I-I didn’t expect our daughters to do that.”

Star Swirl also flickered “That surprised me as well. Regardless, it worked.”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “It worked for me as well.” After a moment, he laughed. “They must want us the see Golden Flash’s reaction, not just listen to it.”

In Canterlot, Celestia turned to Twilight. “Will you still be able to help us close the castle?”

Twilight nodded “I didn’t use much magic.”

Celestia’s plan worked. Sundance said Your father and Star Swirl can also see what goes on around you.

Twilight turned to Celestia “Mom says that your plan worked.”

Celestia smiled “Good”

Twilight, Sundance began I’d like to talk to you. Don’t worry, nothing’s wrong. Well, aside from the obvious.

Twilight raised an eyebrow “Mom wants to talk about something. That means I won’t be paying attention to what’s going on around me for a while.”

Celestia laughed “You shouldn’t keep her waiting. Mother’s a little impatient.”

I am not! Sundance indignantly replied

Twilight laughed as well “She said she’s not impatient.”

Laughing harder, Celestia answered “Listen to what she has to say.”

Cheeky little filly . . . Sundance grumbled

I can honestly say that this is the first time I’ve heard anypony use those words to describe Celestia. Twilight remarked, laying her head on a pillow and closing her eyes. Anyway, what do you want to talk about?

I’d like to get back what I started to say earlier. Sundance replied

Twilight nervously responded A-alright

After hearing your conversation with Artemis, I understand why you’re nervous. Sundance began Regardless, you didn’t do anything wrong. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. I . . . Unable to finish, she trailed off.

Worried, Twilight asked A-are you sure there’s nothing wrong?

Sundance laughed softly Yes, I’m sure. We have you to thank for that.

For a moment, Twilight was so shocked that she was unable to think of anything to say. Then she managed a single word. What?

Sundance laughed again, just as softly as before. I don’t think you fully understand what you did last night.

Um . . . Twilight began, clearly confused I’m pretty sure I used the Element of Magic to take control of Golden Thunder’s spell before terminating it . . .

Yes, Sundance agreed but what was Golden Thunder trying to do?

He tried to bring both of you to him. Twilight answered, not sure what their mother was getting at.

That’s right. Sundance responded Artemis was able to keep our souls there by anchoring them to our stars. However, because Golden Thunder had blocked Celestia and Artemis’ magic signatures, there wasn’t anything they could do to stop his spell. If the spell hadn’t been stopped . . .

Suddenly understanding where their mother was going with this, Twilight quickly responded I didn’t do that alone.

That’s not true. Sundance replied, voice shaking Magic may have allowed you to use her power, but you were the one who decided what to do with it. You’re the one who stopped Golden Thunder’s spell and saved our souls. She was stunned when she heard Twilight’s response.

Did you think I was going to do something else?

Before she could think of a response, Sundance heard somepony teleport into the room.

Twilight opened her eyes to see Artemis standing in front of Celestia’s bed.

“Apple Crunch asked me to tell you that lunch will be ready soon, sister.” He turned to Twilight “We should head to our room so we can pack.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “What do you want to bring?”

“A few things” He replied

Twilight and Celestia looked at each other for a moment before shrugging.

Celestia turned to Twilight “What did Mother want to talk about?”

“What happened last night” Twilight answered

Celestia froze “Oh no. Did we miss something?!”

Artemis froze as well “I hope not. Give me a moment to make sure.”

Voice still shaking, Sundance spoke up. Please tell them that, thanks to the three of you, Midnight and I are just fine.

Celestia and Artemis sighed in relief when Twilight relayed their mother’s message.

Artemis frowned “We need to come up with a plan to keep Mother and Father safe. I don’t want to repeat last night.”

Neither do I. Sundance commented Unfortunately, I don’t think there’s a way to avoid it. Golden Thunder is very persistent, so I’m sure that he’ll keep trying.

Before Twilight could respond, or relay the message, Celestia nuzzled her. “Are you sure Golden Thunder won’t be able to block you?”

“Yes and no.” Twilight answered “He’ll be able to block me when he learns my magic signature, but he won’t be able to block me when I use the Element of Magic.”

“Is that why Magic told you to help me protect Mother and Father?” Artemis asked

Twilight nodded

Artemis looked out the window as he thought. Several minutes later, he turned to Celestia and Twilight. “Sister, I’d like to use our combined magic to keep Mother and Father’s souls anchored to their stars. That way, you'll be able to help without harming them with the power of the Sun. Twilight, you’ll use the Element of Magic to stop whatever spell he uses. We’ll do this until we’re able to send Golden Thunder’s soul back where it belongs.”

“That’s fine with me.” Twilight replied

Celestia smiled “I like that plan.” Turning to Twilight, she asked. “What do Mother and Father think?”

In the stars, Sundance and Midnight Armor were speechless.

Noticing this, Star Swirl remarked “They’re waiting for a response, you know.”

“I-I’m not sure how to respond . . .” Midnight Armor eventually replied “Celestia and Artemis’ reactions are understandable. A-as for Twilight, we know she has the power, and skill, to protect us but . . .”

“She has no reason to do so.” Sundance continued “I-I’m not even sure why she protected us last night . . .”

Confused, Star Swirl asked “Doesn’t she call the two of you the modern version of “Mother” and “Father”?”

“Yes” Midnight Armor answered, equally confused “What does that have to do with anything?”

Star Swirl brightened “Why wouldn’t she want to protect her family?”

Midnight Armor was too stunned to respond.

Sundance was so shocked that she didn’t even notice when Twilight asked her a question. Instead, she stammered “S-she barely knows us!”

Star Swirl flickered “She obviously doesn’t think that matters. If she did, she wouldn’t have protected the two of you last night. More importantly, she wouldn’t be willing to keep protecting you.”

They heard Artemis’ voice and turned their attention to what was going on in Canterlot.

In Canterlot, Artemis walked closer, nuzzled Twilight and repeated Celestia’s question. “What does Mother think of our plan?”

“I’m not sure.” Twilight replied “I tried asking her, but she didn’t respond.”

Celestia looked worried “Perhaps she’s talking to Father and Star Swirl.”

I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to ignore your question. Celestia’s right, I was talking to your father and Star Swirl. Sundance said T-that plan will definitely work, but . . .

Twilight raised an eyebrow “Did we miss something?”

Worried, Celestia and Artemis glanced at each other before turning back to Twilight.

N-no Sundance slowly replied I-it’s just that your father and I aren’t sure why you would protect our souls . . .

Twilight blinked a few times. “ . . . I can’t believe she just said that.”

Nervous, Artemis nuzzled her again “What did she say?”

Frowning, Twilight looked at Celestia and Artemis. “She said that she and Dad aren’t sure why I would protect their souls.”

Both of them stared at her. Finally, Artemis asked “What?”

Shaking her head, Celestia asked “Did she say what they think of the plan?”

Twilight nodded “She said that the plan would definitely work.”

“Let me get this straight.” Artemis began “They think our plan will work, but they don’t understand why you’re willing to protect them.”

Not sure what to say, Twilight just nodded. After a moment, she muttered “Maybe I should ask her why she stopped me from using too much magic.”

Unable to believe what she’d just heard, Sundance immediately replied. I had to make sure that you would be safe!

Why? Twilight asked

I don’t need a reason! Sundance exclaimed I’m your mother!

Twilight instantly responded. Then I don’t need a reason to protect you!

In the stars, Sundance and Midnight Armor sat in silence. They were too stunned to think, let alone speak.

Star Swirl, however, was busy laughing. After a couple of minutes, he calmed down enough to speak. “I tried to tell you.”

They watched Twilight tell Celestia and Artemis about the exchange she just had with their mother.

In Canterlot, Celestia had her face pressed into a pillow while Artemis had collapsed to the floor. Both of them were laughing so hard they could barely breathe.

Finally, Celestia calmed slightly “Well said!”

Still laughing, Artemis stood and walked back over to his sister’s bed. After kissing Twilight, he commented “I’m sure she understands now.”

Twilight was about to respond but paused, eyes wide, when she heard their mother’s voice.

T-thank you . . .

Instantly concerned, Celestia asked “What’s wrong?”

“I-it sounds like Mom’s crying . . .” Twilight slowly replied

Artemis nuzzled her “It’s impossible for them to do that when they’re in their star forms. However, when they’re experiencing strong emotions, it may sound like that’s what they’re doing.” He paused “D-did we upset her?”

No!

“She just shouted “No!” so . . .” Twilight responded

He sighed in relief. “We need to head to our room.”

Twilight nodded

Celestia nuzzled her siblings. “I’ll meet you in the dining room in ten minutes.”

Nodding to his sister, Artemis teleported himself and Twilight to their room.

Chapter 54

When they arrived in their room, Twilight noticed a dark blue bag sitting next to her saddlebags. It looks like he’s already packed. What else does he want to bring?

Artemis walked over to his desk and opened one side of Twilight’s saddlebags. Removing the package from Rarity, he turned to Twilight. “I need you to look at these and tell me how much I owe her.”

Curious, she nodded “What did you ask her for?”

He unwrapped the package and levitated the dresses in front of her. Both were made of a heavy material and had a hood that could be folded back when it wasn’t being used. One was the same shade of lavender as her coat, with her Cutie Mark in the center of the chest. The other was a deep, midnight blue and had silver thread woven in to look like stars in the night sky. It had a silver crescent moon sewn into the chest so that, when worn, it would look like she was wearing a necklace.

Eyes wide, Twilight just stared at them.

They’re both lovely. Sundance commented, voice still shaking slightly

“Y-you’re right, Mom” Twilight responded Are you alright?

Laughing softly, Sundance replied I’m fine

Confused, Artemis asked “What did she say?”

“That both dresses are lovely.” Twilight said slowly, still looking at the dresses

“She’s right,” Artemis began, “but how can she tell? It’s not like she can see them.”

Sundance laughed again, louder this time

“Actually,” Twilight replied “she can.”

Artemis stared at his mare “What?! H-how . . .?”

Finally taking her eyes off of the dresses, she looked at him. “I altered her spell so that, in addition to listening to what goes on around me, she can see it as well. Celestia altered Star Swirl’s spell, and added some of her magic, so he and Dad can also see it.”

“W-when did the two of you do this?!” Artemis asked, shocked

“While you were doing . . . whatever you were doing . . . this morning.” She responded, turning back to the dresses.

“I-I see” He said

Sundance laughed even harder while Twilight took a closer look at the dresses, muttering something about time, fabric and other materials.

A few minutes later, she pulled some bits out of her saddlebags and set them on the desk. “That should be enough to cover the dresses and a tip for the extra hours she put in to get them done so quickly.” She looked from him to the dresses and back. “Why did you ask her to make me heavy winter dresses? I assume they’re for our trip, but the Crystal Heart protects the Crystal Empire from the winter weather.”

What are you talking about? Sundance asked, surprised

Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you see it. Twilight answered

Thank you Sundance responded

“I’d like to show you something,” Artemis answered “but we’ll need to travel outside of the Crystal Heart’s protection to get to it.” After a moment, he continued “If I let you leave the Crystal Heart’s protection without some other kind of protection . . . I’m not sure who will try to kill me first.”

Twilight giggled “It’ll be between Celestia, Cadance, Shiny, Mom or Dad. Normally, my parents wouldn’t try to hurt an alicorn but . . .”

Artemis laughed “They wouldn’t be able to harm me, but the attempt wouldn’t be pleasant. As for Celestia, Cadance and your brother . . . I don’t have a death wish.”

Sundance began to laugh again, very hard

“What do you want to show me?” Twilight asked, curious

“You’ll see” he replied

“A-alright . . .” After a moment, she shrugged, carefully folded the dresses and put them back in her saddlebags. She took her lesson plans out and set them on his desk. Then she chose a few books and placed them in the other side.

Walking closer, he lifted his bag in his magic and nuzzled her. “We should get to the dining room.”

Nodding, she levitated her saddlebags onto her back before teleporting them there.

Celestia, Velvet, Night Light and Spike looked up at a flash of Twilight’s magic.

“Mom! Dad!” Twilight said, surprised “I thought we were meeting in front of the castle after lunch.” Calling two different ponies Mom, especially in the same conversation, is going to be weird. I hope I don’t get the two of you mixed up.

Sundance laughed I’m sure you’ll be fine.

Velvet and Night Light laughed, walking forward to nuzzle their daughter.

“We didn’t want to wait that long to see you.” Velvet answered “Come on, eat your lunch. We can’t have you going hungry.”

As if she wasn’t constantly trying to shove food into me before I got pregnant. Twilight commented

That’s just something mothers do, Twilight. Sundance replied If Twilight Velvet didn’t say something, I would have.

Great Twilight remarked I get to hear it from inside and out.

Sundance laughed harder, but said nothing.

Twilight sat down at the dining room table and began to eat the applesauce in front of her.

“Why aren’t you eating a more substantial meal?” Night Light asked, worried

Since Twilight was eating, Artemis answered the question. “Unfortunately, morning sickness starts early in alicorn pregnancies. Apple Crunch’s homemade applesauce is one of the few things that she’s able to keep in her stomach.”

Velvet hugged her daughter “I didn’t know you were going through that already! You must be starving!”

Apple Crunch, who had just walked into the room with a couple of sandwiches and a salad for Artemis, immediately looked offended.

Twilight laughed “Don’t worry, Mom. Here in Canterlot, Apple Crunch makes sure I have something to eat. In Ponyville, Applejack makes me food.”

Apple Crunch smiled “Here's your lunch, Prince Artemis.”

Artemis returned the smile “Thank you”

Apple Crunch pulled a plate off of his back and set it in front of Twilight.

Twilight looked from the apple muffin to Apple Crunch and back. “This looks like Applejack and Granny Smith’s new recipe.”

“Yes, princess” He replied, smiling “Two days ago, Miss Applejack sent me the recipe and a letter telling me that it’s something you can keep in your stomach.”

I have to thank her when we get back. Twilight smiled at Apple Crunch before eating the muffin.

After everypony had eaten their lunches, they walked to the side entrance to the castle. There, they found a covered chariot waiting for them. This one was decorated with the Cutie Marks of all three alicorns. Velvet, Night Light and Spike climbed inside before turning to Celestia, Artemis and Twilight.

“Aren’t you coming?” Velvet asked, watching Celestia summon a yellow bag and levitate it into the chariot.

Shaking her head, Twilight cast a locking spell on her saddlebags and levitated them in as well. “Not yet, Mom. There are a couple of things we have to take care of before we leave.”

Night Light tilted his head “Like what?”

“We have to ensure everypony leaves the castle so we can close it.” Artemis replied, also casting a locking spell on his bag before levitating it into the chariot.

“After we close the castle, we have to deal with a few of the nobles.” Celestia continued “We’ll meet you at the castle’s main entrance. Stay in the chariot, please.”

Velvet, Night Light and Spike were clearly confused, but nodded. “Yes, princess”

Once they were sure that everypony had left the castle, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight walked out the main entrance. In front of them, just off to the right, the chariot was waiting for them. Velvet, Night Light and Spike could be seen looking out the window. A small group of nobles, including Golden Flash, stood off to the left.

Turning to face the castle, all three of them lit their horns. As soon as Twilight cast her force field, Celestia and Artemis added their magic to her spell. Working together, they made sure that the force field was the same size and shape as the castle before Twilight embedded the spell into the exterior walls and password locked it.

W-wow Sundance stammered It was one thing to sense what you did, but seeing it is something else entirely. You’ve created a very impressive defense.

Thanks, Mom Twilight replied

With the castle secured, they turned to the nobles. Seeing their shocked expressions, Artemis smiled. “It seems that you didn’t believe us when we said that we were going to close the castle.”

Celestia smiled as well “This measure is to ensure that all of you spend time with your families. We will reopen the castle when we return.”

Unable to do anything, most of the nobles bowed and went home. Unsurprisingly, Golden Flash didn’t leave. Instead, he walked closer.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight turned to face him. This time, they stood so that Twilight was in between Celestia and Artemis. Golden Flash stopped a respectful distance away and bowed. “Good afternoon, your highnesses.”

“Good afternoon.” They replied

Seeing the expression on his face, Celestia hid a smile. “Come closer, please.”

Artemis nodded “We’d like to speak with you.”

In the stars, Midnight Armor briefly brightened “You’re right, Sundance. Twilight’s force field is an impressive defense.”

Star Swirl briefly brightened “Didn’t you say that she created her force field because she can’t cast her brother’s most powerful shield?”

Sundance briefly brightened as well “That’s what she told me.”

Midnight Armor flickered, shaking his head in wonder. “If finding out that she can’t do something produces that kind of result . . . we need to find more things that she’s unable to do.”

Sundance and Star Swirl laughed before turning their attention to what was going on around Twilight.

“Here he comes.” Sundance commented

Hearing that, Midnight Armor focused on what was going on in Canterlot.

In Canterlot, Golden Flash replied “Yes, your highnesses” and walked closer. They must want to talk about what you did last night, ancestor.

You’re probably right. Golden Thunder agreed I know they’re aware of what I tried to do . . . I wonder what they’re going to say about it.

Golden Flash stopped a couple of feet in front of the alicorns and bowed again. “What would you like to discuss?”

“I’m sure you already know.” Artemis replied, narrowing his eyes

Golden Flash’s voice suddenly sounded different. “You wish to discuss my actions then?”

Aware of who she was talking to, Celestia narrowed her eyes as well. “That’s right, Golden Thunder.”

“You have no way of punishing me, Princess Celestia.” Golden Thunder replied “Additionally, I made sure that Golden Flash had no involvement. That means you can’t punish him either.”

The nerve of that stallion! Sundance remarked, furious I can’t believe we were dumb enough to trust him! She paused when Golden Thunder continued.

“I may not know who stopped me, or how they did it, but . . .”

Maybe I can get him to figure out the first part on his own . . . Twilight commented

How do you plan to do that? Sundance asked, curious

He heard my laughter last night . . . Twilight answered slowly

Instantly understanding what her youngest was thinking, Sundance laughed. Great idea!

This should be fun. Twilight replied, giggling

Forgetting what he was about to say, Golden Thunder froze. T-that sounds like . . . “I-it can’t be” He stammered

It looks like it worked. Laughing at his expression, Twilight asked “Are you sure about that?”

Sundance said something, but she was laughing so hard that Twilight couldn’t tell what it was.

Certain now, and more than a little afraid, Golden Thunder’s eyes widened. “P-princess, you . . .”

“That’s right.” Twilight replied “I’m the one who stopped you.”

T-that’s impossible! For several minutes, Golden Thunder just stared at her. Eventually, he asked “H-how?!”

Twilight smiled “I have no intention of telling you that.” Lowering her voice, she continued. “However, I will tell you this . . . Those souls are under my protection. If you want them, you’ll have to get past me.”

“I will get those souls, Princess Twilight Sparkle.” Golden Thunder promised, narrowing his eyes. “I have many other techniques at my disposal.”

Sundance was still laughing, but had calmed down enough that Twilight could understand her. Thank you for confirming that you still want our souls, Golden Thunder.

I think the events of last night were proof enough. You’re right though, it’s nice to hear him confirm it. Smiling wider, Twilight replied “So do I.”

Not expecting that response, Golden Thunder just stared at her. Before he could think of a response, he heard something else he didn’t expect. Surprised, he looked at Celestia to find her laughing. W-what could she possibly find so funny?

“Perhaps I should tell you what my little sister’s capable of.” Celestia began “There are only two ponies that have faced Night-Terror Knight in single combat and survived. Myself and Twilight.” She waited a moment before continuing. “The first time Twilight fought him, she was a unicorn.”

Golden Thunder’s eyes became the size of dinner plates.

Celestia nodded “The second was a few weeks ago, so she was obviously an alicorn. He sent a bolt of darkness at her, but she dispelled it with a barrier. After that, she simply restrained him until he did as she asked.”

Golden Thunder’s jaw dropped “W-what?!”

Artemis chuckled “If you still intend to take Mother and Father’s souls . . . Not only do you have to deal with Celestia and I, you also have to find a way to get past Twilight. With the three of us working together . . .” He smiled “I wish you luck.”

Golden Thunder’s mouth moved, but no words came out.

Mother should be involved in this. Hopefully, Celestia and Twilight will play along. Artemis nuzzled Twilight “Has Mother contacted you again?”

What? Sundance asked, confused He knows the answer to that.

It’s alright, Mom. I see what he’s trying to do. Smiling, Twilight nodded “I heard from her a couple of hours ago. She thanked me for protecting them last night.”

Good idea, Artemis! Celestia smiled as well “What about now?”

Twilight giggled “She said something a few minutes ago, but she was laughing too hard for me to tell what it was.”

Golden Thunder glared “S-she dares to laugh at me?!”

Sundance began to laugh I see what the three of you are doing. As for his question, I have no problem laughing at him. I just wish I could do it to his face.

“Hold on” Twilight said, twitching an ear “I hear her voice again.”

Great idea, Twilight! Sundance told her, still laughing Please tell him “Once again, our children have foiled your plan.”

Struggling not to laugh, Twilight turned her attention back to Golden Thunder. “Sundance asked me to give you a message.”

Celestia and Artemis turned to her. This should be good.

Golden Thunder’s eyes widened “Y-yes, princess?”

I’m going to act like I don’t know what’s going on and I’m just passing the message. Twilight told their mother

Good idea Sundance responded

“I’m not sure what she’s talking about,” Twilight replied “but her message is as follows. “Once again, our children have foiled your plan.””

Celestia and Artemis smiled

For a moment, Golden Thunder’s eyes widened further before he glared at all three of them. “That’s one of the last things she said to me before I died . . . The very last thing she said was that I’d never rule Equestria.”

Good Sundance remarked I’m glad he remembers.

Keeping up the act, Twilight raised an eyebrow. “I see.”

Celestia turned back to Golden Thunder. “Mother’s right.”

Artemis nodded “We have no intention of allowing you to take the throne.”

Still glaring, Golden Thunder opened his mouth. Before he could say anything, Celestia spoke up.

“We should get going.” She turned towards the carriage. After taking a couple of steps, she paused and looked over her shoulder. “Make sure you enjoy your Holiday, Golden Thunder. After all, you haven’t had one in fifteen hundred years.”

Surprised, and thoroughly confused, Golden Thunder stared at her. W-was she always like this?! Eventually, he said “Y-yes, Princess Celestia, thank you.”

Barely able to keep their faces straight, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight walked to the chariot and climbed inside. The guards spread their wings and took off, pulling the chariot into the sky.

In the stars, all three of them were laughing so hard that it was several minutes before they were able to calm down enough to speak.

“T-that was great!” Sundance giggled

Still laughing, Midnight Armor brightened considerably “T-the look on his face when she . . .!”

Also laughing, Star Swirl commented “I love how Princess Twilight made him suspect that she’s the one who stopped him before confirming his suspicions! D-did you see how scared he was?”

Laughing harder, Sundance and Midnight Armor just briefly brightened.

“T-then Celestia told him a little of what Twilight’s done!” Midnight Armor managed to say “H-his e-expression . . .!” He was unable to finish his sentence because he’d begun to laugh again.

“A-and then Artemis said . . .” Sundance began, only to stop because she was laughing too hard to say anything else.

“T-then they . . .” Star Swirl paused, trying to calm down a little before continuing “They purposely involved you, Sundance!”

“I love the way they did that!” Midnight Armor brightened “W-what you told Twilight to tell him was brilliant! H-his reaction . . .!”

“T-then Celestia . . .” Sundance laughed harder “S-she told him to enjoy himself!”

“H-his expression . . .!” Star Swirl laughed “H-he had no idea what was going on!”

Eventually, they calmed down and returned their attention to what was going on around Twilight.

In Canterlot, Golden Thunder watched the chariot go off into the distance in stunned silence. Then he allowed Golden Flash to regain control of his body and turned his attention to the castle. They must be trying to keep me away from the throne. No matter. Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis have obviously forgotten that their father taught me how to disable barriers.

He examined the spell. T-this isn’t a barrier . . . What kind of defense is this?!

Noticing that there wasn’t another pony in sight, Golden Flash didn’t bother keeping his reply silent. “It’s Princess Twilight’s force field.” After a moment, he elaborated. “It’s also the spell she used to restrain Night-Terror Knight. He couldn’t break it, so I’m certain that we won’t be able to.”

I hate to admit it, but I’m impressed. Golden Thunder commented Princess Twilight Sparkle may be young, but she’s turning out to be a formidable opponent. It will be an immense honor to defeat her.

He sighed After last night, I was hoping to do this the easy way. Unfortunately, it seems Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis were expecting me to try that. Additionally, it seems that they do remember that their father taught me how to disable barriers. Why else would they have chosen to defend their castle in a way that I’ve never seen before?

We can’t get into the castle, so we’ll just have to wait for them to return.

“In that case,” Golden Flash replied “we should go home.”

In the chariot, as soon as the door closed behind them, Celestia cast a soundproofing spell. Then she, Artemis and Twilight fell to the floor laughing. Velvet, Night Light and Spike looked at each other in confusion.

Eventually, Velvet asked “W-what was that about?”

Still laughing, Twilight just shook her head. When they’d finally stopped laughing, Celestia and Artemis stood and moved to the seats across from Velvet, Night Light and Spike.

Twilight was about to join them, but found herself caught in a levitation spell. Surprised, she looked at Night Light. “Dad?”

Smiling, he placed his daughter between himself and his wife. “You’re sitting with us.”

Velvet nuzzled her daughter “Your father’s right. Besides, you’re going to tell me what that was about.”

“He’s involved in something that we don’t like.” Twilight replied

“What did he do?” Velvet asked

Wincing slightly, Twilight responded “I can’t answer that.”

Velvet narrowed her eyes “Twilight Sparkle, you will not keep secrets from your mother!”

“I-” Twilight began Great. Somepony else who can play the “Mother Card”. To make matters worse, she’s not afraid to use it.

Sundance laughed

How am I going to get out of answering her question? Twilight asked

Before Sundance could answer, Celestia laughed.

“I’m sorry, Velvet, but the “Mother Card” won’t help you this time.” She smiled when saw Velvet’s expression. “My authority surpasses yours, and I say we’re not telling anyone yet.”

I believe Celestia just answered your question. Sundance remarked

Artemis decided to answer Velvet’s next question before she could ask. “We’re going to be explaining several things to Cadance and Shining Armor, and the three of you, tonight. To avoid repeating ourselves, we’re going to tell all of you at the same time.”

A few minutes later, Velvet responded “I understand” I’m not waiting that long. If she wants to play the “Authority” card . . . Well, I just need to wait a little longer.

Three and a half hours later, the chariot landed in front of the castle in the Crystal Empire. One of the Crystal Guards walked over and opened the door.

“Please leave your things in the chariot, your highnesses.” He requested “Princess Cadance instructed us to bring them to your rooms.”

Night Light raised an eyebrow “Usually, we do that ourselves because Cadance gives us time to rest from the trip.”

Smiling, the guard shook his head “She, Prince Shining Armor and Princess Flurry Heart have been eagerly awaiting your arrival.” Turning to Artemis and Twilight, his smile widened. “Quite a few others have as well.”

Before any of them could ask, he turned to the crowd gathered in front of the castle. “Your highnesses, and ponies of the Crystal Empire, I would like present Celestia, Princess of the Day; Artemis, Prince of the Night, Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship and Spike, Savior of the Crystal Empire! Accompanying them are Twilight Velvet and Night Light Sparkle!”

As he spoke, they exited the chariot, in the order that he said their names. They were surprised when they were greeted with a thunderous cheer. Before they could say anything, they heard a shout.

“Auntie Twily!”

Turning towards the voice, Twilight saw Flurry Heart flying towards her.

She’s adorable! Sundance exclaimed, watching Flurry land on Twilight’s back before nuzzling her.

Flurry turned to Celestia and Artemis “Auntie Tia! Uncle Art!” As she said each name, she jumped onto the appropriate pony’s back and nuzzled them.

Sundance laughed, watching Celestia and Artemis smile and return her nuzzles. Tia and Art?

Twilight laughed as well. Flurry can’t say Celestia and Artemis yet, so that’s what she calls them. She can say Twilight but, because Shiny and Cadance call me Twily, she thinks that’s my name.

Sundance laughed harder I guess that makes sense. How old is she?

Two years old Twilight replied

Smiling, Cadance and Shining Armor walked up to them.

“Is she being too rambunctious?” Cadance asked, watching her daughter move onto Velvet and Night Light.

Celestia laughed as Spike jumped onto Velvet’s back so he could give Flurry a hug. “Not at all.” Smiling mischievously, she nudged her brother with a wing. “Besides, these two need to get used to it.”

Sundance laughed Celestia has a point.

“That reminds me,” Shining Armor began, nuzzling his sister “we didn’t tell the Crystal Ponies yet.”

Twilight and Artemis glanced at each other, confused, before turning back to him.

“You said you were going to tell them.” Twilight pointed out

Cadance laughed “Yes, that’s what we planned to do. However, after talking about it, we decided that it would be better for the two of you to tell them.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow “What have you told them so far?”

Shining Armor laughed “Everything else. As for the big news, we just told them that the two of you have a big announcement to make.”

“Speaking of which . . .” Cadance turned to the crowd “Crystal Ponies! I’m sure you remember that Twilight and Uncle Artemis have an announcement to make.” She paused, allowing the crowd to cheer. “Should we let them rest first, or do you want to hear it now?”

The crowd shouted “NOW!”

Turning to her big sister, Twilight hissed “You could have warned us!”

Laughing, Cadance gently pushed Twilight forward while Shining Armor did the same to Artemis.

Glancing over her shoulder, Twilight muttered “You must really want that pillow fight to have a second round.”

Cadance’s eyes widened. “M-maybe I should tell them.” She squeaked, glad the crowd couldn’t hear her.

“It’s too late for that.” Artemis quietly told her “The Crystal Ponies are expecting us to tell them.” He smirked at his niece “Twilight’s right, though. We will get you for this.”

What’s a pillow fight? Sundance asked And why does having one scare her?

I’ll show you what happened in a few minutes, Mom. Twilight replied

Artemis kissed Twilight before turning to the crowd. “In less than a year’s time, Equestria will be celebrating the birth of a Royal Foal.”

After a moment of stunned silence, there was another thunderous cheer, quickly followed by a wave of power.

Surprised, Twilight and Artemis looked down at their “crystal” appearances before turning to Shining Armor and Cadance.

“Were you expecting them to do that?” Artemis asked

Equally surprised, Cadance and Shining Armor shook their heads. “We knew they’d be happy, but we weren’t expecting this.”

A-are you alright?! Sundance demanded What in Equestria just happened?!

I’m fine, Mom. Twilight replied As for what just happened, the Crystal Ponies are so happy that they activated the Crystal Heart.

The wave of power you just saw won’t hurt us, but it’s able to repel their enemies. In fact, that’s how we defeated Sombra.

In the stars, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl were too shocked to say anything. Instead, they watched the Crystal Ponies celebrate.

“W-what can possibly do that?!” Sundance eventually stammered

Midnight Armor flickered “I-I’m not sure . . . I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“They seemed more surprised that it happened, than what happened.” Star Swirl commented “Is this normal?!”

In the Crystal Empire, Sundance did the only thing she could think of. She repeated Star Swirl’s question. Is this normal?!

Twilight thought for a moment Yes and no. They don’t normally do this, but it isn’t unusual.

Clearly confused, Sundance replied I-I see . . .

Turning to Cadance, Twilight commented “I see the Crystal Heart still works.”

Shining Armor laughed “Thanks to you, Artemis and Princess Celestia.”

W-what does he mean by that? Sundance asked

I’m sure Celestia and Artemis had magic surges when they were foals. Twilight answered

Surprised, Sundance replied Of course they did. What does that have to do with this?

Flurry had them too. Twilight responded One of them happened when she was crying, so her cries produced a shockwave. Unfortunately, we were standing next to the Crystal Heart when it happened . . . and she shattered it.

Sundance gasped What?!

Celestia and Artemis fought off the winter weather as long as they could while Cadance and I searched the library for a spell to repair it. Twilight continued Then we worked together to fix it.

In fact, that’s where Shiny and Cadance got her name. After a moment, Twilight elaborated Flurry for the snow and Heart because of the Crystal Heart.

Shocked, Sundance stammered W-wow.

Celestia addressed the crowd. “I’m glad you’re happy about the upcoming addition to the Royal Family. However, it’s been a long trip and we’d like to get some rest.” Hearing several groans, she smiled “Don’t worry, we’re going to be here for a week.”

That got another cheer before the crowd began to disperse.

Artemis sighed in relief before nuzzling Celestia. “Thank you, sister.”

Cadance, Shining Armor, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Velvet, Night Light and Spike walked into the Crystal Castle. Flurry Heart was sitting on Twilight’s back. Once they were inside, they were shown to their rooms and given time to relax.

Twilight and Artemis sighed in relief when a pair of Crystal Guards closed the door behind them. Looking around the room, they saw Twilight’s saddlebags sitting on the bed. Artemis’ bag had been placed on a nightstand.

Ignoring her bags, she climbed onto the bed and lay down. “I can’t believe Cadance did that.”

Artemis joined her, pulled her close and covered her with a wing. “It’s not the fact that we had to make the announcement that I find annoying. I don’t like the way she did it.” He shook his head “I thought we told her that we don’t like being manipulated.”

She frowned “We did, right after we relentlessly pummeled her with a few dozen pillows.” Turning her attention to their mother, Twilight showed her the memory of what Cadance had done. I’m sure you can guess what happened next.

I have a pretty good idea. Sundance agreed, giggling When did this happen?

The day after the dream in which I met you and Dad. Twilight replied Cadance wanted to make sure I got pregnant, so she took matters into her own hooves. At the time, we didn’t know that I was already pregnant.

I see. After thinking for a moment, Sundance asked And the pillow fight?

A fight in which pillows are used as the weapons. Twilight showed their mother what she and Artemis had done.

Artemis nuzzled Twilight “What are you two talking about?”

Their mother was busy laughing, so Twilight answered his question. “I showed her what Cadance did to deserve the pillow fight and the fight itself.”

Eyes wide, he stammered “P-please tell me that you didn’t show her . . .”

Opening a wing, she smacked him in the side with it. “Of course not!”

Sundance laughed much harder

“I’m glad you find that funny, Mom.” Twilight commented

Somehow, Sundance managed to reply. Y-your father and Star Swirl are laughing harder than I am. Then she went back to laughing.

Twilight buried her face into Artemis’ shoulder. “Great”

He nuzzled her “What’s going on?”

“Mom, Dad and Star Swirl find that very funny.” She told him “Apparently, all three of them are busy laughing.”

Groaning, Artemis covered his face with a pillow.

Of course, this made Sundance laugh even harder. In fact, it was a few minutes before she was able to say anything. I know you didn’t mean it that way, but thank you.

“Umm, you’re welcome?” Twilight awkwardly replied

Artemis allowed the pillow to fall off his face so he could look at Twilight. “I assume Mother thanked you.”

She nodded

He shook his head “I’m not sure what to say to that . . .”

They looked up when they heard a knock on the door. Twilight used her magic to open it, revealing Celestia.

“May I come in?” she asked

Twilight nodded, while Artemis replied “Of course”

As Celestia walked into the room, Twilight and Artemis saw Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry Heart, Velvet, Night Light and Spike in the hallway. Worried, they glanced at each other before turning to Celestia.

“Is something wrong, sister?” Artemis asked

Since only Twilight and Artemis could see her face, Celestia rolled her eyes before shaking her head. “It seems that your mother is using the fact that we’re no longer in Equestria to go over my head, Twilight.”

Confused, Twilight just said “Huh?”

Celestia sighed “I’m not sure exactly what she told Cadance and Shining Armor, but they’re asking us to explain everything now.”

Twilight turned to her mother “Mom, we’ll tell all of you tonight.”

Velvet narrowed her eyes “Why can’t you tell us now?”

Artemis narrowed his eyes as well “We have our reasons, Velvet.”

Seeing her mother’s expression, Twilight explained “If you must know, here are two of our reasons. One, that conversation is going to be a long one, so we want to eat dinner first. Two, that topic isn’t appropriate for little ears. Instead of forcing Flurry to stay in another room, we’re going to wait until after she goes to bed.” I can’t tell her this, but the main reason I want to wait until nighttime is that I don’t want Mom to hear what we tell everyone. We’re going to have to provide some background information so that everyone understands what we’re talking about. Mom and Dad don’t need to relive . . . that . . . again.

Touched, Sundance replied T-thank you

Twilight had to stop herself from jumping. Fearing that she’d offended their mother, she began to apologize. I-I forgot that you can hear my thoughts, Mom . . . I-

It’s alright. Sundance replied, stopping her youngest before she could get any further into the apology. I appreciate the fact that you’ve taken that into consideration.

“Flurry can stay with a couple of guards.” Velvet replied, shaking her head “I saw the expressions on your faces when you were talking to Golden Flash. We need to know what’s going on.”

Celestia turned to Velvet “We’ll tell you when we’re ready.”

“My apologies, Princess Celestia.” Velvet began, bowing “Rest assured, I have no intention of asking you, or Artemis, to explain anything until you’re ready. However, my daughter will tell me what’s going on. And she’ll do so now.”

Unable to stop the tears of anger from coming into her eyes, Twilight glared at her mother. S-she just doesn’t listen!

Noticing Twilight’s tears, Artemis tightened his wing around her before sending Velvet a reproachful look.

Velvet was unmoved “Come with me, Twilight.”

Hearing that, Artemis lost his temper. He used his magic to close and lock the door.

In the hallway, everyone looked up to see a sentence, written in Artemis’ magic, in the air above their heads.

We’ll tell everyone tonight, Velvet.

They stared at his magic in surprise.

Several minutes later, Night Light turned to his wife. “I told you that was a bad idea.”

Velvet turned to him “This is serious, Night Light! You heard the rumors!”

“Yes,” he agreed “but our daughter promised to tell us what’s going on. She also told us when she would do so. You should have waited.”

Cadance looked from one to the other, clearly upset. “What are you talking about? You didn’t give me much to go on.”

“She’s right, Mom.” Shining Armor agreed, angry that he’d been forced to watch as his sister was pushed to tears. “You told us that they were having an argument with a noble. That’s disturbing because of what happened with Blueblood but . . .”

“It doesn’t justify what you just did.” Cadance finished “You may be my mother-in-law, but I’m in charge here. Please explain yourself.”

“We were out shopping,” Velvet began “when we were approached by a noble named Golden Flash.”

“We live in his district,” Night Light continued “so it’s not unusual for him to approach us. However, his request was very unusual.”

“What was his request?” Shining Armor asked, slightly concerned

“He demanded that we, and every other unicorn in the store, give him some of our magic.” Velvet replied “He said that he had plans for our magic and that it was for a “Great Cause”.”

Cadance’s eyebrows rose “I can’t imagine Aunt Celestia authorizing that.”

Night Light nodded “That’s exactly what I told him. As soon as I did, he left.”

Shining Armor tilted his head “What does that have to do with rumors?”

“After he left,” Velvet answered “one of the pegasi in the store told us that he was doing that in every store in the shopping district.”

Night Light continued “She also told us that he’d been bragging about having brought a soul back from the dead.”

Cadance gasped “W-what?!”

Watching his daughter play with a ball, Shining Armor commented “I'm sure Twilight plans to tell us what’s going on.”

Also looking at her daughter, Cadance nodded “If that’s what they’re going to tell us, it’s not a conversation that I want my daughter listening to. In fact, that’s probably why Twilight wants us to put Flurry to bed first.” Seeing Velvet’s expression, she raised an eyebrow. “Do you really think the guards are capable of stopping an alicorn, even a foal?”

Not giving his mother a chance to answer, Shining Armor shook his head “She just teleports away from them.” He chuckled “Usually onto one of our backs.”

Giggling, Cadance nodded again. When she finished laughing, she gave Velvet a look. “You need to apologize to Twilight.”

Velvet bowed her head “I-I didn’t mean to push her so far, but she wouldn’t answer my question.”

“She, Uncle Artemis and Aunt Celestia said that they’ll tell us what’s going on once Flurry falls asleep.” Cadance responded “Her bedtime is in a few hours. Why couldn’t you wait until then?”

“I-” she began

“It doesn’t matter.” Shining Armor snapped, interrupting his mother “You should have waited, Mother.”

Velvet gasped H-he only calls me that when he’s really angry with me.

Noticing the same thing, Night Light turned to his wife. “He’s right to be angry. You went way too far, Velvet.”

In Twilight and Artemis’ room, Artemis and Twilight looked at each other. Turning to Celestia, they watched as she walked closer to the bed.

“I’m sorry, Twilight.” She said

Taking a deep breath, Twilight shook her head. “It’s alright. You probably didn’t know what she was going to do.” She glared at the door “She’s always like that! When she gets an idea in her head, it doesn’t matter what anypony says!”

Turning to Artemis, she said “You once told me that your mother has more determination than mine but, after meeting both, I’m not so sure. Now you see why.” Shaking her head again, she continued “In fact, we should just declare them even in that category.”

Perhaps it’s because I know both sides of the situation, Sundance began but I probably would have waited. After all, your request is reasonable and you gave her a couple good reasons.

Twilight relayed the message while Celestia climbed into their bed and lay next to Artemis. Then she reached over to nuzzle her sister.

For the next half hour, they simply relaxed before looking up when somepony knocked on the door. Glancing at Artemis, Twilight called out “Who is it?”

“It’s Cadance. Can I come in, please?”

Sighing, Artemis opened the door with his magic.

Cadance smiled “Thank you, Uncle Artemis.” She walked into the room and closed the door behind her before turning to them. “I’m sorry, Twilight. Velvet told Shiny and I that she’d seen you arguing with a noble named Golden Flash. With Blueblood’s recent actions, that worried us.”

That’s understandable. Sundance commented

Nodding, Twilight waited for her to continue.

Cadance suddenly looked worried “After Uncle Artemis closed the door, your parents told us that Golden Flash had asked them, and several other unicorns, to give him some of their magic.”

Celestia sat up “What?!”

Shocked, Sundance echoed her oldest What?!

Nodding, Cadance continued “Apparently, he’s also been telling ponies that he’s brought a soul back from the dead. That’s why Velvet’s worried.” Seeing their expressions, she shook her head. “I’m not expecting an answer yet, I just wanted to explain Velvet’s actions.”

Turning back to the door, she glanced over her shoulder. “Dinner will be ready in about thirty minutes.” She looked at Twilight “If you’re pregnancy’s anything like mine was, you’re already experiencing morning sickness.”

Making a face, Twilight nodded

Giggling at her sister’s expression, Cadance continued “For the first month and a half, the only things I could eat had to be made with carrots." She tilted her head "Well, I was also able to eat apples. Anyway, I told the chefs to keep that in mind when making your food.”

She dealt with that for a month and a half?! Sundance asked in disbelief A-and I thought I had it bad . . .

Twilight sighed in relief “Thanks, Cadance”

Artemis tilted his head “We know about apples, but never thought to try carrots.”

“If carrots don’t work, we’ll stick to apples.” Cadance replied “I’ll let the chefs know.” Walking out of the room, she closed the door behind her.

In the stars, they looked at each other for a few minutes.

Midnight Armor finally said “I understand why Twilight Velvet’s worried but . . .”

“Agreed” Sundance replied “She shouldn’t have done that.”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “We’ve accepted Twilight as one of our children, so I’m aware that our opinion may be biased. Regardless, our children told Twilight Velvet that they would explain the situation to everypony tonight. They even gave her a couple of valid reasons why they wanted to wait.”

“I know we forced Twilight to tell us what she thought the reason behind Artemis’ actions was.” Sundance began “The difference is, Artemis wasn’t going to tell anypony and it was causing problems between him and Celestia.”

“On one hoof,” Star Swirl began “knowing what she’s heard, I don’t blame her for being worried. On the other, she’s way too impatient. I highly doubt Princess Twilight wasn’t planning to inform her parents . . . well, her biological parents . . . about at least some of what’s going on.”

“I'd like to switch to a slightly different topic.” Midnight Armor remarked “It’s very considerate of Twilight to wait until tonight before telling everyone what happened.”

“You’re right, Midnight” Sundance replied, sighing in relief “I definitely don’t want to relive those events right now.”

“I don’t either.” Midnight Armor replied, flickering “I know we're the ones who brought it up the other night, but I don’t even want to think about those events for another century or two.”

In the Crystal Empire, half an hour had passed, so Celestia teleported herself and her siblings to the dining room. They found everypony waiting for them.

Cadance sat at the head of the table, Shining Armor sat to the left of his wife, and Flurry’s high chair had been placed on his other side. Celestia sat on Cadance’s right and Artemis sat next to his sister. Twilight sat on his other side, with Spike sitting next to her. Velvet and Night Light sat on the other side of the table, next to Flurry.

Flurry jumped out of her high chair, flew across the table and hovered in front of Twilight. “Auntie Twily, drink this! It’s yummy!” She used her magic to hold the straw of an unmarked juice box in front of Twilight’s mouth.

“Um . . .” Twilight began, glancing at Cadance. After her big sister mouthed “Carrot Juice”, she took a cautious sip. When it showed no sign of coming back up, she sighed in relief. “You’re right, Flurry, that is yummy.”

Nuzzling Twilight, Flurry set the box in front of her. “It’s for you!” Then she flew back to her high chair.

That’s sweet, Sundance remarked she’s trying to help you. Celestia used to do the same to me. She was six years old at the time, but still.

Smiling at her niece, Twilight finished the box. “Thank you, Flurry” She looked up when a plate of sautéed carrots was placed in front of her.

The chef, a Pegasus mare, smiled “This was one of Princess Cadance’s favorites.” She giggled “In fact, that may be why Princess Flurry Heart loves carrots so much. Still, I’d rather have her beg the chefs for carrots and carrot juice than candy or cake.”

Also giggling, Twilight replied “That explains the boxed carrot juice.” After a few bites, it was clear that it would stay down. Sighing in relief, she looked at the chef “Thank you . . . I’m sorry, what’s your name?”

The mare bowed “My name is Cinnamon Spice, princess.” Satisfied that everypony had something to eat, she went back to the kitchen to prepare dessert.

When everyone had eaten, rubies for Spike and vegetable lasagna for the other ponies, Cinnamon Spice came back into the dining room with a large red velvet cake and a couple of bowls.

After setting the cake on the table, she turned to Twilight. “I’ve made fresh applesauce with a little cinnamon in it for you, princess. It was another of Princess Cadance’s pregnancy favorites.”

“Me too?” Flurry asked “Please?”

Cinnamon Spice raised an eyebrow “Don’t you want a big slice of cake, princess?”

Shaking her head, Flurry shouted “Applesauce!”

Everyone, including Sundance, laughed. Cinnamon Spice had clearly been expecting that because she placed one bowl of applesauce in front of Twilight and another in front of Flurry.

“Yay!” Flurry squealed, picking up a spoon in her magic. “Thank you!”

After everyone had finished their food, Flurry Heart said good night before Shining Armor took her to her room for bed. While they waited for him to return, Celestia lowered the sun before Artemis rose the moon and stars.

Then Cadance led everyone to a large living room. There were several couches, chairs and cushions scattered around the room.

Twilight, Celestia and Artemis chose a cushion that was large enough for the three of them to share and lay down. Once she was settled, Celestia summoned her bag from her room and set it on the floor next to her.

Velvet and Night Light chose a nearby loveseat. Velvet opened her mouth but, after receiving a look from Cadance, Night Light and Spike, decided not to say anything.

Cadance sat on another loveseat, across from Velvet and Night Light, and waited for her husband. Spike sat on a large, comfortable armchair.

After Shining Armor walked into the room, and sat next to his wife, Celestia cast a soundproofing spell.

“This is classified information." Celestia turned to Velvet and Night Light "To be honest, at first, we were only going to tell Cadance, Shining Armor and Spike. There's only one reason I'm allowing the two of you to listen to this . . . I don't want you pressing my little sister for information, Velvet. Do Not tell anyone about what we're about to tell you.” She looked at everyone individually. “Do I make myself clear?”

Everyone responded with either “Yes, princess” and “Yes, Aunt Celestia”.

Satisfied, Celestia opened her bag. Levitating a book to Shining Armor, she said “Please read this aloud.”

He raised an eyebrow, but did as she asked. When he'd finished, he closed the book. “I’ve read this book before, princess. Isn’t it a fictional story about a battle that . . .?” He stopped when he saw the expressions, and tears, on the faces of Celestia and Artemis.

“No, Shiny” Twilight said softly “That battle really happened. The alicorns whose souls were ripped from their bodies are Celestia and Artemis’ parents.”

Horrified, everyone gasped “What?!”

Nodding, Twilight continued in a louder voice “The pony with the title of “Advisor to the Crown” was a unicorn named Golden Thunder, and he really did die during that battle. However, before he did, he invented a spell called the Spirit Reanimation spell. His descendant, Golden Flash, recently restored that spell.”

Taking a deep breath, she continued “On Friday afternoon, Golden Flash brought Golden Thunder’s soul back from the Realm of the Dead.”

Cadance hesitantly spoke up “I’ve seen that spell. If it was restored, Golden Thunder should have his body.”

“You’re right” Twilight replied “However, when I realized that the spell can’t be countered, I created a spell to stop it. By chance, I walked into the throne room as Golden Thunder’s soul formed. Knowing that I had to act fast, I cast my spell and sent a message to Artemis. Celestia teleported both of them to the throne room in time to help me power it. As a result, we managed to stop his body from forming. That’s why he’s here as a soul.” She paused “His soul is currently in Golden Flash’s body.”

“I-I see.” Cadance replied

Using a wing, Celestia wiped the tears from her eyes. “We believe that Golden Thunder wants Mother and Father’s souls so he can steal their immortality for himself.”

“W-wants?” Velvet hesitantly asked “I-if they died, don’t you mean “wanted”?”

“No, Velvet” Artemis answered, also wiping tears from his eyes “Mother and Father’s bodies died, but their souls are still alive. In order to stop the Chimera Anima from eating their souls, I placed them in my Night Sky as stars.”

Eyes wide, Night Light stammered “I-incredible” Turning to his daughter, he remarked “You don’t seem surprised.”

“I’m not.” She replied “I’ve already met them.”

“R-really?!” Velvet asked, eyes going wide

Nodding, Artemis looked out the window “Do you see the three stars to the right of the moon?”

Everyone followed his gaze. “Yes”

“The top two are Mother and Father.” He continued “The bottom one is a close friend of Celestia and myself . . . You know him as Star Swirl the Bearded.” He laughed softly when they gasped in surprise. “When they build up enough magic, Mother and Father are able to visit me in my dreams for a single night.” He paused “You know I can Dream Walk, right?”

Everyone nodded

“In addition to entering the dreams of others, I can also bring ponies into my dreams.” He explained. Seeing their expressions, he shrugged “The last time Mother and Father visited, I brought Twilight into my dream.”

Velvet and Night Light stared at their daughter

Twilight raised an eyebrow “Artemis met you, so it’s only fair that I got to meet his parents.”

“B-but” Velvet stammered

Twilight shrugged “They’re really nice ponies.”

Over the next couple of hours, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight explained some of what they knew about Golden Thunder’s plan, both past and present.

When they were done, Velvet turned to Celestia. “That doesn’t explain what we saw today.”

Celestia turned to her “Last night, Golden Thunder tried to pull Mother and Father’s souls to him. He doesn’t know it, but his attempt almost removed their souls from their stars. It took all three of us to stop him.” Magic shouldn’t mind if we tell them that, because we’re not going to give any details.

Everyone gasped in horror

Twilight picked up where Celestia left off. “As for what you saw today . . . We were confronting Golden Thunder about what he did last night.” Seeing Velvet’s expression, she gave her mother a look. “You’re right. There’s more to what happened, but I can’t tell you.”

Still hoping to get an answer, Velvet turned to Celestia and Artemis. Both of them shook their heads.

“Only Mother, Father, Artemis, Twilight and I know what she’s talking about.” Celestia told her “For now, it’s going to stay that way.”

Velvet looked at Cadance and Shining Armor. They shook their heads as well.

“Aunt Celestia, Uncle Artemis and Twilight don’t say that lightly." Cadance began "I may not know what secrets they’re keeping, but I have no intention of making them reveal them. Instead, I’ll help where I can and wait until they're ready.”

“As will I.” Shining Armor turned to Twilight “This is important, so I have no problem with you using our library for your research. As long as you make time for us, I won’t complain.”

“Thank you, Shiny.” Twilight replied, smiling at him

Velvet sighed in resignation. “I guess my baby girl has grown up.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow “I thought defeating Night, and saving my soul, would have told you that.”

Celestia laughed “Or defeating Discord, the Ursa Minor, finding the Crystal Heart, finishing Star Swirl’s final spell, earning her ascension, defeating Tirek, Night again and Blaze.”

Everyone laughed when Twilight blushed and buried her face into Artemis’ shoulder.

When she’d finished laughing, Celestia continued “Those aren’t things that a foal is capable of, Velvet.” She suddenly smiled “Then there’s the fact that she’s pregnant. Last time I checked, foals can’t do that either.”

Velvet opened her mouth, closed it again, and shook her head. Finally, she sighed again “You’re right. I’m sorry, Twilight. I’ll try not to treat you like a filly anymore.”

Everyone laughed

“Artemis,” Spike began, clearly nervous “is it alright if I ask about what happened in the library a couple of days ago?”

Artemis smiled “Its fine, Spike.” Turning to everyone else, he explained “Several hundred years ago, Celestia created a spell to give Mother and Father’s stars more magic because she wanted them to visit her dream.”

Celestia nuzzled her brother before looking at everyone else. “At the time, Artemis was still on the moon, and I wanted to talk to our parents. The spell worked once but, because I’m not affiliated with the Night, my brother’s stars resisted me after that.”

Picking up where his sister left off, Artemis continued “We’ve agreed to allow Mother and Father to help us come up with a plan to stop Golden Thunder. After Celestia and Twilight give me some of their magic, I cast the spell Celestia created so I can give that magic to our parents. That gives them enough to speak to me in my dreams.” He shrugged “Then it’s simply a matter of bringing Celestia and Twilight into my dream so Mother and Father can speak to all three of us.”

Twilight nodded “We tell them what we’ve discovered, and what’s going on around us, so they can help us.” She looked around at everyone in the room. “Once we have a plan for stopping Golden Thunder, and sending his soul back where it belongs, we’ll let everyone know.”

Shining Armor raised an eyebrow “I hope you’re not planning to do this by yourselves.”

Artemis shook his head “We’re just coming up with the plan by ourselves.” Seeing their expressions, he explained “It’s not that we don’t trust you, it’s just that having too many ponies involved in this stage isn’t a good idea.”

Celestia nodded “If Golden Thunder discovers our plan before we’re ready, he could find a way to stop us. We can’t take that chance.”

“That makes sense.” Cadance commented thoughtfully

Celestia nodded “Once we’re ready, we’ll need the help of everyone here . . .”

“And my friends” Twilight added

“. . . To stop Golden Thunder once and for all.” Celestia finished, nuzzling Twilight. After a moment, she turned to Twilight’s parents. “Cadance told us what you told her before dinner. You’re correct, Night Light, I did not authorize Golden Flash to collect magic from other ponies.”

“I didn’t think so.” He replied “I may not know you as well as Twilight does, but I do know that you’ve never asked for our magic.”

“Nor would I ever do something like that.” Celestia responded, shaking her head “I have more than enough magic for whatever I need to accomplish. On the off chance that I need more, I can use the power of the sun.” She paused “When we return to Equestria, we’ll be discussing this with Golden Flash and Golden Thunder.”

Velvet glanced at her husband before turning to Celestia. “Is there any way we can help?”

Celestia was about to say “No”, but Twilight spoke up.

“Yes” She answered “When you see or hear things like that, please tell us. The sooner you do so, the faster we can do something about it.”

Artemis looked at Twilight “How will they do that without making Golden Thunder suspicious? Golden Flash is almost always in court.”

“There’s nothing strange about parents visiting their pregnant daughter.” Twilight replied, smiling “Mom and Dad can visit me after class is over for the day and tell me what’s going on.”

“That’s a great idea, Twilight!” Cadance squealed, giggling so hard that she had to lean into Shining Armor’s side.

Artemis grinned “Cadance is right. Because you’re not involved in court, Golden Flash might not even know they’re in the castle. If he does see them . . . well, it’s not exactly a secret that they’re your parents. That means he shouldn’t suspect anything if he sees them bringing you snacks or baby things.” He paused “In fact, as long as they don’t overdo it, that will give them an excuse to be out and about in Canterlot.”

Smiling, Celestia nuzzled her little sister. “Artemis is right.” She turned to Velvet and Night Light. “Make sure that he doesn’t figure out what you’re doing, you don’t discuss anything in public and . . . do not, under any circumstances, confront him yourselves.” She gave both of them stern looks. “I know you want to help, but I won’t allow you to put yourselves in unnecessary danger.”

Smiling, Velvet and Night Light replied “Yes, Princess Celestia”

Twilight was about to say something but, as soon as she opened her mouth, a yawn came out instead. “Sorry, it’s been a long day.”

Silently thanking Twilight for giving her the perfect excuse to end the conversation, Celestia nodded. “Telling everyone what happened has taken much longer than I thought.” she commented “We need to get some sleep.”

Horn glowing, Artemis smiled at everyone “We’ll see you in the morning.” That said, he cast a teleportation spell, bringing himself and Twilight to their room.

Celestia teleported to her room as well, bringing her bag and the book with her. Everyone else said their goodnight’s before also heading to bed.

In their room, Artemis and Twilight walked to the bed. Twilight levitated her saddlebags to the floor while she climbed into bed and got under the covers.

Yawning, Artemis joined her. Neither of them said anything because they were both asleep within minutes.

The next morning, Artemis woke to the pull of the moon. Not bothering to move, he checked on the stars of their parents. Satisfied that both of them were safe, he lowered the moon and the stars. Then he nuzzled Twilight, chuckling when she grumbled something and turned her face into his chest to avoid the sunlight.

A few minutes later, Sundance said Good morning, Twilight. She giggled when all she got in return was a sleepy mumble.

It was a few more minutes before Twilight was able to respond coherently. Good morning, Mom. Before Sundance could ask, she continued. They know some, but not all, of what happened. Oh yeah, I know why Mom was acting like that.

Curious, Sundance asked Do you mind if I ask what the reason is?

She didn’t like the fact that her little filly’s keeping secrets from her. Twilight answered

You may be young, Sundance remarked but you’re hardly a “little filly”.

Rolling over, Twilight replied Mom seems to have finally realized that. Her exact words were “I guess my baby girl has grown up.”

After a moment, Sundance thoughtfully replied I went through the same thing with Celestia and Artemis, so I understand what she’s going through. Still, it’s not possible for a foal to have done any of the things that you’ve accomplished . . . that should have been a hint.

Twilight laughed Celestia and Artemis told her the same thing.

Sundance laughed as well. Well, you were a foal when you hatched Spike. After a minute, she thoughtfully continued. I’m still not sure how you were able to do that.

Laughing harder, Twilight stood and stretched. Then she moved over, so Artemis could roll out of bed and do the same. Folding his wings, he said “Good morning, Twilight. Good morning, Mother.”

Good morning, Artemis Sundance replied

Giggling, Twilight relayed the message before turning at a knock on the door. Opening it with her magic, she smiled when she saw Celestia.

“Good morning, Artemis and Twilight.” She began, smiling at them. Glancing around, and seeing no one else, she added “Good morning, Mother”

Sundance laughed Good morning, Celestia

Walking forward, Twilight nuzzled her big sister. “Mom says “Good morning”.”

Smiling, Celestia returned her nuzzle. “What do you want to do today?”

“I thought we’d be in the library.” Artemis commented, joining them as they walked into the hall.

Twilight nodded “We will, but there’s something I want to do first.”

“What’s that?” Celestia asked

“I promised Mom that I’d make sure she saw the Crystal Heart.” Twilight replied “I’d like to do it before I get wrapped up in research and forget.”

“Ah” Celestia replied “Good idea”

Artemis nodded “That makes sense. The Crystal Heart hadn’t been created yet when they . . . well, you know. I’m sure Mother and Father are curious.”

That’s an understatement, Sundance stated especially after seeing what it did yesterday.

They arrived in the dining room to find Cinnamon Spice waiting for them. Surprised, they looked at each other before turning back to her.

Seeing this, she laughed “I know that at least two of you rise with the sun, so I was prepared.”

Giggling, Twilight told her “It’s not that they rise with the sun, it’s that Celestia raises the sun after Artemis lowers the moon.”

Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Cinnamon Spice laughed

“I stand corrected” Cinnamon Spice commented “Regardless, I have breakfast ready for you. Waffles for Princess Celestia, an extra-large cheese and spinach omelet for Prince Artemis and apple oatmeal pancakes for Princess Twilight.” Seeing Twilight’s expression, she smiled “I’m aware that you might not be able to hold them down, princess. If you can’t, I have applesauce on standby.”

Twilight sighed in relief “Thank you”

The three of them sat in the same seats they had sat at the night before and began to eat. Unfortunately, not even five minutes later, Twilight teleported out of the room.

“I think I know where she went.” Artemis began, horn glowing “I’ll go help her.” Not waiting for a response, he teleported out of the room as well.

Cinnamon Spice gathered Twilight’s breakfast and took it back to the kitchen. A few minutes later, she returned with a bowl of applesauce. “I see that, like Princess Cadance, she’s having a rough time.”

Celestia sighed “You don’t know the half of it.”

“That’s alright,” Cinnamon Spice replied “Princess Cadance warned us about this, so we were expecting it.”

Chapter 55

Artemis’ teleportation spell put him in the middle of the room he shared with Twilight. Walking into the attached bathroom, he turned left and saw Twilight with her head in the toilet. I was right. This is where she went, and that’s what she’s doing. Sighing, he walked over and sat next to her. Instead of saying anything, he gently rubbed her back.

Twilight lifted her head in surprise when she felt a hoof on her back. Seeing that it was Artemis, she sighed in relief and leaned into his side. Using her magic, she wiped her mouth and flushed the toilet. “Thanks, Artemis.” I’m sorry, Mom. I’m sure that wasn’t pleasant for you to see or hear.

It’s alright. Sundance replied, giggling softly I went through the same thing during both of my pregnancies, remember? After Twilight sighed in relief, she continued. If you don’t mind, I’d like to ask a question.

Raising an eyebrow, Twilight responded What’s the question?

What are you sitting next to? Sundance asked

For a moment, Twilight just stared at the toilet. Eventually, she slowly replied Right . . . toilets weren’t around back then. It was invented to deal with bodily waste. Once a pony is finished . . . doing their business, they push the lever there and water carries it away.

That certainly sounds better than what we used to use. Sundance commented, clearly impressed Are they common?

Yes Twilight answered Toilets have been around for a few hundred years.

Before Sundance could respond, Artemis nuzzled Twilight “I’m sorry to interrupt, but we need to get back to the dining room.” When she nodded, he teleported them there.

Celestia and Cinnamon Spice looked up at a flash of Artemis’ magic to see them standing next to the table.

Twilight ate the applesauce in front of her while Artemis ate the rest of his omelet. When they’d finished their food, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight headed for the door. There, Celestia paused and looked back.

“If anyone asks, we’re going to take a walk. After that, we’ll head to the library.”

Cinnamon Spice bowed “I’ll tell Princess Cadance. She and Prince Shining Armor should be getting up soon, if they aren’t awake already.” She giggled “Princess Flurry Heart likes to teleport into their room when she wakes up.”

After a moment of stunned silence, Sundance asked She can teleport at her age?!

She’s been able to do that for two years. Twilight replied

But you said she’s only two! Sundance exclaimed

That’s right. Twilight confirmed She’s been able to do it all along. I know that nopony taught her to teleport. Instead, she seems to do it instinctively.

I-incredible! Sundance stammered

That’s why I wanted to wait until she fell asleep before explaining things last night. Twilight explained Even if we’d left her with a couple of guards, she would have simply teleported onto one of our backs.

After a moment, Sundance responded I see

Celestia giggled as well and nudged Twilight “That's something else you two will probably get to experience.”

“Huh?” Twilight asked, looking at her

“I can’t imagine that the foal of the Bearer of the Element of Magic wouldn’t be able to wield magic.” Celestia explained, her giggles turning to laughter “If I recall correctly, you learned to teleport on the first try. Any son or daughter of yours will probably be the same.”

Twilight rolled her eyes “I never thought being good at magic would be a bad thing.”

Everypony, including Sundance, laughed

A few minutes later, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight walked out of the Crystal Castle. The first thing they did was head for the Crystal Heart. When they got close enough to see it, Sundance gasped.

T-that’s the Crystal Heart?

Since there wasn’t anypony else around, Twilight didn’t see a point in keeping her reply silent. She walked closer, allowing their parents and Star Swirl to get a good look. “Yes”

I-incredible. Sundance commented, focusing her senses on it. It looks like it’s carved out of a single piece of crystal. Additionally, I sense that several powerful spells have been cast on it . . . It appears that those spells allow it to channel the power of the Crystal Ponies, and amplify it, before using it to protect the Crystal Empire. The Crystal Ponies probably use their happiness, or love, to power the Heart. It also seems that they can activate it when they’re feeling large amounts of either emotion. If so, that would explain what happened yesterday.

“We know that it’s made from a single piece of crystal,” Twilight replied “but we’re not sure what spells were cast on it. We haven’t tried to test it because we don’t want to risk breaking it.”

Artemis shuddered “We know what happens when it isn’t working and it’s not something we’d like to experience again.”

Shuddering as well, Celestia said “You’re right, Artemis.” Looking around, she smiled at a few ponies who were beginning their day before turning to her siblings. “We should head to the library.”

Artemis and Twilight nodded before the three of them turned back to the castle.

A couple of minutes later, they walked into the library and were greeted by an elderly earth pony mare. “Good morning, your highnesses. I apologize, but the library is a bit messy right now because we’re re-shelving all of the books. Unfortunately, with a library this large, it takes about a week.”

Instantly knowing what Twilight was going to do, Celestia and Artemis began to laugh. None of them noticed Cadance and Shining Armor standing in the doorway, looking on in confusion.

The librarian looked at Celestia and Artemis, but Artemis just nodded to Twilight. Confused, she turned to Twilight. “May I ask what’s going on, princess?”

I’d also like to know the answer to that. Sundance commented, curious

Twilight smiled “You know that I’m also a librarian, right?”

The elderly mare nodded “Yes, princess. That doesn’t explain why they’re laughing though . . .”

Twilight’s smile widened “It’ll be easier if I just show you. May I?”

“Of course, princess” The mare responded

Twilight moved to the middle of the first floor of library and cast her re-shelving spell.

Every book in the library was suddenly surrounded with her magic and floated into the air. Most of them were returned to their shelves while some were put in different places. Several stacks of books were lying in seemingly random places around the library. These books also rose into the air, and were sorted, before being put in their proper places. After another flash of her magic, a few dozen books floated off the shelves and stacked themselves neatly on the table next to her.

Twilight turned back to her fellow librarian and, seeing her stunned expression, shrugged. “I had the same problem in my library.”

I . . . Sundance stammered Y-you just . . .

Pretending to check the title of one of the books on the table, Twilight asked Are you alright, Mom?

Sundance somehow managed to get out an understandable sentence. T-that had to be a few hundred books!

Hiding a blush, Twilight responded Actually, I think this library has a little over a thousand . . .

A thousand?! Sundance repeated, in disbelief H-how did you do that?!

Twilight blinked . . . I cast my spell.

In the stars, the three of them stared at the library around Celestia, Artemis and Twilight.

Eventually, Sundance stammered “S-she just . . . a thousand books . . .!”

“. . . L-like it was nothing!” Midnight Armor finished

Flickering, Star Swirl slowly said “A-and she doesn’t understand why everypony around her is surprised?!” After thinking for a moment, he commented “It looked like Celestia and Artemis knew she was going to do that.”

“Y-you’re right . . .” Sundance slowly replied “H-has she done this before?!”

In the Crystal Empire, Sundance commented Celestia and Artemis didn’t seem surprised by what you just did . . .

Twilight had to stop herself from shrugging. They saw me do it in the library in Canterlot Castle last week, so they probably knew that I’d do it here as well.

I-I see Sundance slowly responded

I need to find some unicorns who work in the library. Twilight said, looking around If there are enough of them, I’ll teach them my spell so they can do that themselves.

Glancing around her youngest, Sundance said. Five of them are walking up behind you.

That should be enough. Thanks, Mom Twilight replied, turning towards them “If you’d like, I can teach you my spell. However, with so many books in this library, you’ll have to cast it together.”

Stopping a few feet in front of her, the five of them bowed “Yes, princess. Thank you.”

Everypony looked on while Twilight taught them her spell. Smiling, the unicorns bowed and thanked her again before returning to work.

“A-amazing”

Twilight turned to see Shining Armor walking towards her.

“That was incredible, Twily.” Shining Armor continued “When did you learn to do that?”

Twilight shrugged “I created that spell because Spike was having the same problem in my library.”

Shining Armor stared at her “Y-you created that spell?”

She nodded. After a moment, she looked around “Where’s Flurry?”

“With Mom and Dad.” He replied, laughing “Mom said something about needing to spend time with her granddaughter before she grew up as well.”

Sundance laughed as well

Cadance walked forward, stopped next to her husband and glanced at him. Both of them nodded.

Confused, Twilight looked at Celestia and Artemis. Shrugging, the three of them turned back to Cadance.

“Twily,” Cadance began, using a very familiar tone of voice “before you start your research, will you do me a favor?”

Twilight raised an eyebrow I hate when she uses that tone.

What do you mean? Sundance asked

Twilight showed their mother an image of herself and Cadance.

You were both so cute! Sundance exclaimed, giggling When was this?

I was seven years old and, at the time, Cadance was my foal-sitter. Twilight replied She always used that tone when she wanted me to do something she knew I wouldn’t like.

Something about what Twilight said caught Sundance’s attention. For a moment, she had no idea what or why. Suddenly understanding what it was, and wanting to make sure her suspicions were correct, she slowly stated. You were foal sat by one alicorn, taught by another, fought a third, and saved the soul of a fourth . . . before becoming one yourself?!

Surprised, Twilight thought for a moment. I never thought about it that way, but I guess so.

T-that’s incredible! Sundance stammered

Thanks, I think. Twilight turned her attention to Cadance “What is it, Cadance?”

Cadance pouted “You’re not going to say yes?”

“You used that tone on me when I was little.” Twilight reminded her “I’m not agreeing to anything until I know what you want.”

Cadance giggled “Fair enough” Summoning a book and a scroll, she levitated both of them over to Twilight.

Curious, Twilight took them in her magic “What are they?”

“We’re not sure.” Cadance replied “The archivists have been taking everything they can find that’s written in the ancient crystal language and translating it into the current written language. That’s when they found these. They couldn’t figure out what language they’re written in, so they brought them to me. I’m relatively sure that both are written in Equestria’s ancient written language.”

Seeing their expressions, she continued. “From what little I was able to read, I believe they’re somewhere between one and two thousand years old. Aunt Celestia and Uncle Artemis should be able to read them, but you’ve got more experience with translating ancient texts.” She leaned closer to Twilight. “Please?”

Sighing, Twilight nodded and took a closer look at the book. “Let’s see what we have here.” After translating the front cover, her eyebrows shot up.

Seeing this, Cadance, Shining Armor, Celestia and Artemis asked. “What’s wrong?”

“The title is Crystals and Souls, and the author is Golden Thunder.” Twilight quietly replied

Celestia and Artemis gasped “What?”

Cadance gasped “I-isn’t that the pony who-”

Unsurprisingly, Sundance was furious. That’s what Golden Thunder did when we sent we sent him here?!

Hiding a wince, Twilight quickly replied “Yes, Cadance” M-mom, please, not so loud. I-I hear your voice inside my head, remember?

Realizing how loud she’d shouted, Sundance gasped and lowered her voice. I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to hurt you!

I-it’s alright. Twilight replied I understand why you reacted that way and I’m sure my ears will stop ringing soon. “Before I translate the book, let's see what’s on the scroll.”

Carefully watching Twilight, Celestia asked “Is that what I think it is?” Her eyes widened when her little sister wordlessly levitated the scroll over to her. Taking it in her magic, she held it so Artemis could read it as well. A few seconds later, both of them gasped. “This is the second scroll, isn’t it?”

Twilight nodded “I’ll translate the book . . .”

“and we’ll work on the scroll.” Artemis finished

Confused, Cadance glanced at her husband before asking “Second scroll?”

Sitting at the table, Twilight glanced at them. “It looks like this scroll is the second in a set. We have the first scroll in the library in Canterlot. If we’re right, the second one may hold important information about the spells Golden Thunder used to . . . well, you know.”

Shining Armor looked uncomfortable “I-I see” Glancing at his wife, he remarked “I’m not sure if we should say “you’re welcome” or “we’re sorry”.”

Celestia gave him a sad smile. “It’s true that this brings back unpleasant memories for Artemis and myself, but we need this information so we can form an effective plan.”

“Celestia’s right” Artemis took a deep breath before continuing. “It’s also true that we failed to achieve our goal fifteen hundred years ago, but we won’t let it happen again.”

Celestia nodded “Golden Thunder will not be allowed to kill anymore members of our family.”

After a moment of stunned silence, Sundance whispered Celestia . . . Artemis . . .

In the stars, Sundance and Midnight Armor turned to each other.

After a couple of minutes, Sundance shakily asked “W-what have we done?”

His star dimming, Midnight Armor quietly answered “W-we didn’t believe our children. Celestia and Artemis knew about Golden Thunder’s plan, and tried to warn us, but . . .”

“We refused to trust the only two ponies we should have . . . our children.” Sundance finished softly. After a moment, she spoke again “I-it should have ended when we, and Golden Thunder, died but . . .”

“Golden Flash brought Golden Thunder’s soul back from the Realm of the Dead.” Midnight Armor continued “Unfortunately, Golden Thunder seems to have picked up where he left off . . . planning to use our souls for . . .” He trailed off, unwilling to finish his sentence.

“Even though we died, we were able to protect our children.” Sundance responded “This time, we can’t do anything but watch our children deal with whatever he does.”

His star dimmed even further “As if Celestia, Artemis and Twilight didn’t have enough to worry about, Golden Thunder vowed to bring our souls to him. We have no choice but to rely on our children to protect us, when it should be the other way around.”

“Y-you’re right.” Sundance’s voice began to shake again “Artemis and Celestia must use their combined magic to keep our souls anchored to our stars. As for Twilight, her connection to the Element of Magic means that she’s the only one capable of stopping Golden Thunder’s spells.”

Believing that it wasn’t appropriate for him to enter their conversation, Star Swirl turned his attention to what was going on in the Crystal Empire.

In the Crystal Empire, Cadance and Shining Armor sighed in relief. “We have other matters to attend to, so we’ll be back in a couple of hours.” Seeing that Celestia, Artemis and Twilight were already reading, they shook their heads and walked towards the door. Stopping at the door, they quietly told the head librarian to ensure that Celestia, Artemis and Twilight were given things to write on and with, as well as some privacy.

A few minutes later, several librarians walked over with writing materials. They gave Artemis and Celestia several blank scrolls, quills and ink. Then they gave Twilight a few blank books, several quills and ink. Without a word, they got to work.

It didn’t take Celestia and Artemis long to translate the scroll. Once they were done, they quietly discussed the spells they’d found.

“Twilight and Mother were right.” Celestia said softly “This spell slightly alters the composition of a crystal, allowing it to store more magic.”

“The second spell is unusual.” Artemis whispered, clearly confused “This type field of magic is pointless because it doesn’t do anything. However, the spell has a second part.” He pointed with a hoof. “I’ve never seen a spell structured this way before.”

Looking at the part Artemis was pointing at, Celestia quietly replied. “I see why you’re confused. Spells aren’t structured this way anymore but, while it wasn’t common, some ponies did do it back then. In fact, the only ones who did so were the historians and high court officials.”

Seeing his expression, she explained “It was a way to link two separate spells together so they could be cast as one. In this case, Golden Thunder linked his field of magic spell with a powerful trapping spell. The strange part is that I’ve never seen this kind of trapping spell before. The spell itself is very powerful, but produces a trap that’s too weak to hold a pony in it.”

“Perhaps it’s not supposed to trap ponies.” Artemis said thoughtfully

Celestia blinked “What do you mean?”

Glancing at her, Artemis answered “He wanted to trap souls, remember? The trap produced by this spell may be weak, but it’s strong enough to do that.”

“You’re right . . .” Celestia slowly responded “And with the two spells combined . . .”

Twilight, Sundance began would you allow me to see those spells, please?

Concerned by their mother’s tone, Twilight lifted her head a little. Are you alright?

Knowing that she wouldn’t be able to fool her youngest, Sundance didn’t bother lying. No. Before Twilight could say anything, Sundance continued. Don’t worry. You didn’t do anything wrong and there isn’t anything you can do about it.

What’s wrong? Twilight asked

When Sundance stayed silent for a couple of minutes, Twilight raised an eyebrow. I’m not going to stop until you tell me what’s bothering you.

Exasperated, Sundance raised her voice slightly. Twilight, I said-

Equally annoyed, Twilight cut their mother off. I know what you said, Mom. Even though I can’t do anything about what’s upsetting you, I can do something about you.

. . . What? Sundance asked, confused

I can’t believe I have to explain this. Twilight commented You’re upset. I’m not going to let you stay that way. The best way I can help you is to listen to what’s bothering you.

Sundance was too surprised to say anything.

Twilight continued Now that we’ve cleared that up, I'm going to ask my question again. What’s wrong?

Aware of how tenacious her daughter could be, and not in the mood for an argument, Sundance reluctantly replied. Very well. A few minutes ago, your father and I were talking . . . She took a moment to gather her thoughts. I-if we’d listened to Celestia and Artemis, we could have dealt with this fifteen hundred years ago. Additionally, we probably wouldn’t have died. More importantly, this wouldn’t be happening now because . . .

Until this point, Twilight had been listening quietly. However, not wanting to let their mother to get any further down that line of thought, she interrupted. Alright, I’ve heard enough.

Shocked, Sundance forgot what she was about to say. W-what?!

Twilight tried to think of the best way to say what she had in mind. Not coming up with anything, she decided to just say it. Yes, you and Dad should have listened to Celestia and Artemis. It’s also true that, if you had listened to them, the two of you might have survived. Might, being the key word. If his first attempt failed, and he survived the consequences, Golden Thunder probably would have come up with a different plan and tried again.

Sundance was speechless

With her mother still in shock, Twilight continued. As for what’s going on now, it’s not your fault. There’s no way that either of you could have predicted that one of Golden Thunder’s descendants would restore and cast a spell that you didn’t even know existed.

Twilight waited a moment before saying the last part. I’m sure you and Dad would prefer to deal with Golden Thunder yourselves. That may not be possible, but it doesn’t mean you can’t do anything. Help us create a plan so we can stop him.

In the stars, Sundance and Midnight Armor were too stunned to speak.

However, Star Swirl wasn’t. “She’s right” He remarked

Surprised, both of them turned to him, asking the same question. “W-what?”

“I agree with everything Princess Twilight said.” Star Swirl responded

Before Sundance or Midnight Armor could say anything, Star Swirl continued. “Focusing on the past, and blaming yourselves for what happened, won’t accomplish anything. As for relying on them to protect your souls . . . you’re right, you don’t have a choice. If they weren’t protecting you, we know where both of you would be right now.”

Midnight Armor tried to say something “I-”

Wanting to make sure his point was heard, Star Swirl spoke over Midnight Armor. “Both of you need to understand this . . . Celestia, Artemis and Princess Twilight don’t have to protect either of you. They’re doing so because they want to.”

Seeing his point, Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped.

Star Swirl briefly brightened before continuing. “Instead of finding ways to blame yourselves, you should do as Princess Twilight asked and help them.”

In the Crystal Empire, Twilight had just finished telling Celestia and Artemis about the conversation she’d had with their mother. As soon as they heard the topic, both of them had given her their undivided attention. When she finished, they looked at each other for a few minutes before turning back to her.

“Thank you for telling us about this, Twilight.” Celestia said “Speaking to Mother like that was rather rude, but I’m glad you did it.”

“Agreed” Artemis added, sighing “Having gone through it myself, I understand why Mother and Father feel that way. However, allowing them to stay focused on the past, and blame themselves, isn’t going to solve anything.”

Sundance was about to say something, but paused when she saw the expressions on the faces of her children. Concerned, she decided to listen to what they were saying.

“We were already going to have them help us create the plan,” Artemis continued “but we should also give Mother and Father something a little more positive to focus on.”

Twilight chewed on her lip, staring at the book in front of her. Suddenly, she laughed softly.

Not sure why her youngest was laughing, Sundance kept quiet and just listened.

Celestia glanced at Artemis before turning to her. “Did Mother say something funny?”

“Even if she had said something, she’s not in the mood for jokes.” Twilight replied, shaking her head “I was just thinking that Mom and I should continue what we started.”

Celestia tilted her head “What are you talking about?”

“She told me that her spell can be used for two weeks at a time.” Twilight replied “That means, when we get back to Canterlot, we’ll have almost a week left. I think we should use some of that time to confuse Golden Thunder a bit more.”

“Good idea” Celestia commented, giggling “It’s certainly been fun, and useful, so far.”

Remembering how they’d worked together to confuse Golden Thunder, Sundance barely managed to keep herself from laughing.

“What about while we’re here?” Artemis asked

“Mom wants to look at those spells.” Twilight answered “She’ll need to read the original scroll because I doubt she knows how to read the current written language.”

Nodding, Celestia levitated it over to Twilight.

“When she’s done reading the scroll, we’ll work on the book.” Twilight continued “I’ll ask her to read it aloud. While she’s doing that, I’ll write what she says in the current written language.” She shrugged “After that, I was planning to continue my research. She may be able to help me figure out where whatever I find fits into what we already know.”

“That’s not a bad idea,” Celestia began “but it might bring back unpleasant memories for her. Then we’d be back to square one . . .”

“You’re right . . .” Twilight chewed her lip for a moment before looking back up at Celestia. “I have another idea,” she smiled “and it’s a much better topic for her to focus on.”

Understanding what her sister had in mind, Celestia giggled. “That’s perfect.”

Artemis looked from one to the other. “What am I missing?”

Sundance found herself wondering the same thing.

“I wasn’t kidding when I said that I want to get to know her.” Twilight answered “Hearing her voice in my head is an unusual way to do that, but I’m not complaining.”

Laughing softly, Artemis and Celestia turned their attention back to the spells they’d just translated.

Unable to remain silent any longer, Sundance quietly said. T-thank you

Startled, Twilight jumped M-mom?! H-how much did you hear?

Most of what the three of you just said. Sundance replied I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want to interrupt your discussion.

Afraid that she’d angered their mother, Twilight waited for her to say something. When she didn’t, Twilight cautiously asked. Y-you’re not mad?

Why would I be angry with you? Sundance asked

I- Twilight began, stopping when their mother giggled.

Told Celestia and Artemis what I said? Sundance finished, pausing until Twilight nodded. I didn’t tell you not to tell them, so there’s nothing wrong with that. Besides, you were right. Your father and I were too busy focusing on the past, and blaming ourselves for what happened, to realize that there are ways that we can help.

Not sure what to say, Twilight chose the safest option. She didn’t say anything. After a moment, she pulled the scroll closer and placed it next to the book. Here’s that scroll . . .

Thank you Sundance replied

While their mother read the scroll, Twilight pulled two of the blank books to her and began transferring the translated information onto the covers. She’d decided to create two copies of the translated version of the book, one for the Crystal Empire and one for Equestria. A few minutes later, she heard their mother’s voice. Just in case a librarian looked in on them, she moved the scroll in front of her and looked at it.

Interesting. Sundance commented The first spell really does increase the amount of magic a crystal is capable of storing. In fact, crystal with this spell cast on it is capable of storing, and channeling, a nearly unlimited amount of magic. However, the crystal has to be incredibly pure. If it has anything more than a slight impurity, the crystal will shatter.

As far as the second spell is concerned . . . The field of magic created by the first part is useless on its own, but the second part changes that. The trapping spell that he linked to it can’t hold living ponies but, because Golden Thunder was trying to trap souls, that actually makes sense.

This is strange. . . Golden Thunder built so many reinforcements into his trapping spell that it almost looks like . . . Yes, it’s designed to trap the soul of an alicorn.

Reading the second spell again, Sundance reluctantly admitted I’m impressed. He managed to create a trap that’s impossible for a soul, even Midnight and I, to break out of.

Reading the spell herself, Twilight commented “Not necessarily. There are one, no two, ponies who can break out of that trap.”

Hearing her, Celestia and Artemis looked up. Like their mother, they waited for her to continue.

Unaware of this, Twilight reread the spell. “We have bodies to protect our souls, so this spell can’t trap us.” After thinking for a moment, she continued. “Hypothetically speaking, let’s say that Golden Thunder somehow managed to remove our souls from our bodies. Celestia and I would still be able to break out of the trap created by this spell.”

Sundance tried to figure out how her daughters would be able to accomplish that. Unable to think of anything, she asked. How would the two of you be able to do that?

“Am I right in thinking that your specialty, like mine, is magic?” Twilight asked

Yes Sundance answered, clearly confused What does that have to do with anything?

“In the short time since I’ve met you, you’ve done several things that a “dead” pony shouldn’t be capable of.” Twilight responded “This means that, even as a soul, you can still use your special talent.”

Not sure where her youngest was going with this, Sundance replied. That’s right.

That didn’t surprise Twilight, but it did make her think of something slightly off topic. “Dad’s barrier’s really powerful.” She remarked, tilting her head. “If I had to guess, I’d say that his specialty is defense.” She paused thoughtfully “Actually, maybe not. Some of the things I’ve seen, and heard, lead me to believe that it might be combat in general.”

Yes Sundance confirmed His specialty is warfare. I’m sure that seems strange to you, but that’s just because things are peaceful now. Trust me, his skills were essential back then.

“Is that why he was to one to give Celestia and Artemis their combat training?” Twilight asked, curious

Yes Sundance replied. After a moment, she elaborated. Even though his specialty is warfare, he prefers to focus on defense. That’s how he was able to create his most powerful barriers. In fact, I’ve never met anypony else who can cast them. Knowing what Twilight's next question was going probably going to be, she said. He hasn’t had to do so in centuries, but your father can use his specialty as well.

“Then, theoretically, we’d be able to do the same.” Twilight responded “Celestia can use the power of the sun to burn the magic out of objects, and I can use the Element of Magic to overwhelm the magic embedded in objects. That means we’d be able to break out of that trapping spell, even from the inside.”

I see Sundance slowly replied. Neither of those was possible when Golden Thunder created this spell. Celestia didn’t gain the ability to use the power of the sun until she earned her Soul Mark. As for the Element of Magic, at the time, nopony had ever used it.

Twilight tilted her head “Anypony can stop that spell from the outside because all they’d have to do is find, and shatter, the crystal that's being used to power the spell.” She paused thoughtfully “Once that happens, Golden Thunder will run into a rather large problem. In order to keep the field of magic going, and any souls trapped inside, the spell will require several unicorns to continuously pour power into it.”

Sundance began to laugh I’m sure that spell is crucial to his plan to trap our souls. Golden Thunder probably has no idea that we know about it, let alone have a few ways to stop it. If so, he’ll probably try to use it.

When it appeared that Twilight had finished speaking, Artemis turned to Celestia. “She’s right. Remember how she used Magic’s power to overwhelm the magic draining spell embedded in that rope? As for you, over the centuries, you’ve used the sun’s power to burn the magic out of several things.”

“Yes, but I’ve never tried to do that with a crystal.” Celestia said thoughtfully “Even so, I don’t see why I can’t do it.”

Startled, Twilight looked at them “I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt-”

“It’s alright.” Celestia nuzzled her little sister. “You’ve given me an idea.” Suddenly, she laughed “If I’m right, and he tries to use that spell around me, he’ll be in for a big surprise.”

Sundance laughed harder I’m sure she already has a theory and plans to test it very soon. Knowing her, she’ll have her technique refined within a few days.

That sounds like her. Twilight agreed

Giggling, Sundance said Let’s get started on that book.

Nodding, Twilight opened it to the first page. Wow, this script is small. Who was he expecting to read this?!

After reading the first few lines, Twilight tilted her head in confusion. Closing the book, she lifted it and looked at both covers. Not seeing anything useful, she opened it again. This time, to a random page in the middle. Seeing what was written there confused her even more. A few moments later, something occurred to her. I wonder . . .

Curious, Sundance waited for her youngest to continue. When her daughter stayed silent, she asked What’s on your mind?

Startled, Twilight jumped N-nothing. I’m probably wrong, anyway.

As soon as she heard that, Sundance began to laugh.

In the stars, Sundance and Midnight Armor were both laughing.

Star Swirl’s star flashed, showing his confusion “What’s so funny?”

A couple of minutes later, they calmed enough to answer his question.

“S-she said that twice last week.” Sundance began, giggling

“The first was when she figured out the reason behind Artemis’ actions.” Midnight Armor continued, chuckling

Still giggling, Sundance finished “and the second was when she decided to look into Golden Thunder’s actions. She didn’t want to tell us what she was researching because she thought she was going to be wrong.”

“I see.” Star Swirl replied, beginning to laugh “Hearing her say that means you really need to pay attention to what she’s about to say.”

“Exactly” Sundance and Midnight Armor replied, laughing again

In the Crystal Empire, Twilight realized that it might be a couple of minutes before Sundance was calm enough to make any sense, so she turned her attention back to the book. Turning back to the first page, she slowly translated the first paragraph.

Finally calm enough to speak, Sundance said Thank you, Twilight. I needed that.

Surprised, Twilight blinked a few times. You’re welcome . . . I think.

Sundance giggled Now then, what were you thinking?

Twilight stammered I-I’m not sure if I-

Twilight, Sundance interrupted you don’t think I’m going to leave it at that, do you?

After a moment, Twilight answered I guess not . . . Something seems odd about this book. Can you read the first paragraph?

Curious, Sundance replied Sure. A few minutes later, during which she read the first paragraph twice, she commented You’re right. This is strange.

Twilight looked at both covers again, inside and out, as well as the first few pages. “This isn’t a published book.” She said quietly, drawing Celestia and Artemis’ attention. “I-I think it’s a journal.”

Sundance, Celestia and Artemis gasped.

Lost in her thoughts, Twilight didn’t notice. “I’m not sure why he gave it a title . . . maybe so he could identify it . . . He probably left it here so that Mom, Dad, Celestia and Artemis wouldn’t find it . . . He cast a powerful preservation spell on it, and the scroll . . . That means he must have expected to be revived . . . He probably planned to come back and get them. In fact, that may explain why they weren’t in Equestria . . . I bet this was a backup plan . . . or it might have been a way to hide the most damaging evidence.”

Celestia, Artemis and Sundance gasped again. This time, Twilight heard it.

Jumping, she looked up. Seeing the expressions on Celestia and Artemis’ faces, she hesitantly asked “I-I was thinking out loud, wasn’t I?” When both of them nodded, she winced. “I’m sorry”

“I’m not” Celestia replied

Twilight stared “What?”

Giggling softly, Celestia moved to sit on one side of Twilight. “If you’re right, that answers several questions.”

Artemis sat on the other before nuzzling his mare. “We’ve finished studying the spells. Besides, I’m sure Mother’s analysis is better than ours. We’ll ask you what she thinks about them later. For now . . .”

“We’ll help you translate the book.” Celestia finished “If it really is a journal, it may tell us what he was thinking.”

She’s right. Sundance agreed If that’s what it is, it could be useful.

“A-alright” Twilight replied

For the next hour, the four of them worked together to translate the book. In fact, they’d just finished when Cadance and Shining Armor walked into the library, followed by Velvet, Night Light, Flurry and Spike.

Before anyone could say anything, Flurry flew over to them. She nuzzled Celestia and Artemis before landing on Twilight’s back. Nuzzling her as well, she announced “Its lunchtime! Come on, Auntie Twily!”

Eyebrow raised, Twilight looked up at her parents. “Did you put her up to this?”

Night Light looked at his wife. Velvet smiled “I didn’t do anything.”

Everyone laughed

“Right” Twilight replied, standing and stretching before walking towards them. “The mare who was always trying to get me to eat something, even before I got pregnant, had nothing to do with it. I’m sure you understand why I don’t believe that.”

They laughed harder when Velvet blushed.

“W-well . . .” she began

Twilight nuzzled her “Its fine, Mom. The applesauce I ate for breakfast didn’t last long.”

Velvet narrowed her eyes “Did you try to eat something more substantial?”

“Yes, Mom” Twilight answered, not sure why her mother was angry “I threw up my apple oatmeal pancakes.”

Wincing, Velvet replied “I-I’m sorry, sweetie.”

Walking forward, Artemis stopped next to Twilight before turning to Velvet. “I make sure that she at least tries to eat something substantial at every meal.”

Something in Velvet snapped. Looking up at Artemis, she asked. “Then why didn’t you make sure she ate something besides applesauce?”

“Didn’t you hear her say that she couldn’t hold down her pancakes?” Artemis asked, raising an eyebrow at her accusatory tone. “If the main meal comes back up, she eats applesauce. It may not be the most substantial meal, but we know that she can keep it in her stomach.”

“That’s not good enough.” Velvet told him, anger overriding her better judgement “If you were taking care of her properly, I wouldn’t need to make sure she eats. It’s clear that she doesn’t listen to you and I know why. When she’s not feeling well, she only listens to family members and you’re not part of her-”

Artemis narrowed his eyes, silently daring her to finish that sentence.

Fortunately for everyone, Twilight interrupted her mother. “You should stop there, Mom.” She hesitated, wondering if she’d be able to get away with it, before deciding that she didn’t care. “You should also watch what you say to the father of my foal.”

Realizing what she'd just said, Velvet gasped “I-I didn’t mean . . .”

“I believe your daughter said you should stop there, Velvet.” Artemis interrupted, his tone much cooler than usual. “You should listen to her.” Deciding that he didn’t want to risk saying something that he would regret, he walked out of the library. Knowing that he needed to calm down before dealing with other ponies, he spread his wings and took flight.

In the stars, Star Swirl flickered “What’s she thinking?!”

Midnight Armor flickered as well “I can’t believe she said that! Does she honestly believe that our son doesn’t take care of his mare?! Or their foal?!”

“Maybe she’s just worried about Twilight.” Sundance commented thoughtfully “I’m not saying what she did is right, because it isn’t, but our children did tell just them about what happened.”

“Perhaps you’re right.” Midnight Armor conceded “The situation is dangerous enough without taking Twilight’s pregnancy into account.” He thought for a moment “I’ll give Twilight Velvet a couple of days to change my mind but, as of right now, my opinion of her isn’t the greatest.”

“Mine isn’t either” Sundance replied “However, I’m willing to give her till the end of the week.” Her star flickered “I hope she proves me wrong.”

In the Crystal Empire, Twilight turned to Velvet. “Why did you say that?” Before her mother could respond, Twilight shook her head. “Forget I asked.” Levitating Flurry onto Celestia’s back, she said “I’m going to stop by the kitchen and ask them to pack a picnic lunch for Artemis and myself. Then, I’m going to find him.”

Velvet gave her daughter a look. “You’re going to eat before-”

Struggling to maintain control of her temper, Twilight didn’t wait for her mother to finish speaking. “This isn’t up for debate, Mother.”

Glancing at Cadance, Shining Armor whispered “She’s angry.”

Nodding, Cadance whispered back. “I’m not surprised. If anypony said that about you, I’d be angry too.”

Trembling slightly, Velvet stared at her daughter. S-she’s not angry, she’s furious! S-she’s only holding back because I’m her mother.

Perhaps I should be glad that you’ve never called me “Mother”. Sundance said slowly I hope I never make you this angry.

Don’t worry, Mom. Twilight responded Even if I were to get this angry with you, I’d just go somewhere else until I calm down. It that’s not possible, I simply refuse to speak to whoever I’m angry with for a while.

You’re right, though. That’s how Shiny and I let her know when we’re really angry with her. Before you ask, when we’re this angry with Dad, we call him Father.

I see. Sundance replied It’s how you let them know that you’re angry with them, while still respecting the fact that they’re your parents.

That’s right. Horn glowing, Twilight turned to Celestia. “We’ll see you later.”

Celestia nodded “We’ll continue our research later. Right now, you have a much more important job to do. Make sure you calm him, little sister.” Nuzzling Twilight, she whispered the next part. “I’m sure Mother will help, but make sure you calm down as well.”

“I will” Twilight promised. A flash of light later, she was gone.

Celestia turned to the librarians. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to take the things we’re working with to my room. That way, my siblings and I will be able to continue our research without making you come in early or stay late.”

They bowed “Of course, Princess Celestia”

Celestia smiled at them “Thank you” Then she teleported everything on the table to her room. Taking a deep breath, she turned to Velvet. “Why are you treating my brother like this?”

Velvet bowed her head “I’m sorry, princess”

Cadance glanced at her husband, nodded and teleported all of them to the living room they’d used the night before. Shining Armor opened the door, catching the attention of a member of the castle staff.

She walked closer and bowed “Is there anything I can do for you, your highness?”

“Yes” he replied “Please go to the kitchen and ask them to bring lunch for Princess Celestia, Cadance, Flurry, myself, Spike and my parents.”

“What about Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight Sparkle?” she asked

Forcing a smile, he lied “They’ve decided to go on a picnic. Artemis has gone ahead to find a suitable location while my sister is getting their food. If she hasn’t made it to the kitchen yet, can you ask the staff to make and pack their lunch first?”

Smiling, she bowed again “Of course, your highness.”

“Thank you” he responded. Closing the door, he turned to his family and reported. “Food is on its way.”

“Thank you, Shining Armor” Celestia replied, smiling at him.

Ten minutes later, everyone turned at a knock on the door. Cadance opened it with her magic to see Cinnamon Spice. “Come in”

Cinnamon Spice bowed “Yes, princess” Opening the door wider, she pushed a cart that had been loaded down with several different types of food into the room. Turning to Celestia, she bowed again “Princess Twilight asked me to give you a message, princess. I apologize, because this may sound rude, but she gave me specific instructions on what to say.”

Curious, and nervous, Celestia nodded for her to continue.

“Her message is as follows.” Cinnamon Spice cleared her throat. “Apparently, Artemis is angry enough that he left the Crystal Empire. As far as I can tell, he’s on the top of a nearby mountain. Don’t worry, I’m going to follow him so I can calm him.”

Everyone exchanged glances before giving Velvet a look.

Cinnamon Spice continued “Princess Twilight was wearing a lovely winter dress when I saw her. It looked like it would keep her warm in a blizzard, so I’m sure she’ll be fine.” She bowed again and left the room, closing the door behind her.

Spike grinned “Rarity did say that Artemis asked her for something before we left Ponyville. That must be what it was.”

“That’s just like my brother.” Celestia commented, smiling “He knows how much Twilight loves stargazing, so he probably plans to take her on a night flight during this trip. There’s no way that he’d allow Twilight to leave the Crystal Empire without some sort of protection from the cold, so he made sure that she has warm clothes.”

Velvet smiled slightly. Everyone else laughed.

“You’re right, Aunt Celestia” Cadance commented “That does sound like something Twilight would like, and something that Uncle Artemis would do for her.”

Celestia’s smile fell as she turned to Velvet. “I’m still waiting for an answer.”

Velvet looked up at her “I-I didn’t-”

“What you did, Mother,” Shining Armor began, interrupting her “is tell Artemis that he doesn’t take care of the mare he loves and their foal.”

Everyone else nodded

“That’s an insult that any father finds highly offensive.” Seeing her expression, Shining Armor shook his head. “I know their foal hasn’t been born yet, but that title still applies to him.” After a moment’s thought, he continued “The fact that you’re the one who said it makes it even worse because it tells him that you don’t trust him to take care of Twilight and their foal . . . his family.”

Picking up where her husband left off, Cadance turned to Velvet. “I can’t believe you told Uncle Artemis that he isn’t part of Twilight’s family . . . Twilight may have interrupted you before you could finish that sentence, but we all know that’s what you were going to say.”

Velvet opened her mouth, closed it, sighed and nodded

Night Light turned to his wife “I never thought I’d say this, but Thank goodness Twilight interrupted you. I don't even want to think about what Artemis would have done if you’d finished that sentence.”

Cadance narrowed her eyes “Why in Equestria and the Crystal Empire would say that?!”

Meanwhile, Twilight’s teleportation spell put her in their room. Glancing around, she found it empty. Where did he go? Hoping to spot him, she walked onto the balcony and looked around the city. Not seeing him, she closed her eyes and focused on the link between them.

Worried, but not wanting to interrupt her youngest, Sundance watched quietly.

That’s strange. He’s not anywhere in the Crystal Empire . . . Where is he? Twilight suddenly gasped, staring at one of the mountains in the distance. “He’s on the top of that mountain!”

What?! Sundance exclaimed, shocked. She watched as Twilight dashed over to her saddlebags and pulled out the dresses.

Choosing the lavender one, Twilight put it on while folding the other dress and putting it back in her saddlebags. That done, she teleported to the kitchen.

Twilight saw a packed picnic basket sitting on the counter. Surprised, she turned to Cinnamon Spice.

“That’s a lovely dress, princess.” Cinnamon Spice complimented “Anyway, Prince Shining Armor informed the kitchen that you’re going on a picnic. We packed enough food for lunch and dinner. This way, even if you end up staying out longer than you planned, you won’t be hungry.”

That answers that question. Twilight commented We aren’t coming back until tonight.

I like that idea. Sundance responded. After taking a couple of moments to make sure she had what she wanted to say worded correctly, she continued. I’m not trying to offend you, or speak poorly of Twilight Velvet, but I don’t approve of the way she treated my son.

As for you, I’m sure there are at least a few things that you’d like to say to her, but taking care of Artemis comes first.

Don’t worry, Mom. Twilight replied I’m not offended. In fact, I’m probably angrier at her than you are. As for taking care of Artemis, I was already planning to do that before dealing with my mother . . . I mean the one that’s a unicorn. Ugh, I knew this would get confusing!

Relieved that she hadn’t offended her youngest, Sundance laughed. You’re doing fine, Twilight.

Twilight smiled “Thank you, Cinnamon Spice.” Taking the basket in her magic, she asked. “Will you please pass a message to Celestia?”

Cinnamon Spice bowed “Of course, princess”

After giving Cinnamon Spice the message, Twilight used the link created by the linking spell to teleport to Artemis’ side.

North of the Crystal Empire, there was a range of mountains that stayed covered in snow the entire year. Near the peak of one of these mountains, there was a cave. Artemis stood with his back to this cave, looking at the other mountains, and the valley, in front of him. While it was beautiful, the view did nothing to calm him. I can’t believe her! Does she really think I’m not taking care of Twilight?!

Tears came to his eyes when he realized that Velvet didn’t trust him. Even though I've been back for four years, many ponies still don't trust me. The fact that Velvet's one of them, doesn't faze me. However, this has nothing to do with court, running Equestria or even my Night. Velvet doesn't trust me to care for Twilight and our foal.

Suddenly, he heard the sound of a teleportation spell. I’m the only one who knows about this cave, so there shouldn’t be anypony else here!

Horn glowing, he turned to find Twilight standing behind him. Instantly allowing his magic to fade, he watched her set a picnic basket in the mouth of the cave before turning to him. She’s the only pony that I’m willing to allow anywhere near me, let alone talk to, right now. Still . . . “What are you doing here?” He asked “I thought you’d be eating lunch by now.”

Walking to his side, she used her magic to wipe the tears from his eyes before nuzzling him. “That’s what’s in the basket. In fact, it has lunch and dinner. As for why I’m here . . . Did you really think I wouldn’t come?”

Smiling slightly, he returned her nuzzle. “Of course not. It’s just that I wasn’t expecting to see you for several hours.”

“I told everyone that I was going after you.” Twilight replied, shrugging “My mother tried to stop me, but I told her that it wasn’t up for debate.”

“You shouldn’t have done that . . .” Artemis responded slowly “Now she’s going to be angry at both of us.”

“I don’t care.” Twilight responded, narrowing her eyes “Besides, I’m not in the mood to talk to her right now.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow “Why not?”

Twilight just looked at him. Realizing that he was serious, and waiting for an answer, she said. “She shouldn’t have said that to you.”

Stunned, he stared at her for a moment. Then, not caring that his parents and Star Swirl were watching, he pulled her into a deep kiss. When it broke, he whispered “Thank you”

Smiling, she nuzzled him again. Before she could say anything else, her stomach growled, quickly followed by his.

Shaking his head, he turned towards the cave. “Let’s get out of the wind so we can eat without the food flying everywhere.”

Using her magic to pick up the picnic basket, she followed him. “Good idea. I don’t want to have to chase my lunch.”

Stopping in his tracks, Artemis turned and stared at her. After a minute, he began to laugh. In fact, he laughed so hard that he had to lean against the wall of the cave so he didn’t fall to the floor.

Laughing as well, Sundance said Well done

In the stars, Midnight Armor flickered, shaking his head in wonder. “Impressive”

"Agreed" Sundance said, briefly brightening “I can’t believe she was able to get him to laugh so quickly.”

“You’re right” Star Swirl commented, briefly brightening as well “Still, it’s probably going to be a while before he’s willing to talk to Twilight Velvet again.”

“What makes you say that?” Midnight Armor asked

“The last time I saw him this angry, I was the one who angered him.” Star Swirl replied “It was actually two weeks before he spoke to me again. Well, outside of court anyway.”

He paused thoughtfully “If I recall correctly, when he finally did speak to me again, the first thing he did was order me to lie flat on the ground. I’d been searching the forest for herbs to study and accidentally angered a pack of Timberwolves.” His star flickered “I was so surprised that, after he destroyed them, I asked him why he saved me.”

Curious, Sundance asked “What was his response?”

“For a few minutes, he just stared at me as if I was the dumbest pony in Equestria.” Star Swirl answered, laughing “Then he told me that he was angry with me, but that didn’t mean he was going to let me die.”

“That does sound like something he’d say.” Midnight Armor replied, also laughing.

“Yes” Sundance responded “I’m not surprised that he did, or said, that.”

In the Crystal Empire, Flurry had fallen asleep on Celestia’s back, nestled in between her wings. Laughing softly, Celestia levitated her grandniece off her back and gently set her in between her forehooves.

Flurry grumbled something and nuzzled into Celestia’s chest before falling into a deeper sleep.

Realizing that she wasn’t going anywhere for a while, Celestia turned to Velvet. Before she could say anything, Spike spoke up.

“Let me get this straight . . .” He said slowly “You don’t trust Artemis because of the whole Night-Terror Knight thing, the fact that Night’s still in Artemis’ body and the fact that Twi’s having trouble keeping food in her stomach?”

Velvet nodded but, before she could explain further, Spike turned to Celestia.

“Princess Celestia, can you please do me a favor?”

Curious, Celestia replied “Within reason. What would you like me to do?”

“Cast two soundproofing spells.” He answered “One around the room and one around Flurry. I don’t want guards running in here and I don’t want to wake her.” He shuddered “I accidentally did the latter once and have no intention of doing it again.”

Seeing nothing wrong with his request, Celestia did as he asked while everyone else laughed.

Once both spells had been cast, Spike turned back to Velvet. “What are you thinking?!”

Shocked, Velvet gasped “W-what?”

Spike glared at the mare he considered to be his grandmother. “I get it, Night-Terror Knight tried to kill Twi . . . four years ago. He hasn’t tried to hurt her since. That attack three weeks ago was an attempt to scare her away so she wouldn’t get hurt! After that, he protected her from Dahlia’s attack! He could have easily just protected Artemis, but chose to protect both of them! In fact, he promised that he would help keep her safe, remember?!”

Velvet’s eyes widened

“Yeah, Night is still in Artemis’ body.” Spike continued “In fact, he can’t leave it because their souls are bound together. However, because the Elements of Harmony purified both of them, there’s nothing to worry about.” Seeing her expression, his glare deepened. “Fine. Let’s try it this way. The Element of Magic is the one that controls what the Elements of Harmony do. That’s Twilight’s Element! If she says that both of them are purified, then they are! Or are you saying that you don’t trust Twilight either?!”

Stunned, Velvet stammered “N-no! T-that’s not-”

“I’m not finished yet.” Spike growled

Gasping again, Velvet nodded for him to continue.

“The last part . . .” Spike began “Morning sickness begins early in alicorn pregnancies. That’s why she’s having trouble keeping food in her stomach.” He paused “Just so you know, the chefs in Canterlot told me that it was Artemis who told them to try making dishes with apples! He went out of his way to find something that Twilight would be able to keep in her stomach! In Ponyville, he forced her to eat breakfast when she didn’t want to. She threw it up, but he still made sure she ate! Does any of that sound like something that a stallion who doesn’t take care of his family would do?!”

Not sure if it was safe to speak yet, Velvet shook her head.

Shining Armor chuckled “I was going to yell at you, Mother, but I think Spike did a better job than I would have.”

Levitating Spike closer to her, Celestia nuzzled him before turning to Velvet. “I wasn’t going to yell at you, but I was going to give you quite a lecture. However, like Shining Armor, I believe Spike did an amazing job of saying what I’m sure all of us are thinking. As a result, I’ll just say that I’m not happy about how you’re treating my little brother.” She gave Velvet a slight glare. “I’d appreciate it if you change that.”

Night Light shook his head “I’m not willing to leave it at that.” He turned to his wife. “Unless my memory’s failing me, and I’m pretty sure it isn’t, you’re the one who welcomed Artemis into our family.”

Everyone gasped

Velvet winced “I-I know, but he-” She stopped when she saw his expression.

“He may be older than both of us combined,” Night Light continued “but the fact that he’s in a relationship, and having a foal, with our daughter makes him one of our children. Therefore, my question is this. Why are you treating our son like this?!”

Velvet opened her mouth, about to answer, but stopped when he put a hoof to her muzzle.

Night Light shook his head “I just realized that the rest of what I’d like to say you isn’t appropriate for others to hear. We’ll finish this discussion later.”

Sighing, Velvet nodded

Cadance sighed as well “Despite the fact that you’ve undoubtedly hurt him, Uncle Artemis probably believes that he doesn’t have the right to raise his voice at you. However, I’m sure that Twilight will.”

Giving her mother-in-law a look, Cadance continued. “If her actions earlier are any indication, she’s furious. I don’t know what she plans to do about what you said to the father of her foal but, whatever it is, I have no intention of stopping her.” Seeing Velvet’s confused expression, she shook her head. “There are two reasons for this. One, she’s more powerful than I am, so I don’t think I can stop her. Two, if you had said that to Shiny, I wouldn’t let anypony stop me.”

Hearing this, Velvet gulped.

Celestia sighed “I believe it would be best if we went our separate ways for the afternoon. I’m not sure about everyone else, but I need to relax.” She turned to Cadance and Shining Armor “If you don’t mind, I’ll be taking this little one to my room with me. It’s been far too long since I’ve spent any one on one time with her.”

Shining Armor smiled “We’ll tell the chefs to bring her afternoon snack to your room when it’s the right time for her to wake up.”

Cadance hesitated “I should warn you, she can be a little energetic when she wakes up.”

Celestia laughed “Are you forgetting that I practically raised you and Twilight? I’m sure I can handle a two year old filly.”

Everyone laughed

Celestia teleported herself and Flurry to her room. Settling both of them on her bed, she spread a wing over her grandniece and allowed herself to relax.

Cadance and Shining Armor went to the kitchen to speak to the chefs before heading to their room.

Spike walked into the hall, trying to figure out what to do next. Finally, he decided to go to his room and reread the comic book that Twilight had given him for Hearth’s Warming.

Velvet suddenly found herself alone with her husband. Hearing him clear his throat, she slowly turned to face him.

Night Light waited until his wife was looking at him. “We’re going to have the rest of that conversation now, but we’re not doing it here because I don’t want anypony to walk in on us.”

Nervous, Velvet just nodded. They walked out of the living room, heading for their room.

Chapter 56

On the mountain top, Twilight followed Artemis into the cave. Shocked, she stopped and just stared, unable to say anything.

Laughing softly, Artemis nuzzled her.

Twilight had been expecting to walk into a normal cave. That’s not what she found herself staring at.

It looked more like a living room. Everything was decorated in dark blue, with silver accents. To her right, there was a small circular stone table. She set the picnic basket on the table before inspecting the rest of the “room”. Turning to the middle of it, she saw a large pile of cushions. Lining the walls were over a dozen bookcases. Some of them held books, but most held objects that he’d gathered over the years. Looking closer, she could see everything from jewels that Spike would love to eat to spears and old fashioned body armor. Additionally, she could tell that each book or object had a powerful preservation spell cast on it.

W-what the?! Sundance stammered Did you know this was here?!

N-no Twilight slowly replied I’m just as surprised as you are. Turning to Artemis, she asked “W-what? H-how?”

Good questions Sundance remarked

Chuckling, Artemis nuzzled her again “I’ll answer those questions, and any others that you have, later. First, we should eat.”

“A-alright” Twilight replied. Finding the inside of the cave surprisingly warm, she took her dress off, folded it and set it on the table.

Opening the picnic basket, they found three smaller containers. They were labeled Lunch, Dinner and Dessert. Curious, Artemis pulled out the one labeled “Lunch” and closed the basket again. Opening the container, they found a bowl of carrot and pea soup, with a carrot and apple side salad for Twilight. There was a much larger regular salad and three grilled cheese sandwiches for Artemis. Thanks to a spell, cast on them by one of the chefs, they were still warm. To drink, Twilight had a bottle of carrot juice while Artemis had a bottle of iced tea.

Twilight slowly worked her way through her meal and was pleasantly surprised when it showed no sign of coming back up.

Once they’d finished eating, he walked over to the cushions. Choosing the largest one, he lay down and gestured for Twilight to join him. She immediately did as he’d asked, snuggling close to his side.

“This is what I wanted to show you.” He told her “Well, part of it, anyway.”

“W-wow” Twilight replied, taking a closer look at everything around her. When he nuzzled her, she turned her attention back to him.

“The “How” is the most unpleasant part of the explanation,” he began “so I’d like to start with that.”

Nodding, she snuggled closer and waited for him to continue.

“I found this cave just over a thousand years ago, not long after Celestia and I dealt with Sombra. At the time, Equestria wasn’t a pleasant place for me, so I’d told Celestia to go home without me.” Seeing her expression, he shook his head. “I had no intention of staying here, I just needed a . . . break, I suppose.”

“I see” she replied, sighing in relief “What was so unpleasant about Equestria?”

He didn’t say anything. Instead, he sighed and lay his head on another cushion.

Realizing that he wasn’t going to answer her question, she thought back to what she’d read, as well as what he’d told her. “I think I get it.” She said slowly “You told me that, in addition to ponies fearing your night, they used to fear you as well because they saw you as “the evil that chased the sun away”. That’s what you’re talking about, isn’t it?”

Stunned, Sundance whispered I-I had no idea . . .

Sighing again, he nodded “The only time I didn’t have to deal with that was when we left Equestria, but we didn’t leave very often. In fact, dealing with Sombra was the first time that we’d left Equestria in almost a century.”

Twilight chewed her lip “So you finally got away from Equestria for a while, but it was because you had to fight a power-hungry unicorn. That’s hardly a vacation.”

He nodded “You can see why I wanted to stay here for a few extra days. Unfortunately, the weather was a bit much, even for an alicorn. That’s when I began looking for shelter. I couldn’t have stayed with anypony because the Crystal Empire disappeared when Sombra did. Instead, I decided to use a cave.”

“The odd thing is, I found this cave by accident.” Seeing her expression, he smiled “There’s another cave, roughly the same size as this one, a few mountains to the north. I was trying to fly to that one when a sudden gust blew me towards the peak of this mountain. I didn’t have enough time to avoid it, or the presence of mind to teleport onto the mountain. Imagine my surprise when that gust blew me into this cave. I landed just inside the entrance, in a large pile of snow.”

Twilight and Sundance laughed

Laughing as well, he continued “Naturally, I decided to stay put.”

Still laughing, Twilight nuzzled him “I can see why. That explains how you found this place, but what’s with all of the stuff in here? I sense preservation spells on . . . everything.”

“Yes” Artemis replied, laughing harder “In fact, there are only three things in here that aren’t over a thousand years old . . . you, your dress and the picnic basket.”

Sundance began to laugh very hard, especially when Twilight huffed and said “Well, excuse me!”

“As for the things in here, in the months following my discovery of this cave, I made several trips here.” He shrugged “Each time, I’d bring some of the things from my room.”

Suddenly, he smiled “The night I discovered this cave, when the weather finally cleared, I went out to look at the stars . . . and was shocked to find that this mountain is almost directly under Mother and Father’s stars. That’s another reason I came here as often as I could. It was the closest I could get to them in between their visits.”

Sundance gasped R-really?!

Twilight told Artemis what their mother had said.

“Yes, Mother” After a moment, his smile widened “Actually, I have something over here that you might find interesting.” He levitated a book off a nearby shelf and set it in front of Twilight.

Sundance gasped again T-that looks like . . . T-twilight, can you open it to the bookmark? Well, it’s one of my feathers, but that’s what I was using it for.

I thought I was the only one who did that. Giggling, Twilight did as their mother asked. Removing the feather, she carefully set it next to the book.

Seeing the page, and her notes on it, Sundance shakily explained. T-that’s the last book I read . . . I’d started reading it before we went to that village, but didn’t bring it with us because I didn’t think I’d have time to read. Instead, I’d planned to finish it when we got back. I never got the chance because . . . well, you know.

After a moment, Twilight asked “Do you want to finish it now?”

Definitely not expecting to hear that, Sundance gasped W-what?!

“Actually, it’s been awhile, so it might be better if you start at the beginning.” Twilight said thoughtfully “Regardless, if you want to read it, you can use my magic.”

Laughing softly, Artemis levitated a quill and some ink over, setting them in front of Twilight as well. Seeing Twilight’s confused expression, he explained “Mother always took notes when she read, usually in the book she was reading.”

When she didn’t receive a response, Twilight tilted her head. I wasn’t kidding, you know. After all, I’m the last pony who would joke about reading.

Sundance was so shocked that it took her a moment to reply. I-I see. Thank you

Throughout the conversation, Twilight had been watching Artemis carefully. Even though he was smiling, and laughing, it was clear that he was still upset. Mom, there’s something I’d like to ask you.

Of course Sundance replied, concerned by her daughter’s tone. What is it?

Twilight thought for a moment, trying to figure out how to word her question in a way that wouldn’t give her plan away. Will you be able to see what’s going on around me, even if I take a nap?

Yes Sundance answered, slightly confused I’ll also be able to use your magic.

Good Twilight replied Now for the next part.

Even more confused, Sundance asked What do you have in mind?

Turning to Artemis, Twilight simply said You’ll see. “Do you have blank paper here . . . or maybe a blank scroll?

Not sure what his mare was planning, he levitated one over to her. “What are you going to use it for?”

“I’m not going to be using it at all.” Twilight answered “Mom is.”

Surprised, and confused, Artemis asked “What?”

Giggling at his expression, Twilight explained. “I’m going to take a nap while Mom reads her book. However, I thought it would be nice if she could also “talk” to you.” Seeing his eyes widen, and hearing their mother gasp, she continued. “Mom told me that, even if I go to sleep, she’ll be able to see what’s going on around me and use my magic. That means she can write on the scroll and you can answer her.”

Realizing what her youngest had in mind, Sundance gasped softly T-twilight . . .

Also understanding what Twilight was planning, Artemis’ eyes had grown to the size of dinner plates.

Smiling, Twilight finished “This may not be the way it’s usually done, but I thought you’d both like some “Mother-Son” time.”

Artemis and Sundance gasped

Twilight smiled wider “I was actually going to try this in a couple of days because . . . Well, it’s what I was planning for your Hearth’s Warming present.” After chewing her lip for a moment, she hesitantly continued. “I know it can be seen as an insult to give multiple ponies the same gift, but I’m also going to let Mom “talk” to Celestia.”

Sundance and Artemis gasped again.

Twilight nuzzled Artemis “I know it’s a little early, but I think you should have your time now.” Especially after what my mother said to him. I’ve been able to help him a little, but I think Mom’s the one he really needs to talk to. The problem is, Mom and Dad won’t be able to visit again for almost three months. That means this is the best I can do.

Sundance and Artemis were silent for several minutes.

Of course, that was more than enough time for Twilight to begin to panic, thinking she’d upset them. “O-or not.” She stammered, looking down “I-I didn’t mean to-”

Artemis stopped the apology by lifting her head and kissing her. When it broke, he whispered “Don’t you dare apologize, Twilight. Thank you. It’s perfect, and I’m sure Celestia will love it as well.”

Artemis is right. Sundance added, voice shaking I . . . T-thank you

Sighing in relief, Twilight lay her head on the cushion and closed her eyes. “You’re welcome.”

In the stars, Sundance was speechless.

“I-I’m not sure what I expected her to do,” Midnight Armor began “but this definitely wasn’t it.” After thinking for a moment, he asked “Did you see the way she’s been watching Artemis?”

“Yes” Star Swirl replied, curious “There isn’t anything wrong with it.”

“Of course there isn’t!” Midnight Armor immediately answered “She saw that he’s upset, but trying to hide it, so she’s letting him to talk to his mother. She even found a way to do it as directly as possible.”

“Y-you’re right!” Sundance gasped “We heard her think that he needs to talk to me instead of her. She just doesn’t want him to have to wait three months.”

“She plans to do the same with Celestia.” Star Swirl’s star flickered “I don’t think she realizes just how much her gift means to . . . well, all three of you.”

In the cave, Twilight had fallen asleep, snuggled close to Artemis’ side.

He gently nuzzled her. I have to find a way to thank her for this.

There’s more to her gift than you realize.

Surprised, Artemis lifted his head Night? What are you talking about?

You’re not hiding your sadness as well as you think you are.

W-what?! Artemis asked, shocked. Looking down at Twilight, he stammered T-that means . . .!

She noticed. Night confirmed She clearly thinks that letting you talk to your mother will help you feel better, so she decided to give you your Hearth’s Warming present early.

Stunned, it was almost a minute before Artemis was able to reply. I-I see. Oh no, that means . . .

Don’t even finish that thought, Artemis. It’s clear that she isn’t angry. At least, not with you.

Twilight’s actually angrier at her mother than she was at me, and I believe that says a lot. After thinking for a moment, he continued. The only good thing about this situation is that Twilight is unlikely to fight her mother. Even so . . . well, let’s just say that I don’t envy Twilight Velvet right now.

Artemis laughed softly You’re right.

As for you . . . everyone who saw what happened understands why you’re upset, and no one blames you for it.

A few minutes later, Night chuckled. The three of you can easily get any material object you want. Instead of buying anything, Twilight found a way to give you, Celestia and your mother a very meaningful gift.

Before Artemis could respond, he saw Twilight’s horn glow.

Noticing the same thing, Night said. We’ll finish this conversation later.

Using Twilight’s magic, Sundance dipped the quill into the ink and pulled the scroll closer. We should deal with the most unpleasant part of this conversation first.

“I-” Remembering that he was trying not to think about what had happened this morning, Artemis stopped, sighed and rested his head on his forehooves.

Seeing this, Sundance use the quill to poke her son on the nose before pointing it at the scroll. It’s obvious that you’re upset, so tell me what you’re thinking.

Realizing that he had to say something, he sighed “I’ve been trying not to think about that, Mother.”

Nice try. Sundance responded I’m not going to let you bottle up your emotions, Artemis.

Your mother is right, Artemis. Talk to her about what’s upsetting you. That’s why Twilight’s doing this, remember?

“Damn it, Night!” Artemis muttered “You don’t need to help her!”

Night just laughed

Curious, Sundance poked her son again. What did he say?

Reluctantly, Artemis replied “He told me to talk to you about what’s upsetting me.”

When he, Twilight and I are all saying the same thing, you should probably listen. Sundance remarked

“. . . Fine” Artemis sighed

Good. I’ll let you talk to your mother in peace.

Artemis tilted his head in confusion. “What?”

Night didn’t respond, but Sundance did. What did he say this time?

“That he’d let me talk to you in peace.” Artemis said slowly “Apparently, he was trying to get me to agree to talk about it.”

Perhaps I need to rethink my opinion of him . . . No matter, I’ll have plenty of time for that later.

Before his mother could ask, Artemis said “I’m sure you heard what Velvet said.”

Of course I did. I’d like to hear what you think about it.

Annoyed, he snapped “What do you think I think about it?!” Realizing what he’d just done, he gasped. “I’m sorry, Mother. I-” He stopped, staring cross-eyed at the quill that was poking him on the nose again. After a moment, it returned to the scroll.

Don’t even think about apologizing! Your father and I know why you’re upset, and neither of us blames you for it, but you still need to talk about it.

Twilight shifted in her sleep, mumbling something about noise.

Artemis created a pair of magical ear plugs and gently put them in her ears. Then he pulled her closer and covered her with a wing. After hesitating for a moment, he cast a spell to make sure that vibrations wouldn’t wake her. Hearing the scratching of the quill, he returned his attention to the scroll.

Good idea. That should allow her to get a decent nap. Don’t worry, that spell is safe to cast on Twilight because it has no effect on the inside of her body. Instead, it blocks the vibrations from the outside.

He sighed in relief. “Good”

Now then . . . What is it about Twilight Velvet’s words that bothers you?

He glared in the direction of the Crystal Empire. “She had the nerve to tell me that I’m not taking care of one particular pony.” He paused, glancing at Twilight's stomach “Well, technically, its two ponies.”

We thought that’s what upset you. Before you ask, we’re not angry with you. In fact, I have to commend you on how calmly you handled the situation . . . However, I sense that there’s more to it.

“You’re right.” He replied “The fact that it was said by Twilight’s mother is bad enough, but there’s one more thing.”

What’s that?

“Remember when you welcomed Twilight into our family?” He asked

Yes. What does that have to do with anything?

Artemis took a deep breath. “Velvet was the one who did the same to me.”

W-wait a minute . . . Twilight may have interrupted her, but it was clear that Twilight Velvet was going to say that you’re not a part of her daughter’s family!

Artemis sighed “Now you understand why her words bother me.”

Yes. In fact, I’d be surprised if you weren’t upset.

Glancing at Twilight, he laughed softly “There’s another reason that Twilight purposely fell asleep.”

Surprised by the sudden change of topic, it took Sundance a moment to reply. What are you talking about?

Artemis gently nuzzled his mare. “She knows that I consider it a sign of trust when a pony allows themselves to fall asleep anywhere near me.”

What does that have to do with Twilight’s actions? After thinking for a moment, Sundance gasped. Of course! She fell asleep right next to you! Twilight’s telling you that, even though her mother doesn’t trust you, she does.

Artemis smiled “Exactly” Tightening his wing around Twilight, he lay his head on his forehooves and closed his eyes. I guess they knew what I needed, even when I didn’t. Talking to Mother really has, not only calmed me down, but made me feel better.

Watching her son finally relax, and fall asleep, Sundance sighed in relief. Now that he’s feeling better, I’ll read my book . . . Enjoy your nap, Artemis.

Three hours later, Twilight woke to somepony quietly muttering something about how part of a spell had to be reconfigured. Curious, she opened her eyes. The first thing she saw a quill, surrounded in her magic, scribbling notes in Equestria’s ancient written language. It’s weird to see something being moved with my magic, especially when I know I’m not the one doing it.

Dropping the quill, Sundance gasped Twilight?! I-I didn’t wake you, did I?

Twilight giggled No, Mom, you didn’t wake me. Knowing what their mother was probably going to say next, she continued. If you want, you can keep doing . . . whatever you’re doing. I don’t mind.

Are you sure? Sundance asked, surprised

Yes Twilight replied, snuggling closer to Artemis I probably won’t be able to go back to sleep, but I’d like to relax. She smiled when she noticed how calm he looked. I assume he feels better now?

I’d say so. Sundance answered

Good, I’m glad that worked. Twilight replied, sighing in relief and closing her eyes

Laughing softly, Sundance picked up the quill and turned her attention back to the spell she’d been working on.

Half an hour later, Twilight was awakened by a gentle nuzzle. Slowly opening her eyes, she mumbled “What’s going on?”

You fell asleep again. Sundance told her, giggling softly

Twilight blinked “Really?” Yawning, she stood and stretched. Noticing that Artemis was standing next to her, she asked “What time is it?”

Before he could say anything, her stomach growled. Chuckling, he nuzzled her again. “Apparently, our foal thinks it’s time for dinner.”

Sundance laughed I agree with my grandfoal. After all, you’ve been asleep for three and a half hours.

“O-okay” Twilight replied, blushing “Let’s eat then.”

Laughing, Artemis led her over to the table. As she sat down, he opened the picnic basket and pulled out the container labeled “Dinner”. Opening it, they found a large kale and carrot salad. There was also a carrot casserole, made with rainbow carrots, for them to share. Once they’d finished eating dinner, Artemis opened the container labeled “Dessert” and pulled out a couple of apple tarts. Once again, Twilight was surprised to find that she was able to hold down her food.

When they finished eating, they put the empty containers back in the basket. Artemis thought for a moment before putting their mother’s book, and notes, in the basket as well. While he was doing that, Twilight put her winter dress back on. When they were ready, they walked out of the cave.

Instead of taking flight, Twilight sat down, making sure to face the setting sun.

“Twilight?” Artemis asked, nuzzling her “Is something wrong?”

She shook her head “It’s been a long time since they’ve seen a sunset, so I thought . . . eep!” She squeaked when he pulled her into a very tight hug.

“You’d let Mother, Father and Star Swirl watch this one.” He finished, sitting next to her “That’s a great idea!”

Sundance gasped softly I-it’s been fifteen hundred years . . .

Twilight smiled “It’s starting”

The five of them watched the sunset together. While Artemis prepared to raise the moon, Twilight listened to their mother

T-thank you, Twilight. It was lovely.

Twilight’s smile widened You’re welcome. Have a good night, Mom.

You too, Twilight. I’ll talk to you in the morning.

Artemis raised the moon before bringing out the stars.

In the stars, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl set the brightness of their stars at the nighttime levels before turning to each other.

“I should have known she’d do something like that.” Midnight Armor commented

Sundance flickered “After the kind of day she’s had, I’m surprised she thought of it at all . . . I’m glad she did, though.”

Star Swirl briefly brightened “I am as well. It was a very nice sunset.”

On the top of the mountain, Artemis turned to Twilight. She didn’t notice this because she was staring up at his stars, apparently searching for something.

Suddenly she gasped “You’re right! Mom and Dad’s stars are right above us!”

Artemis barely heard her. Instead, he was thinking over the events of the day. He smiled, recalling how she’d gone out of her way to help him. That settles it, I’ll do it tonight. He nuzzled Twilight, causing her to look at him. “I need to take care of something. Wait here, I’ll be right back.” Before she could respond, he vanished in a flash of moonlight, taking the picnic basket with him.

Confused, Twilight stared at the place he’d been standing. After a moment, she shrugged and turned her attention back to the stars.

In the Crystal Empire, Celestia was standing on balcony of the bedroom Artemis and Twilight were sharing, waiting for her younger siblings to return. Looking up at her brother’s stars, she shook her head. I still can’t believe Velvet said that to Artemis! As for Twilight, I’ve never seen her that angry. In fact, she wasn’t angry . . . she was absolutely livid!

After thinking for a moment, she laughed softly. Cadance must be almost as angry at Velvet as Twilight and I are. I can’t believe that she’s going to allow Twilight to do whatever she wants to her mother. She paused thoughtfully Actually, I can. Twilight won’t harm her mother, but I’m sure Velvet will have quite a headache by the time her daughter’s done with her.

She was torn from her thoughts by a flash of moonlight. Looking up, she saw her brother soaring towards her, holding a picnic basket his magic.

Landing next to Celestia, Artemis raised an eyebrow. “Is something wrong, Sister?”

Celestia just stared at him. After a minute, she opened her mouth before closing it again, shaking her head in wonder. H-he’s completely calm! How did Twilight do that?! “I just wanted to make sure you were alright, little brother.” She eventually replied “Twilight told us that you’d gone to the top of a mountain!”

“I’m fine, Sister.” Artemis replied, laughing “Remember how I stayed here for a few days after we defeated Sombra?” When she nodded, he continued “I found a cave at the top of one of the mountains . . . As far as I know, Twilight and I are the only two who know where it is.” He shrugged “Anyway, I knew that I needed to calm down, so that’s where I went. When Twilight followed me, she brought enough food for lunch and dinner so we decided to spend the rest of the day there.”

“I see.” Celestia commented, glancing around “Speaking of Twilight, where is she?”

“Still on the mountain.” Artemis answered, walking into their room. “I left in such a hurry that I forgot something. As soon as I get it, I’m heading back.”

She watched her brother walk over to a nightstand, set the picnic basket on it, open his bag and pull something out. Before she could get a good look at it, he tucked it into a smaller bag and set that on his back before using his magic to ensure it would stay there. Curious, but noticing that he didn’t want her to see whatever it was, she settled on a safer question. “Are the two of you spending the night in the cave?”

“No” He answered “We’ll be back in about an hour.”

She smiled “That sounds like just enough time for a nice flight under the stars.”

He smiled as well, but didn’t say anything.

She paused “Oh yes, before I forget. Cadance, and Shining Armor want to see you tonight. Flurry and Spike want to see you as well, but they’ve already gone to bed. No one’s angry, they just want to make sure you’re alright.” She paused “Night Light and Velvet also want to see you, but I’ll ask them to wait until tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Sister.” He replied, sighing in relief “I have no problem speaking with you, Cadance, Shining Armor and Night Light tonight. As for Spike and Flurry, I’ll talk to them in the morning. However, I’m in no mood to deal with Velvet tonight.” He thought for a moment. “I’ll listen to her tomorrow, but there’s no guarantee that I’ll speak to her. If I do, I will be civil towards her, but that’ll probably be it.”

Celestia nodded “I understand” I’m surprised he’s willing to do that much.

“As for tonight, where do you want Twilight and I to meet you?” He asked

She smiled “How about the large balcony?”

“We’ll be there in an hour.” He spread his wings, and nuzzled his sister, before taking flight.

She watched him fly away before taking flight as well. In her case, she flew to the balcony she asked him to meet everyone on later. Cadance, Shining Armor, Night Light and Velvet were already there, so they immediately gathered around her.

“Where are they?” Shining Armor asked, looking around

“Artemis returned for a few minutes, claiming that he forgot something, before heading back to the mountain.” Celestia answered, smiling “He told me that they’ll both be back in about an hour. I think he wants to take Twilight on that night flight.”

“H-how was he?” Cadance cautiously asked

“I have no idea how Twilight did it,” Celestia replied, shaking her head in wonder “but he’s completely calm. In fact, he asked me if there was something wrong.”

Everyone gasped

Celestia continued “I asked him to meet us on this balcony in an hour. He told me that he’s willing to speak to most us.” She turned to Velvet. “He also told me that he’ll be willing to listen to you tomorrow. However, I’m going to warn you, don’t be surprised if he refuses to speak to you.”

Sighing, Velvet nodded “I understand”

On the Mountain top, Artemis reappeared to find the spot where he’d left Twilight empty. Just when he was starting to worry, he heard her giggle. Looking into the cave, he saw her sitting in the entrance.

“I was cold.” She explained, walking forward to nuzzle him

Sighing in relief, he returned her nuzzle. “Are you up for a flight?” When her eyes lit up, he laughed. “I’ll take that as a “Yes”.”

To make sure that there wasn’t any doubt, she spread her wings and leapt into the air. Laughing harder, he joined her. As they flew towards the Crystal Empire, he told her about his conversation with Celestia.

“I see.” She replied thoughtfully “I didn’t tell her exactly which mountain you were on, or that I was planning for us to stay out all day, so I’m not surprised that she’s worried.” She paused “I’ll have to apologize to her later.”

Laughing again, he shook his head “She didn’t seem angry, so I’m sure she didn’t mind.” Seeing a large high altitude cloud, he flew over and landed on it.

Curious, she followed and landed next to him. She was about to say something, but paused when she saw that he looked nervous. Oh no, is something wrong? “Are you alright?”

He nuzzled her again “I’m fine. I was going to do this eventually, it's just that I didn’t originally plan on it being this soon.” He laughed softly “Then again, everything else seems to be going like that, so why not this as well?”

Completely confused, Twilight stared at him for a moment before managing to say a single word. “What?”

Taking a deep breath, he turned to face her.

“Last week, we remembered how you saved my soul when you were eight years old.” He began, voice shaking “Then, four years ago, you did it again. That would have been enough for anypony, but you didn’t stop there. You helped me learn what I’d missed while I was gone and became the only friend I had, aside from my sister. Then, three weeks ago, you saved me again. First, from another banishment. Then, you saved my life. While neither of us planned for it to happen this soon, I’m extremely happy that you’re bearing my foal . . . Now, I’d like to take the next step.”

Knowing what he was going to say next, she suddenly found herself barely able to breathe.

Taking the bag off his back, he pulled out a small box and opened that to reveal a ring. It was made of white gold and had two gems set in it, both sapphires. One was the same shade as his coat, cut into a crescent moon. The other was bright pink, the same color as her Cutie Mark, cut into a six pointed star. Her star was nestled inside his crescent moon.

As high in the night sky as possible, among the stars that both of them loved, he knelt in front of her. “Twilight Sparkle, will you marry me?”

For almost a minute, she found herself unable to move. Once she regained control of her body, she walked forward and pulled him into a deep kiss. When it broke, she whispered a single word. “Yes”

He slid the ring onto her horn, settling it snugly around the base, before pulling her into another deep kiss. When it broke, he pulled her down next to him. With tears of joy welling up in his eyes, he held her close. “I love you, Twilight.”

Snuggling close to his side, she lay her head on his shoulder, sighing happily. “I love you, too, Artemis.”

They lay like that until it was almost time for them to meet with the rest of their family. Standing, Artemis helped her to her hooves before smiling at his fiancé. “When should we tell everyone?”

She returned his smile “Tomorrow morning. I know you said that we’ll be seeing everyone tonight, but I think we should tell Mom and Dad first.” I just hope Celestia won’t be too upset. Mom and Dad have missed so much in Artemis’ life . . . I know this won’t make up for it, but it’s the least I can do.

Knowing that she was referring to his parents, his eyes lit up. Her parents are here and, even with Velvet’s actions, she could insist on telling them first. It would make sense, and I wouldn’t blame her for it, but s-she . . . Unable to finish the thought, he pulled her into a kiss. “I love that idea.”

He lit his horn and, a flash of moonlight later, they found themselves in the air next to the Crystal Empire. On a sudden impulse, he scooped up some snow off a nearby tree and tossed it at her.

She hadn’t been expecting him to do that, so she found herself covered with snow. After a moment of shock, she slowly turned to face him. “It’s going to be like that, then?”

He couldn’t help it. He laughed.

“I see.” Smirking, she used her magic to shove him into a massive snowdrift. When his head popped out of it, she took one look at him and began to laugh.

Pulling himself out of the snow, he looked around for a moment before seeing her laying on snow next to him. “What’s so funny?”

She used her magic to show him his reflection. “Y-you look like a snowpony! Y-you have snow everywhere!”

Before he could say anything, there was a sudden flash of golden magic around them. When it faded, they found themselves standing on the large balcony of the Crystal Castle.

In the Crystal Empire, Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor stared at Artemis and Twilight . . . well, mostly Artemis . . . for a moment before they began to laugh.

When he was sure Celestia could hear him, Artemis asked “Impatient, Sister?”

“W-what happened?” Celestia responded, still laughing

“We were on our way back when he scooped up some snow and threw it at me.” Twilight answered “I wasn’t expecting him to do that, so I didn’t dodge it. When I saw him laughing at me, I shoved him into a snowdrift.” She began to laugh again “H-he’d just pulled himself out of it when you teleported us here.”

Everyone laughed harder.

Shining Armor pulled his sister into a hug. “Good job, Twily!”

Nuzzling her brother, Celestia used a wing to brush some of the snow off him. If I don’t remove all of it, maybe Twilight will be able to convince him to take a long, hot bath.

Cadance walked closer, admiring the dress her little sister was wearing. “Did Rarity make this?”

Twilight nodded

Cadance leaned closer, pretending to examine the dress. Noticing that Artemis was distracted, she quietly cast a spell on the dress. “It’s a beautiful dress . . . maybe I should ask her to make a couple for me.”

“I felt that, Cadance.” Twilight raised an eyebrow “What did you do?”

Thinking quickly, Cadance showed her little sister a piece of lavender thread. “I removed a loose thread.”

“Thanks” Twilight slowly replied “Anyway, I have to warn you . . . If you ask Rarity to make you anything, she’ll probably insist on making at least a couple of dresses for Flurry and something for Shiny as well.”

Cadance laughed “Now I really have to ask her.”

Both of them looked up when Celestia and Artemis walked over to them.

Shivering slightly, Artemis nuzzled Twilight. “We should get to our room. I’d like to warm up.”

Twilight smiled “Maybe a hot bath will help.”

Also smiling, he nodded “I like that idea.” Without waiting for a response, he teleported both of them to their room.

Celestia looked at Cadance “Did you do what I think you did?”

Cadance giggled “Yes”

Shining Armor raised an eyebrow “You know they’re going to get mad at you for that, right?”

Laughing now, Cadance replied “Yes, but it’ll be worth it.”

In their room, Artemis used his magic to turn on the lights while Twilight turned her attention to her dress. When she tried to remove it, she was surprised to find that she couldn’t.

“Twilight?”

She looked up to find Artemis watching her.

“You can’t take a bath with that on.”

Blushing, she replied “I . . . can’t take it off.”

“What?” He asked, surprised

“T-there’s some kind of lock on the dress.” she explained “I-I think Cadance did it. I know she did something but she told me that she was just removing a loose thread.” Her blush deepened “C-can you help?”

Artemis found himself torn between cursing Cadance for meddling again and finding the idea of undressing Twilight . . . exciting. He walked over and took a closer look at the dress. Standing beside her, but facing the opposite direction, he looked at the zipper. He gasped softly, surprised to find a short message in his niece’s magic next to it.

I know it’s a little early but, considering what happened this morning, I thought I’d give you your present tonight. I hope you enjoy . . . unwrapping her. Before you get angry at Twilight, she has no knowledge of what I’ve done.

He instantly understood what Cadance meant, but couldn’t bring himself to get angry. At least, not at her. Right now, he was seriously wishing that the dress wasn’t there.

Meanwhile, Twilight was wondering what in Equestria was taking him so long. Hearing him gasp, she lifted her head, trying to look back at him. Instead, her attention was caught by something else entirely. Her eyes widened when she saw how hard he was. Looking closer, she noticed that he had some snow on his tip. Not really understanding why she was doing so, she leaned forward and licked it off.

He gasped “T-twilight?!”

“Just getting some snow off of you.” She whispered “Do you want me to stop?”

“No” He breathed “K-keep going!”

She licked a little more of the snow him, smiling when he shuddered in pleasure. She licked down one side of his member before going up the other, removing snow as she went. Not even a minute later, there wasn’t any snow left.

He was almost disappointed when he noticed that she’d removed all of the snow because he thought she was going to stop. He was surprised when she kept going. Without the snow in the way, he could feel the direct contact between her tongue and his member. Unable to stop himself, he moaned in pleasure before gasping when she took the tip of it into her mouth. He moaned louder, a sudden electric pleasure coursing through his body. He almost thrust into his mare, but quickly realized what would probably happen if he did. Not wanting to hurt her, he forced himself to remain still.

She’d been hesitant to take his member into her mouth because she didn’t know how he would react. However, before she knew it, that’s exactly what she’d done. Hearing him moan in pleasure, she grew bolder and took more of him into her mouth. It didn’t take her long to realize that she couldn’t get the whole thing in, she nearly gagged when she tried, so she settled for what would fit. She gently sucked on his member, before pulling back so she could run her tongue over it again. Then she slowly pushed forward, sliding it back into her mouth.

Her last action pushed him over the edge. He groaned in pleasure before releasing his seed into her mouth.

Surprised at how much he’d released, she swallowed as much as she could before pulling her head back and taking a deep breath.

When he recovered, he looked down at her, and was reminded of the problem at hoof. Deciding that he wanted his fiancé now, he surrounded the dress with his magic and tore it apart. Before the pieces had even hit the floor, he’d already moved to stand over her. Unable to wait any longer, he pushed as far into her as he could. Both of them moaned in pleasure when he touched the entrance to her womb. He smiled, feeling the shudder that ran through her body, and hearing her whisper a single word.

“Yes!”

Leaning down, he nibbled on the tip of her right ear, smiling wider when she shivered and moaned softly. Releasing her ear, he whispered “You might want to cast a soundproofing spell, my love. I promise, you will be screaming tonight.”

She instantly cast a soundproofing spell, locked both doors and drew the curtains over the windows. “Done!” she panted. When he didn’t move, she let out a quiet whine. “Artemis, p-please!”

Nuzzling her neck, he whispered “As you wish” Lifting his head, he nibbled on the tip of her ear again and used his magic to spread her wings. Before she could ask, he ran his magic through both of them, warming them and straightening the feathers.

The combination of his teeth on her ear, magic on her wings and having him inside her pushed her over the edge. She let out a scream that shook the room.

He moaned in pleasure when her passage began to pulse and clench around him, but didn’t stop what he was doing. Once he was sure that she’d stopped shaking, he wrapped a foreleg around her. Making sure that he wasn’t putting any pressure on her stomach, he held her close and began thrusting.

“Yes!” She screamed, her body beginning to shake

When her screams became so frequent that they almost sounded like one really long one, he sped up, unable to hold back any longer. A few minutes later, his second orgasm hit. Pulling her closer, he thrust into her and, groaning in pleasure, released more of his seed.

Feeling his seed enter her, she screamed in pleasure as she lost herself in her second orgasm as well. When she was able to think straight again, she realized that both of them were shaking so hard that they were barely able to stand . . . and that both of them were covered in sweat. Remembering that they’d been planning to take a bath, she used her magic to start the water.

After he recovered, Artemis gently pulled out of her and used his magic to place her in front of him. Then he drew her into a deep kiss. When the kiss broke, he paused, surprised. “I’m not cold anymore.”

She stared at him, mouth open, for a moment before beginning to laugh.

Seeing this, he shook his head, laughing as well. Only then did he notice the sound of running water. “That’s right, we were going to take a bath.”

Of course, this made her laugh even harder. When she finally calmed down, they walked into the bathroom together.

The bathtub was sunk into the floor in the middle of the room. Looking closer, he realized that it was heart shaped. Why am I not surprised? When the tub was full, they walked into it and lay down.

Ten minutes later, they walked back into their room. Wordlessly, they stumbled to the bed and climbed under the covers. He used the last of his energy to pull her close before falling asleep.

He woke to the pull of the moon. Without moving, he lowered it and the stars. Then he nuzzled Twilight, smiling when she buried her face in his chest.

Good morning, Twilight Sundance said, laughing when her youngest mumbled something about it being “way too early”.

A few minutes later, Twilight lifted her head, yawned and lay it on Artemis’ chest. “Good morning, Mom”

“Good morning, Mother” Artemis said, nuzzling Twilight again.

Giggling, Sundance replied Good morning, Artemis

Yawning again, Twilight relayed the message.

Instead of getting up, Artemis hugged his fiancé tighter. “How do you want to tell Mother?”

Curious, Sundance asked Tell me what?

Twilight thought for a moment. “Before I answer your question, I have one for you.”

Alright Sundance replied What’s the question?

“When a couple is . . . betrothed, is the word I think you’d be familiar with . . . was there something that they used to show everypony else?” Twilight asked

Surprised, Sundance thought for a moment before answering the question. Yes. We used a bracelet, usually placed on the mare’s left foreleg.

“Hmm . . . that hasn’t changed much.” Twilight remarked “Earth ponies and pegasi still do that.”

Unicorns don’t? Sundance asked, half confused and half curious

Twilight shook her head “They place a ring on the mare’s horn.”

Understanding what Twilight had in mind, Artemis had to stop himself from laughing. Instead, he just smiled.

That’s an interesting change. Sundance commented thoughtfully. She was about to say something else about it, but paused. Suddenly realizing what they were discussing, she slowly asked. Why are we talking about this?

“Mom wants to know why we’re talking about this.” Twilight told Artemis “Do you want to tell her, or should I?”

“I have a better idea.” Artemis replied, laughing softly “I’ll show her.” He used his magic to part Twilight’s mane, allowing their mother to see the ring he’d put on her horn the night before.

Oh my, what a beautiful ring. It has both of your Soul Marks . . . Wait a minute, you just said . . . Suddenly, Sundance gasped D-did he-?

“Ask me to marry him?” Twilight finished

Yes Sundance slowly replied, seriously hoping that she wasn’t mistaken.

Twilight nodded “He did it last night.”

Congratulations! Sundance shouted, laughing

Giggling, Twilight relayed the message to Artemis.

He pulled Twilight closer, if possible, before both of them said “Thank you”

Automatically assuming that they’d already told their older sister, Sundance asked the obvious question. How did Celestia react?

“She doesn’t know yet.” Twilight answered

Not expecting that answer, Sundance paused, wondering why in Equestria they hadn’t told her yet. Suddenly realizing what her youngest meant, she spoke slowly. Y-you mean . . . She trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.

“Yes, Mom” Twilight responded “We wanted you and Dad to be the first to know.”

Before Sundance could say anything, she saw something else she didn’t expect. Looking in the air above her son’s head, she watched a message appear in his magic.

Last night, I asked Twilight when she thought we should tell everyone. She told me that we should wait until this morning because she wanted you and Father to be the first to know. Of course, I immediately agreed, but this was her idea.

Reading her son’s message, Sundance gasped again.

In the stars, all three of them were extremely happy.

“Finally!” Sundance shouted, giggling

“You’re right, Honey.” Midnight Armor replied, laughing “It took him long enough.”

Not sure what to say, and far too happy to care, Star Swirl just briefly brightened.

Calming slightly, Sundance turned to her husband “Did you notice what she did for us?”

“As if I could have missed that.” Midnight Armor replied. Voice shaking slightly, he continued “A betrothed couple always tells those who are important to them first . . . and she . . . they chose us.”

“W-we’ve missed so much of Celestia and Artemis’ lives . . .” Sundance replied, voice shaking as well “T-they didn’t want us to miss such an important part.”

Hearing a knock on the door, they turned their attention back to what was going on in the Crystal Empire.

In the Crystal Empire, Artemis and Twilight looked towards the door when somepony knocked on it. Before either of them could do anything else, Celestia opened the door and walked into the room. Surprised to see that her siblings were still in bed, she closed the door behind her and went to check on them. Before she could say anything, she saw the ring on Twilight’s horn. Forgetting what she’d been about to say, she just stared at it. T-that wasn’t there before . . . She gasped D-did Artemis-?! “T-twilight,” She stammered “is that what I think it is?!”

“That depends on what you think it is.” Twilight answered, thoroughly enjoying herself

Twilight! Sundance scolded Don’t tease your sister!

Why shouldn’t I? Twilight asked She teases me all the time!

Twilight . . . Sundance warned

. . . Fine. Turning her attention back to Celestia, she pouted “Mom’s not letting me have any fun.”

“Thank you, Mother” Celestia said, giving Twilight an expectant look “Well?”

Twilight smiled “If you think it’s an engagement ring . . . then you would be correct.”

Gasping again, Celestia turned to Artemis “W-when did you ask her?!”

Also smiling, he replied “Before we came back last night.”

Celestia’s eyes widened “W-why didn’t you tell me?!”

Sitting up, Twilight nuzzled her big sister “We wanted Mom and Dad to be the first to know.”

After a moment, Celestia sighed “Fine, I forgive you. But only because Mother and Father were the ones you told first.” Suddenly, she giggled “Come here, Little Sister!”

Before she could react, Twilight found herself caught in Celestia’s magic before her sister pulled her into a tight hug. Do you still want me to tell you how Celestia reacted?

Laughing, Sundance answered I don’t think that’s necessary.

I wasn’t kidding when I said that she teases me all the time. Twilight commented, returning Celestia’s hug. I moved into the castle when I was eight, so she’s been doing it for a long time. I finally had something I could tease her about. Why didn’t you let me?

Two reasons. Sundance replied, giggling One, Older siblings always tease the younger ones. Two, this is far too important to not tell her about and you know it!

Immediately offended, Twilight shouted I’m not my brother! I was going to tell her, I just wanted to tease her a little first!

Sundance instantly stopped laughing. W-what the-? What’s wrong, Twilight?

Realizing what she’d done, Twilight took a couple of deep breaths, before sighing. I-it’s fine. Don’t worry about it, Mom.

Confused, Sundance quietly said Twilight . . . Thinking better of it, she decided to give her youngest a few minutes to calm down before asking her to explain why she was upset.

Seeing Twilight’s expression, and hearing her sigh, Celestia nuzzled her sister. “What’s wrong?”

Twilight didn’t respond.

Worried, Celestia and Artemis glanced at each other before turning back to her.

In the stars, Sundance turned to her husband and Star Swirl. “I don’t understand. She was slightly upset that I didn’t let her tease Celestia, but now she’s . . .”

“Offended” Midnight Armor finished “Something is clearly bothering her. I just don’t know what it is.”

“You know,” Star Swirl began “She didn’t seem offended until you said that this was too important for her to not tell Celestia about.”

“Yes” Midnight Armor responded “That's when she shouted that she’s not her brother.”

“You’re right,” Star Swirl said slowly “but why would she do that?”

Sundance flickered “I’m not sure, but I’m going to ask her.”

In the Crystal Empire, Celestia wrapped a wing around her sister. “What’s wrong, Twilight? Are you angry that Mother made you stop teasing me?”

“I was hoping to finally be able to tease you about something,” Twilight replied “but I’m not mad.”

“Then what is it?” Artemis asked, nuzzling her

Twilight returned Artemis’ nuzzle before turning to Celestia. “She thought I wasn’t going to tell you.”

“Don’t worry, that thought never crossed my mind.” Celestia replied, nuzzling her little sister. She paused, tilting her head “But I’m curious. Why did that upset you?”

Sighing, Twilight looked out the window before saying three words. “My brother’s wedding.”

“What?” Artemis asked, thoroughly confused

Equally confused, Sundance waited patiently for Twilight to explain. However, before Twilight could respond, Celestia spoke up.

“That reminds me.” She said thoughtfully “I can’t believe I never asked you this, but . . . How did Shining Armor tell you that he and Cadance were getting married?”

“He didn’t” Twilight answered, turning back to her sister “I didn’t even know that he and Cadance were dating, let alone engaged.”

“What?” Celestia asked, eyes wide

“I found out when you sent the wedding invitation and asked me to help plan my brother’s wedding.” Twilight continued

Stunned, Sundance couldn’t even think of a response. Instead, she just listened to what her children were saying.

Trying to wrap her mind around what she’d just heard, Celestia spoke slowly. “That means you found out about everything . . .”

“A week before their wedding.” Twilight finished “To make matters worse, because I’d never heard Cadance’s full name before, I had no idea who he was marrying. When I got to Canterlot, the first thing I did was confront my brother. That’s when he told me who he was marrying.”

“Let me get this straight.” Artemis said slowly “Your brother didn’t tell you that he was courting your former foal sitter, had asked her to marry him or when their wedding was.”

Twilight shook her head

Celestia and Artemis gasped “What?!”

Suddenly understanding why Twilight was offended, and why she had shouted that she wasn’t her brother, Sundance whispered Oh no. I’m sorry, Twilight. I didn’t mean-

It’s alright, Mom. Twilight interrupted You didn’t know. That’s why I told you not to worry about it. She paused In fact, I need to apologize. I didn’t mean to raise my voice like that. I-

Don’t finish that sentence, Twilight. Sundance told her

Surprised, Twilight stopped. Instead, she asked What?

I’m not angry with you. Sundance replied In fact, I completely understand why you reacted that way.

In the stars, Midnight Armor flickered “You’re right, Honey. That certainly explains her reaction.”

“How could her brother not tell her that he was getting married?” Star Swirl asked, clearly incredulous “To a princess, and her former foal sitter, no less.”

“I have no idea.” Sundance replied, flickering as well “I’d also like to know that answer to that question. However, given how offended she was, I have no intention of asking her.”

In the Crystal Empire, Celestia gave Twilight another hug before releasing her and standing. Deciding to switch to a more pleasant topic, she nuzzled her little sister. “So, only Mother, Father, Star Swirl and I know so far, right?”

Twilight and Artemis nodded

Celestia smiled “When are you going to tell everyone else?”

“Today” Twilight replied. Before she could say anything else, her stomach growled.

Giggling, Celestia cast a teleportation spell.

Startled, Twilight looked around to find that they were standing in the dining room.

Everyone in the room was equally startled by their sudden appearance. For a minute, Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Spike, Night Light, Velvet and Cinnamon Spice just stared at Celestia, Artemis and Twilight. Then, as if there had been some sort of signal, everyone said “Good morning” at the same time. Surprised, everyone began to laugh.

When they’d finished laughing, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight walked over to their seats and sat down. Twilight watched as a bowl of oatmeal was set in front of her. Artemis was given a large plate of blueberry scones, with a side of scrambled eggs. Celestia watched as a plate of scrambled eggs was also placed in front of her, but hers had shredded cheese on top. She was also given half a dozen maple glazed donuts.

Velvet watched her daughter eat. For a few minutes, everything seemed fine. Then Twilight’s eyes widened before she teleported out of the room. She watched Artemis glance at Celestia before teleporting out of the room as well.

Cinnamon Spice walked over and replaced Twilight’s oatmeal with a bowl of applesauce. Turning to Cadance, she commented “This is exactly what you went through when you were pregnant, princess. The only difference is that its apples instead of carrots.” She giggled “At this rate, their foal will be as addicted to apples as Princess Flurry Heart is to carrots.”

Cadance giggled as well “You’re right”

On cue, Flurry looked up “Can I have some Carrot Juice, please?”

Everyone laughed

In their bathroom, Artemis turned to see Twilight sitting with her head in the toilet again. Sighing, he walked to her side and rubbed her back. A couple of minutes later, she raised her head, wiped her mouth and flushed the toilet.

Still trying to figure out how the strange contraption worked, Sundance watched closely. Interesting. It doesn’t seem to use much water.

Twilight began to laugh, leaning into Artemis’ side so she didn’t fall to the floor. Seeing the expression on his face, she explained “I think Mom's trying to figure out how the toilet works. I’m sorry, Mom, I didn’t mean to laugh. It’s just that I wasn’t expecting to hear you comment on the amount of water that a toilet uses.”

It’s alright. Sundance giggled I can see how that might seem funny.

Chuckling, Artemis shook his head and stood. Poking his head into their room, he levitated his bag over to his side before teleporting himself and Twilight back to the dining room.

In the dining room, they returned to their seats. Twilight picked up the bottle in front of her and took a sip. Making a face, she levitated it over to Flurry. “My tummy doesn’t feel good right now, so I can’t drink my carrot juice. You can drink it for me.”

“Yay!” Flurry squealed “Thank you, Auntie Twily!” She lifted the bottle in her magic and immediately drank half of it.

Everyone laughed

Artemis nuzzled Twilight “I have something that you should be able to drink.”

“What do you mean?” Twilight asked

Opening his bag, he pulled out a bottle of Apple Family Apple Juice and set it on the table in front of her. “I was afraid this might happen, so I brought a dozen bottles with us.”

Good idea Sundance commented

Opening it, Twilight took a cautious sip. When it showed no sign of coming back up, she took a few larger sips. Sighing in relief, she returned his nuzzle. “I can’t believe I didn’t think of that. Thanks, Artemis.”

They were facing each other, so they missed the looks that everyone else gave Velvet. Sundance saw them but, not wanting to upset her youngest, decided not to say anything.

Twilight and Artemis turned their attention back to their breakfasts. When they finished eating, they glanced at each other before turning to Celestia.

Smiling, Celestia shook her head “That’s up to the two of you. What do you want to do next?”

Confused, Cadance asked “What are the three of you talking about?”

“We’re trying to decide which we should do first.” Twilight replied “Deal with what happened yesterday morning, or make an announcement.” She thought for a minute before sighing. “We should get the unpleasant part out of the way first.”

Sighing as well, Artemis nodded “You’re right.”

Cadance levitated her daughter onto her back and led everypony to the living room. Shining Armor closed the door behind them and nodded to Celestia. Returning his nod, Celestia cast a soundproofing spell around the room.

Turning to her younger siblings, Celestia showed them the conversations their family had while they were on the mountain. When her memory finished, she turned to her brother. “Shining Armor’s assessment makes a lot of sense. Cadance’s does as well. The two combined are why you were so angry, weren’t they?”

Artemis nodded

Finding her brother’s response an acceptable answer, especially under the circumstances, Celestia nodded as well. “It was wise of you to head to a location where you would be able to calm down without the risk of other ponies interrupting you.” She smiled at her little sister. “Well, other than Twilight.”

Laughing softly, Artemis nuzzled his fiancé, careful not to reveal the ring on her horn. “She can “interrupt” me anytime. Besides, if she hadn’t followed me, I’d probably still be on that mountain.”

“Agreed” Celestia replied, also nuzzling her little sister

Artemis used his magic to place Spike on his back. Reaching back to nuzzle the little dragon, he commented “I’m not complaining, but I’m confused by your reaction.”

Same here. Sundance commented

Spike gave Artemis a hug, before pulling back enough to look him in the eye. “When Dahlia attacked her, you protected her and when Pinkie scared her, you calmed her down. You make sure she eats . . . even when she doesn’t want to. You do take care of Twi, and all of us know it.” He gave Velvet a look. “She just doesn’t want to admit it.”

Twilight giggled “There’s something else, isn’t there? You’re just too worried about how he’ll react to say it.”

Spike blushed and mumbled something.

Everyone looked at Twilight, confused, when she began to laugh.

Focused on Spike, she didn’t notice. Instead, she nuzzled her Number One Assistant. “You see Artemis the same way you see Shiny, don’t you?”

Blushing harder, Spike nodded

Looking up at Artemis, and seeing the confusion on his face, Twilight smiled “An older brother.”

Chapter 57

Not expecting to hear that, Artemis’s eyes widened.

Seeing this, Twilight nuzzled him. “Spike’s only that protective over certain ponies. His Family.” After a moment, she continued “In case you haven’t guessed, you don’t mess with a dragon’s family.”

“I-isn’t-” Artemis stammered

“My mother also a part of his family?” Twilight finished

Artemis nodded

“Yes” Twilight answered “When it’s between family members, he’ll defend whoever he believes is right.”

W-wow Sundance said softly

Artemis was too stunned to reply

“We know why Cadance reacted that way.” Twilight commented “As for Shiny . . . I’m pretty sure you earned his respect, not because you’re an alicorn, but because of the way you protected me from Dahlia’s attack.”

Shining Armor nodded “My wife, daughter and sister are all alicorns, so the fact that you’re one as well doesn’t faze me. However, during that attack, you did something that caught my attention. You did what I would have done and put yourself in between my sister and the attack before placing your shield over her. That would have been impressive enough, but then I saw that you had only put your shield around Twilight. You were so focused on keeping Twilight safe, that you didn’t worry about protecting yourself. That’s when you earned my respect.”

Stunned, Sundance stammered I-is he always like this?

Yes Twilight replied, after a moment’s thought, she decided to elaborate. You told me that Dad prefers to focus on defense, but Shiny’s specialty . . . well, I know I told you that it’s shields, but that’s not entirely accurate. His specialty is actually defensive magic, he just prefers shields.

Curious, Sundance took a closer look at Shining Armor. His Soul Mark is a six pointed star on a shield . . . That certainly explains a few things.

Twilight had to stop herself from nodding. In fact, he’s the only one who can cast his most powerful shield. It’s not as powerful as Dad’s barrier, or the shield I saw Celestia use in your memory, but it’s the strongest one ever created by a unicorn.

Anyway, as I’m sure you’ve guessed, Shiny takes the whole “Protective Big Brother” thing very seriously. Artemis wasn’t trying to impress anyone when he protected me from Dahlia’s attack, but that’s how he earned my brother’s respect.

W-wow Sundance breathed

Artemis stared at him for a moment before Twilight nuzzled him.

When he looked at her, Twilight continued “Dad’s reaction doesn’t surprise me because called you his son. He doesn’t like it when his children are hurt, by anyone. I’m not sure what he said to my mother but, if he felt that it couldn’t be said around other ponies . . . trust me, you don’t want to know what it was . . . we’ll just leave it at that.”

I’m certainly not complaining but, while Night Light’s reaction doesn’t surprise you, it does surprise me. Sundance remarked

Why? Twilight asked, curious I mean, you and Dad have done the same thing with me.

It makes sense for your father and myself because that’s the way things were done when we were alive. Sundance explained I wasn’t expecting to see it done now because, well, it’s been fifteen hundred years.

I see. Twilight turned to her mother “That just leaves you, Mother.” She shook her head “Cadance was right, I was furious. There was only one reason that I didn’t want an answer to my question yesterday . . . I thought that going after Artemis was more important than yelling at you.”

Smiling, Celestia nuzzled her little sister “I’m very glad you did. I have no doubt that you’re the only one who could have calmed him down.”

Leaning close to Celestia, Twilight whispered “I can’t take all of the credit for that. I’ll explain how she did it later, but Mom helped.”

Celestia nodded while Twilight turned back to Velvet.

Meanwhile, Cadance had been watching her little sister and uncle carefully. Something’s different about their behavior, I just can’t put my hoof on it. Suddenly, when Twilight turned to face Velvet, she saw something sparkle at the base of her little sister’s horn. Her eyes widened I-it can’t be . . . Without thinking, she used her magic to part Twilight’s mane. Seeing the ring, she squealed in delight.

Hearing this, everyone looked at her before following her gaze, gasping when they saw the ring on Twilight’s horn.

Instantly understanding what was going on, Twilight yelled. “Cadance!”

Immediately realizing what she’d done, Cadance fixed her little sister’s mane. Unfortunately, the damage had already been done.

Seeing the expressions on the faces of everypony in the room, except for Celestia and Artemis, Twilight sighed. “I said we had an announcement to make, remember?”

Eyes wide, everypony nodded

“This isn’t how I wanted to reveal it,” Twilight said, glaring at Cadance “but now you know what it is.”

Unfazed by her sister’s anger, Cadance pulled Twilight into a hug. “When did he ask you?”

Cadance is always like this when she gets excited. Twilight told Sundance She’s not going to let me go, or think about anything else, until I answer her questions.

That’s alright. Sundance giggled I’d also like to know what happened.

Well, you’re about to get your answer. Twilight replied “Last night”

“Were you in the castle?” Cadance asked

Twilight shook her head

Smiling, Cadance pressed further “Where did it happen?”

“On a cloud, as high in the Night Sky as possible, so that it felt like we were among the stars.” Twilight answered

Everyone gasped

After thinking for a moment, Sundance gasped again. Both of you love the stars, so that was perfect!

Celestia nuzzled her brother “That’s why you wanted to take her on a night flight, isn’t it?”

“Yes, sister.” Chuckling, Artemis returned his sister’s nuzzle before walking over to Cadance and Twilight. “Cadance, while I’m glad you’re happy, I think Twilight and I would both appreciate it if you’d allow her to breathe.”

Confused, everyone turned to Cadance, and gasped when they saw that Twilight’s face was starting to turn blue. They watched as Artemis used his magic to gently pry his fiancé from Cadance’s very tight hug and set her next to him.

Panting slightly, Twilight nuzzled Artemis “Thanks, Artemis.”

Artemis simply smiled and returned her nuzzle.

Night Light had a strange expression on his face. “The wedding isn’t next week, is it?”

“No!” Artemis and Twilight exclaimed

Everyone else, including Sundance, laughed.

“Good” Night Light replied, sighing in relief “I was afraid you were going to follow your brother’s example.”

Shining Armor blushed “I’m never going to live that down, am I?”

Of course, this made everyone laugh harder.

When she was sure everyone could hear her, Twilight replied. “We haven’t even thought about a date yet. Besides, we have to tell the girls.”

After a few minutes of silence, the room erupted with cheers. Bewildered, Twilight and Artemis turned to each other.

After a moment, she asked “Delayed reaction?”

“Apparently” He responded, shrugging

Sundance laughed, more at her children’s comments than everyone else’s reactions.

Shaking their heads, Twilight and Artemis turned back to the rest of their family. Eventually, the cheers died down.

“Congratulations!” Celestia giggled

“This is great!” Shining Armor yelled, pulling his sister into a hug. Releasing her, he did the same to Artemis, much to his surprise.

Cadance nuzzled Twilight “Who are you going to ask to marry you?”

Damn it! Twilight cursed I was hoping she wouldn’t ask that! At least, not yet! Knowing that Sundance was going to ask, she explained. There are only two ponies who conduct marriage ceremonies. Celestia and Cadance. Unfortunately, given their relationships to Artemis and I, I’m sure both of them want to do it.

You’re right, Sundance replied that does pose a problem.

Wait. Both want to do it . . . Twilight gasped That’s it! It’s perfect!

What? Sundance asked, confused

“Both of you” Twilight replied

Celestia and Cadance looked at each other before turning back to Twilight. “What?”

Artemis nuzzled Twilight “It sounds like you have an idea.”

She nodded “I know this has never been done before, but I think both of you should do it together. You can alternate lines or something.”

Understanding where Twilight was going with this, Artemis explained “There’s no way we can chose between the two of you. Therefore, the best way to do this is to have both of you conduct the ceremony together.” Hopefully, this won’t offend either of them.

Everyone gasped

Sundance laughed You’re right. That is perfect, Twilight!

Celestia and Cadance looked at each other again before turning back to Twilight. This time, they smiled.

“That’s a great idea, Twily!” Cadance squealed

Celestia nuzzled her younger siblings. “It may be a little unusual, but Cadance’s right. It’s a great idea.”

Twilight sighed in relief “Good. I’m glad that’s settled.”

Flurry flew over, landed on Twilight’s back and nuzzled her.

After returning her nuzzle, Twilight glanced at Artemis. Seeing him smile and nod, she commented “I think we just found our Flower Girl.”

Flurry squealed “Yay!” Suddenly, she paused and tilted her head. “What’s that?”

Everyone laughed

When it died down, Cadance nuzzled her daughter. “I’ll show you what to do later, Flurry.”

“Okay, Mommy!” Flurry replied, flying over and sitting her mother’s back.

As soon as Flurry left Twilight’s back, Spike jumped onto it. Before he could say anything, Twilight glanced back at him “Best Drake”

At the same time, Artemis said “Ring Bearer”

Looking at each other, Twilight and Artemis said “Both”

Grinning, Spike nodded while everyone else laughed.

Twilight tilted her head “We should ask the girls to do the same thing they did for Cadance and Shiny’s wedding for ours.” She paused, and shuddered, before continuing. “Well, except for the part where we had to fight off the changeling invasion.”

“Good idea” Artemis replied “That’ll take care of the food, cake, decorations, music and clothes.”

Celestia laughed “It hasn’t even been a day, and you’ve already got nearly everything planned.”

“The only things you still have to decide on are the date, time, and location.” Cadance said thoughtfully

“We can figure out the date and location later, but I think we already know the time.” Twilight responded, nuzzling Artemis

Artemis smiled “It will be at night.”

“Why am I not surprised?” Celestia asked

Everyone looked at Night Light and Velvet, wondering why neither of them had said anything. Velvet and Night Light didn’t notice this because they were still laughing. Eventually, the calmed enough to speak.

“Finally!” Night Light said, grinning “I was starting to think Twilight would never get married.”

“I know” Velvet replied, smiling “For the longest time, she wasn’t interested in relationships at all.” She shook her head “In fact, I was beginning to worry that we wouldn’t live long enough to see both of our children get married.”

Celestia, Artemis, and Sundance gasped.

Instantly knowing what must be going through their minds, Twilight froze. Oh no

Hearing the gasps, Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Spike, Night Light and Velvet looked at them. Everyone stopped when they saw the expressions on the faces, and tears in the eyes, of Celestia and Artemis.

Taking a deep breath, Twilight turned to her niece and whispered. “Flurry, why don’t you take Artemis to your room? He’s sad right now, so I need you to help him feel better. When he’s happy again, you can play with him.” She nuzzled the little filly. “Do you think you can do that?”

“Yes, Auntie Twily” Flurry answered, nodding “Come on, Uncle Art!” Without waiting for a response, she lit her horn. She and Artemis disappeared in a flash of golden light.

Leaning closer to Cadance, Twilight quietly asked “Can you take Celestia somewhere for a while? I need to talk to my mother.”

Clearly confused, Cadance nodded

Seeing her sister’s expression, Twilight whispered “Think about it this way, their parents . . .”

Eyes widening, Cadance finished softly “didn’t live long enough to see either of their children get married! You’re right, I bet that’s why they’re upset!”

Twilight reluctantly nodded

Nuzzling her little sister, Cadance replied “I’ll take care of Aunt Celestia.” She paused “Don’t be too hard on Velvet, I’m sure she just wasn’t thinking.”

“That’s the problem” Twilight replied, growling slightly

Cadance sighed “I know” Seeing her sister’s expression, and her body shake with anger, she sighed again. “Before you start yelling, cast a stronger soundproofing spell around the room, please.”

Twilight glanced at her mother “I’ll take her somewhere else and cast a stronger soundproofing spell around that room.”

Nodding to her little sister, Cadance teleported herself and Celestia to the room she shared with Shining Armor.

Twilight levitated Spike onto Shining Armor’s back. “Please stay with Shiny.”

Spike nodded “Um, Twi? Why were Artemis and Princess Celestia so upset? She just said . . .”

“That she didn’t think she and Dad would live long enough to see both of their children get married.” Twilight finished, gritting her teeth. Not in the mood for a lengthy explanation, she said “Celestia and Artemis’ parents died before either of them had even found special someponies, let alone gotten married, remember? Hearing what my mother just said . . . How do you think that makes them feel?”

Everyone gasped, turning to Velvet.

Velvet was horrified I-I just-!

“I-I understand” Spike slowly responded

Twilight turned to Night Light “I’m going to borrow Mother for a while.”

Night Light had been expecting his daughter to say that, so he just nodded.

Twilight teleported herself and Velvet to the room she shared with Artemis. Once they arrived, she cast the most powerful soundproofing spell she knew around the room. That done, she turned her attention to Sundance, wincing when she realized that it sounded like her mother was crying again. Mom, I don’t expect a response. I’m just apologizing in advance. I’m about to deal with my mother, and I’m not going to be quiet. I also want to make sure you know that none of what I’m about to say applies to you in any way.

Sundance tried to say that it was alright, or at least that she understood, but the words wouldn’t come out.

Taking a deep breath, and finding that it didn’t help, Twilight turned around to see her mother watching her nervously. As an added precaution, she surrounded both of them in a barrier and attached another soundproofing spell to that. Then she opened her mouth.

In the stars, Sundance and Midnight Armor’s stars were so dim that they could barely be seen. In fact, the only reason Star Swirl could see them was that both of them were flickering slightly.

I’m not going to bother asking them if they’re alright, because it’s clear that they’re not. Nor am I going to say that “It’ll be alright”, or something like that, because . . . well, I don’t think it ever will be. Star Swirl was torn from his thoughts by a shout that echoed among the stars.

“What were you thinking?!”

Startled, Star Swirl turned his attention to what was going on in the Crystal Empire and gasped when he saw a very angry lavender alicorn. “W-wow. S-she’s even scarier than Artemis.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor’s attention had also been drawn by their daughter’s voice. They heard Star Swirl’s comment and, unable to stop themselves, laughed softly.

Star Swirl turned to them. “H-how was that funny?” I'm not complaining, mainly because I thought it would be several hours before I heard them laugh. Even so, that wasn’t supposed to be funny.

Flickering, Midnight Armor chuckled softly “That’s not why we’re laughing.”

“What?” Star Swirl asked I hope they’re going to explain that.

“Twilight is more of an academic than a fighter.” Sundance explained, giggling quietly “Yes, she’s very powerful, but she only fights when she needs to. As far as I can tell, she’d rather have her nose buried in a book.”

“That’s the impression I got from her as well.” Star Swirl responded, briefly brightening “It’s also why seeing her this angry scares me.”

Surprised, Midnight Armor and Sundance laughed again.

I still don’t understand why that’s so funny, but at least they’re laughing. Flickering, Star Swirl turned his attention to what was going on in the Crystal Empire.

Wondering how their daughter was going to handle the situation, Sundance and Midnight Armor did the same.

In the Crystal Empire, Artemis and Flurry appeared in her room. Surprised, Artemis looked around before turning to his grandniece. “Why did you bring us here, Flurry?”

Landing on his back, Flurry nuzzled him. “Auntie Twily said you’re sad and I have to help you feel better.” Jumping into the air, she excitedly flapped her wings a few times before landing on his back again. “She said I can play with you when you’re happy again!”

Artemis’ eyes widened Twilight . . .

She knows that you’re fond of foals, Artemis. Besides, it’s been a long time since you’ve spent any quality time with this little one.

Before either of them could say anything else, Flurry pushed Artemis onto a pile of cushions and snuggled close to his side.

Smiling, he draped a wing over his grandniece and pulled her into a hug. Laying his head on a nearby cushion, he closed his eyes and allowed himself to relax. At least, he tried to. He lifted his head again when he felt the castle shake slightly. Instantly knowing what caused it, he shook his head. I don’t think Twilight was this angry when Blaze tried to kill me.

Feeling the same thing, Flurry shivered “W-why is Auntie Twily so mad?”

She can tell that Twilight's the one who did that? Shaking his head again, Artemis nuzzled her “Your grandmother accidentally said something that made your Aunt Celestia and me sad.”

“But Daddy said that Grandma said mean things to you.” She said, confused

“She did that too.” Artemis answered softly, wincing slightly “That’s why Twilight is angry.” Seeing his grandniece’s expression, he nuzzled her again. “Don’t worry, she’s not angry with you.”

Flurry nodded, obviously thinking about something. “Mommy said Auntie Twily is p- . . . pre-”

He laughed softly “Pregnant”

“Yeah!” She said, nodding again “What’s-”

Laughing harder, he explained “It means she has a baby growing in her tummy. She’s going to be a mommy soon.”

Flurry’s eyes lit up “Auntie Twily’s gonna have a baby?”

Artemis nodded

“Yay!” She shouted.

Still laughing, he hugged her tighter.

Suddenly quite serious, especially for a two year old, she looked up at him. “Can I play with the baby? Please?”

Laughing much harder, he answered “Our baby has to grow some more, so it isn’t ready to play yet. After it’s born, you can play with him or her.”

Squealing in delight, she nuzzled him. “Thank you!”

Cadance’s teleportation spell put her and Celestia in the middle of the room she shared with her husband. She walked over to their bed and lay down.

Surprised, Celestia looked around the room, before slowly turning to her niece. “Why are we here?”

“You can thank Twilight for that.” Cadance answered, smiling at her aunt. “When Velvet said . . . that . . . Twilight told Flurry to take Uncle Artemis to her room and asked me to take you somewhere.”

Celestia gasped W-what?!

“I’m fairly certain she intends to speak to Velvet but,” Cadance continued “before she said anything to her mother, she made sure that neither of you would be able to hear her.”

Before either of them could say anything else, they felt the castle shake slightly.

“She’s doing something with her mother,” Celestia commented “but talking isn’t it.” Thank you, Twilight.

“You’re right.” Cadance replied, shaking her head “Anyway, join me, please.” When Celestia had settled next to her on the bed, she laughed. “The last time we did this, it was the opposite.”

Celestia smiled “If I recall correctly, you’d had a bad day at school. I knew you were going to foal sit Twilight that night, so I told you that you should head to the Sparkle house early.” She laughed softly “Playing with Twilight always made you happy, so I was planning to have her help you.”

“But I didn’t want Twilight to see me upset.” Cadance continued “So I asked you to help me instead.”

Celestia giggled “I still can’t believe it took me over two hours to get you to smile.” She shook her head “Later that night, I really heard it from most of the nobles.”

“Why?” Cadance asked, confused

“They’d asked for a private audience with me.” Celestia explained “When I saw how upset you were, I postponed it. They were offended because I’d dared to spend my time with a filly instead of them.” She shook her head again “Their petition wasn’t even important. They just had a disagreement with the architects about the design for the stage for the Summer Sun Celebration.”

Cadance blinked “They demanded to see you because they were upset about that?!”

Laughing, Celestia nodded “The petition was a demand that I change it. When I told them “No”, they spent the next four and a half hours trying to convince me otherwise. Regardless, I wouldn’t hear of it.”

“Why not?” Cadance asked, curious

Celestia hugged her niece “The stage design for that year was actually something that you’d come up with for an art project in school. When I saw your teachers for a “Parent-Teacher Conference”, they showed me what you’d done.” She smiled “I liked your design, so I told the architects to use it for the stage that year.”

Cadance just stared at her aunt, mouth open, for several minutes. When she could speak again, she stammered “I-I didn’t know about that.” She paused “What did the nobles want to change?”

Celestia tilted her head, trying to remember exactly what their complaint had been. A few minutes later, she replied “They thought the stage should be a solid gold sun. Naturally, I wasn’t going to allow that.”

“Why didn’t you tell me about this?” Cadance asked, confused

“If I recall correctly, you were in one of your phases.” Celestia answered slowly “At the time, you rarely spoke to me. The strange part was that you weren’t rude about it. Whenever I tried to talk to you, you’d apologize and tell me that you were “too busy”.”

Recalling that period of her life, Cadance lowered her head, softly replying. “Oh”

Celestia nuzzled her niece before continuing. “As you might imagine, I was rather surprised when you suddenly wanted to talk to me. Regardless, I certainly wasn’t going to say “No”. Instead, I decided that the nobles could wait.”

A few minutes later, Cadance whispered “Thank you”

Smiling, Celestia pulled her niece into a hug. “You’re welcome.”

In the room that Twilight and Artemis shared, Twilight had just turned to face her mother. Of the many questions that were running through her head, she chose the one that would get her in the least amount of trouble. I’m not sure why I care about that right now. Oh well.

“What were you thinking?!”

Velvet stammered “I-I didn’t know it would upset them like that.”

“How could you not think that comment would upset them?!” Twilight demanded “Two nights ago, when we told everyone about what happened to their parents, you saw how upset they were when Shiny read that book out loud!”

Velvet opened her mouth, closed it and looked down at the floor.

“Cadance told me not to be too hard on you because you probably just didn’t think before you spoke.” Twilight stated, glaring at her mother “That’s the only reason I’m going to drop the topic.”

Sighing in relief, Velvet nodded and turned towards the door. I really have to thank her later.

Twilight’s glare didn’t lighten at all. In fact, it deepened. “I said I’m going to drop that topic, Mother, but I never said we were done. I’m sure you can guess the next topic.”

Audibly gulping, and turning back to her daughter, Velvet nodded again. “Y-you want to talk about what I said to Artemis.”

“That’s right.” Twilight responded “As you know, I heard the reasons you gave everyone else. We’ll start with the first two . . . Artemis was taken over by Nightmare forces and Night’s presence in his body.”

Velvet nodded “Even though you freed him four years ago, he was taken over again a few weeks ago! That means it could happen again! He’s far too dangerous for you to be around, especially now that you’re pregnant!”

Growling, Twilight replied “Did Night kill anypony?! Did he hurt anypony?! The answer to both questions is “No”. Night took over Artemis’ body because he was angry about what Blueblood was doing. They share Artemis’ body, so the only way Night could have done anything about it was to take control.” She glared at her mother “Did you know that I didn’t need to use the Elements of Harmony to stop him?”

“That’s the rumor going around, but I don’t believe it.” Velvet answered “If you didn’t use the Elements of Harmony, what did you use?”

“Nothing!” Twilight replied “I asked him to release Artemis!”

Velvet gasped “What?! H-he did as you asked?!”

Twilight nodded “Without a struggle. For the thousandth time, Mother, both of them have been purified. In fact, he protected me! Both of them did! Don’t you think that says something about their intentions?!”

Reluctantly, Velvet nodded

Seeing this, Twilight continued “As for the part about me being pregnant . . . Whose foal do you think I’m carrying?! Do you really think I’m not going to let the father of my foal anywhere near me?! And don’t you dare say “Yes”!”

Velvet glanced at her daughter’s stomach before looking her in the eye again. “There’s still the problem you have with holding down food. You can’t tell me that that’s nothing.”

Twilight rolled her eyes “How many times did you tell me stories about the morning sickness you had when you were pregnant with me? I’m not sure because I never bothered to count them. You’d point out a specific dish and complain that I never let you eat it because you always threw it up. When I apologized, you’d laugh, pat the top of my head and tell me that “it wasn’t a problem”.” She narrowed her eyes. “So, you’re telling me that it wasn’t a problem when you had morning sickness, but it is now that I have it? And it’s somehow Artemis’ fault?!”

Velvet’s eyes widened “I-”

Twilight cut her mother off. “None of the reasons you’ve given us are the real reason you’re acting like this and both of us know it.” Her glare returned “Now then, Why are you treating Artemis like this?!”

Looking down, Velvet muttered something about how he stole her little girl.

“Seriously?!” Twilight asked, staring at her mother in disbelief. “We’re back to that?!”

Velvet’s head snapped up “W-what?!”

“I’m not a “little girl” anymore! I’m twenty-one years old!” Twilight angrily replied “You were younger than I am when you had Shiny!”

“Y-you’re right.” Velvet replied, sighing “I-it’s just that I missed . . . everything!”

“That’s not true!” Twilight snapped, barely maintaining control of her temper. “I was eight when Celestia took me on as her student! You’re the one who asked her if I could move into the castle because it wasn’t safe for me to walk to and from my lessons on my own. You and Dad visited all of the time, especially when I was younger! It’s true that I don’t see you as often as I used to, but that’s not Artemis’ fault!”

“Yes, it is!” Velvet insisted “You moved to Ponyville to get the Elements so you could defeat him!”

“No, it’s not!” Twilight shouted “I traveled to Ponyville to make friends and get the Elements of Harmony! The girls and I needed the Elements so we could defeat Night-Terror Knight . . . we didn’t fight Artemis at all! After that, Celestia asked me if I was coming back to Canterlot, but I chose to stay in Ponyville with my friends! Artemis had nothing to do with it because, at the time, I’d barely spent five minutes anywhere near him!”

Velvet gasped “I-”

Twilight interrupted her mother “I’m the one you’re really angry at, but you don’t want to blame me for my actions. Instead, you’re focusing your anger on Artemis!”

Velvet gasped again “T-that’s not-!”

Twilight’s glare deepened “That’s exactly what you’re doing and you need to stop!”

In the stars, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl sat in stunned silence.

When Sundance finally spoke, it was a hushed “W-wow”

“Agreed” Midnight Armor quietly replied “Twilight took the three reasons Twilight Velvet gave everyone, which sounded valid, and tore them apart. Then she found the real reason behind Twilight Velvet’s actions.”

“And figured out that Twilight Velvet’s been redirecting the anger she’s probably built up over the years.” Star Swirl commented “Hearing about the danger that her daughter is currently facing must have been too much for her to handle, so now she’s lashing out . . . at an innocent pony.”

Before anything else could be said, they noticed Twilight suddenly lift her head.

In the Crystal Empire, Twilight felt familiar magic building and suddenly raised her head.

Velvet raised an eyebrow “Is something wrong?”

“Celestia’s about to teleport both of us to her.” Twilight responded, closing her eyes “You might want to close your eyes. I know from experience that, if you don’t, you’ll be seeing spots for the rest of the day.”

Velvet quickly did as her daughter suggested. A flash of sunlight later, they found themselves back in the living room.

Celestia, Artemis, Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Spike and Night Light looked over when Twilight and Velvet appeared in the center of the room. Before anyone could ask, Twilight showed everyone the argument that she’d had with her mother.

When her memory had finished playing, everyone stared at Velvet.

Velvet didn’t say anything. Instead, to avoid their gazes, she looked at the floor.

After a couple of minutes, Night Light spoke up. “How much of what our daughter said is true, Velvet?” When she didn’t say anything, he raised an eyebrow. “Based on your response, or lack of one, I’m going to assume that she got all of it right.”

Still examining the carpet, Velvet reluctantly nodded.

“I see” Night Light remarked “We’ll discuss this tonight.”

“I won’t force you to speak to your wife before you’re ready,” Celestia began, glancing at him “but the rest of us need to discuss this now.”

Night Light nodded “Of course, princess”

Nodding as well, Celestia turned to Velvet “I will not allow Twilight to take all of the responsibility, especially when you consider the fact that I’m the one who permitted her to stay in Ponyville. However, you must also take some of the responsibility for this. Ponyville isn’t that far from Canterlot, so there’s nothing stopping you from going to visit your daughter.”

Surprised, Velvet lifted her head “Y-you’re right, Princess Celestia.”

“Twilight was right when she said that Artemis had nothing to do with the decisions she made four years ago.” Celestia continued, giving Velvet a look. “She was also correct when she said that you need to stop treating him like this.”

Velvet nodded again “I understand” After hesitating for a moment, she turned to Artemis. Before she could say anything, Celestia moved to stand in between them.

Artemis raised an eyebrow W-what’s she doing now?

“You will be very careful with how you speak, and what you say, to my brother.” Celestia said, narrowing her eyes slightly

Velvet’s eyebrows rose

Seeing this, Celestia explained “Your words have hurt him far more than he’s letting on. I’m sure you can understand why I won’t allow you to do it again.”

Wincing slightly, Velvet replied “Yes, princess”

Twilight watched Celestia move to stand next to Artemis. And there’s Protective Big Sister Mode.

You’re right. Sundance commented, laughing softly when she felt Twilight’s surprise.

Twilight cautiously asked Are you alright, Mom?

I’m fine. Sundance answered

I hope you don’t expect me to believe that. Twilight replied, raising an eyebrow

After a moment of shock, Sundance giggled. Alright, that’s not entirely true. Perhaps I should have said that I will be fine. Before you ask, the same applies to your father.

Twilight was about to say something but, before she could, Velvet began to speak.

“Twilight was right when she said that I’m not really angry at Artemis.” Velvet began, sighing “There are two ponies that I’ve been angry at for years. Princess Celestia and Twilight. However, I didn’t feel that it was appropriate to be angry at either of them, so I kept quiet.”

Everyone gasped

“As for the reason,” Velvet continued “Night Light and I weren’t told that Princess Celestia was preparing our daughter to take on Night-Terror Knight. Nor were we told when she was sent to Ponyville. In fact, we didn’t find out about either of them until Princess Celestia introduced Artemis to the ponies of Canterlot. That’s when we were told about where our daughter had gone and what she had done. That’s also when we were told that Twilight had decided to move to Ponyville without permission from myself or her father.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow “If I had told you about what I was preparing your daughter for, can you honestly tell me that you wouldn’t have taken steps to prevent it?”

“No, princess” Velvet reluctantly answered “If I’d known of the danger you were planning to send my daughter into, I would have done anything I could to keep her with me.”

“I thought so.” Celestia replied “As for not consulting the two of you before allowing Twilight to move to Ponyville, I didn’t do so because she was seventeen years old. That means she was an adult who didn’t need permission from her parents.”

Night Light nodded

Sighing again, Velvet nodded as well.

Twilight cleared her throat, drawing everyone’s attention. “I didn’t tell you because, honestly, I had too many other things on my mind at the time and simply didn’t think about it.” She thought for a moment “Besides, even if I had told you about it, what would you have said?”

Velvet instantly looked offended “I-”

Knowing what his wife was going to say, Night Light gave her a look. “Don’t even think about it, Honey.”

Sighing again, Velvet finished “would have insisted that you move back home. Or at least, go back to the castle.”

Everyone laughed

“As for why I was preparing your daughter to take on Night-Terror Knight,” Celestia began “I had two reasons. Yes, part of the first reason was personal . . . I wanted my brother back.”

Artemis nuzzled his sister.

Returning his nuzzle, Celestia continued “However, the other part was that it was for the good of all of Equestria. Not only because of the danger that Night-Terror Knight would have put everyone in, but because the ponies of Equestria needed their Prince of the Night.”

Confused, Night Light asked “Didn’t you take care of the Night in Artemis’ absence?”

“To a limited extent” Celestia replied “I can raise and lower the moon and stars, but that’s all I’m able to do with my brother’s Night. Artemis is the only one who can truly take care of his moon and stars. He’s also the only one who can protect ponies while they sleep.”

“I see.” Velvet commented thoughtfully “And the second reason?”

Glancing at her little sister, Celestia laughed “I discovered that Twilight was destined to become the Bearer of the Element of Magic shortly after she moved into the castle.”

“How did you figure that out?” Cadance asked, clearly confused

Celestia turned to Twilight. “How should we explain it to them?”

Twilight laughed “Why don’t we just show them those memories?” She paused thoughtfully “You’ll have to explain why you suppressed my memory, though.”

“I have no problem with that.” Celestia replied

“In that case,” Twilight responded “because your memory comes first, you should start.”

Celestia showed everyone her memory of the night that Twilight found her crying as she looked up at her brother’s moon. Then Twilight showed everyone the dream she had after they went to sleep.

Everyone, except for Celestia and Artemis, just stared at Twilight, mouths open.

Eventually, Shining Armor stammered “Y-you repelled Night-Terror Knight . . .”

Night Light continued “b-by yourself . . .”

“W-when you were eight?!” Velvet finished, clearly incredulous

“I didn’t know that’s what I was doing at the time.” Twilight answered “Regardless, that’s what happened.”

I’m still surprised that you were able to do that. Sundance remarked

Cadance spoke slowly “I-I understand why you knew that Twily was going to be the Bearer of the Element of Magic, Aunt Celestia.” She thought for a moment. “If I had to guess, I’d say that you suppressed her memory to make sure she wouldn’t hold back against Night-Terror Knight.”

“That’s exactly why I did it.” Celestia replied “I knew that, if I didn’t, Twilight would have figured out that Artemis was trapped inside him. That means she would have held back in fear of hurting him.”

Glancing at Velvet, Celestia continued “At the time, you refused to believe that Twilight was ready to learn how to teleport. Do you honestly believe that I was going to tell you what she was destined for?” Shaking her head, she continued “I had no intention of stopping Twilight from facing Night-Terror Knight. Instead, I made sure she had the skills that she would need.”

“I see.” Night Light said, smiling “Instead of being angry at you for preparing our daughter for such danger, it seems that we should be thanking you.”

After a moment, Velvet sighed “My little girl was more grown up at eight years old than I am now.”

Everyone stared at her for a long moment before beginning to laugh.

When they’d calmed down, Velvet sighed again. “Anyway, over the years, I’d built up a rather large amount of anger. This is because of all of the other dangers Twilight had been forced to face because she bears one of the Elements of Harmony. In each case, I didn’t find out about it until after everything had been settled. However, I never said anything to Princess Celestia or Twilight. Even Night Light remained unaware of my anger.” Seeing their expressions, she said “I didn’t tell him because couldn’t bring myself to admit it, to anyone.”

Everyone nodded and waited for Velvet to continue.

“I’d gotten rather good at hiding my anger.” Velvet continued “Unfortunately, that changed two days ago. First, I found out that my daughter has been keeping secrets from me. Then I found out about the dangers that she’s currently facing.” She shrugged “It became too much. In order to keep myself sane, I had to find an outlet . . . someone to blame and focus my anger on. However, at the time, I hadn’t placed the blame on anyone yet.” Sighing again, she said “In fact, it wasn’t until Artemis spoke up yesterday morning that he . . . became the target, I guess.”

Twilight sighed “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you that I was moving to Ponyville. However, while I didn’t know it at the time, the Elements of Harmony draw a large part of their power from the strength of my friendship with the girls.” She looked her mother in the eye. “That means the girls and I have to stay near each other because, as odd as this sounds, maintaining the strength of our friendship is crucial for keeping Equestria safe.”

Velvet stared at her daughter, eyes wide

Twilight thought for a moment “As for the other dangers that we faced, we didn’t know about them ahead of time either. In fact, out of all of the times that we had to use the Elements of Harmony, I only knew about one before it actually happened. Well, a couple of days, anyway.”

“Tirek” Night Light guessed

Twilight, Celestia, Artemis and Cadance nodded

Deciding to explain this part herself, Celestia cleared her throat, drawing everyone’s attention. “We didn’t tell anypony about that. Before you ask why, let me ask you something. Do you realize how much panic it would have caused if we’d told the ponies of Equestria that a magic stealing centaur was walking among them?”

Imagining the mass hysteria an announcement like that would have caused, Velvet, Night Light, Shining Armor and Spike winced.

“I-I can understand why you decided to keep that quiet.” Velvet stammered

The four adult alicorns nodded. Glancing at Cadance’s back, everyone noticed that Flurry had fallen asleep.

Velvet turned to her daughter “So, it’s not that you were hiding things from myself and your father, it’s that you didn’t know about them ahead of time either. Is that right?”

“Yes” Twilight replied “Most of the time, these things just happen. Sometimes, Celestia discovers the danger shortly before everything erupts and sends me a letter but the girls and I are usually on our own.”

Realizing that Velvet didn’t believe her, Twilight said “For example, when I figured out that the Elements had to be returned to the Tree of Harmony, Celestia and Artemis had already been captured by Discord’s vines. That means they couldn’t have told me anything. I discovered that there was a problem when I woke up the next day and looked outside.”

“What do you mean?” Night Light asked

Twilight raised an eyebrow “How many times have you seen the sun and the moon in the sky at the same time? Then there was the fact that nopony could find either of them.”

“Oh” Night Light responded “You’re right. That must have been quite a surprise.”

Everyone else laughed

“We may not have actively used the Elements of Harmony that time,” Twilight continued “but their power was necessary to solve the problem. I just had to put them in their proper places.”

Velvet thought for a moment “What about Discord?”

“He’d already escaped.” Twilight answered “As soon as Celestia found out about it, she called the girls and I to Canterlot. If he gets serious, well as serious as he ever gets, the Elements of Harmony are the only things capable of stopping him. Because the girls and I are the only ones who can wield them . . .”

“I understand” Velvet replied, sighing “Fine. I’m still not happy that those things happened, but I understand why they did. I also understand why Night Light and I weren’t told about them until everything had been solved.”

“It’s going to keep happening.” Twilight told her mother “Unfortunately, there’s nothing that any of us can do to stop it. I hate to say it this way, but you’re just going to have to get used to it.”

Velvet gasped “Twilight!”

“If this means that I have to bear the brunt of your anger, so be it.” Twilight continued “However, I won’t allow you to blame Artemis for something that’s not his fault.”

Velvet nodded “I understand” Turning to Artemis, she bowed “I’m sorry, Artemis. They’re right. I had no business treating you like that.” Seeing Artemis open his mouth, she quickly shook her head. “I’ve been told that it’ll be awhile before you’re willing to speak to me again, and I understand why, so I don’t expect a response.”

Surprised, Artemis closed his mouth and glanced at his sister.

Equally surprised, Celestia shrugged

In the stars, Midnight Armor turned to his wife “That was interesting.”

“You’re right” Sundance replied “I don’t blame Twilight Velvet for being unhappy about the fact that that her daughter had been facing such danger without her knowledge. Or that Celestia had been preparing her for it from the start.”

“However,” Star Swirl said “she shouldn’t have handled it the way she did. If she’d just talked to someone about it, her anger wouldn’t have built up to that point.”

“Agreed” Midnight Armor replied “Additionally, she probably wouldn’t have blamed Artemis for something that he had no part of.” He thought for a moment “Regardless, I’m impressed with how Twilight handled the argument with her mother.”

“I am as well.” Star Swirl remarked “If she hadn’t done that, we wouldn't know what Twilight Velvet was really doing.”

“Or why.” Sundance commented

Briefly brightening, the three of them turned their attention back to the Crystal Empire.

In the Crystal Empire, Twilight jumped slightly when she heard Sundance’s voice.

I must say, I’m impressed with the way you handled the argument with Twilight Velvet. Your father and Star Swirl are as well.

Why? Twilight asked, surprised All I did was yell at my mother. She had to stop herself from sighing. In fact, I’ll probably get in trouble for that later.

You’d better not receive a reprimand for that. Sundance immediately responded, temper flaring slightly Especially when you consider the fact that everything you said was correct. She paused for a moment. Your father and I thought that the reasons she gave everyone sounded valid. However, you saw through them and realized that she had a different reason for her actions.

Well, Twilight said thoughtfully as I’m sure you’ve guessed, I’ve known her for a long time.

Sundance laughed

She’s able to tell when I’m hiding something from her, Twilight continued but the same applies to me. Once I realized what was going on, it was merely a matter of remembering things that she’s told me over the years and applying them to the current situation.

“Merely a matter” of remembering things that were said over the course of twenty-one years? Sundance asked skeptically I’d have no trouble believing that . . . if you hadn’t done so during an argument that didn’t even last an hour.

Twilight blushed slightly Well . . .

Sundance laughed again, harder this time.

Twilight was about to say something else but was distracted when Artemis, with a now awake Flurry sitting on his back, walked over to her and leaned closer. Feeling his breath on her ear sent a shiver down her spine.

Seeing this, Artemis smiled before whispering “I assume you’re speaking to Mother.” When she nodded, he continued “I can’t imagine that she was any less upset about Velvet’s comment than Celestia and I were. Is she alright?”

“She was just as upset as you were, if not more so.” Twilight quietly responded “In fact, it sounded like she was crying for several minutes, but she’s feeling better now. We were talking about how I handled the argument with my mother.”

“I see” He replied “I'd like to say something about that as well, but I'll wait until tonight to say it.” Seeing her expression, he shook his head “Don’t worry, I’m not upset. Well, not with you.”

Sighing in relief, she nodded

Flurry was used to this because her parents often did the same. Therefore, she waited patiently for them to finish speaking. When it seemed like they were done, she jumped onto Twilight’s back. “Auntie Twily, guess what!”

Smiling, Twilight reached back to nuzzle her niece. “What is it, Flurry?”

Bouncing in excitement, Flurry exclaimed “Uncle Art took me to see stars! They were really pretty!”

“I bet they were.” Twilight replied “Did you know that he did that just for you?”

Clearly confused, Flurry shook her head.

“You’re not old enough to stay up that late yet.” Twilight explained “That’s why you had never seen the stars. Artemis didn’t want to make you wait until you got older, so he took you to see them.”

Squealing in delight, Flurry jumped back onto Artemis’ back and nuzzled him. “Thank you, Uncle Art!”

I’d be surprised if she wasn’t excited. Sundance commented That was a very nice present.

Smiling, Artemis reached back and returned her nuzzle. “You’re welcome, Flurry. If your parents say it’s alright, I’ll do it again in a few days.”

Flurry was about to say something, but stopped when she was suddenly lifted into the air.

Surprised, Twilight and Artemis looked around to see that everyone watching them. Even more surprising, was the fact that everyone was smiling at them. They glanced at each other before turning to Cadance as she placed her daughter on her back.

I’m glad I got to see that. It may have been with Flurry now, but that will be happening with their foal next year. Still smiling, Cadance walked forward and nuzzled Artemis. “I don’t have a problem with that.”

“I don’t either.” Shining Armor commented, moving to stand next to his wife. “Especially since it’s clear that she really enjoyed it.”

Artemis stared at them but, before he could say anything, Flurry drew everyone’s attention.

“YAY!”

While her shout wasn’t in the Royal Voice, it was pretty close.

Twilight blinked before turning to Cadance. “Y-you might want to work with her on that . . .”

Everyone else just nodded

Cadance looked just as surprised “S-she’s never done that before.”

That’s exactly what Celestia did. Sundance remarked, laughing She was almost ten years old and I’d promised to take her to the ocean for her birthday. She’d never seen the ocean before, let alone been to it, so she was extremely excited.

Twilight giggled

Hearing this, Celestia quietly asked. “What did Mother say?”

“She told me about the first time you used the Royal Voice.” Twilight whispered, giggling again when her big sister blushed.

Seeing this, Sundance giggled as well.

Cadance, Shining Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight looked up when Velvet, with Spike sitting on her back, walked over to join them.

Reaching over to nuzzle Flurry, Velvet commented “Shining Armor never was that interested in the night sky. However, even from an early age, Twilight was a different story.” She laughed “It appears that this little one is more like her aunt than her father.”

Everyone else laughed as well.

Twilight was about to say something, but a flash of magic drew her attention. Surprised, she looked towards the source to see that her father was staring at her.

Noticing that he’d caught his daughter’s attention, Night Light gestured to his side.

Twilight walked over to her father. “Is something wrong, Dad?”

Night Light nodded “I don’t blame you for being angry.” He began “However, I don’t approve of the way you treated your mother.”

Twilight opened her mouth

Seeing this, Night Light shook his head. “There’s no excuse for your actions.” Seeing her expression, he shook his head again. “It doesn’t matter. You shouldn’t have yelled at your mother.”

Knowing that he wasn’t going to let her say anything for a while, Twilight didn’t bother trying. Instead, she sighed I knew I’d get in trouble for that.

Watching to Night Light settle into what promised to be a long lecture, Sundance felt her temper begin to rise. Feeling like she had to do something, she looked around the room for her older children. After a moment, she saw that Celestia and Artemis were standing off to the side, speaking quietly to each other. When Night Light turned to look out the window, she used Twilight’s magic to send a message to them.

Feeling Twilight’s surprise, she quickly said I’m sorry, Twilight. I just needed to say something to Celestia and Artemis.

Twilight had to keep herself from shaking her head because her father chose that moment to look back at her. I-it’s alright, Mom. Just . . . warn me next time, please. I almost said something out loud. If I had done that, it would not have gone well.

Hearing that, Sundance’s anger rose even further, but she forced herself not to say anything.

Meanwhile, Celestia and Artemis were quietly discussing when they should get back to their research and what they’d found so far. Their eyes widened when they saw Twilight’s magic appear in front of them. They were even more surprised, and confused, when it formed a message written in Equestria’s ancient written language.

I’m sorry to interrupt your conversation, but at least one of you needs to go help Twilight. Night Light has the nerve to reprimand her for the argument she had with Twilight Velvet. In fact, it looks like his lecture will last at least a couple of hours.

Once both of them had read the message, it faded.

Concerned, they looked around the room for a moment before seeing Twilight. She was standing on the other side of the room, facing her father, and clearly struggling to maintain control of her temper. Night Light was facing them, but focused on his daughter.

Exchanging glances, and not wanting to distract either of them by teleporting, they quietly walked closer. Still focused on his daughter, Night Light didn’t notice. Instead, he continued his lecture.

“You should have left your mother to me. Instead-”

“How would that have solved anything?” Celestia asked

Startled, Night Light looked up and noticed Celestia and Artemis standing behind his daughter. When Twilight didn’t turn to them, his eyebrows rose. I see. She knows I’m not finished yet, so she’s waiting for me to speak to them. He turned his attention back to Celestia and Artemis, about to politely ask if they’d come back in a few hours. However, seeing their expressions, he hesitated. Instead, he decided to see what they wanted. “What do you mean, Princess Celestia?”

Celestia raised an eyebrow “You didn’t know that Velvet has been bottling her anger for years.”

He opened his mouth

Seeing this, she shook her head. “If my little sister hadn’t done what she did, we wouldn’t have known about any of this.”

Artemis leaned down to nuzzle Twilight before lifting his head to look at Night Light. “Additionally, we wouldn’t have been able to address the fears that were the source of Velvet's anger.”

Celestia nuzzled her sister as well. “My brother is correct. What you’re really doing is punishing your daughter for helping her mother.”

“I won’t argue with the fact that she helped Velvet,” Night Light began “but she still shouldn’t have raised her voice at her mother.”

“If she had spoken calmly, do you really think Velvet would have listened?” She raised an eyebrow “Remember, she was doing her best to justify her anger at Artemis.”

Night Light opened his mouth, closed it and tried to think of a way to explain why his daughter needed to be punished.

Seeing this, Celestia sighed “I’d like you to think about what Velvet said to Artemis. Now imagine that her parents had said that to you. What would Velvet have done?”

Immediately knowing what his wife’s reaction would have been, Night Light’s eyes widened. However, before he could say anything, Velvet spoke up. “I probably would have attacked them. Nopony talks to the father of my children like that.”

Surprised, all four of them turned to see that everyone else was standing behind Celestia and Artemis.

Velvet nuzzled her daughter before walking over to stand next to her husband. “I understand what you’re trying to do, Night Light, but our daughter did nothing wrong. That means you shouldn’t be punishing her.” Looking at Twilight, she asked “Why don’t you go get some lunch before beginning your research for the day?”

Surprised, Twilight finally turned to look at Celestia and Artemis but, before she could say anything, Celestia teleported them to the dining room. Glancing around the room, and finding it empty, she asked “How did you know what he was doing?”

“Mother told us.” Artemis answered, smiling

Twilight blinked “What? I know she used my magic, but she just said that she needed to say something to the two of you . . . so that’s what she meant.”

Celestia, Artemis and Sundance laughed but, before they could say anything else, Cinnamon Spice walked into the dining room.

“I thought I heard voices.” She commented “I’ll be right back with you lunch, your highnesses.”

Surprised, they just looked at her.

Eventually, Artemis said “Thank you”

Laughing, Cinnamon Spice headed back into the kitchen.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight sat down at the table.

While she waited for her food, Twilight turned her attention to her mother. I wasn’t expecting you to do that, Mom, but thank you.

You’re welcome Sundance replied I told you that you’d better not receive a reprimand for your actions and I meant it.

Confused, Twilight tilted her head B-but I-

Were just defending the pony you love. Sundance finished There’s nothing wrong with that.

Before Twilight could respond, Cinnamon Spice returned with their lunch. Not really in the mood to talk much, they ate quietly. When all three of them had finished, Celestia teleported them to her room.

In Celestia’s room, she walked over to the large table that had been brought up for them to use. Twilight and Artemis looked around for a few moments before joining her. As her siblings sat next to her, Celestia cast a soundproofing spell around the room.

“Where do you want to start?” Twilight asked Celestia

Celestia glanced at Artemis before both of them turned to her. “Aren’t you the one in charge of research? Why don’t you tell us?”

“W-what?” Twilight stammered “Who decided that? I thought we were working together.”

“You told Mother that you were going to handle the research.” Celestia replied, smiling “Besides, you’re better at it than Artemis and I are.”

“B-but-!” Twilight was about to say something else, but paused when she heard their mother’s voice.

Listen to your big sister, Twilight.

Twilight groaned “You don’t need to help her, Mom!”

Sundance laughed

Curious, Celestia nuzzled her sister “What did Mother say?”

Twilight sighed “She told me to listen to my big sister.”

Celestia and Artemis immediately began to laugh.

Twilight just stared at them. When they’d finally calmed, she shrugged “Fine.” After thinking for a moment, she asked “Is there anything in particular that you want to read, Mom?”

Sundance decided to use this as an opportunity to look into something that had been bothering her for a while. Yes. I’d like to read that scroll again.

Curious, but deciding not to ask, Twilight levitated it over and set it on the table in front of her.

Thank you Sundance replied

For several minutes, Sundance was silent. Instead, she read the spells several times, especially the second one. Then she thought over what they knew about Golden Thunder’s plan. When she finally spoke, her words weren’t directed at anypony. Something still doesn’t make sense. She spent a few minutes trying to figure out exactly what she found so strange.

Realizing that this could be important, but not wanting to distract their mother, Twilight poked Artemis and Celestia. When they looked at her, she whispered. “A few minutes ago, Mom said that something doesn’t make sense. I think she’s trying to figure out what it is.”

After thinking for a moment, Celestia quietly replied. “Mother thinks out loud sometimes, just like you do.” No wonder Golden Thunder thought Twilight might be Mother's reincarnation. They're far more alike than I initially thought. Shaking her head, she continued. “If she says anything, write it down.”

Nodding, Artemis levitated a blank scroll, a quill and some ink to Twilight. Returning the nod, Twilight took the quill in her magic and sat, prepared to write. Celestia and Artemis watched carefully.

Sure enough, a couple of minutes later, Sundance began to speak. The dragon attack must have been a diversion . . . a way to ensure that we couldn't interfere with his plan.

Not wanting to distract their mother, Twilight took her notes as quietly as she could. Celestia and Artemis moved to sit next to her, one on either side, and read over her shoulders.

Not noticing any of this, Sundance continued. This is reinforced by the fact that, when we returned sooner than he expected, Golden Thunder told us that he’d hoped to greet us as Equestria’s new king. But why would he have created such an elaborate plan?

Artemis tilted his head, quietly commenting “Good question”

Apparently not hearing her son, Sundance commented. The fact that he waited until Midnight and I were gone to launch his attack means that he didn't plan to kill us first. He had two goals when he attacked the castle . . . trapping the souls of Celestia and Artemis, and taking the throne . . . in that order. But why did he go after our children first?

Sundance thought for a few more minutes before something else occurred to her. If Golden Flash was able to fix the Spirit Reanimation Spell, it would have been easy for Celestia to do the same. Under normal circumstances, there's no way she would have helped Golden Thunder. Even so, he may have planned to force her to finish his spell for him. Unfortunately, it would have been easy for him to do that. If he'd threatened to harm Artemis’ soul . . .

Gasping softly, Celestia breathed “I would have done whatever it took to protect Artemis and he knew it! Mother’s right, I would have finished that spell!”

Sundance gasped, suddenly furious. Golden Thunder thought Celestia and Artemis would be easy targets! He wanted to kill our children, revive them and force them attack us when we returned! That’s how he planned to kill Midnight and I! And it would have worked! There’s no way we would have been able to fight, let alone kill, our children!

Thanks to Twilight, we now know that he had a way to keep our souls trapped for as long as he wanted. With the souls of four alicorns in his trap, he would have had multiple chances to take our immortality! Additionally, there wouldn’t have been anypony able to stop him from taking the throne!

Chapter 58

Hearing three gasps, Sundance gasped as well. Looking down, she saw that Twilight was writing something. Even though she couldn’t read the words, it didn’t take her long to figure out what her youngest was doing. Just to make sure she wasn’t imagining things, she asked. What are you doing, Twilight?

I’m writing down what you just said so Celestia and Artemis can read it. Twilight answered

W-what?! Sundance asked, shocked Why are you doing that?!

When I told them that you said something didn’t make sense, Twilight replied Celestia said that you think out loud sometimes. Then she told me to write down anything you say. She shrugged You told me to listen to my big sister, so that’s what I did.

For several minutes, Sundance was at a loss for words. Eventually, she replied I never thought I’d regret saying that.

After a moment of shock, Twilight wrote down what they’d just said. As soon as they read it, Celestia and Artemis began to laugh. Twilight quickly joined them.

Bemused, Sundance could do little more than watch as her children collapsed into a pile.

In the stars, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl were laughing as well.

Flickering, Sundance slowly commented “I guess that’ll teach me not to tell our youngest to listen to somepony.”

Midnight Armor and Star Swirl laughed harder.

Finally calm enough to speak, Star Swirl commented “Perhaps, but this isn’t a bad thing.”

“What?!” Sundance asked, shocked

Finally calming down, Midnight Armor briefly brightened “He’s right, honey. If your theory is correct, and there’s a very good chance that it is, then our children should know about it because it’s information that they might be able to factor into their plan.”

“I suppose you’re right.” Sundance reluctantly admitted

Midnight Armor thought for a few minutes “I always thought it was strange that Golden Thunder waited until after we'd left to launch his attack on the castle. If it’s correct, your theory answers several questions.”

After a moment, Sundance commented “Thank goodness Celestia and Artemis discovered his plan several years before that.”

“What do you-” Midnight Armor suddenly gasped “If they hadn’t discovered it, they wouldn’t have come up with their plan to stop him! Celestia wouldn’t have created her shield spell and Artemis wouldn’t have gone out of his way to gain the strength he needed!”

After thinking for a few minutes, Sundance gasped as well. “I bet that’s why he took over the protection of the villages! He knew that it would force him to get stronger quickly!”

Confused, Midnight Armor replied “I asked him why he did that, remember? If that was his reason, why didn’t he just tell me?” His star suddenly dimmed as he answered his own question. “He knew that I wouldn’t have believed him. You wouldn’t have either because, at the time, both of us trusted Golden Thunder completely.”

Her star dimming as well, she whispered “T-that’s right.”

In the Crystal Empire, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight had finally managed to pick themselves up off the floor.

Still giggling, Celestia commented “I needed that.”

Artemis laughed “So did I”

Sundance giggled I’m glad I could help.

Twilight began to laugh again. Seeing the looks on the faces of Celestia and Artemis, she told them what their mother had said.

They began to laugh again as well, falling to the floor once more.

Several minutes later, still giggling, Twilight sat up. “W-we should get started.”

“You’re right” Celestia replied, giggling as well

“You never told us where you thought we should start.” Artemis pointed out

Glancing at him, Twilight said “Yesterday, you told me that you wanted me to tell you what Mom thought of those spells.” When he nodded, she showed them her memory of what their mother had to say about them.

“I see.” Celestia commented thoughtfully “I knew that the first spell would increase the amount of magic a crystal could store, but I didn’t think it would be almost unlimited.” Suddenly she gasped “Golden Flash has been asking other unicorns to give him their magic! He must have already cast that spell on a crystal!”

Gasping as well, Artemis responded “He doesn’t want to take the time to save up the magic he needs, so he’s gathering it from every unicorn he can! He knows that he can't fool us, so he probably plans to make his move soon.” Looking at his sister, he continued “He’ll also be able to say that everypony is helping him take over!”

“Y-you’re right!” Celestia exclaimed, eyes wide “They don’t know what he plans to use their magic for, but they’re really helping him attempt to remove us from power!”

N-not to mention, potentially killing the three of you and trapping your souls! Sundance stammered

Unwilling to say those words, Twilight wrote them down for Celestia and Artemis to read. The three of them just stared at the scroll for a moment, before looking at each other.

A few minutes later, Celestia took a deep breath and stood. Walking over to the door, she opened it and spoke to one of the guards stationed outside. Then she closed the door and returned to her siblings.

Five minutes later, the three of them looked up at a knock at the door. Using her magic, Celestia opened it to reveal another guard with a box of crystals suspended in his magic.

He bowed before entering the room and setting the box on the floor in front of Celestia. “As you requested, Princess Celestia. If you need more for your research, please let me know.”

“Thank you” Celestia replied, lifting one of them in her magic and inspecting it carefully

Bowing again, the guard turned and left the room, closing the door behind him.

Artemis cast another soundproofing spell while Celestia examined a second crystal.

“Both of these are pure enough.” Celestia commented, levitating one of them to the center of the room. “We’ll test the spells one at a time. Can you cast the first one on this crystal, Twilight?”

Pulling to the original scroll closer, Twilight reread the first spell.

Sundance watched her youngest carefully translate the spell. Surprised, and impressed, she looked on as Twilight took the translated version of the spell apart and studied each part individually.

In the stars, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl turned to each other.

After a moment, Midnight Armor remarked “That was unexpected.”

“Agreed” Star Swirl replied “Translating the spell was one thing, but then . . .”

“She took it apart.” Sundance finished

After thinking for a moment, Midnight Armor commented “Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised.”

Star Swirl’s star flashed “What do you mean?”

Understanding what her husband meant, Sundance slowly answered “You’re right, Midnight. To answer your question, Star Swirl, Twilight has no reason to trust Golden Thunder.”

“I see.” Star Swirl responded “Princess Twilight probably wants to make sure that she knows exactly what his spells will do before she takes the risk of casting them.

In the Crystal Empire, Twilight cast the first spell on the first crystal. They watched as it glowed for a minute before returning to normal. To see if the spell had worked correctly, Twilight sent a decent amount of magic into the crystal. When the crystal stored it successfully, she turned to Celestia and Artemis. “That’s more magic than crystals are supposed to be able to handle, so we know the spell worked.”

Celestia smiled “Thank you”

Twilight was about to respond but paused, surprised, when her horn began to glow again. She watched the quill move to the scroll that she’d taken her notes on. “Is something wrong, Mom?”

Concerned, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight leaned over the scroll and waited to see what their mother had to say.

No. I just wanted to say that your father, Star Swirl and I are impressed.

Confused, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight looked at each other for a moment.

“With what?” Twilight asked

You, Twilight. Celestia and Artemis may not have noticed your actions, but we did.

Twilight blinked “Huh?”

Celestia and Artemis blinked as well.

“What are you talking about, Mother?” Celestia asked

Artemis nodded “She probably translated the spell before casting it on the crystal. There’s nothing unusual about that.”

You’re right, Artemis. However, she did one more thing before casting the spell.

Celestia turned to Twilight. “What’s Mother talking about?”

“I’m not sure.” Twilight replied “The only other thing I did was examine the spell.”

After you took apart.

Twilight shrugged “I do that a lot. Especially with unfamiliar spells.”

Why?

Twilight giggled “You should answer that question, Celestia.”

Giggling as well, Celestia nuzzled her sister. “When Twilight became my personal student, I spent most of the first year teaching her how to control her magic. In fact, the only new spell that I taught her was the Teleportation Spell. I didn't switch to teaching her other new spells until just after her ninth birthday. However, I made sure that some of the spells I gave her were written incorrectly.”

Why in Equestria did you do that?

“I was trying to teach her that, regardless of who she got them from, she needed to make sure that spells had been written correctly before casting them.” Celestia answered

Y-you did this when she was nine?!

Twilight waited for Celestia and Artemis to finish laughing before answering their mother’s question. “Yes, Mom. She did it the rest of the time that I was her student. In fact, I had to fix the last spell she gave me as my teacher.”

Which spell was that?

“Star Swirl’s final spell” Twilight replied

Well, in her defense, she didn’t create that spell.

“I know,” Twilight responded “but she still gave me a spell that didn’t work.” She paused while their mother laughed. “Anyway, that’s why I try to check every new spell before I cast it. The Linking Spell is the only one that I didn’t do that with, and that was because I didn’t have enough time to finish testing it before I cast it on Artemis.”

Artemis kissed his fiancé. “I don’t mind. After all, if you hadn’t cast that spell on me . . . well, I’m not sure where I’d be right now, but I know that it wouldn’t be here.”

Twilight nuzzled him before continuing “Besides, there’s no way that I’m going to cast either of those spells without studying them first. I don’t trust anything that Golden Thunder created.”

Yes, we thought that was the reason and agree that it’s a good idea. However, I’m curious. Why did you ask your sister to cast that spell, Celestia?

“You’ll see” Turning her attention to the first crystal, Celestia focused the power of the sun on it. Almost immediately, the crystal shattered. “Interesting” she muttered “I didn’t burn the magic out of the crystal. Instead, I pushed too much magic into it at once. That’s why it shattered.”

It seems that Golden Thunder’s spell only allows a crystal to store more magic. He forgot to strengthen the crystal itself. That information could be useful.

Glancing at the scroll, and reading the newest message, Twilight commented “You’re right, Mom.”

Hearing this, Celestia and Artemis glanced at the scroll as well. After reading the message, they nodded.

Knowing that Celestia was going to ask her to cast the second spell next, Twilight turned her attention to that one. Like she’d done with the first spell, she carefully translated it before taking the spell apart and studied on each part individually. When she was done studying the spell, she cast the first spell on the second crystal.

Artemis placed a large amount of magic into the crystal while Twilight cast the second spell. Everypony watched the field of magic form around them. Once it had fully formed, Twilight linked the field of magic to the crystal. Everyone watched as the spell began to draw its power from the magic in the crystal.

Twilight tilted her head when a sudden thought occurred to her. I wonder . . .

Sundance wrote her question on the scroll. What are you thinking, Twilight?

Lost in her thoughts, Twilight see the message.

Noticing this, Sundance used the quill to tickle her youngest.

That definitely got Twilight’s attention. Laughing, she fell to the floor. “M-mom! S-stop it!”

Celestia and Artemis had been studying the field of magic. Hearing Twilight’s words, and laughter, they turned and saw what their mother was doing. After staring for a moment, they began to laugh as well.

Seeing that she had her children’s attention, Sundance used the quill to point at her question. Then she went back to tickling Twilight.

In the stars, Midnight Armor turned to his wife. “Sundance! She wasn’t intentionally ignoring you!”

“I know that.” Sundance responded “I’m not going to punish her, but I will make sure that she answers my question. I just needed to get her attention first.”

Midnight Armor laughed “Well, you definitely have her attention now.”

“Yes” Star Swirl agreed, laughing as well “However, you should stop tickling her. It will be rather difficult for her to answer your question if she’s laughing so hard that she can’t speak.”

“Oh, alright” Sundance replied, giggling

In the Crystal Empire, Celestia and Artemis watched as the quill finally stopped tickling Twilight.

When Twilight just lay there, panting, Sundance moved the quill over her youngest again. However, before she could do anything, she heard Celestia’s voice.

“You should let her breathe for a moment, Mother.” She giggled “Besides, I think she needs to use the bathroom now.”

Sure enough, a flash of magic drew their attention to where Twilight had been lying. Finding it empty, Artemis and Celestia looked towards the door to the bathroom. After a minute or so, they heard the toilet flush.

A couple of minutes later, Twilight walked into the room. “What was that for, Mom?”

Sundance waved the quill in the air before pointing at the scroll. When Twilight got close enough to read the words, she wrote. You didn’t answer my question, Twilight. I know I could have spoken to you directly, but Celestia and Artemis should hear this as well. To avoid both of us having to repeat ourselves, I decided to use a different method to get your attention.

Now then, what were you thinking?

Twilight tilted her head as she thought. Seeing the quill move towards her again, she hastily backed up. “W-wait a minute, Mom! I’m trying to remember!”

Celestia, Artemis and Sundance laughed

A couple of minutes later, Twilight remembered what she’d been thinking. “I was wondering if, once the spell has been cast on it, the crystal has a range.”

Range?

“The spell doesn’t say if there’s a certain distance that the crystal can get from the field of magic, and still be able to power it.” Twilight explained

“I see” Artemis commented “If there is a range, the crystal might not be with Golden Thunder when he casts the spell.”

“You’re right” Celestia said slowly “He'll probably try to hide the crystal from us.”

So that’s what you meant. That’s a good question.

Artemis cautiously surrounded the crystal with his magic. When that didn’t disrupt the spell, he easily removed it from the field of magic. Curious, he opened the door to the bathroom and walked backwards into it. The crystal stopped a couple of feet away from the field of magic and refused to go any further. “It does have a range . . . of about two feet.”

Hearing Sundance’s laughter, Twilight looked up. “Mom?”

The quill waved in the air for a moment before returning to the scroll. So it has a range, but that doesn’t help him much. Golden Thunder must have been planning to use the Chimera Anima to transport the souls it ate. Then he’d remove the souls and place them inside the field of magic. After that, he probably planned to have the creature guard the crystal. However, he can’t use that creature this time, so he must have a different plan.

Sundance thought for several minutes before picking up the quill again. The three of you have a better understanding of what’s possible now than I do. Can any of you think of something he would use?

“Hmm” Twilight began “There’s no way that he’d just leave it out in the open for us to attack, and leaving a pony to guard it would be too obvious. Besides, the average pony wouldn’t be able to stop us. He’d have to hide it somehow.”

“Is it possible to shrink it?” Artemis asked thoughtfully

What do you mean, Artemis?

Seeing their mother’s question, Artemis explained “If Golden Thunder can make the crystal small enough, he can either place it in a saddlebag or wear it as part of a necklace. Crystal necklaces are fairly common, and there are some stallions who wear them, so other ponies wouldn’t be suspicious.”

Curious, Celestia took the crystal from her brother and cast a spell to make it smaller.

Everyone watched as the crystal slowly shrank. After a few minutes, it got to a point where it wouldn’t get any smaller.

“You’re right!” Celestia exclaimed softly “It looks like it belongs on a necklace!”

Eyes wide, Artemis nodded “We’ll have to keep that in mind.”

Glancing at the scroll, Twilight noticed that their mother barely had any space left to write. Knowing that this conversation might go on for a while, she levitated over another blank scroll and set it next to the first.

Taking a closer look at the first scroll, Sundance realized why her youngest had done that. Using the last of the free space on the first scroll, she wrote. Thank you.

“You’re welcome” Twilight replied

“You know,” Celestia began, speaking slowly “Golden Thunder could shrink the crystal and give it to somepony else. If that pony stayed just outside of the field of magic, the crystal would be in range, hidden and protected.”

Artemis gasped “He’s not working alone this time, so that could work! Who do you think he would he give it to?”

“Golden Flash is married.” Twilight said thoughtfully “He could have his wife wear it on a necklace.” She paused “Most ponies wouldn’t suspect a little filly. This means that he could also have his daughter wear it.”

“They’re both good points, Twilight.” Celestia responded slowly “He could also give it to another noble.” She sighed “There are simply too many possibilities. We’ll just have to keep our eyes open.”

Nodding, Twilight turned to the second crystal. “What do you want to do with the crystal this time?”

Celestia allowed the crystal to return to its original size, before glancing at her sister. “What I wanted to do with the first.” Moving slowly this time, she focused the power of the sun on the crystal.

After a bright flash of light, it fell to the floor. Lifting it in her magic, Celestia carefully examined it. “It worked. Not only did I burn the magic out of the crystal, I rendered it inert. If I were to do this to any crystal he cast this spell on, he wouldn’t be able to use it again. That means he’d have to get another one, and cast his spells, before collecting magic all over again.”

“That’s good to know.” Artemis remarked “That means we would just need to figure out where the crystal is hidden.”

“Not necessarily” Celestia responded. Seeing the expressions on her sibling’s faces, she explained “We know the range of that spell. If Golden Thunder casts that spell, I can just send the power of the sun through the area around us. One of two things will happen, I’d shatter the crystal or render it inert. Either way, the crystal would be useless. To keep that spell going, several ponies would have to work together to power it.”

Sundance sighed in relief Artemis is right. That is good to know. She thought for a moment. I doubt Golden Thunder will stop there. He must have another plan, or a new addition to his old one. We just need to figure out what it is.

After a moment, she continued. That book really was a journal. He recorded his thoughts on using a creature to steal our souls. It also recorded his search for the right one and his reasons for choosing a chimera. Then it covered his search for the spells he needed.

Sundance laughed He actually considered asking me to teach him how to remove a pony’s soul from their body. Eventually, he decided that doing so was too risky and created the spells himself.

After reading the newest message from their mother, Celestia and Artemis turned to each other, speaking so softly that Twilight couldn’t hear them.

Seeing this, Twilight shrugged and pulled the second book on the composition and qualities of crystals towards her. We already know that Golden Thunder was using crystals, but I should read this anyway. Who knows, it may prove useful. Spreading her wings, she flew the short distance to Celestia’s bed. Making herself comfortable, she opened the book and began to read.

Twenty minutes later, Twilight levitated the book back to the table. If Cadance hadn’t given us that scroll, the second book would have confirmed that Golden Thunder was using crystals. However, because she did . . .

It didn’t contain anything useful? Sundance asked, speaking to Twilight directly

No. Twilight answered All it did was confirm what we already know. It explained that crystals are capable of being altered so that they can store, and channel, large amounts magic. In fact, it seems that the author wrote both books after studying the Crystal Heart.

Twilight thought for a moment. That explains why the second book is here, but it doesn’t explain why Equestria doesn’t have a copy. Oh well, I’ll ask Cadance if I can make a copy for my library. That way, I’ll be able to complete the set. When I get back to Ponyville, I make a copy of the first book and send it to Cadance so she’ll have a complete set as well.

Good idea. Sundance commented

Celestia and Artemis were so deep into their conversation that they hadn’t even noticed what Twilight was doing.

Twilight looked over at them. It doesn’t seem like they want me to hear whatever they’re talking about. Celestia doesn’t want me to know anything specific about the spells that Golden Thunder was using to control the Chimera, so that could be why they’re being so quiet.

I don’t want to interrupt them, so I guess I’ll read another book. Noticing that her horn was glowing again, Twilight asked. What are you doing, Mom?

Sundance used Twilight’s magic to pick up the quill. Levitating it over to her older children, she briefly tickled Celestia before poking Artemis on the nose. When they looked at the quill, she pointed it at the scroll.

Curious, Celestia and Artemis walked over to the table.

Stay here. Sundance told her youngest.

Surprised, Twilight asked D-did I do something wrong?

No, Twilight. Sundance responded I just need to discuss something with Celestia and Artemis.

Alright Twilight said slowly. Shrugging, she levitated another book over to her.

With Twilight focused on the book, Sundance turned her attention to the scroll. It's been almost twenty-five minutes since you began your discussion. In that time, Twilight’s read one of the books that she set aside for research and discussed the results with me.

After a moment, Sundance continued. Twilight hasn’t said anything to either of you because she thinks that you don’t want her to hear whatever you’re discussing. She paused while Celestia and Artemis gasped. You don’t need to worry. She thinks you’re discussing the spells that Golden Thunder used to control the Chimera Anima, and knows that you don’t want her to know anything specific about those spells, so she’s not upset.

Celestia and Artemis sighed in relief

She went out of her way to ensure that the two of you could have your discussion in peace. In fact, she’s reading another book because she wants to give the two of you enough time to finish your conversation.

Glancing at the bed, and seeing that Twilight had her nose buried in a book, Celestia and Artemis winced. Hearing the scratching of the quill, they looked back at the scroll.

There’s nothing wrong with discussing things amongst yourselves, or keeping that information from her. However, in the future, you should wait until you’re alone so you don’t isolate her, or anyone else nearby.

Celestia and Artemis nodded before turning their attention back to Twilight. Deciding not to interrupt, they waited patiently for her to finish reading the book.

Fifteen minutes later, Twilight sighed and closed the book. “Another one that doesn’t have any information that we don’t already know.” Without looking up, she levitated the book back to the table. Instead of pulling another book to her, she lay her head on her forehooves and closed her eyes.

Glancing at her brother, Celestia walked over to the bed. Artemis silently followed and watched as his sister nuzzled Twilight.

Surprised, Twilight looked up to see that Celestia and Artemis were standing next to the bed. “Are you finished?”

Wincing again, they nodded again.

Twilight glanced at the clock. “We should stop for the day. Additionally, I don’t think we’ll be getting any research done tomorrow. It’s Hearth’s Warming, after all.”

Glancing at the sun, Celestia replied “You’re right, it’s time for dinner. As for our research, we’ll just wait until the day after tomorrow.”

“We should head to the dining room.” Artemis commented

Twilight nodded “I don’t even want to think about what Mom would say if I’m late for dinner.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow “Which one?”

Confused, Twilight asked “Which what?”

Understanding what his sister meant, Artemis chuckled “Which Mother are you talking about?”

Surprised, Twilight stopped “I was talking about the one that’s a unicorn but, now that you mention it, it applies to both . . . and I’d hear it from both.” Shaking her head, she began walking again. “Let’s go.”

Sundance, Celestia and Artemis began to laugh

A few minutes later, they walked into the dining room to find everyone waiting for them.

“I was starting to think that you were going to make me come get you, Twilight.” Velvet stated, eyebrow raised

Turning to Celestia and Artemis, Twilight rolled her eyes. “This is what she does when I’m not late for dinner.”

“What does she do when you are late for a meal?” Artemis asked, sitting at the table

Sitting next to him, Twilight responded “When Shiny and I were little, she’d levitate us to the table before giving us a lecture. Unfortunately, she wouldn’t let us eat until she was done. That was usually at least an hour later, so the food was always cold. Then she’d say that it was our fault that the food had gone cold and make us eat it anyway.”

Everyone laughed when Velvet blushed.

Shining Armor sighed “I remember those days.”

“Is that why you always wait until we’re done eating before you begin a lecture?” Cadance asked

Shining Armor nodded “If Flurry’s food is supposed to be hot, I won’t force her to eat it cold.”

Flurry wrinkled her nose “Yuck”

Everyone laughed harder

Cinnamon Spice walked into the room with drinks for everyone. Twilight and Flurry got carrot juice while everyone else got glasses of iced tea.

Twilight took a sip before making a face similar to the one her niece had made a minute ago. Levitating her juice to Flurry, she said “You’re getting extra carrot juice tonight, Flurry.”

“Yay!” Flurry squealed, taking a big sip from the bottle Twilight had given her.

Chuckling, Artemis nuzzled Twilight “I’ll be right back.” Without waiting for a response, he teleported out of the room. A minute later, he returned with a bottle of apple juice.

Twilight smiled when he set it in front of her. “Thanks, Artemis” She took a couple of sips and sighed in relief. “It’s good to know that I can eat, and drink, things made with carrots. Even so, it seems that our foal prefers apples.”

Celestia laughed “I’m sure Applejack will be happy to hear that.”

Everyone else laughed as well

I’m starting to wonder if Artemis brought enough apple juice. Sundance commented

Artemis was wondering the same thing. “I hope I brought enough apple juice. Perhaps I should have brought two dozen bottles.”

Nuzzling him, Twilight whispered “Mom just said something similar.” When he laughed softly, she continued in a louder voice. “It’s alright. I’m glad you thought to bring what you did.” She shook her head “I still can’t believe I didn’t think of that.”

Returning her nuzzle, he replied “You can’t think of everything, Twilight.”

“Artemis is right.” Celestia commented

Before they could say anything else, Cinnamon Spice walked into the room with an Apple Cheddar Quesadilla for Twilight. Two more chefs followed her into the room. One had a large bowl of rubies, emeralds and sapphires for Spike and the other pushed a cart with individual servings of Spinach and Artichoke Alfredo for everyone else. Dessert was a large Apple Cinnamon Cobbler with Vanilla Ice Cream on the side. Twilight didn’t eat the ice cream, but everyone else did.

After everyone had eaten, they headed to their rooms.

In their room, Artemis and Twilight walked onto the balcony and faced the setting sun. Just before the last of the sun disappeared below the horizon, Twilight turned to Artemis.

“Celestia put extra effort into the sunset today, didn’t she?”

He nodded “I told her that you allowed Mother, Father and Star Swirl to watch the sunset last night.” Seeing Twilight expression, he smiled “As soon as she heard that, she said that she wanted to make tonight’s sunset special for them.”

Sundance gasped

Returning his smile, Twilight nuzzled him before snuggling closer to his side. “Good night, Mom.”

Sundance watched the last of the sunset before replying. Good night, Twilight. I’ll talk to you in the morning.

Wrapping a wing around Twilight, he raised the moon before placing the stars in the sky.

In the stars, the three of them turned to each other.

“I-I didn’t expect her to do that.” Sundance said softly

“I didn’t either.” Midnight Armor remarked “Well, I’m not surprised that Twilight allowed us to watch the sunset again.”

Star Swirl briefly brightened “Especially since I’m sure that she noticed how much you enjoyed yesterday’s sunset, Sundance.”

“However,” Midnight Armor continued “I didn’t expect Celestia to go out of her way to make a special one, just for us.”

A few minutes later, Sundance laughed “We shouldn’t be surprised. It’s just like our children to do that.”

“I suppose you’re right.” Midnight Armor agreed, laughing as well

In the Crystal Empire, Artemis noticed that Twilight was beginning to shiver. “Let’s go inside.”

Nodding, Twilight turned towards the door. Once inside, she walked over to their bed and climbed under the covers.

Smiling, he climbed under the covers as well before pulling her close. When she laid her head on his chest, he wrapped a wing around her. Sighing happily, he closed his eyes and relaxed.

Several minutes later, Twilight spoke softly “Artemis?”

Not bothering to move, he asked “Yes?”

“You wanted to talk about something tonight, right?”

I almost forgot about that. “That’s right.” He quietly responded

“You told me that it was about the argument I had with Mom.” Twilight said slowly “What about it?”

“I felt the castle shake.” He answered

Twilight blushed “I-I didn’t mean to get that loud. I even cast two soundproofing spells. One around the room and another around us.”

Laughing, he nuzzled her “That’s not what I meant.”

“Then what did you mean?” she asked, curious

“You weren’t that angry when Blaze tried to kill me.” He responded

She shuddered “I was more terrified than angry because, at the time, I thought I was going to have to watch you die.”

“I understand” He said quietly, hugging her tighter “And today?”

Twilight growled “My mother told you that you’re not taking care of me and our foal. Then she said that you’re not part of my family before trying to blame you for my actions.” She shook her head “I’m not going to let her do any of that.”

Shocked by her anger, he just stared at her for a minute. Then, using his magic, he lifted her head and pulled her into a kiss. When it broke, he whispered “Thank you”

Taking several deep breaths, she replied “You’re welcome.”

I should have taken this into account before answering her question. At this rate, she’ll probably be awake for several hours. He shook his head No, I won’t allow that. I can’t cast a sleeping spell on her, so I have to find another way to calm her.

Realizing the same thing, and trying to calm herself, Twilight nuzzled into his neck. She felt him shift under her but, before she could say anything, she also felt his breath on her ear. Once again, it sent a shiver down her spine.

That’s odd. She reacted the same way when I accidentally breathed on her ear this morning. He thought for a moment I wonder . . . He gently took the tip of her right ear in his teeth.

She moaned softly. W-what’s he doing? When the nibble was accompanied by a soft breath into her ear, another shiver went down her spine.

Feeling this, he smiled. It appears that it wasn’t a coincidence. Curious, he switched to her left ear. His smile widened when his actions got another shiver. Nibbling on her ear again, he also began rubbing her back. A few minutes later, his smile turned into a grin when her soft moans became more frequent. I’m definitely doing this again.

Twilight had no idea why he was doing this, but couldn’t deny that it felt amazing. Unfortunately, it was creating a problem. I-if he doesn’t stop soon . . . Panting softly, she buried her face into his neck and tried to focus on something else.

Noticing this, he laughed softly and cast a soundproofing spell on the room. Once again, I forgot to consider the effect that my actions would have on her. No matter, I’ll just have to finish what I started. Fortunately, I have no problem with that. Lifting her head, he pulled her into a kiss. When it broke, he rolled her onto her back and began kissing her neck.

She gasped in surprise “A-Artemis, I-”

Lifting his head, he whispered “It’s alright, I understand.” Before she could respond, he ran his tongue along her horn and used his magic to warm the muscles in her back and shoulders.

When he took her horn into his mouth, she suddenly realized how loud she was probably going to get. Unfortunately, with her horn in his mouth, casting a soundproofing spell was out of the question. Instead, she bit down on a hoof.

Seeing this, he released her horn. Using his magic, he took her hoof out of her mouth and pulled her into another kiss. “Don’t worry, I cast a soundproofing spell.” Not giving her a chance to say anything, he ran his tongue along her horn again and slowly entered her.

Closing her eyes, she moaned louder as her body began to shake. A minute later, she screamed in pleasure when he touched the entrance to her womb.

Refusing to tease her this time, he began with slow thrusts. After a few minutes of listening to her moans, he increased his speed. He smiled when those moans turned into screams. A couple of minutes later, he thrust into her and, groaning in pleasure, released his seed.

This sent her over the edge as well. She let out a scream that shook the room, barely noticing that he’d collapsed on top of her.

Recovering first, she sent a wave of warmth through his wings, neck and shoulders.

He gasped in surprise but, still recovering from his orgasm, couldn’t do anything else. When another wave of warmth moved through his wings, he moaned softly and buried his face into her neck.

Twilight opened her eyes . . . and found herself staring at his horn. She smiled before running her tongue along the full length. Feeling the shudder that ran through his body, her smile widened as she stretched so that she could take the tip of it into her mouth. Hearing his moans immediately get louder, she began to suck on the tip of his horn. After a few minutes of this, his moans turned into soft pants. Releasing his horn, she lifted his head and pulled him into a kiss.

T-that was wonderful, but now it’s my turn. Breaking the kiss, he rolled them over and started thrusting again. This time, he didn’t hold back. After a couple of minutes of listening to her screams, he moaned in pleasure when her passage began to pulse and clench around him. A few seconds later, his second orgasm hit as well. Wrapping his hooves around her, he thrust into her once more before releasing more of his seed.

When their orgasms finally ended, they just lay there panting. Realizing that they really needed to take a bath, Artemis used his magic to start the water. Noticing that she was still shaking, he held her tighter.

A few minutes later, she raised her head and kissed him. “Thank you”

He laughed “What else did you expect me to do? Especially when you consider the fact that I’m the one who got you so worked up.”

Also laughing, she asked. “Why were you doing that to my ears?”

“It was an experiment.” He answered

Surprised, she commented “I thought that was my thing, not yours.”

Laughing again, he nuzzled her. “It usually is, but you were the test subject this time. I’d noticed you shiver this morning and was trying to discover what caused it.”

Raising an eyebrow, she asked “Were you able to figure it out?”

“Of course” He replied, laughing harder. To prove his point, he gently blew into one of her ears. He chuckled when he the shiver that ran down her spine. “See?”

Realizing what he meant, she giggled “It seems that your experiment produced an unexpected result. You might want to keep that in mind for future experiments.”

“Don’t worry, I will.” He responded, smiling mischievously “In fact, I plan on using it to my advantage.”

She buried her face in his chest. “Great. Having experiments conducted on me is going to take some getting used to. It’s usually the other way around.”

He instantly began to laugh again. When he’d calmed enough to speak, he said. “We should take a bath so we can get some sleep.”

Nodding, she stood, climbed off of him and walked to the door to the bathroom. He rolled off the bed and followed her.

Ten minutes later, they returned to the room and climbed into bed. The last thing he remembered was wrapping a wing around her. Before either of them could even think about saying anything, they were asleep.

The next morning, Artemis woke to the pull of the moon. After lowering it, and the stars, he nuzzled Twilight and smiled when she turned her face into his chest.

Good morning, Twilight. Sundance laughed when her youngest mumbled “Too early”

Hearing a knock on the door, Artemis used his magic to open it. As he expected, Celestia was standing in the hall.

Celestia raised an eyebrow when she saw that her siblings were still in bed. Closing the door behind her, she walked over to the bed. “Is everything alright?”

Chuckling, Artemis nodded “Somepony doesn’t want to wake up.”

“Oh really?” Celestia asked “We’ll just have to see about that.” Smiling mischievously, she pulled the blanket down and gently ran the tips of her feathers down her sister’s side.

Rolling away from Celestia’s feathers, Twilight buried her face in a pillow. “The two of you are the ones who have to wake up at dawn. Why should I get up this early?”

Celestia, Artemis and Sundance laughed

“We need to eat breakfast, Twilight.” Celestia answered

“So go eat.” Twilight mumbled, pulling the blanket over her head “I’m going back to sleep. Don’t worry, I’ll eat breakfast later . . . at a more normal time.”

Giggling, Sundance used Twilight’s magic to pull the blanket back down.

“Mom!” Twilight groaned “Not you, too!”

Sundance, Celestia and Artemis laughed harder.

Twilight sighed “It’s obvious that the three of you aren’t going to let me go back to sleep.” Without waiting for a response, she teleported to the bathroom. A few minutes later, she walked back into the bedroom. “Happy now?”

“Yes” Sundance, Celestia and Artemis immediately replied

“I don’t know why I asked.” Twilight grumbled “Whatever. Let’s go.”

Noticing her tone, Artemis hesitantly said “You weren’t kidding when you said that you wanted to go back to sleep.”

“No, I wasn’t.” Twilight answered “I really wanted to sleep in today.”

Exchanging glances, Celestia and Artemis followed her into the hall.

“Now that you mention it,” Artemis said slowly “it has been a while since the last time we let you sleep in.”

“You’re right, Artemis.” Celestia responded “Do you want to go back to sleep, Twilight?”

Twilight gave her big sister a look. “How would I be able to do that? I’m awake now and you know that it isn’t safe to cast sleeping spells on me.”

Celestia winced “You’re right.”

I’m sorry, Twilight. Sundance said softly I should have thought about that.

It’s alright, Mom. Twilight replied

But- Sundance began

It’s alright Twilight repeated I don’t want be angry today, so I’m just going to let it go.

Before anyone could say anything else, they walked into the dining room. After a few minutes, Celestia poked her head into the kitchen. Not seeing anypony, she said “I guess Cadance is allowing them to come in a little later than usual because of the Holiday.”

After exchanging glances with Twilight, Artemis asked “What do you want to do now?”

“There isn’t much we can do.” Celestia answered “We’ll just have to wait for everyone else to wake up.”

“In that case, there’s no point in staying here.” Twilight commented “Why don’t we go to one of our rooms?”

Celestia and Artemis nodded

You’re not going to do any research while you wait? Sundance asked

That’s not a good idea. Twilight responded I don’t even want to think about how everyone would react if we did that today.

Seeing her daughter’s point, Sundance replied You’re right.

Artemis teleported the three of them back to the room that he shared with Twilight. They lay down on the bed, with Twilight laying between Artemis and Celestia.

On a sudden impulse, Sundance did something she hadn’t done in centuries. She began to hum a certain song.

Twilight smiled “That song always helps me relax.”

Shocked, Sundance instantly stopped humming. W-what?!

“What song are you talking about?” Artemis asked, curious

Twilight glanced at Celestia “The one you used to sing when I had trouble sleeping.”

“Ah” Celestia commented, smiling “You’re talking about that lullaby.”

Twilight nodded “Mom was humming it.”

S-she sang that song for you? Sundance asked softly, voice shaking I-it’s been so long. In fact, I didn’t think she remembered it.

Curious, Twilight asked. “Why not?”

I wrote that lullaby not long after she was born. Sundance explained I used to sing it for her and Artemis when they were foals.

Twilight’s eyes widened “Wow”

Seeing this, Celestia nuzzled her sister. “What did Mother say?”

Returning her nuzzle, Twilight replied “She told me when she wrote that song and said that she didn’t think you remembered it.”

“I never let myself forget it.” Celestia responded “In fact, it helped Artemis and myself through some tough times.

Curious, Sundance asked. Can you ask her to explain that, please?

When Twilight relayed their mother’s message, Artemis leaned over her and nuzzled his sister.

Unnoticed by any of them, the door to the room quietly opened, revealing that the rest of their family was standing in the hallway. Seeing the expressions on Celestia and Artemis’ faces, they exchanged worried glances. Decided to see what was bothering them, they waited quietly for someone to start speaking.

Artemis took a deep breath. “Keep in mind that, at the time, I hadn’t discovered my Dream Walking abilities yet.” When Twilight nodded, he continued “After Mother and Father died, Celestia and I got very little sleep because we had Nightmares every night.”

“Specifically, we were reliving Mother and Father’s deaths in our dreams.” Celestia said softly

Sundance and Twilight gasped

Celestia nuzzled Twilight before continuing the explanation. “We tried everything we could think of. Sleeping spells helped us get to sleep, but did nothing to stop the nightmares. In desperation, we began sleeping in Mother and Father’s room. That helped a little, but we still kept waking up.” She smiled at her brother.

Artemis returned her smile. “One night, she decided to sing Mother’s lullaby. When she finished, I asked her to sing it again so I could record it. After that, I played the recording as we fell asleep. I know it sounds foalish but, because Celestia’s singing voice is similar to Mother’s, we used to pretend that Mother was the one singing.”

Celestia nodded “We also began sleeping under Father’s favorite blanket. Between Mother’s song, Father’s blanket and the fact that we were sleeping in their room, we were finally able to sleep through the night.”

I-I had no idea. Sundance whispered

Draping a wing over both of her siblings, Celestia continued. “When I was forced to send Artemis to the moon, I had the same problem. By that point, neither Artemis’ recording nor Father’s blanket still existed. However, remembering what Artemis had done, I cast a recording spell and sang Mother’s lullaby. Then, I played it on a loop until I fell asleep.” She laughed softly “Everypony thought I was crazy because, until the castle in Canterlot was built, I insisted on sleeping in what was left of Artemis’ room.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight jumped when they heard several ponies sniffle. Turning to the door, they were surprised to find it open. Even more surprising was the fact that, Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Night Light, Velvet and Spike were standing in the hall. All of them, except for Flurry, had tears in their eyes.

“What are all of you doing here?” Celestia asked, quickly wiping the tears from her eyes

“We were going to ask if the three of you wanted to join us for breakfast.” Night Light answered

“How much of our conversation did you hear?” Artemis asked slowly

Walking over to stand next to the bed, Cadance nuzzled her uncle. “I opened the door just before you said that you and Aunt Celestia had nightmares after . . . well, you know.”

Eyes wide, Twilight asked “Why didn’t you say anything?”

Good question Sundance commented It isn’t polite to eavesdrop on other ponies.

Nuzzling her little sister, Cadance responded “At first, we were worried because of the expressions on Aunt Celestia and Uncle Artemis’ faces. Then we didn’t say anything because we didn’t want to interrupt.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight exchanged glances before Celestia turned to her niece. “It’s alright, Cadance. As for your question, Night Light, we’d love to join you for breakfast.”

Artemis nodded “We went to the kitchen earlier, but couldn’t find anypony.”

Shining Armor sighed “I’m sorry. I forgot to tell you that we always give the castle staff the morning off on Hearth’s Warming. They’ll be in around noon.”

Flying into the room, Flurry landed on the bed in front of Artemis. Mommy does this when I cry. Nuzzling him, she used a wing to wipe his tears away.

Laughing softly, he returned her nuzzle and stood before placing his grandniece on his back. Moving out of the way, he allowed Twilight and Celestia to get up as well.

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Cadance and Flurry joined everyone in the hall before everyone walked to the first floor and out of the castle.

Cadance and Shining Armor led the way to a nearby restaurant. Before going inside, they nodded to a group of pegasi. Grinning, the pegasi bowed before spreading their wings and taking flight.

Seeing the expressions on the faces of her family, Cadance smiled “It’s something else we do on Hearth’s Warming.” Without waiting for a response, she walked into the restaurant. Shining Armor and Flurry followed her.

Shrugging, everyone else followed them into the restaurant.

“Good morning, Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor! Happy Hearth’s Warming!”

Looking at the unicorn couple, Cadance smiled “Good morning, Pearl and Berry. Happy Hearth’s Warming to you as well.” Turning to everyone else, she smiled “Aunt Celestia, Uncle Artemis, Twilight, Velvet, Night Light and Spike. I’d like to introduce Berry and his wife, Pearl.”

Pearl turned to her husband “Usually, we just have Princess Cadance, Prince Shining Armor and Princess Flurry Heart with us on the morning of Hearth’s Warming.”

“You’re right, Sweetie” Berry replied “This year, we have the entire Royal Family of the Crystal Empire and Equestria joining us.” Turning to the visitors, he bowed “Welcome, your highnesses.”

Smiling, Pearl turned to Twilight. “Princess Twilight, can you please come with me?”

Curious, Twilight followed her into the kitchen.

Sundance silently prepared a couple of spells, just in case she needed to protect her daughter.

In the kitchen, Twilight saw a breakfast pastry sitting on the counter. It looked like a muffin, but was as flaky as a croissant. Taking a closer look, she saw that there were apple slices baked into the middle of it. When she got closer, she noticed that it smelled delicious. Her stomach quickly reminded her that it was empty.

Pearl laughed. “Cinnamon Spice told me about your morning sickness, princess. She also told me that the best way to ensure that food stays in your stomach is to make it with apples. I’ve been wanting to try this recipe for a while and thought this would be a good time. I’d be honored if you’d try it.”

Twilight smiled “I’d love to.” Lifting a knife in her magic, she cut the pastry in half. Seeing the expression on Pearl’s face, she explained “I’m trying to figure out how you got the apples in the middle.”

Pearl laughed again “Trade secret, princess.”

Also laughing, Twilight said “That’s why I didn’t ask.” After examining the pastry, she took a cautious bite. Immediately, her eyes widened before she took a larger bite. “This is really good.” She tilted her head “It tastes like you used croissant dough as a base, but made a few changes, before adding the apples.”

Surprised, Pearl just stared at Twilight for a moment. “T-thank you, princess. How did you figure out all of that so quickly?”

Swallowing the last of the apple croissant, Twilight asked “Do you remember Pinkie Pie?” Seeing Pearl’s confusion, she elaborated “Really bouncy earth pony mare, blue and yellow balloons for a Cutie Mark, bright pink coat and equally bright pink mane and tail that kind of looks like cotton candy?”

Instantly knowing who Twilight was talking about, Pearl laughed. “Oh, her. The last time I saw her, princess, she was stuffing several cupcakes into her mouth . . . at the same time.” She shook her head “Still not sure how she did that . . .”

“That sounds like her.” Twilight replied, laughing as well “She lives, and helps out, at the bakery in Ponyville. She’s far better at it than I am but, thanks to her, I know a bit about baking.”

What’s a bakery? Sundance asked

It’s a shop in which baked goods, like the one I just ate, are made and sold. Twilight replied In fact, the building we’re in now is a bakery. Because of their popularity, many bakeries are also restaurants.

I see. Sundance replied

“That makes sense.” Pearl answered, pausing when Twilight’s stomach growled again.

Surprised, Twilight stared at her stomach for a moment before turning back to Pearl. “I think somepony else likes what I just ate. Do you have another one?”

Sundance laughed Good idea

Taking that as the ultimate compliment, Pearl’s eyes lit up. “A dozen more are in the oven, princess.”

Twilight smiled “Thank you. For now, I should head back to the dining room before Artemis gets worried.” Hearing hoofsteps, she turned towards the door just as he walked into the room.

Sundance giggled It looks like it’s too late for that.

“There you are, Twilight.” Artemis commented, leaning down to nuzzle her.

Smiling, she returned his nuzzle. “Pearl created a new apple recipe and wanted me to try it.”

Glancing at the empty plate on the counter, he remarked. “I think it’s safe to say that you liked it. Were you able to keep it down?”

Twilight nodded

Artemis smiled “Good.” He chuckled, glancing towards the dining room. “We should join everyone else. They’re all wondering what’s taking you so long.”

“The Apple Croissants will be out of the oven in . . .” Pearl checked a timer “four minutes, princess.”

“Thank you, Pearl” Twilight responded, turning towards the dining room. Thank you, Mom.

For what? Sundance asked, confused

Twilight smiled I sensed those defensive spells.

I didn’t do anything. Sundance protested

Seeing that she and Artemis were the only two in the hallway, Twilight giggled.

Hearing this, he nuzzled her again “What’s so funny?”

“When Pearl brought me back to the kitchen, Mom prepared two spells.” Twilight answered, returning his nuzzle “I didn’t recognize either of them, but I was able to tell that both of them were defensive in nature.” She giggled again “She must have thought I didn’t notice because, when I just thanked her, she said that she didn’t do anything.”

Of course you noticed that. Sundance said, laughing softly Somehow, I keep forgetting that your specialty is also magic.

Artemis and Twilight walked into the dining room just as a white, purple and light blue blur came speeding towards them.

“Watch out!” Cadance shouted

“Duck!” Shining Armor yelled

Heeding their advice, Artemis jumped out of the way.

Instantly realizing what the blur really was, Twilight had a different reaction. Spreading her wings, she jumped into the air, hovering directly in its path.

Surprised, everyone looked on as she caught the blur in her forehooves.

Flurry giggled “Auntie Twily!”

Laughing, Twilight nuzzled her niece.

Shaking his head, Shining Armor levitated his daughter to his side before placing her in the high chair that had been placed in between himself and his wife.

Cadance stared at her little sister. “H-how did you do that?”

Twilight and Artemis walked over to the table that everyone was sitting at and sat down, one on either side of Celestia. Once she was seated, Twilight shrugged. “Pinkie does the same thing, especially when she gets excited. Though, in her case, the only thing we see is a bright pink blur and she’s not nearly as easy to stop.”

Shaking her head, Celestia commented “You’re more prepared for your foal than I thought.”

Shocked, everyone else just nodded.

In the stars, Midnight Armor flickered “Celestia’s right.”

“Agreed” Sundance said, flickering as well

“I can’t believe she caught Princess Flurry Heart like that.” Star Swirl commented, also flickering

After a moment’s thought, Midnight Armor hesitantly asked “Does Twilight stop her friend that way as well?”

Instantly concerned, Sundance replied “I hope not.”

In the Crystal Empire, Sundance repeated her husband’s question. Is that how you stop Pinkie Pie?

More or less. Twilight answered Pinkie usually crashes into whoever happens to be in her way. If I have enough warning, I either stop her with my magic or put a shield around myself. However, most of the time, I don’t have any warning at all. As a result, we end up in a pile on the floor.

That’s not good. Sundance responded, clearly worried

Twilight looked up when Berry brought out two Apple Croissants. Everyone else had French Toast with maple syrup. After taking a few bites, she turned her attention back to their mother. She’s been doing that for as long as I’ve known her, so I’m used to it. Besides, she does that to everyone, not just me.

B-but you’re pregnant! Sundance stammered

Pinkie was pretty careful with Mrs. Cake when she was pregnant. Twilight replied I’m sure she’ll do the same with me. If she doesn’t, I’ll talk to her about it.

Not sure what to say, Sundance just watched as everyone finished their meals and left the restaurant.

Everyone, except for Cadance, Shining Armor and Flurry Heart, looked up in surprise.

After a moment of watching the snow fall, Celestia turned to her niece. “I thought the Crystal Heart protected the Crystal Empire from the winter weather.”

“It does” Cadance answered, laughing “However, on Hearth’s Warming, I allow our Weather Team to bring some snow clouds inside. After a couple of feet of snow gather on the ground, we have an afternoon of fun. By tomorrow morning, it will all be gone.”

In the castle, everyone gathered in the living room. Shining Armor turned to his wife. “How should we get her to take her nap this year?”

“What do you mean?” Celestia asked, confused

Watching Flurry play with her grandparents and Spike, Cadance explained “We make Flurry take her nap early on Hearth’s Warming because we want her to be awake so she can play in the snow with everyone else.”

Shining Armor nodded “The problem is, like most foals, she never wants to take a nap. Playing usually tires her out but at the rate Mom, Dad and Spike are going, she won’t even be tired at her usual nap time.”

Turning to Cadance, Twilight asked “When do you want her to go to sleep?”

“As soon as possible.” Cadance replied

Twilight smiled “I’ll take care of it.”

Cadance and Shining Armor glanced at each other but, before they could say anything, Twilight walked over to her parents, Spike and Flurry.

When she got close enough for them to hear her, Twilight cleared her throat. “Mom, Dad, Spike . . . If you don’t mind, I’d like to borrow Flurry for a while.”

Looking up at her daughter, Velvet asked “Why?”

Twilight frowned “I’m the only one who hasn’t had any one-on-one time with her and I’d like to change that.” Turning to Flurry, she asked “Playtime?”

“Yay!” Flurry squealed, immediately flying over to sit on Twilight’s back.

Flurry isn’t the only one I’m trying to tire out. Twilight told Sundance

Concerned, Sundance asked Is this about what happened this morning?

No, Mom Twilight answered While Flurry takes her nap, I’ll take one as well so you can have your Mother-Daughter Time with Celestia.

I see. Sundance giggled In that case, you have nothing to worry about. I have no doubt that Flurry Heart will make sure that you’re tired enough for a nap.

Before anyone could say anything else, Flurry teleported herself and Twilight to her room.

“I’m fairly certain that both of them will be taking a nap soon.” Celestia commented, staring at the space where her sister had been standing

Cadance giggled “You’re probably right”

Everyone else laughed as well

In Flurry’s room, Twilight looked around, surprised. Well, that was fast.

You’re right. Sundance replied, just as surprised Flurry Heart must really want to play with you.

“Auntie Twily, look!”

Twilight blinked as a large stuffed animal, an orange cat, was suddenly shoved in front of her face. “That cat’s almost as big as you are, Flurry.”

Flurry giggled “Mommy gave it to me!”

“Did you like seeing the stars?” Twilight asked

“Yeah!” Flurry exclaimed, bouncing in excitement “They were pretty!”

“I can’t take you to see them,” Twilight told her niece “but there is something else I can do.” She smiled at the little filly “I’m going to give you your present now, OK?”

Clearly excited, Flurry nodded

Focusing on the ceiling, Twilight cast the spell that she’d used in her room in Ponyville. When she was done, she looked down and saw that her niece was confused. Giggling, she said “Look up.”

Doing as her aunt told her, Flurry’s eyes went wide when she saw the stars.

“I know it’s not as good as really seeing the stars,” Twilight explained “but you can watch them while you fall asleep.” Before she could say anything else, she found herself caught in a hug. W-wow, she has a tight grip.

“Thank you, Auntie Twily!”

I’d be surprised if she wasn’t happy. Sundance said slowly Where did you learn that spell?

Celestia cast it in Artemis’ room in Canterlot. Twilight replied, returning Flurry’s hug. I was able to figure out what spell she used and did the same thing in my room in Ponyville. I wasn’t planning to cast it here but, once I saw her reaction to seeing the stars, I thought it would be a good present for her.

I-I see. Sundance replied

In the stars, Midnight Armor’s star brightened “I didn’t know that such a thing was possible.”

“That surprised me as well.” Star Swirl replied “Still, Princess Flurry Heart clearly loves her gift.”

Sundance began to laugh.

“What’s so funny?” Midnight Armor asked, turning to his wife

Still laughing, Sundance replied “Look at what they’re doing.”

Curious, Star Swirl and Midnight Armor turned their attention to what was going on in the Crystal Empire. Both of them laughed as well.

“What game are they playing?” Star Swirl asked

Sundance giggled “It looks like the game that Celestia, Artemis and Twilight showed us during our visit. I think they called it “Tag”.”

“But they’re also hiding from each other.” Midnight Armor pointed out, watching Flurry dive into a large pile of cushions.

“Perhaps Twilight is combining a couple of different games.” Sundance responded “Regardless, it looks like fun.”

Chapter 59

In the Crystal Empire, almost an hour had gone by since Flurry teleported herself and Twilight to her room. Deciding to wait for Twilight to return, everyone else settled on the couches and relaxed.

The sound of a teleportation spell drew the attention of Cadance, Celestia, Artemis, Shining Armor, Velvet, Spike, and Night Light. Looking towards its source, they saw Twilight standing in the middle of the room. Curious, they watched her walk over to Cadance and Shining Armor.

Seeing their expressions, Twilight smiled “You wanted a sleepy daughter, right?”

Cadance and Shining Armor nodded.

Giggling softly, Twilight turned so they could see her back.

Cadance and Shining Armor gasped when they saw that their daughter was curled into a little ball, sound asleep.

“That’s not sleepy, Twily.” Shining Armor said quietly, levitating Flurry onto his back. “That’s sleeping.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “Are you complaining?”

Shining Armor quickly shook his head.

Sundance laughed I didn’t think he would.

“When she wakes up, she’ll probably try to tell you about something I did for her.” Twilight said softly “If you want to know what she’ll be talking about, look at the ceiling of her room. That’s where I put her Hearth’s Warming present. Just don’t cancel the spell, OK? She’ll be very upset if you do.”

Confused, Shining Armor and Cadance nodded.

Equally confused, Artemis tilted his head. After a moment, he smiled. “Did you do what I think you did?”

“Probably” Twilight answered, yawning

Walking over to her little sister, Celestia giggled “You look like you could use a nap as well.”

Leaning closer, Twilight quietly replied “You’ll understand why soon, but I need you to teleport both of us to your room. And no, I don’t plan on doing any research.”

Clearly confused, and curious, Celestia nodded. Horn glowing, she looked at everyone else “Apparently, my little sister has something that she wants to discuss with me before she takes a nap.” She smiled “In fact, I think I’ll take a nap as well. We’ll see you later.”

Suddenly understanding why Twilight volunteered to tire Flurry out, Artemis smiled. He, and everyone else, nodded.

A flash of sunlight later, Celestia and Twilight were gone.

Velvet laughed “I’m not sure how she got Flurry to take her nap this early but, whatever she did, it was clearly effective on both of them.”

Everyone else laughed as well

Cadance and Shining Armor looked at each other for a moment. Then she teleported both of them, and their daughter, to Flurry’s room. The first thing they did was look up at the ceiling. Gasping in surprise, they watched a shooting star move across the room before turning to each other.

“H-how did she do this?!” Cadance whispered, gently laying their daughter on her bed. “It’s incredible!”

Looking back up at the ceiling, Shining Armor nodded. Then he kissed the top of his daughter’s head before using his magic to close the curtains.

Walking out of the room, and quietly closing the door behind them, they returned to the living room.

Artemis, Night Light, Velvet and Spike looked over when Cadance and Shining Armor walked into the room.

“I have no idea how she did it,” Shining Armor began, shaking his head in wonder “but Twilight turned the ceiling of Flurry’s room into a perfect copy of the night sky. She even included shooting stars.”

Velvet, Night Light and Spike gasped “What?”

Artemis laughed “I thought so”

Surprised, everyone turned to him.

“What do you mean, Uncle Artemis?” Cadance asked

“Not long after I returned, Celestia did the same thing for me.” Artemis explained, still laughing “However, knowing that I like to relax in a hot bath, she cast the spell in my bathroom.”

Hopefully, this doesn’t anger him. “What does that have to do with what Twilight did to Flurry’s room?” Velvet cautiously asked

Artemis briefly considered ignoring Velvet, and her question. However, realizing that everyone was also curious, he replied. “Twilight analyzed my sister’s spell so she could cast it in our room in Ponyville.” Seeing everyone’s expressions, he shrugged “She must have decided that it would be a good Hearth’s Warming present for Flurry.”

Everyone gasped

Laughing softly, Cadance shook her head “If Flurry’s reaction to when you took her to see the stars was anything to go by, I’d say that she loves Twilight’ present.”

In Celestia’s room, she and Twilight appeared next to the bed. Noticing that Twilight was barely able to keep her eyes open, Celestia giggled and levitated her sister onto the bed. Settling next to Twilight, she asked. “What did you want to talk about?”

Twilight pulled a pillow over, lay her head on it and closed her eyes. Mom, can you answer that question, please? Playing with Flurry has made me more tired than I thought it would.

Giggling, Sundance replied Of course. Enjoy your nap, Twilight.

Celestia was about to repeat the question but, before she could say anything, she noticed that her sister’s horn had begun to glow. Puzzled, she watched a blank scroll, a quill and some ink float over and set themselves on the bed in front of them. She looked on as the quill dipped itself in the ink before moving over to the scroll.

I’ll answer that question, Celestia.

Celestia gasped “Mother?!”

Yes, it’s me. It’s not that Twilight had something to discuss with you, it’s that she wanted to allow me to speak with you. She didn’t say anything because she didn’t want to spoil the surprise.

Eyes wide, Celestia stammered “H-how is she . . . are you . . . doing this?!”

I’ll explain in a minute. First, I want to make sure that we won’t accidentally wake her. Sundance used Twilight’s magic to create a set of magical ear plugs. Then she gently placed them in her daughter’s ears before casting Artemis’s spell to make sure vibrations wouldn’t wake her. That done, she turned her attention back to the scroll.

Before I answer your question, there is something that you should know.

Curious, Celestia asked “What’s that, Mother?”

This is Twilight’s Hearth’s Warming gift to you. She did the same with Artemis.

Celestia’s eyes widened “I-I see”

As strange as this sounds, it started when Twilight followed Artemis to the mountain. She did what she could for him, but quickly realized that she needed help. That’s when she asked me if I’d still be able to see and hear what was going on around her, even if she took a nap. I had no idea what she was planning, but told her that the answer was yes. I also told her that I’d still be able to use her magic.

Twilight decided to take a nap so that I could talk to Artemis without requiring her to pass the messages.

“I see” Celestia commented, smiling at her sister. “So that’s what she meant when she said that you helped.”

That’s right. Before she went to sleep, she told Artemis and myself about her plan to do the same with you. For some reason, she’s calling it “Mother-Daughter Time”.

Celestia laughed “That’s what parents call it when a mother spends special time with her daughter. Twilight probably called the time you spent with Artemis “Mother-Son Time”. It would be “Father-Daughter” or “Father-Son” time if Father did the same.”

That’s exactly what she called it. I wondered why she did that, but had other things on my mind at the time. Now that you’ve explained it, I understand what she meant. Sundance paused I have a question for you.

“Of course, Mother.” Celestia replied “What is it?”

Twilight said that it can be seen as an insult to give more than one pony the same gift. In fact, she was worried that she’d offend us by doing this. Why would she feel that way?

Spreading a wing over Twilight, Celestia gently nuzzled her sister before answering their mother’s question. “Ponies get offended by that because it usually shows that the gift giver doesn’t put thought into what they’re giving others.”

So some ponies give the same gift to everyone they know, regardless of if it’s appropriate or not. I understand how that could be considered offensive.

Celestia nodded “It’s become an unspoken rule that a pony has to get a different gift for everypony. Well, those that they’re giving gifts to anyway.”

That makes sense. However, I don’t think she has anything to worry about. Sundance paused Unless you’re upset that you’ve received the same gift as your brother?

Celestia shook her head “Not at all. You and I haven’t been able to talk to each other on Hearth’s Warming in centuries.”

Yes, it’s been . . . thirteen of them, I believe. Sundance commented

Celestia thought for a moment “That sounds about right. That time, your visit to Artemis’ dream was actually on the night of Hearth’s Warming.”

I’m not sure who was more surprised, you, Artemis, your father or myself. Especially when you told us what day it was.

Celestia laughed “I think we should just say that we were all equally surprised.”

You’re right. Once your father and I got over the initial shock . . .

“Artemis and I had to convince you that we weren’t playing a prank on you.” Celestia finished softly “Then we had to wait for both of you to stop crying . . . and loosen the hugs that you’d wrapped us in.”

Sundance laughed again I remember that. If we’d been in the Waking World, neither of you would have been able to breathe. That wasn’t intentional, but we couldn’t help ourselves. She paused for a moment. Give me a minute. Your father is trying to say something.

Surprised, Celestia nodded.

A couple of minutes later, Sundance began to write again. I’m sorry about that. Once he’d finished laughing, your father reminded me that Artemis had to flip them over to loosen his grip. Watching Celestia go into a fit of laughter, Sundance was suddenly very glad that she’d taken those precautions to ensure that they wouldn’t wake Twilight.

When she was able to speak again, Celestia said. “Artemis did that twice, remember? The first time he did it, Father actually tightened his grip!”

Yes. Sundance agreed, laughing as well Artemis put a twist into the second flip and managed to escape your father’s grasp . . . for about two seconds.

Celestia began to laugh again “F-father took that as a challenge, pulled Artemis into another hug and held on as tight as he could.”

That’s right. You and I had to work together to pry them apart.

Finally calming down, Celestia commented. “I haven’t thought about that in a really long time.”

Your father says “you’re welcome”.

Celestia stared at the scroll for a moment before laughing again.

Two Hours later

In the living room, Cadance glanced outside before turning to her husband. “It looks like it’s stopped snowing, Shiny.”

Glancing outside as well, he nodded. “Let’s go wake Flurry.” Turning to his parents, Artemis and Spike, he continued “You should come with us.”

Nodding, everyone stood

A few minutes later, Cadance opened the door to her daughter’s room before walking inside. Everyone followed her.

While Cadance and Shining Armor nuzzled their daughter, Artemis, Velvet, Night Light and Spike looked up at the ceiling. Artemis smiled when he saw what his mare had done. For a few minutes, Night Light, Velvet and Spike were unable to do anything but stare.

Shocked, Velvet eventually managed to ask “T-twilight did this?”

“Yeah!” Flurry exclaimed, suddenly landing on Artemis’ back “It’s so pretty!”

Chuckling, Artemis reached back and nuzzled her. “Now you can see the stars every day.”

Flurry squealed in delight before jumping onto her father’s back.

After nuzzling his daughter, Shining Armor looked at Artemis. “We should go get Twily and Princess Celestia. Where do you think they went?”

Artemis thought for a moment “Let’s try Celestia’s room.”

“That makes sense.” Night Light commented “Princess Celestia told us that Twilight wanted to talk to her before they took a nap.”

Everyone else nodded

As they walked down the hall, Artemis sent a quick message to his sister.

In Celestia’s room, Celestia jumped slightly at a flash of her brother’s magic. She, and Sundance, watched his magic form words.

Sundance wasn’t bothered by the fact that she couldn’t read the message. Instead, she wrote a message of her own. Is everything alright?

Quickly reading both messages, Celestia smiled. “Everything’s fine, Mother. It’s finally stopped snowing. They just woke Flurry, and now they’re on their way so they can wake Twilight and I. Artemis just wanted to warn us before they got here. I’m sorry, but we’re going to have to end our conversation here.”

That’s alright. If Artemis is still planning to cast that spell tonight, your father and I will be able to speak to all three of you.

Before Celestia could respond, she heard a knock on the door. Wanting to avoid any misunderstanding, she levitated the writing materials onto the table before opening the door with her magic.

Artemis walked into the room while everyone else stayed in the hall.

Celestia smiled at him

Returning her smile, Artemis leaned down to nuzzle Twilight.

Celestia giggled when her sister buried her face into her shoulder.

Chuckling, Artemis nuzzled his fiancé again.

It’s time to wake up, Twilight. Sundance said softly

“Hmm?” Twilight mumbled Did you enjoy speaking with Celestia?

Yes. Sundance replied I can’t thank you enough for doing that.

Before Twilight could respond, she heard Celestia’s voice.

Celestia looked at the ponies in the hall. “What do you have planned for us now, Cadance?”

Cadance giggled “Playing in the snow, of course.”

After standing and stretching, Twilight returned Artemis’ nuzzle. Then she walked over to Cadance.

Realizing that her little sister wanted to say something, Cadance lowered her head.

“Thanks to your actions the other night,” Twilight whispered “I can’t wear that dress anymore.”

“What do you mean?” Cadance asked softly

“The spell that you cast on the dress was powerful enough that Artemis didn’t bother trying to break it.” Twilight replied quietly

Cadance’s eyes widened “Y-you mean-?”

Giggling, Twilight nodded “He got impatient and tore the dress apart. It’s alright, I have another one.” She paused “Please don’t cast anything on this one. I’d like it to survive the trip in one piece.”

Giggling as well, Cadance nodded “I promise”

Looking at everyone, Twilight raised her voice. “I’ll be right back.” Without waiting for a response, she teleported to the room she shared with Artemis.

That was a lovely dress. Why did Artemis tear it apart? Sundance asked

Since there wasn’t anyone else in the room, Twilight said her response out loud. “Cadance cast a locking spell on the dress, making it impossible for me to take it off. As soon as I realized that, I asked Artemis to help me.”

Instantly realizing why Cadance had done that, Sundance began to laugh. I’m sure he was able to get the dress off of you. What else did he do?

Blushing, Twilight pulled the other dress out of her saddlebags. “I’m sure you already know the answer to that question, Mom.”

Sundance laughed harder Yes, but I like seeing you blush.

Shaking her head, Twilight put the dress on and teleported back to Celestia’s room.

Everyone looked over when Twilight suddenly appeared in the middle of the room. They were about to ask where she’d gone but paused when they saw the dress.

“What?” Twilight asked, seeing everyone’s expressions “I’m sure that several, if not all, of you would have complained if I stayed out in the snow too long. I don’t want to hear it, so I put the dress on.”

Cadance slowly walked around her little sister, admiring the dress from every angle. “I thought the lavender one was beautiful, but this one’s even better.”

Velvet walked closer, also admiring the dress. “Where did you get this, Twilight?”

“Artemis asked Rarity to make me a couple of winter dresses for this trip.” Twilight replied

“Yes, but I didn’t tell her what designs to use.” Artemis commented, staring at the dress as well. This one looks even better on her than the lavender one did.

Twilight laughed “Rarity knows how much I love the night sky and the pony who controls it. If you also consider the fact that I’m carrying your foal . . . well, I’m not surprised that she chose this design.”

Artemis stared at his mare for a moment but, before he could say anything, Flurry jumped onto his back.

Flapping her wings in excitement, she shouted “Playtime!”

Everyone else laughed

Once they finished laughing, Cadance teleported them to the entrance to the castle.

The Crystal Ponies had gathered before the entrance to the Crystal Castle, waiting for the Royal Family. When the door opened, they began to whisper excitedly. Their whispers turned to cheers when Cadance, Shining Armor and Flurry Heart walked over to stand in front of the Crystal Heart. The cheers got even louder when Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Spike, Velvet and Night Light exited the castle as well. Celestia, Artemis and Twilight stood a few feet to Cadance’s left while Velvet, Night Light and Spike joined the crowd.

Cadance and Shining Armor exchanged glances before nuzzling their daughter.

Jumping into the air, Flurry shouted “Playtime!”

The Crystal Ponies somehow managed to laugh and cheer at the same time. Following their princess’ order, they immediately began to make snow ponies, snow angels, snow castles and ice sculptures.

Sundance wasn’t sure what to look at first. Is it normal for ponies to do that?

Also watching what everypony was doing, Twilight giggled Yes, Mom. Ponies love to have fun in the snow.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight’s attention was all drawn by the same thing. A little earth pony filly, with a star in her mouth, was attempting to climb a very large tree. They watched as she climbed higher. All three of them gasped when she lost her grip and fell to a lower branch. Undeterred, she kept climbing towards the top.

What is she doing?! Sundance asked, becoming more terrified for the filly the higher she climbed.

Part of what she’s doing has become a tradition. Twilight responded Around Hearth’s Warming, ponies decorate trees and place a star on top. As for the rest, I’m not sure either.

The filly gasped, dropping the star, when she lost her grip and fell again. This time, she found herself caught in a field of golden magic. Noticing that the star was suspended in front of her, she eagerly grabbed it with her forehooves. Then she looked up when she heard a gentle voice.

“Let me help you, little one.” Celestia said, smiling as she levitated the filly onto her back. Spreading her wings, she flew to the appropriate height and allowed the filly to place the star on the top of the tree.

Everyone cheered as Celestia landed next to her brother before placing the filly on the ground.

Sundance sighed in relief Well done, Celestia

A large group of foals ran up to the filly.

“You’re so lucky, Emerald!” a unicorn colt exclaimed

The other foals nodded but, before they could say anything, Flurry landed next to Emerald. “Let’s play!”

All of the foals nodded again before running, or flying, over to a nearby field full of untouched snow.

Spike glanced at Cadance “I’ll go help, and watch, them.”

“Thanks, Spike” Cadance replied, walking over to Celestia, Artemis and Twilight “That should keep the foals occupied.”

“Yes” Shining Armor agreed, chuckling

Grinning mischievously, Artemis nudged Twilight. When she turned to him, he whispered something in her ear. He watched her eyes widen before she smiled and nodded.

Whatever her son had said to Twilight had been whispered too quickly for Sundance to catch it. What are you two up to?

You’ll see. Twilight answered, scooping up some snow with her magic.

Artemis did the same. Exchanging glances, and nodding, they shaped their snow into snowballs before throwing them at Cadance.

Squealing in surprise, Cadance turned to see Twilight and Artemis smirking at her. Her eyes widened when she noticed that each of them had over a dozen snowballs hovering next to them.

Hearing Cadance’s squeal, Celestia, Shining Armor, Velvet, Night Light and Spike turned to see what was going on.

“I told you that we were going to get you back for what you did when we arrived, Cadance.” Artemis said “I hope you’re ready.”

Eyes widening, Cadance dodged a snowball from Twilight and turned to her husband. “Aren’t you going to help me?!”

Shining Armor shook his head. “We told them that we’d tell the Crystal Ponies about Twily’s pregnancy.”

“Hey!” she exclaimed, getting hit on the flank by one of Artemis’ snowballs “You agreed that we should have them make the announcement!”

“Yes,” he replied “but we never discussed exactly how we were going to ask them make the announcement. You’re the one who pushed it on them as soon as they arrived.”

The rest of their family began to laugh.

Hearing the laughter, the Crystal Ponies turned to see what was going on. Almost immediately, they began to laugh as well. When one of Twilight’s snowballs hit Cadance’s left wing, the Crystal Ponies shouted “Royal Snowball Fight!”

None of them tried to interfere. In fact, everyone was laughing too hard to do anything but watch.

Getting hit by snowballs from both Twilight and Artemis, Cadance spread her wings and took to the air.

“I thought she learned her lesson when we had the pillow fight.” Twilight commented, spreading her wings as well before leaping into the air

“You’re right” Artemis replied “Flying won’t help her get away from us. Oh well, she’ll just have to learn that the hard way . . . again.” Spreading his wings, he followed his fiancé.

In the stars, Midnight Armor, Star Swirl and Sundance laughed as they watched Twilight and Artemis chase Cadance around the Crystal Empire, pelting her with snowballs.

“What did the Crystal Ponies call this?” Star Swirl asked, laughing

“I believe it was a “Snowball Fight”.” Midnight Armor answered, also laughing “It certainly is an appropriate name.”

“Yes” Sundance said, giggling “It’s a great way for Twilight and Artemis to get some exercise and, more importantly, have fun.”

“Additionally,” Star Swirl began, watching Twilight gather more snow “it’s a great way for them to get back at Princess Cadance without actually hurting her.”

“Agreed” Midnight Armor replied, watching Artemis gather more snow while Twilight took off after Cadance.

In the Crystal Empire, Cadance realized that she hadn’t felt a snowball in a couple of minutes. “Are they done?”

“Not quite” Twilight responded, coming to a stop behind her “We just needed to reload.”

“I see” Cadance replied “In that case . . .” Using her magic, she gathered a large pile of snow and shaped it into several snowballs before turning to her uncle and little sister.

“Oh?” Artemis asked, laughing “Finally deciding to fight back?”

“Why not?” Cadance replied, glancing at the ponies below them “After all, we seem to have an audience.”

“And you want to give them something to watch?” Twilight responded

Giggling, Cadance nodded

“If you insist” Artemis replied, launching the first strike of the second round

Half an hour later, Cadance, Artemis and Twilight landed next to the Crystal Heart. They were greeted with cheers.

Noticing that Cadance was shivering, Twilight cast a heat spell to melt the snow off her body and warm her.

“Thanks, Twily” Cadance said, nuzzling her little sister

“Well done, you two.” Celestia commented, nuzzling her younger siblings. Then she turned to her niece. “I trust you’ve learned not to manipulate my younger siblings?”

Blushing, Cadance nodded

Nodding as well, Celestia replied “Good” Suddenly, she laughed “I’ll give you a friendly warning, Cadance. You really shouldn’t do that again because I don’t think they’ll be so nice a third time.”

“If that was nice,” Shining Armor began, shaking his head “I’d hate to see nasty.”

Everyone laughed

Twilight suddenly noticed how hard their mother was laughing. What’s so funny, Mom?

What you and Artemis just did. Sundance replied Star Swirl, your father and I enjoyed that immensely.

I see. Twilight responded slowly You’re welcome, I think

Sundance laughed harder

Turning to his niece, Artemis asked “How long do you usually stay our here?”

“Until dinnertime, or everypony gets too cold to continue, whichever comes first.” She replied, glancing at him “Why?”

“It’s time for lunch.” He answered “Skipping a meal won’t hurt most of us, but there are two of us who should eat. Twilight and Flurry.”

Twilight turned to Artemis, about to say that she’d be fine. However, before she could say anything, she heard their mother’s voice.

He’s right. You shouldn’t skip meals, especially this early in your pregnancy.

“That’s a good point.” Shining Armor glanced at his wife. “Cinnamon Spice usually brings Flurry a snack around now. When she does, we’ll ask her to make something for Twily.”

“Or Princess Twilight can eat the food I brought out for her. I brought Princess Flurry Heart something to eat as well.”

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Cadance and Shining Armor jumped before turning around to see Cinnamon Spice standing behind them.

Turning to the cart next to her, Cinnamon Spice set a plate of apple scones, a bowl of applesauce and a glass of milk on a folding table. On the other side of the table, she set peanut butter and jelly sandwich, several carrot sticks and some strawberry slices for Flurry. In front of that, she set a bottle of carrot juice.

Twilight smiled “Thank you, Cinnamon Spice.” She looked up when Cadance brought Flurry to the table.

“You need to eat lunch, Flurry.” Cadance told her daughter “When you’re done, you can go back to playing with your friends.”

“Yes, Mommy” Flurry replied, pouting slightly

When Twilight and Flurry had finished eating, Cadance placed her daughter on her back. Then she gently pushed Twilight towards Artemis.

“What are you doing, Cadance?” Twilight asked, confused

Raising her voice, Cadance replied “Isn’t there something that the two of you should tell everyone?”

Hearing this, the Crystal Ponies turned to the Royal Family. Whispering excitedly amongst themselves, they waited to hear what the announcement would be.

Artemis raised an eyebrow but, before he could ask, Cadance used her magic to fix her little sister’s mane. Suddenly realizing what his niece was talking about, he smiled. “I suppose so.”

Sundance giggled She’s right. I know you haven’t told the ponies of Equestria yet, but there’s no reason why you shouldn’t tell the Crystal Ponies.

I guess you’re right. Twilight replied I just hope the girls won’t get too mad.

Why would your friends be angry? Sundance asked

Twilight had to stop herself from sighing. They understand that I’m going to tell family members important information before they hear about it. However, as you might expect, the girls and I are extremely close. In fact, we’re “Honorary” members of each other’s families. They’re not going to be happy that I’m telling other ponies before they hear about it.

I understand why that could upset them. Sundance said slowly

Turning to Cadance and Artemis, Twilight quietly said “I’m not happy about this.”

“Why not?” Artemis asked, concerned

“The girls don’t know yet.” Twilight answered “They’re going to get mad at me when they find out that I told anypony, other than family members, before letting them know.”

Cadance gasped “I forgot about that. Should I-”

Glancing at the excited Crystal Ponies, Twilight shook her head. “Once again, the Crystal Ponies are expecting Artemis and I to make an announcement. In the future, I’d appreciate it if you’d tell us what you have planned before you push these things on us.”

“That’s a good point.” Artemis remarked “In fact, I’m going to add a requirement.” Turning to Cadance, he said “I’d appreciate it if you’d do so in private. That way, we won’t be pressured into announcing something before we’re ready.”

Wincing, Cadance nodded

“Unfortunately, that won’t help us now.” Twilight sighed “I’ll just have to deal with the girls’ anger when we get back to Ponyville.”

“Will they really be that angry?” Artemis asked softly

“Well, Fluttershy and Rarity will be very disappointed.” Twilight responded “Pinkie will be sad because she didn’t get to throw a party right away. Applejack will be angry but she’ll understand when I explain things. Rainbow . . . well, you remember how she reacted when she found out that I faced Night by myself, right?”

His eyes widened “You think she’ll do that again?”

What are the two of you talking about? Sundance asked, half curious, half concerned

Twilight showed their mother her memory of Rainbow’s reaction.

Gasping, Sundance repeated her son’s question. You believe she’ll do that again?

Sighing again, Twilight nodded “I’d be surprised if she doesn’t.”

Celestia nuzzled her siblings “I’ll make the announcement.”

Surprised, Artemis turned to her “Sister?”

“The girls are already going to be angry with me because I told Twilight not to them about Golden Thunder.” Celestia told him “I’ll just add this to the list.”

Twilight shook her head “No, Celestia. The situation with Golden Thunder is one thing, but I can’t allow you to take the responsibility for everything.”

“Twilight’s right.” Artemis said “We have to deal with this ourselves.”

After a moment, Celestia responded “Very well” Turning to Cadance, she commented “It seems that you haven’t learned not to manipulate my siblings.”

Spike hesitantly asked “What do you think they’re going to do to her this time?”

Celestia shrugged “I’m not sure, but I have no intention of stopping them.”

Cadance nervously turned to her uncle and little sister.

Artemis and Twilight didn’t notice because they had already turned to face the crowd. Pulling Twilight closer, he cleared his throat. “You already know that Equestria will be celebrating the birth of a Royal Foal.” He paused while the Crystal Ponies cheered. “Now Equestria has something else to celebrate. We have yet to set a date, but . . .” Hearing the whispers, he chuckled and used his magic to part Twilight’s mane.

The Crystal Ponies gasped when they saw the ring on Twilight’s horn.

Twilight giggled “There will be another Royal Wedding.”

The resulting cheer was even louder than the one after they had announced Twilight’s pregnancy. No one was surprised when the Crystal Ponies activated the Crystal Heart.

The rest of the afternoon passed in a blur of snowball fights, a snowpony competition and more ponies making snow angles.

Cadance called a halt to the fun around dinnertime. “I’m glad that everypony enjoyed themselves, but I think it’s time for everypony to go home and warm up.”

The Crystal Ponies bowed and headed home for the day. The Royal Family entered the castle and returned to their rooms.

In Artemis and Twilight’s room, she took her dress off and hung it in the bathroom to dry. Then they gathered the presents for the rest of their family.

Ten minutes later, everyone gathered in the living room. Because of how close it was to her bedtime, they allowed Flurry to open her presents first.

Everyone knew what Twilight had given her, so Celestia and Artemis went next. Their gift was in two parts. The smaller box was wrapped in dark blue wrapping paper with silver crescent moons on it. It was sitting on top of a larger box that was wrapped in wrapping paper that was the color of a clear summer day with little suns on it.

Flurry opened the larger box first. Peeking inside, her eyes lit up before she pulled out a couple of stuffed toys. One was a sun with a couple of clouds in front of it and the other was a dolphin. After hugging both of her new toys, she turned her attention to the smaller box.

Opening it, she stared at what was inside for a moment before squealing in delight. “Just like Mommy!”

Confused, Cadance reached into the box and pulled out a Royal Necklace. It was made in the same design as the one she wore, but with silver instead of gold. Eyes wide, she stared at it for a moment before turning to her aunt and uncle.

“Artemis and I believe that Flurry is old enough to have her own Royal Necklace. However, instead of creating a new design, we thought hers should be as similar to yours as possible.” Celestia explained “It’s made of silver because we think that looks better on her. Additionally, we’ve cast a spell on it so that it will grow with her.”

Cadance gasped “This will always fit her?”

“When she puts it on, our spell will automatically alter the necklace so that it’s a perfect fit for whatever size she is at that time.” Artemis answered “For now, it’s just for special occasions. However, when she’s older, she can wear it all of the time.”

“It’s beautiful.” Shining Armor commented, studying it closely “We’ve been talking about having one made for her, but were having trouble choosing a design.”

Shining Armor’s right. Sundance commented It may be simple, but it’s beautiful. Besides, at only two years old, Flurry Heart would probably destroy anything with a more intricate design. Then there’s the fact that it’s nearly identical to the one that her mother wears. She’s clearly very happy with that.

Flying over to Celestia, Flurry gave her a hug before doing the same to Artemis. “Thank you Auntie Tia and Uncle Art!”

The only ones left were Velvet and Night Light. Glancing at her husband, Velvet levitated a medium sized box over to Flurry. It was wrapped in plain wrapping paper that was the same color as the purple in Velvet’s mane.

Opening it, Flurry pulled out stuffed versions of all four of the adult alicorns. Folded neatly under them was a knitted winter hat and scarf. They were both white and had her parent’s Cutie Marks knitted into the design.

Ignoring the hat and scarf, Flurry squealed in delight and hugged the toys. “Mommy, Auntie Twily, Auntie Tia and Uncle Art!”

Everyone laughed

Flying over to Velvet and Night Light, Flurry hugged both of them. “Thank you Grandma and Grandpa!”

Knowing that Sundance was going to ask, Twilight explained. Shortened versions of Grandmother and Grandfather. She paused In fact, that’s what our foal will be calling you and Dad.

Sundance giggled I see.

Turning to her mother, Twilight raised an eyebrow “You made those, didn’t you?”

Blushing, Velvet nodded

She made them? Sundance asked, surprised

She’s always liked knitting. Twilight explained In fact, she made all of the hats and scarves that Shiny and I wore when we were younger.

Twilight paused thoughtfully I’ve never known her to make toys, but she does like making things. So it’s not surprising that she decided to try making stuffed toys. However, I am surprised that the first toys she made were . . . well, us.

Before anyone could say anything else, Cinnamon Spice walked into the room and bowed. “Dinner is ready, your highnesses.”

In the dining room, they found that everything had already been set up for them. Twilight’s place had a large roasted carrot and apple salad, with an apple muffin on the side. Everypony else had plates of hearty vegetable stew served over rice. Spike also had vegetable stew over rice, but his had crushed emeralds mixed into the stew. For dessert, each of them was given an apple tart with cinnamon sprinkled on top. Twilight and Flurry drank a glass of milk while everyone else had eggnog.

Just as the meal was ending, Celestia and Artemis felt the pull of the sun and moon. Glancing at each other, they stood and walked over to the window.

While Celestia lowered the sun, Twilight spoke to their mother. Good night, Mom.

Ordinarily, I would also say “good night”. Sundance replied However, if Artemis is still planning to cast that spell, your father and I will be talking to the three of you later.

Twilight giggled softly, grateful that no one heard her. In that case, I’ll talk to you in a few hours.

Sundance laughed I’ll talk to you then.

Artemis raised the moon, and placed the stars in the night sky, before turning to Cadance and Shining Armor. Levitating Flurry onto his back, he smiled at them. “I’ll put her to bed so that the two of you can have a night off.”

Smiling, Cadance and Shining Armor nodded. After Artemis teleported himself and Flurry to her room, Cadance giggled. “He’s also getting some practice.”

“Yes,” Shining Armor agreed “but what about Twily? We should make sure she gets some practice as well.”

Before Twilight could respond, Spike laughed. “Are you forgetting who raised me?”

Celestia laughed as well “Spike has a good point, Shining Armor. After raising a dragon, I’m sure that Twilight will be able to handle a foal.”

“I stand corrected.” Shining Armor replied, shaking his head “You’ll be fine, Twily.”

Everyone else laughed as they headed back to the living room to wait for Artemis.

In the stars, Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl set the brightness of their stars to their nighttime levels and turned to each other.

“That was an interesting day.” Sundance commented

“It may not be the way things were done when we were alive.” Midnight Armor replied, briefly brightening “Regardless, it was a good day.”

Star Swirl laughed “My favorite part was the snowball fight.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor immediately began laughing as well. However, before either of them could say anything, both of them gasped.

“W-what the?” Sundance asked, struggling to keep her star’s brightness at the right level.

“Not again!” Midnight Armor complained, having the same problem. Feeling a tug on his soul, he exclaimed “Golden Thunder’s doing this today?!”

“It seems that he’s trying to give himself a couple of special Hearth’s Warming presents.” Sundance remarked, also feeling a tug on her soul “Unfortunately, because he’s doing this at night, I can’t inform Twilight.”

“I can send a message to Artemis.” Star Swirl offered

“Do it!” Midnight Armor replied “P-please hurry!”

While Star Swirl gathered the necessary magic, Sundance gasped “I can inform Twilight!”

Surprised, Midnight Armor asked “How?!”

“H-her specialty is also magic, remember?!” Sundance answered, beginning to pant “I-I’m sure she’ll notice if I cut the connection that my spell created between us!” Without waiting for her husband to respond, that’s exactly what she did. However, she did it in a way that allowed her to send a message before the connection between them dissolved.

“Done.” Star Swirl reported “Artemis should be getting my message any second now.”

“G-good” Midnight Armor replied

Sundance and Midnight Armor turned their attention, and magic, to fighting Golden Thunder’s spell.

In the Crystal Empire, Artemis had closed the door to Flurry’s room and walked down the hall. He froze when he suddenly sensed that the stars of his parents were unstable again. Before he could do anything about it, he gasped in surprise when a message suddenly appeared in front of him. T-that’s Star Swirl’s magic!

Golden Thunder is trying to take your parents’ souls again! Please inform Celestia and Princess Twilight . . . and come as quickly as you can!

I can’t believe he’s doing this tonight! Cursing, Artemis teleported to his sister’s side.

Meanwhile, in the living room, Celestia was talking to Cadance and Shining Armor. On the other side of the room, Twilight was doing the same with Velvet, Night Light and Spike.

Twilight froze, stopping mid-sentence, when the connection created by Sundance’s spell began to disappear. Her eyes widened when, just before it disappeared completely, she heard a panicked message from their mother.

H-he’s trying to pull our souls to him again! P-please inform Celestia and Artemis . . . and come quickly!

Seeing the horrified expression on her daughter’s face, Velvet immediately asked “What’s wrong, Twilight?”

Ignoring her mother, Twilight spread her wings and flew to Celestia’s side.

After levitating Spike on her back, Velvet and Night Light raced to their daughter’s side.

Knowing that she couldn’t simply say that their mother had sent her a message, or what it had been, Twilight urgently said. “We’ve got a problem, Celestia! That spell has been cancelled!”

Thoroughly confused, Cadance, Shining Armor, Velvet, Night Light and Spike stared at Twilight.

Instantly knowing what spell Twilight was talking about, and what it probably meant, Celestia stared at her little sister in horror. However, before she could say anything, Artemis teleported to her other side.

Not caring about who else was listening, Artemis turned to his sister and Twilight. “Golden Thunder is trying to take Mother and Father’s souls again!”

Cadance, Shining Armor, Velvet, Night Light and Spike gasped. “What?!”

“We know, Artemis.” Celestia responded “Twilight felt it when that spell was cancelled. She’d just told me about it when you teleported into the room.”

Before anyone could say anything else, everyone jumped when a voice echoed around the room.

“Twilight Sparkle!”

Horn glowing, Shining Armor demanded “Whose voice is that?!”

“The spirit of the Element of Magic.” Twilight replied. While everyone gasped in surprise, she raised her voice. “What is it, Magic?”

“Golden Thunder is moving faster this time! You have to hurry!”

Celestia turned to her brother “GO!”

Also turning to Artemis, Twilight nodded “We’ll follow!”

Without a word, Artemis vanished. A flash of sunlight later, Celestia was also gone.

However, Twilight hesitated. Mom’s going to lose her mind if I suddenly vanish without telling her what’s going on. In fact, I’m sure that everyone wants an explanation.

I’ll take care of that. Magic replied, quickly teaching Twilight a new spell. Cast this spell on someone in the room. It will create a temporary link between you and whoever you choose that will allow me to project my voice into the room.

Confused, but not taking the time to ask, Twilight quickly cast the spell on Spike.

Looking down at himself, Spike noticed that his scales were glowing. “W-what the-?”

Knowing that she didn’t have time to waste, Twilight used the link created by the Linking Spell to teleport to Artemis’ side.

In the living room, Magic asked “Can everyone hear me?”

“Yes” Cadance replied slowly “B-but how are we able to hear you?”

“Ordinarily, I’m only able to speak with my bearer directly, or use my connection with her to allow everyone around her to hear my voice.” Magic explained “However, I taught her a spell that creates a unique, and temporary, link between her and whoever she cast it on. As you saw, she chose to cast this spell on her assistant."

"Do not be afraid, young dragon. This spell will not harm you in any way. I’m merely using the link to project my voice into the room. This way, all of you can hear me.”

“Why have you done this?” Cadance asked

“My bearer is aware of the fact that all of you want to know what’s going on.” Magic replied “It is imperative that she acts quickly, so I told her that I would handle the explanation. However, before I do that, there’s something that I’d like to take care of.”

“What is it?” Shining Armor cautiously asked

“I’ve been paying attention to what has been going on around my bearer. As a result, I know what has happened over the last couple of days. There are several things that I’d like to discuss.”

“The first three are meant for you, Twilight Velvet. One, I’m the one who told your daughter to keep certain things a secret.”

Face going pale, Velvet stammered “I-I see.”

“Two, I understand why you fear for your daughter’s safety. However, I assure you that each of the spirits of the Elements of Harmony, myself included, offer some protection to our bearers. In other words, I help keep your daughter safe.”

Velvet sighed in relief

“Three, I have no doubt that you plan to press my bearer for answers about what just happened. To avoid that, I’m going to allow you to watch what they do tonight. However, I will only do this once.”

“We understand.” Night Light answered “Thank you.”

“The next one is meant for all of you.” Magic said “I have my reasons for keeping this a secret, but they are not for you to know. Regardless, I want to make this clear. Do not tell anyone about this!”

Everyone exchanged glances before nodding. As one, they said “We understand”

Satisfied, Magic cast a communication spell. “I do not want to distract them from their task, so this is a one way communication spell. They won’t be able to see, or hear, any of you. However, all of you will be able to see, and hear, them.”

Cadance, Shining Armor, Velvet, Night Light and Spike gasped when a large sphere of pure magic appeared in front of them. Taking a closer look, they watched as Artemis suddenly appeared.

“I-it looks like he’s standing among the stars!” Cadance stammered, eyes wide

“Y-you’re right” Night Light responded, watching Celestia appear “And there’s Princess Celestia.”

“Twilight’s with them, too!” Spike pointed out, watching her appear between Celestia and Artemis.

Everyone gasped again when they heard a male’s voice.

In the stars, Midnight Armor sighed in relief when Celestia, Artemis and Twilight appeared. “O-our children are here.”

Focused on fighting Golden Thunder’s spell, Sundance didn’t turn. Instead, she asked “A-all three of them?”

“Yes” Star Swirl answered “Princess Twilight is here as well.”

Sundance sighed in relief “I-it must have worked.”

“Yes, Mother” Celestia responded “Twilight instantly noticed the fact that your spell was cancelled.”

“Good” Sundance replied

Leaning over Twilight, Celestia touched the tip of her horn to her brother’s. “I’ve linked our magic, Artemis. Use as much as you need to.”

Artemis used their combined magic to reinforce the spell that was anchoring their parents’ souls to their stars. Then he replaced the magic that they had used to fight Golden Thunder’s spell.

Sundance and Midnight Armor sighed in relief again when their stars calmed. After setting their stars’ brightness at the right level, they turned their attention to their children.

Closing her eyes, Twilight called on the spirit of her Element and lit up from within. Searching the area for foreign magic, she located Golden Thunder’s spell and immediately took control of it. Can you hear me, Magic?

Of course.

I’d like to try something a little different this time. Twilight said slowly

What do you have in mind?

Twilight chewed on her lip. Is it possible for us to speak to Golden Thunder?

Magic paused Give me a moment. If you’re planning what I think you are, I like the idea. However, I need to get authorization before allowing it. A few seconds later, she said. Your idea has been approved, but I’ve been asked to tell you to watch what you say to him.

Thank you. Twilight turned to Celestia and Artemis. “I’ve taken control of Golden Thunder’s spell, but I haven’t terminated it yet.”

Celestia and Artemis’ eyes widened.

Seeing their expressions, Twilight shook her head. “I think all five of us should speak to him. Don’t worry, I’ll terminate the spell when we’re done.” She paused “Magic says that we can do that, as long as we’re careful about what we say.”

Celestia, Artemis, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl began to laugh.

“I love that idea, Twilight!” Celestia said

Artemis nodded “I wonder how Golden Thunder will react when he hears Mother and Father’s voices.”

Magic began to laugh as well. This should be good.

I’ll cast the communication spell so that you’ll be able to speak to each other, but he won’t be able to see any of you. Additionally, none of you will be able to see him.

There will be a flash of magic when everything is ready.

In the Crystal Empire, Velvet tilted her head “The first two voices are probably those of Princess Celestia and Artemis’ parents. The third must belong to Star Swirl the Bearded.”

Everyone nodded, agreeing with her assessment.

“Don’t you think it’s strange that their parents referred to Twilight as one of their children?” Velvet asked, glancing at her husband

“Not really” Night Light replied “We do the same with Cadance and Artemis.”

“You’re right, Dad.” Shining Armor commented “I bet that’s what they’re doing.” He laughed “I like Twily’s idea.”

Night Light nodded “After what Golden Thunder did to them, Princess Celestia and Artemis’ parents deserve a chance to confront him.”

Giggling, Cadance cast a soundproofing spell around the room before unknowingly echoing Magic. “This should be good.”

Also laughing, Spike turned his attention back to the sphere of magic. “I can’t wait to hear this!”

In the stars, seeing a flash of magic around them, Twilight said “Hello, Golden Thunder.”

Everyone heard a startled gasp “P-Princess Twilight Sparkle?!”

“That’s right.” Twilight responded “It seems that you didn’t believe me when I told you that these souls are under my protection.”

“I’m using a different method this time!” Golden Thunder exclaimed “You shouldn’t be able to tell what I’m doing, let alone stop me!”

“It doesn’t matter what method you use.” Twilight answered

Before Golden Thunder could respond, Celestia continued “Or how many attempts you make.”

Golden Thunder gasped again “P-Princess Celestia?!”

“We won’t allow you to take Mother and Father’s souls!” Artemis finished

Golden Thunder stammered “P-Prince Artemis?!”

“In case you haven’t noticed,” Twilight began, no longer using the Royal Voice “I’ve already taken control of your spell.”

Confused, Golden Thunder asked “Then why is it still active?”

“There’s something that we would like to do, but it requires your participation.” Twilight answered “I will be terminating the spell when we’re done.”

Thoroughly confused, Golden Thunder asked “What would you like to do, princess?”

Twilight laughed “There are a couple of ponies here who would love the chance to speak to you.”

Instantly understanding who she was talking about, but hoping he was mistaken, Golden Thunder asked “D-do you mean-?”

Cutting him off, Midnight Armor said “Yes, Golden Thunder. That’s exactly what she means.”

Shocked, Golden Thunder gasped “K-king Midnight Armor?!” After a moment, he hesitantly continued. “W-wait, Princess Twilight said “a couple of ponies”.”

“That’s right.” Sundance replied “I’m here as well.”

Voice shaking, Golden Thunder stammered “Q-queen Sundance?!”

In the Crystal Empire, everyone looked at each other in confusion.

“King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance?” Velvet asked

“Well,” Night Light said thoughtfully “it does make sense. Especially if you consider the fact that their children are a prince and princess. However, it brings up a different question. If their parents were the King and Queen why don’t Artemis and Princess Celestia have those titles now?”

Spike thought for a moment before asking. “Does anyone else remember the end of that book?”

Instantly realizing what Spike was talking about, Shining Armor gasped. “Artemis and Princess Celestia refused to take their parents’ titles.”

Velvet winced “You’re right. That must be the reason.”

Something about those names was familiar but, for a moment, Shining Armor had no idea what it was. A little over a minute later, he gasped again. “I’ve read those names before! There’s a book in the library in Canterlot Castle that names them as the previous rulers of Equestria! However, because there are very few records with those names, I thought those ponies were fictional!”

“I think it’s safe to say that those ponies really existed.” Cadance commented, eyes wide “Actually, they still do. We’re listening to them right now.”

Equally wide eyed, Shining Armor nodded

Meanwhile, Velvet was staring off into the distance. I’ve also read one of those names before. But which one? And where have I read it? Ugh, it’s going to drive me crazy until I figure it out.

Oh well, I’ll think about it later. For now, I’d better pay attention to what Twilight, Artemis and Princess Celestia are doing.

In the stars, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl listened as Golden Thunder’s anger finally outweighed his fear. “Where are you?! I’ve searched everywhere for your souls!”

Artemis laughed “You must be losing your memory, Golden Thunder. Fifteen hundred years ago, I told you exactly what I was going to do with Mother and Father’s souls.”

“That’s not true, Prince Artemis!” Golden Thunder angrily responded “You just told me that-”

“He was going to place our souls in the Night Sky as stars.” Sundance finished

“Yes, Queen Sundance.” Golden Thunder replied “That’s exactly what he said.”

Deciding to let him figure it out for himself, Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Star Swirl didn’t say anything.

A few minutes later, Golden Thunder gasped “D-do you really have the power to do that, Prince Artemis?!”

“Yes” Midnight Armor replied, answering the question for his son. “Artemis is the Prince of the Night. That means he has the power to do whatever he wants with his Night Sky.”

For several minutes, Golden Thunder was too shocked to respond. Then he growled “Then I’ll just have to find a way to pull you back down to Equestria.”

Midnight Armor laughed “You’ll have to find us first, Golden Thunder. There are trillions of stars in Artemis’ Night Sky. Good luck figuring out which two contain our souls.”

“Even if you are able to figure that out,” Sundance continued “you still have to deal with the fact that our children are protecting our souls. Do you really think you can overpower them?”

“I’ll find a way.” Golden Thunder vowed

Sundance laughed as well “Oh, I’m sure you’ll try. However, I highly doubt you have the ability to overpower one of our children, let alone all three of them.”

Before Golden Thunder could respond, Celestia nuzzled Twilight. “I think we’re done.”

Artemis nodded while Sundance and Midnight Armor briefly brightened.

Nodding as well, Twilight raised her voice. “We’d like to enjoy the rest of our discussion. Your participation is no longer required, so I’m going to terminate the spell.”

“You wouldn’t dare!” Golden Thunder shouted, clearly furious

Twilight rolled her eyes “Good Night, Golden Thunder.” Without waiting for a response, she terminated the spell.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl immediately began to laugh. After making sure that Magic’s communication spell had also been terminated, Twilight did as well.

In the Crystal Empire, everyone was laughing so hard that they had fallen to the floor.

“T-that was perfect!” Shining Armor remarked

Leaning into her husband’s side, Cadance giggled. “I-I love that fact that Twilight was still polite! She even said “Good Night” to him!”

Velvet, Night Light and Spike were laughing too hard to say anything. Instead, they just nodded.

A few minutes later, everyone was able to stop laughing. Hearing Celestia’s voice, they turned their attention back to the sphere of magic.

Meanwhile, in Canterlot, Golden Thunder was standing next to Golden Flash’s bed. Believing that the spell was still active, he waited for somepony to say something. After a couple of minutes of silence, he realized what Twilight had done. Needless to say, he was furious. “How dare she?!”

Sitting on their bed, Golden Flash and his wife, Amethyst Rose, watched as Golden Thunder began to pace the room.

“Well,” Amethyst Rose said slowly “she wasn’t rude. Princess Twilight told you that they wanted to continue their conversation without you. There’s nothing wrong with that.”

“Amethyst has a point.” Golden Flash remarked “Princess Twilight could have simply terminated the spell after King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance had finished speaking. Instead, she told you what she was going to do and wished you a good night.”

“Honestly, I’m surprised that they wanted to speak to you at all.” Amethyst Rose commented

Golden Thunder turned to the unicorn mare “What makes you say that, Amethyst Rose?”

“Princess Twilight clearly isn’t happy that you keep trying to take the souls that she has vowed to protect.” Amethyst Rose explained “I highly doubt she knows what you plan to do to the late King and Queen. However, she probably does know that their souls won’t survive your “experiments”.”

“If what I’ve heard about her intelligence is true, then you’re probably right.” Golden Thunder responded thoughtfully “Regardless, there’s something about this situation that confuses me.”

Curious, Golden Flash asked “What are you talking about, ancestor?”

“King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance’s children’s reactions are understandable, but Princess Twilight isn’t one of their children.” Golden Thunder explained “Why in Equestria is she protecting their souls?”

“The answer to that question is rather obvious.” Amethyst Rose answered, wondering why he’d asked it at all “I know that she and Prince Artemis aren’t married yet. However, the fact that she’s in a relationship with Prince Artemis, and carrying his foal, means that she is one of their children.”

Golden Thunder blinked “Somehow, I keep forgetting that.” He thought for a moment. “You’re right. That might explain why she’s protecting them.”

“How do you plan to find the souls of the late King and Queen, ancestor?” Golden Flash hesitantly asked “If their souls really are stars in the Night Sky, they could be anywhere.”

Amethyst Rose nodded thoughtfully “That’s a good question. Furthermore, Queen Sundance brought up a good point.”

Golden Thunder raised an eyebrow “What would that be, Amethyst Rose?”

“Even if you discover where their souls are,” she responded “you still have to get past their children. How are you going to overpower three alicorns?”

Seeing his ancestor’s expression, Golden Flash explained. “Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis are much stronger than you were expecting. That makes this situation difficult enough, but now you also have to deal with Princess Twilight. She may be young, but she’s incredibly powerful. She’s also very smart, so you probably won’t be able to fool her.”

“You’re right.” Golden Thunder said slowly “We need a different strategy.”

Golden Flash paused thoughtfully “There’s one more thing. If you’re able to bring those souls to you, Prince Artemis, Princess Celestia and Princess Twilight are going to try to get them back. We’re going to have to find a way to make sure that they can’t.”

“I’ll just block Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis’ magic signatures.” Golden Thunder replied “As for Princess Twilight, I’ll be able to block her as soon as I learn her magic signature. To do that, I need her to use magic around me.” He paused “If she’s as powerful as you say she is, that could be dangerous. Unfortunately, there’s no other way.” After a moment, he shrugged “I’ll think of something. For now, we should get some sleep.”

Laying down, Golden Flash and Amethyst Rose pulled their blanket over themselves. As soon as they were settled, Golden Thunder entered Golden Flash’s body. It wasn’t long before the three of them were sleep.

In the stars, Celestia turned to her siblings. “We should give Mother enough magic to cast her spell on Twilight again.”

“I certainly have no problem with that.” Sundance commented “However, I’d like to make sure that you’re willing to allow that, Twilight. Don’t worry, I won’t be offended if you say no.”

“Of course I’ll allow it.” Twilight immediately replied “In fact, I’d like you to cast it again.”

Sundance’s star brightened considerably “Very well”

Celestia and Twilight gave some of their magic to Artemis. After adding his own, he sent their combined magic to their mother.

Sundance used that magic to cast her spell on Twilight. Then Twilight altered Sundance’s spell so that their mother would be able to see and hear what was going on around her. Star Swirl cast his spell and linked it to Sundance’s. Then Celestia altered his spell and added some of her magic so that he and their father would also be able to see what goes on around Twilight.

When they were done, Artemis created a cloud under them. He and Celestia immediately lay down.

Still standing, Twilight closed her eyes and focused her magic. “I guess my senses weren’t playing tricks on me. Magic really did cast a communication spell. That means Mom, Dad, Cadance, Shiny and Spike were watching us the whole time.”

Celestia, Artemis, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl gasped. “What?!”

That’s right. Magic told Twilight I thought it would be the easiest way to explain things to them.

In the Crystal Empire, everyone stared at each other in stunned silence.

“How can she sense that?!” Velvet eventually asked

Everyone else shrugged before turning back to the sphere of magic.

“Celestia, Artemis and I are going to spend the night here.” Twilight said “We spent the day with all of you, so it’s only fair that we spend tonight with them.”

Celestia nodded “I’m sure you have questions. Don’t worry, we’ll answer them tomorrow . . . well, as many of them as we can. You already know that there are some things that we can’t tell you.”

“We’ll do that after breakfast.” Twilight added “Shiny, I’m sure you’re worried about us spending the night here, but you shouldn’t be.”

Artemis nodded as well “The three of us are the only ones with the ability to come here, so there’s no way for anypony to harm us.”

Speaking together, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight said “Good night”

Twilight lay down where she stood “Please cancel both spells, Magic.”

Velvet, Night Light, Cadance, Shining Armor and Spike watched as the sphere of magic disappeared.

Looking down at himself, Spike noticed that his scales were no longer glowing.

After a quick discussion, everyone decided to meet back in the living room at sunrise. Most of them headed to their rooms.

I'm sure that I’ve read the name “Midnight Armor” in the library here. Unfortunately, I don’t remember exactly where it was. Shaking his head, Shining Armor headed for the library. Oh well, I just need to find it again.

Chapter 60

In the stars, Twilight was about to leave her empowered state, but paused when she heard Magic’s voice.

Before you do that, I’d like you to do me a favor.

Curious, Twilight asked What would you like me to do?

Please give some of my power to Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl’s stars. This way, they'll be able to visit Artemis’ dream tonight. You’ve never done anything with their stars before, and are using my power, so they shouldn’t resist you.

Twilight giggled Alright.

Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl gasped in surprise when Twilight sent a large amount of magic to each of their stars.

S-she gave each of us enough magic to visit Artemis’ dream! After carefully examining the magic that Twilight had given him, Midnight Armor gasped again. Actually, this is far more than we need for that.

Sundance gasped as well W-we can use the extra magic to fight Golden Thunder's next attempt!

Wide eyed, Artemis asked “D-did you do what I think you did?!”

“Magic asked me to use her power to give Mom, Dad and Star Swirl enough magic to visit your dream.” Twilight answered, leaving her empowered state. “Unfortunately, I don’t know how much magic they need for that.” She sighed “I just hope I gave them enough.”

Too stunned to respond, Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl just stared at her.

Twilight didn’t notice because she’d already closed her eyes. If they weren’t so shocked, I’m sure they’d be saying “Thank you”. Regardless, I’ll say it for all of us. Thank you, Magic.

You’re welcome.

Twilight thought for a moment. Oh yeah, I told Mom that you said “Thank You”. She asked me to tell you “You’re Welcome”.

Magic giggled and, noticing that Twilight was barely awake, quietly said. Sleep well.

Seeing that Twilight had fallen asleep, Midnight Armor spoke softly. “Celestia and Artemis, both of you should go to sleep as well.”

“Yes, Father” Celestia replied, casting a sleeping spell on herself and her brother.

In the Dream Realm, Artemis opened his eyes and looked around. I wish Celestia had warned me before she did that. She knows that I don’t like having sleeping spells suddenly cast on me. Oh well, I’ll forgive her this time. After all, she’s probably just eager to see Mother and Father. Shaking his head, he brought Celestia and Twilight into his dream.

Looking around them, and not seeing their parents or Star Swirl, Celestia turned to her brother. “Where are they?”

“They need a few minutes to get here.” Artemis replied “Star Swirl can’t fly, remember?”

Celestia nodded “That makes sense.”

Five minutes later, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight sensed the presences of their parents and Star Swirl. They were still a ways off, but clearly coming closer.

Despite how eager they were to see their children, Sundance and Midnight Armor didn’t want to leave Star Swirl behind. Therefore, they were walking at Star Swirl’s pace.

As soon as Artemis was sure that they had successfully entered his dream, he nodded to Celestia and Twilight.

After they had successfully entered Artemis’ dream, Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl stopped and looked around. All three of them smiled when they saw that Celestia, Artemis and Twilight were flying towards them.

Exchanging glances with her husband, Sundance’s horn began to glow. As soon as their children were close enough, she caught all three of them in her magic. Hearing them gasp in surprise, she giggled and pulled them to her side.

Sitting down, Midnight Armor and Sundance wrapped their wings around their children. Smiling, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight snuggled closer.

After a couple of minutes, Star Swirl’s eyes widened when he noticed that Sundance and Midnight Armor were crying. Is something wrong?

Noticing the same thing, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight tried to pull back so they could look at their parents. Midnight Armor and Sundance responded by hugging them tighter.

Worried, Celestia unknowingly asked Star Swirl’s question aloud. “Is something wrong?”

Midnight Armor shook his head before nuzzling his eldest.

Confused, Celestia glanced at Artemis and Twilight. Equally confused, Artemis nuzzled their father while Twilight nuzzled their mother.

Returning his son’s nuzzle, Midnight Armor finally released his children and folded his wings. Returning Twilight’s nuzzle, Sundance did the same.

Glancing at each other, Celestia, Twilight and Artemis sat in front of their parents.

“Are you alright?” Artemis cautiously asked

Midnight Armor smiled at his son. “Thanks to the three of you, your mother and I are just fine.”

Also smiling, Celestia used her magic to dry their parents’ eyes.

“Good” Twilight replied, sighing in relief “I was getting worried. For a moment there, I thought I’d missed some-eep!” She cut herself off with a squeak of surprise when Sundance pulled her youngest into another tight hug.

Celestia’s eyes widened when she saw that their mother was crying again. Worried, she and Artemis turned to their father. However, before Midnight Armor could say anything, Star Swirl walked closer.

“Sundance’s reaction isn’t hard to understand.” He commented

Midnight Armor nodded “Star Swirl’s right. Thanks to the adjustment that Twilight made to your mother’s spell, we’ve been watching what happens around her. As you might expect, there is much that we don’t understand.”

Artemis nodded “I went through the same thing when I first returned. In fact, I’m still catching up on the things that I’ve missed.”

“What does that have to do with Mother’s reaction?” Celestia asked

“Princess Twilight takes the time to explain what goes on around her.” Star Swirl responded “She also answers any questions that Sundance asks her. In fact, she’s beginning to anticipate Sundance’s questions and answers some of them before your mother can ask.”

Shaking his head, Artemis chuckled “I am not surprised.”

Celestia giggled “Me either.”

“Then there’s the fact that Golden Thunder tried to pull our souls to him twice, in less than a week.” Midnight Armor shook his head “Your reactions aren’t hard to understand, but Twilight is a different story.” Seeing Celestia and Artemis’ expressions, he asked “How would you feel if somepony that you’d just met protected your soul?”

Artemis raised an eyebrow “You’re asking me?”

For a moment, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl stared at him. Suddenly understanding what he meant, they began to laugh.

When he was calm enough to speak, Midnight Armor said “Of course you understand. She did the same for you.”

Chuckling again, Artemis nodded

“Regardless,” Midnight Armor continued “we weren’t expecting her to protect our souls.”

“What did you think I was going to do, Dad?” Twilight asked, somehow managing to peek over Sundance’s shoulder.

Startled, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl looked at Twilight.

Before Midnight Armor could reply, Twilight continued. “I hope you didn’t think I was just going to sit back and watch." She shook her head "There’s no way that I was going to do that.”

Hearing this, Sundance tightened her grip, earning another startled squeak from Twilight. Laughing softly, she nuzzled her youngest before finally letting her go.

Chuckling, Artemis created a large cloud for them to relax on. Sundance, Midnight Armor, Artemis, Celestia and Twilight immediately moved onto it and lay down. Celestia was laying in between their parents, with Artemis on Midnight Armor’s other side and Twilight on Sundance’s.

“Uh, Artemis?” Star Swirl hesitantly asked, staring at the cloud

Glancing at his friend, Artemis quickly realized what the problem was. “Oops”

Before Artemis could say anything else, Twilight cast a familiar spell.

Star Swirl looked down at his body, especially his hooves, in surprise. His eyes widened when he suddenly noticed that he was surrounded with magenta magic. This isn’t the magic of Celestia, Artemis, Midnight Armor or Sundance. That means it’s . . . He turned to Twilight but, caught in her magic, could do little more than watch as she levitated him onto the cloud and set him next to Artemis. Fully expecting to fall through the cloud, he held his breath and waited.

Curious, Sundance and Midnight Armor waited to see what would happen.

After a couple of minutes passed, and nothing happened, Star Swirl hesitantly poked the cloud with a hoof. “I-it really is a cloud. How in Equestria-?”

Twilight giggled “I cast the Cloud Walking Spell on you. Like the name suggests, it allows earth-bound ponies to walk on clouds.”

“I didn’t know that such a thing was possible.” Sundance commented, clearly impressed

Turning to his youngest, Midnight Armor asked “Did you create that spell?”

Twilight shook her head “When I was a unicorn, the girls and I wanted to go to Cloudsdale. I found a spell that gives a pony temporary wings, but only had enough magic to cast it once, so I cast it on Rarity. After a little more research, I found the Cloud Walking Spell. That spell doesn’t require nearly as much magic, so I cast it on Pinkie, Applejack and myself.”

Celestia laughed “I wondered how you were able to walk on the clouds. I didn't ask because I was distracted by what Rainbow Dash had done.”

“Two earth ponies and a unicorn walking around Cloudsdale?” Artemis asked, also laughing “Those pegasi must have been surprised.”

Giggling again, Twilight replied “Not as surprised as Rainbow was. We used a hot air balloon to get to Cloudsdale. When we got there, we jumped onto the cloud in front of her.” Her giggles turned to laughter “She thought we were going to fall through the cloud and was shocked when we didn’t.” Knowing that their parents and Star Swirl were going to ask, she showed them her memory of their arrival in Cloudsdale.

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl laughed as well.

Laying down where Twilight had set him, Star Swirl said. “Thank you, princess.”

A slightly annoyed expression briefly crossed Twilight’s face. “First of all, you’re welcome. Second, don’t use my title, please.” Seeing his confusion, she shrugged “I get enough of that from everyone else. Besides, Artemis allows my friends to call him by name, so I see no reason why I shouldn’t do that with his.”

Laughing, Celestia turned to her brother “I wondered how long it would be before she said that.”

Artemis nodded, laughing as well “Me too. Remember how much she used to hate being called “Princess”?”

Surprised, Sundance turned to Twilight “Why?”

Turning to their mother, Twilight answered “I spent most of my life as an average unicorn.” Glancing at Celestia, she continued. “Somepony decided not to tell me that she was preparing me for ascension, let alone coronation.”

Everyone laughed when Celestia smiled sheepishly.

“As a result, suddenly becoming an alicorn was a huge shock.” Twilight explained “It was also a huge change because I suddenly had far more magic than I was used to and the ability to fly. That was difficult enough, but I also had to deal with everypony suddenly calling me “Princess” and asking me for orders.”

Midnight Armor tilted his head, trying to figure out what it was about what Twilight had just said that he found strange. Finally realizing what it was, he began to laugh again.

Curious, everyone turned to him.

After a few minutes, Midnight Armor was calm enough to speak. “I’m sure that suddenly going from a unicorn to an alicorn was a very large surprise, Twilight. Especially when you probably didn’t know that it's possible.” He watched his youngest shake her head. “However, there’s one part of what you just said that I disagree with.”

Confused, Twilight asked “What’s that?”

Amused, he just looked at her for a moment before answering her question. “You were not an “average” unicorn.”

“Yes, I was!” Twilight immediately replied “It’s true that I had more magic than most but, other than that, I was no different than any other unicorn.”

“Right” Sundance said, just as amused as her husband “I’m sure that every unicorn can single hoofedly repel an attack from an Ursa Minor, return Cerberus to Tartarus by playing with him and stop another unicorn . . . who happened to be wearing the Alicorn Amulet.”

“Hey!” Twilight exclaimed “The Ursa Minor was one thing, but the girls helped with the rest!”

“Yes, your friends helped with some of the things that you’ve done.” Celestia agreed “However, you can’t tell me that every unicorn in Equestria has the ability to hatch a dragon’s egg. Most adults can’t do that, let alone an eight year old foal.”

“You know that was because I had a magic flare.” Twilight responded

Artemis raised an eyebrow “You were also eight years old when you repelled Night. I don’t know of another unicorn who is capable of doing that.”

Twilight rolled her eyes “Another magic flare. Besides, in both cases, I had no idea what I was doing.”

Sundance laughed “I’m sure you weren’t expecting the first magic flare to hatch Spike. As for the second, you were somehow able to use the strength of your magic flare to repel Night-Terror Knight.”

Sundance shook her head “There are two reasons that I find that strange. One, your magic flare was very powerful. Two, most foals have no control over what happens when they have a magic flare.” Seeing Twilight’s expression, she smiled “If I recall correctly, you told him to “Go away”.”

Artemis laughed “Mother is right, Twilight. That’s exactly what you forced him to do.”

Before Twilight could respond, their mother laughed again. Curious, she waited for Sundance to explain what was so funny.

Seeing this, Sundance giggled “I seem to recall hearing that you’re the only unicorn to face Night-Terror Knight in single combat and survive.”

Rolling her eyes again, Twilight replied “I tricked him into charging me and teleported behind him. Any unicorn could have done that!”

“Perhaps, but you’re the only one who actually did it.” Artemis said, giving his mare an amused look “Regardless, I highly doubt that another unicorn could have protected my soul.”

“Forget another unicorn, there isn’t another pony who could have done that.” Celestia commented “I also used the Elements of Harmony in my first battle against Night-Terror Knight, but the only thing I could do was banish him. However, you managed to purify Artemis and Night.”

“Like I said.” Midnight Armor remarked “You were not an average unicorn, Twilight.”

Realizing that she couldn’t argue, Twilight grumbled “Fine”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl immediately began to laugh again.

Once everypony had calmed down, Twilight looked at their parents. “What do you want to do now?”

Celestia glanced at Artemis before also looking at their parents. “That’s a good question.”

“Yes” Artemis agreed, nuzzling their father “After what happened tonight, Mother and Father should choose.”

Smiling, Star Swirl nodded

Glancing at each other, Sundance and Midnight Armor spread their wings. Sundance lay one over Twilight and the other over Celestia. Midnight Armor lay one over Artemis and the other over Celestia, laying it on top of his wife’s.

“I think this is a good place to start.” Sundance replied, smiling at her children

“Your mother is correct.” Midnight Armor added “After the chaos earlier, we’d like to relax.” Nuzzling their older children, he continued “Besides, as your mother said earlier, we haven’t been able to spend Hearth’s Warming with Celestia and Artemis in thirteen hundred years.”

Sundance nuzzled her youngest “Additionally, this is the first one that we’re spending with Twilight.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight returned their parent’s nuzzles and snuggled closer.

A few minutes later, Twilight gasped “I know!”

“What are you talking about, Twilight?” Midnight Armor asked, confused

“How to fix that!” Twilight excitedly replied

“What do you mean?” Artemis asked, just as confused as their father.

Turning to him, Twilight explained “If Celestia and I give you enough magic before we go to sleep on Hearth’s Warming . . .”

Eyes wide, Celestia finished “We can do this every year!” Reaching around their mother, she nuzzled her sister. “That’s a great idea, Twilight!”

Smiling, Artemis nodded “Now that there are three of us, we have enough magic for that. Celestia’s right, that’s a great idea!”

For several minutes, Sundance and Midnight Armor just stared at their children. Then they turned to each other.

Voice shaking, Sundance asked “W-we’ll be able to spend every Hearth’s Warming with our children from now on?”

“If their plan works, yes.” Midnight Armor answered, eyes wide

“It won’t be just us.” Artemis replied, smiling at Twilight

Confused, Midnight Armor turned to his son. “What do you mean, Artemis?”

Also smiling, Celestia nuzzled their father. “Artemis is right. We’ll be bringing a little family member with us next year.”

Just as confused as her husband, Sundance asked “What are you talking about, Celestia?”

Returning Artemis’ smile, Twilight nuzzled their mother. When Sundance looked at her, she explained. “Our foal will only be a few months old, but Artemis will also be bringing him or her into his dream.”

“That will probably be the first time we meet our grandfoal.” Sundance said softly

Twilight shook her head “No, it won’t.”

Confused, Midnight Armor looked at his youngest. “What do you mean?”

Before Twilight could answer, Artemis said “We’re not going to make you wait that long.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped “What?!”

Artemis smiled at their parents “I plan to bring the three of you into my dream within a couple of days of our foal’s birth.”

Celestia nodded “It will require a lot of magic, but I think it’s worth it.”

Midnight Armor and Sundance just stared at their children for a moment. Then he nuzzled their son while she tightened her wing around their youngest.

Voice shaking again, Sundance whispered “T-thank you”

“I just thought of something.” Star Swirl said thoughtfully “This wasn’t possible when your parents and I were alive, but it might be possible now.”

Curious, Artemis, Twilight and Celestia turned to him.

Seeing this, Star Swirl smiled “Is it possible to figure out the gender of your foal before he or she is born?”

Artemis turned to Twilight “Didn’t you tell Pinkie that she can plan the party when we figure that out?”

Nodding, Twilight replied “Doctors use ultrasound spells to track the health of unborn foals. When a mare is roughly three months into her pregnancy, the foal will be big enough for the doctors to tell its gender. It’s also when they can discover what race the foal is.”

“Some parents chose to wait until their foal is born to discover what they’re having.” Celestia explained “However, if they want to know what they’re having before that, that’s when their doctor tells them.”

“Twilight’s almost a month into her pregnancy.” Artemis said thoughtfully “That means we’ll be able to discover if we’re having a filly or colt in two months.” He paused “We’ll also be able to figure out if we’re having a unicorn, Pegasus or earth pony.”

Star Swirl raised an eyebrow “You don’t think your foal will be an alicorn?”

Twilight and Artemis looked at each other for a moment before turning to him.

“Why would we be having an alicorn?” Artemis asked

“You’re both alicorns.” Star Swirl pointed out

“That’s true.” Twilight said slowly “Still, I don’t think we’re having an alicorn.” Seeing Star Swirl’s expression, she explained. “I was born a unicorn, so our foal will probably be one as well.”

“Not necessarily” Celestia commented “Your brother is a unicorn but Flurry is an alicorn.”

“I suppose it’s possible.” Twilight conceded

“It’s just not very likely.” Artemis finished

“Regardless,” Sundance began “you should be discovering what you’re having around the time of our next visit.”

“You’re right, Sundance.” Midnight Armor remarked “This visit doesn’t change the date of the next because we didn’t use our own magic tonight.” He turned to Twilight “That reminds me. Please thank Magic for this.”

Twilight giggled “I already did.”

“What?” Sundance asked, surprised “When did you do that?”

“Just before I fell asleep.” Twilight answered “I saw that the rest of you were too shocked to speak, so I thanked her for all of us.”

“I’m glad you did that, Twilight.” Celestia commented

Midnight Armor suddenly chuckled

Curious, everyone turned to him.

He nuzzled his son “Normally, I’d say that it’s impossible for your mother and myself to receive gifts. Well, other than spending time with the three of you. However, we received a very big one tonight.”

Confused, Celestia and Twilight just stared at him.

Equally confused, Artemis asked “What are you talking about, Father?”

Understanding what her husband meant, Sundance giggled. Nuzzling both of her daughters, she explained. “If Golden Thunder had been able to pull the souls of your father and myself to him . . . well, let’s just say that it wouldn’t have been a very nice Hearth’s Warming for us.”

“Sundance and Midnight Armor are right.” Star Swirl said thoughtfully “What the three of you did tonight was the best Hearth’s Warming gift that you could have possibly given them.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight looked at each other for several minutes before turning to their parents.

“We didn’t think about it like that.” Artemis slowly responded “I’m not trying to be rude, it’s just that we were more focused on making sure that Golden Thunder didn’t get your souls.”

Celestia and Twilight nodded

Midnight Armor nuzzled his son “It’s alright, we understand.”

“Your father’s right.” Sundance said, smiling at her son “The fact that you didn’t intend for you actions to be a Hearth’s Warming gift doesn’t matter to us. We’re far more concerned with the results.”

Not sure what to say, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight didn’t say anything. Instead, Twilight nuzzled Sundance while Artemis nuzzled Midnight Armor. Celestia nuzzled Sundance before turning to Midnight Armor and nuzzling him as well.

Smiling, Sundance and Midnight Armor returned their children’s nuzzles.

Noticing that Star Swirl was looking at him, Artemis turned to his friend. Before he could say anything, Star Swirl told him about what he’d told Sundance and Midnight Armor the other day.

“I remember that.” Artemis replied, laughing “Court had finally ended for the day, so Celestia had gone to the library to research something. However, I’d decided to patrol the forest. That’s when I heard the howls of several Timberwolves. I remember thinking that that was strange because Timberwolves are nocturnal.”

Star Swirl and Artemis were so focused on their conversation that neither of them noticed that everypony else was watching them.

Star Swirl blushed “I didn’t mean to wake them, but I had no idea that they were there. In fact, I’d purposely avoided the clearing where they usually slept.”

Artemis chuckled “When I heard the Timberwolves, the first thing I did was head to their clearing because I was hoping to discover what they were doing awake so early. As I’m sure you can imagine, I was thoroughly confused to find it empty.”

“You know,” Star Swirl said thoughtfully “I never asked how you found me.”

Laughing harder, Artemis replied “You have yourself to thank for that.” Seeing his friend’s confusion, he explained. “You set one of them on fire, remember?”

Still confused, Star Swirl nodded. After a moment, his eyes widened. “That’s how you found me?”

Still laughing, Artemis nodded “I saw the smoke and thought the forest was on fire. I quickly decided that putting out the fire was more important than finding the Timberwolves. When I arrived in air above the smaller clearing, I saw that you were surrounded by half a dozen Timberwolves. The next thing I noticed was that another Timberwolf was rolling around on the ground. I’d never seen a Timberwolf do that before, so I just stared at it for a moment. That’s when you caught my attention by throwing one of the other Timberwolves into a nearby tree.”

“What did you expect me to do?!” Star Swirl exclaimed “It tried to break my neck!”

Laughing again, Artemis replied “I’m not blaming you, I’m just saying that that’s how you got my attention. Deciding that my questions could wait, I told you to lie flat on the ground and sent a much stronger fire over all of the Timberwolves at once.”

“As soon as I realized that the Timberwolves had been destroyed,” Star Swirl continued “I stood and turned to you.”

“Yes” Artemis replied “That when you were crazy enough to ask me why I didn’t let the Timberwolves kill you.”

“What did you think I was going to say?” Star Swirl asked “For the previous two weeks, you were so angry with me that you refused to talk to me!”

“I was right to be angry!” Artemis instantly responded “We’d had a rather large argument two weeks before that. You had told me that you thought the Advisor to the Crown position needed to be brought back because Celestia and I needed the help.”

“You did need the help!” Star Swirl protested “You and Celestia each barely got two hours of sleep at night because both of you were busy with court, research and protecting the villages. Yes, all of those were important. However, the problem was that the two of you insisted on doing everything yourselves!”

“If you remember, I didn’t argue with the fact that we needed the help.” Artemis pointed out “I just said that I didn’t want that position to be brought back. When you insisted that it was needed, I said “No”. Then I tried to explain why I didn’t want the position to return, but you wouldn’t listen to me. Eventually, I told you to ask Celestia.”

“That’s exactly what I did next.” Star Swirl replied “However, as soon as the words left my mouth, she shouted “No way in Tartarus!” Then she buried her nose in a book and ignored me.” He shrugged “You weren’t ignoring me, so I thought I’d be able to reason with you.”

“You didn’t try to reason with me, and you know it.” Artemis replied “You spent the next four hours telling me the advantages of the position! When you finally allowed me to speak, I simply said “No”. You actually told me that the last pony to hold the title, Golden Thunder, had done a great job before his “untimely death”!"

Star Swirl grimaced “Well, in my defense, I didn’t know what he had done at the end of his life, or how he had died.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow “Who was it that wouldn’t listen to my reasons for not allowing the position to return?”

Star Swirl sighed “I just wanted to make sure that you heard what I had to say.”

Artemis gave his friend a look. “That’s when I lost my temper and started shouting. When you continued to argue your point, I told you to leave.”

Star Swirl nodded “I’m still glad that you didn’t use the Royal Voice. Even so, I’m pretty sure that half the castle heard you.”

“You’re probably right.” Artemis agreed “Anyway, as soon as you left the room, Celestia came in. She spent the next hour yelling at me because she thought I had been “goofing off with my friend” instead of handling my part of the research.” He let out an irritated sigh “She wouldn’t listen to my reasons either!”

“W-what happened next?” Star Swirl hesitantly asked

“I was so angry that, as soon as she’d finished yelling, I left the castle.” Artemis answered “In fact, I spent the night in the forest.”

Star Swirl gasped “What?!”

Artemis nodded “I explained everything to Celestia when I returned the next morning. She apologized and told me that she hadn’t meant to yell at me. She said that she was angry at you because of your suggestion. She also told me that she had been looking for you, planning to give you a piece of her mind, but couldn’t find you. That was when she saw me staring out the window. She assumed that I’d been neglecting my duties and took her anger out on me.”

Wincing, Celestia looked at the cloud in between her forehooves. Sundance and Midnight Armor nuzzled her before returning their attention to their son’s conversation.

Not noticing any of this, Star Swirl winced as well. “I didn’t know that.”

“Well, you refused to listen to anything I said.” Artemis responded “Instead, you spent the first hour of court trying to convince us to bring the position back. After letting you speak, Celestia told you that your petition was declined before saying that she didn’t want to hear about it again. The next time you saw me alone, you asked me to convince my sister to allow you to bring the position back. Not wanting to get into another argument, I teleported out of the room.”

“Yes,” Star Swirl agreed “then you ignored me for the next two weeks. Can you blame me for being surprised when you saved my life?”

“I never blamed you for being surprised.” Artemis answered “I just couldn’t believe that you actually thought I was going to let you die.”

“What was I supposed to think?!” Star Swirl exclaimed “I-”

“Shh!”

Surprised, everyone turned to Sundance. Seeing that she had their attention, Sundance nodded to her side.

Artemis and Star Swirl’s eyes widened when they saw that Twilight was asleep.

Tightening her wing around her youngest, Sundance said “I’m not saying that the two of you have to stop your conversation. I’m just telling you to tone it down.”

“When did she fall asleep?” Midnight Armor asked softly

“I’m not sure.” Sundance quietly replied “I know she was awake at the beginning of their conversation.” Seeing her husband’s confusion, she giggled softly. “She muttered something about how setting a Timberwolf on fire is a “terrible idea”. When I asked her why she said that, she told me that the ones currently living in the Everfree Forest will immediately jump on the pony who does that.”

Midnight Armor shuddered “If that’s how they respond, then I’d have to agree with her.” Turning to Celestia, he asked “When did they start doing that?”

Shuddering as well, Celestia answered “I’m not sure when it started, but I do know that they’ve been doing it for centuries. Timberwolves have no way of combating fire, so they take the pony who’s killing them down with them.”

“That’s got to be a terrible way to go.” Star Swirl remarked “Though, looking at it from the Timberwolf’s point of view, it does make sense.”

“Anyway,” Sundance continued “after that, I was focused on Artemis and Star Swirl’s conversation. That’s why I don’t know when she fell asleep.”

Celestia giggled “I’m sure she tried to stay awake.”

“I’m not surprised that she wasn’t able to.” Artemis said softly “Today was rather eventful.” He sighed “So was tonight. I’m certainly not complaining about the fact that the three of you were able to visit, but I really wish that what happened before we fell asleep hadn’t happened.”

Glancing at his wife, Midnight Armor replied “I think it’s safe to say that your mother and I agree.”

Sundance nodded

A few minutes later, Twilight opened her eyes.

Seeing this, Sundance nuzzled her youngest. “Did we wake you?”

Yawning, Twilight shook her head. “When did I fall asleep?”

“At some point during Artemis and Star Swirl’s conversation.” Sundance answered

Before Twilight could respond, Celestia and Artemis looked at each other, both saying the same thing. “It’s time”

Before anyone could say anything else, Midnight Armor sat up, spread his wings and lit his horn. Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight gasped in surprise when he pulled them into a tight hug, wrapping his wings around his family. He kissed his wife before nuzzling each of their children. Then he quietly said “Happy Hearth’s Warming”

Smiling, all four of them replied “Happy Hearth’s Warming”.

Sundance kissed her husband before also nuzzling their children. Celestia and Artemis decided to put off their celestial duties for a couple of moments so they could enjoy a little more time with their parents.

Noticing that he, his wife and Star Swirl were beginning to fade, Midnight Armor released his family. Then the five of them turned to Star Swirl. “Happy Hearth’s Warming”

Star Swirl smiled “Happy Hearth’s Warming”

Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl smiled at Celestia, Artemis and Twilight as they were pulled back towards their stars.

Artemis didn’t allow them to wake until their parents and Star Swirl were out of sight.

Artemis, Celestia and Twilight opened their eyes at the same time. He immediately checked on the stars of their parents. Satisfied that they were safe, he, Celestia and Twilight returned to the Crystal Empire.

In the Crystal Empire, the three of them appeared in the living room.

“Welcome back”

Startled, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight opened their eyes to see everyone, even Spike and Flurry, looking at them. They glanced at each other before turning to the rest of their family.

“Thank you” Celestia said slowly “What are all of you doing up so early?”

“We just wanted to welcome the three of you back.” Cadance answered, walking forward and nuzzling her aunt.

“I-I see” Celestia replied. Shaking herself out of her surprise, she turned to her brother to find that he had just finished lowering the moon and stars. Laughing softly, she rose the sun.

I know I saw you a couple of minutes ago, Sundance said, laughing softly but good morning, Twilight.

Twilight smiled Good morning, Mom.

Artemis and Celestia nuzzled Twilight, both whispering the same thing. “Good morning, Mother.”

Sundance laughed Good morning, Celestia and Artemis.

Giggling softly, Twilight whispered “Mom says “Good morning” to both of you.”

Before anyone could say anything, Cinnamon Spice opened the door. “Breakfast is ready, your highnesses.”

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Spike, Night Light and Velvet followed her to the dining room.

As everyone else sat at the dining table, Artemis said “I’ll be right back.” Without waiting for a response, he teleported to the room he shared with Twilight. A minute later, he returned with a bottle of apple juice.

Laughing, Twilight levitated her carrot juice to Flurry while Artemis set the apple juice in front of her.

Flurry squealed in delight “Thank you, Auntie Twily!”

Everyone else laughed when Flurry immediately drink half of the bottle.

Cinnamon Spice set a bowl of apple-cinnamon oatmeal with fresh apple slices on top in front of Twilight. Everyone else was already eating their waffles.

When they had finished eating, Cadance teleported everyone back to the living room. Once there, she closed and locked the doors before casting a soundproofing spell.

Knowing that this conversation could take a while, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight settled on the large cushion again. Cadance, Shining Armor, Velvet and Night Light sat on the same loveseats that they had sat on the first night. Spike pulled a small cushion over and lay down on Twilight’s other side. Flurry lay down between her parents, curled up and went back to sleep.

Cadance nuzzled her daughter before looking at Celestia, Artemis and Twilight. “You already know that Magic allowed us to watch what you did last night. Therefore, we only have two questions.”

“Very well” Celestia responded “What do you want to know?”

I think I can guess what both questions are. Sundance commented

Velvet glanced at Twilight before turning back to Celestia. “What spell did your mother cast on my daughter? And why did she do it?”

I thought so. Sundance said To avoid any misunderstandings, and to avoid angering Twilight Velvet, you should tell them everything.

Turning to her sister, Celestia whispered “What does Mother have to say about that?”

Twilight quietly replied “She just told me to tell them everything.” Turning to Velvet, she asked “Before I answer your first question, I’d like to ask you one.”

“Alright,” Velvet replied “What’s the question?”

“Do you remember when you were on the Spell Restoration Team?” Twilight asked

Raising an eyebrow, Velvet answered “Yes” What does that have to do with anything?

“What about the only spell that you weren’t able to completely restore?” Twilight asked

“You mean the one that drove me crazy for months?” Velvet asked I’m still not sure what this has to do with anything. Regardless, I’m sure she’s doing this for a reason, so I’ll go along with it for now.

“Ah” Night Light commented, instantly knowing what spell they were talking about. “The Thought Sharing Spell.”

Sundance gasped W-what?!

“As Twilight said, it was the only spell that we couldn’t restore.” Velvet explained “That’s because it’s incredibly complex. The theory behind it is sound but there’s no way that anypony can cast it. At least, not the way it’s written now.” She turned back to Twilight “Why do you ask?”

Before Twilight could answer, Artemis turned to his sister. “I didn’t know that you had ponies trying to restore Mother’s spell.”

Shocked, Velvet asked “What?!” After thinking for a minute, she gasped. “That’s why I recognized that name last night!”

Everyone, including Sundance, asked “What?”

Hearing this, Velvet replied “I don’t know it nearly as well as Twilight does, but I can read a little of Equestria's ancient written language. In fact, she learned it because she used to help me study it. Anyway, I was able to decipher the name of the pony who invented that spell. At the time, I thought that I’d translated it incorrectly because I kept coming up with the same two words . . . “Sun” and “Dance”.”

Everyone gasped

Velvet looked at Celestia and Artemis. “I didn’t realize that the two words were supposed to be put together to create the name “Sundance”. And I certainly didn’t know that she was your mother.”

Celestia turned to Artemis “I didn’t intentionally ask the Spell Restoration Team to restore Mother’s spell. Instead, I gave them a couple of ancient spell books. At the time, I didn’t realize that Mother’s spell had been recorded in one of them. I discovered that when I received the report that Mother’s spell was the only one that they couldn’t restore.”

“I’d like to get back to your question, Mom.” Twilight said “I bought it up because that’s the answer to your first question.”

Velvet blinked “What do you mean?”

“That’s the spell she cast on me.” Twilight replied

“But that spell doesn’t work!” Velvet exclaimed

Yes, it does! Sundance insisted

“You just said that Sundance is the one who created that spell, Velvet.” Cadance pointed out “Of course she knows the correct way to cast her own spell.”

Thank you, Cadance. Sundance commented

“That’s a good point, Cadance.” Velvet responded thoughtfully “I’ve never seen the spell in action, but it appears to allow the caster to mentally communicate with whoever they cast it on.”

Twilight nodded “That’s exactly what it does. It only works during the day, but I’ve been talking with her for the last five days.”

Everyone, except for Celestia and Artemis, gasped in surprise.

“That’s the answer to your first question.” Twilight continued “Now, I’ll answer the second. She cast her spell on me three times so far. The first was last Friday night. That was the day that I cast my spell to stop the Spirit Reanimation Spell. Even with Celestia and Artemis’ help, it took a lot of magic. That night, when we saw them in Artemis’ dream, she told me to use as little magic as possible for a couple of days so that my magic could recover. However, because she was worried that I might forget, she also cast her spell on me.”

“Did she ask you for permission before doing that?” Velvet asked, concerned

“No.” Twilight replied “In fact, I didn’t know what she’d done until I heard her voice in my head. I was about to teleport, but stopped when I heard her voice. That’s when she explained what she’d done and why. She also apologized for doing so without my knowledge or permission.” Seeing her mother’s expression, she raised an eyebrow. “By that point, she’d already accepted me as one of her children and wanted to make sure that I didn’t get hurt.”

Velvet smiled “That makes sense.”

Agreeing with his wife, Night Light nodded “I’m very glad she did that.”

Velvet thought for a moment. “You said that she cast it on you three times. What about the other two?”

“She made a point of asking for permission both times.” Seeing her mother’s confusion, Twilight shrugged “Artemis can visit you whenever he wants but, I can’t do that with her. I gave her permission to cast her spell on me because I’m using this as an opportunity to get to know her.”

Celestia and Artemis smiled

Sundance giggled Thank you, Twilight.

Laughing, Velvet shook her head “It’s just like you to think of doing that, Twilight.”

Everyone else laughed as well

Celestia cleared her throat “Mother has to keep casting her spell because, when Golden Thunder tries to pull her soul to him, it disrupts her magic and cancels the spell.”

Shining Armor glanced at his sister “Is that what you were talking about when you told Princess Celestia that “that spell” had been cancelled?”

Twilight nodded

I was hoping that you’d be able to sense that. Sundance remarked Did you also get my message?

Yes, Mom. Twilight replied

That’s good to know. Sundance commented, sighing in relief Unfortunately, I may have to do it again.

That’s alright. Twilight commented I want you to do that again.

Why do you say that? Sundance asked

Artemis is the only one who can sense what’s going on with your stars. Twilight replied Normally, that doesn’t bother me, but it was a problem last night.

Worried, Sundance asked. Why was that a problem?

Artemis was putting Flurry to bed when Golden Thunder tried to pull your souls to him last night. Twilight answered I’m sure he noticed the problem right away but, because he wasn’t anywhere near us, he wasn’t able to immediately inform Celestia and myself.

You’re right, Sundance replied that is a problem. She gasped If that’s what happened, how did you and Celestia get to us so quickly?

I got your message and immediately told Celestia that your spell had been cancelled. Twilight replied Then Artemis teleported into the room and told everyone that Golden Thunder was trying to take the souls of you and Dad. As soon as he said that, Magic used her connection with me to speak to everyone in the room. She told us that we needed to hurry because Golden Thunder was moving faster.

I see. Sundance said slowly

The point is, I got your message first. Twilight explained That’s why I want you to do that again. Golden Thunder will probably keep trying to pull you and Dad to him. If he does, the sooner we find out about it, the faster we’ll be able to react.

After a moment of shock, Sundance quietly said. T-thank you

You’re welcome, Mom. Noticing that everyone was staring at her, Twilight blushed. “Sorry about that. I’m sure you can guess who I was talking to.”

Laughing, everyone nodded

“I’d like to get back to the explanation.” Twilight said “Her spell also allows her to tell what’s going on around me. At first, she could only hear it, but I altered her spell so that she can see it as well.”

Velvet hesitantly asked “When did you do that, Twilight?”

“Monday morning” Twilight answered “I did it again when she cast it on me last night.”

Eyes wide, Velvet stammered “T-that means-” Unable to finish her sentence, she just stared at her daughter.

Twilight nodded “It still only works during the day, but she’s seen everything that happened around me since we left Canterlot.”

Velvet gasped, but didn’t say anything. After a couple of moments something else occurred to her. “I’m not trying to imply anything, or offend her, but I have to say this.” Seeing her daughter’s expression, she continued. “There aren’t many spells that are safe to cast on a pregnant mare. Are you sure that her spell is one of them?”

She doesn’t need to worry, I’m not offended. Sundance commented In fact, I’d be surprised if she wasn’t concerned.

“She just told me that she’s not offended.” Twilight said

Velvet sighed in relief

Celestia turned to Velvet “Mother created that spell when she was pregnant with Artemis. The first thing she did was teach it to Father so that he could to cast it on her.”

Night Light sighed in relief “That means it’s safe to cast on Twilight.”

Celestia nodded

“That’s not a common form of communication.” Cadance said thoughtfully “I mean, it’s extremely invasive. There must have been a very good reason for her to create a spell like that.”

“There was.” Celestia responded “Father needed to travel to another part of Equestria. Mother wasn’t allowed to travel because of how far she was into her pregnancy and I wasn’t allowed to go with him because I was only six years old.”

“What does that have to do with the spell?” Shining Armor asked

“At the time, Equestria was a much more dangerous place than it is now.” Celestia answered “Father refused to go anywhere unless there was a way that he could make sure that Mother and I were going to be safe. After Mother created her spell, he cast it on her before he left.”

Shining Armor looked confused “What about your guards? They could have protected both of you while your father was gone.”

“There wasn’t a Royal Guard at the time.” Artemis replied

“I see” Shining Armor responded “In that case, it makes sense.”

Celestia nodded to Shining Armor “I’m sure this next part will sound strange to most of you, but it’s something that Mother built into her spell.” She looked each of them in the eye before continuing. “Mother’s spell allowed Father to use her magic so that he could protect us. Because it’s something that’s built into the spell, Mother can use Twilight’s magic.”

Everyone, except for Artemis and Twilight, gasped

Seeing their expressions, Artemis quickly spoke up. “Before any of you get angry, you should remember that Mother and Father have accepted Twilight as one of their children. Neither of them will do anything to harm her.”

Also seeing the expressions on everyone’s faces, Celestia raised an eyebrow. “I’d like to ask all of you a question.”

Curious, everyone nodded

Celestia smiled “What do you think Mother would do to somepony that attacked her youngest child and grandfoal?”

Cadance and Night Light looked at each other before turning back to Celestia.

“A pissed off alicorn protecting her daughter?” Shining Armor asked, glancing at his wife “You know, I’d rather not think about that.”

Eyes wide, Velvet nodded

“I have a better question.” Spike said slowly “How many pieces would the attacker be in by the time she’s done with them?”

Sundance laughed If it got that far, I wouldn’t leave anything behind.

After a moment of shock, Twilight responded “She just said that, if it got that far, she wouldn’t leave anything behind.”

Everyone laughed

When they’d finally calmed down, Artemis nuzzled Twilight before turning to everyone else. “In addition to talking with Mother, and allowing her to help us with our research, Twilight has also been teaching her about some of the things that have changed over the last fifteen hundred years.”

Twilight nodded “A lot of things have changed in that time. When she sees, or hears, something that she doesn’t understand, she asks me to explain it to her.”

Velvet opened her mouth but, not sure how to word her question, closed it again.

Noticing this, Twilight shrugged. “I don’t have a problem with that. In fact, I’d be surprised if she didn’t have questions.”

Seeing her point, everyone nodded.

In the stars, Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl turned to each other.

“I was expecting them to have questions.” Midnight Armor commented

“So was I” Sundance replied “However, I didn’t expect Twilight Velvet to know about my spell.”

“Well,” Star Swirl said thoughtfully “Princess Twilight said that her mother was on a Spell Restoration Team. Additionally, Celestia said that she’d unintentionally given that team the spell book that contained your spell. Therefore, it makes sense.”

Seeing his point, Sundance briefly brightened

However, Midnight Armor began to laugh.

Turning to her husband, Sundance asked “Midnight?”

“Twilight told you not to use her title, Star Swirl.” Midnight Armor reminded him

Surprised, Star Swirl stammered “I-I just-” After a moment, he sighed “You’re right. It’s just going to be a while before I get used to that. In fact, I can’t even count the number of times that Celestia and Artemis told me the same thing.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor laughed

Midnight Armor’s star flickered “Additionally, I was thinking about how our children handled everyone else’s reaction to the fact that your spell allows you to use Twilight’s magic.”

Sundance giggled “They focused on the fact that it allows me to protect our youngest daughter and grandfoal.”

“It was a good idea.” Star Swirl remarked “Everyone went from extremely concerned to accepting rather quickly.”

“I’m glad our children’s plan worked.” Sundance commented, sighing in relief

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “It would have been very unpleasant for Twilight to have to deal with most of her family being upset with her for allowing you to cast your spell on her.”

“You’re right, Midnight.” Sundance replied “However, I’d like to switch to a different topic.”

“What topic is that?” Star Swirl asked

“I’m glad that Twilight has been so understanding when it comes to the questions that I’ve been asking her.” Sundance paused “I’m also grateful that she takes the time to answer them.

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “I am as well.” After a moment’s thought, he continued “Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised. Artemis told us that she helped him when he returned.”

Star Swirl briefly brightened “He’s right. It’s not really a surprise that she’s doing the same for you, Sundance.”

In the Crystal Empire, Cadance felt a sudden movement at her side and glanced down, surprised to see that Flurry was awake.

Jumping into the air, Flurry flew to Twilight and landed on the cushion in front of her aunt.

Giggling, Twilight nuzzled her niece. “As soon as she saw you, she said that you’re adorable.”

What did you expect me to say? Sundance asked She is adorable!

Giggling again, Twilight commented “She just said it again.”

Cadance and Shining Armor smiled

Not sure what her aunt was talking about, Flurry tilted her head. Deciding that it was just grown up stuff, she returned her aunt’s nuzzle and flew to the pile of presents. Hovering above them, she announced. “You have to open your presents!”

Everyone laughed

“She has a point.” Cadance pointed out “We were planning to open them last night, but Golden Thunder interrupted those plans.”

Velvet glanced at her husband before both of them nodded. “The questions we had have been answered, so we might as well.” She levitated a box over to Twilight.

Curious, Twilight opened it . . . and instantly began to laugh. Taking up most of the box was a hat and scarf. Both were the same lavender as her coat and had her Cutie Mark incorporated into the design, but that wasn’t why she was laughing. Sitting on top of the hat was a piece of paper with a single sentence written on it.

Curious, Sundance asked What does it say?

Still laughing, Twilight replied It’s a promise to take care of our foal for one weekend . . . any time we choose.

Sundance laughed as well I’m sure that both of you will be very glad for that soon enough.

Celestia and Artemis leaned over and read what was written on the paper. They immediately began to laugh as well.

Once she’d calmed slightly, Twilight looked at her parents. “Mom, Dad, don’t worry. We’ll definitely be taking advantage of this.”

Artemis nodded

Night Light smiled “We’re counting on it.”

Celestia smiled as well “I’ve already promised to do the same.” She paused “In fact, I told them that I’m expecting them to bring my little niece or nephew to me whenever they need a break.”

Cadance and Shining Armor looked at each other before turning to Twilight and Artemis.

Cadance giggled “You’re spending this afternoon with me, Twily. That’s all I’m going to tell you now.”

“Um, Okay.” Twilight said slowly

Shining Armor cleared his throat, drawing everyone’s attention. “The same applies to you, Artemis. I’ll tell you more about what we’ll be doing after lunch.”

Artemis blinked “A-alright”

Everyone else laughed

Before she could say anything, Celestia felt somepony nuzzle into her neck. Surprised, she looked over as Cadance pulled back and looked at her.

“There are two individuals who want to spend this afternoon with you, Aunt Celestia.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow but, before she could ask, she felt something on her back. Looking back, she saw that Flurry and Spike were sitting there. Spike smiled at her while Flurry shouted “Playtime!”

Laughing, Celestia reached back and nuzzled both of them. “I have no problem with that but, when we’re done, all three of us are going to take a nap.”

Spike nodded but Flurry shook her head “No Nap!”

Sundance giggled Celestia got plenty of practice with her brother. She paused thoughtfully In fact, I’m sure that Flurry Heart will be the first one to fall asleep.

Twilight giggled as well You’re probably right. Besides, Celestia got even more practice with Cadance and myself.

Sundance’s giggles turned into laughter. I forgot about that.

Artemis nuzzled Twilight “Did Mother say something funny?”

Glancing around, and realizing that everyone was looking at her, Twilight giggled again before telling them about her conversation with Sundance.

“You’re both right.” Celestia commented, smiling at Flurry “I’m sure I won’t have any trouble getting a reluctant filly to take her nap.”

Flurry pouted “No Nap!”

Everyone stared at Flurry for a moment before beginning to laugh again.

Eventually, they calmed enough to turn their attention back to the presents. Cadance and Shining Armor smiled at each other before turning to Celestia.

“We have a gift for you as well,” Cadance began “but we’re not going to tell you what it is yet.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow “Why not?”

Shining Armor chuckled “We don’t want to ruin the surprise. Instead, Flurry and Spike will keep you company today. Cadance will tell you about it tomorrow morning.”

“Alright” Celestia said slowly

Twilight glanced at Celestia “You got your present from me yesterday.”

Seeing the expressions on the faces of almost everyone in the room, Celestia said. “You know that Mother can use Twilight’s magic.”

Cadance, Shining Armor, Night Light, Velvet and Spike nodded

Twilight shrugged “When I took my nap yesterday, I allowed her to use my magic so she could write on a scroll while Celestia spoke to her.”

“That was the first “Mother-Daughter Time” that we’ve had in a very long time.” Celestia responded, nuzzling Twilight

Chuckling, Artemis nuzzled Twilight as well “She did the same for me when we were on the mountain the other day.”

Cadance, Shining Armor, Night Light, Velvet and Spike gasped

“That was a very thoughtful gift, Twilight.” Cadance said slowly “I’m sure that all three of them enjoyed it.”

Smiling, Celestia and Artemis nodded

“We even got a present from Magic.” Twilight told them

Curious, Velvet asked “What do you mean?”

Artemis smiled “At Magic’s request, Twilight used the Element of Magic to give Mother, Father and Star Swirl enough magic to visit my dream. After we fell asleep, I brought Celestia and Twilight into my dream.”

Eyes wide, Night Light stammered “T-that means . . .”

Celestia nodded to Night Light. “For the first time in thirteen hundred years, Artemis and I got to see our parents on Hearth’s Warming.” She smiled at her sister “As for Twilight, she spent her first Hearth’s Warming with Mother and Father . . . and finally got to meet Star Swirl.”

Cadance, Shining Armor, Night Light, Velvet and Spike gasped again.

A few minutes later, Twilight levitated a decent sized box over to her parents.

Night Light lifted the lid off of the box. Everyone watched as Velvet levitated several packages of yarn out of the box and set them next to her. They were followed by a set of new knitting needles and a book. Curious, Velvet took a closer look at the book.

Shining Armor raised an eyebrow “That yarn is her favorite kind to knit with, but very hard to find. As for the knitting needles, the ones that she currently uses are the same ones that she used when we were little, so getting her a new set was a very good idea. But why did you give her a book? Mom’s not you, Twily.”

It’s not nice to complain about a gift. Sundance muttered Especially when it’s somepony else’s.

Twilight’s eyes began to fill with tears but, before she could say anything, Velvet pulled her into a tight hug. “Don’t listen to your brother, Twilight. I love it!” Turning to Shining Armor, she gave him a look. “You know that there’s an ancient style of knitting that I’ve been wanting to learn for years, right?”

Shining Armor nodded “It’s the only style that you were never able to learn because you couldn’t find anypony to teach you.” He paused “What does that have to do with the book?”

“This book has instructions on that style of knitting.” Velvet answered

Everyone gasped

“I-I see.” Shining Armor nuzzled his sister and wiped her tears away. “I’m sorry, Twily.”

Twilight nodded but, before she could say anything, Velvet spoke again.

“Did you write this?”

Twilight shook her head. “Just after your birthday, I found a very old book with the instructions in it. I didn’t want to make you wait a year, so I decided to give it to you for Hearth’s Warming.” Seeing her mother’s skeptical look, she blushed. “I know that you can’t read the ancient text as well as I can, so I translated it for you.”

Velvet hugged her daughter again. “Thank you, Twilight!”

I can see why she’s happy. Sundance commented That was a very thoughtful gift.

On a hunch, Artemis asked “Would you mind if I took a look at that?”

Confused, but happy that he was speaking to her, Velvet levitated the book over to him. She watched Celestia lean over to look at it as well.

After reading the first couple of pages, Celestia and Artemis laughed.

“Ironically, this is the only style that I know.” Celestia commented “Knitting isn’t my favorite hobby, so I never learned the newer styles.”

Everyone gasped

Focused on his sister, Artemis didn’t notice. “Same here. But I didn’t learn the newer styles because I was busy with Night Court and catching up on the things I missed while I was gone.” He paused thoughtfully “Remember how we used to help Mother when we were younger?”

“Well, I helped Mother.” Celestia replied, giggling “You were only two weeks old, so you kept getting tangled in her supplies.”

Blushing, Artemis immediately responded “I helped her when I got a little older! If you remember, she taught me how to knit when I was six!”

Everyone, including Sundance, laughed.

Cadance turned to Celestia “What happened when Uncle Artemis was two weeks old? That sounded like the beginning of a funny story. Can you please tell us the rest of it?”

Still laughing, Celestia nodded “As odd as this sounds, Artemis was able to help Mother . . . just not in the way you might think.”

Artemis blinked “What are you talking about?”

“After you were born, Mother wanted to immediately go back to holding court.” Celestia explained “However, Father insisted that she wait until you were no longer nursing. As I’m sure you can imagine, she was really angry with him. In an attempt to calm her, Father brought her knitting supplies to the nursery.”

Confused, Artemis asked “What does that have to do with-?” He stopped when his sister laughed.

“Your attempts to help Mother really annoyed her, but she couldn’t punish you because you were too young to know what you were doing. Instead, she kept untangling you and setting you on the floor. You must have thought that Mother’s reaction was funny because you kept trying to help her.” Celestia laughed again “It was really cold that winter, so she was making you a sweater. As soon as it was finished, she laid it on the floor in front of you. You immediately crawled inside it, curled into a little ball and refused to come out. For some reason, Mother thought that was very funny.”

It was! Sundance insisted When Artemis heard me laughing, he poked his head out and stared at me! Of course, that made me laugh harder. That’s when your father walked into the nursery. After staring at Artemis for a few minutes, he began to laugh as well! Knowing that her youngest was curious, she showed Twilight her memory of that evening.

Twilight instantly began to laugh. Before anyone could ask, she told them what Sundance had said.

Flurry was sitting on the floor, playing with the ribbons from the presents that had already been opened.

Everyone else began to laugh as well.

When she was calm enough to speak, Celestia continued “That was the first time that Mother had laughed in almost a week. As soon as he’d finished laughing, Father picked you up, hugged you and told you that you had done a good job.”

Artemis sighed “I wish I could remember that.”

Twilight used her magic to lower his head, touched her horn to his and shared the memory that Sundance had just shown her. “I know it’s not the same,” she whispered “but maybe that will help.”

Artemis didn’t reply because he was too busy laughing. M-mother was right. That was hilarious!

Well done, Twilight. Sundance remarked, watching her son laugh. I’m glad you thought of that.

Chapter 61

Seeing the expressions on everyone’s faces, Twilight laughed. “Mom showed me her memory of that evening, so I shared it with him.”

Velvet tilted her head “You call her “Mom”?”

Before Twilight could answer, Artemis explained what had happened when their parents tried to wake Twilight for the baby party.

This time it was Twilight who blushed while everyone else laughed. When they were calm enough to hear her, she replied. “Once I realized that they like it when I call them “Mom” and “Dad”, I began doing it all of the time.”

“That makes sense.” Night Light replied, chuckling

Giggling, Velvet nodded “Before you ask, your father and I don’t mind you calling them that.”

Sundance sighed in relief I’m glad that they don’t mind. Your father and I have become rather fond of hearing you call us that.

Celestia and Artemis glanced at each other, and nodded, before turning to Velvet. “Read the book that Twilight gave you, Velvet.” She said “When you’re done, Artemis and I will show you how to put what you’ve read into practice.”

Wide eyed, Velvet just stared at them for a moment. “R-really?”

Artemis nodded again “We weren’t sure what to get you, or Night Light, because neither of us knows you very well.”

“Instead of getting the two of you something impersonal,” Celestia explained “we were hoping to get to know you a little better before deciding on your gifts. The events of the last few days threw that plan a little off track so we weren’t sure what to do. Therefore, this is actually a good thing.”

Twilight turned to her father. “You should look in the box as well, Dad.” She glanced at Celestia and Artemis before turning back to her father. “Additionally, you should consider it a gift from all three of us.”

Surprised, Celestia and Artemis stared at Twilight.

Good idea. Sundance said, giggling That way, they don’t have to worry about what to get him.

Night Light raised an eyebrow but did as his daughter suggested. After a moment, he pulled out a pair of leather saddlebags. He was about to thank his daughter when he noticed that they felt oddly heavy. Curious, he opened one of the sides. After staring at the contents for a moment, he opened the other side as well. After a moment, he slowly commented. “This is everything that I need to get my work done.”

Twilight nodded “It’s a mobile office. I heard you mention that you didn’t have what you needed to get your work done when you weren’t at home.” Seeing his expression, she shrugged. “I asked Rarity to make the saddlebags. She finished them a little over four months ago. Ever since, I’ve been gathering the materials and making sure that everything fit inside.”

Before Night Light could respond, he heard his son’s laughter.

Exchanging glances with Cadance, Shining Armor levitated a box over to his father. “It seems that Twily, Cadance and I were all thinking of the same thing. Cadance and I heard you say that as well. Like Twily, we decided to do something about it.”

Opening the box, Night Light found extra quills, ink, paper and everything else that he used on a daily basis. Opening one of the sides of his new saddlebags, he found that the extra supplies fit perfectly. Turning to his children, he opened and closed his mouth a few times. “Thank you. However, I have to ask . . . Did all of you plan this?”

Laughing, all of them shook their heads.

“Cadance and I had no idea what they were planning.” Shining Armor replied

“We didn’t tell them what we had planned, either.” Cadance added “It just worked out this way.”

Turning to their mother, Shining Armor levitated a book to her.

Twilight raised an eyebrow “What did you say when I gave Mom a book?”

Good question. Sundance commented

“This isn’t a normal book!” Shining Armor protested

“The one that Twily gave Velvet isn’t a regular book either.” Cadance reminded him

Before Shining Armor could reply, everyone heard a gasp and looked at Velvet.

“It’s a photo album that covers everything that’s happened since Flurry was born.” She said softly

Cadance nodded “We thought you might like to see what she’s been up to.”

In the stars, Sundance turned to her husband. “That was interesting.”

“Agreed” Midnight Armor replied “All of the gifts were well thought out.”

“And personalized for the pony receiving them.” Star Swirl added “Even though Celestia and Artemis didn’t know what to get Twilight Velvet, they found the perfect gift for her.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor briefly brightened

In the Crystal Empire, everyone had gone back to their rooms for the last hour or so before lunch. After stopping in their room to drop off their presents, Artemis and Twilight headed to Celestia’s room.

As soon as her siblings closed the door behind them, Celestia cast a soundproofing spell. Then she turned to Twilight “What do you want to research today?”

Not sure how they would react, Twilight chewed her lip for a moment. “I don’t plan to use this time to do research. Instead, there’s something that I’d like to discuss.”

Worried, Artemis nuzzled his mare “What’s wrong?”

Twilight hesitantly answered “Last night, Golden Thunder told us that he’s going to find a way to pull Mom and Dad back down to Equestria. Is there a way for him to do that?”

“That’s a good question.” Celestia commented, turning to her brother “If there is, we need to know about it so that we can come up with a way to stop him.”

“The only way he can bring Mother and Father anywhere is if he manages to pull their souls out of their stars.” Artemis replied

Using Twilight’s magic, Sundance levitated a quill over to a blank scroll. What if he discovers which stars belong to your father and myself?

“Even if he does discover that,” Artemis answered “he still has to get past the fact that I’ve anchored your souls to them. There are only two ways to remove your souls from your stars. The first was is for him to find a way to destroy your stars. The second is for me to release the spell that is keeping your souls attached to your stars.”

Sundance didn’t respond

Realizing why their mother was worried, Artemis shook his head. “There’s no way for a unicorn to do anything to my stars and I’d never allow him to trick me into giving your souls to him.”

“That’s a good point, Artemis.” Celestia said thoughtfully “It’s been fifteen hundred years since the last time a unicorn did anything with the night sky. I can raise and lower the moon and stars, but that’s it. The stars, including Mother and Father’s, resist when anyone other than Artemis tries to do anything else with them.”

After a moment’s thought, Sundance waved the quill in the air before returning it to the scroll. What about Twilight? She was able to give us enough magic to visit Artemis’ dream last night.

Celestia shook her head “I believe she was only able to do that because she had never done anything with your stars before. It probably won’t work again.”

“Magic said that as well.” Twilight responded “She also said that your stars shouldn’t resist me because I was using her power.”

Artemis tilted his head “If she’s right, and she allows it, you may be able to do that again.” Seeing Twilight’s expression, he smiled “It’s alright, I know that you’d never harm them so I’m not worried.”

Your father and I aren’t worried either. Sundance giggled when she saw Twilight’s expression. You earned our respect when you saved Artemis’ soul. You earned our trust when you protected ours . . . the first time. Your actions last night proved that our trust has not been misplaced.

Shocked, Twilight just stared at the scroll.

Smiling, Celestia and Artemis nuzzled her.

Sundance waited until her children were looking at the scroll before continuing. Unfortunately, there is a way for Golden Thunder to destroy our stars.

Extremely worried, Artemis asked “What are you talking about, Mother?”

His attempts to pull the souls of your father and myself to him means that he’s also trying to remove our souls from our stars. Sundance explained That makes them unstable. If he’s able to make them unstable enough, they’ll die.

“That won’t happen, Mother.” Artemis firmly replied

But-

“Artemis is right.” Celestia interrupted “We won’t allow him to do that.”

“There are four powerful individuals who have promised to protect the two of you.” Twilight added

Surprised, Sundance asked. Four individuals?

“Celestia, Artemis, Magic and myself.” Twilight responded “The four of us are working together to make sure that you and Dad stay safe. Golden Thunder can try as many different methods, and as many times, as he likes but there’s no way that he can get past all four of us. Even if he learns my magic signature, and blocks me, Golden Thunder has no idea that Magic is involved.”

Celestia and Artemis nodded

Before anything else could be said, they jumped when they heard a knock on the door. Using her magic, Celestia opened it to reveal Cadance.

“Lunch is ready.” She informed them “Were you able to get any research done?”

Celestia and Twilight shook their heads.

“We were talking to Mother.” Artemis replied

Cadance smiled “I’m sorry to interrupt your conversation, but we need to eat so we can get this afternoon’s activities started.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nodded and followed her into the hall. They paused for Celestia to lock the door before heading to the dining room.

In the stars, Sundance and Midnight Armor turned to each other. After a few minutes, Midnight Armor slowly said “I-I’m not sure what to say.”

Sundance briefly brightened “They’re more determined to protect our souls than I thought . . .”

“Is that a problem?” Star Swirl asked

“No!” Sundance and Midnight Armor immediately replied

“It’s just unexpected.” Midnight Armor explained

Sundance briefly brightened again “I understand Celestia, Artemis and Twilight’s reaction. However, Magic’s still surprises me. Remember, we don’t know why she believes that it’s vital that our souls are protected. She could have a plan for our souls.”

“You’re probably right.” Midnight Armor responded “Unfortunately, we won’t know what it is until she tells Twilight.”

“You have a point.” Star Swirl remarked “However, I don’t think it’s a problem. After all, she wouldn’t be helping them protect your souls if she planned to harm either of you.”

In the Crystal Empire, Cadance, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight joined the rest of their family in the dining room. Lunch was eaten quickly because everyone wanted to get to the activities that were planned for the afternoon.

Celestia levitated Spike and Flurry onto her back and nodded to everyone else before walking out of the room.

Shining Armor kissed Cadance while Artemis kissed Twilight. Then Shining Armor and Artemis walked out of the room as well.

As they walked down the hall, Artemis turned to Shining Armor. “What are we going to be doing?”

Shining Armor chuckled “You’ll understand in a minute.”

Night Light and Velvet turned to each other. After a moment, Velvet smiled “Do you want to go through the photo album?”

Also smiling, Night Light nodded “Let’s see what our granddaughter’s been up to.”

Night Light and Velvet returned to their room.

Cadance and Twilight headed into the city. As they walked, Twilight looked at her sister “Where are we going, Cadance?”

Cadance giggled “You’ll see.” A few minutes later, they stopped in front of a familiar building. “Here we are.”

Twilight blinked “Why are we at the spa?”

Walking inside, Cadance giggled again. “When I was pregnant, I came here at least once a week. They have a massage package that really helps with the pregnancy aches and pains.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “I’m not far enough into my pregnancy to be experiencing those.”

“I’m pretty sure you are and just don’t know it.” Cadance giggled at Twilight’s confused expression. “If I’m right, you should be right around the one month mark.”

Twilight nodded “I’ll be hitting that in a couple of days.”

“Then you could really use our pregnancy package, princess.”

Twilight and Cadance jumped before turning towards the voice. They found themselves looking at three ponies. A Pegasus, a unicorn and an earth pony, all mares.

Cadance smiled “Good morning”

All three of them bowed “Good morning, Princess Cadance and Princess Twilight.”

The unicorn bowed again “My name is Honey.”

“My name is Jasmine.” The Pegasus said, also bowing

Smiling, the earth pony bowed as well. “And my name is Petunia.”

Petunia motioned to a couple of massage tables. “Please lay down and make yourselves comfortable, your highnesses.”

Cadance and Twilight each chose a table and did as she asked.

“Princess Cadance, I’ll be taking care of you today.” Petunia stated, moving to stand next to the table that Cadance was laying on.

Smiling, Cadance nodded

Jasmine and Honey walked over to the other table.

After glancing at Jasmine, Honey turned to Twilight. “The two of us will be working together to take care of you, Princess Twilight.”

Before Twilight could respond, Jasmine smiled “Honey will start with a back massage while I’ll begin with a feather alignment. Would you mind spreading your wings for me?”

Returning the smile, Twilight spread both wings and laid them on the table.

Meanwhile, in the castle, Celestia had decided to take Flurry and Spike to Flurry’s room. With a mischievous smile, she levitated a pillow into the air before throwing it at her grandniece.

Flurry squealed in surprise when she was hit in the side. When Celestia gently hit her on the other side with a soft cushion, she giggled and used her magic to take the cushion and throw it back at Celestia.

Grinning, Spike grabbed the orange stuffed cat and growled.

Surprised, Flurry turned towards him.

As soon as she was facing him, Spike bopped her on the nose with one of the cat’s front paws. “Gotcha!”

Laughing now, Flurry picked up another cushion with her magic and threw it at Spike.

Soon the air was full of flying pillows, cushions and stuffed animals. After a while, Celestia noticed that Spike and Flurry were out of breath. Not wanting them to get too tired too quickly, she ended the game.

“Aww” Flurry pouted

Spike copied her “Aww”

Celestia laughed “We’re going outside now. That’s where we’ll get a little rest before playing the next game.”

Flurry immediately stopped pouting “Yay! Let’s go!” She flew over and landed on Celestia’s back. “Come on, Spike!”

Standing next to Celestia, Spike looked up at her. “I can’t fly, remember? You need to give me a minute to get up . . . Hey, put me down, Flurry!”

“OK!” Flurry put Spike down . . . right next to her on Celestia’s back.

Surprised, Spike just looked at her for a moment before giving her a hug. “Thanks.”

Laughing again, Celestia walked out of Flurry’s room and headed for the ground floor. Once there, she walked outside and paused for a moment. Before she could do anything else, she heard Artemis’ voice. That’s odd. It almost sounds like he’s . . . Curious, she spread her wings and took flight, making sure that her passengers stayed on her back.

Following her brother’s voice, she flew around the castle. When she saw what Artemis, Shining Armor and several members of the Crystal Guard were doing, she smiled. I haven’t seen Artemis do that in centuries. That settles it, we’re playing the next game here.

Choosing a spot off to the side, but within sight of her brother and Shining Armor, she cast a barrier that was the size of a small house. After thinking for a moment, she also cast a spell that blocked teleportation spells.

Turning to Flurry and Spike, she smiled “Artemis and Shining Armor are out here as well. We don’t want to distract them, so we’ll stay inside my barrier. We’re all a little tired from the pillow fight, so we’re going to rest for a while.”

Pouting slightly, Flurry lay down on Celestia’s back. Hearing Shining Armor’s voice, she looked up. Squealing in delight, she pointed at her father. “Daddy and Uncle Art are playing a game!”

Curious, Spike looked at Flurry before following her hoof. Seeing what she was pointing at, he immediately began to laugh. They’re not playing, but it looks like they’re having fun.

Just as Celestia, Flurry and Spike were getting settled, Cadance and Twilight were walking out of the spa.

Twilight sighed in pleasure as she stretched her wings. “Thanks, Cadance. I needed that more than I thought.”

“I thought so.” Cadance responded, giggling “I’ve known you for a long time, Twily. Whenever there’s a problem, you focus on research and forget about everything else. In fact, I’m sure you’ve been doing the same with this mess.”

Before Twilight could say anything, Cadance asked. “How many times has Uncle Artemis told you that you need to stop doing something and come to bed?”

“Only once!” Twilight immediately answered “Before you jump to conclusions, I wasn’t researching anything.”

Cadance raised an eyebrow “Uh-huh”

“I’m teaching Fire Fly’s class for the rest of the school year, remember?” Twilight asked “I was trying to grade papers but Artemis wouldn’t let me!”

Cadance giggled “Fine, you get a pass on that one. What about meals? How many times have Aunt Celestia and Uncle Artemis had to find you to tell you that it was time for dinner?”

Twilight thought for a moment “Twice. The first time was after class had ended for the day. We were in the library because I was helping my students improve their reading.” She shrugged “I lost track of time.”

Laughing now, Cadance said “Alright, you get a pass for that one as well.” She paused “And the second?”

Twilight sighed “I was researching part of Golden Thunder’s plan.”

Cadance laughed harder “I knew it!”

Sundance laughed as well

“In my defense,” Twilight said “I hadn’t been able to keep anything solid in my stomach for two days. I didn’t want to eat dinner because I knew that I was going to throw it up. As I’m sure you’ve guessed, Artemis and Celestia made me eat anyway.” She scowled “I was right. In fact, I didn’t even get to finish eating before it came back up.”

Cadance draped a wing over her sister. “That part of being pregnant is very annoying. Regardless, my point is that you have to take it easy. Too much stress can be dangerous for a pregnant mare.”

Cadance is right. Sundance said softly It’s true that Golden Thunder’s actions are making that difficult. Regardless, you must find a way to balance your work, and research, with taking time for yourself.

Before she could respond, Twilight noticed that she and Cadance were walking up to the castle. She paused when she heard something. “What was that?”

Surprised, Sundance said I didn’t hear anything.

Pausing as well, Cadance raised both ears. After listening for a moment, she replied. “I’m not sure, but it’s coming from behind the castle.” Curious, she headed towards the sound.

Equally curious, Twilight followed her sister. As they got closer to the source of the sound, she could hear it a little more clearly. Instantly recognizing it, she began to laugh. “I’d know that sound anywhere, somepony’s training.” She listened carefully “It sounds like Shiny.”

Cadance nodded “You’re right. That’s exactly what, and who, it is. Should we go watch?”

Twilight nodded

“They must be in the training yard.” Giggling, Cadance led the way around the castle. “I should have known that’s where Shiny would take Uncle Artemis. It’s this way.”

As they walked closer to the training yard, Twilight glanced around. Seeing a movement off to the side, she turned to look . . . and immediately began to laugh.

“What’s so funny?” Cadance asked

Still laughing, Twilight answered “Look left”

Curious, Cadance did just that. As soon as she saw what Celestia had done, she began to laugh as well. The two of them walked over to her barrier and paused just outside it.

Celestia giggled “You can come in. I’m just making sure that somepony” She nodded up at Flurry “can’t get out. She thinks that her father and Artemis are playing a game and wants to join them.”

Sundance laughed

Shaking her head, Cadance watched her daughter fly in circles. “Did she take her nap?”

Celestia shook her head “I’d planned to play a game out here before taking the three of us to my room.” She laughed “Unfortunately, I got a little distracted.”

Laughing as well, Cadance nuzzled her aunt. “It’s alright. She’ll just have to go to bed a little early tonight.” Glancing at her husband, uncle and several members of the Crystal Guard, she continued “It may not be a good idea to get any closer. Instead, we should watch them from here.”

Sundance laughed harder Cadance is right. Artemis was always a little . . . enthusiastic . . . when it came to training. He's breathing heavily, so he must have just finished his run. It’s a shame that we got here too late to watch him.

Twilight giggled I can’t speak for Artemis, but Shiny always gets a little too into his training.

Curious, Sundance watched Shining Armor’s movement’s closely. I see what you mean. However, I have to say that he’s doing relatively well.

Just after lunch, Shining Armor led Artemis down the hall and out of the castle.

Artemis was about to ask where they were going when he saw the training yard coming into view. At first, he was struck by the size of it but then he paused when he saw something that he didn’t expect.

Shining Armor and Artemis stopped at the edge of the yard and watched least two dozen Crystal Guards go through various training exercises.

Confused, Artemis turned to Shining Armor “Shouldn’t most of your guard still be on vacation?”

Laughing, Shining Armor replied “Every guard in front of us is on vacation.” Seeing Artemis’ expression, he laughed harder. “None of these ponies have been forced to come here. I allow them to use this training yard whenever they want . . . as long as it’s for training.”

Artemis chuckled “I see. That means you have some very dedicated guards.” After watching the guards train for a while, he turned to Shining Armor. “I doubt you brought me out here to watch your guards train.”

Smiling sheepishly, Shining Armor shook his head. “When I heard your parents’ names last night, I realized that it wasn’t the first time I’d heard them. At first, I thought it was just because I’d read the books in the Canterlot Library when I was the Captain of Princess Celestia’s Royal Guard.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow “At first?”

Shining Armor nodded “Last night, after Magic cancelled her communication spell, most of us went to our rooms.”

“I see.” Artemis remarked “Am I right in guessing that you were the one who didn’t?”

Shining Armor nodded “I realized that I’d read your father’s name on something in the library here but couldn’t remember what it was.” He shrugged “I went to the library to see if I could find it.”

“Were you able to find what you were looking for?” Artemis asked I didn’t know that there was anything with Father’s name here.

Nodding again, Shining Armor summoned a large scroll. “Not long after I moved in, I found this in the library. At the time, I had no idea what it was.” He paused thoughtfully “Actually, I still have no idea what it is. However, if you look at the bottom left corner, you’ll see something interesting.”

Curious, Artemis did as Shining Armor suggested. At first, he didn’t see anything unusual but a closer look made him gasp. “That’s Father’s signature!”

“I thought so.” Shining Armor was about to say something else, but paused when he saw the thoughtful expression on Artemis’ face.

“It looks like Father was designing a training course for the Crystal Empire.” Artemis commented “This is identical to the one that we had behind the castle in the Everfree Forest.” Glancing around, he said “It looks like it’s over there.”

Shining Armor followed Artemis to the old training yard. “Nopony ever comes back here because the training yard you saw has better equipment.”

Taking a closer look at the paper he held in his magic, Artemis tilted his head. “This is strange. There’s more in the plans than what we see here.” Taking a closer look at the training yard, Artemis suddenly chuckled “I see what Father did.”

Curious, Shining Armor asked “What did he do?”

“What we see is only half of what’s really here.” Artemis answered “You’ll see what I mean after I cancel his illusion spell.” He closed his eyes and lit his horn.

Neither of them had noticed that the guards had stopped training and followed them.

“Did you know that there’s an illusion here?” One of them, an earth pony, whispered to another guard.

The second guard, a unicorn, shook his head. “I don’t sense anything, but that doesn’t mean much. My magic is all offensive. That means I can’t cast, or dispel, illusions. Most of the time, I can’t sense them either.” After a moment, he shrugged “Let’s see what Prince Artemis does.”

All of the guards nodded and turned their attention back to the princes.

Meanwhile, Artemis had begun to dispel Midnight Armor’s illusion. A couple of minutes later, he opened his eyes, looked up and smiled. “That should do it.”

Shining Armor, and all of the guards, gasped when the illusion fell. For several minutes, they just stared at what it had been hiding.

The entire field was taken up by a track. However, this wasn’t a normal track. It had large stone pillars that a pony had to run around. Some of them were hanging from ropes so that they swung back and forth over the track and had to be dodged. There were also boulders that had to be jumped over or ducked under.

The part that had been hidden by the illusion was meant for pegasi. This also had objects that had to be flown over, under or around. Like the ground track, there were moving objects that had to be dodged.

Glancing around, Artemis paused when he noticed that the guards were standing behind them. Turning to Shining Armor, he remarked “We seem to have gained an audience.”

“What?” Seeing Artemis nod to something behind them, he turned to find that the guards were no longer training. Chuckling, he commented “I’m not surprised. I’m sure that none of them were expecting this.”

Still staring at the newly revealed training track, the guards silently shook their heads.

Shining Armor turned back to Artemis “I’ve never seen anything like it. You said this is a training course?”

“Yes” Artemis replied “The bottom part is for unicorns and earth ponies, but Pegasi and alicorns can use both parts.” He paused “You probably think it’s strange that we used this instead of training equipment like we saw your guards using earlier.”

Shining Armor nodded

“None of that equipment existed fifteen hundred years ago.” Seeing Shining Armor’s expression, Artemis shrugged “We trained with what we had around us. Eventually, Father decided to combine those things to create a training course.”

“That makes sense.” Shining Armor responded, looking over the track “What are we supposed to do with” he nodded at the course “that?”

Artemis chuckled “I’ll show you how it’s done. However, I need you to keep in mind that I haven’t used this type of training course in over a thousand years. That means I’m out of practice.”

Shining Armor nodded I’ve always wondered how strong he really is. Now I’ll get to see him in action.

Artemis created a stopwatch in midair. Seeing the confused expressions on everyone’s faces, he explained. “A pony is supposed to be timed as they go through this course.”

“I see” Shining Armor replied

Artemis took off his royal finery and set everything on the ground a few feet away. Then he took a few minutes to stretch before nodding to Shining Armor.

Returning the nod, Shining Armor watched Artemis move to the boulder that served as the start, and finish, line. “Three, two, one, Go!” His eyes widened when Artemis took off like he’d been shot out of Pinkie’s party cannon. H-he’s fast! He could give any of the Wonderbolts a run for their money!

Everyone watched as Artemis completed three laps. The first one was on the ground track only. For the second lap, he only used the track in the air. For the third lap, he used both tracks.

Shining Armor stopped the clock when Artemis crossed the finish line. He was about to congratulate Artemis on a job well done, but paused when he saw the annoyed expression on his face. “What’s wrong?”

“That was far too slow.” Artemis answered

Mouths open, everyone just stared at him. A couple of minutes later, Shining Armor managed to ask “T-that was slow?”

Looking at his time again, Artemis nodded “I’m currently almost three times slower than I was a thousand years ago, and I missed one of the pillars.” He sighed “Clearly, I need more practice.”

None of the guards noticed Celestia, Flurry and Spike show up. Instead, they watched Shining Armor walk over to the start position.

“You should catch your breath, Artemis.” Shining Armor said “While you do that, I’ll give it a try. Can you time me?”

Nodding, Artemis reset the stopwatch and turned to Shining Armor. “Are you ready?”

Shining Armor nodded

Returning the nod, Artemis said “Three, two, one, Go!”

Shining Armor immediately took off. While he wasn’t as fast as Artemis, it was still a respectable speed.

Everyone was so focused on Artemis and Shining Armor that no one noticed when Cadance and Twilight arrived a little over a minute later.

Artemis watched him carefully. He’s doing rather well. Especially when you consider the fact that he’s never used this type of course before. When Shining Armor completed his third lap, Artemis stopped the clock and announced his time.

Artemis walked over to Shining Armor “That wasn’t bad, especially for your first try. You just need to be more careful at the turns because that’s where some of the moving pillars can surprise you.”

Breathing heavily, Shining Armor nodded “T-thanks, I’ll keep that in mind.” Glancing up at the sun, he sighed before turning back to Artemis. “We’ve only got time for one more run before we have to head inside and wash up for dinner. I can practice later, but you should take another run. Maybe you’ll be able to shave a few seconds off of your time.”

Also nodding, Artemis moved to the start point. “This time, I’m going to use both tracks for all three laps.”

Surprised, Shining Armor stared at him for a moment before nodding.

In the stars, Midnight Armor’s star brightened “Artemis must have found, and dispelled, my illusion.” After a moment, he laughed “I’m sure that today is the first time in centuries that he’s used that kind of track.” He paused “In fact, that may be the only one that survived the last fifteen hundred years. Even so, I can’t wait to see how he does.”

Sundance briefly brightened “You’re right, Midnight. This should be interesting.”

Star Swirl briefly brightened as well “I was always focused on studying, or creating new spells, so I’ve never seen him train.”

Midnight Armor turned to his wife “Can you ask Twilight to get closer, but to make sure that she doesn’t distract him?”

“I was already planning on it.” Sundance replied

Midnight Armor and Star Swirl laughed

In the Crystal Empire, Twilight lifted her head when she heard their mother’s voice.

Your father and I would like to know if you would mind getting closer. Make sure that you don’t distract Artemis, please.

Sure. Standing, Twilight cast a camouflage spell.

Startled, Celestia turned to where her little sister had been standing. “Twilight?”

“Mom asked me to get closer so she and Dad can watch Artemis. However, she told me not to distract him.” Twilight laughed “Artemis won’t be distracted by somepony that he can’t see, right?”

Sundance, Celestia, Cadance and Spike laughed as well

Twilight walked out of Celestia’s barrier, spread her wings and took flight. Moving silently, she landed a few feet from her brother. Is this close enough?

Sundance laughed That’s perfect.

Unaware of his sister’s presence, Shining Armor called out “Three, two, one, Go!”

Artemis took off, just as fast as the first time. Taking his own advice, he was more careful at the turns. Additionally, he made sure that he didn’t miss anything. At the end of his third lap, he crossed the finish line and skidded to a stop. “Well?” He asked, panting softly

“Y-you were thirty seconds faster this time.” Shining Armor slowly replied

Catching his breath, Artemis sighed “That’s an improvement over my last run, but I still need to practice. A thousand years ago, I was able to do the same in half the time.”

Shocked, Sundance stammered H-half?!

Equally surprised, Twilight shook her head I-I’m not sure how he could have been that fast.

Same here. Sundance replied

Everypony looked up as Celestia and Cadance walked up to them. Cadance had Flurry on her back while Spike sat on Celestia’s.

Artemis looked around for a moment before turning to Cadance. “Where’s Twilight?”

Cadance shrugged “She’s around here somewhere.”

Twilight quietly walked to Artemis’ side before dropping the camouflage spell and nuzzling him.

Startled, Artemis jumped before turning to her.

Twilight giggled “You were looking for me?”

While everyone else laughed, Twilight used her magic to gently pull his head down so she could whisper in his ear. “Mom wanted me to get closer so that she and Dad could watch you. However, she told me to make sure that I didn’t distract you. That’s why I decided to use a camouflage spell.”

Laughing, Sundance said T-that was perfect, Twilight!

Twilight giggled again but, before she could respond, Artemis raised his head.

Making sure to breathe in her ear, and smiling at the resulting shiver, Artemis quietly replied “I see. What did Mother think?”

Twilight returned his smile “She doesn’t know how you could have been twice as fast as you are now.”

He laughed “I’m not surprised. I may be slower than I was a thousand years ago, but I’m faster than I was fifteen hundred years ago.”

In the stars, Sundance giggled “Twilight is such a little prankster!”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “It appears that Celestia taught her well.” He chuckled “Of course, Celestia got her mischievous side from you, Sundance.”

Sundance just laughed

Midnight Armor flickered “I must say, I’m impressed with what I saw today. However, if Artemis really was twice as fast a thousand years ago . . . well, I hope he’s able to get back to that point because that’s something that I’d really like to see.”

Star Swirl briefly brightened as well “As I said earlier, I hadn’t seen him train before. Like Sundance and Princess Twilight-”

Sundance and Midnight Armor laughed

Confused, Star Swirl asked “What?”

Midnight Armor chuckled “You used Twilight’s title again.”

“Oh, right.” Star Swirl replied, clearly embarrassed “A-anyway, I’m not sure how he can be faster than what we just saw.” He thought for a moment. “If you don’t mind, I have two questions for you, Midnight Armor.”

“I don’t mind at all.” Midnight Armor replied “What are your questions?”

“One, why did you cast an illusion spell over the top half of that training course?” Star Swirl began “Two, how could that course have survived fifteen hundred years in such good condition?”

“They’re both good questions.” Midnight Armor remarked “I’ll answer the first question first. Fifteen hundred years ago, while the Crystal Empire did have a guard, there weren’t any pegasi in it. I included the top half of the training course so that Artemis and I would be able to train when we visited, but decided to keep it hidden when we weren’t using it.” He sighed “I was planning to bring him with me the next time I went to the Crystal Empire.”

Star Swirl’s star flashed “You and Artemis were the only two to use that kind of training course?”

“That’s right” Sundance answered “Celestia and I preferred to work on our magic because we didn’t believe in relying on physical strength.”

“I see.” Star Swirl replied “And the second question?”

“The Crystal Heart didn’t exist when I built that training course.” Midnight Armor explained “I cast a preservation spell because I wanted to protect it from the harsh climate.” He laughed “It seems to have also protected it from the passage of time.”

“That makes sense.” Star Swirl commented

In the Crystal Empire, the Royal Family had joined Night Light and Velvet in the dining room. Twilight and Flurry were each served a glass of milk and a plate of Maple-Glazed Carrots. Spike ate a bowl of emeralds. Everypony else ate vegetable fried rice. For dessert, there was a large apple pie.

When they’d finished eating, everyone retired to their rooms for the night.

In Artemis and Twilight’s room, Artemis smiled at Twilight. “We should go onto the balcony. Especially if you want to allow them to watch the sunset.”

Nodding, Twilight walked out onto the balcony and sat down, making sure to face the setting sun. Artemis sat next to his mare and wrapped a wing around her.

When the sun had fully set, Sundance said Sleep well, Twilight.

Smiling, Twilight replied Good night, Mom. She watched Artemis raise the moon before placing the stars in the Night Sky.

His job done, Artemis turned to Twilight. “I don’t know about you, but I need to get some sleep.”

Twilight smiled “I’m not tired yet, but I’ll go to bed as well.”

“Are you sure?” Artemis asked

Twilight answered his question by climbing into bed.

Laughing softly, he climbed in as well before pulling her closer and wrapping his hooves around her. A few minutes later, he was sound asleep.

She shifted her head enough to look out the window. I think I’ll watch the stars until I fall asleep.

The next morning, Artemis woke to the pull of the moon. Opening his eyes, he lowered the moon and stars.

Not sure if her youngest was awake, Sundance quietly said. Good morning

Yawning, Twilight nuzzled into Artemis’ chest. “Good morning, Mom”

Surprised, Artemis shifted slightly so that he could look at her. Unfortunately, as soon as he did, he groaned in pain.

Twilight lifted her head “Artemis?”

Before he could respond, Artemis heard a knock on the door. Using his magic, he opened the door to reveal Celestia.

Entering the room, and closing the door behind her, Celestia walked over to the bed. She was about to suggest that they get some breakfast, but paused when she saw the look on Twilight’s face. “Twilight?”

Twilight glanced at Celestia before returning her attention to Artemis. “I heard that, Artemis. What’s wrong?”

Good idea. Sundance commented You can eat breakfast a little late today. It’s more important to make sure that Artemis is alright.

Smiling at his mare, Artemis replied “I’m fine, just sore.” Seeing the expressions on Celestia and Twilight’s faces, he explained. “Yesterday was the first time that I’ve done that in a very long time.”

“You right” Celestia slowly replied “You should have started with the basics and worked your way up to the training course. No wonder you’re sore.”

Artemis nodded, wincing when the movement reminded him just how sore he was. Laying his head on a pillow, he closed his eyes and tried to relax.

Celestia and Twilight looked at each other and nodded.

Artemis couldn’t hold back a moan of pleasure when several waves of warmth suddenly swept over his body. Surprised, he opened his eyes to see that Celestia and Twilight's horns were both glowing. “W-what did you do?”

Twilight laughed “I used my magic to send a few waves of warmth through your body.”

“I used the warmth of the sun to do the same thing.” Celestia added, smiling at her brother

Watching her son roll out of bed and stretch, Sundance laughed softly. It looks like your plan worked.

I hope so. Twilight replied

Sighing in relief, Artemis nuzzled his sister before pulling Twilight into a kiss. “Thank you. That feels much better.”

“Good” Celestia responded, opening the door and walking out of the room. “Let’s get some breakfast.”

Nodding, Artemis and Twilight followed her into the hall.

In the dining room, they found Cinnamon Spice waiting for them. As soon as she saw them, she sighed in relief. “There you are, your highnesses. I was getting worried.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight glanced at each other before turning to Cinnamon Spice.

“Why were you worried?” Twilight asked

Cinnamon Spice replied “The three of you usually eat breakfast as soon as Princess Celestia rises the sun. When you were late today, I thought something was wrong.”

“We appreciate your concern,” Artemis began, smiling at Cinnamon Spice “but the three of us are fine. I was sore this morning because I’d overexerted myself yesterday.”

Cinnamon Spice sighed in relief “That’s good” She gasped when she realized what she’d just said. “T-that’s not what I meant! I-” She paused when Twilight laughed.

“It’s alright” Twilight told her “We understand what you meant.”

Celestia and Artemis nodded

Cinnamon Spice sighed in relief before laughing when Twilight’s stomach growled. “I have a surprise for you, Princess Twilight.”

“What do you mean?” Twilight asked, surprised

“Pearl brought you three of her Apple Croissants for breakfast.” Cinnamon Spice replied, smiling when Twilight’s eyes lit up. Turning to Celestia and Artemis, she continued “We have blueberry pancakes ready for both of you.”

Artemis, Celestia and Twilight smiled and sat down as their food was brought in. Just as they were finishing, everyone else walked into the room. Cinnamon Spice brought out stacks of blueberry pancakes for everyone else. Celestia, Artemis and Twilight decided to wait until everyone else had finished eating.

When everyone had finished, Velvet and Night Light took Spike and Flurry out into the city.

Shining Armor turned to Artemis “If it’s alright with you, I already have something planned for us today.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow but, before he could say anything, Shining Armor shook his head.

“It’s not training. I think both of us need a rest day.” He groaned as he shifted his left shoulder. “I don’t know about you, but I’m way too sore to do any . . . What are you doing, Twily? Princess Celestia?”

Everyone else turned to see that Celestia and Twilight’s eyes were closed and their horns were glowing. Like they’d done for Artemis, they sent waves of warmth through Shining Armor’s body.

Shining Armor moaned in pleasure, before sighing in relief, as his pain instantly faded.

Artemis chuckled “I assume you don’t have that problem anymore.”

Surprised, Shining Armor shook his head before turning to his sister and Celestia. “What did you do?”

“I used magic” Twilight began

“And I used the power of the sun” Celestia continued

“To send waves of warmth through your body.” Twilight finished

Everyone else laughed

Still laughing, Cadance nuzzled Celestia “Thank you. I’m sure that Shiny feels much better now.”

“Cadance is right.” Shining Armor replied “Thank you”

“So, Shining Armor,” Artemis began “you were telling me that you have something planned for us today?”

Shining Armor nodded “I know that you and Twily haven’t set a date yet, but I’d like to discuss the security for your wedding.” Seeing Artemis’ expression, he shook his head “I don’t think you’ll have the same problem at your wedding that Cadance and I had at ours.”

Everyone laughed

“However,” Shining Armor continued “with everything that’s going on right now, you can’t be too careful.”

“That’s a good point.” Artemis responded “Very well. Where do you want to go?”

Shining Armor laughed “Twily’s favorite place.”

Artemis laughed as well “The library.” He kissed Twilight before following Shining Armor out of the room.

In the dining room, Cadance turned to Celestia “We’ll be spending the day together.”

Celestia nodded “What will we be doing?”

“I’ll answer that in a minute.” Cadance replied “First, I want to ask Twilight what she has planned for today.”

Surprised, Twilight said “I was planning to spend the morning with both of you and get some research done this afternoon.”

Cadance shook her head “I’m sorry, Twily. Part of what Aunt Celestia and I will be working on is a surprise for you. Unfortunately, that means you can’t join us.”

Twilight’s ears drooped “Oh. In that case, I guess I’ll spend the day getting research done.” She paused “Actually, that’s probably a good idea.”

Sundance, Celestia and Cadance gasped “What?”

Seeing Celestia and Cadance’s expressions, Twilight shrugged “We’re returning to Canterlot soon.”

“That’s right” Celestia said “We’re leaving tomorrow afternoon.”

Turning to Celestia, Twilight replied “We probably won’t be doing any research tomorrow morning, so today is the last chance.”

Celestia nodded “We’ll probably be spending the morning with everyone.”

Twilight shrugged “You and Artemis are both going to be busy for most, if not all, of today. This means that I’m the only one who can finish the research that we started.” After thinking for a moment, she continued “Besides, didn’t you say that I’m in charge of the research?”

I never thought I’d regret saying that. Celestia reluctantly nodded

“Then I’d better get to work.” Twilight responded “I’ll probably be in your room all day.” After Celestia nodded, she turned to Cadance “Before you say anything, I’ll make sure that I eat lunch. Besides, if I don’t, I’m sure that Mom will say something.”

Before Celestia or Cadance could protest, Twilight teleported out of the room. For a couple of minutes, they just stared at the space where she’d been standing.

Sighing, Celestia turned to Cadance “Let’s get started.” I’ll find a way to make it up to Twilight later.

Twilight appeared in the middle of Celestia's room. Then she cast a soundproofing spell and walked over to the table. Before she could do anything else, she paused when she heard Sundance’s voice.

Are you really alright with this?

Twilight sighed “It doesn’t matter if I am or not. The research has to be done and I’m the only one who didn’t have plans today. Besides, I already told Celestia and Cadance that I’d do this.”

You didn’t answer my question. Sundance pointed out

Realizing that Sundance wasn’t going to leave it alone, and remembering what Artemis had told her about their mother’s determination, Twilight sighed again. “No. But, like I said, it doesn’t matter. This needs to be done.”

Sundance wasn’t sure what to say, so she didn’t say anything. Instead, she watched her youngest pull a book closer.

In the stars, Sundance’s star dimmed. “I wish she didn’t have to do this.”

“Agreed” Midnight Armor replied “I understand why it’s worked out like this, but I still don’t like it.”

“What do you mean?” Star Swirl asked

“Shining Armor and Artemis are discussing the security for the upcoming wedding.” Midnight Armor explained “Cadance told everyone that she would be giving Celestia her gift today. She also said that part of what they’re working on is a surprise for Twilight.”

Suddenly, Sundance gasped

“Sundance?” Midnight Armor asked

“Look at what she’s doing.” Sundance slowly replied

Curious, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl turned their attention to Twilight. Both of them immediately gasped as well.

“She keeps pulling books to her.” Sundance commented

Midnight Armor just stared at his youngest “H-how many books is she reading?”

“Eleven” Star Swirl answered “Make that twelve.” He flickered “H-how is she doing that?!”

In the Crystal Empire, a few hours had passed. In fact, it was almost time for lunch.

Twilight was busy reading the books that she had suspended in her magic. A few minutes later, she tilted her head. “That’s weird” She muttered “It almost seems like . . . no, that can’t be right. That would mean . . .” She gasped “I really hope I’m wrong. Hold on, which book was the first part in? Okay, and the second part is . . . over here. And the third is . . . got it.” On a hunch, she pulled the scroll with Golden Thunder’s spells closer and reread the first spell.

Eyes wide, she sat down. “I was right.” She breathed “It’s not included in his original spell, but it is possible to add it.”

Worried, Sundance asked Twilight? What did you discover?

“There are two ways for Golden Thunder to put magic into the crystal that he’s storing magic in.” Twilight slowly replied “The first is the usual way of a unicorn placing some of their magic into any object.”

Alright. Sundance replied What’s the second?

After a moment, Twilight hesitantly answered “I don’t know if Golden Thunder knows about this but, given who we’re dealing with, it’s probably safe to assume that he does. There is a spell that he can cast on it so that the crystal will continuously draw magic from the pony holding, or wearing, it.”

What?! Sundance exclaimed

“Thankfully, that spell can only draw magic from ponies who have enough magic. That means he can only use the crystal to take magic from unicorns.” Twilight continued “However, if there’s a unicorn who refuses to give him their magic, he can ask them to hold the crystal . . . and it would draw magic from them.” She paused thoughtfully “It would also allow him to draw magic from foals. Most foals don’t have enough control over their magic to send it to another object. Unfortunately, he could still take magic from them by having them hold, or wear, the crystal.”

T-this means that he can take magic from far more ponies than you thought. Sundance stammered Celestia and Artemis need to know about this! It doesn’t matter what they’re doing, this is important enough to interrupt them.

Glancing at the clock, Twilight said “It’s time for lunch so they might be in the dining room.” Without waiting for a response, she set the books and scroll on the table. Then she teleported to the dining room.

In the dining room, everyone looked up when Twilight suddenly appeared near the door.

Twilight sighed in relief when she saw that Celestia and Artemis were sitting at the table. Walking over to them, she used her magic to lower their heads. Making sure that her horn was touching both of theirs, she shared her memory of what she’d discovered.

Horrified, Celestia and Artemis just stared at her for a moment. When they opened their mouths, both of them said the same thing.

“What?!”

Twilight had expected them to do that, so she’d already pinned her ears to her head. Everyone else needed a few minutes for their ears to stop ringing.

A few minutes later, Shining Armor shook his head. “That was loud.”

“D-do I want to know what that was about?” Velvet hesitantly asked

“Probably not.” Twilight answered “But I’m sure you’ll ask anyway.” She paused “Actually, there’s no reason that you shouldn’t know about this. However, like everything we’ve told you so far, don’t tell anyone.” When everyone nodded, she told everyone what she’d just discovered.

After a minute of stunned silence, everyone else shouted the same thing. “What?!”

Flurry tilted her head, looking at her parents. “Mommy? Daddy?”

Without turning her gaze from Twilight, Cadance levitated her daughter into her lap and gave her a hug.

Sitting at the table, Twilight continued “I have no proof that Golden Thunder even knows that this is possible, let alone is doing it.”

Celestia shook her head “We have to assume that he knows about this.”

Artemis nodded “Celestia's right. We also have to assume that he’s cast that spell on the crystal that he’s using to store everypony’s magic in.”

Twilight chewed her lip for a few minutes before turning to Celestia. “What’s Golden Flash’s daughter’s name?”

Surprised, Celestia answered “Jade Butterfly”

“That’s a pretty name.” Twilight commented “How old is she?”

“Eight years old.” Celestia replied “She’s not in your class because her mother, Amethyst Rose, home schools her.” She paused “Why do you ask?”

“It’s just a hunch,” Twilight answered “but I think Golden Thunder gave the crystal to her.”

Everyone, including Sundance, gasped

Concerned, Artemis asked “What makes you say that?”

“I’m not sure.” Twilight replied, smiling at Cinnamon Spice as a plate of sautéed carrots with a small side salad was placed in front of her. After taking a few bites of her carrots, she returned her attention to Artemis. “I hope I’m wrong, but I can’t shake the feeling that she’s the one who has it.”

“I see.” Celestia commented “Did you discover anything else?”

Twilight shook her head “The rest of the books contain information that’s either useless or something that we already know.”

That’s fine with me. Sundance remarked Your discovery is more than enough. This is especially true if you’re right.

Twilight thought for a moment “I don’t think there’s much more that we can learn from the books that we set aside for research. Instead, I’d like to go into the city after lunch.”

Cadance gasped “After learning that, you want to go sightseeing?”

Twilight shook her head “That’s not what I have in mind. There’s something that I want to buy. If I can find it, I’ll tell Celestia and Artemis what I plan to do with it.”

Celestia, Artemis, Cadance and Shining Armor looked at each other before turning to Twilight.

“We’re coming with you.” Celestia said

Artemis, Cadance, Shining Armor, Velvet, Night Light and Spike nodded.

“What?” Twilight asked, surprised “I thought you, Artemis, Cadance and Shiny had plans for the day. As for Mom, Dad, Spike and Flurry, you spent all morning in the city, right? Aren’t you tired?”

Artemis nuzzled his fiancé “That’s true, but this is far more important. Besides, Shining Armor and I can continue our discussion the next time we see each other.”

Shining Armor nodded

Cadance glanced at Celestia before turning back to Twilight. “We’ve finished earlier than I expected. In fact, we were already planning to join you after lunch.”

Velvet smiled at her daughter “You’re right. Your father and I are tired from spending the morning in the city, but we can rest later. Besides, as Artemis said, this is important.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow, but decided not to say anything. Instead, she finished her salad before drinking the last of her carrot juice. Looking at plate that had held the salad, she commented. “This is the first time in almost a month that I’ve been able hold down solid food that wasn’t made with apples or carrots.”

Cadance smiled “Maybe you’re starting to get over the morning sickness.” She tilted her head “At most, you should only have to wait another couple of weeks before you’ll be able to return to eating normally.”

Artemis sighed in relief “I hope you’re right.”

When everyone had finished eating, they left the castle and walked around the city.

Every time they came to a jewelry store, Twilight ducked inside. She exited the fourth one with a small bag and a large smile. “Found it!”

It’s a lovely necklace. Sundance commented However, I’m curious. What do you intend to do with it?

You’ll see. Twilight replied

They spent another hour in the city, just walking around. Then they returned to the castle. Celestia teleported Artemis and Twilight to her room while everyone else returned to their rooms to get some rest before dinner.

After casting a soundproofing spell, Celestia turned to Twilight. Artemis did the same. “What did you buy?”

Twilight opened the bag and pulled put a simple, but beautiful, necklace. The chain was gold, but the pendant was a butterfly cut from a single piece of jade.

“It’s beautiful, Twilight!” Celestia said softly “I assume it’s for Golden Flash’s daughter.”

Twilight nodded “If I’m right, she’s wearing the crystal as a part of a necklace. I plan to replace that necklace with this one. However, we need to cast some spells on it first.”

“What spells do you have in mind?” Artemis asked

“A protection spell, a magic drain block and a spell to make sure that the necklace can’t be taken off of her unless one of us allows it.” Twilight answered

“I see” Celestia commented “You want to make sure that Golden Thunder can’t harm the filly, exploit her or use her against us.”

Twilight nodded “If I’m wrong, and she doesn’t have the crystal, I’ll give this to her anyway. That way, Golden Thunder won’t be able to do anything to her.”

Good idea. Sundance said

Celestia thought for a moment. “Golden Flash also has three sons but they’re all in their late teens and out of the house. In fact, none of them live anywhere near Canterlot.”

“That means we shouldn’t have to worry about them.” Artemis remarked, sighing in relief

Celestia nodded “This actually comes at a perfect time because I’ve perfected my spell to stop magic from being drained from a pony.” She smiled “I have no problem with casting it on the necklace, but I’m also going to cast it on something that each of us wears. For Artemis and myself, I’ll cast it on our Royal Necklaces. As for you, Twilight, I’ll cast it on your engagement ring.”

Artemis and Twilight watched as Celestia did exactly what she said she would. Then Artemis cast the spell to ensure that, once Jade Butterfly put the necklace on, only he would be able to take it off. Once Artemis had finished, Twilight cast the most powerful protection spell she knew on the necklace.

That done, Twilight placed the necklace back in the bag before teleporting it to the room she shared with Artemis.

“Now that that’s taken care of,” Twilight began “we need to decide what we’ll do if we see that crystal.”

For the next hour, the four of them worked together to come up with a plan.

In the stars, Sundance brightened considerably “Thank goodness” She commented, sighing in relief “I’m very glad that Celestia finished, and perfected, that spell.”

“I am as well” Midnight Armor replied, also sighing in relief “Now that she’s cast it, Golden Thunder won’t be able to drain their magic.” He paused “We have no proof that he plans to steal their magic, but . . .”

“It’s a possibility.” Star Swirl finished “That means it must be taken seriously.”

“Agreed” Sundance and Midnight Armor replied

In the Crystal Empire, everyone had finished eating dinner and retired to their rooms for the night. Once they’d arrived in their room, Twilight and Artemis went onto the balcony to watch the sunset.

As soon as the sun had fully set, but before Artemis raised the moon, Sundance spoke to Twilight. Thank you for allowing us to watch this.

Twilight smiled You’re welcome, Mom.

I heard Artemis tell you that Celestia has been putting extra effort into the sunsets for your father, Star Swirl and I. Sundance continued Please thank her for doing that.

I’m not trying to be rude, Twilight replied but I think you should thank her yourself. If you want, you can use my magic to “talk” to her tomorrow morning.

T-thank you, Twilight. Sundance said softly Sleep well.

Have a good night, Mom. Twilight responded

After raising the moon, and placing the stars in the sky, Artemis turned to Twilight. “I’m not tired enough to sleep yet, but I’d like to relax for a while.”

Nodding, Twilight walked back into their room. Artemis followed her to the bed and joined her under the covers. As soon as he was settled, he pulled her close and wrapped his hooves around her. Sighing happily, she laid her head on his chest. Instead of speaking, they looked out the window and watched the stars.

A couple of hours later, Artemis felt something move. Surprised, he looked down in time to see Twilight shift slightly, and mumble something in her sleep, before nuzzling deeper into his chest. Laughing softly, he held her tighter and closed his eyes. It wasn’t long before he fell asleep as well.

The next morning, Artemis woke to the pull of the moon. After lowering it, and the stars, he nuzzled Twilight. He laughed softly when she responded by nuzzling deeper into his chest and stayed that way for a few minutes.

Sundance chose that moment to speak. Good morning, Twilight.

After a moment, Twilight lifted her head and lay it in his chest. “Good morning, Mom.”

Laughing again, Artemis said “Good morning Mother.”

Before Sundance could respond, Celestia opened the door and walked into the room. Closing the door behind her, she smiled and walked over to the bed. “Good morning, Mother, Artemis and Twilight.”

Laughing, Artemis and Twilight replied “Good morning”

Didn’t you want to say something to Celestia, Mom? Twilight asked

Sundance giggled Yes.

Celestia was about to suggest that they go get some breakfast, but paused when Twilight’s horn began to glow. Is it Twilight or Mother? Twilight would just say it, so it’s probably Mother. “Is something wrong, Mother?”

Not at all. Sundance answered I just wanted to thank you for the beautiful sunsets that you’ve created over the past couple of days.

Last night, I asked Twilight to thank you for me. However, she told me that she would allow me to use her magic so I could do it myself.

Smiling, Celestia nuzzled her sister. “I see. In that case, Thank you, Twilight and You’re welcome, Mother.”

Sundance, Artemis and Twilight laughed

Chapter 62

When Artemis and Twilight had finished laughing, Celestia teleported them to the dining room. As they had expected, they found Cinnamon Spice waiting for them.

Celestia smiled “Good morning, Cinnamon Spice.”

Smiling, Cinnamon Spice bowed “Good morning, your highnesses. I have pancakes, and glasses of milk, ready for all three of you.” Turning to Twilight, she continued. “Princess Cadance asked me to serve you something that wasn’t made with apples or carrots to see if you’re beginning to get over the morning sickness. If you aren’t able to hold them down, I have applesauce ready.”

Nervous, Twilight nodded and sat at her place at the table. I hope I don’t regret this.

Exchanging glances, Celestia and Artemis joined her. As they ate, they watched Twilight carefully.

Artemis waited until Twilight had swallowed the last of her breakfast before nuzzling her. “How do you feel?”

“I’m nauseous, but I think the pancakes are going to stay down.” She slowly replied

Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Cinnamon Spice sighed in relief.

“That means you still need to eat mainly apples and carrots,” Celestia commented “but we can begin to slowly add other foods.”

Artemis and Celestia finished their breakfasts before heading to Celestia’s room. Before either of them could say anything, Twilight levitated three books to her. Golden Thunder’s journal, the second book on the qualities and composition of crystals and a blank book. After a moment’s thought, she also brought over Golden Thunder’s original scroll and the scrolls that their mother had written on.

Celestia raised an eyebrow “I thought we agreed that we wouldn’t do any research today.”

“I’m not researching anything.” Twilight replied “I told Cadance that I was going to make a copy of the second book, remember? As for the scrolls, we have no reason to leave the scrolls that Mom wrote on here.” She paused “Additionally, I think we should keep Golden Thunder’s original journal and scroll.”

Surprised, Celestia asked “Why do you- . . . I see. You don’t want Golden Flash and Golden Thunder to find them.”

Twilight nodded “We should ask Cadance to put the copies that we made in a secure location.”

“Good idea” Artemis commented

Twilight suddenly giggled “How do you think Golden Thunder will react when he discovers that we have his journal and that scroll? More importantly, what do you think he’ll say to us?”

Celestia and Artemis stared at her for a moment before both of them began to laugh so hard that they fell to the floor.

In the stars, Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl were laughing too hard to speak.

After a few minutes, Sundance said “I really hope that happens sometime within the next week. If not, we’ll have to wait at least a month before I can cast my spell on Twilight again.”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “Even if it happens at a time when we can’t see it, I’m sure that our children will tell us about it.”

“Agreed” Star Swirl responded “However, like Sundance, I’d prefer to see it for myself.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor briefly brightened.

In the Crystal Empire, Twilight knew that it would be a couple of minutes before Celestia and Artemis were calm enough to speak. While she waited, she made a copy of the second book before teleporting it, Golden Thunder’s journal and all of the scrolls to the room she shared with Artemis. All of them looked up at a knock on the door.

Using her magic, Celestia opened it to reveal Cadance. Before anypony could say anything, Twilight walked over to Cadance.

Curious, Cadance lowered her head.

When her horn touched Cadance’s, Twilight showed her sister what they’d just done and said.

Cadance instantly began to laugh. After a few minutes, she calmed enough to speak. “I love that idea, Twily! If you give them to me, I’ll teleport them to my room for now.” She paused “Actually, I think I’ll keep them there until I’m sure that the situation has been resolved.”

Nodding, Twilight levitated the copies of Golden Thunder’s journal to Cadance and watched them disappear in a flash of her sister’s magic.

That done, Cadance turned her attention back to her little sister. “I have no problem with you keeping the originals. As for the possibility of Golden Flash coming to the Crystal Empire, I’ll tell the guards to look out for him.”

“Why are you going to do that? Celestia asked

“If he does come here, I want him brought straight to me.” Cadance replied “Part of the reason is that I want to be the one to tell him that you have the originals, but most of it is that I don’t want take the risk of him coming into contact with my daughter.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nodded

I certainly don’t blame her for not wanting Golden Thunder to see Flurry Heart. Sundance commented

“What do you have planned for this morning, Cadance?” Celestia asked

“I’ll let Flurry explain that when you see her.” Cadance replied, giggling at their expressions “First, I think you should pack everything you’re going to take back home with you. I just wanted to tell you that we’re all meeting in the living room in fifteen minutes.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nodded again. Also nodding, Cadance walked out of the room and closed the door behind her. Artemis teleported himself and Twilight to their room.

Twilight walked into the bathroom to get her dress. As she walked back into the room, she folded the dress and levitated her saddlebags onto the bed. She placed the dress, books and scrolls into her saddlebags before turning her attention to her presents.

Artemis had already finished packing his bag, so he watched Twilight place the hat and scarf that she’d gotten from Velvet into her saddlebags. His eyes widened when she placed the necklace for Jade Butterfly on top. “How in Equestria does all of that fit in there?”

I’d also like to know the answer to that. Sundance remarked

Twilight giggled “I cast an enlarging spell on my saddlebags a long time ago.”

Chuckling, Artemis shook his head “I should have known.”

After the fifteen minutes had passed, Twilight levitated her saddlebags onto her back while Artemis lifted his bag in his magic. Twilight cast a locking spell on their bags before teleporting herself and Artemis to the living room.

Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Spike, Night Light and Velvet looked up when Twilight and Artemis appeared in the middle of the room.

Before Twilight could say anything, Artemis levitated her saddlebags off of her back and over to the pile of everyone else’s bags before setting his bag next to hers. Then he looked at Flurry. “Your mother told us that you have something you want to do this morning. What is it?”

Flurry flew over to Artemis and landed on his back. “I wanna see the stars again! You promised!”

Everyone laughed

Artemis looked around at everyone else “I assume that all of you want to come as well.”

Surprised, everyone, except for Celestia and Twilight, looked at each other before turning back to him.

“Can you really do that?” Shining Armor asked

Artemis nodded “I’ll need to borrow magic from Celestia and Twilight, but . . .” He trailed off when Cadance and Shining Armor’s horns began to glow.

Before Artemis could say anything else, Cadance and Shining Armor gave him some of their magic.

Sundance laughed That certainly solves that problem. After a couple of minutes of silence, she said Please tell Artemis that your father and I would like him to bring everyone to our stars.

Surprised, Twilight asked A-are you sure?

Yes Sundance answered

A-alright. Twilight slowly replied. Turning to Artemis, she said “Mom told me that she and Dad want you to bring all of us to their stars.”

Everyone gasped

Wide-eyed, Artemis asked “Is she sure about that?”

“I just asked her the same thing and she said yes.” Twilight replied

“Alright” Artemis slowly responded. After making sure to bring enough air for Night Light, Shining Armor, Velvet and Spike to breathe, he did as his mother had asked.

In the stars, Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl turned at a flash of Artemis’ magic. When the light faded, they saw that Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Night Light, Velvet and Spike were looking around them in wonder.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight walked closer to Sundance and Midnight Armor’s stars.

Artemis reached back and nuzzled Flurry. “The stars that I took you to see last time were regular stars. The three in front of us are very special because they used to be ponies.”

Flurry stared at him “R-really?”

Celestia nuzzled Flurry as well. “Yes. Even though they’re stars now, two of them are our parents.”

Sundance giggled She’s even more adorable up close. “Hello, Flurry Heart.”

Flurry stared at Sundance’s star for a moment before turning back to Artemis. “Is that your Mommy?”

Artemis chuckled “Yes”

“Hi” Flurry said, waving at all three stars

Midnight Armor laughed softly “Hello, little one.”

Flurry looked at his star for a minute before turning back to Artemis. “That’s your Daddy?”

Giggling, Celestia answered the question for her brother. “Yes”

Midnight Armor turned his attention to everyone else. “I suppose we can’t call this a proper meeting because you’re only seeing us as stars. Even so, it’s nice to meet all of you.”

Surprised, Shining Armor, Cadance, Spike, Velvet and Night Light looked at his star.

Shining Armor glanced at everyone else before turning back to Midnight Armor’s star. “It’s nice to meet you as well.”

Nodding, Cadance asked “What would you like us to call you?”

Midnight Armor laughed “You can call me Midnight.”

“And you can call me Sundance." Sundance added

Smiling, Shining Armor, Cadance, Spike, Velvet and Night Light nodded.

Clearly nervous, Velvet looked at Sundance’s star.

Concerned, Sundance asked “Is something wrong, Twilight Velvet?” When Velvet didn’t answer, she said “I see. You’re nervous about how Midnight and I will react to what you said to Artemis.”

Velvet hesitantly nodded

“It’s true that we don’t approve of the way that you treated our son.” Sundance began “However, we believe that Twilight and Spike did a good job of saying what we were thinking at the time.”

Briefly brightening, Midnight Armor continued “Additionally, we understand the reason behind your anger.” He paused “In the future, we would appreciate it if you’d talk to somepony when something is bothering you.”

Sundance briefly brightened as well “We’ll leave it at that.”

Velvet sighed in relief

Looking at Twilight and Velvet, Midnight Armor remarked “This conversation will be rather confusing with two Twilights.”

“We already have a way to avoid that.” Velvet responded, laughing “Please call me Velvet.”

Also laughing, Sundance commented “You’re right. That makes things much easier.”

Everyone else laughed as well.

Twilight had spent the last couple of minutes watching Star Swirl’s star flash. “You can join the conversation, Star Swirl.”

“Thank you, princess” Star Swirl replied

Twilight raised an eyebrow

“Oh, right.” Star Swirl said “I’m sorry”

Night Light turned to his daughter “What was that about?”

“I told him not to use my title.” Twilight answered

Night Light chuckled “I see”

Artemis sighed “He can be a little stubborn. Celestia and I had to tell him the same thing over a hundred times before he finally dropped the “Prince” and “Princess.”

Everyone laughed

“What did you expect?” Star Swirl asked “I was an average unicorn who suddenly had both ruling figures of Equestria telling me not to use their titles.”

Velvet blinked “Average unicorn?” Turning to Twilight, she asked “Does he know how legendary he’s become?”

Twilight laughed “Probably not.”

Legendary? Thoroughly confused, Star Swirl asked “What are you talking about?”

“Everypony in Equestria has heard of “Star Swirl the Bearded”.” Twilight answered “In fact, every unicorn learns your name, and some of your spells, while they’re in school.”

“There’s a wing in the library with most of the spells that you’ve created.” Celestia added “We’ve also preserved several of your books and scrolls.”

Artemis tilted his head “If I recall correctly, roughly two hundred of your spells are still in use today.”

After a few minutes of stunned silence, Star Swirl gasped “What?!”

Twilight turned to her mother “I guess he knows now.”

Everyone laughed again

Midnight Armor chuckled “Didn’t you also say that you were an “average” unicorn, Twilight?”

Surprised, Twilight nodded

Shining Armor snorted “There’s nothing “average” about my little sister.”

“Shiny!” Twilight exclaimed

“You were able to levitate me when you were two!” Shining Armor pointed out

Surprised, Sundance asked “Really?”

“Great” Twilight commented “You’d better tell them the rest of it, Shiny.”

Seeing his son’s expression, Night Light chuckled “It’s alright, your mother and I will tell them.”

Sighing in relief, Shining Armor nodded.

“This wasn’t long after Twilight’s second birthday. I had spent the morning teaching her the Levitation Spell.” Velvet explained “After she woke up from her afternoon nap, Night Light and I took both of our children outside to play.”

“By this point, Shining Armor had already decided that he wanted to join the Royal Guard.” Night Light continued “Instead of playing, Shining Armor decided that he wanted to train. Unfortunately, he put a little too much effort into one of his moves and got his horn stuck in a tree.”

Chuckling, Midnight Armor asked “What does that have to do with Twilight levitating her brother?”

“Twilight was sitting in a swing, just staring at her brother.” Velvet answered “Before Night Light or I could do anything, she surrounded her brother with her magic and pulled him out of the tree.”

Night Light smiled at his daughter “Then she placed Shining Armor behind her. Of course, he instantly asked her why she’d done that.” He laughed “She told him that it was playtime and he had to push her.”

Shining Armor and Twilight turned bright red, but everyone else began to laugh as well.

When they calmed down, Celestia looked at her brother. “We seem to attract unicorns who think they’re “average” . . .”

“But that word never applied to them.” Artemis finished

“Hey!” Twilight and Star Swirl immediately exclaimed. Surprised, they turned to each other.

Everyone else laughed again

When they’d calmed, Artemis turned to Celestia. “You should check the sun.”

Nodding, Celestia closed her eyes and focused on her link to the sun. A couple of minutes later, she opened her eyes. “Unfortunately, we need to go. It’s almost noon.”

Artemis sighed “I thought so.”

Seeing the expressions on everyone’s faces, Celestia asked “What?”

“How can you tell what time it is?” Spike responded

Celestia raised an eyebrow “I used my connection with the sun to check where it is in the sky. That tells me what time it is.”

“I didn’t know you could do that when you couldn’t see the sky or the sun.” Spike responded

Everyone turned to Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl but, before they could say anything, Flurry giggled.

Waving at their stars again, she said “Bye-Bye!”

Cadance laughed “What she said.”

Everyone laughed as well

In the Crystal Empire, Cinnamon Spice had just walked into the living room. “Where are they? I need to make that sure they eat before the trip back to Equestria.” She jumped when she saw a flash of magic out of the corner of her eye. Turning towards it, she found herself staring at the entire Royal Family. After a moment of shock, she said “L-lunch is ready, your highnesses.”

Laughing, everyone followed her to the dining room. They sat at the table while Cinnamon Spice went into the kitchen to get their food.

Before Twilight could say anything, she heard Sundance’s voice.

That was a lovely visit. Please thank Artemis for doing that. When Twilight didn’t respond, she giggled. You’re going to let me do it myself, aren’t you?

Also giggling, Twilight replied Of course, Mom. They know that you can use my magic, so I don’t see why you can’t write a message for everyone.

Hearing Twilight’s giggle, everyone looked at her.

Sundance laughed Thank you, Twilight. Using Twilight’s magic she wrote a message in the air in front of her youngest.

Midnight, Star Swirl and I just wanted to thank everyone for the visit. Even though we couldn’t interact with you the way we wanted to, we enjoyed ourselves.

I initially asked Twilight to thank Artemis for me, but she told me to do it myself.

Artemis, Celestia and Velvet laughed

Before anyone could ask, Artemis read the message aloud. As soon as he did, the message faded.

Everyone else laughed as well.

Cinnamon Spice chose that moment to walk back into the room. “I have a Kale, Apple and Avocado salad, with a side of Honey Glazed Steamed Carrots, for Princess Twilight. Princess Flurry Heart will be eating Vegetable Tacos, also with a side of Honey Glazed Steamed Carrots. For Spike, I have a Veggie Sub with Turquoise pieces added. Everypony else will also be eating Veggie Subs . . . without the Turquoise pieces. Everyone will be drinking milk.”

Everyone smiled as their food was placed in front of them. Lunch was eaten quickly.

After they had finished eating, everyone returned to the living room to find that their bags were gone. Standing where their bags had been was the pair of guards that had come with them, and flown the chariot, from Canterlot.

Seeing the expressions on everyone’s faces, both guards chuckled before bowing. “We’ve taken the liberty of moving your bags to the chariot, your highnesses.”

Celestia smiled at them “Thank you, Night Twister and Marble Wing. Did you enjoy your time here?”

Marble Wing returned his princess’ smile. “Yes, Princess Celestia. Thank you for taking care of our accommodations during our stay.”

Celestia laughed “I was worried when both of you offered to pull our chariot because I thought you were going to be giving up your vacation. When you told me that wanted to bring us here because you’d never been to the Crystal Empire, I decided to make your trip special.”

Night Twister turned to Artemis “Thank you for asking a few of the Crystal Guards to show us around, Prince Artemis.”

Also laughing, Artemis replied “You’re welcome. The two of you have taken time out of your vacation to bring us here and take us back home. Like my sister, I wanted to make sure that you were taken care of.”

Twilight giggled, drawing the attention of both guards. “There’s something that Celestia and Artemis haven’t told you.”

Celestia and Artemis smiled

Seeing this, Night Twister and Marble Wing looked at each other before turning back to Twilight. “What do you mean, Princess Twilight?”

“When we get back to Canterlot, we’d like you to land at the castle’s side entrance. Don’t worry, I’ll allow you to pass through my force field. After you put the chariot away, both of you have another week off.” Twilight looked both of the stunned guards in the eye. “We want you to spend that time with your families.”

Sundance laughed That’s a great idea!

Shocked, Night Twister and Marble Wing stared at Twilight, Celestia and Artemis for a couple of minutes before bowing. “T-thank you, your highnesses.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight smiled “You’re welcome.”

After the guards had left the room, Celestia turned to Artemis, Twilight, Velvet, Night Light and Spike. “I’ve already notified the nobles of the time that we will be returning. I’ve also told them that I expect everypony in Canterlot to be in front of the castle because we have an announcement.” Seeing Twilight’s expression, she shook her head “Not that announcement. Instead, I want to deal with Golden Flash’s actions.”

“Ah” Artemis remarked “You want to make sure that he stops taking magic from the citizens of Equestria.”

“That’s right” Celestia replied

That’s an even better idea. Sundance remarked

Twilight turned to Velvet, Night Light, Spike,Cadance and Shining Armor. “Golden Flash and Golden Thunder don’t know that Mom has cast her spell on me. We haven’t told them because Mom and I are working together to keep both of them as confused as possible.” She laughed “At one point, Golden Thunder thought that I was her reincarnation.”

Sundance, Celestia, Artemis, Cadance, Shining Armor, Velvet, Night Light and Spike instantly began to laugh as well.

When they’d calmed down, Twilight continued “Some of what I say, or do, might confuse you. Please don’t say anything until we’re alone . . . and don’t laugh. I promise, I’ll explain as much as I can later.” After thinking for a moment, she added. “No matter what it looks like, Mom is not hurting me and has my permission.”

“This should be good.” Night Light remarked, chuckling

Spike jumped onto Twilight’s back and hugged her. “I can’t wait to see this!”

Velvet was laughing too hard to say anything, so she just nodded.

Thank you for explaining, and clarifying, that. Sundance told Twilight

Spike turned to Cadance, Shining Armor and Flurry. “I’ve left a surprise for each of you in your rooms.”

Surprised, they nodded

Gently tapping Twilight on the neck, Spike waited for her to turn to him before whispering something in her ear.

Giggling, Twilight nodded.

Sundance laughed I love Spike’s idea!

Spike turned to Celestia, Artemis, Velvet and Night Light. “After you make the announcement, all of you are coming to Ponyville with us. You’re also going to stay in the castle tonight. I’ll give you your Hearth’s Warming presents tomorrow morning.”

“A-alright” Celestia said slowly

Curious, Artemis, Night Light, and Velvet nodded

Everyone walked outside to find that their guards were harnessed to the chariot and ready to go.

Twilight looked at Cadance “Next time, it’ll be your turn to visit us.” She giggled “In fact, it’ll probably be for our wedding.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll tell you as soon as we set a date.” Artemis added

Celestia nodded “We’ll also tell you when we’ve finalized the plan for dealing with Golden Thunder.”

Cadance, Shining Armor and Flurry hugged Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Night Light, Velvet and Spike before watching them climb into the chariot.

Night Twister and Marble Wing bowed to Cadance and Shining Armor before taking flight, pulling the chariot into the sky.

“Bye-Bye!” Flurry shouted, flying alongside the chariot.

Laughing, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Spike, Velvet and Night Light waved at her until she was out of sight.

Three and a half hours later

In Canterlot, the entire population had gathered in front of the castle to welcome their prince and princesses home. They cheered when the chariot approached and watched it pass through the force field. Five minutes later, they cheered even louder when Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Spike, Night Light and Velvet walked through the front door and out of the force field.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight stopped in front of the crowd. Night Light stood behind his daughter. Velvet, wearing her daughter’s saddlebags, stood behind Artemis. Spike sat on Velvet’s back.

Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang stepped forward and bowed.

Sapphire Wing bowed again “Welcome back, your highnesses”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight smiled “Thank you”

After glancing at her siblings, Celestia turned her attention to the crowd. “Thank you for greeting us. I hope all of you have enjoyed your holiday so far.”

The crowd cheered.

Celestia smiled “I’ve asked that all of you meet us here because there is an announcement that we need to make.”

The ponies in the crowd began to whisper to each other, trying to guess what the announcement would be. They looked up when Celestia cleared her throat.

Seeing that she had their attention, Celestia continued “It has been brought to our attention that ponies have been asking, or demanding, that unicorns give them some of their magic.”

Most of the unicorns in the crowd nodded.

“I assure you that we did not authorize this.” Celestia allowed her gaze to linger on a shocked Golden Flash for a moment before continuing. “Do not give your magic to anypony, unless they are trusted family members. If anypony else asks this of you, please tell us immediately. If court isn’t in session, tell a guard and they will let us know.” After taking a moment to look at everypony in the crowd, she added. “We will put a stop to this.”

Every unicorn in the crowd, except for those in the nobility, cheered.

Artemis cleared his throat “We’ll be in Ponyville for the rest of the weekend. This is because we intend to spend time with friends who couldn’t accompany us to the Crystal Empire. Court, and the castle, will reopen Monday morning.”

Twilight smiled “I’d like my students to know that I do see you in the crowd. I hope all of you had a Happy Hearth’s Warming.”

Suddenly, there were fourteen cheering foals.

Twilight giggled “Good. Remember that class does not start this Monday, but the following one. Please make sure that you enjoy the rest of Winter Break.”

Everyone laughed when her students cheered again.

Celestia smiled at her sister before turning back to the crowd. “We would like to speak with the nobles. Everypony else, enjoy the rest of your day.”

While the crowd dispersed, a small group of nobles walked up to the three alicorns. No one was surprised to see that Golden Flash was in that group.

Celestia nodded to them “I hope all of you had an enjoyable break.”

All of them nodded as well

“We would like to reiterate that we have not authorized anypony to take magic from our citizens.” Artemis began “Additionally, we have no intention of tolerating such behavior. If you see this happening, or somepony in your district tells you about it, please inform us at once.”

All of the nobles nodded again “Yes, Prince Artemis.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight suppressed their laughter at the fake concern on Golden Flash’s face, and the fact that he nodded as well.

“Most of you can return to your plans for the day.” Celestia told them “We will see you Monday morning. However, we’d like Golden Flash to stay.” Looking at Golden Flash, she explained “You told us that you’ve been experiencing extreme fatigue, so we’d like to make sure that your condition hasn’t deteriorated while we were gone.”

Sundance laughed I’m sure that’s the only reason that she wants to speak to him without anypony else around.

Nodding, Golden Flash walked closer. He stopped a couple of feet away from them and bowed.

Everyone else, including their guards, bowed before leaving.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight narrowed their eyes but, before they could say anything, Golden Thunder stepped out of Golden Flash’s body. Not giving anyone a chance to ask, he launched an attack directly at Twilight.

Sundance responded by using Twilight’s magic to create her Mirror Shield around all three of her children. After the attack bounced off of it, she lowered her shield to find that Golden Thunder had vanished. On a hunch, she took a closer look at Golden Flash. I see what happened. As soon as I raised my Mirror Shield, he reentered Golden Flash’s body. In fact, it looks like he taken control of it.

Golden Thunder was so shocked that he forgot about learning Twilight’s magic signature. Instead, he stammered “T-that was Queen Sundance’s Mirror Shield!”

Sundance used Twilight’s magic to write a message in front of her youngest.

I will not allow you to harm my children, Golden Thunder!

Stunned, Golden Thunder stared at the message until it faded.

Night Light sighed in relief

Also sighing in relief, Velvet spoke quietly “Thank you for protecting my daughter, Sundance.”

Sundance used Twilight’s magic to write a message in front of Velvet.

You may have given birth to her, but Twilight is my daughter as well. I won’t allow her to come to any harm.

Velvet quietly translated the message for her husband before both of them nodded.

In the stars, Midnight Armor sighed in relief “Well done, Sundance! I’m very glad that you reacted so quickly. Golden Thunder’s attack wouldn’t have killed Twilight, but-”

“The trauma probably would have killed our grandfoal.” Sundance finished “Besides, even though that attack wouldn’t have killed Twilight, it would have harmed her.” Her star flickered “I won’t let him harm our daughter!”

“Golden Thunder probably attacked Twilight because she’s been protecting our souls.” Midnight Armor said thoughtfully

“Agreed” Sundance replied

“I doubt Golden Thunder is done.” Star Swirl remarked “We should see what else he does.”

Briefly brightening, Sundance and Midnight Armor turned their attention to what was going on in Canterlot.

In Canterlot, Twilight shook slightly as she leaned into Artemis’ side. “T-thanks, Mom.”

You’re welcome Sundance replied

Gasping in surprise, Golden Thunder lowered his gaze to Twilight. “W-what?!” Did Princess Twilight just refer to Queen Sundance as her mother?!

Artemis wrapped a wing around his mare before glaring at Golden Thunder. “In case you haven’t figured it out yet, Mother and Father have accepted Twilight as one of their children.”

Also glaring at Golden Thunder, Celestia asked “Did you really think that Mother wouldn’t find a way to protect her children?! Not to mention her grandfoal?!”

Golden Thunder was so shocked that he just stared at them for a couple of minutes. Finally finding his voice, he stammered “H-how did she do that?! Queen Sundance shouldn’t be able to protect anypony!”

“Mom asked me if she could use my magic to protect us.” Twilight responded “As I’m sure you’ve guessed, I said yes.”

Golden Thunder’s eyes widened “S-so Queen Sundance is using the fact that your specialty is magic to communicate with you!”

No one corrected him

“I’ve discovered a way to pull you from Golden Flash's body.” Celestia commented, watching as Golden Thunder instantly began to panic. “However, this method will harm him far more than it would harm you. Despite what he’s done, I’m not willing to do that.”

Golden Thunder sighed in relief.

Spreading her wings, Celestia's glare deepened “I will find a way to safely remove you from his body. Once I do . . . well, I’ll let you guess what I’m going to do to you for attacking my little sister.”

Golden Thunder’s body began to shake. I have to finish, and execute, my plan as soon as possible! If Princess Celestia figures out how to safely remove me from Golden Flash’s body, she’s going to kill me . . . again!

Everyone looked up when they heard two sets of hoofsteps. They watched a unicorn mare and a unicorn filly walk closer to them. The mare stopped behind Golden Thunder and bowed to the alicorns.

The filly ignored the alicorns. Instead, she walked up to Golden Thunder. “Can you take the necklace off? Please?” Seeing the expression on his face, she took several steps back. “It’s hurting me!”

Concerned, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight looked at the necklace that the filly was wearing. Most of it was composed of small jade beads, but there was a large crystal in the center. What really drew their attention was the fact that the crystal was glowing.

Celestia’s eyes widened Twilight was right! Golden Thunder gave the crystal to Jade Butterfly!

Artemis growled softly I don’t believe this!

Unfortunately, I can’t tell if that crystal is draining her magic from here. Twilight suppressed a sigh. I need to get closer.

How do you plan to do that without making Golden Thunder suspicious? Sundance asked

I have an idea. Twilight replied, laying on the ground. “Your name is Jade Butterfly, right?”

Squeaking in surprise, Jade Butterfly turned to Twilight. “Y-yes, Princess Twilight.”

“Can you come closer, please?” Twilight asked softly “I don’t want to have to yell when I speak to you.”

Jade Butterfly glanced at her mother. Receiving a nod, she walked closer to Twilight. “A-am I in trouble, princess?”

Giggling, Twilight shook her head “I’ve never met you before, so I wanted to say hello.” She looked at the necklace, pretending to have just noticed it. “That’s a pretty necklace. Did you get it for Hearth’s Warming?”

Amethyst Rose held her breath. I really hope Princess Twilight can do something for Jade Butterfly. That necklace has taken far too much of my daughter’s magic. Golden Thunder was obviously lying when he promised me that he wouldn’t make her wear it today.

Unfortunately, because he’s the only one who can take it off of her, there’s nothing that I can do to help my daughter. Ugh, I’ve never felt so helpless!

I even offered to wear it myself. He told me that she had to be the one to do it because the prince and princesses wouldn’t suspect a filly.

Jade Butterfly nodded “Not Daddy gave it to me.”

That must be what she calls Golden Thunder. Twilight commented

You’re probably right Sundance replied I highly doubt she know what’s going on.

“Can I take a closer look at it?” Twilight asked “I’ve never seen a crystal glow like that. It’s really pretty.”

Nodding again, Jade Butterfly walked closer and stopped right in front of Twilight. She watched as Twilight used her magic to examine the crystal.

Sundance began to laugh. I’m sure that Artemis and Celestia know exactly what you’re doing. Everypony else probably thinks that you’re just trying to figure out what makes the crystal glow.

Golden Thunder struggled to suppress his laughter. The real reason that the crystal is glowing is hidden by a simple, but powerful, Glow Spell. This means that Princess Twilight will just think that necklace is a harmless gift.

Also struggling to suppress her laughter, Celestia smiled at her sister. That’s brilliant, Twilight!

Artemis smiled Twilight just put herself in the perfect position to take that necklace off of Jade Butterfly!

Twilight resisted the urge to shake her head in disbelief. Does Golden Thunder really think he can fool me with a Glow Spell?!

Sundance began to laugh again, harder this time. Golden Thunder probably believes that you’re too young to figure out what he’s done.

Let’s see what’s hidden under the Glow Spell. Twilight’s eyes widened when she sensed the magic drain spell. Working quickly, she overwhelmed Golden Thunder’s spell, took the necklace off of Jade Butterfly and tossed it into the air.

Amethyst Rose sighed in relief. Thank goodness!

Bringing Jade Butterfly to her side, Twilight draped a wing over her before looking up at Celestia. “It was draining her magic!”

Golden Thunder gasped H-how did she discover that?!

Celestia immediately lit her horn. I don’t want Golden Thunder to know that I can burn the magic out of crystals yet. I’ll just shatter it.

Everyone watched as several rays of sunlight converged on the crystal. Not even a second later, the crystal shattered.

Sundance sighed in relief Well done!

Golden Thunder glared at Celestia but, before he could say anything, he heard Artemis growl. What’s his problem?

“What were you thinking?!” Artemis demanded

Golden Thunder was about to answer, but stopped when he heard Celestia’s voice.

“Jade Butterfly is only eight years old. Therefore, she doesn’t have enough control over her magic to prevent the last of it from being drained from her body.” She glared at Golden Thunder “You could have killed her.”

Why do they care? Golden Thunder paused Wait a minute. King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance died because they used the last of their magic. That must be why they’re so angry.

After giving Jade Butterfly some of her magic, Twilight looked up at Celestia. “There was a spell on the necklace that ensured that only one pony could remove it. I’m sure you can guess who that pony is.” Glaring at Golden Thunder, she continued “I assume Golden Flash and his wife had nothing to do with this.”

“Of course not.” Golden Thunder scoffed “They were too afraid of harming their daughter. I took control of Golden Flash’s body and placed the necklace on his daughter while everyone else was asleep.” He smirked at Twilight “This means that you can’t punish anyone for what I’ve done.”

“That may be true,” Twilight replied “but we can protect this filly.”

Golden Thunder laughed “How will you do that?” I’ll just give her another necklace. I’ll also make sure that she doesn’t come into contact with any of them. In fact, I won’t let her out of the house.

Twilight answered the question by levitating a small bag from her saddlebags. Opening it, she pulled out the necklace that she’d bought for Jade Butterfly.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight lit their horns, each of them pretending to cast a spell on it.

Jade Butterfly’s eyes widened “Is that for me?”

“Yes” Twilight answered, placing the necklace around the filly’s neck. “We destroyed the necklace that you were wearing, so it’s only fair that we replace it.” She smiled “Your new necklace doesn’t have a crystal on it at all. Instead, the pendant is a jade butterfly.”

Jade Butterfly gasped “Just like me!”

Twilight giggled “That’s right.”

Celestia and Artemis smiled

“Don’t worry, we won’t let him do that to you again.” Seeing Jade Butterfly’s confusion, Twilight nuzzled the filly. “Each of us cast a spell on your new necklace. My spell will protect you, Celestia’s spell will stop anypony from draining your magic and Artemis’ spell will make sure that he’s the only one who can take it off of you.”

Jade Butterfly squealed in delight before returning Twilight’s nuzzle. “Thank you!”

Eyes wide, Amethyst Rose mouthed “Thank you, you highnesses.” Then she bowed very low.

Smiling, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight replied “You’re welcome”

Outraged, Golden Thunder shouted “How dare you?!”

Artemis glared at him “Your problem is with us, Golden Thunder.”

Also glaring at Golden Thunder, Celestia added “We won’t allow you to involve innocent foals.”

Allowing his glare to fade, Artemis turned to Amethyst Rose. “I won’t release my spell, or take that necklace off of your daughter, until I’m certain that she will be safe.”

Not having any issue with that, Amethyst Rose nodded “Y-yes, Prince Artemis.”

Standing, Twilight levitated Jade Butterfly to stand next to her mother. “I’ve replaced some of the magic that her previous necklace stole. This means that her life is not in danger. Even so, she needs to take it easy for a couple of days. Make sure that she uses as little magic as possible until she fully recovers.”

Nodding again, Amethyst Rose replied “Yes, Princess Twilight.” I don’t care about the fact that he’s Golden Flash’s ancestor. Golden Thunder crossed the line when he began draining Jade Butterfly’s magic.

She resisted the urge to shake her head. Three of the ponies that he plans to kill are the very ones who are now protecting my daughter. Perhaps I need to reconsider which side I’m on. We don’t need a king who’s willing to treat his citizens like that.

Celestia turned her attention back to Golden Thunder. “You are not allowed to take magic from the citizens of Equestria, Golden Thunder. If you need magic for something, use your own.”

Golden Thunder glared at Celestia, Artemis and Twilight. That settles it. I’ll make sure that Princess Celestia is the first to die. The one that I’m going to keep alive the longest is Princess Twilight. In fact, I’m going to make sure that she watches the deaths of everyone she cares about before I let her die.

For the first time, Golden Thunder looked at the ponies behind the alicorns. They’re both unicorns. I’ll make sure that I take magic from them later.

Don’t do that, ancestor! Golden Flash shouted Do you have a death wish?!

Surprised, Golden Thunder answered Neither of those unicorns is powerful enough to harm me.

Their children are the ones you need to worry about. Golden Flash responded

Why should I be worried about their children? Golden Thunder asked, confused

They have two children, a son and a daughter. Golden Flash replied Their son’s name is Shining Armor and he’s the most powerful unicorn in Equestria. Then there’s the fact that he used to be the Captain of Princess Celestia’s Royal Guard.

You’re right. Golden Thunder said slowly He could be a problem. What about their daughter?

She’s right in front of you. Golden Flash answered Princess Twilight Sparkle.

Stunned, Golden Thunder exclaimed W-what?!

We heard her call Queen Sundance “Mom”. Golden Flash continued This means that she considers the late King and Queen to be her parents. That’s probably why she’s protecting their souls. What do you think she’ll do if you also target her real parents?

I don’t want to know the answer to that question. Golden Thunder shakily replied Very well, I’ll leave those unicorns alone. He watched Spike jump onto Twilight’s back. Princess Twilight has a dragon?!

Yes. Golden Flash answered You should leave him alone as well.

Before Golden Thunder could ask Golden Flash why he said that, he heard Celestia’s voice. Curious, he turned his attention back to the alicorns.

“If we want to get to Ponyville before dark, we should leave now.” She thought for a moment. “The trains won’t be running until Monday. That means we’ll have to teleport.”

Golden Thunder gasped “You plan to teleport there from here?!”

Twilight shrugged “It’s not hard. I can easily teleport that distance. Celestia’s done the same.” She paused thoughtfully “In fact, Artemis and I worked together to teleport four ponies from Ponyville to the throne room in the castle here.”

Golden Thunder’s jaw dropped. Unable to say anything, he just stared at her.

After a moment of shock, Sundance asked Y-you’re not kidding, are you?

No. Twilight replied, surprised We really have done that.

Sundance began to laugh. T-that makes it even better!

Artemis chuckled “That’s a good idea, sister. In fact, we’ll arrive in time to visit a few friends, and eat dinner, before we have to lower the sun and raise the moon.”

Celestia giggled “That’s true. We have passengers this time, so we should combine our magic. Do you want to do the honors, Twilight?”

Also giggling, Twilight said “Sure”

Golden Thunder watched as Celestia and Artemis gave Twilight some of their magic.

Horn glowing, Twilight gave Golden Thunder a look before turning to Jade Butterfly and Amethyst Rose. “Good night.”

Before any of them could respond, the Royal Family disappeared in a flash of magenta magic.

Stunned, Golden Thunder stared at the space where Twilight had been standing. “I-incredible!” I-I have to find a way to overpower her?!

At least I learned her magic signature when she removed the necklace from Jade Butterfly. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to bring the souls of King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance to me right away. In fact, it will be almost a week before I have magic enough to cast that spell again. I’ll use that time to figure out which stars contain their souls.

Shaking his head, he allowed Golden Flash to regain control of his body. He, Amethyst Rose and Jade Butterfly headed home.

Once they were gone, the area echoed with laughter.

Three bat ponies and one Pegasus were resting on a cloud above Canterlot Castle.

“That was great!” Silver Shadow exclaimed, laughing “Did you see Golden Thunder’s face when they suddenly disappeared?”

“Yes” Sapphire Wing replied, also laughing “I’m glad we decided to watch over the prince and princesses from up here.”

“At least we know where Golden Thunder’s soul is.” Midnight Fang thought for a moment “I’ve never seen a shield like the one that Princess Twilight used today.”

“I know.” Silver Shadow replied “That attack bounced off of it.” He paused “Didn’t Golden Thunder say that it was Queen Sundance’s Mirror Shield?”

“You’re right.” Sapphire Wing said slowly “It certainly is an appropriate name, but I don’t think Princess Twilight is the one who cast that spell. Princess Celestia said that their mother protected Princess Twilight, remember?”

Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang nodded

“I wonder how she did that. Didn’t their mother die fifteen hundred years ago?” Sapphire Wing shook his head “Clearly, a lot has happened since the last time we saw them. We’ll have ask Princess Celestia about that.”

“I’m impressed with how Princess Twilight removed that necklace from the filly.” Steel Night remarked

Midnight Fang nodded “And how they gave her a new necklace that will protect her.”

Nodding as well, Sapphire Wing commented “At least we know that the filly will be safe.” He paused thoughtfully “Did you notice that Princess Twilight didn’t create the necklace? She already had it in her saddlebags.”

Steel Night nodded “It looked like they were expecting that to happen.”

“You’re right.” Silver Shadow responded “They must have learned something while they were in the Crystal Empire.” He turned to Sapphire Wing “They’ll probably return tomorrow evening. We need to make sure that we’re here to greet them.”

Sapphire Wing nodded “We’ll ask about it then.”

Spreading their wings, they headed home as well.

Meanwhile, in Ponyville, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Night Light, Velvet and Spike appeared in front of Twilight’s castle. They were greeted by a thunderous cheer. Surprised, they opened their eyes to find the entire population of Ponyville looking at them.

Celestia blinked “How did you know we were coming?”

Laughing, Twilight looked at Pinkie. “Let me guess. Your “Pinkie Sense” told you.”

Giggling, Pinkie bounced over to hug Twilight. “Yep! I had a twitchy knee, floppy ear and achy shoulder! That means Twilight and Spike are coming home! Then I got a floppy knee, achy shoulder and itchy back! That means Artemis is coming with them!”

Surprised, Artemis asked “You already have a “Pinkie Sense” for me?”

Pinkie bopped Artemis on the nose. “You bet! Then I got an itchy back, achy shoulder, floppy hoof and floppy ear! That means that you’re bringing company! So I just had to tell the girls and bring everypony here to say “Welcome back”!”

After a few minutes of stunned silence, Sundance asked. What was that?

That was Pinkie. Twilight answered Don’t bother trying to figure her out. Trust me, you’ll just drive yourself crazy. When she gets this excited, very little of what she says or does makes sense. I’ve learned that it’s best to just go with it.

I-I see. Sundance slowly replied I have no idea what just happened, but I’ll take your word for it.

In the stars, they just looked at each other for several minutes.

Eventually, Midnight Armor asked “That’s normal?!”

“Apparently” Sundance replied, flickering

“If that was normal,” Star Swirl said slowly “I’m not sure I want to know what she considers unusual.”

“Same here” Midnight Armor responded

In Ponyville, Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow, Fluttershy and Pinkie walked over to Twilight. They were quickly joined by Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo.

Twilight nuzzled Scootaloo “Did you have a happy Hearth’s Warming, Scootaloo?”

Sundance gasped That’s Scootaloo?

Yes Twilight replied The unicorn next to her is Sweetie Belle and the earth pony is Apple Bloom.

Scootaloo returned Twilight’s nuzzle before nodding. “We went to the party that Pinkie threw for the Cake Twins!”

“We’re having a slumber party tonight!” Sweetie Belle exclaimed

Apple Bloom nodded “Do ya wanna come, Twilight?”

“I’m sorry, girls.” Twilight responded, shaking her head “Tonight, your sisters are going to spend the night in my castle.” She smiled “This means that your slumber party will be for foals only.”

Worried, Apple Bloom turned to Applejack “Is that OK, Sis?”

Smiling, Applejack nodded “Big Mac can take care of the three of you tonight.” She turned to her brother. “Are ya alright with that, Big Mac?”

Big Mac nodded “Eeyup”

Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo cheered “Thanks, Big Mac!”

Big Mac nodded again “Eeyup”

Sundance laughed He doesn’t say much, does he?

Nope Twilight replied

Sundance laughed harder

Twilight turned to Rainbow “Did you take Scootaloo to the wing specialist?”

Rainbow shook her head “Ponyville’s wing specialist is booked through next month. I had to go to Cloudsdale instead. The clinic there was already closed for the holiday, but I know one of the nurses. She got me an appointment for Tuesday afternoon.”

“Good.” Twilight responded “I don’t want to wait until next weekend to find out how it goes. When the appointment is over, bring her to Canterlot Castle.”

Rainbow nodded

Twilight turned to the crowd “Thank you for the warm welcome, everypony! Applejack, Pinkie, Rainbow, Rarity and Fluttershy, I’d like you to join us inside. Everyone else, we’ll see you tomorrow.”

Nodding, everyone else went back to what they had planned for the rest of the afternoon while the girls followed the Royal Family inside Twilight’s castle.

Inside Twilight’s castle, everyone had just gotten settled in the receiving room. The girls looked at each other, and nodded, before turning to Twilight.

“Twi” Applejack began “We want to know what’s going on.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “What are you talking about?”

“A unicorn stallion was poking around your castle the other day.” Applejack replied “Rarity and Ah walked over to see what he wanted.”

“As soon as he saw me,” Rarity continued “he demanded that I give him some of my magic!”

Worried, Twilight asked “Did you?”

“Of course not!” Rarity answered “My magic is for making beautiful clothes. He didn’t want me to make him anything, so I told him that he needed to leave.”

“That’s when Big Mac and Apple Bloom walked up.” Applejack continued “Ah told Big Mac to buck that unicorn out of town. He took one look at my brother and ran off like his tail was on fire.”

Everyone laughed

When everyone had calmed down, Twilight looked at Celestia and Artemis. All three of them nodded. Then Celestia cast a soundproofing spell on the room.

Turning back to her friends, Twilight said “What we’re about to tell you must remain a secret.” Looking at each of her friends, she said “I’m serious. You can’t tell anyone about this until I tell you that it’s safe to do so.”

Surprised, the girls nodded. As one, they said “Pinkie Promise.”

Satisfied, Twilight nodded as well.

Over the next hour, Twilight, Celestia and Artemis told them everything that had happened over the last couple of weeks. They only kept two topics a secret. One was what Magic told them not to tell anyone. The other was Twilight and Artemis’ engagement.

Once they were done, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight waited for their reactions.

Fluttershy had tears in her eyes as she stared at Twilight, Celestia and Artemis.

Rarity blinked several times “I-I’m not sure what to say.”

Eyes wide, Pinkie exclaimed “What a meanie!” Then she giggled “Hearing another mommy in your head must be really fun!”

Surprised, Sundance asked Is she always so . . . random?

Yes Twilight replied

Rainbow and Applejack looked at each other for a long moment before turning to Twilight.

“Twilight” Applejack said slowly

“Why didn’t you tell us?!” Rainbow finished, suddenly right in Twilight’s face.

I knew she was going to do that. Twilight commented, leaning back a bit.

Before Sundance could react, or respond, Celestia surrounded Rainbow with her magic and returned her to her cushion. “I told her not to, Rainbow Dash.”

As one, the girls asked “Why?”

“Ah’m not trying to be rude, princess.” Applejack began “But we needed to know about this right away.”

Rarity nodded “Applejack’s right. How can we help if we don’t know what’s going on?”

Fluttershy, Pinkie and Rainbow nodded as well

Artemis raised an eyebrow. “What would you have done if Twilight had told you right away?”

“I would have flown to Canterlot and kicked his tail!” Rainbow immediately replied

“That wouldn’t have solved anything.” Celestia responded “We will stop him, but we have to be very careful about how we do it.”

Twilight nodded “That means we need a plan. In order to come up with the best one, we needed to do a lot of research.”

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Sundance laughed at the faces that the girls made.

“We’ve already gotten a lot of that done,” Twilight continued “but there’s still more for us to do. Once everything is ready, we’ll tell you what we’ve come up with.” Seeing their expressions, she shook her head. “All of you will be helping us. My parents, Shiny and Cadance will be helping us as well.”

The girls sighed in relief

Artemis chuckled “We have one more topic to discuss.”

Leaning closer to Twilight, Celestia whispered “Don’t tell them that the Crystal Ponies already know about your engagement. That will solve the problem of how they’ll react.”

Celestia’s right. Sundance commented

Before Twilight could respond to either of them, Applejack asked. “Is it more bad news?”

Laughing, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Spike, Night Light and Velvet shook their heads.

Standing, Twilight walked to the middle of the room. Giggling at her friends’ confused expressions, she used her magic to part her mane.

The girls stared at the ring on Twilight’s horn for a couple of minutes before tackling her in a hug.

Surprised, Sundance commented If I didn’t know better, I’d swear that all five of them just teleported.

When they finally allowed her to stand, Twilight smiled at her friends. “Artemis and I want all of you to do the same thing that you did for Shiny and Cadance’s wedding for ours . . . well, except for the part where we had to fight the changelings.”

“Of course, Darling!” Rarity squealed, hugging Twilight again “I’ll make sure that the dresses are beautiful!”

Fluttershy smiled “I’ll start training my songbirds tomorrow.”

Rainbow flipped in the air a few times. “This is going to be the Best Sonic Rainboom Ever!”

Applejack grinned “Ah’m going to make sure that the food is the best that my family has ever made.”

Pinkie bounced around Twilight “I get to make the cake! It’s going to be the best one I’ve ever made! And the biggest!” Suddenly right in Twilight’s face, she fired off several questions. “Red velvet?”

Twilight shook her head

“Chocolate?”

Artemis shook his head

“Yellow Butter?”

Twilight shook her head again

Pinkie tapped her chin “Marble?”

Artemis and Twilight nodded

Nodding sharply, Pinkie wrote something on a notepad that she’d just pulled out of her mane. Then she began mumbling something about colors, designs, streamers, chocolate milk and her party cannon. A couple of minutes later, she shoved the notepad back into her mane, walked back to her cushion and sat down.

What was that about? Sundance asked, thoroughly confused

Twilight laughed Pinkie was asking what flavor we wanted our Wedding Cake to be. Marble is a mix of Chocolate and Yellow cake. As for the rest, I have no idea what she was talking about. I could ask her, but I’d like to get some sleep tonight.

Sundance laughed as well I see.

Spike walked over to Rarity and whispered something in her ear.

Everyone else watched a large smile spread over her face. “Of course, Spike.”

Noticing that everyone was looking at them, Spike said “We’re not telling you yet.”

Everyone laughed

Celestia and Artemis looked at each other before standing and walking over to the window. Twilight quickly joined them. After the sun had set, she said Good night, Mom.

Sleep well, Twilight. Sundance replied I’ll talk to you in the morning.

After Artemis had risen the moon and stars, Applejack pulled over a pair of saddlebags. “Ah got our dinner right here.”

Everyone laughed as they watched her pull out enough food for everyone, even Velvet and Night Light. When everyone had finished their food, Pinkie also pulled a pair of saddlebags closer to her.

Seeing everyone’s expressions, Pinkie raised both eyebrows. “What? I had to bring dessert!”

Shaking their heads, everyone laughed again

After everyone had eaten, Twilight led everyone to the top floor of her castle. Celestia was given one of the rooms right across the hall from Twilight and Artemis’ room. Night Light and Velvet were given the other.

Celestia and Artemis decided to stay in her room for a while because they wanted to discuss something in private.

Yawning, Spike mumbled something about reading a comic before bed and went to his room.

Velvet turned to her daughter “Your father and I would like to take a long hot bath before going to bed. Don’t worry, I’ve already put your saddlebags in your room.”

Nodding, Night Light nuzzled his daughter “Good night, sweetie.”

Smiling, Twilight replied “Good night.” After her parents closed the door, she turned to her friends. “Come with me. There’s something else I want to talk about.”

Curious, the girls nodded

Twilight led the way to a bedroom at the other end of the hall. Opening the door, and walking inside, she explained “I’ve been preparing this room for our sleepovers. There are six beds, so you can sleep in here tonight.”

“Good idea.” Rarity replied “However, I don’t think that’s what you wanted to talk about.”

“You’re right, Rarity.” Twilight cast a barrier and a soundproofing spell before turning to her friends. “There’s something that I want to try. If I’m right, we might need this if we’re going to stop Golden Thunder from taking Mom and Dad’s souls. I haven’t told anypony about this because I’m not sure if it’s going to work.”

A couple of hours later, Celestia and Artemis walked out of her room. After checking the room that he shared with Twilight, Artemis turned to his sister. “Do you know where Twilight went?”

Celestia shook her head “She didn’t say anything to me.”

Perhaps I can use the link between us to look for her. Closing his eyes, Artemis focused on the link between them. A couple of moments later, he sighed in relief. “She’s in a room at the other end of the hall.”

“Then let’s go get her.” Celestia replied, walking in the direction that her brother was looking “We should get some sleep anyway.”

When they got to the right room, they opened to door and walked inside. Both of them paused, surprised, when they saw that Twilight and her friends were sitting inside a barrier. Twilight had her back to them, but the rest of the girls were facing them.

Realizing that she couldn’t hear their conversation, Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Why did Twilight cast a soundproofing spell?”

Watching Applejack look up at them before returning her attention to Twilight, Artemis shrugged. “Maybe she just wanted some “girl time” with her friends. They know that we’re here, so let’s give them a couple of minutes to wrap up their conversation.”

Celestia nodded

Inside Twilight’s barrier, Applejack said “Artemis and Princess Celestia are here.”

“We’re almost done.” Twilight replied “We’ve already gone over the plan. That means there’s only one more step.” Is everything ready on your end, Magic?

Yes Magic answered Your friends should be hearing from the spirits of their Elements in a few seconds.

Watching her friends’ eyes widen, Twilight giggled “It looks like it worked.”

The girls nodded

“It may seem a little strange at first, but you’ll get used to it.” Twilight told them

“Laughter is really funny!” Pinkie exclaimed, bouncing in place

Fluttershy smiled “I like Kindness.”

“Generosity sounds very nice.” Rarity commented

Rainbow did a back flip in the air. “Loyalty is as awesome as I am!”

“Honesty and ah have something to say about that.” Applejack replied, grabbing Rainbow’s tail and pulling her down so that she was sitting on the floor with the rest of them.

Twilight laughed “Normally, you have to be sensitive enough to spirits to hear them. However, because this is an emergency, the spirits of your Elements are willing to overlook that requirement . . . at least, until we’re able to send Golden Thunder’s soul back where it belongs. By the time we’re able to do that, each of you will probably be sensitive enough to spirits to keep speaking to them.”

Magic giggled You’re probably right.

Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rainbow, Applejack and Rarity smiled “Good”

“I’ll tell Mom, Dad, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl about the plan.” Twilight said “Don’t tell anypony else about this, please. We don’t want Golden Thunder to know that the Elements of Harmony are involved until it’s too late for him to do anything about it.” She smiled “Think of the spirits of our Elements as a secret weapon.”

Magic laughed I love that idea.

The girls grinned “Pinkie Promise”

As soon as Twilight lowered her barrier, Artemis walked forward and nuzzled her. “What was that about?”

Smiling, Twilight returned his nuzzle. “Magic and I were just helping the girls contact the spirits of their Elements.”

Celestia and Artemis gasped “What?”

Twilight turned back to her friends. “We’ll see you in the morning.”

Applejack, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Rarity and Rainbow climbed into bed “Good night.”

Celestia and Artemis smiled at the girls. “Good night” Then they followed Twilight into the hall.

After closing the door to the girls’ room, Twilight teleported herself, Artemis and Celestia to the room she shared with Artemis. Then she closed and locked the doors.

Surprised, Celestia asked “Why did you do that, Twilight?”

“You’ll understand in a minute.” Twilight responded, turning to Artemis “Can you bring the three of us to Mom, Dad and Star Swirl’s stars, please?”

Eyes wide, he asked “Is something wrong?!”

“No” Twilight replied “It’s just that I’d like to tell everypony about this at the same time.”

Exchanging glances with his sister, Artemis slowly replied “Alright.”

Chapter 63

In the stars, Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl turned at a flash of moonlight.

Surprised, Midnight Armor asked “What’s going on?”

“Twilight has something that she wants to discuss with all of us at once.” Celestia answered

Worried, Sundance turned to her youngest. “Is something wrong, Twilight?”

“Golden Thunder learned my magic signature when I took the necklace off of Jade Butterfly.” Twilight responded

Sundance gasped “That means he has the ability to block you now!”

Taking a closer look at his youngest, Midnight Armor remarked. “You don’t look worried.”

“I’m not.” Twilight replied “We know that he doesn’t have a way to block Magic’s power.”

After a moment, Midnight Armor reluctantly replied “Unfortunately, we have to assume that he’ll find a way to do that.”

“You’re right, Father.” Celestia said slowly

Worried, Sundance asked “Do you have a plan for dealing with that?”

“Yes, Mom” Twilight responded “Magic and I completed the first step of our plan a few minutes ago.”

When Twilight didn’t explain further, Midnight Armor asked “What did you do?”

“We helped my friends contact the spirits of their Elements.” Twilight answered “Now the girls can talk to them like I do with Magic.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl gasped in surprise.

Confused, Artemis asked “How is that going to help us stop Golden Thunder from taking Mother and Father’s souls?”

“The girls, the spirits of our Elements and I have come up with a plan.” Twilight answered “It’s rather extreme, so we’re only going to use it as a last resort.”

“What did you come up with?” Celestia asked

“Magic thinks it’s vital that Mom and Dad are protected, remember?” Twilight asked

Everyone either nodded or briefly brightened

“Laughter, Generosity, Honesty, Loyalty, and Kindness apparently feel the same way.” Twilight continued

She must be referring to the spirits of the other Elements of Harmony. “What makes you say that?” Sundance asked

Twilight looked at Sundance’s star “At first, it was just Celestia, Artemis, Magic and I working together to protect you.”

Confused, Midnight Armor asked “At first?”

Twilight nodded “After I explained everything to the girls, they decided to join us. The spirits of their Elements have agreed to help as well.”

Celestia gasped “Y-you mean . . .”

Twilight nodded again “If Golden Thunder discovers a way to block her power, Magic will tell the spirits of the other Elements. They will tell the girls what’s going on. Then everyone will lend me their power so that I can use the Elements of Harmony.”

Celestia, Artemis, Sundance and Midnight Armor were too stunned to reply.

“W-well,” Star Swirl said slowly “Golden Thunder shouldn’t be able to block that.”

Eyes wide, Celestia sat down “I-I think it’s safe to say that Golden Thunder won’t be getting Mother and Father’s souls any time soon.”

Also needing to sit down, Artemis nodded “A-actually, with all of us working together, I don’t think he’ll ever get them.”

“That’s the point.” Twilight replied

Everypony stared at her in stunned silence. After a few minutes, Midnight Armor’s star brightened.

Twilight gasped in surprise when she suddenly noticed that she was surrounded with their father’s magic. “I-is something wrong, Dad?” D-did I upset him?

Too choked up to speak, Midnight Armor levitated his youngest closer to his older children. Knowing what their father wanted them to do, Celestia and Artemis pulled Twilight into a tight hug.

Artemis whispered “When Mother and Father are in their star forms, they can’t hug us themselves.”

Nuzzling her sister, Celestia quietly continued “This is what they do instead.”

Deciding that he wanted to sleep among the stars, Artemis created a cloud under them and lay down, pulling Twilight down with him. Laying down as well, Celestia spread a wing over her siblings. It wasn’t long before all three of them were asleep.

Watching her children sleep, Sundance spoke softly. “I did not expect Twilight and her friends to do that.”

“Neither did I.” Midnight Armor quietly replied “Regardless, they’ve come up with a plan that will be very effective at protecting our souls.”

In the Dream Realm, Artemis turned his attention to the dreams of the foals of Equestria. I wasn’t able to sense the nightmares of the foals of Equestria while we were in the Crystal Empire. Now that I’m back, I’d better get to work.

The first nightmare he found was Jade Butterfly’s. Shaking his head, he entered her dream and looked around. This must be Golden Flash’s house. I’ve never been there before, but it shouldn’t be too hard to find the filly. Walking down the hall, he poked his head into the kitchen, dining room and living room.

Not finding anypony, he headed for the stairs. Just as he was about to go upstairs, he heard a noise. Glancing around, he noticed another staircase. Could she be in the basement? Hearing a scream from the floor below, he walked down the stairs. Turning left, he saw that Jade Butterfly was curled into a little ball on the floor. Before he could say anything, he heard Golden Thunder’s voice. That’s strange. It sounds like he’s really here. How is that possible?

Golden Thunder walked towards Jade Butterfly from the other side of the basement. He was so focused on the filly that he didn’t notice Artemis. “You were supposed to stay in the house! I told you that I would take the necklace off when I got back.”

Jade Butterfly whimpered “B-but it was hurting me!”

“Prince Artemis, Princess Celestia and Princess Twilight may be protecting you when you’re awake.” Golden Thunder growled “However, thanks to the Dream Walking Spell, I can still punish you in your dreams.”

Dream Walking Spell? I didn’t know that such a thing existed. I’ll have to ask Celestia about that later. Stepping out of the shadows, Artemis placed a shield over Jade Butterfly before turning to Golden Thunder. “You will not torment this filly any longer, Golden Thunder!”

Gasping in surprise, Golden Thunder turned to Artemis. “P-prince Artemis?! H-how is it possible for you to be here?!”

Artemis laughed “I’m the Prince of the Night, remember? In addition to taking care of my moon and Night Sky, I have the ability to Dream Walk. This means that I can enter the dream of anypony in Equestria.”

Shocked, Golden Thunder opened his mouth. However, before he could say anything, Artemis turned to Jade Butterfly. “Don’t worry, I’m going to take him out of your dream.” He smiled at the filly “I’ll be right back, alright?”

Shaking, Jade Butterfly nodded “Y-yes, Prince Artemis.”

Artemis and Golden Thunder vanished

In Golden Thunder’s dream, he opened his eyes and looked around. “What just happened?!”

“Simple” Artemis replied, materializing in front of him “I brought you into your own dream.”

“B-but I’m not asleep!” Golden Thunder stammered

Artemis smirked “You are now.” Can you hear me, Night?

Of course. I assume you have a plan for this pathetic excuse for a stallion?

Yes. I thought I’d let you have a little fun with him while I take care of the filly that he was tormenting.

Night laughed I’m going to enjoy this.

How long will it take you to get here?

I’ll be right there.

Artemis returned his attention to Golden Thunder. “How much do you know about my recent past?”

Surprised, Golden Thunder replied “Golden Flash told me that you were taken over by Nightmare Forces and sealed in the moon for a thousand years.”

Nodding, Artemis asked “What was that form called?”

Not sure where Artemis was going with this, Golden Thunder answered “Night-Terror Knight”

“You called?”

Golden Thunder jumped “W-who said that?!”

Night materialized next to Artemis. “Hello, Golden Thunder.”

“T-the Elements of Harmony defeated you!” Golden Thunder exclaimed, backing up several feet “H-how could you be here?!”

Artemis laughed “The Elements of Harmony purified both of us before binding our souls together. This means that he never left my body . . . in fact, he can’t.”

“W-what?!” Golden Thunder shouted, shocked

“Now then,” Artemis continued “I need to take care of Jade Butterfly, but I’ve made sure that you won’t be alone.”

Night stepped forward “I’ve been told that you like nightmares. Therefore, I’ve created a special one for you.”

Taking several steps back, Golden Thunder stammered “T-that’s not necessary.”

Artemis let out a sinister chuckle “I’ll leave the two of you to your fun.” Make sure he regrets messing with that filly, Night.

Don’t worry, I will. Go take care of her.

Artemis vanished, leaving Golden Thunder alone with Night.

Artemis reappeared in Jade Butterfly’s dream. The first thing he did was change her dream. The basement was replaced by a lovely field of flowers next to a river. Walking to her side, he lay down next to her and covered her with a wing.

Jade Butterfly jumped when she felt feathers slide across her back. Opening her eyes, she looked around in shock. After a few minutes, she smiled “Pretty!”

“I’m glad you like it.” Artemis said softly “Would you like me to bring your mother into your dream?”

Turning to him, her eyes widened “C-can you really do that?” When Artemis nodded, she said “Yes, please!”

Nodding again, Artemis lit his horn.

Surprised at the sudden change, Amethyst Rose looked around for a few minutes. Noticing that Artemis was lying next to her daughter, she walked over to them. “Prince Artemis? What’s going on?”

Artemis turned to Jade Butterfly “You’re safe here. Why don’t you go play?”

Squealing in delight, she stood and ran towards the river. As she got closer to it, her eyes widened when she saw a group of butterflies. Changing her mind, she chased them through the field.

After watching her daughter for a moment, Amethyst Rose turned to Artemis. Before she could say anything, he showed her Jade Butterfly’s nightmare. When it was over, she glared at the image. “He was doing what?!”

“There’s no need to worry.” Artemis responded “As you saw, I stopped it before taking him out of her dream.”

Amethyst Rose sighed in relief “Thank you for taking care of my daughter, Prince Artemis.” I’m certainly not complaining, but I’m surprised that he did that. He has no reason to help Jade Butterfly, especially when you consider what Golden Thunder has been doing to his parents.

Artemis smiled “You’re welcome.” Jade Butterfly has nothing to do with the actions of her father or ancestor. Besides, I vowed to protect the foals of Equestria as they sleep.

Artemis stood “Make sure that you bring your daughter to court on Monday.” Seeing the look on her face, he paused. “I assume that look means that Golden Thunder will try to stop you.”

Amethyst Rose nodded “He told both of us that we’re no longer allowed to leave the house.”

Two can play that game . . . and my authority far surpasses his. “Very well.” Artemis replied “I’m going to make it an order. I expect to see you and Jade Butterfly when court opens Monday morning.”

Also standing, Amethyst Rose nodded again “Yes, Prince Artemis”

“There are other foals having nightmares, so I must leave.” Artemis told her “I’ll see both of you Monday morning.” Before she could respond, he vanished.

The next two nightmares were the usual fears of young foals. One was afraid of the dark and another was afraid that he was going to get sucked down the drain in the bathtub. After taking care of both foals, Artemis allowed himself to fall asleep.

Artemis woke to the pull of the moon. Narrowing his eyes, he growled. “I can’t believe he did that!”

Yawning, Celestia opened her eyes. “What are you talking about, Artemis?”

Celestia, Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl listened while Artemis told them about Jade Butterfly’s nightmare. All four of them had the same reaction. “What?!”

“Why is everypony shouting?”

Startled, Midnight Armor, Sundance, Artemis, Celestia and Star Swirl looked at Twilight in time to see her yawn and open her eyes.

Looking at everypony around her, Twilight asked “Will somepony answer my question, please?”

“I’m sorry, we didn’t mean to be so loud.” Artemis responded, nuzzling his mare “As for your question . . .” Touching his horn to hers, he shared his memory of Jade Butterfly’s nightmare.

Twilight just stared at him for a couple of minutes. Shaking her head, she muttered something too softly for even Artemis to hear.

“We didn’t catch that, Twilight.” Midnight Armor said “What did you say?”

“I’m sorry, Dad.” Twilight replied “I’d rather not answer that question. If you heard what I just called Golden Thunder, you’d probably tell me to wash my mouth out with soap.”

After a moment of shock, Midnight Armor laughed. “I doubt it. There’s no way that you could have called him something that I haven’t already thought of myself.”

Everyone else laughed as well.

Celestia and Artemis looked at each other before turning to their parents and Star Swirl.

“Unfortunately, we have to go.” Celestia told them

“That’s alright, we understand.” Sundance responded “Besides, I’ll be speaking with Twilight in a few minutes.”

Nodding, Artemis brought them back to Ponyville.

In Ponyville, the three of them walked onto the balcony. Artemis lowered the moon and stars before Celestia raised the sun.

Not even a minute later, Twilight heard their mother’s voice.

Good morning, Twilight.

Laughing, Twilight replied “Good morning, Mom.”

Turning to her, and laughing as well, Celestia and Artemis said “Good morning, Mother.”

Sundance laughed Good morning, Celestia and Artemis.

As they walked back into the room, Twilight relayed their mother’s message.

Celestia glanced at her brother before nuzzling her sister. “When did you come up with that plan?”

Returning her nuzzle, Twilight asked “Remember when we were discussing what we’d do if Golden Thunder found a way to pull Mom and Dad back to Equestria?”

Artemis nodded

Celestia gasped “That’s when you came up with that plan?!”

Twilight shook her head “That’s just when I got the idea.”

Eyes wide, Artemis asked “W-why didn’t you tell us?!”

“I-I’m sorry.” Twilight replied, ears drooping “It’s just that I wasn’t sure if it was possible. Besides, I had to ask the girls if they’d be willing to help and discuss my idea with Magic. Then Magic and I had to help them connect with the spirits of their Elements.”

Pulling her sister into a tight hug, Celestia whispered “We’re not angry with you, Twilight. We just wish we could have helped you.”

Artemis nodded but, before he could say anything, the three of them turned at a knock on the door. He opened it with his magic to find Spike standing in the hall.

“Everypony else is in the kitchen.” He told them “I’ve reheated a few of the apple muffins that Applejack brought over last night for you, Twi. Everyone else is eating pancakes.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nodded and followed him downstairs.

How did you hide that plan from me? Sundance asked

Twilight chewed her bottom lip. I purposely didn’t think about it during the day. I’m sure this sounds strange, but I did as much of the planning as I could in my dreams. Last night, after Artemis raised the moon and stars, he and Celestia decided to have a private discussion in her room. I used that time to speak with the girls and Magic.

Shocked, Sundance slowly replied I-I see.

In the stars, Sundance flickered “I-I can’t believe she was able to do that.”

“Are you upset that she hid that from you?” Star Swirl asked

“A little.” Sundance answered “Don’t worry, I have no intention of punishing her.”

“Agreed” Midnight Armor added “It would be extremely hard to justify giving her any form of punishment for creating a plan to protect our souls.” A few minutes later, he began to laugh.

“What’s so funny?” Sundance asked

“Once again, Twilight thought she was going to be wrong about something, but . . .” Midnight Armor couldn’t finish because he was laughing too hard.

Also laughing, Sundance finished her husband’s sentence. “As usual, she was right.”

Star Swirl flickered “I’m starting to wonder if there’s a problem that she can’t find a solution to.”

Still laughing, Sundance and Midnight Armor just briefly brightened.

In Ponyville, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike joined Velvet and Night Light at the table. When they had finished eating, they followed Spike to Rarity’s boutique.

As they walked inside, Sundance looked around in wonder. Where are you now?

Twilight smiled Rarity’s boutique. She makes clothes, like the dresses that I wore in the Crystal Empire. What you see around us are the fabrics, and other materials, that she uses to make them.

W-wow Sundance said softly

Rarity looked up “Good morning! Spike, will you turn the business sign around, please?”

“Sure” Spike replied, flipping the sign around so that it read “Closed”. Then he walked over to Rarity before turning to everypony else. “You already know that Rarity is making the clothes that everyone will be wearing to Artemis and Twi’s wedding.”

Everyone nodded

“Rarity said that she won’t allow anyone to pay for what Twilight and Artemis will be wearing.” Spike explained “However, I’ve already paid for everything else.”

Everyone gasped

Rarity smiled “I already have measurements for Twilight and Artemis. Princess Celestia, I’d like to get yours next.”

Nodding, Celestia walked to the middle of the room. “Unfortunately, your measuring area is too small for a pony of my size.”

“That’s alright, princess.” Rarity replied “The middle of the room will work just fine.” Before Celestia could say anything else, Rarity levitated over half a dozen measuring tapes.

Everyone watched as Rarity measured every part of Celestia, including her horn and tail.

Noticing everyone’s confusion, Rarity explained “If I decide to include a headpiece, I need to make sure that it will fit around her horn. As for her tail, it wouldn’t look right to have it poking out from under the dress. That means I have to make sure that the dress is long enough to cover it. To do that, I need to know how long her tail is.”

Understanding her point, everyone nodded.

“Now that I have Princess Celestia’s measurements, I must respectfully ask Twilight, Artemis and Princess Celestia to leave.” Seeing their expressions, Rarity answered their question before they could ask it. “I don’t want you to see these until they’re ready for the fitting.”

Nodding, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight turned towards the door. However, before they could leave, Rarity called out to them.

“Wait a minute, Twilight. What’s the theme for your wedding?”

Glancing over her shoulder, Twilight smiled at her friend. “Take a guess.”

After a moment, Rarity smiled as well. “How silly of me. Of course it’s going to be a Night theme. I assume that means the moon and stars will be prominently featured.”

Nuzzling Twilight, Artemis replied “That’s right.”

Everyone, including Sundance, laughed

Celestia smiled at everyone “Why don’t we plan to see everyone for dinner before we return to Canterlot?”

“That’s a good idea.” Artemis responded

Twilight giggled “We’ll see you later then.” Before anyone could say anything else, she teleported herself, Celestia and Artemis to the room she shared with Artemis.

As soon as they arrived, Twilight turned to Celestia and Artemis. However, before she could say anything, she paused when she heard Magic’s voice.

I’m sorry to interrupt your plans for the day, but I need you to come to the Tree of Harmony. Don’t worry, there isn’t anything wrong. I’ll explain more when you get here.

One more thing. I need you to come alone.

Seeing the look on Twilight’s face, Celestia exchanged glances with Artemis. “Is something wrong?”

“Magic wants me to go to the Tree of Harmony.” Twilight slowly replied “She says that there’s nothing wrong, but I need to go alone.”

Artemis’ eyes widened “Why?”

Twilight shrugged “She said that she’ll explain more when I get there.”

Artemis took a deep breath. “Promise me that, if there’s any danger, you’ll contact me immediately.”

Twilight pulled him into a kiss before replying. “I promise.”

Don’t teleport. I can’t explain why right now, but you’ll need all of your magic soon.

“Alright” Twilight said slowly “In that case, I’ll fly.”

Celestia and Artemis followed Twilight onto the balcony and watched her take flight.

Do you know what she wants? Sundance asked

I have no idea. A few minutes later, Twilight landed in front of the entrance to the Cave of Harmony. Walking inside, and stopping near the entrance, she looked at the Tree of Harmony.

Sundance gasped Is that what the Elements of Harmony look like now? When a couple of minutes went by, but Twilight didn’t respond, she asked. Twilight?

Twilight wasn’t intentionally ignoring Sundance. Instead, she had no idea that her mother had spoken. After a few minutes of silence, she tilted her head. I thought Mom would have asked a question by now. Is something wrong with her spell?

Sundance gasped Twilight can’t hear me?! She instantly checked her spell. There’s nothing wrong with the spell or our connection. What’s going on?! Deciding to try again, she spoke a little louder. Twilight?

In the stars, Sundance turned to her husband. “I can hear, and see, what goes on around her. However, she can’t hear me.”

“That’s a problem.” Midnight Armor replied, worried

“Perhaps you should try speaking louder.” Star Swirl commented “She is in a cave.”

“It’s extremely unlikely,” Sundance said slowly “but I suppose it’s possible that the roof of the cave is blocking my voice.” She paused thoughtfully “How loud do you think I should get, Midnight?”

Midnight Armor thought for a moment. “Start at normal speaking levels and slowly work your way up to the Royal Voice.”

Sundance gasped “Do you have any idea how much pain that’s going to cause her?! I don’t want to hurt our daughter, Midnight!”

“I know, Honey.” He said softly “I really hope you don’t need to use the Royal Voice, but it might come to that. We need to reestablish communication between the two of you. What if something happens? She may need your advice . . . or you may need to protect her.”

“I suppose you’re right.” Sundance replied, reluctantly doing as her husband suggested. She even tried adding magic to her voice. Unfortunately, Twilight didn’t respond to anything . . . even the Royal Voice.

In the Cave of Harmony, Magic shuddered Harmony, she’s powerful. I really hope Sundance doesn’t do that again.

Magic paused W-wait a minute. When I release my spell, my bearer is going to hear what Sundance just did. She gasped In fact, Twilight Sparkle is going to hear her mother yelling inside her head! H-her head is going to feel like Tartarus exploded!

She shuddered again Unfortunately, there isn’t anything I can do to stop it. I’ll just have to warn her before I release my spell. For now, I’d better get on with the reason I called her here.

Thank you for coming so quickly.

Don’t worry, the spell that Sundance cast on you is working just fine. She can still hear and see what goes on around you. However, I’m blocking any messages from her because I don’t want you to be distracted. I assure you that this is a temporary measure and promise that I will release my spell when you’ve completed your task.

Twilight’s eyes widened “You’re not letting me hear Mom’s voice because you think she’ll distract me?!”

What?! Sundance asked, shocked What is it that Magic doesn’t want me to distract Twilight from?!

Twilight tilted her head “You said that Mom can still hear me, right?”

Yes

“She’s probably really worried right now.” Twilight said slowly “Is it alright if I explain what you’ve done?”

Of course. Magic instantly replied I can’t believe I didn’t think of that. She gasped again Sundance probably wouldn’t have done that if I’d explained what my spell was going to do before I cast it.

Oh no. T-this means that it’s my fault that my bearer will be in pain later.

Sundance laughed I should have known that Twilight would do this.

“As you just heard, I can’t hear you because of whatever spell Magic cast. Don’t worry, she promised that she’ll release her spell as soon as I complete the task that she has for me.”

Sundance sighed in relief. Good. For now, I’ll just watch what Twilight does. After a couple of minutes, she continued. Actually, I might be able to figure out what spell Magic used.

Magic froze when she felt Sundance’s magic again. What is she doing this time? After a minute, she sighed in relief. I see. She wants to know what spell I used. I don’t have a problem with that, as long as she doesn’t try to terminate it.

Sundance carefully tested Magic’s spell. Once she realized which one it was, she took a few minutes to remember exactly what it did.

In the stars, Sundance gasped, suddenly horrified. “Oh no.”

“What’s wrong?” Midnight Armor asked

“I-I know what spell Magic used.” Sundance whispered “More importantly, I know what’s going to happen to Twilight.”

Worried, Midnight Armor asked “What are you talking about?”

“W-we already know that her spell blocks any communication from me to Twilight.” Sundance shakily explained “It does this by creating an unbreakable wall of magic in the line of communication from me to Twilight. When Magic releases her spell, that wall will suddenly vanish. As soon as it does, Twilight will hear everything that I’ve said to her since Magic cast her spell.”

Somewhere between shocked and horrified, Midnight Armor echoed his wife. “Oh no.”

Concerned, Star Swirl asked “What am I missing?”

“Twilight is going to hear me yelling, in the Royal Voice, inside her head.” Sundance said softly

Shocked, Star Swirl responded “S-she’s going to have a terrible headache.”

“That’s putting it mildly.” Midnight Armor said quietly “And I’m the one who told Sundance to do it.”

“I didn’t have to listen to you, Midnight.” Sundance whispered

Star Swirl’s star dimmed “I’m the one who suggested that you speak louder.”

In the Cave of Harmony, satisfied that Sundance wasn’t going to try to break her spell again, Magic returned her attention to Twilight.

Please come closer to the Tree of Harmony.

Nodding, Twilight walked forward until she was standing right in front of the Tree of Harmony. “What’s going on, Magic?”

In the stars, Sundance and Midnight Armor turned to each other.

“Did you hear that?” Sundance asked

“Yes.” Midnight Armor replied “We should tell our children this time.” Before Sundance could respond, he turned to Star Swirl. “Please send a message to Artemis. Tell him that he and Celestia need to come here immediately.”

“Please make sure that you also tell him not to bring Twilight, or contact her at all.” Sundance added Actually, I don’t think Artemis can contact Twilight right now. It’s quite likely that Magic is blocking all communication to Twilight. Additionally, she might have sealed the cave so that nopony else can enter.

If I’m right, whatever task she has for Twilight must be very important. I hope it’s not another problem.

Surprised, Star Swirl spoke slowly “I can do that.” He paused “You are going to explain what’s going on, right?”

Sundance briefly brightened “We’ll tell you what we know when Celestia and Artemis get here.”

“Very well” Star Swirl responded. After gathering the necessary magic, he sent a message to Artemis.

In Ponyville, Celestia and Artemis were looking up at the ceiling of Twilight and Artemis’ room when Star Swirl’s message appeared in front of Artemis.

Your parents want you and Celestia to come to their stars immediately. Do not contact Twilight, or bring her with you. I’m not sure what’s going on, but your parents have promised to explain it when both of you get here.

Celestia and Artemis read the message several times before it faded. Thoroughly confused, they looked at each other for a moment before shrugging. Without a word, Artemis brought both of them to their parents’ stars.

In the stars, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl saw a flash of moonlight and turned to see that Celestia and Artemis were standing in front of them.

Taking a couple of steps forward, Celestia asked. “What’s going on?”

“And why did you tell me not to bring Twilight?” Artemis added, joining his sister

Sundance and Midnight Armor explained what had happened in the time since Twilight arrived in the Cave of Harmony. They watched as both of their older children suddenly sat down.

Celestia shuddered “S-she’s going to be in a lot of pain when Magic cancels that spell.”

“A-and we won’t be able to give her any medicine.” Artemis continued, shuddering as well

“I know” Sundance said softly, her star dimming “I-I wasn’t trying to hurt her, I just-”

“It’s alright, Mother.” Celestia interrupted “We understand. You didn’t know what Magic had done and were just trying to get through to Twilight.” Taking a deep breath, she continued “We need to figure out a way to ease the pain that she’ll be in.”

Artemis thought for a moment. “The last time she had a bad headache, I warmed the muscles in her head. I made sure to focus on the ones around her horn. She said that helped.”

“That’s what you did?” Midnight Armor asked “I thought you-”

“You’re right, Father.” Artemis quickly replied “That’s what I did next.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “I see. Both were good ideas.”

Artemis turned to his sister “We’ll need to work together to help her.”

Celestia nodded to Artemis before turning back to their parents. “I doubt that’s the only reason you called us here.”

Sundance briefly brightened “You’re right, Celestia. There’s something that your father and I haven’t told either of you. We’re not sure why, but we can hear anything that’s said around the Tree of Harmony.”

Celestia and Artemis gasped “Really?!”

Sundance and Midnight Armor briefly brightened

“The most recent time, aside from today, was when Twilight returned to Elements to the Tree of Harmony.” Midnight Armor explained “We couldn’t see anything, so we had no idea what was going on. Additionally, we hadn’t met Twilight yet, so we didn’t recognize her voice.”

Celestia tilted her head “You said “aside from today”, Father?”

Sundance briefly brightened again “That’s right. Your father and I can hear Twilight speaking right now. Before you say anything, it has nothing to do with my spell. Instead, it sounds like she’s standing right next to us.” Well, that’s not entirely accurate. It actually sounds like she’s almost directly above us. Unfortunately, there isn’t a way to tell them that without them thinking that I’ve lost my mind.

Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl gasped

Turning to Star Swirl, Sundance asked. “Is it possible to cast your spell so that Celestia and Artemis can watch what Twilight does?”

Surprised, Star Swirl replied “I’ve never tried to use my spell like that, but it’s worth a try. Give me a moment.” I’ll use some of the extra magic that Twilight gave me the other night. “This will be a little different than how it looks for us. Even so, you should be seeing something momentarily.”

Celestia and Artemis gasped when a sphere of magic appeared in front of them. Looking inside it, they saw Twilight standing in front of the Tree of Harmony.

In the Cave of Harmony, Twilight tilted her head. “Magic?”

I’m here, Twilight Sparkle.

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “Please call me Twilight. Hearing you constantly use my full name is getting annoying.”

Magic laughed Very well.

Unfortunately, I’m not allowed to tell you exactly what’s going on. However, I CAN tell you that you must carefully examine your surroundings.

Twilight blinked “You want me to carefully examine the Cave of Harmony?”

That’s right.

“Okay” Twilight slowly replied, looking around her “I don’t see anything unusual.” She sent a wave of magic through the cave. “Still nothing.” She tilted her head “Well, that was only above ground.” Scanning the stone under her hooves, she said “Nothing unusual there either.”

Magic didn’t respond. Come on, Twilight. You have to figure this out for yourself. She watched Twilight slowly turn to face the Tree of Harmony again.

“How close to the Tree of Harmony am I allowed to scan?” Twilight hesitantly asked

You are completely unrestricted.

Surprised, Twilight just stared at the Tree of Harmony for a couple of minutes. Then she shrugged. “Alright. In that case, I’ll scan the Tree of Harmony as well.” Carefully scanning the part she could see, she frowned. “Nothing.” She thought for a moment before shrugging again. “I probably won’t find anything but, just to make sure that I cover everything, I’ll scan the roots of the Tree of Harmony as well.”

Magic struggled to contain her excitement. That’s exactly what I want you to do, Twilight.

Unaware of this, Twilight scanned the roots of the Tree of Harmony. “Wow. This root system is much larger than I expected a tree of that size to have. Wait. What’s that?” Closing her eyes, she focused her magic. “That’s weird. It looks like the roots of the Tree of Harmony are wrapped around a large sphere of magic.”

In the stars, Celestia and Artemis looked at each other in confusion. After a moment, both of them asked the same thing. “A sphere of magic?”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl were just as surprised.

“I have no idea why that would be there.” Sundance commented

Flickering, Midnight Armor remarked “Neither do I.”

Shrugging, Celestia and Artemis turned their attention back to what Twilight was doing.

In the Cave of Harmony, Twilight asked “Why is there a sphere of magic under the Tree of Harmony?” When Magic didn’t answer, she sighed “I guess I’ll have to figure it out myself.”

Twilight reexamined the results of her scan. “I used the most powerful ground-penetrating scan I know, but it wasn’t able to tell me anything specific about the sphere of magic. That means that I have to go down there.” She hesitated “Am I allowed to do that?”

You are completely unrestricted.

“Fine.” Twilight replied, gathering her magic

Surprised, Magic watched her bearer slowly sink into the ground as if it was made of quicksand instead of stone. How did she do that?

Once she was sure she was completely underground, Twilight glanced around. Not seeing anything, she commented. “It’s possible that I got turned around a little. I need to figure out which direction the Tree of Harmony is in.”

Magic struggled not to laugh. I can help with that.

Twilight was surprised when she saw a flash of magic off to the right. Instantly recognizing it, she giggled. “Thanks, Magic.” She must really want me to figure this out. Walking in the direction that Magic had indicated, she slowly began to make out the roots of the Tree of Harmony.

As she got closer, she saw the true size of the sphere of magic. Eyes wide, she just stared at it for a minute. “It’s as big as a house!” Looking through the pale blue surface, she gasped. “There’s something inside the sphere of magic! No, two things.” Chewing her lip again, she asked “Am I allowed to go inside?”

You are completely unrestricted.

Twilight sighed “Maybe I should stop asking.” Shaking her head, she began to walk around the sphere of magic. “What’s the best way to get inside? It has some sort of skin on the surface, so walking through it isn’t a good idea. Teleporting isn’t a good idea either because-” She suddenly stopped walking, and speaking. Instead, she just stared at the vertical line of magic that had appeared in front of her.

Twilight watched this gradually create an opening in the sphere of magic. “That’s not Magic’s power. Somepony else wants me to go inside.”

Her eyed widened when the roots around her began to glow. “T-the Tree of Harmony wants me to go into the sphere of magic?!”

The roots glowed again

“I-I’ll take that as a yes.” Twilight slowly replied, walking through the opening. Glancing over her shoulder, she watched it close behind her. If things get bad, I can always teleport out. I hope.

She began to walk towards the two objects that she’d seen earlier. As she got a little closer, she gasped “They’re not objects, they’re ponies!”

When she got close enough to identify them, her eyes grew to the size of dinner plates. Stopping in her tracks, she just stared at them for several minutes. Eventually, she managed to whisper two words. “No way”

Sundance and Midnight Armor were floating in a small sphere of magic. This seemed to float in the center of the larger one. Neither of them turned towards her, or opened their eyes. In fact, it was almost as if they didn’t even know that she was there.

Sundance was too stunned to think, let alone speak. Instead, she just stared at what appeared to be the bodies of herself and her husband. After a couple of minutes, she managed to shake herself from her shock enough to notice that Twilight had started walking again.

Slowly walking around her parents, Twilight examined them carefully. Reaching through the smaller sphere of magic, she nuzzled both of them. “T-they’re not illusions. T-these really are Mom and Dad’s bodies.” This is really strange. If I didn’t know better, I’d swear that Mom and Dad weren’t dead. I-I mean, it looks like they’re just sleeping.

Twilight gasped when she realized what she’d just thought. Even though she knew that she wouldn’t be able to hear Sundance’s response, she quickly said. I’m sorry, Mom.

Sundance wasn’t offended at all. Twilight has a good point. Midnight and I died fifteen hundred years ago. This means that there shouldn’t be anything left of our bodies. Why does it look like we could wake up at any moment?

By this point, Twilight was in front of her parents again. Lost in thought, she accidentally bumped into Sundance’s chest. Realizing what she’d just done, she automatically said I’m sorry, Mom.

Sundance laughed I don’t have a problem with that. Instead, I wish I could move my body because I’d love to really hug her.

Twilight suddenly froze T-that felt like . . . N-no, that can’t be right.

Sundance watched Twilight place an ear to her chest and listen for a few minutes. Why did she do that? Confused, she looked on as her youngest did the same thing to her father. Why does she look so shocked?

Suddenly sitting down, Twilight whispered “I-it’s so soft that, if I hadn’t bumped into Mom like that, I probably wouldn’t have noticed it.”

“A-as impossible as this sounds, Mom and Dad are breathing . . . and their hearts are beating. That means . . .” Eyes wide, she gasped again “T-they’re alive!”

In the stars, Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl stared at each other in stunned silence. After a couple of minutes, all of them shouted the same thing.

“WHAT?!”

Not bothering to wipe the tears from her eyes, Celestia asked “W-what does this mean?!”

Eyes wide, Artemis shook his head “I-I’m not sure.” S-should I really believe what I just heard?!

Sundance turned to her husband. “H-how is this possible?!”

“I-it shouldn’t be possible at all!” Midnight Armor answered, voice shaking “W-we used the last of our magic, remember?!”

Everyone’s attention was drawn back to the Cave of Harmony when Twilight raised her voice. “What’s going on, Magic?!”

“That’s a very good question.” Star Swirl remarked

Sundance and Midnight Armor briefly brightened while Celestia and Artemis nodded.

“Knowing Twilight,” Celestia said slowly “she’s not going to stop until she finds the answer.” Glancing at her brother, she continued “And we’re going to help her.”

Still staring at the bodies of their parents, Artemis just nodded.

Sundance and Midnight Armor immediately replied “Good”

In the Cave of Harmony, Twilight listened for several minutes. “I guess Magic wants me to discover the answer to that myself.” She thought for a few minutes. “Am I allowed to cast spells on Mom and Dad?”

You are completely unrestricted.

Twilight rolled her eyes “Why am I not surprised?” Standing, she walked in front of her parents before turning to face them. “Unfortunately, none of the spells that I know are thorough enough to give me the answers that I want.” She shook her head “That just means I need to create one that will give me the information that I need.”

Everyone watched Twilight create, and carefully test, her new spell. Satisfied, she took a deep breath. “This is going to take a lot of magic, but I don’t care. I can rest later.” She cast her new spell on both of her parents before sitting down again.

Knowing that Sundance was listening, she explained “The spell that I just cast on you and Dad is a combination of a diagnostic spell and a magic scan. I did this because . . . well, I want to know what’s going on. I asked Magic, but she didn’t answer me.”

Curious, Sundance examined Twilight’s spell. Extremely impressed, she commented I didn’t know that it was possible to create a spell like that.

Twilight’s magic scan isn’t as in-depth as mine, but that doesn’t surprise me. After all, I have centuries of experience. What does surprise me is the fact that it’s far more detailed than a pony of her age and experience should be able to create.

Twilight tilted her head “I wonder how Mom and Dad’s bodies got down here. I mean, I highly doubt that Celestia and Artemis did this. Besides, if they knew about this, they would have told me about it by now.” She gasped when she felt a sudden surge of magic before her eyes turned white.

Worried, Sundance waited for her youngest to do, or say, something. Magic won’t hurt Twilight . . . I hope.

Fifteen minutes later, Twilight shook her head before blinking several times. “W-where did that come from? More importantly, did the events in that vision really happen?”

The roots of the Tree of Harmony began to glow again.

Twilight turned to the nearest one. “That’s happened several times today. I wonder why it’s doing that.” She thought for a few minutes. “The Elements of Harmony have spirits, so I guess it’s possible that the Tree of Harmony has one as well. If so, that may be the spirit of the Tree of Harmony’s way of communicating with me.”

The roots of the Tree of Harmony glowed again, much brighter this time.

Surprised, Twilight hesitantly said “One flash for yes and two flashes for no. Was I right?”

The roots flashed once.

“O-okay.” Twilight slowly responded “What do you want me to call you?”

She says that she’d like you to call her Harmony.

I have no idea what’s going on, but it’s probably best if I just go with it. Maybe I’ll get some answers soon. “Are you the one who sent me that vision, Harmony?”

The roots flashed once.

“A-alright” Twilight replied “I highly doubt that Harmony sent me a false vision.” She tilted her head. “I’m sure that Mom and Dad are curious. Is it alright if I describe the vision for them?”

Harmony asked me to tell you that she doesn’t have a problem with you doing that. She also asked me to tell you that Celestia and Artemis are in the stars with your parents and Star Swirl. All five of them are aware of what you’ve done, and discovered, so far.

However, Harmony says that you can’t tell anyone else yet.

Nodding, Twilight lay down in front of her parents. Why did Harmony say that I can’t tell anyone else yet? Does this mean that she wants me to tell someone else? If so, who else needs to know? And when should I tell them? She shrugged I doubt Magic will tell me now, so I’ll have to ask about that later.

Magic struggled to suppress her laughter I should have known that she would catch that.

Turning her attention to her family and Star Swirl, Twilight said. “There was a lot in that vision, so it’s going to take a while to explain. Harmony says that I can tell the five of you, but we have to keep it a secret from everyone else.”

“It’s probably going to be a few minutes before I get the results of my spell.” Twilight added “While I wait, I’ll describe the vision I just saw.”

In the stars, Celestia raised an eyebrow. “The five of us?”

Artemis shrugged “Perhaps Magic, or Harmony, told her that we’re here with Mother, Father and Star Swirl.”

Seeing his point, Celestia nodded “You’re probably right.”

Celestia and Artemis lay down on the cloud that Artemis created under them. Then they, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl turned their attention back to Twilight.

A few minutes later, Twilight hesitantly said “This begins towards the end of that battle, so I know that it’s going to bring back unpleasant memories for four of you. I’m sorry, but this is important.”

Midnight Armor flickered “She’s worried that?”

“I’m not surprised.” Sundance said softly “She knows that we don’t like to discuss that topic.” She paused “I know we said that we didn’t want to discuss those events for a couple of centuries, but I’m willing to make an exception for this.”

“Same here” Midnight Armor replied “Twilight’s right. This is important . . . especially if her vision explained why our bodies appear to be alive.”

Celestia and Artemis nodded

Celestia, Artemis, Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl turned their attention back to Twilight.

“When both of you used the last of your magic, your bodies began to glow.” Twilight began “I noticed that when I saw Mom’s memory, but thought it meant that the last of your magic was leaving your bodies. According the vision, it actually meant that Harmony had placed a small amount of magic in your bodies. However, she made sure that you couldn’t use it.”

Everypony gasped

“That was just enough magic to keep both of you alive.” Twilight continued “Nopony realized this because you fell to the ground as soon as the shield shattered. As a result, everypony thought you were dead. In reality, both of you fell to the ground because most of your magic had left your bodies so quickly that you had gone into shock. Even though you were still alive, both of you were close enough to death that the Chimera Anima was able to pull your souls from your bodies.”

Twilight tilted her head “I don’t think she did this on purpose, but the shield that Celestia used to protect your bodies was opaque. That meant nopony could see your bodies. Harmony took the opportunity to cast a Stasis Spell on both of you before you took what would have been your final breaths.”

After a couple of minutes, Twilight hesitantly added “I don’t know why, but Celestia and Artemis buried both of you just inside the Cave of Harmony.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl gasped

Watching Twilight suddenly close her eyes, Sundance focused her attention on her youngest. After a moment, she said “She’s looking at the results of her spell. That means we should have a few minutes.”

“Good.” Midnight Armor responded

Turning to Celestia and Artemis, Sundance asked “Why did you do that?”

Celestia bowed her head “I-I’m sorry, Mother. Neither of us thought to scan your bodies, so we didn’t know that you were still alive.”

“That’s not what your mother was asking.” Midnight Armor replied “Why did you chose that location to bury us?”

“After I placed your souls in the Night Sky, Celestia and I turned our attention to the citizens of Equestria.” Artemis responded “They had two very different ideas of what we should do with your bodies. Half of the population wanted us to create a memorial and bury you near the castle. The other half wanted us to make another Chimera Anima and allow it to eat your bodies.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl gasped

Surprising both of his parents, Artemis growled. “They even demanded that I allow it to eat your souls.”

For a moment, Sundance and Midnight Armor were too shocked to speak. When they regained their voices, both of them shouted “What?!”

“They thought that would allow both of you to keep protecting the kingdom.” Celestia explained “Naturally, Artemis and I immediately said “No”. However, we liked the memorial idea. In fact, we quickly created the plans and were about to start building it.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl were surprised when she growled as well.

“That’s when we found out that a large group of ponies was planning to steal your bodies and make a Chimera Anima themselves.” She continued “To avoid letting them get their hooves on the two of you, we buried you in the one place that we knew nopony would look.”

Artemis nodded “However, as Twilight said, we buried both of you just inside the entrance of the cave. I have no idea how your bodies ended up under the Tree of Harmony.”

Celestia shook her head “I don’t either.”

“This worked out perfectly.” Sundance commented “Twilight just thought that she should get back to the explanation.” She laughed “In fact, she thinks I’m angry with her for taking so long.”

Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl laughed as well.

“Sorry about that.” Twilight said “The results actually came at a good time because they answered some of my questions.”

She listened for a moment before laughing. “Magic says that Harmony was very happy when Celestia and Artemis basically brought the two of you right to her.”

Celestia, Artemis, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl laughed as well.

“Anyway,” Twilight continued “after Celestia and Artemis left the cave, Harmony moved your bodies to their current locations. Then she, and the spirits of the Elements, created the spheres of magic around you. Once they were finished, Harmony released the Stasis Spell before quickly casting a Life Support Spell on both of you. That’s why both of you are breathing and have heartbeats . . . even though your souls aren’t in your bodies.”

“It would require a very powerful Life Support Spell to keep bodies alive without their souls.” Sundance commented, turning to her husband “In fact, I’m certain that not even our children would be able to accomplish that.”

“You’re right.” Midnight Armor agreed “However, because it was done by the Spirit of the Tree of Harmony, the magic requirement probably wasn’t a problem.”

“That’s true.” Sundance replied “But there’s something that confuses me. Harmony must have a very good reason to expend the kind of power necessary to keep our bodies alive . . . especially over fifteen hundred years. I’d really like to know what that reason is.”

Everypony nodded, or briefly brightened, before returning their attention to Twilight. They looked on as she listened to Magic for a few minutes. “Artemis kept your souls alive while Harmony did the same for your bodies.” She smiled “According to Harmony, this means that neither of you are dead. You’re just living a little differently than everyone else.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl gasped.

In the Cave of Harmony, Twilight tilted her head. I don’t think they’re going to complain, but Mom, Dad, Celestia and Artemis probably want to know why Harmony did all of that.

Don’t you want to know as well?

Of course! Twilight immediately replied I didn’t include myself in that list because they’re the ones who’ve really been affected by Harmony’s actions.

Magic giggled I see. To answer your question, Harmony has a plan for your parents. Before you ask, it does not include either of them dying. In fact . . .

In the stars, Midnight Armor, Artemis, Celestia and Star Swirl turned to Sundance.

“I can hear Twilight’s half of the conversation.” Sundance commented, her star flickering “Unfortunately, it’s not telling me anything. Perhaps I can-” She was cut off by a startled shout from Twilight.

“That’s what Harmony has planned?!”

Concerned, everyone turned their attention back to what was going on in the Cave of Harmony.

After thinking for a couple of minutes, Twilight gasped “That’s why you’ve been helping me protect Mom and Dad’s souls, isn’t it? I-if that plan is going to work, Harmony needs their souls and their bodies to be alive.”

Curious, Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl watched Twilight listen to Magic.

“N-not at all.” Twilight stammered “I-I don’t think they will either.” She listened for a moment before narrowing her eyes. “After telling me that, you’re saying that I can’t tell them?!”

Confused, everyone looked at each other for a minute before turning back to Twilight.

She listened for a few more minutes. “Fine. How long do I have to wait before I can tell them about Harmony’s plan?” After another minute or so, Twilight frowned. “I don’t like this, but I’ll do as you’ve asked.”

Looking at the expression on her sister’s face, Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Twilight really doesn’t like whatever Magic just told her.”

“You’re right.” Sundance said slowly “Magic is blocking me from hearing some of Twilight’s thoughts, but I can still hear most of them.”

Curious, Artemis asked “What is she thinking?”

“She did not like being told that she can’t tell us about whatever they’re discussing.” Sundance answered “Additionally, Twilight isn’t happy that Magic won’t give her a specific answer to her question. Apparently, Magic simply told her that she’ll be allowed to tell us at some point this year.”

“No wonder Twilight’s annoyed.” Artemis remarked

Midnight Armor flickered “If I hadn’t seen Twilight angry a few days ago, I’d have trouble believing that she isn’t angry now.”

Sundance giggled “Twilight doesn’t know it, but she scared Star Swirl.”

If Star Swirl was in his pony form, his face would have been bright red. “No, she didn’t!”

“You said that she’s scarier than Artemis.” Midnight Armor reminded him, chuckling

“She was!” Star Swirl instantly replied “I’ve never seen Artemis or Celestia that angry!”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis laughed

In the Cave of Harmony, Twilight had been silent for a couple of minutes. Finally, she said “There’s something I’d like to ask you, Magic.”

Of course.

“Why did you call me here?” Twilight asked “I’m very glad you did. It's just that I don't understand why you forced me to discover this now.”

That’s a very good question. Sundance commented

There are several answers to that question, but the main one is that Harmony and I need your help.

Shocked, Twilight asked “T-the two of you need my help?!”

Sundance was just as shocked. That’s . . . unexpected.

Magic laughed at the expression on her bearer’s face. Yes, Twilight.

Harmony, Laughter, Generosity, Honesty, Loyalty, Kindness and I have done everything that we can. However, for our plan to work, there are a couple of spells that we need. Unfortunately, neither of them currently exist. After watching you create your spells, we knew that you would be able to help us.

“I see.” Twilight said slowly “I’ll create the spells you need . . . as long as they won’t hurt Mom and Dad.” She glanced at Sundance and Midnight Armor’s bodies. “They’ve been through enough of that.”

Not sure what to say, Sundance just stared at her youngest.

Thank you, Twilight. I promise, we have no intention of harming either of them.

“Very well.” Twilight responded “Let’s start with the first spell. What do you want it to do?”

In the stars, Sundance and Midnight Armor turned to each other.

Sundance’s star flickered “I’m not sure which surprises me more. The fact that Magic and Harmony need her help . . .”

“Or that Twilight only agreed to create the spells they need after they assured her that we wouldn’t be harmed.” Midnight Armor finished, flickering as well

Celestia smiled “The second part doesn’t surprise me.”

Surprised, Sundance and Midnight Armor turned to their eldest. “Why not?”

Celestia’s smile widened “She’s very protective over her friends and family.”

Before Sundance and Midnight Armor could respond, they heard Twilight’s voice. Everypony turned their attention to what she was saying.

“You want me to create a spell that will move Mom and Dad’s bodies?” Twilight asked, clearly confused “Why would you want me to move them?”

“Good question.” Midnight Armor remarked

They watched as Twilight listened to Magic.

“I see.” Twilight said slowly “We have to assume that Golden Thunder might discover that their bodies are here. You want me to be able to move them to a safer location if he does.”

Celestia took a deep breath “I didn’t think about that.”

“I didn’t either.” Sundance said softly “In that case, having Twilight create such a spell is a good idea.”

Twilight listened for a few more minutes. “All right. I understand what you want this spell to do.”

Thirty minutes later

Twilight spread her wings, sighing in pleasure when a joint popped, before folding them again. “The spell is ready. If we need to move them, Celestia, Artemis and I will get everything ready. Then I’ll cast the spell that I just created.”

After listening for a moment, she shook her head. “Harmony doesn’t need to worry. I made sure that my spell won’t interrupt her Life Support Spell.” After listening for another minute, Twilight replied “I’ll get to that in a minute. There’s something else that I need to do, and I want to do it before I forget.” Before anyone could ask, she cast a spell on her parents’ bodies.

Everyone watched as Sundance and Midnight Armor’s bodies briefly glowed with Twilight’s magenta magic before returning to normal.

Twilight stood and stretched before asking her next question. “Now that that’s done, what do you want the second spell to do?”

The answer turned out to be a lengthy one. Five minutes later, Twilight gasped in surprise. Taking a deep breath, she slowly replied “I-I’ll definitely create that spell as well, but I won’t be able to do so until next week.”

Curious, Artemis asked “Why does she need to wait that long?”

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl looked on as Magic apparently asked the same thing.

Twilight raised an eyebrow “Harmony doesn’t want anypony else to know about what she has planned. That means I should to wait until Mom, Dad and Star Swirl can’t hear or see what I’m doing. Besides, I need to do some research before I’ll be able to create an effective spell.”

Not sure what to say, Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl just looked at each other for a few minutes. However, before any of them could say anything, they heard Twilight’s voice again.

In the Cave of Harmony, Twilight had spent the last few minutes listening to Magic. Surprised, she asked “You’re not going to release your spell until I join everyone in the stars?”

That’s right. You’ll understand why soon.

Twilight raised an eyebrow, but nodded “Is it alright if I teleport from here, or do I need to return to the surface first?”

You can teleport from your current location.

“Alright.” Twilight looked at her parents’ bodies for a moment before closing her eyes and using the link created by the Linking Spell to teleport to Artemis’ side.

In the stars, Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl watched Twilight appear between Artemis and Celestia.

Now that Twilight’s here with us, there’s no point in keeping my spell active. Star Swirl released his spell.

Opening her eyes, Twilight smiled at the stars of their parents and Star Swirl, nuzzled Celestia and kissed Artemis before laying down where she stood. “Alright, Magic.”

Magic made sure that everypony could hear her. "Before I release my spell, I need to apologize."

Confused, Twilight asked “For what?”

"I didn’t tell you that I was going to block communications from Sundance to you. As a result, your mother was worried enough that she tried to break my spell."

“How did Mom try to break your spell?” Twilight hesitantly asked “And what does that have to do with why you’re apologizing?”

Before Magic could answer the question, Celestia touched her horn to her sister’s and shared her memory of their parents’ explanation of what their mother had done.

Eyes wide, Twilight whispered “Oh no” I don’t blame Mom for doing that, but that’s going to hurt . . . a lot.

Magic sighed "I should have told you what I was going to do before I did it. I have no doubt that you would have immediately told Sundance. That means she wouldn’t have felt the need to take such a drastic measure."

Twilight took a deep breath “I might as well get it over with.” Burying her face in Artemis’ shoulder, she said. Go ahead, Magic.

Very well. Magic reluctantly replied I am so sorry, Twilight. Then she released her spell.

Almost immediately, Twilight heard Sundance’s voice. The first thing she heard was Sundance asking about the Elements of Harmony. Then she heard her mother say her name. Several times. Each repetition was a little louder. She cringed when she noticed that some of them were mixed with magic. T-that wasn’t so bad.

Then she heard the last three. Twilight? TWILIGHT? TWILIGHT?

Chapter 64

Magic, Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl shuddered when Twilight’s scream of pain echoed among the stars. No one was surprised to see that her entire body was shaking.

Celestia and Artemis reacted instantly. Artemis used his magic to send waves of warmth through the muscles in Twilight’s head, especially around her horn. Celestia used the power of the sun to do the same thing. Both of them continued until Twilight stopped shaking.

Even then, Twilight didn’t move. Instead, she waited for her brain to restart. Several minutes later, she managed to get herself together enough for thoughts to form.

Sundance wasn’t surprised when Twilight’s first thought was T-that really hurt. Using the connection created by her spell, and making sure to speak softly, she asked. Can you hear me, Twilight?

Y-yes, Mom. Twilight quietly replied

Sundance sighed in relief. Good. Don’t move for a moment. I know a spell that will take care of any remaining pain. Don’t worry, it’s safe. I created it when I was pregnant with Celestia and cast it on myself fairly often during both of my pregnancies.

Alright. Twilight responded

Sundance’s star brightened as she focused her magic before casting her spell on Twilight.

Twilight sighed in relief when the last of her pain faded. Finally lifting her head, she lay it on Artemis’ shoulder “Thanks, Mom.”

Sundance’s star dimmed I’m the one who caused your pain, Twilight. Of course I was going to do whatever I could to alleviate it. After a moment, she continued. I don’t want to risk hurting you again. Therefore, I’m going to cancel my spell.

Twilight immediately replied No!

Surprised, Sundance asked W-what?

I don’t want you to cancel that spell, Mom. Twilight answered

B-but I just- Sundance stammered

Cutting their mother off, Twilight said According to Celestia’s memory, you did that because you were worried when you realized that I couldn’t hear you. I don’t blame you for that. She paused Besides, I like speaking with you.

After a moment of stunned silence, Sundance responded Very well. I won’t cancel the spell.

Midnight Armor and Star Swirl’s stars brightened considerably. Noticing this, Celestia and Artemis glanced at each other for a moment before shrugging.

Laughing softly, Magic whispered Thank goodness. I’ll be speaking with you soon, Twilight. For now, you should spend time with your family.

Before Twilight could respond, Celestia nuzzled her sister. “How do you feel?”

Twilight returned her sister’s nuzzle. “Tired, but I’m not in any pain.”

Celestia sighed in relief “Good”

Midnight Armor laughed “I’d be surprised if you weren’t tired, Twilight.”

Celestia and Artemis nodded while Sundance and Star Swirl briefly brightened.

Draping a wing over his mare, Artemis asked “Do you want to take a nap?”

“That depends.” Twilight answered “What time is it?”

Celestia checked the sun’s position in the sky. “We need to meet Spike, your parents and the girls in a little over an hour.”

Eyes wide, Twilight stared at her sister. “I was down there all day?!” When Celestia nodded, Twilight sighed “That means taking a nap is a bad idea. I’ll just go to bed early tonight.”

Smiling, Celestia nuzzled her sister again “Good idea.”

Midnight Armor’s star suddenly brightened considerably.

Noticing this, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight’s eyes widened. Not sure what to say, they just stared at his star.

Seeing the expressions on Celestia, Artemis and Twilight’s faces, Sundance turned to her husband. “You’re scaring our children, Midnight.”

Midnight Armor immediately lowered the brightness of his star. “I’m sorry. I was just thinking about everything that happened today.” He turned his attention to his youngest. “Don’t worry, Twilight. We know that there are things that you aren’t allowed to tell us yet.”

Sundance briefly brightened “Therefore, we won’t demand that you answer our questions now. All we ask is that you tell us when you can.”

Sighing in relief, Twilight nodded “I promise”

Midnight Armor’s star brightened “Thank you.” After thinking for a moment, he continued “I’d like to discuss what you did today. I-” Not sure how to say what he was thinking, he turned to his wife.

Knowing what her husband wanted to say, Sundance picked up where he left off. “When you discovered that Magic was blocking you from hearing my voice, you immediately told me what was going on.”

“Of course I did!” Twilight responded

Sundance giggled “Thank you. You were right, your father and I were very worried when we noticed that you couldn’t hear me.” After thinking for a moment, she continued “I don’t blame you for thinking that our bodies were illusions. In fact, I thought the same thing. As for you bumping into me-”

Twilight instantly turned bright red “I-I didn’t mean to do that, I promise!”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl began to laugh.

When she was calm enough to speak, Sundance responded “It’s alright, Twilight. I don’t mind at all. Especially since it allowed you to notice that your father and I are still breathing.”

Twilight sighed in relief

“I’m very impressed with the first spell you created.” Sundance commented

Curious, Twilight asked “Why?”

Sundance’s star brightened “I didn’t know that it was possible to combine a diagnostic spell and a magic scan into a single spell.”

Celestia nuzzled her sister “The medical team has been trying to create a spell like that for years.”

“Y-years?!” Twilight repeated, staring at her sister “It wasn’t that hard!”

Giggling, Celestia nuzzled her sister again “You make many things seem easy, Twilight.”

Artemis nodded while Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl briefly brightened.

Before Twilight could respond, Sundance continued “The second spell is rather straightforward, so I don’t have any questions about it. However, there is something else that I’d like to ask you, Twilight.”

Curious, Twilight looked at their mother’s star. “What’s that, Mom?”

“I noticed that your father and I briefly glowed with your magic.” Sundance answered “What did you do?”

“That was just a spell to mark the exact location of your bodies.” Twilight responded “This way, I’ll be able to cast the second spell from wherever we want to move your bodies to. Otherwise, if I had to move them, I’d have to go back under the Tree of Harmony first.”

“That makes sense.” Midnight Armor replied “If you hadn’t done that, moving our bodies might attract unwanted attention.”

“Your father’s right.” Sundance agreed “Especially if Golden Thunder and Golden Flash were to see us.”

Twilight tilted her head “I highly doubt Golden Thunder will think of looking anywhere near the Tree of Harmony, let alone dozens of feet under it. Besides, he’s more interested in your souls than your bodies. Therefore, I don’t plan to move either of you unless it becomes necessary.”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “Good idea”

“Please don’t take this the wrong way,” Twilight hesitantly said “but I think we should continue as if both of you are dead.”

“Good idea.” Celestia said slowly “We don’t want Golden Thunder to find out that Mother and Father are alive. If he does, he might search for your bodies.”

“You’re right” Artemis commented “I’d rather not think about what he might do if he finds them.”

“Agreed” Sundance replied, her star shuddering slightly “Don’t worry, Twilight. Your father and I aren’t offended.”

Twilight sighed in relief

Closing her eyes, Celestia focused on the sun. “We should go. It’s time for dinner.”

Glancing at the cloud under them, Artemis shook his head “I think I’m going to leave the cloud here.”

Celestia laughed “Good idea. We seem to be spending a lot of time here.”

Everyone else laughed as well

Artemis nodded “I’ll bring all three of us back to our room in your castle, Twilight.” Without waiting for a response, that’s exactly what he did.

In Ponyville, Spike jumped at the sound of a teleportation spell. Turning towards it, he sighed in relief when he saw Twilight, Artemis and Celestia. “There you are! I’ve been looking everywhere!”

Smiling, Twilight nuzzled him “I’m sorry, Spike. We were in the stars again.” She paused “Have you decided where you’d like to spend the week?”

For a couple of minutes, Spike just stared at Twilight as if she’d grown an extra horn. “Of course, I’m going to Canterlot!”

Celestia, Sundance and Artemis laughed

Artemis nuzzled Twilight before turning to Spike. “I’m not surprised. Now that you know most of what’s going on, you want to stay with us.”

Nodding, Spike jumped onto Twilight’s back. “Everypony else is already in the kitchen. Applejack made fresh apple fritters for you, Twi.”

Smiling, Celestia teleported them there.

Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow and Pinkie were sitting at the kitchen table. They looked up when they saw a flash of golden magic to see that Artemis, Twilight, Celestia and Spike were standing near the door. Twilight ate a plate of apple fritters while everyone else ate broccoli casserole. Everyone walked out of the castle as soon as they had finished eating. Deciding not to take any chances, Twilight cast her force field on her castle again.

"Good idea, Twilight." Celestia turned to the girls as her horn began to glow. “Twilight, Spike and Artemis will be back next weekend.”

Twilight nodded “We’ll see you then.”

Before anyone could say anything else, Celestia used the power of the sun to cast her teleportation spell.

In Canterlot, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night were waiting in front of the castle. Standing behind them were were other members of the Guard, Apple Crunch and other chefs. All of them were waiting for the Royal Family to return. Everypony looked up at a flash of sunlight.

When the light faded, they saw that Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Spike, Velvet and Night Light standing in front of them. The Royal Family was surprised when everypony cheered.

Recovering from their shock, Night Light and Velvet nuzzled their daughter before heading home.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight glanced at each other before turning towards the castle. Twilight silently released her force field.

Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night walked over to the alicorns and Spike while everypony else entered the castle.

Glancing at his sister, Artemis teleported everyone to a living room that was normally used only by the Royal Family.

Nodding to her brother, Celestia cast a soundproofing spell on the room before turning her attention to their guards. “If your expressions are anything to go by, it’s safe to say that you have questions for us.”

All four of the guards nodded

Nodding again, Celestia walked over to a large cushion and lay down on it. Artemis lay down next to his sister while Twilight lay down on Artemis’ other side. Spike curled up next to Twilight.

Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night walked closer, but remained standing.

Artemis sighed “This is going to take a while so you should make yourselves comfortable.”

Surprised, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night sat down where they stood. Instead of asking questions, they decided to wait for their prince and princesses to say something.

Celestia looked at each of the guards individually. “What we are about to discuss doesn’t leave this room. Is that clear?”

All four of them nodded “Yes, Princess Celestia.”

Twilight hadn’t said anything because the events of the day were beginning to catch up with her. Even so, she tried to stay awake.

Not having any of that, Sundance began to hum her lullaby.

Twilight immediately realized what their mother was doing, but that knowledge didn’t help her. She lay her head on Artemis’ shoulder as her eyes began to close. I can’t go to sleep yet, Mom!

Celestia and Artemis can handle the explanation, Twilight. Sundance replied Right now, you need to rest. Knowing that her youngest was going to protest, Sundance started humming again.

Twilight was asleep in less than a minute.

Finishing the song, Sundance whispered Sleep well, Twilight.

Magic laughed softly Great idea, Sundance!

In the stars, Midnight Armor laughed “That certainly takes care of that.”

Sundance giggled “Twilight told us that she was going to go to bed early tonight. I wanted to make sure that she did.”

Midnight Armor laughed harder “Good idea, Honey.”

Star Swirl briefly brightened “It will probably take a couple of hours to explain the situation to their guards. Staying up that late would hardly be considered “going to bed early”.”

In Canterlot, Sundance used Twilight’s magic to write a message in front of Celestia and Artemis.

The two of you will have to handle the explanation because Twilight has fallen asleep. Do not get angry with her. After all, I highly doubt either of you would be able to stay awake if you heard me humming my lullaby inside your head.

Celestia laughed softly. Mother’s right. Even if Twilight wasn’t tired, that would have put her to sleep within a few minutes.

Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night stared at the words in confusion but, before they could ask, they noticed that Artemis’ horn was glowing. They watched him create a pair of earplugs before placing them in Twilight’s ears.

When he was done with that, Artemis cast his spell to make sure that vibrations wouldn’t wake Twilight. Then he covered his mare with a wing before turning back to their guards. “My sister and I have a lot to tell you. Once we have finished, you can ask any questions you have. However, there’s no guarantee that we’ll answer them.”

Celestia nodded “This is because there are certain subjects that we can’t discuss with anypony yet.”

Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night nodded “Yes, your highnesses.”

Two hours later

Celestia and Artemis had finally finished the explanation. They had paused half an hour into the discussion to perform their celestial duties.

When they had finished, Celestia glanced at her brother before turning back to their guards. “That’s everything that we can reveal to you at the moment.”

Nodding, Artemis looked at their guards as well. “I assume you still have questions. As I said earlier, we’ll answer them if we can.”

Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night looked at each other for a moment before turning back to Celestia and Artemis.

“Prince Artemis,” Silver Shadow said slowly “you’re saying that the souls of your parents are alive?!”

Artemis nodded “I know that at least two of you read that book. If you recall, I placed their souls in my Night Sky. That’s where they’ve been for the last fifteen hundred years, living as stars.”

“So the defensive technique that we saw yesterday . . .” Sapphire Wing began

“Really was Mother’s Mirror Shield.” Celestia finished “She cast it so that she could protect Twilight, Artemis, their foal, and myself.”

“And she was able to do that because of a spell that she cast on Princess Twilight?” Steel Night asked, glancing at Twilight

Tightening his wing around his fiancé, Artemis nodded again. “That’s right. Before you ask, Twilight knows about this.”

“In fact, Twilight wanted Mother to cast that spell on her.” Celestia giggled “My little sister is using this as an opportunity to get to know our mother.”

The guards laughed as well.

After thinking for a couple of minutes, Midnight Fang asked “Why didn’t you tell us about this?”

Celestia raised an eyebrow “Can you honestly tell me that you would have believed us? Remember, all of you thought Mother and Father were dead.”

Seeing her point, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night shook their heads.

“I didn’t think so.” Celestia replied

Sapphire Wing tilted his head “You said that another individual has been helping Princess Twilight protect the souls of your parents. Who is this individual and why are they doing this?”

“Unfortunately, we’re not able to answer those questions right now.” Celestia answered “This is because we’ve been asked to keep this individual’s identity a secret. As for the second question, Twilight is the only one who knows the answer. However, she has been asked not to tell anyone yet . . . by that individual.”

“You don’t need to worry.” Artemis added “This individual will not harm Mother, Father, Twilight or our foal.”

All four of the guards sighed in relief.

Glancing at the moon, Artemis commented “We should get some sleep as well.”

Celestia nodded “We’ll meet in the dining room before court.”

Artemis returned his sister’s nod before turning to Steel Night and Midnight Fang. “I’m sure that Twilight will want to see both of you in the throne room before court starts.”

Steel Night and Midnight Fang bowed “Yes, Prince Artemis”

Celestia tilted her head when something suddenly occurred to her. “I approved a two week vacation for you, Sapphire Wing. Why aren’t you at home with your family?”

Sapphire Wing bowed “My apologies, Princess Celestia. However, after what witnessing what happened yesterday, I decided to ask you what was going on.”

Celestia smiled “I see. Well then, I’ll see you-”

“Tomorrow morning.” Sapphire Wing finished

Surprised, Celestia asked “What?”

Making sure not to wake Twilight, Sapphire Wing laughed softly before bowing again. “I appreciate the offer, Princess Celestia. However, I must respectfully decline the second week of vacation.”

Confused, Celestia asked “Why do you say that?”

“If your theory is correct, Golden Thunder plans to kill every member of the Royal Family.” Sapphire Wing replied, standing “I will not allow him to harm, let alone kill, you. Until you are able to inform the rest of the ponies in the Day Guard of the situation, I will see to your safety personally.”

Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang stood as well. “The same applies to us, Prince Artemis. Midnight Fang and Steel Night will continue to protect Princess Twilight. As for me, starting tomorrow, I will be on a day schedule so that I can personally see to your safety.”

Shocked, Celestia and Artemis turned to each other. After a couple of minutes, Celestia slowly replied “I-I see. Thank you.”

“I-in that case,” Artemis responded “everyone should get some sleep.” Without waiting for a response, he teleported himself and Twilight to their room.

Nodding, everyone else stood and walked out of the room. The guards headed home for the night. Celestia brought Spike to the room that he’d be using for the week before heading to her room.

The next morning, Artemis woke to the pull of the moon. After watching the sunrise, he nuzzled Twilight.

After a second nuzzle, she mumbled “What’s going on?”

Before he could respond, Sundance spoke up. Good morning.

Yawning, Twilight lay her head on Artemis’ chest. “Good morning, Mom.”

Artemis chuckled “Good morning, Mother.”

After getting out of bed, and stretching, Artemis teleported himself and Twilight to the dining room. They found Celestia, Spike and Apple Crunch waiting for them. Spike and Celestia were already eating.

Apple Crunch smiled “Good morning, Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight.”

For breakfast, Artemis was given a large crepe filled with a blueberry compote. Twilight was served one of Apple Crunch’s apple-filled breakfast pastries.

After Apple Crunch left the room, Celestia turned to Twilight and Artemis. “Good morning, Artemis, Twilight and Mother.”

Spike laughed “Good morning, Artemis, Twi and Sundance.”

After a moment of shock, Sundance began to laugh. When she’d finished laughing, she used Twilight’s magic to write a sentence in front of her youngest.

Good morning, Celestia and Spike.

Celestia read the message aloud before she and Spike laughed as well. When they’d finished laughing, and eating, they walked into the hall.

“I guess we should head to the throne room.” Twilight commented

Celestia nodded “I’d like you to participate in court this week, Twilight.”

Twilight laughed “I knew you were going to say that.”

Spike tapped Twilight’s shoulder. “I forgot something in my room. Don’t worry, I’ll meet you in the throne room before court starts.” Before she could ask, he ran off.

Twilight blinked “What was that about?”

Celestia and Artemis shrugged before the three of them walked down the hall.

A few minutes later, they walked into the throne room. They found Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night waiting for them in front of the throne.

As one, the guards bowed “Good morning, Princess Celestia, Prince Artemis, Princess Twilight . . .” After glancing at each other, they added one more name to the list. “And Queen Sundance.”

Shocked, Sundance asked W-what?

Surprised, Twilight stared at them for a moment before turning to Celestia and Artemis. “You told them about Mom’s spell?”

Equally surprised, Celestia and Artemis nodded.

Getting over her shock, Sundance used Twilight’s magic to write Good Morning in the air in front of her youngest.

Celestia laughed “Mother says “Good Morning”.”

Everyone else laughed as well

When she’d calmed, Twilight turned to the guards. “I’m sure that Celestia and Artemis told you this last night, but I’ll say it again. Don’t tell anyone else about this.” She smiled “Golden Thunder and Golden Flash don’t know about this because we’re using it to mess with their heads.”

Everypony laughed again

As one, the guards bowed “Yes, Princess Twilight”

In the stars, Sundance flickered “That was unexpected.”

“Agreed” Midnight Armor replied, flickering as well

“Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised.” Star Swirl commented “They know what’s going on, remember?”

“I knew that they were aware of the situation.” Sundance responded “I just wasn’t expecting them to say anything to me.”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “Same here.” He chuckled “Today should be interesting.”

Sundance and Star Swirl laughed “You’re right”

In Golden Flash’s house, Golden Flash had just finished getting ready for the day. Walking downstairs, he saw his wife and daughter waiting by the front door. At first, he thought they were just going to see him off. Then he noticed that both of them were ready to go out. Before he could say anything, Golden Thunder took over his body.

Golden Thunder narrowed his eyes “Where do the two of you think you’re going?”

“Court” Amethyst Rose answered

“Oh no, you’re not.” Golden Thunder instantly replied “Did you forget? Neither of you are allowed to leave this house.”

Carefully controlling her expression, Amethyst Rose shook her head. “We don’t have a choice, Golden Thunder. Prince Artemis ordered me to bring Jade Butterfly to court this morning.”

Surprised, Golden Thunder stared at her for a moment. “When did he do that?”

“After he brought you out of my daughter’s nightmare.” Amethyst Rose answered

Even more surprised, Golden Thunder asked “What?” How does she know that her daughter had a nightmare?!

“After you left, Prince Artemis came back to see me!” Jade Butterfly excitedly explained “He turned my dream into a pretty field with flowers, a river and butterflies! He even brought Mommy into my dream! Then he talked with Mommy while I got to play with the butterflies!”

“I see.” Golden Thunder slowly replied Prince Artemis must be planning something. In that case, I have to make sure that he can’t question the filly. “Very well. I need to cast a spell on you, Jade Butterfly. Don’t worry, it won’t hurt.”

Concerned, Golden Flash asked What spell are you going to cast on my daughter?

Just a minor mind control spell. Golden Thunder answered As I said, it won’t harm her. I just can’t take the risk of her telling the prince and princesses something that I don’t want them to know. Without waiting for a response, he cast his spell.

In the throne room, Twilight suddenly lifted her head. Narrowing her eyes, she growled. “I hope he doesn’t expect me to let him do that.”

Concerned, Celestia, Artemis, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang watched as her horn flared brightly for a minute.

Sundance sighed in relief Well done!

Thanks, Mom. Satisfied, Twilight allowed her magic to fade before looking at everyone around her. “When I cast the protection spell on Jade Butterfly’s necklace, I included a spell that warns me if Golden Thunder tries to do something that could harm her.”

“I assume that’s what you were talking about.” Celestia commented “What did he do to her this time?”

Twilight scowled “He tried to cast a mind control spell on her.”

Everypony gasped “What?!”

“Were you able to stop him?” Artemis asked, worried

“Of course” Twilight answered “In fact, I sent him a message.”

After staring at her for a moment, everyone began to laugh.

Meanwhile, in Golden Flash’s house, Jade Butterfly’s necklace suddenly began to glow. Before anypony could say anything, the filly was surrounded by a sphere of magenta magic.

Golden Thunder gasped when his spell met the sphere and just stopped. “That’s Princess Twilight’s force field!” He watched a message appear over Jade Butterfly’s head.

I won’t allow you to harm this filly, Golden Thunder!

Golden Thunder blinked “What does it say?” I really need to learn the current written language.

Looking up, Jade Butterfly read the message. Surprised, she stared at it until it faded. Then she answered Golden Thunder’s question. “Princess Twilight says that she won’t let you hurt me.”

Golden Thunder growled “She dares to interfere?!”

Hiding a smile, Amethyst Rose glanced at the clock. “If we don’t leave now, we’ll be late.”

“Very well” Golden Thunder replied. He allowed Golden Flash to regain control of his body.

After Twilight's force field faded, Golden Flash, Amethyst Rose and Jade Butterfly left the house.

Ten minutes later, the three of them walked into the castle. On the way to the throne room, Golden Thunder paused when he heard footsteps. That doesn’t sound like hooves. Looking towards the noise, he saw Spike walking towards them. This is perfect. Taking control of Golden Flash’s body, he turned to Amethyst Rose and Jade Butterfly. “Go ahead. I’ll catch up in a few minutes.”

Nodding, Amethyst Rose and Jade Butterfly continued down the hall.

What are you doing, ancestor? Golden Flash asked

You’ll see. Golden Thunder replied “Excuse me, sir.”

Surprised, Spike stopped I think that’s Golden Flash. What does he want? “Yes, Golden Flash?”

Golden Thunder responded by casting a spell on the little dragon. He smiled when Spike began to wobble. My spell alters the way a dragon’s mind works. The full effect will kick in in a couple of minutes. Once it does, he’ll be completely loyal to me and follow any order that I give him.

For now, I’m going to allow him to stay with Princess Twilight. However, he’ll be spying on them and reporting back to me. When the time is right, I’m going to have him capture that meddling princess and bring her right to me.

He was torn from his thoughts when Spike, still wobbling, pulled out a scroll and a quill. That’s unusual. He shouldn't be able to move at all right now.

Spike wasn’t sure what Golden Thunder had done, but knew that he was in danger. Recalling something that Twilight had taught him when he was very young, he quickly wrote a message and breathed his flame onto the scroll. Please, Twi, come quick.

Why did he destroy the scroll that he just wrote on? Golden Thunder paused That’s strange. The scroll turned into smoke . . . and it’s going somewhere. What did he just do?

In the throne room, everyone was enjoying the last ten minutes of peace and quiet before the guards let the petitioners in. They looked up when a bit of green fire suddenly appeared in front of Twilight before turning into a scroll.

Curious, Twilight opened it to find that the letter was composed of a single word.

HELP!!!

Dropping the scroll, Twilight searched the castle for a specific magic signature. As soon as she found it, she teleported out of the room.

Worried, Artemis lifted the scroll in his magic. Shocked, he just stared at it for a moment before silently passing it to Celestia.

Celestia gasped “This is the plan they put in place years ago! It means that Spike is in danger!”

Everyone else gasped as well

As one, the guards stepped forward “Should we go find them, Princess Celestia?”

Celestia shook her head “Twilight may call Spike her assistant, but he’s more like a son to her. Trust me, you don’t want to get in her way right now.”

Understanding his sister’s point, Artemis shuddered “I do not envy whoever was dumb enough to harm him.”

Voice shaking, Night remarked Neither do I.

Eyes wide, their guards just nodded

Just inside the main entrance to the castle, Golden Thunder jumped when he heard the sound of a teleportation spell. Before he could turn to see who it was, a shout echoed through the hall.

“Spike!”

Spike? Golden Thunder asked

Voice shaking, Golden Flash replied T-that’s his name . . . and her voice.

Before he could ask Golden Flash who he was talking about, Golden Thunder noticed that Spike was suspended in a field of magenta magic. T-that’s the magic signature of . . . Oh no. Gulping, he slowly turned to see that Twilight was standing behind him. Shaking slightly, he watched her levitate the little dragon over to her.

Ignoring Golden Thunder, Twilight sent a wave of magic through Spike’s body. As soon as she sensed Golden Thunder’s magic, she sent a few more waves of magic through Spike. This time, she removed all foreign magic from his body. Once she was sure that Spike was safe, Twilight gently set him on her back. After thinking for a moment, she cursed under her breath. Damn it! I was so focused on removing the spell that I forgot to examine it.

Don’t worry. Sundance replied I was able to get a good look at Golden Thunder’s spell. I’ll analyze it and let you know what I discover. This way, you’ll be able to prepare for any side effects that Spike may have.

Sighing in relief, Twilight replied Thank you, Mom.

Breathing hard, Spike collapsed against Twilight’s neck. “T-thanks, Mom.” I know that she doesn’t like it when I call her that, but I don’t care right now.

Shocked, Golden Thunder exclaimed “What?!” Why did that dragon refer to Princess Twilight as his mother?!

Twilight finally turned her attention to Golden Thunder. Seeing his expression, she explained. “I hatched his egg when I was eight years old. Even though we grew up together, I raised him myself.”

Golden Thunder gasped S-she hatched a dragon egg . . . when she was eight-years old?! W-who is this mare?!

Twilight glared at the stunned unicorn “You are not allowed to come near, or speak to, my son. Do I make myself clear, Golden Thunder?”

Shaking himself out of his shock, Golden Thunder smirked “There’s nothing that you can do to stop me, Princess Twilight.”

Sundance laughed Wrong answer, Golden Thunder.

Her glare deepening, Twilight lowered her voice. “I don’t care what Celestia says. In fact, I’ll even let her punish me later.” She made sure that she had his attention before continuing. “If you do, or say, anything else to Spike, I will find a way to pull you out of Golden Flash’s body and kill you myself.”

Golden Thunder’s eyes widened. T-that’s not a threat, she’s serious! “I-I understand, princess.”

T-this is why I said that you should leave him alone, ancestor. Golden Flash stammered I know it’s hard to believe, but Princess Twilight is more powerful than Princess Celestia. Unfortunately, she’s nowhere near as patient as her former teacher. If you even look at that dragon again, she will kill you.

P-perhaps I should have listened to you. Golden Thunder shakily responded W-wait a minute. You said former teacher?!

That’s right. Golden Flash answered Before she ascended, Princess Twilight was Princess Celestia’s Faithful Student and personal protégé.

T-that explains a lot. Golden Thunder stammered I’d love to use that dragon for our plan, but I don’t have a death wish. I’ll just have to figure something else out.

In the stars, Star Swirl shuddered “I hope I never make her this angry.”

After a moment of stunned silence, Midnight Armor slowly said “I thought she was angry last week, but that was nothing compared to this.”

“I’m not surprised,” Sundance responded “and I certainly don’t blame her. You don’t mess with a mother’s child. This is especially true when that mother is an alicorn.” She paused “Do you remember what I did to the noble that foal napped Celestia?”

“As if I could forget that.” Midnight Armor replied, shuddering “I’m still amazed that I managed to get there in time to stop you from killing him.”

Star Swirl turned to Sundance “Midnight Armor and I will analyze that spell.”

“He’s right, Honey.” Midnight Armor remarked “You should pay attention to what’s going on around Twilight. We’ll let you know if we need your help.”

“Very well” Sundance replied “Thank you”

In the throne room, everyone looked up at a flash of magenta magic. They saw Twilight and Golden Thunder standing in the middle of the room.

Celestia’s eyes widened when she saw the expression on her sister’s face. “What happened, Twilight?”

Twilight showed everyone what Golden Thunder had done to Spike.

Celestia, Artemis, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang gasped. “What?!”

Seeing their expressions, Twilight shook her head. “Don’t worry, I’ve already removed every trace of foreign magic from Spike’s body. He’ll be fine.” She walked up to Celestia and Artemis before whispering “Mom is analyzing Golden Thunder’s spell. She told me that she wants to figure out what side effects Spike might have so that we’ll be able to counter them.”

Spike’s eyes widened S-sundance is . . .

Smiling, Artemis whispered “Good”

Nuzzling her sister, Celestia spoke softly “You did what you felt was necessary to protect Spike. I have no intention of punishing you for that.”

Returning her sister’s nuzzle, Twilight whispered “Thanks”

Artemis’s eyes widened slightly when he suddenly heard Night’s voice.

You may not be able to punish Golden Thunder, but I can. After what he just did, I highly doubt Twilight will complain if I treat that stallion to another night of terror . . . and, this time, I won’t be so nice.

Artemis suppressed a chuckle. Have fun.

Trust me, I will.

Artemis turned to Silver Shadow. “Amethyst Rose and Jade Butterfly should be waiting in the hall. Please let them in.”

Silver Shadow bowed to Artemis before walking to the side entrance to the throne room. A couple of minutes later, he returned with both of them.

Amethyst Rose stopped a respectful distance away and bowed to the alicorns. “Good morning, your highnesses.”

Jade Butterfly didn’t bother bowing. Instead, she ran to Twilight and nuzzled her. “Thank you, princess!”

Smiling, Twilight returned her nuzzle “You’re welcome”

Artemis smiled at Jade Butterfly. “I told your mother to bring you here because I need to add another spell to your necklace.”

Nodding, Jade Butterfly sat down in front of him.

Closing his eyes, Artemis cast a spell on Jade Butterfly’s necklace. It glowed a deep midnight blue for a moment before returning to normal. Opening his eyes, he smiled at the filly again. “He won’t be able to enter your dreams anymore.”

Golden Thunder’s eyes widened He dares to interfere?!

Jade Butterfly gasped “Really?”

Artemis nodded before gasping in surprise when she suddenly jumped forward to nuzzle him.

“Thank you!”

Laughing softly, Artemis returned her nuzzle. “You’re welcome”

Glancing outside, Celestia commented “It’s a beautiful day. Why don’t you go to the park?”

Sundance laughed Good idea, Celestia. That will keep her occupied, and let her have some fun, while the three of you deal with Golden Thunder.

Jade Butterfly’s ears drooped “Not Daddy said that Mommy and I have to go back home after we’re done talking to you, princess.”

Nuzzling the filly, Celestia replied “I’m saying that you should go to the park.” Looking at Amethyst Rose, she asked “Do I need to make that an order?”

Amethyst Rose smiled “No, Princess Celestia. I need to run a couple of errands first, but we’ll spend the rest of the day in the park.”

Jade Butterfly squealed in delight “Come on, Mommy!”

Amethyst Rose bowed to Celestia, Artemis and Twilight before following her daughter out of the throne room.

Golden Thunder sighed in relief I don’t care about the fact that they’re going to be spending the day out of the house. I’m just happy that the prince and princesses didn’t ask Amethyst Rose or Jade Butterfly about my plan. Satisfied, he let Golden Flash have control of his body.

Celestia sat directly in front of the throne. Artemis sat to her right and Twilight sat on his other side. Then Twilight levitated Spike off of her back, setting him between herself and Artemis.

Spike stood “I should let you get to work. Don’t worry, I’ll find something to do.” He quickly found himself being gently pushed back down by two different wings . . . one lavender and one dark blue.

As one, Artemis and Twilight responded “No, Spike.”

“You’re staying right here.” Twilight added I’m not letting him leave my side until I’m sure that Golden Thunder has left the castle for the day.

Seeing the looks on their faces, Spike didn’t bother trying to argue. Instead, he made himself comfortable. Now that I think about it, that’s probably a good idea.

You’re right, Twilight. Sundance commented Right now, the safest place for Spike is with the three of you.

Your father and Star Swirl are analyzing Golden Thunder’s spell so that I can focus on what’s going on around you. I’ll let you know what they find.

Thanks, Mom. Twilight replied

Glancing at the sun, Celestia nodded to Sapphire Wing. Returning her nod, he opened the door.

Sundance, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Spike, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang watched as dozens of ponies filed into the throne room.

As usual, a large group of nobles gathered off to one side. No one was surprised when Golden Flash joined them.

Everyone in the throne room quieted down when Celestia cleared her throat. “Before court gets started for the day, we have an announcement.” Turning to her siblings, she said “Artemis and Twilight, the two of you should announce this one.”

Artemis chuckled “Of course, sister.”

Instantly knowing what Celestia was talking about, Twilight giggled.

Everypony else began whispering to each other, trying to guess what the announcement would be this time.

Turning to the other ponies in the room, Artemis cleared his throat. Everypony immediately looked at him.

“You already know that Twilight is carrying my foal.” Artemis and Twilight were surprised when the room erupted in cheers. Taking a closer look at everypony, he noticed that the nobles had stayed silent. That’s fine. I don’t care what they think. “However, there is something else that you should know.”

Seeing their expressions, Twilight giggled and used her magic to part her mane. “We haven’t set a date yet, but there will be a Royal Wedding soon.”

Everyone stared at the ring on her horn for a few minutes before cheering again. This time, it was several minutes before Sundance, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike could hear themselves think, let alone speak.

I still don’t understand why nopony seems to care that they’re doing everything in the wrong order. Golden Thunder said slowly

I’ve already told you the reason for that, ancestor. Golden Flash replied Prince Artemis was almost killed when that unicorn started draining his magic, but Princess Twilight was able to save his life. They were already courting at the time, but it forced them to move faster. Everypony in Equestria understands that. That’s why nopony’s complaining.

Besides, there’s a rumor going around Canterlot. It states that they’ve been secretly courting for three years. I can’t vouch for its accuracy, but I do know that they’ve been visiting each other, and exchanging letters, a lot over that length of time.

I suppose you’re right. Golden Thunder conceded Additionally, I understand why they would have wanted to keep their courtship a secret for as long as possible. Their titles mean that they’re not afforded as much privacy as the average pony.

Fifteen minutes later, everyone had calmed enough for court to resume. Of course, the nobles spent the next hour offering fake smiles and congratulating Artemis and Twilight on their engagement.

Your friends’ reactions were much better. Sundance commented Not only were they genuine, they were far more entertaining.

Twilight struggled to suppress her laughter as she remembered the way that her friends had reacted to the news. M-mom! Not in the middle of court, please!

Sundance laughed I don’t care about court. After what happened this morning, I intend to make sure that you enjoy the rest of your day. Everypony else will just have to deal with it.

This time, Twilight was unable to suppress her laughter. Fortunately, Artemis had just stretched his wings, brushing his feathers against Twilight’s side.

Golden Flash, who had been speaking to Celestia, instantly looked offended. However, before he could say anything, Artemis spoke up.

“I’m sorry, sister. I accidentally brushed a few feathers against Twilight’s side.” Chuckling, he folded his wings “You know how ticklish she is.”

Celestia smiled at her brother. “It’s alright, Artemis.” Looking at her sister, her smile widened “Don’t worry, Twilight. I know you couldn’t help it.” And I don’t care what Golden Flash has to say about it.

Besides, it was a nice distraction. Golden Flash’s not-so-little speech was getting annoying.

Twilight sighed in relief That wasn’t funny, Mom!

Sundance laughed I disagree. I thought Golden Flash’s expression was very funny.

Turning back to Golden Flash, Celestia smiled “My apologies. You were telling me that you need research funds.”

Sundance surprised Twilight by growling softly. He’s trying that again?! He must think my children are really stupid.

“Yes, Princess Celestia” Golden Flash replied

“I see” Celestia responded “Have you submitted your request?”

Confused, Golden Thunder asked Isn’t that what you’re doing now?

Golden Flash shook his head “Not yet, princess. Instead of submitting a written request, I was hoping to speed things up by presenting my request to you directly.”

Curious, Twilight asked “What are you researching?”

Golden Flash’s eyes widened slightly I was hoping they wouldn’t ask that. “Why do you ask, princess?”

Twilight raised an eyebrow I’m not going to bother giving the obvious answer to that question. “You know that I have a library in my castle, right?”

Golden Flash nodded

“As you might expect,” Twilight continued “I do a lot of research. Therefore, it’s possible that I know something about the topic that you’re researching. If so, I may be able to answer some of your questions.”

Celestia and Artemis each hid a smile. This should be good.

Grateful that she didn’t have to hide anything, Sundance laughed T-that’s brilliant, Twilight!

Before Golden Flash could say anything, Golden Thunder spoke up. You’d better think of something fast, Golden Flash! Make sure that it’s believable and has nothing to do with the topic that we’re really researching.

Princess Celestia won’t give us the funds we need if she finds out that we’re searching for the best way to remove her parents’ souls from their stars.

Golden Flash turned his attention back to Twilight. “I’m sure that you’re busy, princess. Therefore, I’ve decided to look for ways to combat my extreme fatigue myself. Unfortunately, none of the books that I own have any answers. That’s why I’m asking for research funds . . . and why I’d like to shorten the approval process.”

Well done Golden Thunder remarked Not only is that well off topic, it’s a valid concern.

This isn’t good. Sundance said, gasping softly I was so focused on discovering Golden Thunder’s plan that I completely forgot about that!

It’s alright, Mom. Twilight replied

What do you mean? Sundance asked, surprised

I didn’t forget about it. Twilight replied In fact, two of the books that I read while we were in the Crystal Empire were medical books.

Sundance laughed softly I should have known.

Turning her attention to Golden Thunder, Twilight continued “Actually, I did a little research while we were in the Crystal Empire.”

Sundance laughed Sure. You only did a “little” bit of research.

Golden Flash gasped “What?”

Twilight raised the other eyebrow “The library in the Crystal Empire has many books that aren’t available in Equestria.” She shrugged “I took the opportunity to read a couple of medical books.”

Confused, Artemis turned to Twilight “When did you do that?”

“Three days ago.” Twilight answered “You spent the morning with Shining Armor and Celestia spent the morning with Cadance. However, I spent the morning reading, remember?”

You told me that Shining Armor is Princess Twilight’s brother, Golden Thunder commented but who is Cadance?

Shining Armor’s wife. Golden Flash answered They rule the Crystal Empire together.

I see. Golden Thunder said slowly W-wait a minute. Princess Twilight went through the library in the Crystal Empire . . . Oh no, I hope she didn’t find- He was torn from his thoughts when he heard Artemis’ voice.

Echoing their mother, he laughed softly “I should have known.”

“As I said a week and a half ago, the obvious way to stop your fatigue is to remove the extra soul from your body.” Twilight explained, careful to keep her voice low. “However, it isn’t safe to simply pull Golden Thunder out of your body. According to my research, both your souls could be pulled out of your body at the same time. As I’m sure you’ve guessed, that’s a good way to kill both of you. Therefore, we won’t be doing that.”

Golden Thunder sighed in relief

“Most ponies take medicine, or drink a cup of coffee, to counter their fatigue.” Twilight continued “Unfortunately, that won’t work for you because of the cause of your fatigue. However, I’ve come up with two options.”

Golden Flash hesitantly asked “What are the options, princess?”

“The first option is that you can continue as you have been.” Twilight answered “Unfortunately, because it would require you to get several extra hours of sleep each day, that would leave you with very little time to spend with your family.”

Golden Flash nodded “What’s the second option, princess?”

“Golden Thunder will have to help with this one.” Twilight replied “As we saw two days ago, he can leave your body when he wants to. If he were to do this while you’re asleep, your body would be able to rest without the strain of supporting a second soul. You will still experience fatigue, especially if he stays in your body while you’re awake, but it should be at a manageable level.”

Golden Thunder gasped Of course! Why didn’t I think of that? I need to prepare a few things, but we’ll try the second option tonight.

Noticing that Golden Flash was staring off into the distance, Twilight waited for him to look at her again. “What did he say?”

Golden Flash gasped in surprise. “What?!”

Twilight laughed “You’ve been staring off into the distance for a few minutes now. I just assumed that he was speaking to you.”

“Y-you’re right, princess.” Golden Flash stammered I’ll have to be more careful about that. “He said that we’ll try the second option tonight.”

“I see” Twilight responded “Let me know how it goes. If it doesn’t work, I’ll think of something else.”

Golden Flash nodded again “Yes, princess.”

Twilight made sure that she had his attention before continuing. “Its fine to use your magic for normal day-to-day tasks, but don’t cast any major spells yet. Especially since we’re not sure if this will work. Unfortunately, it will probably be at least a week before we’re able to tell for sure.”

Golden Flash bowed “Thank you, Princess Twilight. I’ll do as you’ve suggested.”

“Good” Twilight responded “You’re welcome”

Celestia smiled “Now that Twilight has found a potential solution to your problem, you no longer need to research anything.”

Sundance laughed Good point, Celestia! As for you, Twilight, that solution is brilliant!

Damn it! Golden Thunder exclaimed We need those funds! This means that we’ll just have to come up with something else.

He thought for a moment. I’ll have enough magic to try to bring King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance’s souls to me in a couple of days. Now that I know Princess Twilight’s magic signature, I’ll just block her like I’ve blocked Prince Artemis and Princess Celestia.

He began to laugh She won’t be able to do anything but watch as I bring the souls of her “parents” right to me.

In the stars, Sundance and Midnight Armor’s stars flickered.

“I can’t believe she was able to come up with that plan so quickly.” Sundance commented

“What do you mean?” Star Swirl asked

“Twilight could have only come up with the second solution after he attacked her two days ago.” Midnight Armor replied

Star Swirl gasped “B-but she finalized her back up plan for protecting your souls, helped her friends connect with the spirits of their Elements and discovered your bodies in the last two days!”

“Exactly” Sundance replied “Where did she find the time to come up with the plan to help Golden Flash?”

In Canterlot, they had just closed court for lunch. Sapphire Wing ensured that Golden Flash left the castle while Celestia teleported herself, Artemis, Twilight and Spike to the dining room.

Sighing in relief, the four of them immediately slumped to the floor. Several minutes later, they looked up when they heard hoofsteps.

“Rough morning, your highnesses?” Apple Crunch asked, placing four bottles of apple juice on the table.

“You don’t know the half of it.” Spike grumbled, climbing to his feet “It feels like we went through an entire week in the last four hours.”

Apple Crunch was about to ask what happened, but stopped when he saw the ring on Twilight’s horn. “P-princess Twilight, is that what I think it is?!”

“What are you talking about?” Twilight asked, slowly sitting up

Apple Crunch just stared at the ring on her horn.

Suddenly realizing what he meant, Twilight laughed and used her magic to fix her mane. “Yes, it’s an engagement ring. I’m sure you can guess who put it there.”

Wanting to make sure that there wasn’t any doubt in Apple Crunch’s mind, Artemis used a wing to pull Twilight closer before kissing her.

Everyone else laughed

Grinning, Apple Crunch bowed “Congratulations, Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight!” I’m making her something special for dinner tonight. I’ll just need to consult a couple of recipe books.

Smiling, Artemis and Twilight replied “Thank you”

After Apple Crunch returned to the kitchen, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike sat at the dining table.

While they waited for Apple Crunch to return with their food, Artemis told Celestia, Twilight and Spike about Night’s plan to punish Golden Thunder.

Twilight looked at Spike for a moment before turning to Artemis. “Night”

“Yes?”

“Whatever you have planned,” Twilight said slowly “double it.”

Night instantly began to laugh “I have no problem with that.”

Everyone else laughed as well

Apple Crunch chose that moment to return with their food. Spike was given a plate with two lettuce, tomato and ruby sandwiches and a side of hay fries. Celestia and Artemis were also given lettuce and tomato sandwiches, but without the rubies. Each of them was also served a side salad. Twilight was given a Broccoli Apple Salad.

When everyone had finished eating, they went outside to get some fresh air. Half an hour later, everyone headed back to the throne room. They, and their guards, got there five minutes before court was scheduled to resume. Celestia sat in front of the throne, Artemis sat to her right, Twilight sat to his right, and Spike sat between Artemis and Twilight. Sapphire Wing and Silver Shadow stood in front, and slightly to the left, of Celestia while Steel Night and Midnight Fang stood in front, and slightly to the right, of Twilight.

At one o’clock, Steel Night and Midnight Fang opened the door to the throne room before returning to their positions in front of Twilight. Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike’s eyes widened when they saw how many ponies walked into the throne room.

Sundance noticed Twilight’s surprise. What’s wrong?

Nothing. Twilight replied It’s just that we don’t usually have this many ponies in court.

I see. Sundance responded

The reason for the increased numbers quickly became apparent when Frost Blossom walked up to Twilight.

That’s Frost Blossom. Twilight told Sundance She’s retired now, but she used to be the Head Archivist.

Before Sundance could reply, Frost Blossom bowed to Twilight. “The ponies who attended court this morning told everypony they could about your announcement, princess. Instead of believing what could be a rumor, we’d like to hear it from you.”

Laughing, Twilight used her magic to part her mane. “Does this answer your question?”

Frost Blossom stared at the ring on Twilight’s horn for a moment before smiling and bowing again. “Yes, Princess Twilight.”

Everyone else, aside from the nobles, cheered.

Artemis laughed as well “Before you ask, we haven’t set a date yet. We’ll make another announcement when we do.” He paused thoughtfully “Actually, there is one thing that we can tell you. This probably won’t surprise many of you, but our wedding will be at night.”

This was met with another cheer.

The citizens spent the next hour and a half taking turns approaching, and congratulating, Artemis and Twilight.

This is much better than the nobles’ reactions. Sundance commented The citizens may not be as animated as your friends were, but it’s clear that they’re genuinely happy for the two of you.

After they had finished congratulating Artemis and Twilight, the citizens left. After the last of them left the throne room, another group of ponies walked through the doors.

Curious, Sundance asked Who are these ponies?

I’m not sure. Twilight replied I’ve never seen any of them before.

They walked forward until they were a few feet in front of the throne. As one, they bowed “Good afternoon, your highnesses.”

Celestia smiled at the earth pony stallion standing in front of the group. “Good afternoon, Blue Stream.” Turning to Twilight, she explained “Blue Stream is leader of the Medical Research Team.”

Twilight nodded to Celestia “I see.” Turning to the ponies in front of the throne, she smiled “It’s nice to meet you.”

Blue Stream bowed again “Likewise, Princess Twilight.” Turning to Celestia, he continued “Due to the Holiday last week, we were unable to update you on our progress. Unfortunately, there isn’t much to report. This is because we haven’t made any progress.”

Confused, Artemis asked “What are you working on?”

“My apologies, Prince Artemis.” Blue Stream replied “We’ve been trying to create a spell that is more thorough than the diagnostic spells that currently exist. We also need this spell to have at least a few of the properties of an advanced magic scan. The problem is, even after years of research, we haven’t found a way to create a spell that will do what we need.” He sighed “There isn’t anything that says that this can’t be done, but all of our attempts have failed.”

That sounds familiar. Sundance remarked, giggling

This could be our chance. Golden Thunder remarked If we offer to help them, Princess Celestia will grant us the research funds we need.

Golden Flash resisted the urge to nod Yes, ancestor. He stepped forward but, before he could say anything, Twilight spoke up.

“Do you mind if I take a look at what you have so far?”

“Not at all, princess.” Blue Stream nodded to the unicorn mare standing next to him. I’ve heard that Princess Twilight creates, and restores, spells herself. If that’s true, she may be able to help us.

His assistant levitated a scroll over to Twilight.

Taking it in her magic, Twilight unrolled it and spent a few minutes carefully reading the spell. “This isn’t a bad attempt, but it isn’t configured correctly. The problem is that a magic scan, especially an advanced one, has a different set of requirements than a diagnostic spell does. That’s why it’s difficult to combine them.”

Sighing, Blue Stream nodded “That’s the problem that we keep running into, princess.”

Hiding a smile, Celestia asked “How did you do it?”

Golden Thunder gasped Princess Twilight created a spell that does that?! I know the researcher said that it should be possible, but I didn’t think it could really be done.

Blue Stream’s eyes widened “P-princess Twilight, you’ve created a spell that does this?”

Artemis had to resist the urge to laugh when he saw the look on Twilight’s face.

Turning to her sister, Twilight whispered “Why did you say that, Celestia?!”

Nuzzling her little sister, Celestia quietly replied “I don’t want to let them struggle for the next few years. Instead, I think you should teach them your spell.”

“You could have warned me first!” Twilight hissed

“Where’s the fun in that?” Celestia asked softly

Sundance laughed That’s my girl.

That’s not helping, Mom! Twilight complained

Sundance laughed harder

Taking a deep breath, Twilight turned to Blue Stream. “I spent the last four years in Ponyville, so I wasn’t aware of the fact that you were trying to create this type of spell. Additionally, Celestia didn’t have a reason to inform me because I’m not in the medical field. Regardless, I created my spell yesterday afternoon.”

Curious, Blue Stream asked the one question that Twilight didn’t want him to. “If it wasn’t for medical use, why did you create your spell, princess?”

That’s a good question. Golden Thunder remarked

Worried, Sundance held her breath.

Twilight smiled at him “I was conducting some field research and found something that I didn’t expect. I created my spell in hopes of getting some answers.” Seeing his expression, she shook her head. “I can’t tell you what I discovered because I need to research it further before I understand it myself. Only then will I be able to explain it to anypony else.” She sighed “Unfortunately, due to my other obligations, that will probably take a while.”

Understanding her point, Blue Stream nodded “That makes sense, princess.”

Sundance let out the breath she’d been holding. Well done!

Smiling, Twilight replied Thanks, Mom. Returning her attention to Blue Stream, she responded “If you have a quill and a blank scroll, I’ll write my spell down for your records. Then I’ll teach your assistant how to cast it. However, I must warn you about something. This spell requires a lot of magic to cast. In fact, you’ll probably need at least eight unicorns working together to cast it.”

Blue Stream nodded to Twilight before pulling a quill and blank scroll out of the bag he had on his back. Walking forward, he gave them to Midnight Fang.

Midnight Fang unrolled the scroll before passing it, and the quill, to Twilight.

“Thank you” Twilight responded

Everyone watched as Twilight wrote her spell on the scroll. When she was done, she turned her attention to Blue Stream’s assistant. “What is your name?”

Bowing, the unicorn mare replied “My name is Aqua, princess.”

Smiling, Twilight replied “It’s nice to meet you, Aqua. Please come closer.”

Nodding, Aqua did as she was told.

Twilight pointed at a certain part of the spell that the Medical Research Team had created. “This is the part that was causing your problems.” Pointing at the same part of her spell, she continued. “Here’s how I dealt with that issue.”

“Of course” Aqua breathed “A diagnostic spell and a magic scan, especially the advanced ones, have different magic control requirements. We forgot to take that into account.”

“That part is a little difficult.” Twilight agreed “In fact, that’s why I made sure that the magic scan part of the spell is cast first.”

“I see.” Aqua said slowly, carefully reading Twilight’s spell “By placing it first, you’re certain to meet the magic control requirement of the diagnostic spell.” She shook her head “We were going off of how much magic each of them required. That means we put them in the wrong order.”

“I’m not surprised.” Twilight remarked “I almost made the same mistake.”

Nodding thoughtfully, Aqua commented “This magic scan is far more detailed than the one that we were using . . . actually, the diagnostic spell is as well. Did you create them from scratch, princess?”

Twilight nodded “I didn’t have a choice. None of the spells I knew were thorough enough to give me the answers that I needed.” She paused “Unfortunately, you won’t get the results right away.”

Aqua nodded again “That makes sense. A spell this detailed needs time to work.”

Everyone else looked on as Twilight taught Aqua how to cast her spell.

In the stars, Sundance flickered “I still think that spell is impressive.”

“Agreed” Midnight Armor responded “However, I’m more impressed with the way she answered Blue Stream’s question. She managed to do so without revealing anything that she shouldn’t.”

“Did you notice Golden Flash’s actions?” Star Swirl asked slowly

Surprised, Sundance and Midnight Armor turned to him, both asking the same thing. “What are you talking about?”

“When Blue Stream told everyone that they were having trouble getting their spell to work, he stepped forward.” Star Swirl replied “It was clear that he was going to say something, but Twilight spoke first.”

Midnight Armor thought for a moment before sighing. “I think I know why he did that.”

Sundance turned to her husband “Midnight?”

“He was probably going to volunteer to “help” them.” Midnight Armor replied “However, I doubt he truly planned to help. Instead, I believe that wanted a reason to claim that he needed research funds.”

“That sounds like something he’d do.” Sundance replied, sighing as well “Thank goodness Twilight spoke first.” After a moment, she laughed “It’s nice to see that Celestia still has her mischievous side.”

Midnight Armor flickered “I don’t think Twilight agrees with you.”

Sundance and Star Swirl laughed

Chapter 65

In Canterlot, court had finally ended for the day. Blue Stream, Aqua and the rest of the Medical Research Team thanked Twilight before heading back to their office. After they had left the throne room, Golden Flash walked closer to Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike.

As one, the four of them stood.

Twilight levitated Spike onto her back before turning her attention to Golden Flash.

As soon as Golden Flash stopped in front of Celestia, Golden Thunder took control of his body. Turning to Twilight, he said “I’m sure that you’re extremely busy, princess. If you’d like, I’d be willing to handle your research so that you can focus on teaching.”

Sundance gasped H-how are you going to answer that? Especially since you can’t tell him what you’re researching. If he finds out that our bodies are-

Mom. Twilight responded, stopping Sundance before she could get any further. Don’t worry, I have no intention of telling him what I’m researching. And I’m not going to let him help me. Turning her attention to Golden Thunder, she replied “I appreciate the offer, but I must respectfully decline.” Seeing his confusion, she explained “Unless you’re a dragon named Spike, you’re not helping me with my research.”

Smiling, Spike nodded I knew she was going to say that.

Sundance sighed in relief Well done, Twilight!

Golden Thunder opened his mouth but, before he could say anything, he heard something unexpected. Surprised, he looked at Celestia.

She was laughing. “Twilight rarely allows me to help with her research.”

Artemis chuckled “Most of the time, I don’t even know what she’s researching.”

“Now then,” Celestia commented “court has closed for the day. Sapphire Wing?”

Sapphire Wing stepped forward “Yes, Princess Celestia?”

“Please escort Golden Flash out of the castle.” Turning to Golden Thunder, Celestia continued “I’m sure that you will be in court tomorrow, but you’re not allowed to enter the castle until then.”

Sapphire Wing smiled “Of course, Princess Celestia.”

Cursing under his breath, Golden Thunder allowed Golden Flash to regain control of his body. They’re hiding something . . .

After thinking for a moment, he continued. Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis might be aware of the fact that, in addition to their parents’ souls, I plan to take theirs as well. Additionally, I’d be surprised if they haven’t already begun to develop a plan to stop me.

Actually, that’s probably what they’re hiding. I can’t let them stop me this time. Therefore, I need to figure out what their plan is so I can come up with a way to counter it.

It appears that Princess Twilight knows about their plan. Perhaps I can trick her into telling me something.

Golden Flash turned to Sapphire Wing “An escort isn’t necessary. I know the way out of the castle.”

Sapphire Wing shook his head “You heard Princess Celestia. Let’s go.”

After Golden Flash and Sapphire Wing had left the throne room, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike did as well.

In the hall, Celestia cast a shield over the throne room. Seeing the confusion on her siblings’ faces, she explained “Golden Thunder might try to get to the throne anyway.”

“I’ll inform the Night Shift.” Silver Shadow replied “What would you like them to do if they find him in the castle?”

“Arrest him for trespassing.” Artemis immediately answered

Celestia and Twilight nodded

Sundance laughed Great idea, Artemis!

Silver Shadow bowed “Yes, Prince Artemis”

Sapphire Wing met them in front of the dining room. “Golden Flash has left the castle, Princess Celestia.”

Celestia smiled at him “Thank you.”

Twilight turned to her guards. “After dinner, we’re just going to relax. This means that both of you can head home for the day. I’ll see you tomorrow morning before court.”

As one, Steel Night and Midnight Fang bowed “Yes, Princess Twilight”

“The same applies to you, Silver Shadow.” Artemis added “Well, after you make the necessary arrangements for castle security tonight.”

Silver Shadow bowed “Yes, Prince Artemis”

Celestia laughed “I’m sure that you’ve already figured it out, but I’ll say it anyway. The same applies to you, Sapphire Wing.”

Also laughing, Sapphire Wing bowed “Yes, Princess Celestia”

As one, the guards said “Have a good evening, your highnesses.”

After the guards left, the Royal Family walked into the dining room. As they expected, they found Apple Crunch waiting for them.

“Good evening, your highnesses.” He began “For dinner, I have Fettuccini Alfredo for Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis. I have the same for you, Spike. However, yours has sapphire pieces mixed in. Princess Twilight, I have an Apple and Grape Pasta Salad for you. We’ve made apple pie for dessert.”

After they’d eaten, Celestia teleported the four of them to her room. Sundance waited until they were settled on Celestia’s bed before using Twilight’s magic to write a message in front of them.

Artemis, your father and I would like you to bring the four of you to our stars after you raise the moon. We’ve finished the analysis of Golden Thunder’s spell and would like to discuss the results.

Surprised, Artemis stared at the message while Twilight read it aloud for Spike. A few minutes later, he replied “Yes, Mother.”

After relaxing for almost an hour, Celestia and Artemis raised their heads. Knowing what that meant, Sundance said. I’ll see you in a few minutes.

Before Twilight could reply, Artemis raised the moon and stars.

Knowing that this discussion might shock Spike, Artemis made sure to bring enough air for him to breathe for two days. Then he brought the four of them to his parents’ stars.

In the stars, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl turned at a flash of moonlight. They saw Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike standing next to the cloud.

Before they could say anything, Midnight Armor spoke up. “This is going to take a while, so the four of you should make yourselves comfortable.”

Surprised, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike looked at each other. Shrugging, Artemis and Celestia moved onto the cloud before laying down side by side. Twilight cast the Cloud Walking Spell on Spike. Moving onto the cloud, she lay down on Celestia’s other side before levitating Spike to her other side.

When they were settled, Sundance asked “Do any of you know a spell to remove mental compulsions?”

Confused, and worried, Artemis and Twilight shook their heads. Equally confused, Celestia nodded.

“Good.” Sundance commented “Please cast it on Spike.”

Surprised, Celestia stared at Sundance’s star for a couple of minutes before doing as her mother had asked.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight were surprised when Spike glowed for a minute.

Equally surprised, Spike looked down at himself. “What the-?”

Sundance watched Spike carefully for a couple of minutes before sighing in relief. “This means that Twilight successfully removed everything this morning.”

Spike looked at Sundance’s star “What are you talking about?”

“The spell that Golden Thunder cast on you is designed to force any dragon to be completely loyal to him.” Sundance explained

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike gasped

“There are two ways to remove such a spell.” Midnight Armor continued “The first is the spell that Celestia just cast on you. It works by removing any spell that shouldn’t be there. The second is what Twilight did this morning. She removed all foreign magic from, not just your mind, but your entire body.”

Star Swirl briefly brightened “Golden Thunder’s magic was removed from your body before his spell took full effect. Therefore, you won’t experience any side effects.”

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike sighed in relief.

Something about what her mother had said caught Celestia’s attention. After thinking for a few minutes, she gasped. “That must be what happened!”

Confused, Midnight Armor asked “What are you talking about?”

“Fifteen hundred years ago, you and Mother went to that village to stop a dragon attack.” Celestia slowly responded

Before Celestia could continue, Sundance gasped “You’re right, Celestia! Golden Thunder probably cast his spell on those dragons. That must be why they attacked!”

“There’s something that doesn’t make sense.” Star Swirl said thoughtfully “Even if Golden Thunder made Spike attack Twilight, it wouldn’t have done any good. This is because he’s simply too young for his fire to be powerful enough to injure an alicorn.”

Glancing at Spike, Twilight slowly replied “He doesn’t need to attack me. Spike helps me with a lot of things, including research. Golden Thunder could tell Spike to sabotage my research . . . or spy on me.”

Artemis’ eyes widened “I bet it’s the second one. He probably wants to know what you’re researching. That would be the perfect way to figure it out.”

Gasping again, Sundance added “It would also allow him to discover our bodies!”

Spike blinked Bodies? Turning to Twilight, he asked “What is she talking about?”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl looked at each other.

Before she could say anything, Twilight heard Magic’s voice.

It’s alright. Spike is one of the individuals who can be told everything. However, you should wait until next week before you do that. For now, you should tell him what you did, and discovered, yesterday.

Thanks, Magic. Twilight replied “Magic just told me that I can tell you about what happened yesterday, Spike.” She thought for a moment. “Actually, I think it would be better if I show you.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl watched as Twilight showed Spike what happened.

Spike gasped when he saw Sundance and Midnight Armor’s bodies. “That’s what they really look like?!”

Twilight nodded

Spike looked at the image, up at their stars, and back at the image. “Their stars are pretty, but I think they look better as ponies.”

After a moment of stunned silence, everyone began to laugh.

Still laughing, Midnight Armor asked “You’re not surprised that we’re alicorns?”

“Why would that surprise me?” Spike responded “Princess Celestia and Artemis are both alicorns so it makes sense that both of you are as well.”

Celestia laughed “You’re right, that does make sense.” She paused “I’ve been meaning to say this for a while, but never got around to it.”

Spike looked at her “What are you talking about?”

“Don’t use my title.” Celestia replied “Not only have we known each other your entire life, you’re a member of the family.”

Surprised, Spike stared at her for a moment. “A-alright.” Shaking his head, he muttered “That’s going to take some getting used to.”

Everyone instantly began to laugh again.

Looking back at Twilight’s magic, Spike watched her suddenly sit down. His eyes widened when he heard what she said. “They’re ALIVE?!”

Nodding again, Twilight made sure that he was looking at her before continuing. “As I’m sure you’ve guessed, Golden Thunder can’t find out about this.”

Spike nodded “Pinkie Promise” Turning his attention back to her magic, he watched the rest of what Twilight had done. After the image disappeared, he thought for a few minutes. Then he climbed onto Twilight’s back and whispered something in her ear.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl looked on as Twilight nodded before whispering something back to Spike.

Spike’s eyes widened for a moment before a large smile spread across his face. “You got it, Twi.” Then he climbed off of her back and curled up on the cloud next to her.

Seeing the expressions on Celestia and Artemis’ face, Twilight giggled “Magic told me that I can tell Spike about Harmony’s plan. Therefore, he’ll be helping me create the second spell that Harmony and Magic asked for.” Her giggles turned into laughter. “In fact, he’s already guessed part of Harmony’s plan.”

Spike smiled

Everypony else gasped

Twilight sighed “We need to find a way to stop Golden Thunder from doing anything else to Spike.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl instantly began to laugh.

Thoroughly confused, Twilight asked “What’s so funny?”

Still laughing, Sundance answered “Y-you terrified him, Twilight!”

“Your mother’s right, Twilight.” Midnight Armor added, laughing as well “Golden Thunder will probably go after our souls again before he even thinks of doing anything else to Spike.”

“That reminds me.” Twilight responded “We know that he learned my magic signature the other day. I’m sure that he’ll be blocking me from now on.”

Everyone gasped when they heard Magic’s laughter.

"He can block you all he wants, Twilight. It won’t help him."

Sundance laughed “She has a point.”

Also laughing, Midnight Armor added “I can’t wait to hear what he says when he realizes that.”

Everyone else began to laugh as well.

When they’d calmed down, Sundance looked at Twilight. She paused when she saw the thoughtful expression on her daughter’s face. “Twilight?”

Jumping slightly, Twilight looked up at Sundance’s star. “Sorry, Mom. I was just thinking.”

Curious, Midnight Armor asked “About what?”

Twilight giggled “I think we should give Golden Thunder a taste of his own medicine.”

“What do you mean?” Celestia asked

Glancing at her sister, Twilight answered “I made sure to learn Golden Thunder’s magic signature today.” She giggled again “I haven’t decided when I’m going to do it yet, but I want to see how he likes being blocked.”

Everyone just stared at her for a moment. Then they began to laugh.

When he was calm enough, Artemis asked “Do you know the spell that you need?”

Twilight shook her head “I’m not worried about that. I’ll just add it to the list of things that I’m researching.”

Sundance giggled “I have a better idea. I’ll teach you the spell tomorrow.”

Twilight’s eyes lit up “Thanks, Mom.”

Sundance’s giggles turned into laughter “You’re welcome, Twilight. For now, the four of you should get some sleep.”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “You’re mother’s right. You’ve had a big day and need your rest.”

Nodding, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight lay their heads on the cloud. Then Celestia spread her wings, laying them over both of her siblings and Spike. Spike fell asleep first. Within ten minutes, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight were asleep as well.

Sundance looked at her sleeping children for a few minutes before turning to her husband. “Even though we can’t speak to them while they’re asleep, I’m growing fond of having our children spend their nights here.”

Also looking at his children, Midnight Armor briefly brightened “I am as well.”

“Perhaps that’s the answer.” Star Swirl said thoughtfully

“What are you talking about?” Sundance asked

“You can only keep your spell going until the end of the week.” Star Swirl answered “You told us that you’ll have to wait a month before you can cast it on Twilight again. However, if they come here at night, they can tell us what’s going on around them.”

Sundance gasped “That’s a wonderful idea!”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened again “Their original plan was for Twilight and Celestia give Artemis some of their magic. Then he would add some of his own magic before giving it to us. Unfortunately, this would have required so much magic that they would have only been able to do it once or twice in between our visits. Your idea is a much better option, Star Swirl.”

Sundance briefly brightened as well “If they come here two or three times a week, we’ll still have a good idea of what’s going on. We’d also be able to give them advice and help them create their plan.”

Midnight Armor laughed “That would also allow Artemis and Twilight to spend some of their evenings together.”

Sundance and Star Swirl briefly brightened “You’re right.”

Looking at her children again, Sundance said “We’ll discuss this with them in the morning.”

“Good idea” Midnight Armor responded

In the dream realm, Artemis focused on Jade Butterfly’s dream. I’d better make sure that she isn’t having another nightmare. After a moment, he chuckled. She’s flying through the sky with a large group of butterflies. It’s not realistic, but who cares? At least she’s having a pleasant dream.

He turned his attention to the other foals of Equestria and was surprised to find that none of them were having nightmares.

Meanwhile, In Golden Flash’s house, Golden Flash and Amethyst Rose watched Golden Thunder leave his descendant’s body.

Taking a couple of steps forward, Golden Thunder cast his field of magic spell. However, he made sure not to include the trapping spell. Walking inside it, he lay down on the large cushion that Golden Flash had placed there for him. “This will allow me to remain out of your body for several hours. I’m still going to court with you every day.” He paused “I’m also going to be with you any time you’re conducting research.”

Golden Flash nodded “Yes, ancestor”

“Regardless,” Golden Thunder continued “Princess Twilight is correct. This should allow your body to rest. Additionally, it will probably be at least a week before we see any noticeable difference.”

Nodding again, Golden Flash lay down.

Amethyst Rose levitated a blanket over to Golden Thunder before laying down as well. After pulling their blanket over herself and her husband, she used her magic to turn off the lights.

Surprised, Golden Thunder looked at Amethyst Rose. I know that she’s angry with me because I keep harming her daughter. Therefore, I’m surprised that she did that. Shrugging, he spread the blanket over himself. It probably has more to do with taking care of a guest than doing anything for me personally. Regardless, I should get some sleep.

It wasn’t long before all three of them were asleep.

In the Dream Realm, Golden Thunder looked around to find that he was in the castle again. “What’s going on? I know that I was just-” He paused “I see. This must be a dream.” Hearing hoofsteps, he turned towards the main entrance. Surprised, he commented “This is what happened this morning.”

Not sure what was going on, he watched Spike walk towards the throne room. “Looking back, I really should have left that dragon alone.”

Watching Twilight appear out of nowhere, he remarked “I suppose I should be grateful that she didn’t attack me as soon as she discovered what I’d done.”

Suddenly, the dream froze.

Surprised, Golden Thunder looked around. “What’s going on now?”

“Simple” Night replied, materializing in front of him “Twilight doesn’t like to brag about her accomplishments, but I think you should know about one in particular.”

Golden Thunder took several steps back. “W-what are you doing here?!” He paused “And what are you talking about?”

“Have you heard of a centaur named Tirek?”

Surprised, Golden Thunder nodded “There were rumors about him even before I died. I recall hearing that he has the ability to steal the magic from a pony.”

Night nodded as well “A few years ago, he escaped from Tartarus.”

Golden Thunder gasped

Night changed Golden Thunder’s dream. “By this point, he had taken the magic from everypony in Equestria.”

Golden Thunder gasped again “What?!”

Night thought for a moment “Well, he wasn’t able to get the magic of the alicorns.” Yet. He shook his head “Regardless, he attacked Twilight next. I’m going to show you part of that fight.”

Golden Thunder watched Twilight accidentally teleport into the side of a mountain. “Why did she do that?”

“Twilight had just ascended and was still learning to control her alicorn magic.” Night answered

Both of them watched Tirek attack the Golden Oaks Library.

“The building that was just destroyed was Twilight’s home.”

Golden Thunder gasped when her expression changed. “This probably won’t end well.” His eyes widened when Twilight teleported to Tirek and launched a massive beam of magic at him. “S-she’s that powerful?!”

Night didn’t bother telling Golden Thunder that, at the time, Twilight had the magic of four alicorns. Instead, he changed Golden Thunder’s dream again.

Looking around, Golden Thunder noticed that they were back in the castle. He shuddered when he noticed that Twilight was glaring at him.

Night chuckled when he saw Golden Thunder’s expression. “That’s the end of the history lesson. I’ve decided to allow you to experience Twilight’s full power for yourself.”

Golden Thunder’s eyes went wide “Y-you can’t mean . . .”

Night’s next chuckle was much more sinister. “This is what could have happened if Twilight had decided to attack you this morning . . . and didn’t hold back.”

Golden Thunder’s eyes became the size of dinner plates as he backed up several feet.

Night laughed “Have fun.” With that said, he vanished. The last thing he heard was Golden Thunder’s terrified scream.

In the stars, Artemis and Celestia woke to the pull of their respective celestial bodies. Smiling, Celestia nuzzled her sister.

Twilight mumbled something unintelligible before pulling her head under Celestia’s wing.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl laughed. Their laughter woke Spike.

Opening his eyes, he mumbled “What’s going on?” Seeing stars, he sat up, rubbed both eyes and looked again. “That’s right, we fell asleep in the stars.”

Giggling, Celestia nuzzled Twilight again.

“I’m awake.” Twilight replied “I just wish I wasn’t.”

Everyone laughed again

Twilight used her magic to fix her mane before lifting her head. “Good morning, Mom, Dad and Star Swirl.”

Celestia and Artemis smiled “Good morning, Mother, Father and Star Swirl.”

Spike simply said “Good morning”

Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl’s stars brightened considerably. As one, they responded “Good morning, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike.”

Midnight Armor turned his attention to his children. “Before you leave, there’s something that we’d like to discuss with you.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow “Is something wrong, Father?”

Sundance’s star flickered “Last night, Star Swirl came up with an idea that should help you.”

Also raising an eyebrow, Artemis turned to his friend’s star. “What is Mother talking about?”

Sundance explained Star Swirl’s idea.

Star Swirl nervously waited for their reactions.

After thinking for a few minutes, Artemis slowly replied. “That’s not a bad idea. It hardly takes any magic at all for me to travel to the stars, especially if I do it at night. Bringing others with me isn’t very difficult either.”

Celestia nodded “Giving Mother and Father enough magic to speak to us in your dream would require the three of us to pool quite a bit of magic. This is a much better option.”

Star Swirl sighed in relief. Confused, Celestia, Twilight and Artemis looked at his star but, before anyone could say anything, they heard Night’s voice.

“I’m sorry to interrupt, but I thought I should let you know what I did last night.” Before anyone could ask, he showed them Golden Thunder’s dream . . . and the nightmare that he turned it into.

As soon as it ended, everyone began to laugh.

Calming slightly, Sundance commented “I-I think he solved your problem, Twilight.”

“Your mother’s right.” Midnight Armor added “I don’t think you were trying to do this, but you terrified Golden Thunder yesterday.”

“They’re both right.” Artemis added “I’m sure that Golden Thunder will leave Spike alone.”

Star Swirl turned to Twilight “I have a question about Golden Thunder's dream. Did the part with Tirek really happen?”

Blushing, Twilight nodded “Night apparently decided not to tell Golden Thunder this but, at the time, I had the magic of four alicorns. I do not have that kind of power on my own.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “Golden Thunder doesn’t need to know that.”

Sundance giggled “I agree with your father, Twilight.”

Everyone laughed when Twilight buried her face into Celestia’s shoulder.

Celestia nuzzled her sister before turning to her brother. “We should go.”

Nodding, Artemis brought himself, Celestia, Twilight and Spike back to Canterlot.

In Canterlot, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike opened their eyes and looked around to find that they were back in Celestia’s room. They climbed off of her bed, and stretched, before walking onto Celestia’s balcony. Twilight and Spike watched as Artemis lowered the moon and stars before Celestia raised the sun.

A few minutes later, Twilight heard Sundance’s laughter.

Normally, I’d be saying “Good Morning” right now, but we’ve already covered that.

Twilight giggled as she, Celestia, Artemis and Spike walked back inside before heading into the hall. A few minutes later, they walked into the dining room.

Apple Crunch bowed “Good morning, your highnesses.”

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike smiled “Good morning”

“I have oatmeal for all of you.” Apple Crunch explained “Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis have raisins and brown sugar in theirs. Spike has crushed rubies in his and Princess Twilight has apples and cinnamon in hers. Princess Twilight has a glass of milk while everyone else has orange juice.”

After they had eaten, the four of them headed to the throne room. They found their guards standing next to the door.

Celestia smiled at their guards before releasing her shield.

Artemis, Twilight, Spike, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang followed Celestia into the throne room.

As they approached the throne, two members of the castle staff walked into the side entrance. One was carrying a table and chair in his magic while the other was carrying an assortment of writing materials. After setting everything up, they turned to Twilight.

Bowing, the one who had brought in the writing materials said “As you’ve requested, Princess Twilight.”

Twilight smiled “Thank you”

After the castle staff had left the throne room, Celestia turned to her little sister. “What was that about?”

Giggling, Twilight levitated Spike to the chair. “After what happened yesterday, I have no intention of letting Spike out of my sight while Golden Thunder is in the castle. However, I thought he might appreciate having something to do. Your secretaries have the rest of the week off, so I thought he could fill in for them.”

Artemis nuzzled his mare “That’s a great idea, Twilight.”

Smiling, Celestia nodded “I have no doubt that he can handle the job.” She thought for a moment “Arctic Breeze and Ice Blossom have the rest of the week off as well. Therefore, we don’t have anypony tracking or screening the petitions.”

Spike had just finished arranging the table to his liking. Looking up at Celestia, he replied “I can’t screen the petitions because I don’t know what system they’re using or what’s already been submitted. However, I can track the ones we receive this week.” He shrugged “I’ll just need somepony to make sure that they get my notes when they get back next week.”

Celestia laughed “I’ll take care of that.”

Shocked, Sundance just stared at Spike for a moment. When she found her voice, she asked I-is he really only thirteen years old?!

Yes Twilight answered, turning to Spike “I don’t know what time they’re going to get here, but Rainbow and Scootaloo will be here this afternoon.”

Nodding, Spike wrote that on the schedule for the afternoon.

Celestia turned to her sister “I need to be a part of that as well. Whatever the wing specialist finds will be important in the case against Lightning Drop and Wild Gust.”

Artemis turned to Silver Shadow “When Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo arrive, please see to it that they’re brought straight to us.”

Silver Shadow bowed “Yes, Prince Artemis.”

Sapphire Wing bowed as well “We’ll inform the rest of the Day Guard.”

Everyone looked up when they heard hoofsteps in the hall. They watched Golden Flash stop in the doorway and look into the throne room.

Good. Golden Thunder remarked Everyone’s already here.

Celestia raised her voice “Court is officially open. Everypony can come into the throne room.”

Bowing, Golden Flash walked into the room. “There won’t be any other petitioners today, your highnesses.” Seeing Celestia, Artemis and Twilight each raise an eyebrow, he explained “There are a couple of important matters that we need to discuss with you. Therefore, I’ve scheduled a private audience.”

Spike raised an eyebrow as well “There haven’t been any private audiences requested, let alone scheduled.”

Beginning to sweat, Golden Flash responded “I couldn’t schedule it with anypony in the castle because Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis’ personal secretaries are still on vacation. Instead, the other members of the nobility are handling the petitions from the ponies living in their districts.”

Spike finished his notes before replying. “I’m tracking the petitions, and managing their schedules, this week. If you want a private audience, come to court and tell me about it. If it’s approved, I’ll add it to their schedule.”

Golden Flash turned to Celestia

Celestia smiled “Artemis, Twilight and I have asked Spike to manage our schedules and track the petitions for the rest of this week.”

Golden Flash bowed “Y-yes, Princess Celestia.”

Celestia suppressed a sigh “You didn’t go through the proper channels, so we have no reason to allow you to have a private audience. However, you said that you have important matters to discuss. Therefore, I will allow you to speak.”

Golden Thunder took control of Golden Flash’s body. “Thank you, Princess Celestia. The first topic that I’d like to discuss is for Prince Artemis.”

Artemis nodded

“I’ve been having terrible nightmares lately.” Golden Thunder explained “I was hoping you could do something to stop them.”

“There are a few exceptions, but I usually only enter the dreams of foals.” Artemis replied

“What about Saturday night?” Golden Thunder asked

“You had turned Jade Butterfly’s dream into a nightmare.” Artemis answered “Instead of simply removing you from her dream, I made sure to bring you into your own.”

Golden Thunder gave Artemis a skeptical look. “What about the nightmare I had last night?”

Before Artemis could respond, Night’s laughter echoed around the room.

“Artemis had nothing to do with that.”

Golden Thunder’s eyes widened “N-Night-Terror Knight?!”

“That’s right. Like Artemis, I have the ability to Dream Walk.”

Golden Thunder gasped “What?!”

“Celestia, Artemis and Twilight can’t punish you because they would also be punishing Golden Flash. You’ve seen to it that he has no part in your actions, so they can’t do that. Unfortunately for you, I can punish you without involving your descendant.”

Golden Thunder narrowed his eyes “What do you mean?”

Night laughed again “Last night’s nightmare served two purposes. The first one was a history lesson. The second was a punishment.”

“Why did you punish me?” Golden Thunder demanded

“That young dragon has done nothing to you. Even so, you tried to control him.”

Golden Thunder smirked “I did no such thing.”

Twilight glared at Golden Thunder “Mom was paying attention to what was going on around me yesterday morning.”

Golden Thunder gasped “W-why was she doing that?!”

Worried, Sundance asked How are you going to answer his question without giving anything away?

“She was worried that you might attack me again.” Twilight answered “As soon as she saw what you had done to Spike, she volunteered to analyze your spell so that I could focus on court.” I know that’s not what really happened, but it’s something that I can tell him . . . and it’s believable.

Sundance laughed That’s perfect!

Queen Sundance analyzed my spell?! Suddenly horrified, Golden Thunder stammered “T-that means you-”

“Know exactly what you tried to do to Spike?” Twilight finished

Golden Thunder hesitantly nodded

“Of course.” Twilight replied “Celestia and Artemis know about it as well.”

“I can hear, and see, whatever happens around Artemis. Therefore, I know about your spell as well.” Night paused “From now on, I’m going to punish you any time I feel that you’ve done something to deserve it. Unfortunately for you, as long as we’re in the Dream Realm, there’s nothing that Artemis can do to stop me.”

Golden Thunder turned several shades paler.

Silver Shadow, Sapphire Wing, Steel Night and Midnight Fang struggled to suppress their laughter.

Artemis was also struggling to suppress his laughter. That’s not true. It’s just that, in this case, I have no intention of stopping you.

I know that. I said that because I don’t want him to blame you for my actions.

I wish I had thought of that. Artemis responded I could have been giving him nightmares all along.

Night laughed I’ll make up for that. If I recall correctly, he’s gone after your parents’ souls twice since he returned. Additionally, he attacked Twilight the other day.

That’s right. Artemis replied

Then I’ve got some catching up to do. Night remarked I wonder how he’ll react if I make him go through what he did to Sundance and Midnight Armor fifteen hundred years ago.

Artemis hid a wince I wouldn’t wish that on anypony.

Yet he did it to them. Night responded Don’t worry, I’m not REALLY going to make him go through that. It will just be a nightmare.

In the stars, Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl were laughing so hard that it was a few minutes before they were calm enough to speak.

“T-that was great!” Midnight Armor remarked

“Agreed” Sundance responded, giggling “I’m glad that Twilight was able to find a valid reason to tell Golden Thunder that I was watching yesterday.”

“Something tells me that Golden Thunder will be having a lot of nightmares.” Star Swirl commented

Sundance’s giggles turned into laughter. “You’re probably right.”

Midnight Armor laughed as well.

In Canterlot, Celestia turned to Golden Thunder. “You said that you had a couple of important issues to discuss. What is the second issue?”

“Yesterday afternoon, Princess Twilight mentioned that she had conducted some research while in the Crystal Empire.” Golden Thunder replied

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nodded

Golden Thunder chose his words carefully “I was wondering if you had come across anything that was written in what is now considered Equestria’s ancient written language.”

He must want to ask about his journal and scroll. Sundance commented, giggling This should be good.

Twilight nodded, directing the gesture at Sundance and Golden Thunder. “Cadance gave me a book and a scroll that their archivists were unable to translate.”

Celestia hid a smile. Twilight hasn’t told him what’s written in the book, or on the scroll, yet . . . or that we have them. In fact, it looks like she plans to drag this out a little. That should be amusing.

After a thinking for a moment, Golden Thunder nervously asked “A-are you able to read the ancient text, princess?”

Laughing, Twilight asked “What kind of researcher would I be if I couldn’t?”

Sundance’s giggles turned into laughter. A-are you trying to make me laugh, Twilight? Or are you dragging this out for another reason?

Both Twilight answered

When she’d calmed down a little, Sundance asked. What’s the other reason?

I want to see what Golden Thunder does. Twilight answered Especially after he finds out that I have his journal and scroll.

Sundance instantly began to laugh again.

Horrified, Golden Thunder just stared at Twilight. In fact, it was almost five minutes before he was able to say anything.

In the stars, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl were laughing, but Sundance was laughing much harder. A couple of minutes later, they calmed down enough to speak.

“Well,” Midnight Armor commented “you wanted each of our children to have a mischievous side, Sundance.”

Still laughing, Sundance replied “Trust me, I don’t have a problem with what Twilight is doing. In fact, I’m enjoying it immensely.”

Midnight Armor and Star Swirl laughed as well.

In Canterlot, Celestia, Artemis, Silver Shadow, Sapphire Wing, Steel Night and Midnight Fang smiled.

All four of the guards were thinking the same thing. This is getting good.

Golden Thunder had a different opinion. This is bad. Looking at Twilight, he hesitantly asked “What was the title of the book?”

Twilight glanced at Celestia in time to see her nod. Turning back to Golden Thunder, she answered “Crystals and Souls”

Golden Thunder’s jaw dropped T-that’s the title that I gave my journal! That must be why I couldn’t find it in the things that I left to my descendants. I accidentally left it in the Crystal Empire! He paused Wait a minute. She said something about a scroll . . . Oh no. That’s probably the one with the spells that I used.

T-this is very bad. Golden Flash stammered Princess Twilight has probably read that as well.

Golden Thunder suppressed a gasp. I-if you’re right, she’s probably figured out what I did to Queen Sundance and King Midnight Armor. He paused In fact, that might be another reason that she’s so determined to protect their souls! Returning his attention to Twilight, he hesitantly asked “W-what about the scroll?”

“I’m sure you know exactly what’s on that scroll, Golden Thunder.” Celestia replied

Surprised, Golden Thunder looked at Celestia to find a carefully neutral expression on her face. Then he slowly turned back to Twilight. “D-did you translate both of them, princess?”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “That’s why Cadance gave them to me in the first place. Therefore, the answer to your question is yes.”

Somewhere between shocked and horrified, Golden Thunder stared at Twilight for several minutes. “T-that means y-you know . . .” He trailed off, not sure what to say.

Sensing Twilight’s hesitance, Sundance said It’s alright, Twilight. You can tell him the truth.

Surprised, Twilight asked A-are you sure, Mom? That topic is . . .

Yes, I’m sure. Before her youngest could say anything, Sundance quietly explained. You’re right. That is still a sensitive topic for us. However, your father and I want to see how Golden Thunder will react when he finds out that you know the truth.

A-alright. Twilight turned her attention to Golden Thunder. “Yes, Golden Thunder. I know what those spells were meant for.”

Celestia and Artemis gasped before turning to Twilight, both of them whispering the same thing. “What are you doing?!”

“I’m doing exactly what Mom told me to do.” Twilight whispered back

Shocked, Celestia and Artemis just stared at her.

Equally shocked, Golden Thunder stared at Twilight for a few more minutes. Then he suppressed a smile. Perhaps I can use this to my advantage. If I can convince her that my actions were justified, Princess Twilight might let me have those souls. “I-I see. In that case, there’s something that I’d like to tell you, Princess Twilight.”

Turning back to Golden Thunder, Twilight raised an eyebrow. “And that is?”

“Fifteen hundred years ago, King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance discovered my plan to take the throne and attacked me.” Golden Thunder responded “I had no choice but to kill them. However, I didn’t want them to disappear completely. That’s why I came up with a way to protect their souls.”

Sundance, Celestia and Artemis instantly shouted the same thing. “What?!”

Sundance was furious. He dares to claim that we attacked him?! And how was allowing that creature to eat our souls supposed to protect us?!

Celestia and Artemis were just as furious. They glared at Golden Thunder but, before either of them could say anything, they heard Twilight growl softly. Surprised, they looked at her. Seeing her expression, they glanced at each other before turning back to her.

Twilight glared at Golden Thunder “Mom showed me her memory of that battle.”

Golden Thunder’s eyes widened “What?!”

“Perhaps you need a reminder.” Twilight began “Let’s see . . . Mom and Dad had to travel to a village on the other side of Equestria so that they could stop a dragon attack. While they were gone, you used your Chimera Anima to attack the village near the Everfree Forest. After capturing two dozen ponies, you went to the castle and attacked Celestia and Artemis.” She paused “Everything sound accurate so far?”

Stunned, Golden Thunder could only nod.

“Several hours later, Mom and Dad returned.” Twilight continued “Celestia and Artemis told them that you had created the Chimera Anima and were attacking them. You told Mom and Dad that you had hoped to greet them as Equestria’s new king. That’s when your creation attacked them, destroying Celestia’s shield. Celestia and Artemis earned their Cutie Marks . . . you called them Soul Marks back then . . . and created a stronger shield that stopped the Chimera Anima’s next attack. That’s when you brought out the captured ponies and allowed your creation to kill them before eating their souls. The Chimera Anima’s next attack was so strong that Mom and Dad had to help Celestia and Artemis power their shield.” She paused “I’m not going to go bother explaining what happened next, but I will tell you that I know every detail.”

The main reason I stopped there is that I know that you, Dad, Celestia and Artemis don’t want to relive what happened next . . . again. Twilight told Sundance

Thank you, Twilight. Sundance said softly

Twilight hid a smile You’re welcome, Mom

After thinking for a moment, Sundance spoke slowly. Wait a minute. You said that was the main reason. Does this mean that you have another reason?

Yes. Twilight replied I don’t want Golden Thunder to know that you and Dad aren’t dead. Well, not yet anyway.

Yet? Sundance asked, surprised

That’s right. Twilight replied When I discovered your bodies, Harmony asked Magic to tell me that Golden Thunder will learn the truth. As you know, I can’t tell you exactly what she has planned yet. However, I can tell you that both of you will like it . . . especially if everything goes according to plan.

After a moment of stunned silence, Sundance laughed. I can’t wait to see what the three of you are planning. She paused for a moment before adding. Your father says that he can’t wait either. Star Swirl is laughing too hard to say anything.

Magic giggled Well done, Twilight. Harmony doesn’t mind that you told Sundance that. Instead, she’s happy that you were able to cheer up your mother.

Good. Twilight replied

What? Sundance asked

Twilight had to stop herself from jumping. Sorry, Mom. I was responding to something that Magic just said. She resisted the urge to shake her head. I thought talking to two moms in the same conversation was confusing, but that was nothing compared to hearing two voices in my head . . . at the same time.

Sundance and Magic laughed.

All things considered, you’re doing remarkably well. Sundance commented

Your mother is right, Twilight.

Twilight blinked At least you’re both saying the same thing. That’s easy enough to follow.

Sundance and Magic laughed again

Golden Thunder was too busy shaking in terror to realize that Twilight hadn’t said anything for a few minutes. He looked up when she cleared her throat.

“I do not appreciate the fact that you lied to me.” Twilight told him

Celestia took a few deep breaths. “Neither do I. Additionally, I don’t appreciate what you said about Mother and Father. They have never attacked you.”

Artemis sighed “Mother and Father trusted you completely, remember? Celestia and I tried to tell them about your plan-”

“Several times” Celestia added

“But they never believed us.” Artemis finished “Therefore, they had no reason to attack you.”

Sundance sighed as well Unfortunately, Artemis is right. We don’t trust him now, and never will again, but we did at the time.

Seeing the expression on Celestia’s face, Sapphire Wing gasped softly. Princess Celestia . . .

Silver Shadow stared at Artemis T-that wasn’t in either of the books.

Celestia turned to Golden Thunder. “Why did you lie to my little sister?”

Golden Thunder narrowed his eyes “I was planning to convince her to give me King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance’s souls.” Moving quickly, he took several steps towards Twilight. “I’ll just use another method to do that.”

Growling, Midnight Fang placed himself between Twilight and Golden Thunder. “Back up”

Golden Thunder glared at Midnight Fang “Who are you?”

Midnight Fang returned the glare. “I’m one of Princess Twilight’s personal guards. My name is Midnight Fang.”

Golden Thunder’s eyes widened M-midnight?!

Midnight Fang hid a smile. “I’m sure you can guess who my mother named me after.”

Stunned, Golden Thunder nodded.

“Good” Midnight Fang replied “I will not allow you to harm his daughter or grandfoal. Is that clear?”

Golden Thunder suddenly found himself unable to speak. Instead, he nodded.

Steel Night stepped forward, also placing himself between Twilight and Golden Thunder. “I’m also one of Princess Twilight’s personal guards. My name is Steel Night.”

Golden Thunder hadn’t found his voice yet, so he nodded again.

“I suggest you do what Midnight Fang told you to.” Steel Night remarked, shifting his spear. “If you don’t, I’ll show you where I got my name.”

Golden Thunder quickly backed up.

Sundance laughed I can see why you trust them.

In the stars, Midnight Armor flickered “Those guards did a very good job of protecting Twilight.”

Star Swirl chuckled “You mean scaring Golden Thunder.”

Sundance laughed “That too.”

“Perhaps that will convince Golden Thunder to behave.” Star Swirl remarked

Speaking together, Sundance and Midnight Armor replied “I doubt it.”

In Canterlot, Golden Thunder decided to get back to the original topic. “Where are my journal and scroll now? If they’re still in the Crystal Empire, I should-” He paused when Artemis laughed.

Seeing that he had Golden Thunder’s attention, Artemis explained. “The current rulers of the Crystal Empire have entrusted both of them to Twilight.”

Golden Thunder stared at Artemis. I-I’m not sure if I should be angry or horrified.

Sundance chose that moment to speak. Do not give either of them to Golden Thunder.

Pretending to be surprised, Twilight blinked “Y-yes, Mom.”

Truly surprised, Golden Thunder blinked as well. “What did Queen Sundance say?”

“She told me not to give either of them to you.” Twilight replied

Celestia began to laugh.

Narrowing his eyes, Golden Thunder asked “What’s so funny?” Why did Queen Sundance say that?!

“It doesn’t matter what you say.” Celestia answered “Twilight isn’t going to disobey Mother.”

Golden Thunder opened his mouth but, before he could say anything, he heard Twilight’s voice.

“That’s strange.” Twilight commented, tilting her head “I didn’t know that Mom was paying attention to what was going on around me right now.”

Sundance laughed T-that’s perfect, Twilight! We don’t want Golden Thunder to suspect that I’ve cast my spell on you.

Somehow managing to keep a straight face, Artemis nuzzled his fiancé. “I’m not surprised. Mother will probably be watching what goes on you for at least a few more days.”

“That’s a good point, Artemis.” Celestia glanced at Golden Thunder “I’m sure that Mother wants to be ready to protect Twilight, and your foal, if she needs to.”

Golden Thunder glanced at Twilight. I suppose that makes sense. Queen Sundance probably wants to ensure that Princess Twilight remains safe.

My magic has recovered faster than I expected. In fact, I have enough to bring King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance’s souls to me right now. I won’t do that because, if I leave Golden Flash’s body anywhere near Prince Artemis, Princess Celestia or Princess Twilight, I have no doubt that they will immediately kill me.

Golden Flash plans to spend the afternoon in the library conducting research. It’s important that he does that, so I’ll wait until tonight. He suppressed a laugh. Princess Twilight won’t be able to stop me this time. He was torn from his thoughts when he heard Celestia’s voice.

Celestia smiled at her siblings “It’s time for lunch.” She allowed her smile to fade as she turned to Golden Thunder. “We’ve covered everything that you wanted to discuss.”

Golden Thunder nodded

“Good” Artemis remarked “We have something scheduled for this afternoon anyway.”

Before Golden Thunder could ask, Celestia teleported herself, her siblings and Spike to the dining room. Shaking his head, he allowed Golden Flash to regain control of his body.

Sapphire Wing escorted Golden Flash out of the castle.

In the dining room, Apple Crunch turned at a flash of sunlight. He watched Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike sigh in relief before heading to their seats. When they were settled, he asked “What would you like for lunch?”

Twilight thought for a moment “Two cucumber sandwiches, please.”

Surprised, everyone stared at her.

Seeing their expressions, Twilight shrugged “I don’t know why, but that’s what I want for lunch.”

After a moment, Celestia smiled “That sounds good. I’ll have the same.”

Artemis and Spike nodded

“Yes, your highnesses” Apple Crunch bowed before walking into the kitchen.

Sundance laughed I see that the random pregnancy cravings are starting. At least this one is normal. Don’t be surprised if you end up eating pickles and ice cream.

That doesn’t sound as disgusting as it used to. Realizing what she’d just said, Twilight asked. Is that weird?

Sundance laughed harder Not at all, Twilight. I know this sounds strange, but it’s something that most mares eat at some point during their pregnancy.

A few minutes later, Apple Crunch returned with a tray piled high with cucumber sandwiches. Setting it on the table, he explained “I’ve made three for each of you. Don’t worry, Princess Twilight. If you can’t eat yours, I’m sure that Prince Artemis will.”

Everyone laughed

As Apple Crunch returned to the kitchen, Celestia, Artemis and Spike each pulled a sandwich towards them. However, instead of eating, they watched Twilight.

Also pulling a sandwich towards her, Twilight took a cautious bite. Realizing that it wasn’t going to come back up, she quickly finished the sandwich.

Smiling, Celestia, Artemis and Spike began to eat as well.

Apple Crunch walked back into the dining room as Twilight finished her second sandwich.

Twilight turned to Artemis “You’re getting the third one.”

Worried, Artemis nuzzled her “Are you alright?”

Twilight nodded before returning his nuzzle. “I’m not nauseous, but I don’t think I should eat anything else right now.”

Celestia smiled “It seems that Cadance was right. You’re getting over the majority of the morning sickness.”

Twilight and Artemis sighed in relief, both saying the same thing. “Finally”

“That’s good news.” Apple Crunch remarked, also sighing in relief

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike jumped before turning to Apple Crunch. After a minute, Celestia laughed “I’m sorry. We didn’t notice that you’d come back into the room.”

Apple Crunch chuckled “That’s alright, princess. I just wanted to see if Princess Twilight was able to keep her lunch down.” Turning to Twilight, he continued “I’ll try something neutral for dinner tonight.”

Slightly nervous, Twilight nodded

After everyone had finished their food, they headed back to the throne room. They found their guards waiting for them.

Seeing the expressions on the faces of their guards, Artemis used his magic to close the doors before casting a soundproofing spell.

Nodding to her brother, Celestia turned to their guards. “I assume you have questions about what we said this morning.”

The guards nodded

Knowing that this could take a while, Twilight lay down on the floor. Laughing, Celestia, Artemis and Spike joined her.

Sapphire Wing turned to Twilight “Golden Thunder tried to control Spike?”

Twilight nodded “According to Mom, his spell would have made any dragon completely loyal to him.” Seeing the expressions of the faces of their guards, she shook her head. “I removed all foreign magic from Spike’s body before Golden Thunder’s spell took full effect.”

All four of the guards sighed in relief.

Silver Shadow turned to Artemis “Golden Thunder has been having nightmares?”

Artemis nodded “The first one was my idea. I discovered that Jade Butterfly was having a severe nightmare, so I entered her dream. When I found the filly, she was being tormented by Golden Thunder.” He turned to Celestia “That reminds me. He told Jade Butterfly that he was able to enter her dream because of the Dream Walking Spell. I didn’t know that such a thing existed.”

“I created that spell several centuries ago to help a noble’s son.” Celestia responded “He’d been trapped in a nightmare for almost a week before his father told me about it. I took what I remembered about your Dream Walking ability and created a spell that has the same effect. Fortunately, I was able to discover what the problem was and help him solve it.”

“I see” Artemis said slowly “Why didn’t you tell me about this?”

“I’m sorry.” Celestia replied, ears drooping “This happened so long ago that I didn’t think about it until a few weeks ago. I didn’t say anything then because, at the time, I had other things on my mind.”

Artemis nuzzled his sister “It’s alright, sister. Though, I would appreciate it if you would show me this spell at some point in the near future. I need to see if I can develop a way to stop ponies from using it to cause nightmares.” He thought for a moment. “If that’s not possible, I need to know what signs to look for. That way, I’ll be able to help the ponies having nightmares because of this spell.”

Sighing in relief, Celestia nodded

Turning back to Silver Shadow, Artemis continued “Anyway, I brought Golden Thunder out of Jade Butterfly’s dream and into his own. Then I asked Night to keep Golden Thunder company while I took care of Jade Butterfly.” He smirked “I’m sure you can guess what he did.”

All four of the guards laughed.

“As Golden Thunder said, his second nightmare was last night.” Artemis explained “I knew what Night had planned, but had no intention of stopping him.”

Everyone laughed

Sapphire Wing hesitated for a moment before reluctantly saying “You said that you told your parents about Golden Thunder’s plan, but . . .”

“They didn’t believe us.” Celestia finished

The guards nodded

I knew that one of them was going to ask about that. Sundance said sadly I don’t blame them for being curious, but I’d rather not think about that right now.

Before Twilight could say anything, she heard Artemis’ voice.

“Golden Thunder began creating his plan when I was sixteen and Celestia was twenty-two. At the time of that battle, I was twenty-three and she was twenty-nine.”

The guards’ eyes widened

Seeing this, Celestia nodded “We discovered Golden Thunder’s plan relatively quickly and, as I’m sure you’ve guessed, immediately told our parents about it. Unfortunately, they didn’t believe us for two reasons. The first was that he had earned our parents’ trust by serving as a high court official for over a decade.”

“The second reason was that he used our age to his advantage.” Artemis explained “Every time we came close to exposing him, or his plan, he told our parents that we were too young to know what was going on.” He sighed “They believed him every time.”

Celestia sighed as well “Unfortunately, we weren’t able to expose him, or his plan, until that battle.”

“I-I see.” Sapphire Wing replied

Twilight hadn’t said anything because she was listening to their mother cry.

Celestia, Artemis . . . Sundance whispered I-I’m so sorry.

Twilight used her magic to pull Celestia and Artemis’ heads to hers before quietly telling them what their mother had just said.

Celestia and Artemis gasped

“Oh no” Celestia said softly “I-I didn’t mean to make Mother cry.”

Artemis’ ears drooped “Neither did I.”

Eyes wide, the guards gasped as well.

In the stars, Sundance and Midnight Armor’s stars were dimmer than usual.

“Even after all this time,” Sundance began, speaking quietly

Speaking just as quietly, Midnight Armor finished his wife’s sentence. “Our actions are still affecting our children.”

Star Swirl was about to comment, but paused when he heard something. “What’s that?”

Still speaking softly, Sundance asked “What are you talking about?”

“Listen” Star Swirl answered

Curious, Sundance and Midnight Armor did what he told them to. After a moment, they began to laugh.

“That’s Twilight.” Midnight Armor replied

“Really?” Star Swirl asked, surprised “What is she doing?”

“She’s humming my lullaby.” Sundance’s star flickered “I never thought I’d need one of our children to do that for me.”

Midnight Armor laughed “She must be trying to cheer you up, Sundance.”

Sundance giggled “It’s definitely working.”

“Agreed” Midnight Armor replied “Please make sure you thank her.”

In Canterlot, Celestia, Artemis, Spike, Silver Shadow, Sapphire Wing, Steel Night and Midnight Fang were watching Twilight. She wasn’t paying attention to any of them because she had closed her eyes.

Celestia smiled Twilight knows Mother’s lullaby better than I thought.

Artemis smiled as well This time next year, she’ll be doing this for our foal.

Spike curled up against Twilight’s side. She hasn’t done this in years.

“That’s a beautiful song.” Sapphire Wing said softly

Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night nodded

When the song ended, Twilight heard Sundance’s voice.

Thank you, Twilight. Your father, Star Swirl and I really enjoyed that. She paused I didn’t know that you knew my lullaby well enough to hum the full song.

Before Twilight could respond, she added. You have a lovely singing voice.

Twilight blushed T-thank you. Celestia sang that for me a lot as I grew up. I began singing it for Spike when he had trouble sleeping . . . well, when he was younger.

Surprised, Sundance asked Really?

Twilight nodded I didn’t know that it was your lullaby because, at the time, Celestia had never mentioned you or Dad. Hay, she’d never mentioned Artemis.

As I told you on Hearth’s Warming, it always helps me relax. In fact, it’s one of my favorite songs.

For a few minutes, Sundance was speechless. Then she whispered T-thank you. That means more to me than you’ll ever know.

Twilight smiled You’re welcome, Mom. Turning her attention to everyone else, she finally noticed that they were all staring at her. Blushing again, she said “Sorry about that. Mom’s feeling better now.”

Everyone sighed in relief

Celestia and Artemis nuzzled Twilight “Good”

Before anyone else could say anything, they heard a knock on the door. Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike stood. The alicorns returned to their positions in front of the throne, Spike returned to his desk and the guards returned to their positions in front of their prince and princesses. Then Celestia cancelled the soundproofing spell before opening the doors.

Rainbow and Scootaloo walked into the throne room, stopped a few feet in front of the throne and bowed to the alicorns.

All three of them laughed.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Twilight asked “Stand up. We’re not in a formal situation and there’s nopony else around.”

Laughing, Rainbow and Scootaloo stood.

Scootaloo ran forward and nuzzled Twilight.

Twilight returned her nuzzle “Much better.”

Everyone laughed

“Now then,” Twilight began, turning to Rainbow “how did the appointment go?”

Rainbow rolled her eyes “They actually have a unicorn in Cloudsdale.”

After a moment of shock, everyone laughed again.

“He cast a magic scan on her, focusing on her back and wings.” Rainbow explained “When he got the results, he told me that there is a problem with a few of the tendons . . . or muscles or something, but the standard scan wasn’t detailed enough to tell him exactly what the problem was.”

Sensing that there was something that her friend wasn’t telling them, Twilight asked “What else?”

Rainbow snorted “He offered to cast a more detailed scan, but it costs two thousand bits! I don’t have that kind of money!” She reached into her saddlebags and pulled out a thick report.

Celestia and Artemis narrowed their eyes.

Also narrowing her eyes, Twilight levitated the report over to her.

“Let’s see.” Twilight said, slowly flipping through the report. “The first several pages are basic patient information. We don’t need that right now. Ah, here are the results of the scan.”

Reading over her sister’s shoulder, Celestia commented “It looks like she has a tear in at least three of the tendons in her back, right around the base of her wings. They can’t be completely severed because she can move her wings . . . and isn’t in any pain.” She paused thoughtfully “That’s actually a good thing. It’s easier to repair a tear than to reattach something that’s completely severed. Additionally, her chances of making a complete recovery are higher. It depends on which tendons are torn, and how severe the tears are, but it’s anywhere between seventy-five and ninety-nine percent.”

“That sounds promising.” Artemis remarked “Which scan does the wing specialist recommend?”

Reading a little further into the report, Twilight answered “He suggests an In-Depth, Bilateral Spine, Muscle, Tendon and Nerve Scan.” She stared at the report for a moment. “Wow, what a mouthful.”

Agreed. Sundance commented

Celestia tilted her head “That’s a fairly new name. If I recall correctly, it used to be called . . .” She suddenly began to laugh “It’s one of the magic scans that Mother invented.”

Artemis blinked “Really? Which one?”

“Well, she did invent most of the ones that we currently use.” Celestia responded “Even the newer magic scans use one of her spells as a base before making additions.”

Shocked, Sundance stammered W-what?!

“Anyway,” Celestia continued “the spell used to be called the Spinal Column Scan. At some point, a few decades ago, it was adapted specifically for pegasi. That’s when the doctors gave it the longer name.”

I see. Sundance said slowly That must be the scan that I created for the filly who had broken her back. I still don’t know how she got injured in the first place, but her back was such a mess that I couldn’t see anything with any of my other scans.

Twilight thought for a moment Do you think your original scan will work in this situation?

I don’t see why not. Sundance replied

Looking at the report, Twilight nodded thoughtfully. Do I currently have enough available magic?

Yes. Sundance answered Why do you ask? Before Twilight could say anything, she answered her own question with another question. You’re going to allow me to use your magic to cast my spell on Scootaloo, aren’t you?

Twilight nodded again. Turning to Scootaloo, she said. “I’m going to cast the scan on you myself.”

Instantly knowing what Twilight meant by that, Celestia and Artemis smiled.

Scootaloo looked nervous “How much will it cost?”

Twilight giggled “You have to give each of us a hug.”

Grinning, Scootaloo did just that. Then she sat down in front of Twilight. “Will it hurt?”

Sundance laughed If her back and wings are sensitive enough, it might tickle.

Laughing as well, Twilight repeated Sundance’s answer.

Scootaloo sighed in relief

Everyone watched as Twilight’s horn began to glow.

Chapter 66

Celestia, Artemis, Spike, Silver Shadow, Sapphire Wing, Steel Night, Midnight Fang, Rainbow and Scootaloo watched as Twilight closed her eyes.

Go ahead, Mom.

Alright. Sundance replied. She cast her scan, carefully controlling how much of her daughter's magic she was using. She made sure to focus on the muscles and tendons around Scootaloo’s wings. As she expected, the filly began to giggle.

Ten minutes later, Twilight sighed in relief. “The standard scan was right. There are three torn tendons, two at the base of her right wing and one at the base of her left. It appears that the tears are large enough that her wings don’t receive enough strength for her to fly. However, they’re small enough that they can be repaired.”

Everyone else sighed in relief as well.

“There’s something strange though.” Twilight commented “Can you take a look at the results, Celestia? I want to make sure that I’m not imagining things.”

“Of course” Celestia replied, lowering her head to her sister’s

As soon as their horns touched, Twilight shared the results of their mother’s scan.

Celestia examined them carefully. “You’re right. This is strange.” She thought for a moment before turning to Rainbow. “Are you available to stay here with her until the weekend?”

“Yes, princess” Rainbow answered

“Good” Celestia replied “I want Scootaloo to be seen by the medical team tomorrow. They need to confirm the results of Twilight’s scan. If I’m right, I’ll need this information later.”

Worried, Scootaloo asked “I-is something wrong?”

Celestia smiled at the filly before shaking her head. “I just need you to see the doctors here in the castle.”

“You know,” Twilight said slowly “nopony’s played in the gardens behind the castle for almost two weeks. I bet there’s still snow back there.”

Scootaloo turned to Rainbow. “Snowball fight!”

Rainbow looked out the window “I don’t know, Squirt. I only have snowball fights with ponies who are almost as awesome as I am. There aren’t many ponies who are that awesome. Do you think you’re one of them?”

Scootaloo puffed out her chest “You bet!”

Turning back to Scootaloo, Rainbow grinned “Prove it!”

“Let’s go!” Scootaloo shouted

Everyone laughed as Rainbow followed Scootaloo out of the throne room.

Still laughing, Artemis shook his head “That should keep them occupied until dinner.”

“That was the plan.” Twilight replied

Everyone began to laugh again, harder this time.

“We already know that there aren’t any more petitioners for the day.” Celestia said “Therefore, I’m going to the hospital wing so I can inform the doctors of Scootaloo’s situation. I’ll also schedule her medical appointments.”

Nodding, Twilight levitated the report to her sister. “In that case, you’ll need this.”

Celestia looked at her siblings for a moment. “Why don’t you go to your room and relax? The same applies to you, Spike.”

Spike nodded “I’ll read a comic.”

Twilight shook her head “I’m going to go to the lib-”

Without waiting for her to finish, Artemis teleported both of them to their room.

Celestia, Spike, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang laughed as they walked out of the throne room.

In the hall, Celestia cast a shield around the throne room before turning to Spike. “I’ll teleport you to your room, Spike.”

Surprised, he looked up at her. “Why? I know the way.”

“I still sense Golden Flash’s magic signature.” Celestia replied “You should be safe in your room, but I don’t want to risk allowing you to run into him on the way.”

“Oh” Spike said slowly “Okay.”

Celestia turned to Sapphire Wing. “Please have somepony inform Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo when dinner is ready.” She paused “And tell Apple Crunch that we have a couple of guests.”

Sapphire Wing bowed “Yes, Princess Celestia”

Celestia teleported Spike to his room before heading to the hospital wing.

In Artemis and Twilight’s room, they appeared in a flash of dark blue magic.

Twilight turned to Artemis “Why did you do that? I’d like to get some research done.”

“That’s not relaxing, Twilight.” Artemis answered, walking over to their bed and laying down. Noticing that Twilight hadn’t moved, he levitated her to his side.

Sighing, she lay her head on a pillow. “I’m not used to relaxing when there are things that need to be done . . . and there are several things that I should be doing right now.”

Artemis lay his head next to hers. “You can do them later. Right now, we’re going to relax.”

Before Twilight could respond, she heard their mother’s voice.

He’s right, Twilight. You need to take time for yourself, remember?

Sighing again, Twilight closed her eyes.

Meanwhile, Celestia had just walked into the hospital wing.

Stone Steps walked over to her before bowing. “Is there something that I can help you with, Princess Celestia?”

“Yes” Celestia answered “There is something that I’d like to discuss with you, Ivy, Blue Stream and Aqua.”

Stone Steps nodded “Of course, princess”

Ivy led the way to one of the rooms used for meetings. “Blue Stream and Aqua were already using this room this afternoon. I’m sure they won’t mind if we have the discussion here.”

Celestia smiled “Thank you”

Blue Stream and Aqua looked up when the door opened. As soon as they saw Celestia, they stood and bowed.

“I apologize for the interruption,” Celestia began “but there is something that I’d like to discuss with the four of you.”

Blue Stream and Aqua bowed “Of course, Princess Celestia”

Sitting at the table, Celestia set the report in front of Ivy. “One of Twilight’s friends, Rainbow Dash, took a Pegasus filly named Scootaloo to the wing specialist in Cloudsdale this afternoon. Here are the results of the magic scan that was performed on her.”

Flipping past the basic patient information, Ivy carefully read the results. Eyes wide, she just stared at them for a moment. “T-there’s no way that this filly can fly! There are four tendons that provide the strength necessary for flight, two for each wing. Three of hers are torn.”

Stone Steps, Blue Stream and Aqua gasped

Ivy turned to Celestia “Do we have any medical history on her?”

Shaking her head, Celestia explained the situation with Scootaloo and her parents.

Shocked, Stone Steps, Ivy, Blue Stream and Aqua just stared at her.

“Scootaloo has been living in Ponyville for several years, so that’s where her medical records are.” Celestia thought for a moment “There might be something in Cloudsdale as well. I will be traveling to Cloudsdale tomorrow so that I can investigate the actions of her parents. I’ll stop by the medical center and get a copy of anything they have on her.”

Stone Steps made a note. “I’ll contact hospital in Ponyville and request a copy of her medical records.”

Celestia nodded “Good idea.” She thought for a moment. “I’d like to discuss the scan that the wing specialist in Cloudsdale recommended.”

Ivy glanced at the report “It looks like he’s recommending an In-Depth, Bilateral Spine, Muscle, Tendon and Nerve Scan.”

“That’s right.” Celestia replied “How much do you charge the average citizen to perform that scan?”

“The base price is six hundred and sixty-five bits.” Stone Steps replied

Celestia raised an eyebrow “Why is it so expensive?”

“It’s a difficult scan that requires at least three unicorns to cast successfully.” Stone Steps answered “To make things even more difficult, we need to carefully go through each of the bones, muscles, tendons, and nerves in the area of interest. That takes time, usually several hours.”

“This means that the patient must remain very still.” Aqua added “I can’t speak for other hospitals, but we always cast a sleeping spell on them before we start.”

Celestia nodded “That makes sense.”

“In some cases, three unicorns aren’t enough.” Ivy continued “Most medical centers charge one hundred bits for each additional unicorn that they need to call in. However, even with all of that, the price is capped at a thousand bits.”

“I wonder why the clinic in Cloudsdale is charging two thousand bits.” Celestia said slowly "Additionally, as far as I know, they only have one unicorn working there. If it requires at least three, why did he offer to cast that spell in the first place?”

Stone Steps, Blue Stream and Aqua gasped again “What?!”

Celestia shook her head “Rainbow Dash couldn’t afford the scan at that price, so she didn’t let him cast it.” She smiled “However, Twilight cast an advanced magic scan on Scootaloo herself.”

Blue Stream turned to Celestia “What did Princess Twilight’s scan reveal?”

“There really are three torn tendons in Scootaloo’s back, at the base of her wings.” Celestia answered “Fortunately, none of them are completely severed. In fact, it appears that the tears are small enough to be repaired.”

Blue Stream, Stone Steps, Aqua and Ivy sighed in relief. “That’s good news.”

Nodding, Celestia turned to Aqua and Ivy. “I’d like the two of you, and whoever else you need, to cast the recommended scan on Scootaloo. Don’t worry, I’ll pay for it.”

Aqua and Ivy nodded “Of course, princess”

Blue Stream tilted his head “Why do you want us to cast the scan on the filly? Aren’t Princess Twilight’s findings sufficient?”

Celestia looked at him “As far as I’m concerned, yes. However, the results are going to be used in the court case against the filly’s parents. Therefore, the scan needs to be performed by a medical professional.”

“I see” Stone Steps remarked “You want to make sure that nopony can dispute them.”

“That’s right.” Celestia responded, turning back to Aqua and Ivy. “I realize that it may not be possible, but I’d like you to try to determine how long Scootaloo has had these injuries.”

Ivy and Aqua nodded again “Yes, princess”

“Once we know exactly what the problem is, we need to come up with a plan to treat her injuries.” Celestia told them “As I’m sure you’ve guessed, the goal is for Scootaloo be able to fly.”

Ivy, Stone Steps, Blue Stream and Aqua nodded “Of course, princess.”

After checking his schedule, Stone Steps turned to Celestia. “I have an opening tomorrow morning. We’d like to see the filly, and her guardian, in the hospital wing first thing in the morning.”

Nodding, Celestia stood “Twilight will be busy with court, but I’ll inform Rainbow Dash.”

In Artemis’ room, Sundance was listening to her children’s stomachs growl. It’s clear that they’re hungry. Why aren’t they getting up? Taking a closer look at her children, she realized that both of them had fallen asleep. Laughing softly, she commented That answers one question, but it raises another. How should I wake them?

Looking around their room, she spotted a quill on her son’s desk. That’s perfect. Using Twilight’s magic, she levitated the quill over to the bed and began to tickle her youngest.

After a couple of minutes, Twilight began to giggling softly. Trying to avoid the quill, she rolled into Artemis’ side. The sudden contact was enough to wake him.

Opening his eyes, he saw that Twilight was being tickled by a quill that was suspended in her own magic. Still half asleep, he mumbled “Stop tickling yourself.”

Laughing now, Twilight replied “I-I’m not! Mom is!”

Artemis spread a wing over his mare, providing a feathery barrier between her and the quill. “We’re trying to relax, Mother.”

Sundance returned the quill to her son’s desk before using Twilight’s magic to write a message in front of her children. It’s time for dinner.

His stomach chose that moment to growl. Twilight’s stomach quickly followed suit. Laughing, both of them stood and stretched before walking to the door.

Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang looked up when the door opened. As one, they bowed “Good evening, your highnesses.”

Twilight and Artemis smiled “Good evening”

The guards fell into step behind the alicorns as they headed to the dining room.

In the dining room, they found Celestia, Rainbow, Scootaloo and Sapphire Wing waiting for them. Artemis and Twilight sat at the table as Apple Crunch walked into the room.

“Dinner tonight is Vegetable Fried Rice and dessert is bread pudding.”

Celestia smiled “Thank you, Apple Crunch.”

As they ate, Celestia told everyone about what she had done and planned for tomorrow.

Rainbow nodded “We’ll go to the hospital wing after breakfast, princess.”

Celestia levitated a couple of books over to Rainbow. Smiling at her confused expression, she explained “Twilight tells me that both of you like the “Daring Do” series. Tomorrow will probably be a boring day by your standards, so I thought it would be a good idea to give you some reading material.”

Scootaloo grinned “Thanks, princess!”

Everyone else laughed

Artemis turned to his sister “What about court?”

Celestia smiled “The two of you will have to handle it.” Seeing his expression, she shook her head. “You’ll be fine, Artemis.”

“I have limited experience with the current legal system, Celestia.” Artemis reminded her “Additionally, we know that the nobles are trying to trick me.”

Celestia nuzzled her brother “Twilight will be helping you, remember?”

Spike looked up “I don’t know the laws as well as Twi does, but I’ll be able to help as well.”

Twilight looked at Celestia “It’s true that I’m familiar with the legal system, and know more about dealing with the nobility than Artemis does, but Canterlot isn’t my jurisdiction. Do you think the nobles are going to take me seriously?”

Celestia laughed “I’d be surprised if they don’t. You’re a much better leader than you seem to believe.”

Sundance laughed as well Celestia has a point, Twilight.

Before Twilight could respond, Celestia turned to Rainbow and Scootaloo. “Both of you should get to bed.”

Twilight nodded “Breakfast is right after sunrise, so that’s much earlier than either of you are used to waking up.” She paused “In fact, I think I’ll wake both of you for breakfast. That way, you won’t have to worry about oversleeping.”

Scootaloo nuzzled Twilight and Artemis before she and Rainbow headed to their rooms. Everyone else headed to the living room.

In Golden Flash’s house, Golden Flash and Amethyst Rose had just put Jade Butterfly to bed.

Amethyst Rose smiled when she saw that one of her daughter’s hooves was resting on the necklace that Celestia, Artemis and Twilight had given her. I’m not surprised. That necklace saved her yesterday. She shuddered I don’t know what Golden Thunder was planning to do to my daughter, but I’m very happy that Princess Twilight stopped him.

Amethyst Rose and Golden Flash returned to their room. She sat on their bed while he walked over to the field of magic. After his ancestor had left his body, Golden Flash joined his wife on their bed. They glanced at each other before turning their attention to Golden Thunder.

Golden Thunder cast another field of magic, but this one included the trapping spell. Then he took out the backup crystal that he had prepared. Thank goodness I thought of creating two of these. This way, I don’t have to start over. In fact, there is enough magic in this to keep King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance’s souls trapped for roughly four months. That should be plenty of time. After linking his spell to the crystal, he smiled at Golden Flash and Amethyst Rose. “Are you ready to meet King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance?”

Golden Flash and Amethyst Rose nodded.

Nodding as well, Golden Thunder cast his spell.

In the stars, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl were enjoying the last half hour before moonrise.

Sundance brightened slightly “Our children aren’t discussing anything that requires my input right now.” She giggled “In fact, it appears that Celestia and Twilight are teaching Artemis about some of the newer laws.”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “That’s what I’m getting from their discussion as well. However, these laws are nothing like the ones that we put in place.”

“Agreed” Sundance replied “As a result, I understand very little of what they’re saying. I’d like to ask Twilight to explain it, but I’m sure that it would take several hours.” Her star flickered “I don’t want to distract her, so I’ll just listen.”

Midnight Armor was about to agree with his wife, but paused when he felt a tug on his soul. “G-golden Thunder’s doing this again?!”

Also feeling a tug on her soul, Sundance flickered “A-apparently. Give me a moment to inform Twilight. At least I can do that without terminating my spell this time.”

After informing Twilight, Sundance turned her attention, and magic, to fighting Golden Thunder’s spell.

Midnight Armor did the same.

Meanwhile, in Canterlot, Celestia paused when she noticed that Artemis wasn’t paying attention. Is something wrong?

Artemis’ eyes were closed Mother and Father’s stars are unstable again. Is Golden Thunder really doing that again?!

Twilight was about to say something to Artemis, but paused when she heard their mother’s voice.

Golden Thunder is trying to bring our souls to him! Please hurry!

Somewhere between shocked and furious, Twilight shouted “He’s doing that now?!”

Concerned, Celestia turned to her sister. “Twilight?”

“Mom just told me that Golden Thunder is trying to bring their souls to him again.” Twilight replied, standing

Celestia's eyes widened "What?!"

Spike, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night gasped

Also standing, Artemis nodded “As usual, the attempt is making Mother and Father’s stars unstable. We need to hurry.” I don’t want to explain this later, so I’ll bring Spike, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang with us. Hopefully, Magic won’t mind. Not wanting to waste any more time, he brought everyone to Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl’s stars.

Knowing that Artemis was distracted, Night made sure to bring air for Spike, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night to breathe.

Sensing what Night had just done, Artemis said Thank you, Night. I can’t believe I didn’t think about that.

Don’t worry about it. Night replied The three of you have a much more important job to do. Stop Golden Thunder.

We will.

In the stars, Sundance turned at a flash of moonlight. Panting slightly, she said “T-thank you for coming so quickly.”

Midnight Armor gasped “Celestia, Artemis and Twilight are here already?!”

Star Swirl briefly brightened “Spike, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night are here as well.”

Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night gasped

Eyes wide, Sapphire Wing stammered “T-they know our names?!”

Before anyone could respond, Magic’s voice echoed around them. "How did you find out about Golden Thunder’s actions so quickly, Twilight?"

“Mom told me what was going on.” Twilight answered

Magic laughed "I should have known."

Seeing the expressions on the faces of their guards, Twilight explained “That’s the voice of the Spirit of the Element of Magic.”

All four of the guards gasped

After thinking for a moment, Silver Shadow hesitantly asked “Is that the individual who has been helping you, Princess Twilight?”

Magic answered the question for her bearer. "That’s right. However, I’d appreciate it if you would keep my involvement a secret."

Eyes wide, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night replied “Y-yes, ma’am.”

Celestia touched the tip of her horn to her brother's before linking their magic.

Artemis used their combined magic to reinforce the spell that was keeping their parents’ souls anchored to their stars. “There. Mother and Father aren’t going anywhere.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor sighed in relief when their stars immediately calmed. “Well done.”

Twilight turned to Spike and the guards. “We don’t want Golden Thunder to hear you. Instead of asking you to be quiet, I’m going to place you in a barrier and soundproofing spell. You’ll still be able to hear us, but he won’t be able to hear any of you.” Before anyone could respond, that’s exactly what she did.

Magic laughed "I assume that means you want to talk to Golden Thunder again."

Twilight laughed as well “Of course. I want to hear his reaction when he finds out that he still can’t block me.”

Magic laughed harder. "I have no problem with that. In fact, I’ll cast the communication spell."

Thanks, Magic. Twilight waited for the flash of magic to light up the area before speaking. “Hello, Golden Thunder.”

Golden Thunder laughed “Good evening, Princess Twilight. I knew I’d be hearing your voice sooner or later. Unfortunately for you, you can’t stop me this time.”

“We’ll see about that.” Twilight responded

Laughing harder, Golden Thunder smugly told her. “I’ve learned your magic signature, princess. As I’m sure you’ve guessed, I’ve blocked you like I’ve blocked Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis. That means there’s nothing that you can do to stop me.”

Twilight didn’t bother replying. Instead, she lit up from within before using Magic’s power to take control of Golden Thunder’s spell.

Not realizing what Twilight had just done, Golden Thunder decided to taunt her. “I hate to tell you this, but you weren’t able to protect your “parents” this time. In fact, their souls will be here any minute now.”

Twilight laughed "Mom and Dad aren't going anywhere."

The certainty in her voice made Golden Thunder pause. "How can you be so sure?"

"Simple" Twilight answered "I've taken control of your spell."

“T-that’s impossible!” Golden Thunder stammered “I blocked your magic signature!”

Inside Twilight’s barrier, Spike, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night were laughing so hard that they had fallen to the “floor”. Not bothering to get up, they made themselves comfortable.

“I’ll say this as many times as I need to.” Twilight replied “It doesn’t matter what method you use. I won’t let you have Mom and Dad’s souls!”

Celestia and Artemis smiled while Sundance and Midnight Armor’s stars brightened considerably.

“I'll just keep trying.” Golden Thunder growled

“I don't care how many times you try.” Twilight replied “I’ll stop you every time.”

Well said! Magic commented I’m very glad that Twilight’s determination to protect Sundance and Midnight Armor’s souls rivals Celestia and Artemis’.

Sundance couldn't suppress her laughter any longer.

“Q-queen Sundance?!” Golden Thunder stammered

“That’s right.” Sundance answered

Golden Thunder gasped “A-are you there as well, King Midnight Armor?”

“Of course.” Midnight Armor responded

After a moment, Golden Thunder hesitantly asked “What about Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis?”

“We’re here as well.” Artemis answered, smiling when Golden Thunder gasped in shock. “Did you really think that we wouldn’t protect Mother and Father?!”

“It doesn’t matter what you do.” Golden Thunder snarled “I will get their souls.”

“You weren’t able to get Mother and Father’s souls fifteen hundred years ago,” Celestia replied “and you won’t be able to get them now.”

“I won’t let you stop me this time.” Golden Thunder vowed, getting angrier by the minute

Artemis laughed “We’re already doing that.”

Sundance laughed as well. “Good point, Artemis.” Turning her attention to Golden Thunder, she commented. “I thought you would have figured this out by now, but simply trying to pull our souls to you isn’t going to work.”

“I know that!” Golden Thunder snapped

Midnight Armor’s temper flared How dare he speak to Sundance like that?!

Unaware of her husband’s anger, and unfazed by Golden Thunder's, Sundance continued. “The Chimera Anima no longer exists, so you can’t use our souls to increase its power.” She waited a moment before asking “Why do you want our souls?"

After several minutes of silence, Golden Thunder replied “That’s none of your concern.”

“I disagree.” Midnight Armor responded, growling softly “After all, it’s our souls that we’re talking about. Answer Sundance’s question.”

After a few more minutes of silence, Golden Thunder said. “You’re souls won’t be alive much longer, so I suppose there’s no harm in telling you something. I won’t tell you exactly what my plans are, but I’ll see to it that your immortality isn’t wasted.” He laughed “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure that your children join you soon.”

Twilight narrowed her eyes I was right. He wants their immortality. He must want to transfer it to himself. I don’t think he’s aware of this, but . . . She was torn from her thoughts by Artemis’ voice.

Artemis growled “You won’t be getting your hooves on Mother and Father’s souls or their immortality.”

Midnight Armor’s star flickered There are several things that I’d like to say to Golden Thunder, but I don’t think that’s a good idea right now. He paused Perhaps Celestia, Artemis and Twilight would be willing to spend the night here. Spending time with them should calm me down. He turned to his youngest. “Please terminate the spell, Twilight.”

“Yes, Dad” Twilight replied

Outraged, Golden Thunder shouted “Don’t you dare!”

Speaking together, Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight said “Good Night, Golden Thunder.”

Before Golden Thunder could respond, Twilight terminated his spell.

As soon as she terminated her communication spell, Magic began to laugh. "That was great!"

In Canterlot, Golden Thunder had a different opinion. Growling, he terminated the field of magic that he had set up to contain Sundance and Midnight Armor’s souls. Then he began to pace around the other field of magic.

Amethyst Rose watched this with some amusement. Not wanting to cause any problems, she made sure that her expression was neutral. He looks like an animal in a zoo, pacing around its cage. I can’t tell him this, but I’m very glad that Princess Twilight was able to stop him. After the way that he’s been acting, I don’t believe that he should be allowed anywhere near the throne of Equestria.

She suppressed a sigh. I’d love to meet Queen Sundance and King Midnight Armor, but not at the cost of their souls.

Golden Thunder turned to Golden Flash and Amethyst Rose. “Do either of you have any idea how she did that?!”

Golden Flash and Amethyst Rose shook their heads.

Golden Thunder went back to pacing. “I blocked her magic signature! That means she shouldn’t have been able to stop me!” He paused “Prince Artemis and Princess Celestia were there, but they didn’t even try to stop my spell. They must have been doing something else.”

“None of them said anything about exactly how they’re protecting the souls of the late King and Queen.” Golden Flash said thoughtfully “I’m sure that each of them has a role in that, but we don’t know what those roles are.”

Golden Thunder turned to his descendant. “We know that Princess Twilight takes control of my spells before terminating them, but I have no idea how she’s doing that. As for Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis, I’m not sure what their roles are. If we could figure that out, perhaps we’ll be able to come up with a way to stop them.”

Golden Flash yawned “We should think about that tomorrow.”

Golden Thunder and Amethyst Rose nodded before the three of them lay down. Within fifteen minutes, all three of them were asleep.

In the stars, Twilight released her barrier and soundproofing spell. Spike, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night stood and walked over to the alicorns.

Spike immediately jumped on Twilight’s back. “Magic’s right, Twi. That was great!”

“Agreed” Midnight Armor added

Sundance briefly brightened “The three of you did an excellent job.”

Celestia and Artemis were about to say something, but paused when each of them felt the pull of their celestial bodies. Glancing at each other, they said “It’s time.”

Knowing what that meant, Sundance and Midnight Armor turned their attention to their children’s guards.

“We know that you can’t stay long, so we’ll keep this brief.” Sundance began “First of all, it’s nice to meet all of you.”

Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang bowed “I-it’s nice to meet you as well.”

Sundance laughed “I heard what you said earlier, Sapphire Wing. We’ve been watching what goes on around our children for almost two weeks now. That was plenty of time to learn your names.”

Shocked, Sapphire Wing slowly replied “I-I see”

“There is one thing that I’d like to say before you go.” Midnight Armor remarked “This is for Steel Night and Midnight Fang.”

Both of them jumped before turning to his star. “Y-yes?”

Midnight Armor laughed “Relax, you’re not in any trouble. I just wanted to commend you on your actions this morning. I was impressed with the way that you protected Twilight.”

Steel Night and Midnight Fang sighed in relief. “Thank you, sir.”

Before anything else could be said, Artemis turned to his parents. “Celestia and I have to lower the sun and raise the moon.” He paused “Unfortunately, there isn’t enough air for Spike and our guards to spend the night. Therefore, they need to return to Canterlot.”

Midnight Armor was about to say something, but stopped when he saw the expression on his son’s face.

Artemis glanced at the stars of his parents. “I’d like to spend the night here.” He nuzzled Twilight “Celestia and I will be right back, but you can stay here if you want.”

Twilight nodded

Artemis, Celestia, Spike, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night vanished in a flash of moonlight.

Twilight walked onto the cloud but, before she could lay down, she heard Magic’s laughter. “What’s so funny, Magic?”

This is perfect! Before Twilight could ask, Magic explained Harmony wants you to use my power to give magic to Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl’s stars again.

Twilight gasped “Why does she want me to do that?”

Confused, Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl looked at each other before turning back to Twilight.

There are two reasons. The first is that Harmony wants to make sure that their stars won’t resist you. The second is that Harmony wants them to enter Artemis’ dream tonight. She wants Sundance and Midnight Armor to enjoy themselves. As for Star Swirl, she wants you to tell him everything and ask him to help you create the second spell.

Shocked, Twilight asked “R-really?!” I-I get to create a spell with Star Swirl?!

Magic laughed Yes, Twilight

Shaking herself out of her shock, Twilight said “A-alright.” Before anypony could ask, she sent a large amount of magic to Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl’s stars.

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl gasped in surprise . . . especially when their stars didn’t resist.

Twilight watched their stars carefully. It looks like it worked.

Magic sighed in relief. Thank goodness. I’ll let Harmony know.

Twilight giggled I’m going to go ahead and say “Thank you” for all of us.

Magic giggled as well You’re welcome.

Twilight left her empowered state and lay down on the cloud.

Realizing that her youngest had finished speaking to Magic, Sundance asked “Why did you do that, Twilight?”

“Harmony wanted me to give each of you magic again.” Twilight answered “Apparently, she believes that I might need to give you and Dad magic at some point and wanted to make sure that your stars won’t resist me. Additionally, she wants the three of you to visit Artemis’ dream tonight.”

Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl gasped again.

Twilight smiled at their stars before laying her head on the cloud and closing her eyes. Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl looked on as she fell asleep. Before they could say anything, Celestia and Artemis reappeared.

Artemis was about to say something to Twilight, but paused when he noticed that she was asleep. Ears drooping, he sighed “I was hoping that we could talk for a while.”

“In that case,” Sundance said softly “both of you should go to sleep as well.”

Surprised, Celestia looked up at her mother’s star. “Why?”

“Harmony asked Twilight to give magic to our stars.” Midnight Armor replied

Artemis’ eyes widened “A-and she was able to do that?!”

Star Swirl briefly brightened “She gave all three of us enough magic to visit your dream.”

Sundance laughed at the stunned expressions on the faces of her children. “That’s why I said that both of you should go to sleep.”

Night laughed softly “Enjoy your dream, Artemis. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure that Golden Thunder doesn’t enjoy his.”

I don’t even want to know what he has planned for Golden Thunder this time. Midnight Armor’s star flickered before he turned his attention back to his children. “You’d better hurry. If you don’t, you mother might cast a sleeping spell on you herself.”

Celestia and Artemis quickly moved onto the cloud and lay down, one on either side of Twilight. Then Celestia cast a sleeping spell on herself and her brother.

In the Dream Realm, Artemis opened his eyes to find that he was standing among the stars. He immediately brought Celestia and Twilight into his dream. After thinking for a moment, he also brought Spike into his dream.

Surprised at the sudden change, Celestia, Twilight and Spike looked around for a couple of minutes.

Spike turned to Twilight “Why are we among the stars again?”

Before Twilight could respond, she, Spike and Celestia turned at Artemis’ voice.

“Twilight”

Before Twilight could ask, Artemis pulled her into a tight hug. Celestia giggled at her sister’s shocked expression before wrapping her wings around Artemis, Twilight and Spike.

A few minutes later, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl successfully entered Artemis’ dream and looked around. After a minute or so, Star Swirl chuckled softly.

Curious, Sundance and Midnight Armor turned to him. “What’s so funny?”

Star Swirl nodded towards something off to the right. Sundance and Midnight Armor immediately looked in that direction. Sundance laughed when she saw what her children were doing.

With a small smile, Midnight Armor sat down before catching the four of them in a levitation spell.

Giggling, Sundance sat down next to her husband. Instead of saying anything, she just watched him bring their children and Spike closer. When they were close enough, she wrapped her wings around the four of them.

Midnight Armor wrapped his wings around all five of them. I’m very happy that Twilight was able to give us enough magic to visit Artemis’ dream.

Smiling, Celestia and Artemis nuzzled their parents. Spike wasn’t sure what to do, so he just snuggled closer to Twilight.

Sundance returned Celestia and Artemis’ nuzzles before turning her attention to her youngest. “Will you at least look at us, Twilight?”

“I can’t move right now, Mom.” Twilight replied

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis, Star Swirl and Spike instantly began to laugh.

“Fair enough” Midnight Armor responded, releasing his family. I’m sure she didn’t intend for that to be funny, but I needed that.

Laughing, Sundance did the same.

Celestia and Artemis hugged Twilight tighter, laughing when she squeaked in surprise. After a couple of minutes, they finally let her go.

Twilight immediately turned to their parents before nuzzling both of them. Sundance and Midnight Armor returned her nuzzle before turning their attention to Spike.

Sundance smiled “It’s nice to finally be able to meet you properly, Spike.”

Eyes wide, Spike stared up at them “I was right. Both of you look much better as ponies.” After a moment, he gasped “I-it’s nice to meet you, too!”

Everyone instantly began to laugh again.

When everyone had calmed down, Star Swirl walked over to Twilight. “There’s something that I’d like to ask you.”

This is perfect! After I answer his question, I’ll tell him what Harmony and Magic have planned! Nodding, Twilight started to walk off to the side.

“Oh no you don’t.”

Surprised, Twilight asked “Huh?”

Laughing softly, Midnight Armor levitated his youngest to his side before draping a wing over her back. “You can spend time with your friend later, Twilight.” I’ll apologize to Star Swirl later. Right now, I’d like to spend time with all three of my children.

Sundance laughed, instantly understanding what her husband wanted. “I don’t blame you at all, Midnight.” Turning to Twilight, she explained “Your father wants to spend some time with you.”

Celestia smiled at her sister “Father is the only one who hasn’t been able to spend any quality time with you. I’m sure that he’d like to change that.”

Midnight Armor lay down, pulling Twilight down with him. He smiled when he noticed that she had snuggled close to his side.

Sundance lay down opposite of her husband with Celestia on one side and Artemis on the other. Spreading her wings, she covered both of them before pulling them into a feathery hug. Spike lay on Twilight’s other side while Star Swirl lay down on Artemis’ other side.

Celestia looked from one of their parents to the other. “Is there something that you’d like to discuss?”

Midnight Armor nuzzled his youngest. “The first thing that I’d like to do is thank you for giving us enough magic to visit Artemis’ dream.”

“You don’t need to thank me!” Twilight protested “I just did what Harmony asked me to!”

Midnight Armor shook his head “The request may have come from Harmony, but you’re the one who gave us the necessary magic.” He thought for a moment “Actually, you’ve been giving us far more than we need for that.”

Twilight gasped “I didn’t know that!”

Sundance laughed “That’s actually a good thing, Twilight. We’ve decided to use the extra magic to fight Golden Thunder’s attempts.”

“I’ve been using the extra magic when I need to send Artemis messages.” Star Swirl added

“O-okay.” Twilight said slowly “In that case, you’re welcome.” I’ll tell Magic about it later. I just hope she doesn’t mind.

Everyone else laughed

After they had calmed down, Midnight Armor continued “There’s also everything you went through to discover our bodies.”

“That’s a good point, Father.” Celestia replied, smiling at her sister. “If I understand correctly, Magic didn’t give you much to go on.”

Sighing, Twilight shook her head “She wasn’t allowed to tell me what was going on. Instead, she told me that I needed to carefully examine my surroundings.”

Artemis tilted his head “Did Magic answer any of your questions?”

Twilight nodded “She answered some of them, especially towards the end. The rest of the time, she stuck to two responses.”

Sundance reached over to nuzzle her youngest. “What were they?”

Twilight let out an irritated sigh “The first was that she didn’t respond at all. The second was that she kept saying “You are completely unrestricted.”.”

“No wonder you were so annoyed.” Artemis remarked, shaking his head

After thinking for a moment, Twilight said “Well, that’s not entirely accurate. She also passed messages from Harmony.” She paused “I know they did that because they wanted me to discover as much as possible on my own but, you’re right, it was really annoying.”

Midnight Armor tightened his wing around his youngest. “As we said the other day, we’re not going to ask any questions that we know you’re not allowed to answer. However, there is something else that I’d like to thank you for.”

Twilight looked up at him “What are you talking about, Dad?”

“Your determination to protect our bodies.” Midnight Armor answered

Twilight nuzzled him “Did you really think that I wouldn’t? I’m sure that Celestia and Artemis feel the same way.”

Spike smiled Twi really does see them as her parents, so of course she’s going to protect them.

Celestia and Artemis nodded

Seeing their parents’ confusion, Celestia explained “We’ve already promised to protect your souls. We’ve merely extended that to your bodies.”

Artemis nuzzled their mother “Did you expect us to do anything else?”

Before Sundance could reply, Twilight nuzzled Midnight Armor. “Now that we know that you and Mom are alive, we’re going to make sure that you stay that way.”

Celestia and Artemis nodded again

Sundance and Midnight Armor stared at their children in stunned silence. After a few minutes, they shook themselves out of their shock enough to return their children’s nuzzles. “Thank you”.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nuzzled their parents again. “You’re welcome.”

Sundance turned to Celestia “Can you explain the laws that you were talking about earlier? I suppose it shouldn’t come as a surprise, but your father and I didn’t understand any of them.”

“Of course, Mother.” Celestia replied “This is actually a good opportunity to continue teaching Artemis.”

Artemis nodded before snuggling closer to their mother.

Twilight let Midnight Armor, Sundance, Artemis and Celestia get deep into their discussion before glancing at Star Swirl. Noticing that he was looking at her, she nodded slightly.

Making sure that they didn’t disturb anypony, Twilight and Star Swirl stood. Seeing this, Spike quickly jumped onto Twilight’s back. Once they were out of earshot, Twilight turned to Star Swirl. “Artemis told me that you wanted to know how I finished your final spell. Is that what you wanted to talk about?”

He nodded

Twilight showed him her memory of what had happened that day.

When her memory ended, Star Swirl just stared at her for a few minutes. Then he stammered “M-my spell interacted with the Elements of Harmony to switch your friends’ Soul Marks?!”

Twilight nodded “Fortunately, I was able to return them to normal.”

Spike shuddered “That was a crazy day. For a while, I didn’t think we were going to be able to get them back to normal.”

Star Swirl stroked his beard “It seems that friendship was the key. That explains why I wasn’t able to figure out what I was missing. I was so busy with my research that I never had time for making friends, let alone spending time with them. In fact, Celestia and Artemis were the only friends that I had . . . and that was because they insisted.”

Spike laughed “Twi used to be the same way.”

Star Swirl blinked “Really?”

Nodding again, Twilight explained “I didn’t care about spending time with anyone other than Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor and Spike. In fact, I didn’t make any other friends until I met the girls four years ago.” She laughed “Even then, I didn’t have a choice. The girls refused to leave me alone. It was only after we used the Elements of Harmony that I decided to move to Ponyville so that I could be closer to them.”

“That’s quite a change.” Star Swirl remarked

Twilight shrugged “That’s the Elements of Harmony for you.” Glancing at her family, she lowered her voice. “There’s something else that I need to discuss with you, but you can’t tell Mom, Dad, Celestia or Artemis about this.”

After thinking for a moment, his eyes widened “I-is it what I think it is?!”

Twilight nodded “Magic told me that Harmony wants me to tell you everything. She also wants me to ask you to help me create the second spell.”

Spike grinned This should be fun.

Eyes widening further, Star Swirl replied “Of course, I’ll help.” If even half of what I’ve heard about her is true, Twilight doesn’t need my help. Even so, I’d love the chance to work with her.

“Give me a moment.” Twilight told him “I need to make sure that they won’t be able to hear us.” Without waiting for a response, she surrounded the three of them with a shield and attached a one-way soundproofing spell. “Now then . . .”

Three hours later

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia and Artemis were so focused on their discussion that they still hadn’t noticed that Twilight, Spike and Star Swirl were gone.

“I see.” Midnight Armor said slowly “We never had a reason to think about that, let alone create a law for it.”

Suddenly realizing that she hadn’t heard anything from her youngest in a long time, Sundance looked next to her husband. Her eyes widened when she saw that the space was empty. “Where’s Twilight?!”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow “What are you talking about? She’s right-” Glancing at his side, and not seeing his youngest, he gasped “What?!” How did I not notice that she was gone?!

Artemis looked around “Star Swirl and Spike are gone, too!”

Spreading her wings, Celestia rose into the air and looked around. She sighed in relief when she saw her sister’s magic. “I know where Twilight is. Star Swirl and Spike are probably with her.” Landing next to their mother, she nodded in the direction of Twilight’s shield.

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Artemis stood. The four of them walked in the direction that Celestia had indicated.

When she got close enough to see what Twilight, Spike and Star Swirl were doing, Celestia began to laugh. “It looks like they’re creating a new spell!”

Sundance looked through her daughter’s shield. “You’re right, Celestia. That’s exactly what they’re doing.”

Artemis chuckled “Why am I not surprised?”

“I’m sure they didn’t say anything because they didn’t want to interrupt our discussion.” Midnight Armor remarked

Celestia nodded “You’re probably right, Father.”

“I wonder what they’re working on.” Sundance said, walking closer to her daughter’s shield. Perhaps they’ll let me help.

Twilight looked up at the sound of hoofsteps. Her eyes widened when she saw that Sundance was close enough to read the spell that they were creating. This is bad! Mom isn’t supposed to see this spell yet! Thinking quickly, she turned her shield opaque.

Surprised, Sundance stopped “Why did she do that?”

Equally surprised, Celestia and Artemis shrugged.

His temper flaring again, Midnight Armor growled softly Twilight better have a very good reason for treating her mother like that.

Inside Twilight’s shield, Star Swirl sighed in relief. “That was close.”

Spike sighed in relief as well “Good idea, Twi.”

Also sighing in relief, Twilight looked at the spell. “I think we’ve done enough for now.”

“You’re right.” Star Swirl replied “We were able to create roughly half of the spell.” He thought for a moment “I’ll visit Artemis’ dream towards the end of next week. That should give the two of you some time to get a little bit of research done.”

Twilight nodded “Have you memorized what we have so far?”

Star Swirl nodded as well. I was right. She didn’t need my help at all. In fact, I was barely able to keep up with her. He watched as the spell they were working on began to fade. In addition to working on the spell for Harmony and Magic, Twilight and Spike taught me quite a bit about the way spells are constructed now. It was a very interesting discussion.

Once it had faded completely, Twilight released her shield and soundproofing spell. Then she, Spike and Star Swirl walked over to Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis.

Midnight Armor narrowed his eyes. “Why did you treat your mother like that, Twilight?”

Twilight’s eyes widened when she noticed how angry he was. I-I just . . . Tears welling up in her eyes, she pinned her ears to her head and looked down at her hooves.

Spike blinked Why is he mad at Twilight? She didn’t do anything wrong.

Celestia and Artemis shuddered when they saw how angry their father was. Exchanging glances, they turned to Twilight.

Shocked, Sundance stared at her husband. I’m sure Twilight had a good reason for her actions. Even if she didn’t, there’s no reason for Midnight to speak to her like this. She was torn from her thoughts by Celestia’s voice.

Eyes wide, Celestia whispered “Oh no”

Concerned, Sundance followed Celestia’s gaze. Her eyes also widened when she took a closer look at her youngest. “Oh no” is right. What do you think you’re doing, Midnight?

“I-I’m sorry.” Twilight said softly “I-it’s just that Harmony said that you’re not supposed to see that spell.”

Sundance gasped “You were working on that spell?!” I knew she had a good reason for her actions! Twilight was simply doing what Harmony told her to!

Star Swirl decided that he wanted to explain it himself. “That’s right. Harmony told Twilight to tell me everything and ask me to help her create the second spell.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis gasped

Seeing their expressions, Star Swirl shook his head “I cannot tell you what Harmony has planned . . . or about the spell that we were working on.”

Too shocked to say anything, Sundance, Celestia and Artemis just nodded.

Midnight Armor was also too shocked to say anything. In fact, he was still processing what Star Swirl had told them. That’s what they were doing?! His eyes widened when he remembered how he’d spoken to Twilight. Oh no.

I’ll discuss Midnight’s actions with him later. Right now, I need to calm our daughter. Sitting down, Sundance levitated Twilight to her side before pulling her youngest into a hug. “It’s alright, Twilight. I’m not angry with you.”

Twilight buried her face in her mother’s shoulder. When she spoke, her voice was so soft that Sundance could barely hear her. “B-but Dad is. I-I wasn’t trying to be rude, I just-”

“Shh” Sundance said softly, hugging her daughter tighter “Your father isn’t angry with you either.” She gave her husband a look before turning back to their youngest. “Star Swirl told us what happened, so you don’t need to explain anything.”

Midnight Armor winced Even if I was angry with her, I shouldn’t have snapped at Twilight like that.

Twilight lifted her head, but refused to look at anyone.

Midnight Armor’s ears drooped I can’t leave her like this. Perhaps Sundance would be willing to keep everyone else occupied for a while. He glanced up to see that his wife was watching him.

Both of them nodded

Sundance led Celestia and Artemis back to where they had spent the last few hours. Star Swirl and Spike silently followed them.

After they had made themselves comfortable, Artemis turned to his mother. “Why was Father so angry?”

“Your father was probably angry because of the way that Twilight blocked me from seeing what she, Star Swirl and Spike were working on.” Sundance answered “Under normal circumstances, he would have simply asked her to explain herself.” She thought for a moment “If I had to guess, I’d say that something that Golden Thunder said angered him.”

“I see.” Celestia replied “I never really thought about it, but you and Father are probably angrier at Golden Thunder than we are.”

Sundance nodded “It seems that he’s extremely short-tempered right now. Therefore, Twilight’s actions were enough to anger him.”

“I suppose that makes sense.” Artemis said slowly “However, there is something that I find strange.” Seeing everyone’s confusion, he explained “Twilight doesn’t usually get so upset that easily.”

“That doesn’t surprise me.” Sundance responded “There are two likely causes for her reaction. The first is that she probably doesn’t want to anger your father or myself. With everything that’s going on right now, it’s easy to forget that she met us a month ago.”

“What about the second possible cause?” Star Swirl asked

Sundance glanced at him “When a mare is pregnant, she will be more emotional than usual.” She paused thoughtfully “In fact, I bet her reaction was caused by a mixture of both.”

Artemis nodded as well “You’re probably right, Mother.” If Twilight really is going to be more emotional than usual, I’ll have to be patient with her. Especially since it sounds like she can’t help it.

Midnight Armor lay down next to his youngest, suppressing a sigh when he felt her flinch. Using a wing, he gently pulled her down next to him before wrapping that wing around her. “I’m sorry, Twilight.”

Twilight didn’t say anything, but she did relax a little.

Noticing this, Midnight Armor smiled slightly “You’re mother’s right. I’m not angry with you.” He sighed “Tonight’s discussion with Golden Thunder angered me far more than I expected. That’s no excuse for snapping at you like that, but it is the reason behind my actions.”

Twilight nodded before laying her head on her father’s shoulder. Sighing in relief, Midnight Armor tightened his wing around her before laying his head on his forehooves.

After relaxing for fifteen minutes, he nuzzled her. “There’s something that I’ve been meaning to ask you, but I didn’t think about it on Hearth’s Warming.”

Curious, Twilight lifted her head

Seeing this, he lifted his head as well “I was hoping you could tell me about your force field.”

Surprised, Twilight stared at him for a moment. Why would he be interested in my force field? His barrier is much stronger than my force field will ever be.

Laughing at her expression, Midnight Armor explained “I’ve never seen anything like it. At first I thought it was a combination of a barrier and a shield, but now I think there’s more to it.”

Twilight giggled “You’re right. It will be easier if I just show you.”

Midnight Armor smiled I’m glad that she seems to be in a better mood now. He watched Twilight cast her spell. For a few minutes, he just stared at the force field that they were now enclosed in. Finally getting over his shock, he commented “This isn’t a dome . . . it’s a complete sphere.”

Twilight nodded “I didn’t want to take the chance of anypony attacking from underground . . . or being able to find a weak point. Even when I change the shape of my force field, there’s still a part that extends underground.”

I’m impressed that she took that into consideration. Closing his eyes, Midnight Armor carefully examined his daughter’s force field. “Your spell produces the effects of a barrier and a shield . . . but it doesn’t actually contain either of them. Instead, it’s a new type of defense.” He thought for a moment “As powerful as it is, this isn’t the kind of defense that an alicorn would create.”

Twilight blinked “What do you mean?”

“It’s not as strong as it should be.” He replied “I’m not trying to insult you, but I know that you’re more powerful than this.”

“Well,” Twilight said slowly “I was a unicorn when I created this spell. It’s very effective, so I didn’t see a reason to change anything after I ascended.” She tilted her head “With everything that’s going on right now, having a stronger defense isn’t a bad idea. Maybe I should rewrite the spell.”

Midnight Armor gasped “You created this spell as a unicorn?!”

Twilight nodded

He just stared at her. I-I’ve never seen a unicorn create a defense this powerful. Shaking himself out of his shock, he took another look around them. Regardless, she really should improve her force field. Perhaps she’ll let me help with that. In fact, I think I already know what needs to be done.

Neither of them had noticed that Sundance, Celestia, Artemis, Spike and Star Swirl had gathered outside of Twilight’s force field.

Outside of Twilight’s force field, Sundance had spent the last couple of minutes just staring at her daughter’s magic. Finally finding her voice, she asked “What in Equestria is this?!”

Spike laughed “Twi’s force field”

Shocked, Sundance and Star Swirl turned to Spike. “T-this is Twilight’s force field?!”

Spike nodded

Celestia looked through Twilight’s force field. “It looks like Twilight is showing Father her force field.”

“That makes sense.” Artemis replied “Father does like to examine new defensive techniques.”

Celestia laughed “You’re right.”

I’ve seen her create her force field a couple of times, but that was with my spell. To see it in front of me is something else entirely. Sundance touched her horn to Twilight’s force field, trying to examine the spell. She gasped in surprise when it dissolved.

Sundance, Celestia, Artemis, Spike and Star Swirl suddenly noticed that Twilight and Midnight Armor were watching them.

“We weren’t trying to keep you out.” Twilight told them “I was just showing Dad my force field.”

“I thought so” Celestia responded as she, Sundance, Artemis, Spike and Star Swirl walked closer.

Midnight Armor turned back to his youngest. “Is it alright if I take a look at your spell?”

Twilight stared at her father for a moment before shrugging and using her magic to write her spell in front of them.

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl carefully read her spell.

Star Swirl was too stunned to say anything. T-this is a formidable defense.

“W-wow” Sundance said softly “I had no idea that such a thing was possible.”

“I didn’t either.” Midnight Armor responded “Then again, it has been fifteen hundred years. Many things that we didn’t know were possible are common now.” Taking a closer look at a certain part of his daughter’s spell, he remarked “I thought so.”

“What are you talking about?” Twilight asked

Midnight Armor used his magic to write the spell for his barrier in the air next to Twilight’s spell. Then he highlighted certain parts of both spells.

Twilight carefully compared the highlighted parts before making a few changes to her spell. “Let’s see if this works.” Taking a deep breath, she cast the new version of her force field.

Midnight Armor carefully examined the new force field before smiling at his youngest. “This is much better.”

Twilight returned his smile “Thanks, Dad”

Sundance, Celestia, Artemis, Spike and Star Swirl looked around in shock.

“I thought her force field was powerful before,” Artemis said slowly “but I don’t think anypony will be able to break through it now.”

Sundance, Celestia, Spike and Star Swirl just nodded

After thinking for a couple of minutes, Midnight Armor asked “Are you able to control the size of your force field?”

Twilight nodded

Curious, he asked “How large are you able to make it?”

Twilight tilted her head “I’ve never tested that. Partially because I didn’t have enough space, but mostly because I’ve never had a reason to.”

“I see” Midnight Armor said slowly “It’s important for you to know that information. Therefore, I’d like to test it at some point. As for right now, I think somepony else has plans for you.”

Sundance giggled “I never could fool you, Midnight.”

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Spike and Star Swirl asked the same question. “What?”

Sundance nuzzled Twilight “I promised to teach you a new spell, remember?”

Celestia laughed when her sister’s eyes lit up. “You just said her favorite words, Mother. That’s something that hasn’t changed since she was a filly.”

Also laughing, Sundance replied “There’s nothing wrong with that.” Laying down on Twilight’s other side, she took a few minutes to explain exactly how the spell worked before using her magic to write it in the air in front of her youngest.

Roughly five minutes later, Sundance smiled “Well done, Twilight.” She’s much more rewarding to teach than Golden Thunder was.

Twilight returned her mother’s smile “Thanks, Mom.”

Sundance giggled “I can’t wait to see how you use it against Golden Thunder.”

Twilight’s smile widened “I already have an idea about that. If it works, I’m sure that you, Dad, Celestia and Artemis will like it.” Her smile turned into a smirk. “I’m equally sure that Golden Thunder won’t.”

Everyone else instantly began to laugh.

“This should be good.” Midnight Armor remarked “Like your mother said, I can’t wait to see what you have planned.”

Twilight nuzzled their father “There is something that I’d like to talk about.”

Everyone turned to her

“There are still a couple of things that I need to research.” Twilight began “However, after what Golden Thunder told us tonight, I’ve decided to say it anyway.”

“Are you talking about what I think you are?” Midnight Armor asked

Noticing how tense their father was, Twilight sent a wave of warmth through his wings, shoulders and back.

Midnight Armor sighed in pleasure “Thank you, Twilight.”

Smiling, Twilight nuzzled Midnight Armor again “You’re welcome, Dad.”

Sundance smiled It looks like Midnight is finally beginning to calm down.

Twilight looked at everyone around her. “Everything that I’ve read about souls leads me to believe that it isn’t possible to take something from one soul and transfer it to another. This is because, as soon as anything is removed, all of the soul will instantly die.” She made sure that she had Sundance and Midnight Armor’s attention. “This means that, even Golden Thunder is able to take your immortality, he can’t transfer it to himself.”

Sundance sighed in relief “That’s good to know.”

Midnight Armor nodded “That means Golden Thunder can only attain immortality if he ascends . . . and we know that Celestia won’t help him do that.”

Artemis turned to Twilight “Even if Golden Thunder can’t transfer their immortality to himself, his attempts would still kill Mother and Father.”

“That will only be possible if he gets his hooves on their souls.” Twilight replied “And we’re not going to let that happen.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor stared at their children in stunned silence. Before either of them could say anything, they heard Celestia laugh. Surprised, they turned to their eldest.

"You're right about that." Celestia responded, smiling at her sister

Twilight returned her sister’s smile “I know I said that I’d let you come up with the plan for stopping Golden Thunder, but I have a couple of ideas.” Well, one of them is Harmony’s plan, but I can’t tell them what it is yet.

Artemis chuckled “So do I”

Celestia laughed “That makes three of us.”

Star Swirl and Spike looked at each other for a moment before turning back to Celestia, Artemis and Twilight.

Sundance and Midnight Armor stared at each other for a few minutes. Then they turned back to their children. However, before either of them could say anything, Celestia and Artemis suddenly raised their heads.

Knowing what that meant, Twilight nuzzled Midnight Armor before turning to Sundance and nuzzling her as well. Celestia and Artemis did the same.

After Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl had been pulled back to their stars, Artemis woke himself, his sister, Twilight and Spike.

Chapter 67

In the stars, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl watched Celestia, Artemis and Twilight open their eyes. As one, they said “Good morning”

Laughing, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight replied “Good morning.”

Celestia glanced at her brother “We should head back to Canterlot.”

Artemis nodded “We have to take care of the sun, moon and stars.”

“And I have to wake Rainbow and Scootaloo.” Twilight added

Sundance giggled “In that case, I’ll talk to you in a few minutes, Twilight.”

Twilight nodded before she, Celestia and Artemis vanished.

Sundance turned to her husband “Why did you speak to our daughter like that?”

I knew she was going to bring that up. Sighing, Midnight Armor told his wife what he had told Twilight.

Sundance briefly brightened “I thought that was the reason, but it’s still no excuse for treating Twilight like that. What she did wasn’t that bad. In fact, it could barely be considered rude.”

Briefly brightening as well, Midnight Armor replied “I know, Sundance.”

Believing that it wasn’t appropriate to enter their conversation, Star Swirl turned his attention to what was going on around Twilight.

In Canterlot, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight appeared in the living room.

“Good morning, your highnesses”

Jumping slightly, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight turned to find their guards standing behind them.

Twilight blinked “Good morning. What are you doing here so early?”

Silver Shadow bowed “We thought that the three of you might be a little late, princess. Therefore, we decided to wake Miss Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo and Spike. We’ve also informed Apple Crunch that the three of you would be a few minutes late to breakfast.”

Celestia and Artemis finished performing their celestial duties before turning to their guards.

“I see” Celestia responded “Thank you.”

As one, the guards bowed “You’re welcome, Princess Celestia”

Celestia turned to Sapphire Wing “I’ll be traveling to Cloudsdale today, but I don’t want to take a chariot. I plan to fly instead.” Seeing his expression, she added “You are welcome to come with me.”

Sapphire Wing bowed “I'll take you up on that offer, princess.” He smiled “It will be rather hard for me to see to your safety if I stay in Canterlot.”

Celestia laughed “Fair enough”

As they walked into the hall, the conversation shifted to court and Scootaloo’s appointment. However, it stopped when they walked into the dining room.

Rainbow, Scootaloo and Spike were already eating, but they stopped when they saw Celestia, Artemis and Twilight. As one, they said “Good morning”

Laughing, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight replied “Good morning”

Apple Crunch walked into the dining room pushing a cart with three plates of waffles and a bottle of maple syrup.

Twilight’s eyes widened when her stomach growled. “Well,” she said slowly “I don’t think I’ll have any trouble eating breakfast.”

Everyone laughed

Sure enough, Twilight didn’t have any problem holding down her breakfast. After everyone had finished eating, one of the Day Guard’s turned to Rainbow. “Ivy and Aqua have asked me to escort the two of you to the hospital wing.”

Rainbow grabbed her saddlebags before she and Scootaloo followed the guard out of the room.

Celestia and Sapphire Wing headed for the side entrance to the castle before spreading their wings and taking flight.

Artemis, Twilight, Spike, Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang walked towards the side entrance of the throne room. They paused in the hall while Artemis dispelled his sister’s shield. Then the six of them walked inside and closed the door behind them.

Twilight and Artemis sat side by side in front of the throne while Spike sat at his desk. Silver Shadow took up his usual position in front of Artemis. Steel Night and Midnight Fang opened the doors before taking their usual positions in front of Twilight.

Over two dozen ponies filed into the room. All of them looked around for a couple of minutes. Realizing that they were looking for Celestia, Artemis cleared his throat. “My sister has other matters to attend to today, but will be back in court tomorrow.”

This is perfect! Golden Thunder said I just need to get Princess Twilight alone and . . . He was torn from his thoughts by Twilight’s voice.

“Artemis and I will deal with any emergencies, but we would like you to give all other petitions to Spike.”

Over half of the ponies in the throne room immediately gathered around Spike’s desk. The average citizens patiently waited for their turn, but the nobles demanded that their petitions were received first. Additionally, each of them raised their voices as they tried to get Spike’s attention.

Spike looked up at Twilight. He didn’t say anything, but his expression told her everything she needed to know.

Silver Shadow’s eyes widened when he saw the look on Twilight’s face. She isn’t going to allow this to go on much longer.

Also noticing Twilight’s expression, Steel Night and Midnight Fang glanced at each other. The same thing was going through both of their heads. Three, two, one . . .

“Silence!”

Midnight Fang and Steel Night struggled to suppress their laughter, each of them thinking the same thing. I knew she was going to do that.

Silver Shadow was also struggling to suppress his laughter as he looked at the shocked nobles. This is one of the few times where the fact that Princess Twilight has less patience than Princess Celestia is actually a good thing.

Sundance laughed That certainly stopped them.

Twilight gave the nobles a look. “You will approach Spike one at a time . . . and you will not raise your voices.”

All of the nobles nodded. “Yes, Princess Twilight.”

Sighing in relief, Spike mouthed “Thank you” to Twilight before turning his attention to the first petitioner.

Shaking her head, Twilight muttered “Foals”

Sundance laughed Flurry Heart is better behaved . . . and she’s only two years old. Regardless, I have to commend you for the way you handled the situation. It’s true that you used the Royal Voice, but I believe that the actions of the nobles made it justifiable.

Turning to Artemis, Twilight spoke softly “I’m sorry about that.”

“I don’t have a problem with what you just did.” Artemis quietly replied “In fact, I was about to do the same thing.”

In Cloudsdale, Celestia and Sapphire Wing were just finishing a tour of the Cloud Factory in Cloudsdale. At the end of the tour, they found the manager waiting for them.

The Pegasus stallion bowed “Good morning, Princess Celestia. I wasn’t expecting an inspection until next quarter. Did you discover a problem?”

“Yes, Cloud Burst.” Celestia replied

Beginning to panic, Cloud Burst asked “May I ask what the problem is, princess? I assure you that I’ll find a solution immediately.”

Celestia smiled at the stallion “You don’t need to worry. The problem has nothing to do with the factory itself. In fact, you’re doing a wonderful job running it.”

Cloud Burst sighed in relief “Thank you, princess”

“The problem is with a couple of your employees.” Celestia continued

Cloud Burst nodded “I know a quieter location for the rest of our discussion.”

Celestia and Sapphire Wing followed him to his office. Once inside, Sapphire Wing stood near the door while Celestia and Cloud Burst sat at a large cloud table.

Celestia summoned a pad of paper and a quill before turning her attention to Cloud Burst. “The two ponies in question are Wild Gust and Lightning Drop.”

Cloud Burst nodded again “Unfortunately, neither of them are here right now. I’m not sure why, but they didn’t arrive for their shift today. I intend to visit their house tonight to check on them.”

“I commend you for your dedication to your employees.” Celestia responded “However, I assure you that both of them are fine.”

Cloud Burst blinked “Do you know where they are, Princess Celestia?”

Celestia explained the where Lightning Drop and Wild Gust were and why they were there.

When she had finished speaking, Cloud Burst stared at her for several minutes. “I-I’m not sure what to say. I don’t doubt you, princess, but I have a hard time believing this.”

Curious, Celestia asked “Why?”

“Both of them are hard workers and extremely dedicated.” Cloud Burst answered “Additionally, they seem to be very responsible ponies.”

Celestia was about to respond, but paused when she saw the look on Cloud Burst’s face. Curious, she waited for him to continue.

“However, I have heard rumors that their daughter is about the same age as mine.” He said slowly “In fact, I asked them if they wanted to come over for dinner so that our daughters could play together, but they told me that they don’t have any foals.”

“I see” Celestia replied, making a note of what he had just said. It seems that they’ve been living two separate lives. One in which they barely care for Scootaloo and one in which they do as they please here in Cloudsdale. “Unfortunately, everything I told you is true.”

After a moment of shock, Cloud Burst hesitantly asked “Where is the filly now?”

Celestia smiled “Scootaloo is staying in the castle for a few days before returning to Ponyville.” Seeing his expression, she added “You don’t need to worry, she is being cared for by Twilight and her friends.”

Cloud Burst sighed in relief “That’s good to know.” I have no doubt that those mares will take good care of her. “Is it true that Rainbow Dash has taken the filly under her wing?” He thought for a moment “I’ve also heard that both of them were in town yesterday.”

“Both are true.” Celestia replied “In fact, they were here because Scootaloo had an appointment with the wing specialist.”

Cloud Burst smiled “I’m very happy to hear that, princess.” Rainbow Dash may be a little wild sometimes, but she’s incredibly stubborn. I’m sure that she won’t stop until that filly is in the air where she belongs.

After returning his smile, Celestia commented “I’d like to get back to the original topic.”

“Of course, princess.” Cloud Burst replied “Is there something else you would like to know about Lightning Drop and Wild Gust?”

“Yes” Celestia answered “The first question I have is about the fact that they stay here in Cloudsdale instead of living in Ponyville with their daughter. They told Artemis, Twilight and myself that do this so they can make it to work on time.”

“It’s true that it would be difficult to commute between the two towns every day.” Cloud Burst said slowly “However, it’s not impossible . . . especially with their skills. Worst case scenario, they would have to stay here during the week. However, they could easily travel to Ponyville on the weekends.”

“I see” Celestia replied This means that they can stay with their daughter, but they don’t want to. Unfortunately, this supports Lightning Drop’s claim that she doesn’t want her daughter. “What about their activities after work? Do you know how they spend their time?”

“Unfortunately, I don’t.” Cloud Burst answered “They usually leave as soon as their shift is over. Additionally, they don’t spend their free time with any of their coworkers.”

“That’s alright.” Celestia responded, standing “Thank you. You’ve been very helpful.”

Also standing, Cloud Burst bowed “I do have a question, princess.”

Turning back to him, Celestia asked “Yes?”

“What do you have in mind for Lightning Drop and Wild Gust?” Cloud Burst asked “Perhaps I should begin looking for somepony else to fill their positions.”

Celestia thought for a moment “I’d like you to hold off on that for a while. Their trial is on Friday morning. After that, it’s possible that they will be released with very strict conditions.” I’ll stop by the Royal Dungeons tomorrow morning and make sure that they’re aware of this. I’ll also ask them if they want me to provide a lawyer for them.

Cloud Burst stared at her for a moment. “What do you mean?”

“If Scootaloo is returned to their custody, they need to be able to provide for her.” Celestia replied “It will be very difficult for them to do that without jobs.”

“That makes sense.” Cloud Burst responded “Very well, princess. I’ll wait until I receive the results of the trial.”

Celestia nodded “Thank you”

As Celestia and Sapphire wing walked out of the Cloud Factory, she noticed that he was eyeing a nearby store. “Is something wrong, Sapphire Wing?”

Sapphire Wing jumped “Not at all, princess. I was just wondering if that store had anything good.”

Celestia thought for a moment “I see. You want to buy a souvenir for Cobalt.”

Sapphire Wing nodded

Smiling, Celestia headed for the store. “In that case, let’s take a look.”

In Canterlot, Artemis, Twilight and Spike had just walked into the dining room.

“That was crazy.” Spike commented

“Agreed” Artemis replied, sitting at the table “I can’t believe they tried to get so many petitions past us.”

Twilight nodded, sitting next to Artemis “None of the ones that the nobles submitted were valid. The only good thing about that was that they were so obvious that we didn’t have to research anything.”

Nodding as well, Spike sat on Twilight’s other side. “You denied all of them.” He laughed “My favorite part was when you denied Golden Flash’s request for research funds.”

“What did you think we were going to do?” Twilight asked

Artemis nodded “He claimed that he needed the funds so that he could build an observatory in his house for teaching his daughter about my Night Sky. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that he’s trying to find Mother and Father’s stars.”

Spike nodded again “Yes, but you didn’t tell him that.”

“Of course not.” Twilight responded “We told him that he can bring Jade Butterfly to the Astronomical Center that Artemis opened a few weeks ago.”

Artemis chuckled “He didn’t like that answer.”

Spike laughed again “That’s why it was my favorite part.” He paused “Well, that and the look on his face when you denied his petition.”

Sundance laughed I agree with Spike. In fact, your father and Star Swirl are still laughing.

Everyone looked up when Apple Crunch walked into the room pushing a cart with two plates, a bowl and three bottles of Apple Family apple juice.

After placing their drinks in front of each of them, he placed the bowl in front of Spike.

Spike licked his lips when he saw that it was full of sapphires and emeralds.

Twilight and Artemis were given plates of vegetable stew over rice with small salads on the side.

In Cloudsdale, Celestia had already eaten lunch and was relaxing on a cloud. As usual, Sapphire Wing was standing guard nearby. After half an hour or so, she looked up at the sun. They should be back from their lunch break by now.

Standing, she and Sapphire Wing spread their wings before heading for the medical center. They arrived a few minutes later and walked inside. Everypony inside stopped what they were doing and bowed.

Celestia smiled at them before turning to the mare sitting behind the desk. “Good afternoon.”

The receptionist bowed again “Good afternoon, Princess Celestia. Is there something that I can help you with?”

“Yes” Celestia replied “I’ve heard that this clinic offers magic scans.”

The receptionist nodded “Slate has the afternoon blocked off for surgery, but his patient hasn’t arrived yet. Would you like to speak with him, princess?”

“Yes, please.” Celestia responded “Additionally, I need a copy of anything you have on a filly named Scootaloo.”

“Yes, princess” The receptionist replied, standing and walking over to a door. “I’ll have the copies ready when your meeting with Slate is over.”

Celestia and Sapphire Wing followed the receptionist down the hall before stopping outside of an office. She opened the door for them before returning to the front desk to begin making the copies for Celestia.

Celestia and Sapphire Wing walked into the office. Sapphire Wing stood near the door while Celestia walked further into the room before clearing her throat.

“Is the patient here, yet?” Slate asked, not bothering to look up. “If so, please prepare him for surgery. I’ll be there as soon as I finish this.”

“Ahem”

Slate finally looked up “What’s going on . . . Princess Celestia?!” He scrambled to his hooves before bowing. “My apologies, princess. I didn’t know that you were here.”

“It’s alright.” Celestia replied “I didn’t announce that I was coming to Cloudsdale today. Therefore, you couldn’t have prepared for my arrival.” I did that on purpose. I didn’t want to give him a reason, or chance, to make up a story.

Slate sighed in relief “Is there something that I can help you with, princess?”

Celestia nodded “I’ve been told that you saw a young filly named Scootaloo and her guardian, Rainbow Dash, yesterday afternoon.”

Slate nodded as well “In addition to a standard consult, I cast a basic magic scan on the filly.” He paused “I’m afraid I can’t discuss anything further because it would violate patient rights.”

I wonder how he’ll react to the fact that I’ve already read the report that he gave Rainbow Dash. Celestia smiled “That’s alright. I’ve seen the results of the scan you cast on her.”

Slate frowned “I’ll have to discuss this with Miss Dash when she returns for the more detailed scan of the filly.”

Sapphire Wing struggled to suppress his laughter. That filly isn’t coming back to this clinic because the castle medical staff cast the more detailed scan on her this morning. In fact, they’re probably examining the results as we speak.

Celestia shook her head “Rainbow Dash has done nothing wrong.”

“That’s not true, princess.” Slate responded “Patient information isn’t supposed to be discussed with anypony outside of qualified medical professionals and family members. I mean no disrespect, but you don’t fall into either category.”

“I disagree” Celestia replied “Rainbow Dash is one of six ponies who have been charged with caring for Scootaloo.”

Slate’s eyes widened What?!

“Twilight is another of Scootaloo’s guardians.” Celestia explained “As you know, Twilight is my little sister. Therefore, for the time being, Scootaloo is one of my nieces. By your own definition, I have every right to read those results.”

Slate gulped “I-I see”

“At Twilight’s request, Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo visited us in Canterlot after their appointment.” Celestia continued “As I’m sure you can imagine, all of us are concerned about the filly’s health. In fact, Scootaloo is currently being examined by the medical staff in Canterlot Castle.”

“Y-yes, princess” Slate stammered

“Part of the reason for my visit is that we need a copy of any medical records that this clinic has on Scootaloo.” Celestia said “However, another reason is that I’d like to discuss the magic scan that you recommended.”

Slate resisted the urge to sigh in relief. That’s a much safer topic. Turning to his desk, he pulled out his notes from Scootaloo’s medical exam. “I recommended an In-Depth, Bilateral Spine, Muscle, Tendon and Nerve Scan. This is because it should be able to tell us more about the torn tendons in her back. It should also give us an idea of the best way to proceed.”

Celestia nodded “The castle medical staff cast it on Scootaloo this morning. However, I’d like to discuss the scan itself.”

“Very well” Slate replied “It’s an advanced magic scan that medical professionals use to discover what’s going on inside a pony’s body.”

“I see” Celestia commented, writing this down “What preparations do you take before casting this spell?”

“I ask a few unicorns from other hospitals to join me up here for a few days.” Slate answered “This is because the four of us have to work together to cast that spell.”

“That makes sense.” Celestia replied “What about the price?”

Slate began to sweat. I was hoping she wouldn’t ask that. “W-why do you ask?”

“Rainbow Dash told us that you charge two thousand bits.” Celestia responded “However, upon discussing the matter with the castle medical staff, I discovered that the price is capped at a thousand.” She finished her notes before looking at him. “I’d like to know why you charge double the maximum amount.”

“Unfortunately, that is necessary.” Slate replied “This covers the cost of bringing my colleagues up to Cloudsdale, as well as their food and lodging while they’re here.”

Celestia shook her head “That is unacceptable. I understand that bringing three additional unicorns to Cloudsdale is an expensive undertaking. However, there are other ways to cover those expenses than raising the price that you’re charging your patients.”

Slate sighed “I’ve discussed the issue with the mayor several times, but I always get the same answer. There isn’t enough money in the budget to cover the expenses. That’s why I had to increase the price of that scan.”

“Why don’t you simply refer them to another clinic?” Celestia asked

“This clinic is the only one in Cloudsdale that employs a unicorn.” Slate answered “Additionally, most of the ponies that require that scan can’t fly. Therefore, asking them to travel down to another clinic is both difficult and time consuming. In fact, most of them say that the convenience of having the scan cast here is worth the higher price.”

Celestia shook her head again “It doesn’t matter if your patients are willing to pay the higher rate. I won’t allow you to overcharge for your services.” Perhaps Artemis and Twilight will have an idea. If they don’t, I’m sure they’ll be able to help me think of something. “Artemis, Twilight and I will work together to come up with a solution.”

Slate bowed “Thank you, princess”

Celestia, Sapphire Wing and Slate looked up at a knock on the door. It opened to reveal the receptionist.

“I’ve finished making the copies that you’ve requested, Princess Celestia.” After giving a folder to Sapphire Wing, she turned to Slate. “Your patient has arrived. The nurses have finished preparing him for surgery.”

Celestia turned towards the door. “Thank you for your time.”

In Canterlot, Twilight and Artemis sighed in relief when the last petitioner left the throne room.

“I’m glad that’s finally over.” Twilight said, stretching her wings

“Agreed” Artemis responded, stretching his as well “The afternoon was even busier than the morning was.”

Spike looked at the stack of petitions on his desk. “One was approved to be put into the screening process while seventy-nine were immediately denied.”

Twilight nodded to Spike before turning to Artemis. “I think we should talk to Celestia about allowing the general public to submit their petitions first.”

Artemis nodded as well. “Dealing with the nobles’ petitions took almost all day. That means we were only able to listen to the concerns of one of the average citizens today.” He thought for a minute. “Perhaps we should create a schedule for court.”

Twilight tilted her head “Emergencies are taken care of first. Then the average citizen is allowed to put in their petitions. Once all of them have been heard, we’ll allow the nobles to speak.” She turned to Artemis. “What do you think about that idea?”

Your father and I never needed to create a schedule for court. Sundance commented However, in your case, it might not be such a bad idea.

After a moment’s thought, she added It’s possible that the nobles were simply trying to take advantage of the fact that Celestia wasn’t here today. Of the three of you, she’s far more experienced when it comes to court.

Artemis smiled at Twilight “We need to discuss this with Celestia, but I think it’s a good idea.”

Spike finished writing Twilight’s idea down for court records before looking up at her. “The nobles won’t like it, but I think everypony else will.”

Twilight smiled at Spike before turning to Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang. “You’re planning to spend the rest of your shift training, right?”

Silver Shadow nodded “Yes, princess. I thought it would be a good idea to get started on our extra training.”

Artemis smiled “Good idea.”

Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang bowed before walking out of the throne room.

Twilight nuzzled Artemis “I’m going to the library.”

He raised an eyebrow “Is something wrong?”

“No” Twilight replied “I just have a couple of questions about the petition that we set aside for screening.” I don’t want to tell him this yet, but I want to look something else up as well.

Curious, Sundance asked What are you talking about?

I’m sorry, Mom. Twilight replied I need to read a couple of books before I can answer your question. This is because I don’t want to give you false information.

That’s alright. Sundance responded I know that you’ll tell me when you’re ready.

Artemis was about to say that he was going to join her, but paused when he heard Spike’s voice.

“I’d like to talk about this petition.” He pulled one of the ones that had been submitted towards the end of the day towards him. “I know it was denied, but there’s something that I find strange about it.”

Nodding, Artemis stood and walked over to Spike’s desk.

Twilight smiled at Artemis and Spike “I’ll see you for dinner.” Before either of them could reply, she teleported to the library.

Artemis stared at the space where she had been standing. She’s just going to the library, so I’m sure she’ll be fine. Besides, if she runs into something that she can’t take care of herself, Mother will protect her.

In the library, several librarians looked up at the sound of a teleportation spell. They smiled when they saw who it was. “Good afternoon, Princess Twilight.”

Golden Flash looked up in surprise. What’s she doing here?

Twilight returned their smiles “Good afternoon” She thought for a moment “How many ponies are in here at the moment?”

One of the librarians, an earth pony mare named Violet, walked closer. “There’s only one other pony conducting research at the moment.” She smiled “I’m sure it will be fine for you to use your usual research method, princess.”

Usual research method? Golden Thunder repeated

Golden Flash shrugged

Twilight giggled “You just want to see me do it again.”

Violet laughed “Guilty as charged”

The other librarians looked at each other in confusion.

Seeing this, Twilight said “Violet has known me for a long time.”

“Princess Twilight was ten years old when I began working here.” Violet explained

The other librarians, and Golden Flash, nodded

Twilight sat at a nearby table before closing her eyes. Everyone, except for Violet, stared in shock as books began floating towards her from every corner of the library.

Golden Flash watched as two of the books that he had set on a nearby table, but hadn’t gotten to yet, floated over to Twilight as well. That’s strange. Both of those books are about souls. He thought for a moment. Perhaps she wants to improve her technique for protecting her parents’ souls.

You’re probably right. Golden Thunder replied, watching Twilight open both of the books before beginning to read. She can read two books at the same time?

Smiling, the librarians shook their heads and returned to work.

Meanwhile, Twilight was focused on the books in front of her. After looking through the index of the first book, she turned to the appropriate page. “Let’s see.” Reading further down the page, she came to the part she needed. “I thought so.”

Twilight turned her attention to the second. Ten minutes later, a large smile spread across her face. Laughing softly, she whispered “I knew it!”

Confused, Golden Thunder asked What is she so happy about?

Curious, Sundance asked What did you discover?

Gasping in surprise, Twilight quietly responded “S-sorry, Mom. I wasn’t expecting you to say anything right now.”

Golden Flash stared at Twilight in stunned silence. T-this means that Queen Sundance really is paying attention to what goes on around Princess Twilight.

Sundance laughed That’s alright. Besides, your words certainly surprised Golden Flash.

Twilight resisted the urge to turn her head. Is he still watching me?

Yes. Sundance answered, laughing harder. Tell me what you discovered, but make sure that you say it aloud. Your father and I want to see his reaction.

Twilight suppressed a giggle. Alright. “Remember what Golden Thunder said about taking your immortality?”

Yes Sundance answered

Golden Flash’s eyes widened That’s what she’s researching?!

I’m not surprised. Golden Thunder replied She’s protecting their souls, remember? Therefore, it makes sense for her to try to figure out my plan.

Twilight had spent the last couple of minutes rereading what she had found. “We know that it’s possible to add something to a soul because I gained my immortality when I ascended. However, if anything is removed, the entire soul will instantly die. This means that, even if he’s able to take your immortality, he won’t be able to do anything with it.”

Sundance sighed in relief Thank you for confirming that.

You’re welcome, Mom. Twilight responded Now we just need to make sure that he can’t take anything from either of you. She thought for a moment. Celestia, Artemis and I will protect both of you as long as we need to, but it would be better if we could get him to stop trying.

Agreed Sundance immediately replied

Golden Thunder growled Damn it! I suspected as much.

What do you want to do now, ancestor? Golden Flash hesitantly asked

Golden Thunder laughed I doubt Princess Twilight knows this, but she just did us a favor. It probably would have taken us weeks to discover what she figured out in a matter of minutes. He sighed I hate to admit it, but Princess Celestia taught her well.

As for what we should do next, perhaps we can find the spell that allowed Princess Twilight to ascend.

That won’t work. Golden Flash responded Princess Celestia is the only one who knows the proper technique. Additionally, it seems that there is a set of very specific requirements that have to be met.

That is a problem. Golden Thunder remarked Even if we were able to discover the requirements, and meet them, I’m sure that Princess Celestia would never help either of us ascend.

After thinking for a few minutes, he continued There must be a way to remove part of a soul while keeping it alive. I just need to discover what it is. Unfortunately, it means that we need to conduct more research.

Yes, ancestor. Golden Flash replied

We need King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance’s souls so that I can test whatever we discover. Golden Thunder commented thoughtfully Therefore, I’m going to keep trying. One of these days, Princess Twilight is going to make a mistake and I’ll get those souls.

Golden Flash turned his attention back to Twilight in time to hear her mutter something about mining practices causing health problems.

Violet walked over in time to see ten books arrange themselves in the air around Twilight. Surprised, she stopped and just stared. I’ve never seen her do that before.

Fifteen minutes later, Twilight began to speak softly again. “I was right. That practice was outlawed four decades ago.” She shook her head “No wonder his employees are getting sick . . . and suing him for their medical expenses. I’ll discuss the issue with Celestia and Artemis, but I have a pretty good idea of what we should do about it.”

Illegal mining practices in this day and age? Golden Thunder asked, surprised Wait a minute. Princess Twilight is talking about the last petitioner of the day, isn’t she?

Golden Flash nodded It’s not common, but illegal practices do happen. The ponies who run them are more concerned with making money than taking care of their employees.

I see. Golden Thunder remarked

Twilight stood, a flash of her magic returning the books to their proper places. That done, she turned towards the door.

You need to go with her. Golden Thunder told his descendant

Nodding, Golden Flash stood and followed Twilight out of the library.

In the stars, Midnight Armor growled “Why is Golden Flash following our daughter?!”

“I’m not sure.” Sundance answered, just as angry as her husband

Star Swirl watched Golden Flash carefully “It just got worse. Golden Thunder is in control of Golden Flash’s body. You might need to protect her, Sundance.”

“I’m already working on it.” Sundance responded

Midnight Armor’s star flickered as he watched his wife prepare half a dozen spells at once. I can handle five spells at once, but I’ve seen her successfully control up to ten spells at the same time. His star flickered again I still have no idea how she does that.

Star Swirl watched in stunned silence. Six spells at once?! H-how in Equestria is she doing that?! The most I can handle is three.

In Canterlot, Artemis and Spike looked up when Celestia and Sapphire Wing walked into the room.

Looking around, Celestia asked “Where’s Twilight?”

“She went to the library.” Spike answered

Worried, Sapphire Wing asked “Are Steel Night and Midnight Fang with her?”

Artemis shook his head “They’re training with Silver Shadow.”

Celestia’s eyes widened “You let her go to the library alone?!”

Artemis raised an eyebrow “First of all, the library is hardly dangerous. Second, she can take care of herself. Third, she isn’t alone. If something comes up that she can’t handle, Mother will protect her.”

Sapphire Wing sighed in relief before turning to Celestia. “Perhaps I should go see what Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night are up to.”

Celestia nodded “The four of you have the rest of your shift off so that you can focus on your training. We’ll see you in the morning.”

Sapphire Wing bowed “Yes, Princess Celestia”

After he had left the room, Celestia turned to Artemis and Spike. “It’s almost time for dinner. We should make sure that Twilight isn’t wrapped up in research again.”

Nodding, Artemis and Spike followed Celestia out of the throne room. They watched as she cast a shield over the throne room.

Meanwhile, Twilight was walking towards the throne room. However, she paused when she heard a shout.

“Princess Twilight!”

Turning to towards the voice, she noticed Golden Thunder walking towards her. Great. What does he want?

I don’t know. Sundance replied Be careful.

I will. Twilight raised an eyebrow “Yes, Golden Thunder?”

Surprised, Golden Thunder raised an eyebrow as well. She already knows that I’m in control of Golden Flash’s body? “I apologize for the interruption, but I was hoping to discuss something with you.”

This sounds eerily familiar. Sundance remarked In fact, it’s almost word for word what he said when he tried to kill me . . . the first time. If he tries to harm you . . .

Twilight hid a smile. I can sense the six spells that you have ready to cast at a moment’s notice. Therefore, I’m not worried. She began walking again before returning her attention to Golden Thunder. “I can’t talk for long because I need to meet with Celestia, Artemis and Spike for dinner.”

Golden Thunder fell into step a few paces behind her, walking on her left side. “In that case, I’ll make this quick.”

At the other end of the hall, Celestia, Artemis and Spike were walking towards the library. They paused when they heard a couple of voices.

After listening for a moment, Celestia gasped. “That’s Twilight and Golden Thunder!”

Artemis immediately levitated Spike onto his back. “Do not leave my back until Golden Thunder has left the castle, Spike.”

Spike nodded “A-alright”

Celestia and Artemis began to walk again, faster this time. When they got to the castle’s main entrance, they heard Twilight laugh. A few seconds later, Twilight and Golden Thunder walked around a corner.

Twilight was shaking her head “I have no intention of allowing you to trick me into telling you what Celestia and Artemis have planned.”

Sundance laughed I can’t believe he thought he could trick you.

Celestia, Artemis and Spike smiled

“Fine.” Golden Thunder snapped “Then tell me this. How in Equestria did you stop me last night?!”

Twilight smiled “Magic”

Sundance began to laugh. T-there’s more truth to that than he’ll ever know!

“That’s the problem!” Golden Thunder growled “I blocked your magic signature!”

“That’s not enough to stop me.” Twilight replied

Magic laughed T-that was perfect, Twilight! In fact, Harmony is laughing too hard to say anything.

Your friends are as well. The spirits of the other Elements told their bearers about your encounter with Golden Thunder just now.

They’ve also told your friends about what happened last night, the fact that Sundance and Midnight Armor are alive AND Harmony’s plan. Therefore, you don’t have to explain anything.

Twilight hid a smile. Good

Golden Thunder glared at Twilight but, before he could say anything else, he heard Celestia’s voice.

“There you are, Twilight.” She commented, sighing in relief “I was getting worried.”

Smiling, Twilight walked to her sister’s side before nuzzling her. “Welcome back”

“Thank you” Celestia returned her sister’s nuzzle before turning to Golden Thunder. “Court is over, Golden Thunder. Therefore, you’re no longer welcome in our home.”

Well said, Celestia! Sundance commented

Golden Thunder responded by allowing Golden Flash to regain control of his body. “Have a good evening, your highnesses.” Before they could say anything, he turned and walked out the front door.

As soon as Golden Flash had left the castle, Artemis locked the door.

Sundance laughed Good idea, Artemis!

Twilight tilted her head Can you hear me, Magic?

Of course. Is something wrong?

Last night, Dad told me that I’ve been giving him, Mom and Star Swirl more magic than they need to enter Artemis’ dream. I wasn’t doing that on purpose, it’s just that I didn’t know how much magic they needed.

Before Magic could say anything, Twilight continued Mom told me that she and Dad use the extra magic to fight Golden Thunder’s attempts to take their souls. Star Swirl uses it to send messages to Artemis. That way, they can tell us as soon as they notice that Golden Thunder is making another attempt.

This will be necessary soon because the spell that allows me to talk to Mom will end on Friday. Unfortunately, she’ll have to wait a while before it will be safe for her to cast it on me again.

I can’t believe I didn’t think of that. Magic slowly replied Don’t worry, I’m not angry. After a couple of minutes, she continued Harmony just told me that she wants you to give them magic after every attempt.

Twilight sighed in relief. I’m glad you’re not angry with me . . . wait, WHAT?! Harmony wants me to give Mom, Dad and Star Swirl magic after every attempt?!

That’s right. Magic answered

Seeing the expressions on everyone’s faces, she repeated what Magic had told her.

Celestia, Artemis and Spike just stared at her for a couple of minutes.

Surprised, Sundance repeated Harmony wants you to give us magic every time Golden Thunder tries to take our souls?!

Twilight nodded but, before she could say anything, her stomach growled.

Sundance began to laugh. We can discuss this later, Twilight. Go eat dinner.

Laughing as well, Twilight replied “Yes, Mom”

Celestia nuzzled her sister “What did Mother say?”

“She told me to go eat dinner.” Twilight answered, walking down the hall

Celestia, Artemis and Spike laughed as they followed her. They found Rainbow and Scootaloo waiting for them in the dining room.

Rainbow grinned at Twilight.

Seeing this, Twilight smiled at her friend as she sat at the table. Artemis and Celestia joined Twilight, Rainbow and Scootaloo at the table while Apple Crunch brought out bowls of broccoli and cheese soup with side salads.

Dinner was eaten fairly quickly and quietly. In fact, it wasn’t until servings of apple cobbler were brought out that anyone said anything.

After taking a couple of bites, Twilight turned to Rainbow. “How did Scootaloo’s doctor’s appointment go?”

Scootaloo grinned at Twilight “It was fun! Aqua let Rainbow read to me. She got to the part where Daring Do went through the forest to get to the temple before I fell asleep. When I woke up, Ivy started reading to me so Rainbow could talk to Aqua. They said they want to talk to you after dinner and see me again tomorrow!”

Rainbow laughed “Good job, Squirt. I don’t have to say anything.”

Everyone else laughed as well.

When they had finished eating, Rainbow and Scootaloo went to the garden to burn off some energy before bedtime. Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike headed to the hospital wing.

They found Stone Steps, Blue Stream, Aqua and Ivy waiting for them. The four of them bowed “Good evening, your highnesses.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight smiled “Good evening”

Stone Steps led everyone to the meeting room that they had used the day before.

Once everyone was settled, Twilight turned to Aqua and Ivy. “Scootaloo told me that you wanted to see me. Is everything alright?”

Ivy nodded “Everything is fine, princess. In fact, her condition isn’t as bad as we feared.”

Twilight’s eyes widened “Does that mean what I think it does?!”

Aqua smiled “Yes, princess. If everything goes according to plan, we should be able to repair the damaged tendons tomorrow. We’ve asked two retired nurses to help us because both of them are unicorns with extensive experience with the procedure that we’ll be using.”

Celestia smiled “That means they’ll be able to provide the magic, and knowledge, necessary to help you perform the procedure.” She summoned a bag of bits and set it on the table. “Here is the payment for the scan you cast on Scootaloo today.”

Twilight looked at Blue Stream “I’d like to know more about the procedure that you have planned.”

Blue Stream looked at the paper in front of him. “There are several procedures to choose from, but most of them are invasive. This patient is so young that these would cause irreparable damage. Therefore, the procedure that we’d like to perform will be done entirely with magic.”

That’s a good idea. Sundance said thoughtfully

“That’s understandable.” Twilight replied “How much does it cost?”

Looking at the report again, Blue Stream replied “If you take the fact that we’re calling in the two unicorns into consideration, the overall cost is three thousand bits.”

Twilight summoned a bag of bits before levitating it to Blue Stream. “That should be enough to cover everything, plus give a little extra to the two unicorns that you had to call in.”

Celestia’s eyes widened “Are you sure, Twilight? I was planning to pay for the procedure.”

Twilight nodded “I appreciate the offer, and the fact that you paid for the scan, but I want to do this myself.”

Confused, Celestia asked “Why do you say that?”

Twilight smiled at her sister. “I’m one of the ponies charged with caring for Scootaloo, remember?”

Celestia nodded

“My other obligations mean that I can’t spend as much time with her as I’d like.” Twilight explained “However, I will see to it that her medical needs are taken care of.”

Celestia smiled “I see”

Good idea. Sundance commented This procedure is important because it should allow the filly to fly. Besides, I’m sure that you’ll have the opportunity to spend time with her this weekend.

Celestia turned to Stone Steps. “Do you have the results of the scan that you performed on her today? I’d like to include them in the evidence that I’m preparing for the trial on Friday.”

Stone Steps passed her a copy of the test results.

Celestia smiled at him “Thank you” Turning to Twilight, she continued “I’ve already arranged for court to be cancelled and your friends to join us on Friday.”

Twilight nodded “All six of us have been charged with caring for Scootaloo, so it’s important that all of us are present.”

“That’s right.” Celestia replied

Aqua glanced at Ivy before turning to Celestia. “Is there anything else you need from us?”

“Yes” Celestia answered “Actually, there are two things. The first is a question. Were you able to discover how long Scootaloo has had these injuries?”

Aqua nodded “We were able to determine that the tears to all three tendons are the same age. It’s impossible to determine the exact age of the injuries. However, based on the results of the scan, we can comfortably say that she received them somewhere between eleven and twelve years ago.”

Ivy turned to Twilight “I don’t have her chart in front of me. How old is the patient?”

“Twelve years old” Twilight answered

Ivy gasped “S-she received those injuries as an infant?!”

Artemis explained what Wild Gust and Lightning Drop told them.

Stone Steps stared at Artemis “P-please wait a minute, Prince Artemis. I’d like to make sure that I heard you correctly.” He took a moment to collect his thoughts. “The patient, as an infant, fell out of a stroller in Cloudsdale. Then she fell through a gap in the clouds . . . down hundreds of feet . . . and landed in a tree.”

Artemis nodded

Stone Steps thought for a couple of minutes. “Most ponies fall head first, so I assume she got turned around at some point . . . perhaps she tried to fly, or a part of the tree changed the way she was falling. Regardless, she must have landed on her back. At that age, the force of the landing would have been enough to cause those injuries.”

He’s right. Sundance said slowly

Stunned, Blue Stream, Aqua and Ivy just nodded

Stone Steps tilted his head “Why didn’t her parents take her to the hospital? They would have found the injuries and immediately repaired the damaged tendons.

“Her parents stated that they couldn’t find any visible injuries.” Artemis responded “Therefore, they took her home.”

Blue Steam shook his head in disbelief.

Celestia cleared her throat. “One of the charges filed against her parents is Medical Neglect of a Child. I’d like the four of you to provide the medical evidence of this to the court on Friday morning.”

Stone Steps, Blue Stream, Ivy and Aqua nodded “Of course, Princess Celestia”

With their meeting wrapped up, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike walked out of the hospital wing.

Once outside, Spike jumped off of Artemis’ back. “I want to read the next comic before I go to sleep.”

Twilight nuzzled him “Don’t stay up too late.”

Spike rolled his eyes “Yes, Mom”

Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight began to laugh.

Confused, Spike stared at them for a moment before shrugging and walking down the hall.

After he’d calmed down, Artemis teleported the three of them to the room that he shared with Twilight.

Sundance spent a couple of minutes listening to her husband. When he’d finished speaking, she returned her attention to their youngest. We won’t be offended if you say no, but your father and I would like the three of you to spend the night with us.

Twilight was confused, but relayed the message. Equally confused, Celestia and Artemis stared at her for a couple of minutes.

Then Celestia smiled “I don’t have a problem with that.”

Speaking together, Twilight and Artemis said “We don’t either.”

Celestia and Artemis performed their celestial duties before Artemis brought them to their parents’ stars.

In the stars, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl turned at a flash on moonlight. They found Celestia, Artemis and Twilight standing next to the cloud, smiling up at them.

Before Sundance, Midnight Armor or Star Swirl could say anything, Artemis walked onto the cloud and lay down. Celestia and Twilight followed him and lay down as well, one on either side of him.

“There are two reasons that your father and I asked the three of you to spend the night here.” Sundance explained

Celestia raised an eyebrow “Is something wrong, Mother?”

“My spell will only remain active until moonrise on Friday.” Sundance answered “After that, I’ll have to wait a month before it will be safe to cast it on Twilight again. This means that I won’t be able to protect her during that time.”

“It’s alright, Mom.” Twilight replied “I’ll be fine.”

Sundance’s star flickered “I know that you have the power, and ability, to protect yourself, Twilight.”

“We also know that Celestia, Artemis and your guards will protect you if they need to.” Midnight Armor continued “However, your mother and I would like to help as well.”

Artemis glanced at his sister before returning his attention to their parents. “What do you have in mind, Father?”

“We’d like to do the same thing that Twilight did.” Midnight Armor answered

Surprised, Celestia asked “What are you talking about?”

He must be talking about what I did for Jade Butterfly. Twilight looked at Midnight Armor’s star. “Are you saying that you and Mom want to cast a protection spell on a necklace?”

Midnight Armor briefly brightened

“I see” Celestia said slowly “Would you like us to bring one here tomorrow night?”

Sundance flickered again “That’s not necessary.” Before her children could ask, she used her magic to part Twilight’s mane.

Surprised, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight watched their mother examine her engagement ring.

I thought this was made of silver, but it seems to be a type of gold. Sundance turned to her youngest. “What is this made of?”

“It’s called “White Gold”.” Twilight answered

“I didn’t know that such a thing existed.” Sundance commented, turning her attention back to the ring. I’m not interested in the sapphires because Midnight and I will be using a different gemstone. However, I’d like to take a closer look at the properties of this “White Gold”.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight were confused but, not wanting to interrupt their mother, decided not to ask any questions.

“Alright.” Sundance said slowly “I should be able to find the materials we need in a few of the nearby asteroids.”

Surprised, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight asked “What?”

Star Swirl and Midnight Armor laughed

After a few minutes of searching, Sundance pulled several things from what appeared to be empty space.

Midnight Armor and Sundance turned their attention, and magic, to the raw materials that Sundance had found. Roughly fifteen minutes later, a necklace appeared in between their stars. Sundance levitated it over to their children.

Eyes wide, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight just stared at it for a moment. “It’s beautiful.”

Like Twilight’s engagement ring, the chain was made of white gold. It had two star shaped pendants, both made of diamond. One was white and the other was a very deep blue.

Midnight Armor cast a protection spell on the necklace before placing it around Twilight’s neck. Sundance cast the spell to ensure that nopony else would be able to remove it while Midnight Armor cast the same protection spell on Celestia and Artemis’ Royal Necklaces.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight stared at their necklaces in stunned silence.

A few minutes later, Twilight looked up at the stars of their parents. “T-thank you”

Celestia and Artemis looked up as well “Thank you, Father.”

Midnight Armor laughed “You don’t need to thank us, but you’re welcome.”

Sundance giggled “The three of you may be protecting us, but there’s no reason that we can’t protect you as well. We just didn’t know that it was possible until we saw what you did for Jade Butterfly.”

“You said that you asked us to spend the night here for two reasons, Mom.” Twilight commented

“That’s right.” Sundance replied “The second reason is that I thought you and Artemis should tell Celestia about your day.”

“Then Celestia can tell all of us about hers.” Midnight Armor finished

Artemis and Twilight glanced at each other before showing Celestia what happened in court. Then they held their breaths and they waited for her reaction.

Shaking her head, Celestia muttered “I was hoping that wouldn’t happen.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor glanced at each other before returning their attention to their children.

Artemis suppressed a sigh. I was hoping that Celestia wouldn’t be angry with Twilight.

Twilight’s ears drooped “I’m sorry. It’s just that I didn’t want them to treat Spike like that.”

Reaching around Artemis, Celestia nuzzled her sister. “I wasn’t talking about your actions, Twilight. Instead, I was referring to those of the nobility.” She sighed “I didn’t tell them that I wasn’t going to be in court today because I was hoping that they wouldn’t try to take advantage of you and Artemis.”

“I see.” Midnight Armor remarked “You didn’t want to give them a chance to come up with a plan.”

Sundance’s star flickered “It was a good idea. It’s just a shame that it didn’t work.”

Sighing again, Celestia nodded “I should have known that they would have come up with something anyway.” She paused “How many petitions were submitted today?”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight, Artemis and Star Swirl answered the question together. “Eighty”

“Seventy-nine of them were immediately denied.” Twilight continued “However, one was set aside for screening.”

After staring at her siblings for a moment, Celestia shook her head again. “I knew that leaving the two of you in charge was a good idea.”

Artemis and Twilight stared at each other in shock for a moment before turning back to Celestia. “What?!”

Celestia laughed “On an average day, we get between thirty and thirty-five petitions. That means the nobles submitted more than double the usual amount today. In addition to receiving them, the two of you managed to determine that most of them shouldn’t even enter the screening process.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl instantly began to laugh as well.

“I didn’t think about it like that.” Twilight said slowly

“Same here” Artemis responded “We were simply trying to make sure that they didn’t trick us.”

Celestia laughed harder “That makes it even better.” After calming down, she turned to Twilight. “You’ve already researched the one set aside for screening, haven’t you?”

“Of course.” Twilight answered “It turns out that the petitioner is running an illegal mining practice. This is because the method that he’s using was outlawed forty years ago after that incident.”

Celestia’s expression instantly turned serious. “You must be referring to the case where eleven ponies died because of the dangerous working conditions.”

Twilight nodded

Celestia thought for a moment. “If I recall correctly, all of them died because they had a large amount of dust in their lungs.”

Twilight nodded again “That’s what I read. Fortunately, none of the petitioner’s employees have died. However, all of them have been admitted to the hospital at least once in the last month because of breathing issues.” She shook her head “The doctors found dust in the lungs of all of them. As I’m sure you’ve guessed, all of his employees are suing him for their medical expenses.”

“His petition is a request for us to stop the legal process.” Artemis explained “If I recall correctly, he told us that his employees are fine and the lawsuit is interfering with the quantity of gems that they are able to mine.”

Celestia stared at her brother in shock. “He cares more about the number of gems that he can pull out of the ground than the health of his employees?!”

Artemis and Twilight nodded

Celestia narrowed her eyes “I’d like to speak to this individual myself.”

“You will.” Artemis responded “I had a feeling that you would say that, so I told him to return tomorrow morning.”

Celestia smiled at her brother “Thank you, Artemis.” She turned her attention to her sister. “Where did you run into Golden Thunder?”

“The library” Twilight answered “In fact, he was the only other pony in there.” She paused “Two of the books I read were sitting on the table next to him.”

Celestia took a deep breath “He was researching souls, wasn’t he?” After Twilight nodded, she continued “Did he say anything to you about your research?”

Deciding to answer the question for her youngest, Sundance flickered “He just watched her every move.” Her star brightened considerably “Fortunately, Twilight was able to confirm what she told us last night.”

Chuckling, Midnight Armor told his eldest what her mother had done . . . and Golden Flash’s reaction.

Celestia laughed “Do you think Golden Thunder will finally give up?”

“Not a chance.” Everypony else responded

“If I know Golden Thunder, he’s going to try to take our immortality anyway.” Sundance sighed “Unfortunately, that means he’s going to keep trying to get our souls.”

“It doesn’t matter how many times he tries, Mom.” Twilight replied firmly “We won’t let him have your souls . . . or your bodies.”

Celestia and Artemis nodded

After a few minutes of shock, Sundance and Midnight Armor quietly replied “Thank you”

Star Swirl turned to Celestia “Why don’t you tell us how your day went?”

Celestia smiled at her friend before doing as he asked.

When she had finished, Twilight asked “Most of the ponies in Cloudsdale don’t know that Lightning Drop and Wild Gust have a daughter?”

Celestia shook her head “I met one pony who remembers Scootaloo, but everypony else is under the impression that her parents are responsible and dedicated ponies.”

Artemis rolled his eyes “I’m not going to bother commenting on that. Instead, I think we should discuss Slate’s problem.”

Twilight tilted her head “I’d like to know why he hasn’t come to court with the issue. As soon as he realized that the mayor wasn’t going to help him, he should have brought the problem to your attention, Celestia.”

“That’s a good point.” Sundance commented

After thinking for a few minutes, Artemis turned to his sister. “You said Slate brings three additional unicorns to Cloudsdale every time he needs to cast that spell, right?”

Celestia nodded

“Hmm” Artemis said thoughtfully “Perhaps we should hire three additional unicorns to work at the clinic. That should solve the problem.”

Midnight Armor brightened slightly “Good idea, Artemis.”

“Why didn’t I think of that?” Celestia asked “Father’s right, it’s a good idea. We’ll just have to increase the budget for that clinic to cover the salaries of the three new hires.”

Artemis was about to say something, but paused when he felt something move on his right side. Curious, he looked over in time to see Twilight lay her head on his shoulder.

Midnight Armor laughed softly “Good idea”

Startled, Twilight lifted her head. “What?”

Celestia laughed as well “Go to sleep, Twilight.”

Twilight blushed “I-I’m sorry. I just-” She stopped when she heard their mother giggle.

“It’s alright, Twilight.” Sundance said “It must be close to midnight by now.”

“Your mother’s right.” Midnight Armor remarked “All three of you should get some sleep.”

Sighing in relief, Twilight lay her head on her forehooves and closed her eyes.

Artemis watched her fall asleep before focusing on the moon. After checking its location in the sky, he turned to his sister. “It’s actually closer to one in the morning.”

Celestia’s eyes widened “Our discussion took that long?!”

Artemis nodded

“In that case, Father’s right.” Celestia replied “We should get some sleep as well.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl looked on as Celestia and Artemis fell asleep as well.

Artemis and Celestia woke to the pull of their respective celestial bodies. After smiling at his sister, their parents and Star Swirl, he nuzzled his mare. “Wake up, Twilight.”

After a third nuzzle, Twilight buried her face in Artemis’ shoulder. “Too early”

Everypony else laughed

Midnight Armor flickered “Twilight likes her sleep as much as you do, Sundance.”

Sundance just laughed

Yawning, Twilight raised her head “What should we do now?”

Celestia opened her mouth, but paused when her sister’s stomach growled.

Midnight Armor turned to his wife “I think our grandfoal just answered that question.”

Sundance giggled “You’re right, Midnight.”

Celestia smiled at her parents. “In that case, we should head back to Canterlot.”

Artemis smiled at his parents and Star Swirl before bringing himself, Twilight and Celestia back to Canterlot.

In Canterlot, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight appeared in the room that Artemis shared with Twilight.

Sundance giggled Good morning, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight.

Laughing, Twilight relayed the message.

Celestia and Artemis laughed “Good morning, Mother.”

Artemis teleported the three of them to the dining room.

Apple Crunch looked up at the sound of a teleportation spell. “Good morning, your highnesses. I’ve prepared scrambled eggs with shredded cheese and a small stack of pancakes for Princess Celestia. Prince Artemis will be eating French toast with a blueberry compote and powdered sugar on top. Princess Twilight will be eating oatmeal with brown sugar and raisins. All three of you have a large glass of orange juice.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight smiled at him before sitting at the table and beginning to eat. Twilight was swallowing the last of her oatmeal when Rainbow, Scootaloo and Spike walked into the room.

Apple Crunch returned with waffles for all three of them.

When everyone had finished eating, they walked out of the dining room together.

In the hall, Celestia smiled at Rainbow and Scootaloo. “Both of you will be in the hospital wing for most of the day.”

Rainbow picked up a pair of saddlebags that she’d set near the door. After setting them on her back, she grinned at Celestia. “I thought you were going to say that, princess.”

Celestia smiled at Rainbow and Scootaloo before teleporting herself, her siblings and Spike to the Royal Dungeons.

Chapter 68

Author's Note

I would like to reiterate . . . I am not a lawyer and have no legal training. This is simply how I wanted to write my story.

Chapter 68

Rainbow and Scootaloo walked into the hospital wing to find Blue Stream, Stone Steps, Aqua, Ivy and two unknown unicorn mares waiting for them.

The unknown unicorns smiled at each other before turning back to Rainbow and Scootaloo. One of them took a step forward. “Good morning, Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo. My name is Honey Bee.”

The other unicorn stepped forward as well. “Good morning. My name is Dawn.”

Rainbow and Scootaloo looked at each other for a moment before replying “Good morning.”

Aqua smiled at Scootaloo. “We did all of the testing that we needed yesterday.” Turning to Rainbow, she continued “We will be performing the necessary surgery this morning.”

Scootaloo’s eyes went wide “You’re going to cut me open?! That’s going to hurt!”

Laughing, Ivy levitated the filly several feet into the air. “Look around, Scootaloo. Do you see any knives?”

Scootaloo did as she was told. A few minutes later, she shook her head. After Ivy gently set her back on the floor, she asked “How are you going to cut me open without a knife?”

“We’re not going to cut you open at all.” Honey Bee answered

Dawn nodded “We’re going to use magic to perform the surgery. It takes a lot of magic, so Aqua and Ivy asked Honey Bee and I to help them today.”

Rainbow narrowed her eyes “How much did the scan you cast on her yesterday cost? What about the surgery?”

“The scan cost one thousand bits.” Stone Steps replied “As for the surgery, it costs three thousand bits.”

“You want four thousand bits?!” Rainbow shouted How am I going to come up with that kind of money?!

Calm down, Rainbow. Loyalty said They never said they wanted you to pay for everything right now.

Blue Stream shook his head “Princess Celestia paid for the magic scan that we performed yesterday. As for the surgery, Princess Twilight already paid for it.”

Rainbow’s eyes widened T-twilight paid three thousand bits so Scootaloo can have this surgery?!

Scootaloo stared at Blue Stream “T-twilight paid for it?”

Aqua nuzzled the filly “That’s right. She told us that, even though she can’t spend a lot of time with you, she wants to make sure that you are taken care of.”

W-wow Loyalty stammered

Scootaloo took a deep breath. “I trust Twilight. She paid for the surgery, so she must think I need it.” Looking up at Aqua, she added “I’ll let you do it.”

Stone Steps, Blue Steam, Aqua, Ivy, Dawn and Honey Bee smiled.

“You won’t feel anything.” Ivy promised “Like yesterday, we’re going to cast a sleeping spell on you before we start.”

Scootaloo nodded before climbing onto the bed in the middle of the room. Rainbow sat on the chair next to the bed, pulled out the next book in the Daring Do series and began to read.

Honey Bee cast a powerful sleeping spell on the filly. After Scootaloo fell asleep, Rainbow went to the waiting room. Stone Steps, Blue Steam, Aqua, Ivy, Dawn and Honey Bee got to work.

Meanwhile, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike appeared in the Royal Dungeons.

Celestia turned to her siblings and Spike “I’ll be right back.”

Artemis, Twilight and Spike nodded

Celestia walked around the corner and found herself looking at a pair of cells. Lightning Drop was in one and Wild Gust was in the other. Both of them immediately looked at her.

“Your trial is tomorrow morning.” Celestia informed them “The outcome will determine two things. One is what will happen to both of you and the other is who will have custody of your daughter.”

Wild Gust and Lightning Drop nodded “Yes, Princess Celestia”

“Would you like me to arrange for a lawyer to be brought down to you?” Celestia asked, looking from one to the other

“That isn’t necessary, princess.” Wild Gust replied “We’ve already sent a message to the pony that we’d like to represent us.”

Lightning Drop nodded again “We just need to find a way to inform him that the trial is tomorrow.”

“What is your lawyer’s name?” Celestia asked

“His name is Rapid Bolt.” Wild Gust answered “He works in Cloudsdale.”

Celestia nodded “Very Well. I’ll see to it that he’s informed and will be present tomorrow morning.”

Lightning Drop and Wild Gust bowed “Thank you, princess”

Celestia waited a couple of minutes to see if they were going to ask about their daughter. When it became apparent that they weren’t, she nodded to them before walking back the way she came. She found Artemis, Twilight and Spike waiting for her at the door.

Artemis raised an eyebrow when he saw her expression. “What’s wrong, sister?”

Celestia shook her head “The good news is that they’re taking this seriously enough that they’ve selected a lawyer. I just need to go to Cloudsdale and inform him of the trial date and time.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow as well. “Why don’t you write him a letter and have one of the guards deliver it?”

Celestia smiled at her sister. “That’s a good idea. I just need to . . .” She trailed off as her attention was drawn by the scratching of a quill on parchment. Looking towards the source, she found Spike sitting on Twilight’s back.

Finishing the letter, Spike held it out for Celestia to read. “Here you go.”

Surprised, Celestia took the parchment in her magic and quickly read the short letter. Then she turned to Spike. “H-how did you know what time the trial is going to start?”

Spike smiled “I have my sources.”

Sundance, Artemis and Twilight laughed.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight walked out of the Royal Dungeons.

As they headed for the throne room, Celestia smiled at the little dragon. “Thank you, Spike.” She borrowed his quill and signed the letter. “That solves that problem. Now I just need to ask one of the guards to deliver it to Rapid Bolt in Cloudsdale.”

“Princess Celestia?”

Startled, Celestia turned towards the voice to find a pair of Pegasi standing in front of her. Before she could say anything, both members of her Day Guard bowed.

“I apologize for the interruption,” One of them began “but we couldn’t help overhearing part of your conversation.”

The other nodded “We know where Rapid Bolt’s office is, princess. If you’d like, we can deliver your letter to him.”

“Thank you” Celestia replied, levitating the scroll over to the first guard.

Both guards saluted her before turning down a smaller hallway that led to a balcony.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight began walking again.

Twilight glanced at Celestia “You said that was the good news. This implies that there is bad news as well.”

I’m glad I wasn’t the only one who caught that. Sundance commented

Celestia smiled at her sister “You’re right. I wanted to see if Lightning Drop and Wild Gust would ask about Scootaloo, so I waited a couple of minutes after we’d finished discussing their lawyer.”

Artemis sighed “Let me guess. Neither of them said anything about their daughter.”

Celestia shook her head

Artemis, Twilight and Spike shook their heads as well.

As they got closer to the side entrance to the throne room, they saw Golden Flash waiting by the door.

Hearing hoofsteps, Golden Flash turned and saw the three alicorns walking towards him. Before he could say anything, Golden Thunder took control of his body.

Instantly noticing this, Twilight suppressed a sigh. It’s way too early for this.

Agreed Sundance replied

Golden Thunder bowed “Good morning, your highnesses”

As one, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight responded “Good morning, Golden Thunder.”

As Golden Thunder lifted his head, he saw Twilight’s necklace. That’s a beautiful necklace. He gasped when the dark blue star began to glow. T-that’s King Midnight Armor’s magic signature!

Hearing the gasp, Celestia asked “Is something wrong, Golden Thunder?”

“N-no, Princess Celestia.” Golden Thunder stammered, still staring at Twilight’s necklace I really hope I’m wrong. “Where did you get that necklace, Princess Twilight?”

Sundance laughed Before you ask, your father did that on purpose. We want Golden Thunder to know that we’re protecting you.

I can help with that. “Mom and Dad made it for me.” Twilight replied, giggling at Golden Thunder’s stunned expression “They got the idea from the necklace that Celestia, Artemis and I gave Jade Butterfly.”

W-what?! Golden Thunder gasped “T-that means . . .”

Artemis nodded “Father cast a protection spell on Twilight’s necklace.”

Before Golden Thunder could respond, Celestia turned to her siblings. “Court starts in a couple of minutes.”

Twilight nodded to her sister before teleporting herself, Celestia, Artemis and Spike inside the throne room.

Golden Thunder just stared at the space where Twilight had been standing. King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance are protecting Princess Twilight?!

I’m not surprised. Golden Flash remarked You did attack her on Saturday.

Golden Thunder allowed Golden Flash to regain control of his body. You’re right. That must the reason behind their actions. He sighed Unfortunately, it makes things much more difficult for us.

In the throne room, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike took their usual positions. Then Celestia used her magic to open the doors. They watched at least two dozen ponies file inside.

The nobles glanced at Twilight before quietly lining up in front of Spike’s desk.

Sundance laughed It looks like they learned their lesson.

Celestia raised an eyebrow when each of them patiently waited their turn. Turning to her sister, she whispered “What did you do to them yesterday?!”

Giggling softly, Twilight quietly replied “Artemis and I already showed you what happened, remember?”

Celestia thought for a moment. That’s right. Twilight used the Royal Voice when they tried to overwhelm Spike. Shaking her head, she commented “It looks like your plan worked.”

Artemis chuckled before turning his attention to one of the ponies in the crowd. “Please come closer, Flint.”

Flint, an earth pony stallion, bowed before doing as he was told. “Yes, Prince Artemis.”

“Twilight and I have already told Celestia about your petition.” Artemis began “Even so, I believe you should explain the situation yourself. Once all three of us are aware of what’s going on, we will work together to determine the best course of action.”

Flint nodded “Of course, Prince Artemis” Turning his attention to Celestia, he continued. “I run the mining operation to the south. The rubies, emeralds and sapphires that come out of our mines are sent all over Equestria.”

Already aware of this, Celestia simply nodded. “Please tell me about your petition.”

“Yes, princess” Flint responded “My employees have been in and out of the hospital over the last month. For some reason, they began insisting that I need to pay their medical expenses. When I refused, they filed a lawsuit against me.” He shook his head “The fact that they’ve been spending so much time in the hospital has dramatically decreased productivity. I simply cannot afford to pay their medical expenses as well.” He looked up at Celestia “Therefore, I’ve requested that you stop the legal process so that we can get back to work.”

“Do you have the medical reports from your employees’ visits to the hospital?” Celestia asked

“They were submitted as part of his petition.” Spike replied, holding up a thick stack of paper “I knew that you would want to see them, so I didn’t file them.”

Celestia smiled “Thank you, Spike.”

Everyone watched Celestia levitate the petition and medical reports closer to her.

A few minutes later, Celestia returned her attention to Flint. “It appears that all of your employees have dust in their lungs.” She raised an eyebrow “How did that get there?”

Flint tilted his head “It must be the new mining procedure that we’re using. We use magic charges to below up small portions of the mine’s walls. This removes the rock and allows us easier access to the gems.”

“Why did you begin using a new mining practice?” Artemis asked

“I was looking through our records and discovered a period of time where our gem productivity far surpassed what it is today.” Flint answered “However, it was suddenly stopped roughly forty years ago. No matter how many of our records I searched through, I couldn’t find a reason for this. Therefore, I decided to return to the old practice so that we can meet the increased demand for gems.”

“I’m the one who banned that mining practice.” Seeing his expression, Celestia explained “When the rock explodes, dust gets into the air. It also gets into the lungs of the miners who collect the gems. Forty years ago, eleven miners died when enough of the dust got into their lungs that they were no longer able to breathe.”

Flint gasped “T-that’s why the practice was banned?!”

Celestia nodded “I know that the old fashioned way of digging the gems out of the walls and floor of the mine takes time, but it’s much safer.”

“W-why don’t we have a copy of this for our records?!” Flint stammered

“I can’t answer that question.” Twilight replied “However, I can tell you that there is a copy of everything about that case in the castle library. I suggest you ask the librarians to make you a copy. If they ask, tell them that I sent you.”

Flint bowed “T-thank you, Princess Twilight.”

“It’s clear that you weren’t aware of it.” Celestia told him “However, that doesn’t change the fact that you are running an illegal mining operation. Therefore, your petition to stop the lawsuit is denied. In fact, I must insist that you cover your employees’ medical expenses.”

“I understand, princess” Flint replied

Celestia nodded “You are required to return to one of the approved mining practices immediately. You are also required to ensure that the conditions that your employees are subjected to meet all of the safety requirements listed in the Health and Safety Guidelines.”

Flint nodded “Yes, Princess Celestia”

“I will give you until the end of the quarter to accomplish this.” Celestia continued “At the beginning of next quarter, Artemis and I will personally inspect the mine.”

Flint tilted his head “What about Princess Twilight?”

“My fiancé is pregnant.” Artemis replied “I will not allow her, or our foal, to be exposed to those conditions . . . especially if you are unable to meet the safety requirements.”

Well said, Artemis! Sundance commented

Eyes wide, Flint nodded again. I forgot that Princess Twilight is pregnant. Of course they’re not going to allow her to go into a mine! He bowed before heading to the library.

After Flint had left the throne room, Celestia noticed a movement off to the side. She looked over to see the guards who had delivered her letter to Rapid Bolt. She was surprised to see another Pegasus stallion with them. Curious, she motioned for the three of them to approach the throne.

The unknown stallion bowed “Good morning, your highnesses. My name is Rapid Bolt.”

Speaking together, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight replied “Good morning.”

“Is there something that we can help you with?” Celestia asked

“Yes, princess” Rapid Bolt answered “I was hoping you could tell me where I might find the filly that is the subject of the court case, and custody battle.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “I will not tell you her exact location. However, I assure you that she is safe.”

Good idea Sundance commented I don’t know what he wants with the filly, but I don’t think it’s a good idea to let him anywhere near her.

“That’s good to know, princess.” Rapid Bolt remarked, turning towards Twilight “Unfortunately, I must find her because I need to ask her some questions.”

I can’t believe I have to explain this to a lawyer. Twilight shook her head “It isn’t legal to question a minor. You will have to speak to her guardian instead.”

Celestia and Artemis each hid a smile.

How does she know about that?! Rapid Bolt nodded “Do you know where I can find her guardian?”

“Scootaloo has six guardians.” Twilight replied “I am one of them.”

Rapid Bolt narrowed his eyes. I may be able to turn this to my advantage. “It isn’t possible for a foal to have more than two guardians, Princess Twilight.”

Celestia hid a smile. I’m not going to say anything because I know that Twilight will correct him. I want to see how she does it.

Artemis resisted the urge to shake his head. He has no idea who he’s dealing with.

Twilight suppressed a sigh of relief when she saw that Golden Flash was speaking to several nobles on the other side of the room. I don’t want Golden Thunder to hear this.

If he knows that I’m the bearer of the Element of Magic, I don’t want to remind him. If he doesn’t know, then I don’t want him to figure it out yet.

Good idea. Sundance commented

Agreed Magic added The longer we can keep him in the dark, the better.

Twilight turned her attention back to Rapid Bolt. “It is if there is a way to group them together. Scootaloo is being cared for by the ponies known as the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony.”

I was hoping that she wouldn’t know about that! “I see” Rapid Bolt remarked “In that case, do you have proof that the filly’s parents weren’t caring for her properly?”

“We will be presenting that evidence at the trial tomorrow morning.” Twilight answered

“I see” Rapid Bolt said slowly “What about the Child Endangerment charge? Do you have evidence that proves my clients’ guilt?”

Twilight gave him a look. “We will be presenting that at the trial as well.”

“I see” Rapid Bolt responded “What about the Child Abandonment charge?”

“I won’t be answering that until the trial.” Twilight replied. Before he could say anything else, she narrowed her eyes. “If all of your questions are like this, then you’re just wasting my time. Instead, you should head down to the Royal Dungeons and help your clients prepare their case.”

Rapid Bolt bowed “Yes, princess.” Damn it! I wasn’t able to get her to reveal anything!

After Rapid Bolt left the throne room, Celestia cleared her throat. “Court will resume at one.” Before anyone could protest, she teleported her family to the dining room.

In the stars, Midnight Armor, Sundance and Star Swirl were all flickering.

Eventually, Midnight Armor said “I can’t believe he tried to get Twilight to answer those questions.”

“Agreed” Sundance replied “He must have been trying to figure out what she has against the filly’s parents so he can counter it.”

Star Swirl briefly brightened “I’m glad she saw through his attempt.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor briefly brightened as well.

In Canterlot, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike appeared to find the dining room empty.

Twilight shook her head “Does he really think I’m that stupid?!”

It doesn’t matter what he thinks. Sundance replied I like the way you handled the situation.

Thanks, Mom. Twilight turned to Celestia “How do you not yell at ponies like that?”

Celestia laughed “I’m used to it. Regardless, I’m impressed with the way that you handled that situation. You didn’t use the Royal Voice this time.”

“Trust me, I wanted to.” Twilight replied, sitting at the table

Before anyone could say anything, Apple Crunch walked in with vegetable subs for each of them. When they had finished eating, Twilight turned to Celestia. “How long do you think Scootaloo’s surgery will take?”

Celestia smiled at her sister “It should be over already. Would you like to go see her?”

Nodding, Twilight stood.

Artemis, Celestia and Spike did the same.

Before they could go anywhere, Apple Crunch walked into the room with vegetable subs for Rainbow and Scootaloo.

Smiling, Celestia took the sandwiches in her magic. “Thank you, Apple Crunch.”

Artemis teleported himself, Celestia, Twilight and Spike to the hospital wing.

Stone Steps, Blue Stream, Ivy, Aqua, Honey Bee, Dawn, Rainbow and Scootaloo looked up at a flash of midnight blue magic.

Celestia levitated the sandwiches to Rainbow and Scootaloo and laughed when both of them instantly began to eat. Then she turned her attention to Stone Steps. “I need you to keep Scootaloo here for the rest of the day. We will come get her after court ends.”

Stone Steps nodded “Of course, princess.”

Twilight turned to Stone Steps as well. “Do not allow anyone other than the individuals in this room anywhere near Scootaloo until we return.”

Stone Steps’ eyes widened “May I ask what’s going on, princess?”

Artemis told them about their encounter with Rapid Bolt.

Blue Stream’s eyes narrowed “Don’t worry, princess. We’ll keep her safe.”

Twilight turned to Rainbow. “I want you to stay here as well.” She smiled “Besides, I’m sure you still have a couple of books to read to her.”

That’s a good idea. Loyalty commented Scootaloo needs to be kept calm AND safe. You’re the best pony for that job.

Rainbow grinned “You got it, Twi.”

Twilight finally turned her attention to Scootaloo. The first thing she noticed was the bandage wrapped around her barrel, pinning her wings to her sides. Concerned, she looked at Ivy. “Were there any complications?”

Ivy shook her head “The surgery went perfectly. The recovery time for surgeries performed with magic is roughly ten hours . . . as long as the patient is able to keep the affected area still. We place a bandage on those who we think will have trouble doing that. Don’t worry, we’ll take it off tomorrow morning.”

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike smiled. “Good”

Twilight nuzzled Scootaloo “How are you feeling?”

Scootaloo jumped onto Twilight’s back before giving her a big hug. “Thank you, Twilight!”

Twilight blinked “Huh?”

Aqua laughed “We told her that you paid for her surgery.”

“I see” Twilight replied, laughing as well “In that case, you’re welcome.”

Everyone else laughed

Celestia glanced at the sun before turning to her siblings. “We need to get back to the throne room.”

Twilight nuzzled Scootaloo “We’ll be back in a little over four hours.”

After Scootaloo nodded, and returned Twilight’s nuzzle, Artemis teleported himself, Twilight, Celestia and Spike to the throne room.

Fortunately, the rest of the afternoon went by quickly. The petitions were the usual troubles of the average citizen. Celestia, Artemis and Twilight settled into a routine and worked together to address each citizen’s concerns.

After the last of the petitioners had left the throne room, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Spike, Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang did as well.

Celestia cast her shield on the throne room before turning to their guards. “You should continue your training.”

Twilight nodded “Golden Flash has already left the castle, so we’ll be fine.”

Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang bowed “Yes, your highnesses. Enjoy the rest of your day.” The four of them bowed again before walking towards the door that led to the training yard.

Spike jumped onto Twilight’s back before the alicorns walked down the hall, headed for the hospital wing. However, they stopped at the main entrance when the saw Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle.

The girls fell into step behind the alicorns as they resumed their trip to the hospital wing.

In the hospital wing, Blue Stream, Stone Steps, Aqua, Ivy, Dawn, Honey Bee, Rainbow and Scootaloo looked up when they heard several hoofsteps stop at the door to the room they were in. Before they could react, it opened to reveal, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Spike, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle.

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle ran forward “Scootaloo!”

Grinning, Scootaloo jumped off of the bed and hugged her friends.

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle looked at each other in confusion.

“Why do you have a bandage on your wings?” Sweetie Belle asked

Apple Bloom looked worried “Are ya hurt?”

Celestia laughed

Surprised, everyone else looked at her.

Seeing that she had everyone’s attention, Celestia explained what had happened over the last couple of days.

The girls sighed in relief “Good”

“Now then,” Celestia began “I believe it’s time for dinner.” After everyone nodded, she teleported her friends and family to the dining room.

In the dining room, Apple Crunch turned at the sound of a teleportation spell. His eyes widened when he saw everyone. “My apologies, your highnesses” He said slowly “I wasn’t expecting so many visitors. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

After everyone sat down, Rainbow, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie and Rarity turned to Twilight.

Twilight shook her head “Not now. We need to wait until after Artemis raises the moon.”

The girls nodded

Celestia and Artemis leaned closer to Twilight, both whispering the same thing. “What was that about?”

I’d also like to know the answer to that question. Sundance commented

“The spirits of their Elements have already told them about everything that’s happened recently, that Mom and Dad are alive and about Harmony’s plan." Twilight quietly replied "I’m sure they have questions for me, but I have to wait until Mom and Dad can’t hear me.”

Celestia and Artemis nodded

Sundance struggled to suppress her anger. When is somepony going to tell us what Harmony has planned for our souls?!

Twilight’s ears drooped I-I’m sorry. I’m not allowed to tell you that yet.

Sundance gasped when she realized what she’d just thought, and the tone she'd thought it in. It’s alright, Twilight. Your father and I know that you’re just doing what Harmony told you to.

Magic sighed I don’t blame Sundance for being angry. In fact, I’d be surprised if she WASN’T. Unfortunately, we can’t tell your parents, Celestia or Artemis about Harmony’s plan because we’re not sure if it will work yet.

Additionally, the second spell is crucial for the success of Harmony’s plan. After you finish creating it, we need to carefully test it so we can make sure that everything will go according to plan.

Twilight repeated what Magic had just said for Sundance to hear.

Sundance sighed as well I suppose that makes sense.

Everyone’s attention was drawn when Apple Crunch walked back into the room pushing a cart loaded down with a large vegetable lasagna, several plates and enough Apple Family apple juice for all of them.

After everyone had eaten, Celestia cleared her throat. “Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo will be sharing a room.”

Twilight gave the fillies a look “No roughhousing . . . and do not touch her wings or take off the bandage.”

The CMC’s nodded “Yes, Twilight”

“Celestia, Spike and I will be returning to our rooms,” Artemis continued, nuzzling Twilight “but the ballroom has been set up for a slumber party for the six of you.”

Before anyone could respond, Celestia teleported everyone to where they would be spending the night.

In the ballroom, Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow, Fluttershy, Rarity and Pinkie looked around in varying degrees of shock. The room had been set up the same way it had been for Celestia’s slumber party a month ago.

Twilight shook her head “I can’t believe she did that.”

Celestia didn’t do anything wrong. Sundance replied, unintentionally allowing her anger to show.

After a moment’s shock, Twilight glanced around the room. I have to do something.

Her temper rising again, Sundance asked What are you talking about?

Twilight responded by levitating a pillow into the air before throwing it at Applejack.

Surprised, Applejack jumped “What in tarnation?!”

Honesty laughed Look by your right front hoof.

Applejack did as she was told. Before she could say anything about the pillow, she heard a giggle. Curious, she looked over to see another pillow hovering next to Twilight. She grinned at her friend “You’re on.”

Pinkie suddenly poked her head out of a massive pile of pillows and cushions. “Pillow Fight!”

Laughter laughed Great idea! This is going to be so much fun!

Soon the air was full of flying cushions and pillows. They ended the pillow fight when the six of them were out of breath. Each of them collapsed onto a pillow.

After catching her breath, Twilight lifted her head “That was a pillow fight, Mom.”

Everyone else instantly began to laugh.

Despite how hard she was laughing, Sundance managed to squeeze out a reply. I-I know you showed me the memory of the one you and Artemis had with Cadance, but this one was even better.

T-that was a GREAT idea, Twilight! Magic exclaimed, laughing as well Sundance is in a much better mood now.

Noticing that the sun was setting, Twilight stood and walked over to the window. Curious, the girls followed. Seeing their confusion, Twilight explained “I do this every night because it allows Mom, Dad and Star Swirl to watch the sunset.”

Smiling, the girls nodded

After the sun had set, but before the moon had risen, Sundance turned her attention back to her youngest. Thank you, Twilight. Have a good night.

You too, Mom. Twilight replied I’ll talk to you in the morning.

In the stars, Midnight Armor laughed “I’m glad they did that before Celestia lowered the sun.”

“Me too” Sundance replied “I needed that.”

“You needed that more than you think.” Star Swirl remarked

Surprised, Sundance asked “What are you talking about?”

“I know you didn’t mean to do this,” Star Swirl answered “but you snapped at Twilight.”

Shocked, Sundance gasped “What?!” When did I do that?!

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “You unintentionally allowed your anger to show when you told her that Celestia hadn’t done anything wrong.”

“That’s why Twilight said that she needed to do something.” Star Swirl explained

“Y-you mean that’s why she . . .” Sundance trailed off, too shocked to finish her sentence.

Midnight Armor briefly brightened again “Twilight started that pillow fight on purpose. She was trying to get you in a better mood before she had to say Good Night.”

Her star dimming, Sundance whispered “Oh no” I can’t believe I did that! Twilight didn’t do anything to deserve being treated like that.

Midnight Armor and Star Swirl spent the rest of the night trying to cheer her up, but nothing worked. They were actually happy when Artemis lowered the moon and their stars.

In Canterlot, Celestia and Artemis woke to the pull of their respective celestial bodies. After performing their celestial duties, Celestia woke the CMC while Artemis did the same for Spike. Then they headed for the ballroom.

Artemis opened the door and quietly walked inside. Everyone else followed him. After their eyes adjusted to the darkness, they looked around before smiling at what they saw.

Twilight, Rarity, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Applejack and Rainbow were snuggled together in a big pile, still sound asleep.

Sundance watched her youngest sleep for a few minutes. Then, speaking quietly, she said It’s time to wake up, Twilight.

Twilight buried her face in a nearby pillow. Do I have to?

Yes. Sundance answered You need to eat breakfast before Lightning Drop and Wild Gust’s trial. She paused Before any of that, there’s something that I’d like to discuss with you.

That got Twilight’s attention. Not liking her mother’s tone, she asked Is something wrong, Mom?

Sundance sighed Yes, Twilight. I need to apologize for the way I spoke to you last night.

Yawning, Twilight replied It’s alright, Mom. I understand why you were angry. Besides, Magic was right. I’d be surprised if you and Dad weren’t angry about the fact that you’re not being told about what’s going to happen to your souls.

Surprised, Sundance stammered B-but I-

Cutting her mother off, Twilight continued. I’m going to tell you something. If Magic doesn’t like it . . . well, she can yell at me later.

Harmony has a very special task for you and Dad . . . and the two of you are the only ones who can perform this task. Unfortunately, neither of you are able to do that right now. Don’t worry, you won’t have any problems after we change a couple of things.

However, we have to be very careful with how we make those changes. To make things even more difficult, this has never been done before. That’s why we’re not sure if Harmony’s plan will work. That’s also why it’s taking so long.

After a few minutes of stunned silence, Sundance slowly replied I-I see.

Magic laughed I’m not going to yell at you, Twilight. In fact, Harmony asked me to thank you for finding a way to keep your mother informed without revealing anything you shouldn’t.

Twilight sighed in relief Good

Curious, Celestia and Artemis nuzzled Twilight.

Startled, Twilight opened her eyes. “I’m sorry” She whispered “I was talking to Mom and Magic.”

Artemis blinked “At the same time?”

Twilight nodded “I can hear Mom and Magic, Magic can hear Mom and me, but Mom can only hear me.”

Celestia stared at her sister “That must get confusing.”

Twilight stood “It does, but I’m getting used to it.”

In the stars, Sundance flickered, shaking her head in disbelief. “Getting used to hearing two different voices in her head is one thing, but there are times where she also has to keep track of two different conversations.”

Flickering as well, Midnight Armor added “That would be difficult enough. However, she also has to deal with what’s going on around her.” His star flickered “I have no idea how she’s doing that, but I’m glad she is.”

Star Swirl briefly brightened before turning to Sundance. “There are two things that I can tell you about Harmony’s plan. One, neither of you will be dying as a result of the changes that she has planned.” He laughed “Two, I’m sure that both of you will be very happy with the results.”

Sundance had been watching her children, and their friends, work their way through a large platter of waffles. Turning her attention to Star Swirl, she replied “With all of the care going into making sure this plan succeeds, I can’t imagine that we won’t.”

“Don’t worry.” Star Swirl continued “It shouldn’t take more than a few more months. You’ll just have to be patient until then.”

Midnight Armor laughed “That won’t be too hard. After all, we’ve been here for fifteen hundred years.”

Also laughing, Sundance replied “Good point, Midnight.”

In Canterlot, everyone had just walked into the courtroom. They found Rapid Bolt, Lightning Drop and Wild Gust waiting for them in the spot set aside for the defense. Straight Arrow and Ocean Drop were also waiting for them.

Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Spike, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom sat in the first row of seats. After a moment of hesitation, Scootaloo joined them. Blue Stream, Stone Steps, Aqua and Ivy sat behind them. Celestia, Artemis and Twilight stood in the spot set aside for the prosecution.

Straight Arrow smiled “Good morning, your highnesses.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight returned his smile. “Good morning”

“Now that everyone is here,” Straight Arrow began “I’d like to get started. The defendants, Wild Gust and Lightning Drop, have been accused of the following charges. Child Endangerment, Child Abandonment, Medical Neglect of a Child and Emotional Abuse.”

Rapid Bolt stood “My clients plead Guilty to the charges of Child Endangerment and Emotional Abuse. However, they plead Not Guilty to the charges of Child Abandonment and Medical Neglect of a Child.”

“Very well” Straight Arrow replied “Princess Celestia, would you like to begin? Please start with the Child Abandonment charge.”

“Yes, your honor.” Celestia responded “As you know, Child Abandonment is a broad category. We are not accusing the defendants of simply leaving their foal somewhere. However, we are accusing them of providing minimal communication and support for their daughter.”

Celestia glanced at Wild Gust and Lightning Drop before returning her attention to Straight Arrow. “Additionally, they have stated that they return to Ponyville twice a month to see to it that their daughter has food and water. By their own admission, they spend the rest of the time in Cloudsdale while she stays in Ponyville. With nopony to supervise their young daughter, it would be extremely easy for her to come to serious harm.”

Good point, Celestia. Sundance said slowly

Straight Arrow nodded “That’s a very good point, princess.” He made a note before asking “Do you have evidence to support your claim?”

Celestia nodded “Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy, Artemis, Twilight and I were present when the defendants told us this. All of us are prepared to testify.”

Straight Arrow looked at Rapid Bolt “Would you like to take the princess up on her offer? If so, who would you like to call to the stand?”

Lightning Drop and Wild Gust had a quiet discussion with each other before whispering something to Rapid Bolt.

Rapid Bolt shook his head “I was prepared to dispute any evidence that Princess Celestia may have gained from her visit to Cloudsdale. However, you didn’t tell me that you admitted anything to them.”

After another quiet discussion, Rapid Bolt turned to Straight Arrow. “My clients do not dispute the accusation. Additionally, they would like to change their plea to Guilty for the Child Abandonment Charge.”

Rapid Bolt glanced at Scootaloo before returning his attention to Straight Arrow. “If it’s alright with the court, I’d like to move on to the Medical Neglect of a Child Charge.”

Straight Arrow nodded “Prince Artemis, would you like to continue?”

Artemis nodded as well “The defendants told Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy, Celestia, Twilight and I about a time when their daughter was an infant. At this point, the three of them lived in Cloudsdale. Scootaloo fell out of her stroller and, before they could catch her, fell through a gap in the clouds. After falling several hundred feet, she landed in a tree. By their own admission, they did not seek medical attention for their daughter.”

Straight Arrow stared at Artemis for a couple of minutes. A-and they plead Not Guilty?! Finally finding his voice, he asked “Do you have any evidence of this?”

Artemis nodded again “The individuals that I just named are all present in the court room. As my sister said, all of us are prepared to testify.”

“That is not necessary, Prince Artemis.” Rapid Bolt replied “However, my clients would like to submit a charge of their own.”

Surprised, Straight Arrow looked at him for a moment. “What is the charge?”

Rapid Bolt hid a smile. “We accuse Princess Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity and Fluttershy of Child Abuse.”

Instantly furious, Sundance shouted What?!

Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity and Fluttershy immediately stood. After Celestia sent them a look, they sat back down. However, that didn’t stop them from glaring at Rapid Bolt.

Straight Arrow raised an eyebrow “What evidence do you have to support this?”

Rapid Bolt pointed at Scootaloo “The filly is clearly injured.”

“You have a point.” Straight Arrow turned to Twilight “How do you plead?”

Twilight smiled “Not Guilty. In fact, I’m going to prove that Scootaloo isn’t injured at all. To do that, I’d like permission to call Scootaloo, Ivy and Aqua to the front of the court room.”

Straight Arrow blinked “I see nothing wrong with your request, princess. You may proceed.”

Scootaloo, Aqua and Ivy stood and walked to the front it the court room.

Twilight smiled at Aqua and Ivy “Please remove the bandage.”

Aqua and Ivy returned her smile “Of course, Princess Twilight.”

After the bandage was removed, Scootaloo spread her wings and turned to show everyone her back.

Confused, Straight Arrow turned back to Twilight “Why was she wearing a bandage if she isn’t injured?”

Twilight’s smile widened “Stone Steps is more qualified to answer that question than I am. Therefore, I’d like to call him to the stand.”

“Of course, princess” Straight Arrow replied

After Stone Steps had taken the stand, Twilight asked her first question. “How are you employed?”

I see. She wants to prove that I’m qualified to answer the medical questions. Stone Steps smiled “I’m a doctor in the hospital wing of Canterlot Castle.”

Twilight nodded “Please tell the court about the medical procedure that was performed on Scootaloo on Wednesday.”

“Three of the unicorns that work in the hospital wing cast an In-Depth, Bilateral Spine, Muscle, Tendon and Nerve Scan on the patient.” Stone Steps answered

“What did the scan reveal?” Twilight asked

“There are four tendons responsible for flight, two for each wing.” Stone Steps replied “Three of hers were torn.”

Wild Gust gasped in shock. W-what?!

Lightning Drop was equally shocked. That’s why she can’t fly?!

Straight Arrow blinked “Were torn?”

“That’s right.” Twilight replied “I paid for the necessary surgery to correct the problem. Scootaloo had this surgery yesterday morning. The bandage was merely there to keep her from moving her wings while she recovered.”

Straight Arrow smiled “I see. And the results?”

Twilight turned to Aqua and Ivy “Is it safe for her to try?”

Both of them nodded before turning to Scootaloo.

“Please flap your wings slowly.” Aqua said

Scootaloo did as she was told

Ivy watched her carefully “Do you feel any pain?”

Scootaloo shook her head

“Good” Aqua replied “Please flap them harder.”

Scootaloo put a little too much effort into the next few flaps and shot straight towards the ceiling.

Lightning Drop and Wild Gust stared up at their daughter in shock.

Everyone else, including Scootaloo, gasped

Twilight spread her wings and leapt into the air. It didn’t take her long to catch up to Scootaloo. “You don’t need to flap your wings so hard. Trust me, they’re more powerful than you think.”

Eyes wide, Scootaloo nodded before beginning to flap her wings slower.

“That’s it.” Twilight said “Now turn your body like mine.”

Nodding again, Scootaloo positioned herself so that she was no longer facing the ceiling.

Sundance laughed Well done, Twilight!

Thanks, Mom. Twilight led Scootaloo in a slow circle around the room. When they returned to the front of the court room, they landed in front of Celestia and Artemis.

Twilight hugged Scootaloo “Good job! How did you like your first flight?”

Scootaloo returned Twilight’s hug. “It was fun! Can we do it again?”

“Not right now.” Twilight answered “Aqua and Ivy need to check a few things and we have to finish the trial.”

Scootaloo pouted

Twilight giggled “I promise, we’ll go flying in a much better place next time.” She glanced out the window. “Like out in the garden.”

Scootaloo’s eyes lit up “Okay!” She was so happy that she hadn’t even noticed that Aqua and Ivy were carefully examining her wings and upper back.

Twilight turned back to Straight Arrow “Does that answer your question?”

Straight Arrow laughed “I’d say the surgery was successful, princess.”

Straight Arrow turned to Rapid Bolt. “Do your clients still want to accuse Princess Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity and Fluttershy of Child Abuse?”

Still stunned at this new development, Rapid Bolt, Lightning Drop and Wild Gust couldn’t say anything. Instead, they slowly shook their heads.

“Good” Straight Arrow responded “Now then, I’d like to get this trial back on track. Your clients, Lightning Drop and Wild Gust, plead Guilty to Child Endangerment, Child Abandonment, and Emotional Abuse. They plead Not Guilty to the charge of Medical Neglect of a Child.”

Wild Gust whispered something to Rapid Bolt.

Rapid Bolt nodded to Wild Gust before turning to Straight Arrow. “My clients plead Guilty to all charges, your honor.”

Straight Arrow nodded as well “I’d like to move onto the custody part of the trial. Who has custody of Scootaloo right now?”

“Scootaloo is currently being cared for by the ponies known as the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony.” Celestia replied

I’m not sure who came up with it, but that was clearly a good idea. Straight Arrow nodded before turning to Lightning Drop and Wild Gust. “Do you wish to regain custody of your daughter?”

“Of course!” Lightning Drop instantly replied Scootaloo can fly now, so I’d love to have her back.

Those two shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near that filly. Sundance commented

Celestia cleared her throat. “I’d like to say something, your honor.”

“Of course, Princess Celestia.” Straight Arrow responded

“The defendants have plead Guilty to Child Endangerment, Child Abandonment, Medical Neglect of a Child and Emotional Abuse.” Celestia looked at Lightning Drop and Wild Gust for a moment before returning her attention to Straight Arrow. “It’s clear that they haven’t been caring for their daughter properly. Therefore, I believe that it’s in Scootaloo’s best interests for her to be cared for by somepony else.”

Straight Arrow nodded “That is a powerful argument, princess. Let’s say that the court decides to permanently remove the filly from her parents’ custody. Is there a plan in place for what would happen to her?”

Celestia smiled at her sister. “You should answer that question.”

Twilight returned her sister’s smile before looking at Straight Arrow. “I have come up with three different options. However, before I get to them, there is something that I should explain.” Seeing Straight Arrow nod, she continued. “Rainbow Dash has already taken Scootaloo under her wing and treats her like a younger sister. In fact, Scootaloo currently lives with Rainbow Dash.”

Straight Arrow smiled “That’s good to hear. What does that have to do with the options for the filly’s care?”

“The first option is that Rainbow Dash adopts her as a daughter.” Twilight answered “The second is that Rainbow Dash adopts her as a younger sister. In both of those options, she would be the one to raise Scootaloo. The third option is a little different. Scootaloo would become a ward of the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony. That means the six of us would work together to raise her.”

Sundance laughed I don’t think it matters which option you choose. I’m sure that the six of you will be working together to take care of her anyway.

You’re probably right. Twilight replied “I’ve come up with these options because I don’t want Scootaloo be forced to leave her school, friends or the life that she has established in Ponyville.”

“I see” Straight Arrow replied “All three of the options are acceptable, princess.”

Celestia smiled at Twilight. Thank goodness she added the last part. It shows that she has Scootaloo’s best interests in mind.

Straight Arrow turned to Lightning Drop and Wild Gust. “Unfortunately, I cannot return your daughter to your custody. This is because there is nothing you can do to convince me that you will care for her properly.”

Straight Arrow looked at the file in front of him before turning to Scootaloo. “You are too young to make the decision yourself, but I will take your opinion into account.” He waited for her to look at him. “Who do you want to care for you? Keep in mind, this decision is something that you’ll have to live with for at least six years.”

Scootaloo thought for a few minutes. “I want to stay with Rainbow Dash, but I like her as a big sister.”

Straight Arrow turned to the audience. “Rainbow Dash, please approach the bench.”

Rainbow flew over to stand next to Scootaloo.

“Are you employed?” Straight Arrow asked

Rainbow nodded “I’m part of Ponyville’s Weather Team.”

Good. That means she has the financial means to care for the filly. Straight Arrow nodded as well “What would you do if something came up that forced you to leave town, but you couldn’t bring her with you?”

“I’d leave her with one of my friends.” Rainbow replied “If all six of us had to leave town, I’d leave her on Applejack’s farm. Granny Smith and Big Macintosh can look after her until I get back. Plus she’d be able to play with Apple Bloom.”

Good answer Loyalty remarked

Applejack grinned Ah don’t have a problem with that. Ah’m sure Big Mac and Granny Smith won’t have a problem with it either.

That’s good to know. Honesty commented

Satisfied, Straight Arrow turned to Celestia, Artemis and Twilight “Very well. Rainbow Dash is now Scootaloo’s legal guardian. I’ll fill out the necessary paperwork when the trial is over.”

Celestia laughed softly when she noticed that Scootaloo was getting antsy. “I believe it’s time for lunch.”

Straight Arrow smiled “You’re right, princess. Besides, if I recall correctly, somepony was promised another flight with Princess Twilight.”

Twilight laughed “We’ll do that after lunch.”

Straight Arrow turned back to Celestia “I’ll let you know how the next part of the trial goes.”

Celestia nodded before teleporting her friends, family and the medical staff to the hospital wing.

In the hospital wing, everyone turned to Scootaloo. Unable to hold themselves back any longer, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom rushed forward and pulled Scootaloo into a tight hug.

“Yes!” Sweetie Belle shouted “You don’t have to leave Ponyville!”

“Yeah!” Apple Bloom responded, nuzzling Scootaloo “And ya can fly now!”

Scootaloo jumped into the air and flapped her wings a few times before landing again.

Everyone laughed

Ivy stepped forward “We just need to perform one more test before we can let you leave, Scootaloo.”

“Don’t worry.” Aqua told her, stepping forward as well “It won’t hurt at all.”

Scootaloo nodded

Everyone watched as they cast a basic magic scan on Scootaloo’s wings and upper back. A few minutes later, both of them sighed in relief.

Aqua turned to Twilight “Everything went according to plan, princess. All three of the tendons that were torn have been completely repaired. Just to be safe, we checked the fourth as well.” She smiled “There is nothing wrong with any of them.”

Twilight returned her smile “Good. The four of you did a very good job. Additionally, please make sure you thank Dawn and Honey Bee.”

Celestia smiled as well “That’s a good point, Twilight.” She paused when she heard several stomachs growl. “I think we should head to the dining room.”

Artemis responded by teleporting his friends and family there. They found Apple Crunch waiting for them with three lettuce, tomato and cucumber sandwiches for each of them. There was also a large bowl of potato chips for them to share.

After everyone had inhaled their lunch, Celestia led them to the garden behind the castle.

In the stars, all three of them brightened considerably.

“This should be good.” Midnight Armor remarked

“Agreed” Sundance replied “However, I’m impressed with the way that they handled that trial.”

Star Swirl flickered “I can’t believe they tried to accuse Twilight and her friends of Child Abuse.”

“Well,” Midnight Armor said slowly “the bandage did give the impression that the filly had been injured.”

“Yes,” Sundance responded “but that’s no reason for jumping to conclusions like that.”

Midnight Armor and Star Swirl briefly brightened before the three of them turned their attention to what was probably going to turn into a flying lesson.

In Canterlot, Twilight turned to Scootaloo. “We’re going to have to teach you several things. Fluttershy will teach you how to take care of your wings.”

“I already know how to do that!” Scootaloo protested

Smiling softly, Fluttershy shook her head. “You’re used to using your wings to power your scooter. It’s a little different when you use them to fly. Besides, your wings are going to be sore until you get used to flying.”

Good point. Sundance remarked

Scootaloo looked down “Oh”

Fluttershy nuzzled Scootaloo “It’s alright. Like Twilight said, I’m going to teach you everything you need to know.”

Scootaloo returned Fluttershy’s nuzzle “Thanks, Fluttershy.”

“I’m going to teach you the basics of flight today.” Twilight continued “We’ll continue to work on them over the weekend.”

Rainbow flipped in the air “As soon as you master the basics, I’m going to teach you the fun stuff. You’re gonna learn how to fly really fast and do flips like me.”

Scootaloo grinned “Let’s get started!”

Everyone laughed

In the stars, all three of them were laughing as well.

“I don’t blame her at all.” Sundance commented “Can you imagine being born with something . . . and not being able to use it for its intended purpose?”

Star Swirl shuddered “I’d rather not think about that, thank you.”

“Twilight’s doing well” Midnight Armor said slowly “She started on the ground and had the filly flap her wings until she got to the point that her hooves left the ground.”

“She did that on purpose.” Sundance replied “We heard her think that she wanted Scootaloo to know how hard she needs to flap her wings to get airborne.”

“That’s a good idea.” Star Swirl said thoughtfully “It should reduce the chance of what happened in the courtroom happening again.”

Midnight Armor and Sundance briefly brightened

“Now she’s showing Scootaloo how to change her position in midair.” Midnight Armor pointed out

“They’re also working on changing altitude and making turns.” Star Swirl added

“Now that I think about it,” Sundance said slowly “Twilight is the perfect one to teach Scootaloo these things. After all, she knows what it’s like to suddenly acquire the ability to fly.”

Midnight Armor gasped “You’re right! Scootaloo was born with her wings, but she couldn’t fly.”

“Perhaps that’s why Twilight was so intent on getting the filly the medical attention she needed.” Star Swirl remarked

Midnight Armor briefly brightened “You’re probably right.”

Sundance suddenly began to laugh.

“What’s so funny, Sundance?” Midnight Armor asked

“I just thought of something else.” Sundance answered, still laughing “If our grandfoal is a Pegasus or an alicorn, she’ll have to do this with him or her as well.”

Midnight Armor began to laugh as well. “You’re right. She may not know it, but there’s a fifty percent chance that she’s getting some practice.”

“More than that.” Star Swirl commented “In fact, I’m certain that their foal will be an alicorn.”

Curious, Sundance asked “How can you be so sure?”

“I’m not sure.” Star Swirl replied “I just can’t shake the feeling that we’ll be seeing a little alicorn soon . . . and I’m not referring to Princess Flurry Heart.” He thought for a moment. “Though, I’m sure we’ll be seeing her soon as well.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor laughed before turning their attention back to Scootaloo’s flying lesson.

Five hours later

In Canterlot, Celestia ended the flying lesson when she noticed that it was time for dinner. After a quick meal, Celestia walked everyone to the large chariot that would be taking everyone else to Ponyville.

“It’s going to be far too quiet in the castle this weekend.” Celestia commented

Pinkie bounced over to nuzzle her. “Come with us! It’s not going to be quiet in Ponyville!”

Everyone laughed

“I’m afraid I can’t do that.” Celestia replied, returning Pinkie’s nuzzle “I have to stay here so I can make sure that somepony doesn’t try anything that he shouldn’t.”

Instantly knowing who she was talking about, Artemis, Twilight, Spike, Rainbow, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie nodded.

Artemis nuzzled his sister. “We’ll be back on Sunday evening.”

Celestia nuzzled her sister before returning her brother’s nuzzle. “I’ll see both of you then. If something comes up, I’ll send a letter to Spike.” She watched as everyone climbed into the chariot before Artemis gave the order to take off.

In Ponyville, everyone had gathered in front of Twilight’s castle.

“I know that we haven’t received word,” Mayor Mare began “but it’s quite likely that Princess Twilight, Prince Artemis and everyone else will return-”

“NOW!” Pound and Pumpkin shouted

“What?” Mayor Mare asked

Pound and Pumpkin pointed at something in the air behind her.

Curious, Mayor Mare turned around just as the chariot landed next to Twilight’s castle. Turning back to the crowd, she finished “Now”

Everypony laughed

Twilight, Artemis, Rainbow, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Spike, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo climbed out of the chariot.

Artemis turned to the guards “Please return Sunday afternoon at five.”

Both guards bowed “Yes, Prince Artemis”

After the guards had taken off again, Twilight and Artemis turned their attention to the citizens of Ponyville.

“Thank you for greeting us.” Twilight began “This is actually good because we have two announcements to make. The first is that Rainbow is now officially Scootaloo’s guardian. This means that Scootaloo will be permanently moving into Rainbow’s house.”

Mayor Mare nodded “I’ll fill out the appropriate paperwork on Monday, princess.”

Twilight smiled “Thank you, Mayor Mare.”

Diamond Tiara scoffed “How is that chicken supposed to get all the way up there?”

Clearly confused, Sundance asked Why did that filly call Scootaloo a chicken?

A chicken is a ground dwelling bird that can’t fly very well, if at all. Twilight responded Diamond Tiara and her friend, Silver Spoon, began calling Scootaloo that when they realized that she couldn’t fly.

Sundance laughed I see. They’re in for a surprise.

“Like this” Twilight replied, nodding to Scootaloo

Scootaloo grinned at Twilight before spreading her wings and jumping into the air. Everyone gasped when she flew in a large circle before landing next to Twilight again.

“That’s the second announcement.” Twilight explained “To make a long story short, Scootaloo was injured as an infant. We were unaware of this because her parents decided not to seek medical attention at the time of injury.”

The citizens of Ponyville let out a collective gasp of horror.

“Fortunately, the medical staff in Canterlot were able to discover this injury.” Twilight continued “They performed the surgery to correct it yesterday morning. As you just saw, the surgery was successful.”

Everypony cheered

In the stars, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Star Swirl were laughing so hard that it was a couple of minutes before they could say anything.

“That’s how it’s done!” Sundance giggled “Did you see the looks on the faces of two of those fillies?”

Midnight Armor laughed “As if I could miss that.”

“I don’t think they’ll be calling her a chicken anymore.” Star Swirl remarked

“Probably not.” Midnight Armor replied, watching the crowd disperse “It looks like Twilight and Artemis are heading to their room a little early tonight.”

“I’m not surprised.” Sundance commented, watching them settle on a large bed “It’s been a long day.”

“It doesn’t look like either of them are going to sleep.” Star Swirl pointed out “They’re just relaxing.”

In Ponyville, Twilight and Artemis sighed in relief as they finally allowed themselves to relax.

I love the way you did that, Twilight!

Twilight smiled Thanks, Mom. I did that because I knew they wouldn’t believe me if I simply told them that Scootaloo could fly.

Sundance laughed They certainly believe you now.

Twilight laughed as well

Artemis draped a wing over his mare and pulled her closer. “What’s so funny?”

Twilight laughed harder “Mom and I were talking about how we showed everypony that Scootaloo can fly.”

Artemis chuckled “I see” Looking out the window, he commented “It’s almost time.”

Twilight’s smile faded “I know.”

Worried, Sundance asked What’s wrong?

Twilight sighed “It’s almost time for Artemis to raise the moon.”

What’s wrong with that? Sundance asked

“I won’t be able to speak with you like this anymore.” Twilight replied

Artemis tightened his wing around Twilight. “Perhaps Mother should cast her spell on Celestia or myself.”

Sundance used Twilight’s magic to write a message in front of her children.

I could easily do that, but I don’t think it’s a good idea. Golden Thunder thinks that I’m able to communicate with Twilight because our specialties are both magic. If I cast my spell on you, or your sister, he’ll probably figure out that I’m using my spell instead. Your father also knows how to cast my spell, but we’d run into the same problem. Instead, we should just wait until it’s safe for me to cast my spell on Twilight again.

Don’t worry, Twilight. I’ll be able to do that in a month or two. Besides, this will give you the time you need to conduct your research and create the second spell for Harmony.

Twilight nodded

“I’ll bring the three of us to your stars tomorrow night.” Artemis responded “Not to discuss anything important, just to spend time with you, Father and Star Swirl.”

Thank you, Artemis.

Artemis smiled “You’re welcome, Mother.”

Noticing that the sun was about to set, Twilight stood and walked out onto her balcony. Artemis followed her. They watched the sunset together.

“Wow.” Twilight said softly “Celestia really outdid herself this time.”

Artemis nodded “She knows that this is the last sunset that Mother, Father and Star Swirl will be able to see for a while. She told me that she was going to make this one special for them.”

T-that was beautiful. Sundance whispered Please thank her for me, Twilight.

Twilight giggled You’re going to see her tomorrow night, Mom. In fact, that’s the next time I’m going to see her as well.

Sundance giggled as well In that case, I’ll do it myself. Have a good night, Twilight.

You too, Mom. Twilight replied I’ll see you tomorrow.

Artemis raised the moon before placing the stars in the Night Sky. When he was done, the turned to Twilight. “Let’s get some sleep.”

Nodding, Twilight turned back towards their room. Artemis followed her to their bed. After both of them had climbed under the covers, Artemis pulled Twilight closer.

Smiling, she lay her head on his chest and closed her eyes. It didn’t take her long to fall asleep.

Chuckling softly, Artemis hugged her tighter before also allowing himself to fall asleep.

Chapter 69

Three months into Twilight’s pregnancy.

In Canterlot, Artemis woke to the pull of the moon. Opening his eyes, he lowered the moon and stars before looking at Twilight. What he saw made him laugh softly. At some point during the night, she had managed to get herself tucked under his wing. Knowing that Celestia would want to see them soon, he nuzzled her. His smile widened as she grumbled something about sleep and buried her face into his shoulder. Chuckling, he nuzzled her again while running the tips of his feathers down her side.

Twilight gasped before giggling as she squirmed out from under his wing. “No fair.”

Laughing, he nuzzled her again “I’m sorry, but it’s time to get up. We need to meet Celestia for breakfast.”

Sighing, Twilight nodded and climbed out of bed. “Today’s a school holiday, so there’s no class. Last night, Celestia asked me to join the two of you in court today. Well, for the morning anyway.”

They walked out into the hall, catching the attention of her guards. Steel Night and Midnight Fang bowed “Good Morning, Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight.”

“Good Morning” Artemis and Twilight replied

Artemis turned his attention back to Twilight “Do you have something planned for this afternoon?”

Twilight nodded “I have a doctor’s appointment, remember? I’m three months along now, so Stone Steps and Ivy want to do the regular checkup as well as run a test. Ivy wouldn’t tell me what what the test is for, but she promised me that it’s routine.”

Steel Night smiled as he remembered Cherry Blossom’s three month checkup. “May I say something, my princess?”

Twilight glanced back at him and nodded

His smile widened “The test run at the three month checkup is a magic ultrasound that will identify the race and gender of your foal.”

Twilight stopped, eyes wide “I forgot about that.”

Artemis stopped as well “We’ll finally find out if we’re having a daughter or a son.” He sighed “I’m sorry that I won’t be able to attend the appointment with you. Celestia told me that she’s expecting court to be busy today. Unfortunately, she won’t be able to allow me to leave, even for a couple of hours.” He paused “What about the rest of the afternoon? Do you have other plans?”

Twilight shook her head as they began walking again. “After the appointment, I’m coming back to court.” She looked at Artemis “Our guards will find out when I do, but we can’t tell the rest of Equestria what we’re having until we tell our family, Spike and the girls.” She paused and laughed “Rarity will kill me if I do it any other way. Not only does she want to get started clothes for our foal, she told me that she wants to incorporate the right color into my wedding dress. She’s planning to add blue for a colt or lavender for a filly.”

Like he always did when this topic came up, Artemis tried to hide a wince. “I’m sure it will be beautiful regardless of what color is added.”

Twilight suppressed a sigh. He’s trying to hide his sadness. I’m pretty sure I’ve figured out what’s bothering him, but I wish he’d tell me. She also suppressed a giggle. If I’m right, I’ve already found a way to make him feel better. I just need to find a way to tell him what I’ve done.

Entering the dining room, they found Celestia waiting for them.

Smiling at them, Celestia gestured for Apple Crunch to enter with their breakfast. When they’d finished eating, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight headed for the throne room, followed by Steel Night and Midnight Fang.

Entering the throne room, they saw that there were several dozen ponies present. All of them turned to the door as Celestia, Artemis and Twilight walked into the room. Celestia sat in front of the throne, Artemis sat to her right and Twilight sat to her left.

The morning went by fairly quickly. Many of the ponies present were average ponies that simply needed help. Between Celestia, Artemis and Twilight, their concerns were addressed as efficiently as possible.

After glancing at the sun, Celestia raised her voice. “We’ll take one more petition before lunch.” She suppressed a sigh when Golden Flash stepped forward. He better not want to submit another petition, the one from a couple of days ago is causing enough of a headache. The wording is so vague that even I have no idea what he wants to those funds for.

Golden Flash bowed “Good morning, your highnesses. Instead of presenting a new petition to the court, I would like to check the status of the one I submitted two days ago.”

Twilight turned to him “Artemis and I worked together to review your petition. After careful analysis, we’ve determined that you’re not researching anything at all. In fact, your petition appears to be an excuse for you to collect two thousand bits from the Royal Treasury every month.”

Celestia imperceptibly widened her eyes. What the-? Well, they did spend most of yesterday evening in the library. I’ve been spending most of my time dealing with the damaged elementary school in Canterlot. As a result, I haven’t had time to look into this. Thank goodness Twilight volunteered to help Artemis.

Why does Golden Flash need an extra two thousand bits a month and, more importantly, why is he trying to get it from the Royal Treasury?

Perhaps this is part of the plan that he, and Golden Thunder, have come up with. If it is, how does it tie into what we already know? Actually, I bet Golden Flash’s recent petition was Golden Thunder’s idea. Perhaps they want to conduct their research somewhere other than the castle library.

On the other hoof, the reason could be harmless. I seriously doubt it, but maybe he’s just trying to see how much money he can get from us.

However, if he tries to claim that he needs the money for the repairs of that school in his district, Twilight and I are definitely going to have something to say about it.

Celestia suppressed a laugh. I thought Twilight would like to know about the damage because her class used to attend that school. I was right. As soon as I brought up the topic, she asked me to tell her what her students had been exposed to. I had no problem with that, so I let her read the damage report. She was pulled from her thoughts when she heard Golden Flash’s voice.

Golden Flash stepped forward “Princess Twilight, those funds are needed!”

I’m not falling for that, Golden Thunder. How stupid do you think I am? Twilight just looked at him “For what?”

Golden Flash paused, apparently not expecting her to question him.

Artemis cleared his throat, catching everyone’s attention. “If you had a valid need for those funds, you would have simply asked for them and told us exactly what you planned to do with that money.” He glanced at Celestia and Twilight. After seeing both of them nod, he continued “Now is your chance to explain yourself, Golden Flash. If you were to receive those funds, what do you intend to use them for?”

Celestia smiled slightly It’s nice to see him taking a more active role in court. He’s finally gaining some confidence.

Golden Flash gave a twenty minute speech in which he rambled about how the elementary school in his district was in need of repairs.

Well done. Golden Thunder remarked If what you’ve told me about her is true, Princess Celestia won’t have a problem giving us the funds for a reason like that. In that respect, she’s just like Queen Sundance.

Thank you, ancestor. Golden Flash replied

Celestia smiled “That would be a valid need for those funds, if it wasn’t for one thing.”

Confused, Golden Flash asked “What’s that, Princess Celestia?”

“After receiving a complaint from the principal, I visited that school a few days ago. You are correct, the school does need repairs.” Celestia raised an eyebrow “I’m also aware of the fact that the principal has repeatedly asked you for assistance. They’ve been keeping copies of the requests they sent you and have provided me with copies of these requests. By my count, you’ve denied their request for repair funds twenty-two times.”

Golden Flash gulped

Seeing this, Celestia pressed further. “Have you visited that school recently?”

This isn’t good. Golden Thunder remarked Perhaps we should have sent them something after all.

“Of course, princess!” Golden Flash immediately replied We couldn’t spare the money at the time. Those funds were needed for the research into that spell. It’s crucial to our plan. Besides, the principal has never gone over my head like that before.

Celestia suppressed a smile as she watched Golden Flash trap himself. The school told me that he hasn’t visited in years. “Good. Then you can tell me which room has water damage from the storm several months ago. You can also tell me exactly where the damage to the roof is.”

Golden Thunder resisted the urge to curse. You’d better think of something fast, Golden Flash.

Golden Flash paused for a moment “I believe the report mentioned damage to the roof on the southwest corner of the school, princess. However, I don’t recall reading anything about water damage.” Hopefully that was enough.

Twilight managed to turn a snort into a cough. “I’m sorry about that. Regardless, I read that report. The water damage, and the mold, is in the food storage room. As for the roof damage, it’s above the food storage room and a classroom in the northeast corner of the school.” She shook her head “It’s a good thing the students who used to use the damaged classroom are already being taught elsewhere. Otherwise, I’d demand that you make the necessary preparations for them to be moved to a location where they can learn without the safety hazards.”

Golden Flash looked over at her “Princess Twilight, all of the foals who are assigned that school attend it daily.” I was hoping she wouldn’t get involved in this.

Agreed. Golden Thunder responded

He sighed Princess Twilight is annoyingly effective at protecting King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance’s souls. We’ve tried to bring them to us sixteen times so far, and she’s blocked every attempt. I’ve blocked her magic signature during the last fourteen attempts, but it hasn’t made a difference. Somehow, she’s still able to stop me.

No matter. We’re close to perfecting a new way to bring those souls down to Equestria. Once they’re here, it will be easy for me to trap them. We should be able to try the new method in roughly a month. He laughed She won’t be able to stop me this time.

For now, we need to make sure that Princess Twilight is otherwise occupied. I don’t want her suspecting that we’re planning to try again.

Careful not to nod, Golden Flash replied. Yes, ancestor.

Celestia suppressed a laugh when she saw Twilight narrow her eyes slightly. He has no idea what’s going on or who he’s talking to. I can’t wait to see this! Get him, little sister!

Sapphire Wing was also struggling not to laugh. I can’t wait to see how Princess Twilight handles this idiot.

Twilight suppressed another snort. “I guess you haven’t been told that Fire Fly no longer teaches the students that were originally in his class.”

“That’s not true, princess.” Golden Flash replied “I know for a fact that Fire Fly teaches every day.” She may not know what she’s talking about, but at least she seems to be distracted.

“You’re right” Twilight agreed “However, the class he currently teaches isn’t the one he taught at the beginning of the school year.”

I don’t believe she’s as ignorant of the situation as you think she is, Golden Flash. Golden Thunder said slowly She seems to know something you don’t.

Golden Flash rolled his eyes, directing the gesture at both of them. “With all due respect Princess Twilight, you don’t know what you’re talking about. I know you taught those foals for a month, but they were returned to Fire Fly’s care two months ago.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow

“If you’re correct, and Fire Fly isn’t teaching that class, that means there are fifteen students that are unaccounted for. I would never allow that to happen.” Golden Flash gave Twilight a smug grin. This should distract her. “Tell me, Princess Twilight, who teaches those foals?”

“There are fourteen students in that class, Golden Flash.” Twilight responded “As for your question, I’m the one teaching them.”

Everyone else in the throne room, except for the nobles, immediately began to laugh.

“W-what?” Golden Flash asked, stunned

Golden Thunder laughed as well I knew it. She’s clearly much smarter than you’ve given her credit for. Keeping her occupied will not be easy. Though the change of topic is certainly welcome. Perhaps this distraction will work after all.

Twilight saw his confusion “The parents of the foals in that class decided that they wanted me to teach their foals for the rest of the school year and submitted a petition to Celestia. As a result, those foals attend class here in the castle.”

Celestia cleared her throat “You no longer need to worry about collecting money for the repairs of that school.” Seeing his confusion, she explained “I’ve already approved a repair budget and sent the funds directly to the school. The repairs to the food storage room have already started. When the repairs are finished, I’ll send a sanitation team to make sure it’s safe before I allow food to be placed in that room again. As for the roof, it’s being worked on as we speak. All of the repairs should be finished by the end of next week.”

Golden Thunder let out an irritated sigh. I should have known that Princess Celestia wouldn’t be distracted. To make matters worse, we can no longer claim that we want the funds so we can repair the school. She’s almost as shrewd as her father.

Artemis turned his attention back to Golden Flash. “I’d like you to answer my question, Golden Flash. What do you intend to use those funds for?”

This isn’t good. Golden Thunder said He’s suspicious.

Golden Flash looked at Artemis but refused to say anything.

That may be the wisest thing you’ve done all week. Golden Thunder remarked Not even I was able to fool Prince Artemis.

Twilight had lost what little patience that she had left. Instead of waiting for Golden Flash to answer, she glanced at Celestia.

Both of them nodded

Twilight turned back to Golden Flash. “Your petition is denied. I don’t want to see any variation of it here again.” She gave him a look. “If you want more money, why don’t you try working for a change?”

Everyone else, except for a few nobles, laughed.

H-how dare she?! Golden Flash opened his mouth but Twilight cut him off.

“I know that you would like to lodge a complaint about the fact that your petition has been denied. However, I don’t have time to listen to it right now. I have a doctor’s appointment and seeing to the health of my foal is far more important to me than listening to your complaints.”

Well said, Twilight. Celestia smiled “Don’t worry about things here, go to your appointment. Dealing with this last petition has taken so long that we’ve missed lunch. Lunch will be a little late, but Artemis and I will meet you in the dining room in half an hour.”

Twilight nodded to Celestia and nuzzled Artemis before heading for the door. Steel Night and Midnight Fang followed her out of the throne room.

Ivy was standing at the entrance to the hospital wing. She smiled when Twilight, Steel Night and Midnight Fang walked up to her. “Good afternoon, Princess Twilight. Are you ready to see how your little one is doing?”

Returning the smile, Twilight nodded.

“Great,” Ivy replied “Stone Steps is already in the exam room.”

Twilight smiled “Thank you”

The four of them walked down the hall and into the exam room.

Stone Steps looked up as the four of them walked into the room. Steel Night and Midnight Fang stood just inside the door.

Stone Steps smiled “Good afternoon, Princess Twilight. I’d like to start with some questions. First, how are you feeling? Is the nausea and vomiting still causing you trouble?”

Twilight shook her head “I still get nauseous from time to time, but not as often as the last time I saw you.”

Ivy nodded, writing all of this down “What about cravings, princess? Have they started? If so, what are they?”

Sighing, Twilight nodded “Bread, but it has to be a special variety with apples in it, and apple fritters.”

Ivy looked up, half confused and half curious. “Apple bread?”

Twilight giggled “Yes. Applejack decided to try making a loaf of bread with dried apple chunks baked into it. She brings me a couple of loaves every weekend. They’re supposed to last the week, but they usually don’t last more than a couple of hours.”

Stone Steps chuckled “It may be an unusual craving, but most pregnancy cravings are. I’ve never heard of apple bread, but it doesn’t sound like this is bad for you. Besides, you’re getting your ingredients straight from a farm and the bread is baked by the farmer.” He paused “In fact, that’s the healthiest craving I’ve ever heard of a pregnant mare having. Where are you getting the apple fritters?”

Twilight laughed “Applejack again. They’re her specialty and, like the bread, she uses the apples from her farm to make them.”

Stone Steps laughed as well “I have no problem with that, princess.” He looked at Ivy. “Do you have the ultrasound spell ready?”

Nodding, Ivy cast the spell on Twilight. “This may feel a little odd, but . . . what’s so funny?”

Twilight was giggling as Ivy’s magic moved over her stomach and sides. “Sorry,” she managed to say “I’m very ticklish.”

Ivy smiled “Please try to hold still for a just moment longer, princess.”

Everypony turned to the space next to Twilight. Twilight, and everypony else in the room, watched as an image of her foal appeared. Their eyes widened as the image got clearer.

“W-wow” Twilight breathed “I wasn’t expecting that.”

Steel Night grinned “Congratulations, princess!”

Smiling, Midnight Fang shook his head “We’re definitely going to have our work cut out for us when that little one is born.”

Stone Steps and Ivy just stared at the image until it faded. “W-well, this birth is certainly going to be unique. Then again, nopony in Equestria has handled an alicorn pregnancy. Who knows, maybe this is normal.”

Twilight laughed “You might get the chance to find out. Artemis and I have been talking about giving this little one a little brother or sister in a few years.”

Surprised, Stone Steps just stared at her

Ivy smiled as she wrote down the results of the ultrasound spell. “I can understand that, princess. It’s usually better for foals to grow up with siblings.”

Also smiling, Twilight nodded “What was said, and discovered, needs to stay quiet for a few days. As before, I want to tell my family and friends before the rest of Equestria finds out.”

Stone Steps, Ivy, Steel Night and Midnight Fang nodded “Yes, princess.”

Twilight, Steel Night and Midnight Fang walked out into the hallway and headed for the dining room.

Meanwhile, after Twilight left the throne room, Golden Flash sighed in relief.

That was close. Golden Thunder said Even though we weren’t able to distract her, I’m glad we don’t have to worry about Princess Twilight right now. Try again.

Nodding, Golden Flash muttered “We must get that money so I’ll try again with Princess Celestia. I’ll be able to get her to approve it if I play the “Struggling School” card.”

You said that out loud, Golden Flash! Golden Thunder shouted

“No, you won’t.”

Not sure what startled him more, his ancestor’s words or Artemis’, Golden Flash jumped. “Oh, um, Prince Artemis- I”

Artemis narrowed his eyes “Silence”

You’d better listen to him. Golden Thunder remarked I don’t care what you have to say, do not anger him any further. His power, especially when he’s been angered, isn’t something that we want to deal with right now.

Golden Flash quickly closed his mouth.

“Artemis?” Celestia asked, walking closer “What’s wrong?”

Artemis turned to Celestia “You may not have heard what he said, but I did.” Making sure that his horn touched hers, he shared the memory of what he’d just heard. He watched as his sister’s eyes briefly widened before her face returned to its carefully neutral expression. I don’t know how she does that.

Golden Thunder watched Celestia carefully. That’s strange. I used to be able to tell what she was thinking, but she’s not giving me anything to go on. I’m not sure what made her develop this skill, but it’s an impressive one that seems to serve her well.

Celestia turned to Golden Flash “That petition has already been denied.”

Golden Flash bowed and quickly left the throne room. I’m sorry, ancestor.

It’s alright, Golden Flash. We’ll deal with this later. Golden Thunder paused In fact, we may not need to do anything. Perhaps your accomplice will succeed where you have failed.

In the throne room, Celestia turned to the ponies in the room. “We’ll be taking a half hour break for a late lunch.” Without waiting for a response, she teleported herself and Artemis to the dining room.

Celestia immediately sighed in relief and allowed the carefully neutral expression to slide off her face. Before she could say anything, Artemis turned to her.

“How do you do that, sister?”

Confused, she asked “Do what?”

“That neutral expression that tells nopony what you’re thinking.” He replied “You didn’t do that before my banishment.”

She laughed “Actually, I have you to thank for developing that skill.”

“What could I have had to do with that?” He asked, surprised “You were already doing that when I returned and before that . . . well, I was gone for a thousand years.”

“Exactly” She replied, laughing at his confused expression “I began to develop that skill a thousand years ago, shortly after I . . . well, you know.”

She paused as Apple Crunch walked into the room with a plate of sandwiches and a large salad. After eating half of a sandwich, she continued. “I was unable to do anything for the first couple of days, but not for the reason you might think.”

He looked up, swallowing the last of his second sandwich. “What do you mean?”

She sighed “As I’m sure you can imagine, we spent a long time trying to figure out the reason behind your actions. Eventually, we realized that you were angry because of the way that you, and your Night, were being treated. That, and your power, must have been what called the Nightmare Forces to you.”

Not sure what to say, Artemis quietly listened.

Seeing this, Celestia continued “When they saw how angry I was, they were afraid that I was going to do the same thing you did. As a result, if I showed any anger at all, I wasn’t allowed to do anything other than raise and lower the sun and moon. Unfortunately, there were several things that needed to be done. In order to be allowed to take action, I began hiding my emotions. Somewhere along the way, it turned into the neutral expression it is today. After a thousand years, it’s become second nature.”

Artemis looked down “I-I’m sorry, sister.”

Teleporting to his side, she pulled him into a hug. “Don’t apologize. None of that would have happened if we had paid attention in the first place. Besides, that skill has saved me several times.” After a moment, she released him and pulled another sandwich to her.

Hearing hoofsteps, Celestia and Artemis looked up as Twilight walked into the room. Smiling, they watched her levitate a sandwich to her as she walked over to them.

Seeing their expressions, Twilight swallowed the food in her mouth. “What? I’m hungry.”

They immediately began to laugh.

Eyebrow raised, Twilight finished the first sandwich and levitated a second to her. Rolling her eyes, she sat down at the table and amended her statement. “Alright, we’re hungry. Happy now?”

Artemis and Celestia laughed harder.

Twilight finished the second sandwich as they walked over to her. Celestia sat on one side and Artemis sat on the other before both of them pulled her into a hug.

“Thank you” Artemis said

“Yes,” Celestia added “We needed that.”

Confused, Twilight looked from one to the other. “You’re welcome, I think. Anyway, how much did Golden Flash complain this time?”

Artemis lowered his head until his horn touched hers and shared his memory of what happened after she left the throne room.

Twilight just stared at them for a moment before shaking her head. “It’s always something.”

Celestia nodded

Artemis turned to Twilight I want to know how her doctor’s appointment went.

Before he could say anything, a guard walked into the room. “Excuse me, Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis. Oh, I didn’t see you there, Princess Twilight! Your highnesses, there are several ponies in waiting for you in the throne room. We’ve tried telling them that you are eating lunch, but the nobles are getting impatient.”

“I guess that’s the end of lunch.” Twilight muttered

Sighing, Artemis, Twilight and Celestia stood and walked towards the door.

A few minutes later, they walked into the throne room to find that is was still full of ponies. Everypony in the room watched as they walked up to the throne.

As they sat in front of it, Celestia addressed everypony. “We told everypony that we would return after a set amount of time.”

Artemis nodded “That amount of time has not yet passed, yet you insisted that we return. What could be so important that we had to return before we have finished our meal?” This better be good. I wanted to ask Twilight about our foal.

Another noble, an earth pony mare, stepped forward. “Princess Twilight, if you’re teaching young foals, why are you here? Are you neglecting your students?”

Twilight narrowed her eyes but, before she could respond, Sapphire Wing stepped forward.

“I assure you that Princess Twilight is not neglecting those foals, Berry Venture.” He replied “In fact, she’s doing a great job teaching them.”

Berry Venture turned to Sapphire Wing “Of course you’d say that. You’re the Captain of Princess Celestia’s Day Guard. That means you’d say anything to make the prince and princesses look better in the eyes of the public.”

Sapphire Wing laughed “Princess Twilight doesn’t need my help with that.”

The petitioners, except for the nobility, laughed as well.

Berry Venture narrowed her eyes “How can you be so sure that she’s doing such a “Great Job”?”

“My son is one of her students.” Sapphire Wing replied “The quality of his education has improved dramatically since our princess took over that class.”

Not expecting that answer, Berry Venture’s eyes widened. “I see.”

Twilight smiled at Sapphire Wing before turning to Berry Venture. “Berry Venture, do you have any foals?”

“Of course not, princess.” Berry Venture scoffed “Such actions are beneath me.”

Twilight shook her head “Then I doubt you pay much, if any, attention to the school schedule. If you were paying attention, you would know that today is a school holiday. This means that every student, and teacher, in Equestria has the day off. As for your question, I’m here because Celestia asked me to participate in the joint court.”

After a moment’s thought, Twilight gave Berry Venture a look. “Am I to understand that you interrupted our meal because you wanted to question how I handle the teaching of the students in my class?”

Berry Venture nodded

Twilight was about to ask another question but paused as she realized something. “I see”

Artemis noticed the look on her face. “Twilight?”

Twilight glanced at Artemis. “Remember the second name on Golden Flash’s petition?”

Celestia saw Berry Venture freeze. What’s going on this time?

Surprised, Artemis thought for a moment “I believe it was Berry V. What does that . . . I see what’s going on.” Turning to Berry Venture, he narrowed his eyes. “You’re trying to discredit Twilight because she was the one who denied the petition that you and Golden Flash have submitted.”

Berry Venture glared at him. “That petition must be accepted.”

Artemis stood so that he was at his full height, towering over Berry Venture. “Twilight and I worked together to research your petition.” He gave her a look “Like I did with Golden Flash, I will give you a chance to explain yourself. What do you intend to do with the research funds?”

“I have no reason to tell you that.” Berry Venture replied

Artemis shrugged “Then we have no reason to accept your petition.”

Everypony else laughed

Celestia stood as well. Standing slightly taller than her brother, they were an imposing duo.

Unsurprisingly, Berry Venture gulped as she looked up at them.

“I have already put the funds that you are seeking to a much better use. Of course, I’m referring to repairing the damaged elementary school in your district.” Celestia glanced at Twilight before returning her attention to Berry Venture “Twilight denied your petition and I agree with her decision.”

Artemis nodded “I do as well. Now that your petition has been denied by all three of us, there is no way for it to pass. Additionally, I seem to recall hearing Twilight say that she doesn’t want to see any variation of that petition back in court. Another decision that I agree with. What about you, sister?”

Celestia nodded “I agree with that decision as well.” I know that Artemis and I gave Arctic Breeze and Ice Blossom today off so they could spend time with their foals but, I wish that at least one of them was here. Today would have gone much smoother if these petitions had gone through the screening process.

Artemis looked around at everypony. “I believe that’s enough for one day. Court is now closed. Anypony with concerns that were not addressed today, please return on Monday. Enjoy your weekend.” He turned to Sapphire Wing “Please ensure that everypony leaves the castle immediately.”

Sapphire Wing bowed “Yes, Prince Artemis”

As everypony filed out of the room, Twilight turned to her guards. “I know it’s not moonrise yet, but you two should head home for the day.”

Steel Night and Midnight Fang bowed “Yes, princess”

Just before Steel Night walked out of the room, Twilight pulled him aside. “The sky is supposed to be exceptionally clear tonight. One of the reasons I’m letting you go early is that I know how much Moonlight Shadow loves to watch the moon rise. I want you and Cherry Blossom to watch it with him tonight. Additionally, I want you to watch it from a cloud.” She smiled “He’ll love it, I promise.”

Steel Night’s eyes lit up “We’ll do that, thank you.”

Twilight laughed “You’d better hurry if you want to get home in time.”

Steel Night bowed “Have a good night, my princess. Cherry Blossom, Moonlight Shadow and I will be here in the morning for the trip to Ponyville.”

Twilight smiled and nodded “Good. I’ll see you in the morning.” Hearing hoofsteps, she turned as Artemis walked up to her.

Artemis nuzzled his mare “I assume you let them go early so Moonlight can enjoy the moonrise with his father?”

Twilight nodded “I told him to make sure that they watch it from a cloud.”

Artemis laughed “I’m sure Moonlight Shadow will love that.”

Twilight’s stomach suddenly growled.

Still standing near the throne, Celestia laughed. “I heard that from here! Come on, let’s get some dinner.” Without waiting for a response, she teleported the three of them to the dining room.

Dinner was eaten quickly. Celestia was about to ask Twilight about her doctor’s appointment but paused when she saw her sister yawn and lean into Artemis’ side. She looks tired enough to fall asleep right now. She should go to bed before Artemis has to carry her there. I’ll wait until breakfast to find out how her appointment went.

After dinner, Twilight and Artemis went to their room. As Artemis closed the door behind them, both of them sighed in relief.

“What a day.” He commented

“You can say that again.” Twilight agreed, yawning again “But don’t, once is enough.”

Artemis laughed as they walked over to the bed and lay down. “You never told me how your doctor’s appointment went.”

Twilight laughed as well “When have I had the chance?”

“You’re right, we’ve been busy all day.” Artemis replied, gently running a hoof over her small baby bump. “Why don’t you tell me now?”

Twilight was about to answer but paused when something occurred to her. “Aren’t Mom and Dad supposed to visit tonight?”

Surprised, Artemis thought for a moment before nodding.

Twilight smiled at him “They’ll want to know as well. So will Celestia. It’s probably best if I tell all of you at the same time.”

Artemis nuzzled her “Then let’s get some sleep.”

Twilight didn’t need to be told twice. In fact, she was asleep within a few minutes.

Laughing softly, Artemis cast a sleeping spell on himself.

In the Dream Realm, Artemis opened their eyes and looked around. Before he could get a good look at his surroundings, he found himself standing among the stars. Smiling, Artemis created a large cloud for them to relax on while they waited for their parents. He lay down on the cloud before bringing Twilight into his dream.

Laying down next to Artemis, Twilight rested her head on his shoulder before closing her eyes. In what seemed like no time at all, she felt a gentle nuzzle. She opened her eyes to see white. Surprised, she blinked a few times.

Laughing, Sundance settled next to her youngest before reaching over Twilight to nuzzle Artemis.

Midnight Armor lay next to Artemis before nuzzling him. Then he reached around his son to nuzzle Twilight as well.

Smiling, Twilight and Artemis returned their parents’ nuzzles.

Sundance looked at Twilight carefully and noticed her small baby bump. Smiling, she nuzzled Twilight again. “How are you feeling?”

Twilight returned her nuzzle “Much better”

“Good” Sundance replied

Midnight Armor looked at Artemis “Where’s your sister?”

Artemis laughed “She hasn’t fallen asleep yet, Father.” A few minutes later, he suddenly sensed two things at the same time. The first was Celestia entering the dream realm. The second was a powerful nightmare, but there was something different about this one. That can’t be right, the dreamer is . . . He gasped “What’s this?!”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Twilight looked at him.

“Is something wrong?” Midnight Armor asked

Artemis replied “Celestia just fell asleep and a foal is having a nightmare.”

Confused, Sundance asked “Why are you so surprised? Neither of those things sound like cause for alarm.”

Shaking his head, Artemis stood “Under normal circumstances, it wouldn’t be. However, the location of the dreamer makes this very unusual. I can sense the nightmares of every foal in Equestria, but this foal is in the Crystal Empire. That’s so far to the north that it should be out of my range.” Either this nightmare is very bad or this foal is very powerful. In fact, there’s only one foal with enough magic to reach me from the Crystal Empire. However, I’m certain that she doesn’t know how to do that.

He nuzzled his parents and Twilight. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.” Before they could say anything, he vanished.

Twilight, Midnight Armor and Sundance just stared at the space where Artemis had been standing.

Artemis appeared in the foal’s dream and looked around. He paused when he saw that the Crystal Empire appeared to be under attack by changelings. Why would any foal in the Crystal Empire be dreaming about a changeling invasion? He looked around for a moment before seeing a golden glow off to the right. I know that magic signature. I was right, it’s Flurry.

He flew over and found his grandniece surrounded with a shield made of her own magic. Kneeling next to her, he touched her shield with his horn. She immediately looked up at him, obviously terrified.

“U-uncle Art?” Flurry whimpered

“Yes, Flurry, it’s me.” Artemis replied “You’re alright, it’s just a nightmare.”

Flurry shook her head repeatedly and tripled to strength of her shield.

Artemis tried a few more times, with no success. This isn’t working. Maybe I can reach Cadance and Shining Armor. They might be able to tell me what’s going on.

Focusing on Flurry’s link to her parents, he merged their dreams into one. Entering it, he found Cadance and Shining Armor standing in front of him.

“Uncle Artemis?!” Cadance asked in surprise “I-is that really you?”

Artemis nodded “Yes, Cadance.”

“Is there a problem?” She asked

Artemis nodded again “Flurry is having a nightmare that’s powerful enough for me to sense from Canterlot.”

Cadance’s eyes widened. “What?!”

“I’ve already tried to calm her but she’s not responding to me.” Artemis continued “Do either of you know why she’s dreaming about a changeling invasion?”

Shocked, Cadance just stared at him for a moment before shaking her head.

Sighing, Shining Armor nodded. “She asked me to tell her what happened at our wedding. I told her that it wasn’t a good idea, but she wouldn’t stop until I agreed. She even asked me to show her images.”

Gasping, Cadance turned to her husband “Shiny!”

“How many times have you told her the story?” Artemis asked

“I only tell it when she asks,” Shining Armor answered “and she’s only done so three times. I was worried at first, but she didn’t seem afraid. Instead, she was fascinated by the changelings and their shape-shifting ability.”

Artemis shook his head “I’m not going to comment on that right now. Instead, I’m bringing both of you into her dream. We’ve got to find a way to calm her.”

Cadance immediately walked over to him.

Without waiting for Shining Armor to respond, Artemis brought the three of them into Flurry’s’ nightmare. He was surprised when Flurry curled into a little ball and didn’t respond to either of her parents. After watching several attempts, he shook his head again. “This isn’t working either. Shining Armor, I need to know exactly what you told her.”

“She always fell asleep before I got to the end.” He replied “So she’s only heard about what happened up to the point where Twilight rescued Cadance from the caves.”

Artemis thought for a moment. “I should bring Twilight into Flurry’s dream. It’s possible that, because she was the one who saved Cadance, Flurry believes that Twilight has to save her as well. If I’m right, Flurry is waiting for Twilight. That might explain why she’s not responding to us.”

Cadance nodded thoughtfully “That makes sense.” I hope Twilight can help.

Artemis looked at Cadance and Shining Armor. “I’ll bring Celestia as well. If need be, the five of us will work together to help Flurry. I’ll be right back.” He vanished, leaving them in their daughter’s nightmare.

Artemis reappeared in front of Twilight and his parents. Before they could say anything, he brought Celestia into his dream. While his sister looked around in surprise, Artemis closed his eyes. “Night, I’m going to need your help with this.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight and Celestia looked at him in confusion. Their eyes widened when they heard Night’s voice.

“I’m aware of the situation, Artemis. My magic is at your disposal, take what you need.”

Everypony watched as Artemis’ horn began to glow with a combination of his usual dark blue and Night’s black colored magic.

Artemis used their combined magic to merge his dream with Flurry’s.

The cloud they were on was suddenly floating above a Crystal Empire that was the target of a changeling invasion.

Opening his eyes, Artemis turned to his family. “We’re in the nightmare of a foal in the Crystal Empire. Cadance, Shining Armor and I have already tried to calm her. As you can see, all three of us have failed.” He turned to Twilight “I’d like you to try.”

Twilight instantly began to panic. “If Cadance, Shiny and you can’t get through to this foal, what makes you think I can?!”

Artemis nuzzled her “Based on what Shining Armor told me, I believe that you’re the only one who can get through to Flurry.”

Twilight gasped “We’re in Flurry’s nightmare?!” Jumping to her hooves, she raced to the edge of the cloud. After looking around for a moment, she turned to Artemis. “Why is she dreaming about a changeling invasion?!”

Celestia, Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped “She’s what?!”

“Your brother told her about what happened at their wedding.” Artemis answered

Celestia and Twilight gasped again

“What were you thinking, Shiny?!” Twilight muttered, staring at the mess below them. Looking back up at Artemis, she asked. “Where is she?”

Before Artemis could respond, everypony flinched when Flurry screamed.

Looking towards the sound, Twilight saw the golden glow of Flurry’s magic. Noting her niece’s location, she dove off the cloud.

Celestia, Artemis, Sundance and Midnight Armor gathered at the edge of the cloud to watch. Celestia and Artemis were ready to jump in as soon as it became apparent that they were needed. For now, they were willing to give Twilight a chance.

Several feet below the cloud, Twilight spread her wings and soared towards the glow of Flurry’s magic. As she got closer, she noticed that Cadance and Shining Armor were working together to fight off a small swarm of changelings.

Both of them sighed in relief when they saw her.

“Don’t worry about us, Twilight!” Cadance shouted

“Get Flurry out of here!” Shining Armor yelled

Nodding, Twilight headed for her niece. A triple strength shield?! How is she able to create that?! She’s only two! She paused Perhaps I shouldn’t be surprised. She is Shiny’s daughter. Landing next to Flurry, Twilight touched her horn to the shield.

Surprised, Flurry looked up. Immediately releasing her shield, she jumped into Twilight’s hooves. “A-Auntie Twily!”

“Shh, you’re alright.” Twilight told her, giving her a tight hug “Let’s get out of here, okay?”

Sniffling, Flurry nodded and climbed onto Twilight’s back.

Twilight reached back and nuzzled her. “No matter what happens, I want you to stay on my back until I say otherwise. Do you understand that, Flurry?”

Flurry whimpered but nodded again

“Good girl” Twilight spread her wings and leapt into the air. She headed for the cloud that Artemis, Celestia and their parents were on. Unfortunately, several changelings immediately attacked them. I don’t have time for this! “Flurry, put your shield around yourself and stay on my back!” She didn’t take the time to look back, but sensed that Flurry did as she was told.

Twilight dodged the first group of changelings before launching a few magic blasts at the second, sending them all to the ground.

On the cloud, Midnight Armor watched a group of fifteen more approach Twilight from behind. She turned and, with a single well placed shot, sent all of them plummeting to the ground as well. “Impressive”

Celestia nodded “Watching this, a pony could be forgiven for thinking that she was the Royal Guard Captain instead of her brother. She’d make a perfect Guard Captain because she’s the right combination of powerful and brilliant.”

Artemis nodded but it was Night that responded.

“It’s no wonder she was the only unicorn to survive a single combat fight against me. And that was before she ascended. I don’t think anyone is aware of exactly how powerful she is now.”

Celestia laughed “Tirek is. She had to give up her magic to save her friends and they still managed to defeat him.”

Night paused “I suppose you’re right.”

Below the cloud, Twilight paused and looked towards the ground. “Shiny! Cadance! I’ve got her! Get up here!”

Cadance surrounded Shining Armor with her magic and leapt into the air. As the four of them drew even with the cloud, they heard a sinister laugh.

“Do you really think you can escape me so easily, little princess?”

Instantly recognizing the voice, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Cadance and Shining Armor looked around. Whimpering, Flurry buried her face in Twilight’s mane.

Twilight cast a spell on her brother. “That’s the Cloud Walking Spell. Put him on a cloud and keep him near you, Cadance.”

Nodding, Cadance flew to a small cloud nearby. Celestia and Artemis flew over to join them.

Twilight landed in front of Sundance and Midnight Armor, levitated Flurry off her back and placed her in front of Sundance. “Stay here, Flurry.”

Flurry stared up at Midnight Armor and Sundance. No! I want to stay with Auntie Twily! Whimpering again, she flew to Twilight and landed on her aunt’s back.

Twilight reached back, through Flurry’s shield, and nuzzled her niece. “Do you remember when Artemis took all of us to see his Mommy and Daddy’s stars?”

Flurry nodded

“That’s who these ponies are.” Twilight explained, setting Furry in front of Sundance again. “This is what they look like when they’re not stars. They’re really nice ponies. I promise, they will keep you safe.”

Eyes wide, Flurry looked up at Sundance and Midnight Armor again. After a moment, she nodded and released her shield.

Laying down next to Flurry, Sundance pulled her into a hug.

Midnight Armor moved in front of his wife and Flurry before casting a special barrier around the three of them.

Twilight looked at Sundance and Midnight Armor. “I’m sorry, but we must be the ones to solve this. Please take care of her.”

Sundance smiled “It’s alright, we understand.”

Midnight Armor nodded “Don’t worry, we won’t allow anything to harm her.”

Twilight returned his nod, spread her wings and flew over to join Artemis, her sisters and her brother.

Celestia narrowed her eyes Does she really think she’s hidden? Fine, I’ll play along. “Show yourself, Chrysalis!”

Crackling, she appeared right in front of them. “As you wish, Princess Celestia.”

Cadance glared at her “Why are you tormenting my daughter?!” she demanded

“Revenge, Princess Cadance!” Chrysalis replied, laughing “You stopped my plan to feed my changelings. What better way for me to take my revenge on you than by going after your precious little girl?”

“How were you able to enter the dream realm?” Artemis demanded

“Did you really think you were the only one with the power to travel to this realm, Prince Artemis?” Chrysalis asked, sneering at him “As the Queen of the Changelings, I have to power to go wherever there is love. That filly has the love of, not just her parents, but the entire Crystal Empire. This means that her dreams were filled with just as much love as her world is during the day. Did you really think I wouldn’t go after such a tasty meal?” She laughed “Besides, by staying in her dreams, I was able to avoid detection as I fed on her.”

Shining Armor growled “Leave my daughter alone, Chrysalis!”

Chrysalis smiled “I really must thank you for telling your daughter about the way I attacked Canterlot and captured your wife, Shining Armor. As a result, she’s terrified of me. Soon, she’ll be weak enough that she’ll no longer be able to resist me. Then I’ll keep her by my side as a food source for my changelings. By feeding off the love surrounding your daughter, we’ll gain enough power to take over Equestria.”

“That won’t happen, Chrysalis.”

“Princess Twilight Sparkle” Chrysalis sneered, turning towards Twilight “Congratulations on your ascension and coronation. Unfortunately for you, you’re still no match for me. You pose no threat, so I’ll let you live. In fact, I’m going to keep you nearby because I want you to see the plans that I have for your niece.” Looking around, she asked “Speaking of my little food source, where is she? For some reason, I can no longer sense her presence.”

“I left her somewhere safe.” Twilight replied “In fact, she has a couple of very special ponies protecting her.”

Celestia smiled Twilight must have left Flurry with Mother and Father. Additionally, Father probably cast that barrier around them. If so, there’s no way for Chrysalis to find Flurry, let alone feed on her. Well done, little sister.

On the larger cloud, Sundance levitated Flurry onto her back, stood and moved to stand next to her husband. They glanced at each other before turning their attention to the events unfolding in front of them.

Standing on her hind legs, Flurry wrapped her forehooves as far as she could around Sundance’s neck. Then she poked her head through Sundance’s mane, watching as well.

Chrysalis shrugged “No matter. I’ll beat her location out of you later.”

Cadance gave her a grim smile “You seem to have forgotten, Shiny and I defeated you once. We’ll do it again.”

Chrysalis scoffed “You mean to use your love magic again? Don’t waste my time. I’ve been feeding off of your daughter for two months now. Not even the power of the love you share with your husband can defeat me now.”

Ignoring her, Cadance began to glow pale blue while Shining Armor began to glow magenta. Their combined glow was much brighter than it had been when they defeated Chrysalis before their wedding. Celestia began to glow with a powerful golden light.

Chrysalis laughed “Impressive, but it’s still not good enough! However, you’re welcome to-” She cut herself off, when Artemis and Twilight moved closer together. She doesn’t have her friends, or the Elements of Harmony, here. Without them, Twilight Sparkle is no threat to me. Even so, those two are up to something.

“Go ahead.” Artemis said

Nodding, Twilight focused on the link between them.

Twilight began to glow a soft lavender while Artemis glowed a deep midnight blue. Their combined glow was almost triple the strength of the glows of Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor put together.

Sundance shook her head in wonder. I didn’t think it was possible, but their bond is even stronger than it was three months ago.

Chrysalis stared at them in shock. This amount of Love is . . . B-but that’s impossible! “N-no, stop!”

“You’ve messed with my family for the last time, Chrysalis.” Twilight told her

“It’s time you left.” Artemis continued “And this time, you won’t be coming back.”

The five of them drew closer together and used the power of their combined love magic to force Chrysalis out of, not just Flurry’s dream, but the dream realm entirely.

Sundance and Midnight Armor turned to Flurry in time to see her briefly glow with the magic of Celestia, Artemis, Cadance, Twilight and Shining Armor. This formed a protective barrier around her that Chrysalis would never be able to pierce.

Smiling, Midnight Armor released his barrier. Then he moved to the other side of the cloud, making space for everypony else. Sundance joined her husband.

After a few moments, everypony stopped glowing. Celestia, Artemis and Twilight headed for the cloud where their parents and Flurry were waiting. Cadance surrounded Shining Armor with her magic and followed them. As soon as they landed on the cloud, the five of them collapsed.

Flurry immediately flew over to them. “Mommy! Daddy! Auntie Tia! Uncle Art! Auntie Twily!” As she said each name, she nuzzled the appropriate pony.

Even though they’d heard them before, Sundance and Midnight Armor laughed softly when they heard Flurry’s nicknames for their children.

Without bothering to move, Artemis brought Velvet and Night Light into the shared dream. They should know about this. As well as whatever happened during Twilight’s doctor’s appointment.

Surprised at the sudden change, Night Light and Velvet just stared at their children for a moment before rushing forward.

“Is everypony alright?!” Velvet asked

“What happened?!” Night Light demanded

Groaning, Artemis sat up. “We’re fine. Chrysalis managed to enter Flurry’s dream and seems to have been tormenting her for the last two months. The Crystal Empire is outside of my range, so I was unaware of this.”

Velvet and Night Light gasped

“Tonight was different.” Artemis continued “I’m not sure how she did it, but Flurry managed to draw my attention to her nightmare.”

Velvet turned to him “I hope you taught that over-sized bug a lesson, Artemis.”

Artemis nodded “Don’t worry. The five of us worked together to force her out of Flurry’s dream. She won’t be coming back.”

“Good job” Velvet replied

Night Light sighed in relief as he and his wife nuzzled Flurry before moving onto the rest of their family.

Shining Armor suddenly growled and moved in front of everyone before casting his shield around them.

Confused, Twilight looked up at him “What’s wrong, Shiny?”

“We’re not alone” he replied, nodding in front of them

Everypony followed his gaze and saw Sundance and Midnight Armor standing in front of them. Cadance looked confused. Velvet and Night Light looked concerned. Celestia and Artemis smiled. Laughing, Twilight stood and walked out of the shield.

Horrified, Shining Armor yelled “Twily, No!” He expanded his shield, trying to keep his sister protected.

Twilight smiled at him and kept walking. “It’s okay, big brother.” Reaching Sundance and Midnight Armor, she nuzzled both of them.

“Twilight!” Shining Armor shouted “That’s dangerous!”

Twilight ignored her brother. “Mom, Dad, I’m sorry. Shiny hasn’t met you yet.” She paused “Well, he met both of you in your star forms, but he hasn’t seen either of you like this.”

Shocked, Shining Armor, Cadance, Velvet and Night Light exclaimed. “What?!”

In fact, Shining Armor was so shocked that he let his shield fade. “That’s Sundance and Midnight Armor?!”

Smiling, Twilight moved so that she was standing between Sundance and Midnight Armor. “That’s right.”

Cadance, Shining Armor, Velvet and Night Light just stared at them for a couple of minutes.

Sundance nuzzled Twilight before addressing everypony. “Velvet, Night Light, Cadance and Shining Armor. I’m glad to finally have the chance to meet you properly.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled Twilight before looking at Shining Armor. “I’m happy to see that you take your sister’s safety seriously. However, I can assure you that we mean no harm to anypony here.”

Flurry flew over, landed on Sundance’s back and nuzzled her. “Yeah, Daddy! They pro . . . pro . . . keep me safe so you can fight the big mean bug!”

Eyes wide, Cadance turned to Twilight. “They’re who you left Flurry with during that fight?”

Twilight was busy laughing at the way Flurry had described Chrysalis, so she just nodded.

Celestia smiled “Trust me, Cadance. The safest place for Flurry during that fight was with Mother and Father.”

Artemis nodded “In fact, Father’s barrier was the reason that Chrysalis was unable to sense Flurry.”

Cadance stared at him for a moment “I-incredible! I didn’t know a barrier could do that.” She walked over to Midnight Armor and bowed. “Thank you for protecting my daughter.”

Midnight Armor used his magic to raise her head and nuzzled her. “There was no way that my wife and I were going to allow your daughter to come to any harm.” Turning to Shining Armor, he continued. “Your shield is impressive. In fact, despite a few key differences, it’s quite similar to my barrier. Therefore, I believe you are capable of learning it. If you wish, I’ll teach you how to cast it. This way, you’ll be able to protect your daughter if the changeling queen returns.”

Eyes wide, Shining Armor just nodded

Smiling, Midnight Armor walked off to the side. “Come with me, we will need enough space to work safely until you have control of the barrier.”

Shining Armor followed him while Sundance lay down, careful not to topple Flurry off her back. Twilight lay on one side of her and Celestia lay on the other. Artemis lay next to Twilight and Cadance lay next to Celestia. Night Light and Velvet lay next to each other, not far from Cadance, leaving enough space for Shining Armor to lay next to his wife when he was done. Nopony said anything, they just watched Midnight Armor train Shining Armor.

Half an hour later, Midnight Armor said “Good. You have enough control to cast the barrier. Now we must test its strength. Your job is to stop my attacks. Don’t worry, I won’t push harder than you can handle. Are you ready?”

Shining Armor nodded and cast the barrier.

Midnight Armor’s first attack shattered it. He was about to say something when he noticed the look on Shining Armor’s face and watched him recast the barrier. With a small smile, he attacked again. This time, the barrier shuddered but held. Impressive. My barrier isn’t easy to cast, yet he learned it rather quickly. “Well done. However, you must practice this until you master it.”

Panting, Shining Armor let the barrier fade. “T-thank you, Midnight.”

Walking over to the rest of their family, Midnight Armor lay next to Artemis and Shining Armor lay next to Cadance.

Cadance looked at Artemis “Uncle Artemis, thank you for what you did for Flurry tonight.”

Before Artemis could respond, Flurry jumped from Sundance’s back to his and nuzzled him. “Thank you, Uncle Art!”

Velvet spoke up “I was wondering if there was a reason you brought Night Light and I into this, Artemis. We certainly don’t mind, and it’s very nice to see your parents again, but you’ve never brought us into a dream before.”

Artemis laughed “I brought the two of you here for two reasons. One, I thought you should know what happened. Two, Twilight has some news to share. She wanted to tell Mother, Father, Celestia and I at the same time. I just decided to include everypony.” He nuzzled Twilight “Now that things have finally calmed down, why don’t you tell us about your doctor’s appointment?”

Instantly concerned, Sundance turned to Twilight. “Is everything alright?”

Twilight nodded to Sundance before turning to Cadance. “I had the three month appointment today.”

Cadance squealed in delight “The magic ultrasound! You know what you’re having!”

Everypony else gasped

Giggling, Twilight nodded

The response came from everypony at once. “Well?”

Smiling, Twilight snuggled closer to Artemis “We’re having an alicorn filly.”

Everypony just stared at her for a couple of minutes.

Eventually, Flurry broke the silence. “Yay! Just like me!”

Laughing, Twilight nuzzled her niece. “Yes, Flurry, just like you.”

Artemis blinked several times. “We thought our foal was going to be a unicorn because you were born one. How in Equestria did we end up with an alicorn?”

Twilight shrugged “I was thinking about that. Shiny is a unicorn but . . .”

Flurry jumped onto Twilight’s back. “I’m not! Mommy says I’m an alicorn like her!”

Twilight smiled “Exactly”

Everypony else laughed

Night Light shook his head “Our children were both unicorns, yet they’re both having alicorn foals. Are you hiding something from me, Velvet?”

Velvet shook her head as well “Don’t look at me. I have no idea what caused this.”

“I think I might.” Celestia said, pausing as everypony turned to her. “Well, for Twilight, anyway. While I have no complaints, how we ended up with Flurry is still a complete mystery.” She smiled at Flurry before continuing.

“When Twilight ascended, it may have looked like she just gained a pair of wings. However, it’s not that simple. Her body had to change to accommodate the addition of the earth pony and pegasi traits. This means that some of her genetics also changed. The parts that govern who she is remained the same. It’s the parts govern what she is that changed. She’s not a unicorn with wings, she truly is an alicorn. The foal she carries is the product of two alicorns.” Celestia shrugged “It makes sense that it, I mean she, is also an alicorn.”

Seeing her point, everypony nodded

Sundance smiled at Twilight and Artemis. “So, you’re having a little girl.”

Velvet looked at her daughter “Have you decided on a name for her?”

“Yes” Twilight replied, giving her mother a look “Before you ask, we’re not going to name her Twilight.”

Velvet returned the look. “You remember what I said, right?”

Rolling their eyes, Shining Armor and Twilight answered the question together. “We each have to have multiple foals until one of us carries on the family tradition.”

Surprised, Velvet just stared at her children.

Everypony else laughed

When he could speak again, Midnight Armor said “They’ve obviously heard that several times.”

Everypony laughed harder when Velvet blushed.

When they finished laughing, Artemis looked at Velvet “We’ve been discussing names for about a month. I wanted to incorporate something related to my night sky.”

Twilight nodded “I liked his idea from the start but I also had something that I wanted to include.” She paused “Well, for a filly’s name. We instantly agreed on the name that we would have used if our foal turned out to be a colt.”

After glancing at her husband, Sundance nuzzled Twilight. “What have the two of you decided to name our granddaughter?”

Twilight and Artemis answered together. “Lavender Selene”

Chapter 70

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 71

Four months into Twilight’s pregnancy and the day of the smaller wedding.

In Ponyville, Artemis woke to the pull of the moon. Without moving, he lowered the moon and stars. Instead of waking Twilight, he wrapped a wing around her and looked out the window, watching the sunrise.

Twilight turned her face into Artemis’ chest, trying to get out of the sunlight.

Chuckling, he nuzzled her “It’s time to get up.”

“Too early” She responded

Laughing now, he replied “Everyone will be here in a few hours. That means we need to eat breakfast so we get everything ready.”

She nuzzled deeper into his chest and stayed that way for a few minutes. Then she lifted her head and yawned. “Oh alright.” Rolling out of bed, she stretched before heading for the door. Once there, she waited for him to finish stretching and join her. They walked into the hall together.

As they walked downstairs, they noticed that someone was already cooking breakfast.

Twilight turned to Artemis “The girls shouldn’t be here yet."

“You’re right.” He replied “And it’s too early for Spike to be awake.”

Curious, they walked into the kitchen. Both of them stopped in surprise when they saw that Spike was already up.

Looking up at them, he said “I made pancakes for breakfast.”

Shaking himself out of his surprise, Artemis nuzzled the little dragon. “Thank you.”

After breakfast, Twilight and Artemis headed to the receiving room.

Three hours later

Artemis and Twilight stopped at a knock on the door. Surprised, they turned as it opened to reveal . . . well, everyone. Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Night Light, Velvet, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Rainbow and Spike looked around the room in shock.

Under one of the windows, there was a perch that was big enough for all of Fluttershy’s birds. Next to it was a place for Celestia and Cadance to stand while they conducted the ceremony. The large table had been moved against the wall and lengthened a quite bit so that it would be able to hold all of the food that Pinkie and Applejack would be placing on it. Against the wall opposite of the table, sat a chair that had all of the materials Rarity had asked for stacked neatly on it. In the center of the room, there was a fairly large pile of cushions.

“D-darlings,” Rarity protested, turning to Twilight and Artemis “you’re not supposed handle the set up for your own wedding!”

“Then what are we supposed to do?” Twilight asked “Nothing?”

“Of course!” Rarity immediately replied, gently pushing Twilight towards the cushions. “Relax and let us do the work!”

Feeling hooves on his back, Artemis looked behind him just as Pinkie pushed him down next to Twilight. How does she do that? I’m twice her size!

Glancing at each other, Twilight and Artemis laughed before snuggling together.

“She has a point.” Celestia commented, settling on another cushion “Besides, we need to make sure that we have enough magic for tonight.”

Shining Armor levitated another cushion over and set it on Twilight’s other side. Then he looked at his wife.

Smiling, Cadance walked over and lay down as well.

Realizing that they weren’t going to be able to argue with so many ponies, Twilight and Artemis lay their heads on the cushion and closed their eyes.

Celestia covered her siblings with a wing before turning her attention to what everyone else was doing. Fifteen minutes later, she looked back down and noticed that Artemis, Twilight and Cadance had fallen asleep. Laughing softly, she laid her head on the cushion and closed her eyes.

Flurry flew over, landed on Artemis’ back, curled up and fell asleep as well.

Seeing this, everyone else smiled

“Normally, ah wouldn’t let Twi skip lunch.” Applejack commented

“It’s OK!” Pinkie chirped “She’s going to be eating a lot later!”

Everyone else nodded and got back to work.

Five hours later

Shining Armor walked over to Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Cadance and Flurry. When he got closer, he noticed that Flurry had managed to work herself in between Twilight and Artemis.

Laughing softly, Shining Armor levitated his daughter onto his back before reaching back to nuzzle her. When she opened her eyes he quietly said “Mommy, Twily, Artemis and Princess Celestia are going to do something amazing. I want you to watch them.”

“Yes, Daddy” Flurry replied, looking at her mother, aunts and uncle.

Velvet nuzzled Celestia.

“Hmm?” Celestia mumbled, opening her eyes

“It’s almost time” Velvet whispered

I didn’t mean to fall asleep, but I must have really needed that. Celestia smiled “Thank you for waking me.” Turning to Artemis, Twilight and Cadance, she gently woke them before standing.

“Is it time already?” Twilight asked, standing and stretching

Celestia nodded while Artemis stood and stretched as well. Cadance silently did the same.

Twilight turned to the girls “There are two more ponies who are coming to the wedding. We just need to bring them here.”

“Ooh! Ooh!” Pinkie exclaimed, bouncing in place “Who is it? Who’s coming?”

Laughing, Twilight shook her head “I would tell you, but there’s no way that any of you would believe me. Therefore, we’ll explain everything when they get here. However, I want to make two things clear.” She looked at each of the girls, especially Rainbow. “One, don’t tell anyone about this. Two, Do Not Attack Them!”

Clearly confused, the girls nodded.

Satisfied, Twilight turned to Celestia, Artemis and Cadance.

Everyone looked on as Artemis lowered his head. Twilight touched her horn to his, linking their magic. Celestia did the same. Cadance lowered her horn to her uncle’s and linked her magic to theirs. Celestia, Cadance and Twilight closed their eyes.

Closing his eyes as well, Artemis cast the spell that Twilight had finished for him.

In the stars, Sundance and Midnight Armor suddenly felt their son’s magic.

Sundance brightened “It must be time.”

Also brightening, Midnight Armor replied “You’re right, honey. I really hope this works.”

Both of them took their alicorn forms before turning to Star Swirl.

Star Swirl’s star brightened “Make sure you have fun . . . and tell me all about it when you get back.” I can’t tell them this but, if our plan works, they won’t be coming back . . . not as stars anyway.

Laughing, Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded before allowing their son to bring them into the Waking World.

In Ponyville, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Cadance still had their eyes closed because they were focused on powering the spell. Everyone else gasped in surprise when two ponies suddenly appeared in front of them.

Velvet, Night Light and Shining Armor smiled.

Flurry squealed in delight. It’s Auntie Tia and Uncle Art’s Mommy and Daddy!

Rarity, Pinkie, Fluttershy and Applejack just stared at the visitors.

Rainbow growled when she saw that both of them were alicorns. I won’t let them attack my friends! Without warning, she took off towards Sundance and Midnight Armor.

What do mean? Loyalty asked, confused They’re not going to- Rainbow, wait!

Sundance’s eyes widened Why is Rainbow Dash attacking us?!

Horn glowing, Midnight Armor prepared to defend his wife, but paused when Applejack made a sudden move. I’m not sure which impresses me more . . . Applejack’s speed, unusual for earth ponies, or the fact that she’s restraining a Pegasus.

Applejack had Rainbow’s tail in her teeth. “Whoa, Sugarcube! You don’t want to do that!”

Honesty sighed in relief Good job, Applejack!

Sundance watched Pinkie pull a chocolate cupcake from . . . somewhere . . . and shove it in Rainbow’s mouth. Pinkie Pie certainly has an unusual ability. The strange part is that her friends don’t seem surprised. Does she do that often?

“Why did you do that?” Rarity asked, raising an eyebrow “Twilight told us not to attack them, remember?”

Face turning red, Rainbow nodded.

Glancing at her husband, Sundance whispered “Twilight felt the need to do that?”

“Seeing how Rainbow Dash reacted, I understand why.” He replied softly Rarity doesn’t seem fazed by the actions of her friends. Is this normal?

Fluttershy’s eyes were wide as she stared at Sundance, especially her wings. After a moment, she mumbled “I-I’m sure that Twilight will tell us what’s going on.”

The rest of the girls nodded

Sundance smiled at Fluttershy, suppressing a giggle when the Pegasus squeaked and tried to hide in her mane. Fluttershy’s parents have certainly named her well. I wonder why she seems so interested in my wings. I’ll have to remember to ask her about that later.

Everyone suddenly noticed that Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Cadance hadn’t said anything yet. Worried, they turned to the four of them. Their eyes widened when they saw that all four of them were wobbling. Everyone gasped when the four of them suddenly fell towards the floor, sound asleep.

Shining Armor ran forward and caught his wife.

Releasing Rainbow’s tail, Applejack ran forward as well. In her case, she braced Twilight before looking up at Rainbow. “Get a cushion!”

Rainbow immediately flew over to the pile of cushions, came back with three of them and set them on the floor. Applejack gently laid Twilight on one while Rarity levitated Celestia and Artemis onto the other two.

That done, the girls turned to the visiting alicorns.

Shining Armor glanced at Midnight Armor “I usually handle the introductions, but I think you should do it this time."

Midnight Armor nodded to Shining Armor before turning back to Twilight’s friends. “My name is Midnight Armor and this is my wife, Sundance.”

Rarity, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Applejack, and Rainbow instantly turned to each other.

“That’s Artemis and Princess Celestia’s parents?!” Rainbow asked, eyes wide

“That must be why Twilight told us not to attack them.” Rarity commented

Applejack gave Rainbow a look. “She’s right. We promised to help protect them, remember?”

Still wide-eyed, Rainbow nodded to Applejack before looking at Sundance and Midnight Armor. Just look at those wings! He must be a very strong flier. She probably isn’t as fast as he is, but I bet her maneuverability is better. She paused I hope they’re not too mad at me. I want to ask if they’ll give me some tips.

I’m sure they’ll understand after you explain the reason behind your actions. Loyalty responded As for the tips, Midnight Armor will probably enjoy showing you a few things.

Rarity glanced at Sundance. Her mane is lovely. I hope she’ll let me style it for Twilight’s wedding.

Generosity laughed I don’t think she’ll have a problem with that, but you’ll have to explain what you want to do first.

Fluttershy smiled softly I-I hope Sundance doesn’t mind if I ask her some questions. I’d like to ask her if she’ll teach me how to take better care of Twilight’s wings.

I’m sure she won’t mind. Kindness replied Sundance is very nice. In fact, if you ask nicely, she may even let you touch her wings.

“Now I have to make sure that the reception is super fun!” Pinkie exclaimed, bouncing in place “It’s going to be their first party in practically forever!”

This time, Sundance couldn’t suppress her laughter. S-she’s the perfect pony to bear the Element of Laughter!

Laughter giggled Well done, Pinkie! That was perfect!

Thanks! Pinkie giggled as well “Did you hear that? I made her laugh!”

The rest of the girls laughed as well.

Before anything else could be said, Spike walked over with seven bottles of apple juice. He set two of them in front of Sundance before walking over to Shining Armor and giving him two. Finally, he set the other three in front of Celestia, Artemis and Twilight. He hesitated for a moment before deciding to let them sleep.

Confused, Sundance asked “Why did you give these to us?”

“It’s a test.” Spike replied, smiling

Wondering what kind of test would involve a couple of bottles, clearly containing drinks of some kind, Midnight Armor asked “What do you want us to do with them?”

Smiling wider, Spike answered “Drink them.”

Surprised, Sundance stared at him for a moment. “It’s true that Midnight and I have been able to visit, but we’re just spirits. How would we be able to drink anything?”

“It’s something that Twi added to Artemis’ spell.” Spike answered, walking back over and opening their bottles for them. “Unfortunately, she didn’t have a way to test it, so she’s not sure if it worked. That’s why she told me to ask the two of you to drink something.”

“Alright” Midnight Armor slowly replied, lifting one with his magic. What does our youngest have planned for us this time?

Confused, Sundance did the same. After taking a couple of sips, she commented “This is much better than the apple juice we had when we . . .”

Applejack grinned Ah’m glad she likes it. Ah wonder how she’s gonna react when she realizes that she’s really drinking it.

Cutting herself off with a gasp, Sundance turned to her husband. “H-how is this possible?!”

Stunned, he answered “I-I have no idea.”

Applejack suppressed a chuckle Ah can’t wait until later . . . especially if Twi’s other plan works. This is gonna be fun.

Honesty laughed The spirits of the other Elements, Harmony and I are just as excited as you are.

Laughing at their reactions, Spike replied “Twi’s plan worked.” The first one, anyway. I can’t wait for the second.

Sundance and Midnight Armor immediately turned to him “What?!”

“She spent the last two weeks in the library.” Spike explained “Every time I asked her what she was doing, she’d give me the same answer. “Everything has to feel real for them, like they’re really here!” Then she’d bury her nose in another book. At the time, I had no idea what she was talking about but I get it now.”

Eyes wide, Midnight Armor turned to look at their children. A-as happy as we are to be here, being forced to stand by and just watch them would have driven us crazy. I don’t know how she did it, but Twilight found a way for us interact with everyone as if we were here in our physical bodies instead of as spirits.

Shocked, Sundance also turned to look at their children. The Dream Realm has a filter that dulls our senses. Additionally, because we’re just spirits, nothing in our visits truly feels real. After fifteen hundred years, Midnight and I are used to it. However, thanks to Twilight, that’s not a problem here. She gasped T-this means that we can really touch them! She levitated all three of her children into the air before bringing them to her side.

Sundance and Midnight Armor lay down where they stood. Once they were settled, Sundance placed Twilight between herself and her husband. Then she placed Artemis on her other side before setting Celestia next to her father. Finally, Sundance and Midnight Armor spread their wings over their children.

Everyone else smiled as they watched Sundance and Midnight Armor nuzzle each of their children.

Celestia snuggled closer to her father before opening her eyes. Seeing whose wing was draped over her back, she smiled and returned his nuzzle. Twilight’s addition to the spell worked! It may have taken a lot of magic, but I don’t care. I’m very glad she thought of this.

Artemis grumbled something about being tired before snuggling closer to his mother.

Giggling, Sundance nuzzled her son again.

Finally opening his eyes, and seeing his mother, Artemis smiled and returned her nuzzle. I should have known that Twilight’s plan would work.

Twilight mumbled something before burying her face in her father’s shoulder.

Midnight Armor chuckled softly. Nice try, Twilight. You can sleep later. Nuzzling his youngest again, he whispered “Wake up, Twilight.”

That sounds like Dad’s voice. Twilight slowly opened her eyes. Seeing who was lying next to her, she immediately turned to Spike. “Did they-?”

Placing their drinks in front of them, he nodded. “They drank the apple juice. Well, some of it. Both of them were so surprised by the fact that they can drink, that they haven’t finished their drinks.”

“Yes!” Twilight exclaimed, giggling excitedly “It worked!”

Well done! Magic replied, giggling as well This is a VERY good start.

Laughing, Sundance and Midnight Armor nuzzled their youngest again.

Twilight returned their parent’s nuzzles before looking at her friends. Why does Rainbow look nervous? Oh no, I really hope I’m wrong. “Rainbow,” She said slowly “please tell me that you didn’t do what I think you did.”

Rarity sighed “That’s exactly what she did, Twilight.”

Twilight pressed a hoof to her forehead “Why did I bother?”

“Don’t worry, Twi.” Applejack told her “Ah caught her before she could hurt either of them.”

Twilight smiled at Applejack “Thanks, Applejack” Then she turned back to her rainbow-maned friend. “I didn’t want their first experience to be an attack, Rainbow! That’s why I told you not to attack them!”

“Sorry, Twi.” Rainbow responded, looking at the floor “I just-“

Sighing, Twilight finished her friend’s sentence. “Saw that they’re alicorns, had a flashback of Night-Terror Knight and decided to attack before they could. Right?”

Rainbow nodded

Loyalty laughed Twilight certainly knows you well. Additionally, she explained the reason behind your actions better than you probably would have.

I suppose that makes sense. Midnight Armor glanced at his wife before turning back to Rainbow. “There was no harm done, but I’d appreciate it if we could avoid any further attacks. As I’m sure you’ve guessed, we mean no harm to anypony here.”

Rainbow nodded again but, before she could say anything, everyone heard Shining Armor’s voice. They looked over in time to see him nuzzle his wife.

“It’s time to wake up, Cadance.”

Slowly opening her eyes, Cadance asked “Did it work?”

Before he could answer, Flurry jumped onto her mother’s back and nuzzled her. “Mommy, look!” Before Cadance could ask, Flurry flew over to Midnight Armor, landed on his back and nuzzled him.

Chuckling, Midnight Armor returned her nuzzle. Then he watched Flurry jump over Twilight, land on his wife’s back and nuzzle her as well.

Giggling, Sundance returned Flurry’s nuzzle.

Cadance smiled at both of them.

Artemis was about to say something, but paused when he felt the pull of the moon. He and Celestia turned to each other, both saying the same thing. “It’s time.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor watched their older children stand and walk over to the window.

Celestia lowered the sun before nodding to her brother. Returning her nod, Artemis raised the moon before placing the stars in the night sky.

“A-amazing” Sundance breathed I knew that she could control the sun, but I never thought I’d actually get to see her do it.

Eyes wide, Midnight Armor nodded I-incredible! It was one thing to feel him raise our stars in his Night Sky, but to actually see him do it . . .

Confused, Night Light glanced at his wife before turning to them. “Why are you so surprised?” I know they’re aware of what their children do every day.

Hearing this, Celestia and Artemis turned to Night Light.

Wincing, Midnight Armor and Sundance glanced at each other before turning to Night Light as well. However, before any of them could say anything, their children answered the question for them.

“Mom and Dad spend most of their time as stars, so they’re used to being raised into the night sky.” Twilight explained

Artemis glanced at his sister before returning his attention to Night Light. “Additionally, Celestia and I gained the ability to control the sun and moon during that battle.”

Nodding, Celestia continued “That means Mother and Father have never seen us do that before.”

Night Light winced as well. I can’t believe I said that! Open mouth, insert hoof. “I see.”

Nuzzling her youngest, Sundance whispered “Thank you” I’m very glad that Midnight and I didn’t have to explain that.

Twilight opened her mouth but, before she could respond, her stomach growled. Surprised, she stared at it for a moment. “I think Lavender Selene is trying to tell me that she's hungry.”

Everyone laughed

Artemis walked over to Twilight before leaning down to nuzzle her. “In that case, you should eat something. After all, we slept through lunch.”

Twilight’s stomach growled again.

Artemis chuckled “You’d better hurry. It sounds like our daughter is getting impatient.”

Everyone laughed harder

Midnight Armor hugged his youngest. I know she didn’t do it on purpose, but I needed that.

Twilight returned their father’s hug before standing. “I’ll go get a snack.” Pausing, she glanced at their parents. “Do you want to come with me?”

Sundance and Midnight Armor stared at their youngest for a moment. Then the laughter of their older children drew their attention.

“Good idea, Twilight.” Celestia said

“Yes” Artemis agreed “After all, it has been awhile since the last time Mother and Father ate anything.”

Stunned, Midnight Armor stared at his children for a moment before turning to his wife. “A-alright.”

Not sure what to say, Sundance decided not to say anything. Instead, she stood. Midnight Armor did the same. Without a word, they followed their youngest out of the room.

As they walked down the hall, they found themselves carefully examining everything they saw.

“I knew that this castle was made of crystal.” Sundance began

“But I’ve never seen this kind of crystal before.” Midnight Armor finished

Both of them looked up when Twilight giggled.

“As far as I can tell,” she explained “the chest that appeared at the base of the Tree of Harmony acted like a seed from which this castle grew. As a result, this castle is made of a similar material to the Tree of Harmony.”

Surprised, Sundance and Midnight Armor looked at each other for a minute before turning back to their daughter.

“I-I see” Sundance slowly responded

Twilight rolled her eyes when her stomach growled again. “Calm down, Lavender Selene. I’m going to the kitchen, it’s just taking a little longer than usual to get there.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor immediately began to laugh, leaning against each other to avoid falling to the floor. After a couple of minutes, they were calm enough to keep walking.

Midnight Armor stretched his wings, sighing in pleasure when a few of the joints popped, before folding them again. Unaware of the fact that his feathers had brushed against his wife’s flank, he followed their youngest towards the kitchen.

Sundance gasped softly when the tips of her husband’s feathers brushed against her Soul Mark. The gentle touch sent shivers up her spine. I-I haven’t felt that in fifteen hundred years. Forcing herself to focus on something other than her husband, she followed their youngest down the hall.

Walking into the kitchen, Midnight Armor and Sundance looked around the room in wonder. Every available surface was piled high with food, but neither of them recognized anything they saw.

Seeing their expressions, Twilight thought for a moment. “What’s your favorite fruit?”

Surprised, Sundance answered “I-it used to be apples, but now I’m not so sure. I don’t recognize anything in here.”

“Blueberries for me.” Midnight Armor replied “However, like your mother said, that may no longer be the case.”

Twilight levitated a baked good to each of them. “Dad, maybe you should start with a blueberry muffin. Mom, I think you should begin with an apple turnover.”

Glancing at each other, Sundance and Midnight Armor each took the food Twilight offered them in their magic before taking a small bite. Eyes widening, they quickly finished their food before looking at their youngest again.

Twilight had cut herself a slice of Applejack’s apple bread, and was slowly eating it, while she watched her parents eat. Smiling, she cut two more slices of apple bread and levitated them over to her parents. “Dad, you might like this. As for you, Mom, I think you’ll really like it.”

Taking it in their magic, they waited for Twilight to explain what it was.

Twilight laughed “Its apple bread, regular bread with dried apple chunks baked in. Applejack and her grandmother, Granny Smith, make it all the time because it’s one of the foods that I eat . . . a lot. I’m sure you can guess why.”

Curious, Midnight Armor took a bite. “It’s good, but I prefer the first one.” Even so, he didn’t have a problem finishing what he was given.

After taking a bite, Sundance stared at the bread for a moment before practically inhaling the rest of her slice. She looked up when she heard Twilight’s laughter.

Somehow, Twilight managed to ask a question. “I-I guess you like it?”

Blushing, Sundance nodded “I understand why it’s one of your pregnancy cravings.” She giggled when Twilight laughed harder.

After a couple of minutes, Twilight was calm enough to continue. “We’ll be eating dinner soon, but there’s one more thing I’d like the two of you to try.” She smiled “I think both of you will like this one. It’s a blueberry apple cupcake.” As she spoke, she levitated one to each of them before taking one for herself. She took a couple of bites while watching her parents’ reactions.

After taking a bite, both of them swallowed the rest of their cupcakes in a single gulp.

Twilight giggled “It seems that I was right.”

This time, both of them blushed and nodded.

“We should head back before everyone gets worried.” Twilight told them

Nodding again, Sundance and Midnight Armor followed her out of the kitchen.

As they walked down the hall, Twilight said “Pinkie made many of the baked goods in that room.”

“That makes sense.” Sundance commented “You said that she works in a bakery.”

“However, there’s one type of food that she didn’t make.” Twilight explained “Applejack’s family made all of the apple-based baked goods from their family recipes.”

Sundance gasped “Really?”

Twilight nodded “They grow all of the apples around here.” She paused “They also make all of our apple juice and apple cider.”

Midnight Armor and Sundance’s eyes widened

Seeing this, Twilight asked “I assume it’s the apple cider that caught your attention?” When her parents nodded, she smiled. “It’s not cider season, but still I have some. I’ll ask Applejack to make sure that’s what you drink with dinner.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled as well “Thank you”

By this point, they’d returned to the receiving room. Sundance and Midnight Armor walked over to Celestia and Artemis.

Twilight walked over to Applejack. “Mom and Dad want to have apple cider with dinner.”

Grinning, Applejack nodded “Ya got it, Twi.”

“Apparently,” Twilight continued “apples are Mom’s favorite fruit. As for Dad, he likes apples, but blueberries are his favorite.” She laughed “I gave Mom an apple turnover, a slice of apple bread and a blueberry apple cupcake. She practically inhaled all of them. Dad practically inhaled a blueberry apple cupcake and a blueberry muffin.”

Applejack’s grin widened “Pinkie and ah will take that into account when deciding what to serve for dessert.” Ah knew ah liked her. If he likes those cupcakes, he isn’t bad either. They were just a test to see if those two fruits would go together, but ah ended up combining their favorite fruits. Ah will have to keep that in mind.

The rest of the girls and Spike walked over to them. They immediately began to quietly discuss what Star Swirl, Discord, the six of them, and the spirits of their Elements had planned. After meeting Sundance and Midnight Armor, the girls were determined to make sure that their plan succeeded. Rainbow and Applejack discussed defense, Rarity and Twilight focused on the magic requirement, Fluttershy promised them that Discord was ready, and Pinkie . . . well, none of them had any idea what she was talking about. Regardless, they listened as she excitedly laid out a plan that had something to do with chocolate milk, whipped cream and her party cannon.

Meanwhile, Sundance and Midnight Armor walked over to Celestia and Artemis. Their conversation was a mix of several different topics. It started with the schedule for the evening before switching to what would happen tomorrow. Then Golden Thunder was vaguely, and briefly, discussed.

Midnight Armor quietly listened to the conversation, mainly because the only part he could contribute to was when they briefly discussed Golden Thunder. Having no desire to discuss that topic yet, he stayed silent. That’s when his wife nudged him with a wing. Confused, he glanced at her, only to see her nod towards the door. Looking in that direction, he smiled when he saw their youngest talking with her friends. Not wanting to ruin the moment, he draped a wing over his wife’s back.

Sundance nuzzled her husband before returning her attention to the conversation in front of her.

“Are you sure it won’t rain?” Cadance asked, glancing out the window

Celestia laughed “Rainbow personally saw to it that there isn’t a cloud in the sky and promised to keep it that way.”

Shining Armor laughed as well “That sounds like her.”

Sundance had been listening to Velvet and Night Light discuss what was going on in Canterlot. She glanced at her husband when his wing tightened around her.

Seeing this, he nuzzled her before suppressing a chuckle when he felt the shiver that ran down her spine. Perhaps we should ask our children if . . . Midnight Armor was torn from his thoughts when he heard hoofsteps. Looking up, he saw Twilight walking over to them.

Twilight smiled “It’s almost time for dinner.”

“Thank goodness” Velvet said

“Yes” Night Light agreed “I think we’re all getting hungry. Are you going to be eating with us?”

Twilight sighed “I just ate a snack, so I’d like to wait a while. Unfortunately, I’m sure that certain ponies aren’t going to let me do that.”

Grateful to have something besides her husband to focus on, Sundance nuzzled her youngest. “You’re right. I’m not going to allow you to skip dinner.”

“Neither am I” Velvet added

Twilight rolled her eyes “Celestia, Artemis, Spike and the girls are bad enough, but now I get to hear it from both of you as well.”

Everyone laughed

Midnight Armor and Night Light glanced at each other before turning to Twilight.

“Dad!” Twilight exclaimed “Don’t even start!”

Everyone laughed harder

On the other side of the room, Rarity and Fluttershy had just placed a lavender tablecloth on the table. Rainbow and Spike were in the process of bringing over all of the plates, cups and silverware they’d need. Hearing the laughter, they looked over at the group on the other side of the room.

“What do you think that’s about?” Rarity asked, straightening a knife

Rainbow smiled “Twi’s parents are telling her that she needs to eat dinner.”

“Which ones?” Fluttershy quietly asked

Laughing now, Rainbow replied “All four of them”

Rarity, Fluttershy and Spike laughed as well. The four of them looked up when Applejack and Pinkie walked into the room, loaded down with food. Four trips later, everything was ready.

“Come and get it!” Applejack shouted

Everyone immediately gathered around the table. The appetizer was Cheese Stuffed Artichokes and the meal was Broccoli and Cheddar Twice-Baked Potatoes. Twilight and Flurry drank milk while everyone else drank apple cider.

During the meal, Twilight tried to eat as little as possible. Tried, being the key word. As soon as Sundance, Celestia, Cadance and Velvet noticed this, each of them put more food on her plate.

“I can’t eat all that!” Twilight exclaimed

The four mares just looked at her.

Seeing their expressions, Twilight sighed “When I explode, you’re cleaning up the mess.”

Everyone laughed

Dessert was rather light because they’d be eating cake later. They ate small servings of Apple Blueberry Cobbler.

Twilight was already full, so she wasn’t planning to eat any dessert. Not having any of that, Velvet set a plate in front of her.

Twilight looked at her mother. “Seriously?!”

Eyebrow raised, Velvet asked “Do you want more?”

“NO!” Twilight immediately exclaimed

“U-um” Fluttershy stammered “I-I think she’s full.”

Silently thanking Fluttershy, Twilight nodded

“Too bad” Cadance replied “You’re eating dessert anyway.”

“But I’ll be eating cake later!” Twilight responded

“Yes” Celestia agreed “You’ll be eating that, too.”

Twilight glanced at Artemis to find that he was refusing to look at her. Instead, he was talking to their father. Some help he is. “Fine.”

When they’d finished eating, everyone headed back to the middle of the room. Twilight immediately lay down on the cushion that Rarity made for the baby party. It took her a few minutes to find a comfortable position. “Ooh” she groaned “My stomach hurts.” Looking up at her mothers and big sisters, she added. “You made me eat way too much.” She glared at Artemis. “And you didn’t help me!”

Chuckling, he lay down next to her and covered her with a wing. “I’m sorry, Twilight. What did you expect me to do against Mother, Celestia, Cadance and Velvet?”

Twilight mumbled something before laying her head on her forehooves and closing her eyes.

Rainbow walked over “It’s time for your flight exercises, Twi.”

Not bothering to move, or even open her eyes, Twilight said “You’re insane.”

After a moment of stunned silence, everyone began to laugh.

Sundance and Midnight Armor were laughing so hard that they fell to the floor. Not bothering to get up, Sundance got into a comfortable position on the other side of her youngest. Midnight Armor did the same, laying on his wife’s other side.

Sundance shuddered when she felt her husband’s wing over her back.

Noticing this, and thinking she was cold, he pulled her closer.

Everyone else grabbed a cushion before laying down as well.

For the next half hour, they just relaxed. Then, realizing that it was time to start getting things ready, everyone but Sundance and Midnight Armor stood and walked to the other side of the room.

Meanwhile, Sundance was trying to focus on anything other than her husband, but finding it impossible. A-at this rate, I’m going to . . .

Midnight Armor wasn’t faring much better. In fact, it was taking all of his self-control to leave things as they were.

With their eyes closed, neither of them noticed that all three of their children were watching them.

Turning to her younger siblings, Celestia quietly said “We should give Mother and Father some “alone time”.”

“And a room.” Artemis added

Twilight nodded “You’re both right.”

Velvet turned to her daughter. “But they’re here for your wedding!”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “This is the first time that they’ve been able to touch each other, outside of the Dream Realm, in fifteen hundred years! Thanks to our spell, everything feels real to them. If it was you and Dad in that situation . . . well, what would you want to do?”

Night Light’s eyes widened “When you put it that way, I’m surprised they’ve lasted this long.”

Velvet winced “Y-you’re right, Night Light. I don’t think we would have lasted half as long as they have.”

Glancing at each other, Cadance and Shining Armor nodded

“We’ll get everything set up.” Shining Armor said

Cadance gently pushed Twilight towards Sundance and Midnight Armor. “Go take care of them.”

For a moment, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight quietly discussed their plan. Then they walked over to their parents.

Hearing hoofsteps, Sundance and Midnight Armor opened their eyes and looked up to see Celestia, Artemis and Twilight walking over to them. Seeing the expressions on their children’s faces, they glanced at each other before standing.

“Is everything alright?” Sundance asked

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nodded

“We’ve decided to give the two of you some “alone time”.” Twilight answered

Sundance gasped Did we offend them?!

Are we that obvious?! Midnight Armor shook his head “W-we’re fine.”

“Nice try, Father.” Artemis replied, shaking his head as well “We know that’s not true.”

“Artemis is right.” Celestia continued “Both of you need this, and you know it.”

Sundance started to protest but stopped when her eldest shook her head.

“Come with me, please.” Twilight told them, turning towards the door

Exchanging glances, they followed her.

Celestia headed back to everyone else while Artemis teleported to the room he shared with Twilight.

A few minutes later, Sundance and Midnight Armor found themselves on what must have been the top floor of the castle. Before they could ask where they were going, Twilight stopped next to a door and opened it.

It was obvious that Twilight wanted them to enter the room, so that’s exactly what Sundance did. Midnight Armor silently followed his wife.

Twilight entered the room last, but stayed near the door. “One of us will check on you in a couple of hours. If you’re ready before that, you can send one of us a message.”

Surprised, and curious, Sundance asked “How are we supposed to do that?”

“When I finished Artemis’ spell, I added a few things.” Twilight answered “You already know what one of them is. This is another. If either of you focuses on Celestia, Artemis or myself, you can use your magic to send us a message.”

“A-alright” Midnight Armor responded, glancing at his wife

Nodding to her husband, Sundance turned to their youngest. “Twilight, I-”

Twilight nuzzled her mother, stopping the apology. “It’s alright, Mom. Celestia, Artemis and I understand. That’s why we decided to give the two of you some privacy.”

Surprised, Sundance and Midnight Armor exchanged glances before watching their youngest turn towards the door.

Pausing in the doorway, Twilight glanced over her shoulder. “If you need anything, Artemis and I will be down the hall.”

Stunned, Midnight Armor and Sundance just stared at their youngest.

Smiling at them, Twilight closed the door behind her.

Inside the room, Midnight Armor turned to his wife. Seeing that she was distracted, he silently walked to her side.

Sundance was watching the walls, ceiling, floor and doors shimmer with their daughter’s magic for a moment before returning to normal. Before she could consider it further, something drove all other thoughts from her mind. She gasped when her husband gently brushed one of his wings against hers. “M-midnight . . .”

Nuzzling his wife, he spoke softly “For once, I have no complaints about the fact that we weren’t able to fool our children.” Before she could respond, he pulled her into a kiss.

Breaking the kiss, she whispered “Same here. I-”

He cut her off by pulling her into a much deeper kiss. This one went on for over a minute. When it broke, he turned his attention to her neck, kissing and nibbling at her throat.

Moaning softly, she whispered “P-please don’t stop.”

“I won’t.” He promised “Our children are right, we need this.” He spent the next few minutes kissing and nuzzling his way down her body. Unable to wait any longer, he moved behind his wife, reared up and mounted her.

She shuddered in delight when she finally felt him enter her. “Heavens, Yes!”

Both of them moaned when their hips met, but neither of them moved. They just enjoyed a pleasure that neither of them had felt in a very long time.

After a couple of minutes went by, and her husband still didn’t move, she let out a soft whimper. I can’t believe he’s doing this! “Stop teasing me, Midnight! Please!”

She needs this more than I thought. Laughing softly, he spread his wings before pulling almost all of the way out. As he slowly pushed back in, he asked “Is this better?”

“Yes!” Before she could say anything else, she felt him pull back again. Closing her eyes, she let out a long, low moan of pleasure. “Midnight, I-”

“It’s alright, Honey.” He whispered, continuing his slow thrusts “I know what you want. Trust me, I want the same thing.” I-it’s just that this seems too good to be true.

Sundance found herself unable to respond. In fact, she couldn’t focus on anything but the pleasure that her husband was giving her. After a few minutes, she suddenly realized that she was already close to her peak. However, before she could say anything, he made an unexpected move.

Leaning forward, he buried his muzzle in her mane and bit the sensitive spot on the back of her neck. He moaned in pleasure when her passage began to pulse and clench around him. That has to be a record. Even so, I can’t say that I blame her. After all, it’s been a very long time.

The mix of pain and pleasure from her husband’s bite, combined with the intense pleasure that she was receiving from his slow thrusts, pushed her to her first orgasm in fifteen hundred years. It hit her so quickly that she wasn’t even able to scream.

Noticing that her legs were beginning to give out, Midnight Armor glanced around the room. A flash of magic later, they were on the bed. He pulled out of his wife, rolled her onto her back and quickly thrust back into her. He couldn’t hold back a moan of pleasure when her pulsing and clenching passage did it’s best to keep him there. With Sundance still in the grip of her orgasm, he resumed his slow thrusts.

When she recovered, Sundance opened her eyes. Realizing that she was lying on the bed, she looked up to see that her husband standing over her. Noticing that he seemed hesitant, she leaned up and kissed him. When the kiss broke, she whispered “Why are you holding back?”

“I-” Midnight Armor didn’t get a chance to say anything else because she pulled him into another kiss. He moaned as she kissed her way down to his chest before shuddering in delight when she gently bit a certain spot near his right shoulder. O-of course she did that. Even though that battle scar is no longer visible, it’s still very sensitive. He let out another moan of pleasure when she ran her tongue along the full length of the scar, tracing it from memory. “S-sundance . . .”

He probably doesn’t think it’s possible for this to feel real. After peaking myself, I know that it does. He needs this as much as I do, so I must ensure that he peaks as well. Knowing exactly what she had to do to overcome his reluctance, she pulled him into another kiss. When it broke, she whispered “Take me”

His eyes widened She hasn’t said that in fifteen hundred years. Hearing her say it now, something snapped. He ran his tongue along her horn and suddenly increased his speed.

Overwhelmed by the sensations coursing through her body, she couldn’t hold back a scream of delight.

Both of them froze when they realized how loud she’d screamed. Holding their breaths, they looked at the door, expecting somepony to run in to check on them. When nothing happened, they looked at each other in confusion.

Sundance suddenly remembered how the room had shimmered with Twilight’s magic. “We really have to thank our youngest.” She commented “She must have noticed how distracted we were, because she cast a soundproofing spell for us.”

“We’ll do that later.” He responded huskily, beginning to thrust slowly again. “Right now, I believe you asked me to do something.”

Trembling in a combination of pleasure and anticipation, she whispered “Do it, Midnight! Take me!”

Midnight Armor pulled her into a fierce kiss. When it broke, he replied “You did not need to tell me twice.” Not giving her a chance to respond, he increased his speed.

No longer worried about anypony else hearing her, Sundance didn’t bother holding back a scream of pleasure.

I know you can scream louder than that, Sundance. Determined to make his wife really scream, he used his magic to spread her wings. Before she could ask, he sent a wave of warmth through both of them . . . and finally stopped holding himself back.

Sundance’s next scream of pleasure shook the room. “Yes, Midnight!”

That’s more like it. He smiled down at his wife, watching her close her eyes as she began to shake again.

Over the next couple of minutes, her screams got even louder. I-I’m going to . . .!

Midnight Armor thrust into his wife once more before groaning in pleasure as he reached his first peak in fifteen hundred years.

She gasped in surprise, swearing that she could feel his seed filling her womb, before screaming in delight when the pleasure sent her into a second orgasm.

Even with the intense pleasure from his own orgasm coursing through his body, he heard her scream when hers hit her. Before he could consider anything else, her passage began to pulse and clench around him again, instantly pushing his pleasure to new heights. Closing his eyes, he let out another groan of pleasure.

She was just coming down from her second peak when he collapsed on top of her, pinning her to the bed. Panting, she opened her eyes and looked up at her husband. W-we haven’t been able to do that in fifteen hundred years.

Somehow, everything felt real. I don’t know how our children managed to do this, but we must find a way to thank them.

Midnight Armor was extremely satisfied. I can’t believe I pushed her to a second peak! That rarely happened fifteen hundred years ago, even when she was in season.

He was still shaking, but he managed to roll them onto their sides and wrap his wings around her. I hope she doesn’t think I was hesitant because of her. That wasn’t the problem at all. Instead, I honestly thought there was no way for that to feel real. I’ve never been so happy to say that I was wrong.

I don’t know how our children did it, but we really owe them for this. Catching his breath, he pulled her into another kiss. When it broke, he tried to answer her question. “I-I didn’t think-”

Still shaking as well, she finished her husband’s sentence. “There was a way for that to feel real?”

He nodded, moaning softly when her passage continued to pulse around him.

“When we were told what our children had done, I was just as skeptical as you were.” She responded “I have no idea how they did it, but it’s clear that Celestia, Artemis and Twilight have put a great deal of effort into making this experience feel real for us.”

He tucked her head under his chin. “We have to find a way to thank them for this.”

“Agreed” She replied, nuzzling into his neck and sighing in pleasure. “Don’t worry, we’ll think of something.” He’s never done that to my wings before. She giggled, suddenly remembering how Twilight had done the same thing. Did that experience give him the idea for this? I don’t care if it did, that felt amazing!

Curious, he asked “What’s so funny?”

“I was thinking about what you did to my wings.” She answered

Did I get it wrong? Worried, he asked “What about it?”

She giggled again “You’ve never done that before, so I was wondering what made you think of doing it now. Then I remembered that Twilight did the same thing to both of us a few months ago.”

He chuckled “You’re right, that’s where I got the idea. I remembered how good that felt and decided to try it.” He tightened his grip. “I knew that you had already peaked, but didn’t want to be the only one feeling pleasure."

She laughed “I really have to thank her for that. It felt amazing!”

He sighed in relief “I thought you were going to say that I got it wrong.”

“I don’t think you could have gotten that any more right.” She replied

He hugged her tighter. “I love you, Sundance.”

Lifting her head, she pulled him into another kiss. When it broke, she nuzzled into his neck again. “I love you, too, Midnight.”

They let out matching sighs of contentment and relaxed, both wanting to stay connected a little longer. Several minutes later, he kissed her again and pulled out. For the next twenty minutes, they just cuddled together.

Finally, he nuzzled her. “We should let Twilight know that we’re ready.”

Nodding, Sundance sent their youngest a message.

They were surprised when a message written in Twilight’s magic appeared in the air above the bed.

If you look to the left of the bed, you’ll see a door. That leads to the bathroom. We thought you might enjoy a bath, so Artemis has already drawn the hot water for you. He also set out the body wash and towels. Take your time and let us know when you’re done.

Sundance smiled “A bath does sound nice.”

Midnight Armor nodded “You’re right”

Climbing off of the bed, they walked over to the door to the bathroom, opened it and walked in together. Just inside the room, they stopped and looked around.

The bathroom was almost as large as the bedroom it was attached to. Off to the right, there was that strange contraption they called a toilet. Against the back wall, there was a mirror above a counter and a couple of sinks. In the middle of the room, there was a large square tub that was sunk into the floor. It was already full and waiting for them. Two large towels were folded neatly and sitting on a wooden bench. One of them was blue and the other was lavender. There were a couple of bottles sitting next to the tub.

Looking closer, Sundance noticed that both bottles contained body wash. Seeing the pictures on the labels, she laughed. “Ocean and Lavender scented products. I’m not surprised.”

Both of them sighed in pleasure as they walked into the hot water before laying down side-by-side. For the first ten minutes, they just relaxed. Then each of them levitated a bottle of body wash towards them.

When they were done, Midnight Armor sent a message to Twilight. Neither of them were surprised when a message appeared in front of them.

If you walk into the hall, you’ll see a purple door. That’s the door to our room. Come in, please. There’s something we want to show you.

Curious, they walked through the bedroom and out into the hall. Then they stopped and looked around.

Suddenly Midnight Armor chuckled

Sundance raised an eyebrow “What’s so funny?” Following his gaze, she laughed as well. “That certainly wasn’t hard to find. We just needed to look for Twilight’s Soul Mark.” Walking closer, she knocked on the door.

Artemis opened the door with his magic. “Come in”

Sundance and Midnight Armor walked into the room. Both of them smiled when they saw that Twilight and Artemis were snuggling together in bed.

Twilight and Artemis smiled as well, immediately noticing that their parents were much calmer and obviously satisfied.

Nuzzling her stallion, Twilight whispered “I’m glad that worked.”

He returned her nuzzle, quietly replying “Me too. Not that I blame them, but they must have really needed that.”

Walking over to the bed, Midnight Armor asked “Is everything alright?”

Twilight nodded “There’s something that everyone in the family, except for the two of you, has done. We thought this would be the perfect time for the two of you to do it as well.”

Sundance tilted her head “What are you talking about?”

Twilight smiled “You’ll understand in a minute.” She used her magic to lower their mother’s head.

Surprised, Sundance backed up.

“It’s alright, Mom.” Twilight told her “I promise it won’t hurt.”

Curious, Sundance walked closer and allowed one of her ears to be placed on her daughter’s stomach. A few seconds later, she heard something. For a moment, she wasn’t sure what she was listening to. Then her eyes widened. “I-is that what I think it is?”

“Yes, Mother” Artemis answered “You’re listening to Lavender Selene’s heartbeat.”

Midnight Armor stared at his son for a moment before lowering his head and placing an ear on Twilight’s stomach as well. Tears came to his eyes as he listened to his granddaughter’s soft heartbeat. A few minutes later, he lifted his head and looked at their youngest.

Twilight’s eyes widened when she saw the tears in his eyes. When Sundance raised her head, she noticed tears in their mother’s eyes as well. I-I didn’t mean to upset them! I just thought they might like to listen to-

Artemis and Twilight gasped in surprise when they suddenly found themselves surrounded with their father’s magic. They were about to ask him what he was doing, but paused when their mother’s horn began to glow.

In the receiving room, Celestia was talking to Velvet. She stopped mid-sentence when she noticed that she was surrounded with her mother’s magic.

“Is something wrong, Princess Celestia?” Velvet asked, concerned

This hasn’t happened in fifteen hundred years. Celestia smiled “There’s nothing to worry about, Velvet. Mother is about to teleport me to her, that’s all.”

Velvet gasped in surprise.

Celestia closed her eyes and waited. When she opened her eyes again, she saw that she was in Twilight and Artemis’ room. Glancing around, she noticed that both of her siblings were surrounded with their father’s magic. What’s going on?

Sitting down, Sundance and Midnight Armor pulled Celestia, Artemis and Twilight closer before wrapping their wings around their children.

Burying her face in Celestia’s neck, Sundance whispered. “T-thank you”

Too choked up to speak, Midnight Armor simply hugged his family tighter.

Confused, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight looked at each other for a moment before shrugging and snuggling closer to their parents.

Several minutes later, Midnight Armor and Sundance released their children.

Midnight Armor glanced at his wife before turning to their children. “There are a couple of things that your mother and I would like to discuss with the three of you.”

Nodding, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight sat down in front of their parents.

“First of all, we’d like to thank you.” Midnight Armor began, smiling at them “You’re doing a very good job of protecting our souls. Golden Thunder has tried to pull us to him sixteen times so far and you’ve blocked every attempt.”

Artemis returned his smile “Did you think that we were going to do anything else?”

Celestia and Twilight nodded again

Midnight Armor laughed “No, but we wanted to thank you anyway. The second is that we wanted to go over the plan again.”

In the receiving room, they’d just finished setting everything up. Everyone decided to head to their rooms so they could get ready for the wedding. An hour later, they met back in the receiving room.

Cadance turned to Rarity “You should go to Twilight’s room and help her get ready. Please tell Aunt Celestia that I need her help down here.”

“Tell Artemis and Midnight to come to the room that Cadance and I are sharing.” Shining Armor said, also speaking to Rarity “That’s where Spike and I will be waiting so the three of us can help Artemis get ready.”

Velvet glanced at Rarity “I’ll stay here to help Cadance until Princess Celestia arrives. Then I’ll join you in Twilight’s room.”

Nodding, Rarity left the room, carrying a large assortment of packages, bundles and a garment bag in her magic.

In Twilight and Artemis’ room, Celestia smiled at their parents. “As I said last month, there are a few key parts of Golden Thunder’s plan that we’re not aware of. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to discover anything new over the last month because he’s no longer coming into the castle library.”

Artemis nodded “Even so, we’re not too worried about that.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow “Why not?”

“As you know, each of us have come up with a couple of back up plans.” Celestia replied “Between the three of us, I’m certain that we have every possibility covered.”

Artemis chuckled “Golden Thunder has been finding reasons to speak to each of us alone. Then he tries to trick us into telling him what we’re planning.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped

Twilight giggled “He knows that we won’t tell him what we have planned, so he keeps asking us what the other two are planning.” Her giggles turned into laughter. “We didn’t tell you this last month, but we’ve been keeping our back up plans a secret . . . even from each other. This means we can’t answer his questions.”

Sundance began to laugh “I assume he doesn’t like that.”

Artemis laughed as well “Not at all.” He thought for a moment. “There is one more thing. He has no idea that we know when he’s going to attack us.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor laughed so hard that they fell to the floor.

When their parents were calm enough to listen, Celestia continued. “The only thing we haven't discussed is how we're going to kill Golden Thunder again.”

Artemis looked at their parents “We’ve decided that the two of you should do it.”

Sundance gasped “A-are you sure?!”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nodded

“We’ve discussed this with everyone else.” Twilight explained “Everyone has agreed that, for obvious reasons, the two of you should handle this part.”

Midnight Armor and Sundance turned to each other.

“W-we’ll finally be able to deal with the consequences of our mistake.” Sundance said softly

Turning to their children, Midnight Armor grinned “After everything that Golden Thunder has done to our family, we’d love to take care of him ourselves.”

“Then it’s decided.” Celestia said

Everypony nodded

Twilight smiled If the plan that Harmony, Magic, Star Swirl, Discord, the girls, the spirits of their Elements and I have put together works, then part of this plan will change. In fact, we’ll be switching to one of my back up plans.

I really hope it works because, if it does, Mom, Dad, Celestia and Artemis will receive the best gift that we could possibly give them. She giggled softly They’re in for a huge surprise.

Magic giggled as well. We’ve gone over everything as thoroughly as possible and haven’t found anything that even remotely suggests that it WON’T work. Her giggles turned into laughter. You’re right, though. The four of them are in for a VERY large surprise. So is the rest of Equestria.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Artemis and Celestia heard Twilight giggle and looked at her. However, before they could ask, everyone turned at a knock on the door.

Twilight opened to find Rarity standing in the hall. “Is it time already?”

Smiling, Rarity nodded “Princess Celestia, Princess Cadance asked me to tell you that she needs your help in the receiving room. Artemis and Midnight Armor, Shining Armor asked me to tell you that he and Spike are waiting in the room that he’s sharing with Princess Cadance. That’s where they’ll help you get ready, Artemis. Velvet told me that she’ll be coming up soon, Twilight.” She thought for a moment. “Sundance, if you’d like, you can stay in here with us. We may need your help.”

Sundance nodded

Celestia, Artemis and Midnight Armor stood and walked out of the room. Celestia teleported to the receiving room while Artemis and Midnight Armor headed to the room that Cadance and Shining Armor were sharing.

In Twilight and Artemis’ room, Twilight and Sundance watched Rarity pull Twilight’s wedding dress out of the garment bag.

“Oh my” Sundance said softly “It’s beautiful”

The dress was a deep blue, almost the same shade as Artemis’ coat. There were dozens of tiny diamonds sewn in to represent the stars in the Night Sky. Additionally, there were several lavender flowers around the hem of the dress.

Rarity smiled at Twilight “Let’s get started.”

Chapter 72

Author's Note

I must give credit where credit is due. Twilight's Wedding Bouquet is from the story called "Flowery Knowledge" by Wahtiff. Before you ask, yes, I have obtained author permission.

Here is the link to "Flowery Knowledge".
https://www.fimfiction.net/story/386614/1/flowery-knowledge/flowery-knowledge

Chapter 72

Twilight moved to the middle of the room. Sundance stayed where she was so she wouldn’t be in anypony’s way.

Rarity helped Twilight into the dress. After zipping up the back, she turned her attention to the hem.

Sundance tore her attention from the dress so she could focus on the mare wearing it. She immediately noticed that Twilight was uncomfortable. Before she could say anything, she heard Twilight speaking softly.

“Rarity”

Not taking her eyes off of the dress, Rarity replied “In a minute, Darling.”

Twilight shifted uneasily before speaking a little louder. “Rarity”

“I need to finish this.” Rarity managed to say around the pins in her mouth.

“Rarity” Twilight said in a strained voice “T-this is too tight.”

“Nonsense” Rarity replied “I used the measurements that I took last month.”

That explains it. Standing, Sundance began to walk towards her youngest.

None of them noticed that Velvet had entered the room.

“I-I think I’m going to throw up.” Twilight said urgently

Sundance’s eyes widened Oh no.

“That’s perfectly normal, Darling.” Rarity absently replied “Every mare feels like that on her wedding day.”

Velvet smiled, remembering how she felt on her wedding day. I thought I was going to throw up as well.

Twilight suddenly teleported out of the dress and into her bathroom.

Rarity quickly picked the dress up off of the floor. “Twilight Sparkle, how could you?!”

“Rarity” Sundance said softly “Twilight is pregnant. This means that the measurements you took last month are no longer accurate.”

Velvet’s eyes widened

Rarity gasped “The dress really is too tight!” I can’t believe I forgot to take new measurements! She looked around the room. “Do you know where Twilight went?”

After listening for a moment, Sundance sighed “She’s currently in the process of losing her dinner.”

Rarity winced

“I will go help her.” Sundance continued “You should stay here and fix the dress.” She paused “If Velvet comes in before we return to the room, please ask her to bring Twilight something small to eat.”

“It’s alright, Sundance.” Velvet replied “I saw most of what just happened. Please take care of Twilight. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

Sundance smiled at Velvet “Thank you” After Velvet left the room, Sundance glanced around before spotting another door. That must lead to the bathroom.

In the bathroom, Twilight jumped when she felt a hoof on her back. She raised her head long enough to see that it was Sundance before putting it back in the toilet.

Sundance didn’t say anything. Instead, she gently rubbed Twilight’s back until her youngest had finished emptying her stomach.

A couple of minutes later, Twilight lifted her head. Then she wiped her mouth and flushed the toilet before looking up at Sundance. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright.” Sundance said softly, wrapping her wings around her youngest. Sighing, she nuzzled Twilight as well.

Hearing the sigh, Twilight asked “Is something wrong, Mom?”

Shaking her head, Sundance whispered “I’ve wanted to really hug you for a couple of months now. I just didn’t think I’d actually get the chance.”

Before Twilight could respond, Velvet walked into the bathroom.

“I brought you a bowl of applesauce, Twilight. It’s on your desk.”

Twilight smiled “Thanks, Mom.” After returning Sundance’s nuzzle, she glanced around. “We should get out of the bathroom.”

Sundance and Velvet laughed

Twilight, Sundance and Velvet returned to the bedroom to see that Rarity was still working on the dress.

While she waited, Twilight sat at her desk and ate the applesauce. When she had finished, she turned to watch Rarity work.

Velvet and Sundance glanced at each other before turning to Twilight.

Twilight suddenly noticed that her wings were spreading. Surprised, she looked at them to see that they were surrounded by Sundance’s magic. Before she could ask, her mother gently pressed the sensitive spot on both of her wings. “Ah!”

That caught Rarity’s attention. She and Velvet watched Sundance gently massage both of Twilight’s wings.

When Twilight’s wings stopped shaking, she folded them before nuzzling Sundance. “Thanks, Mom. I needed that.”

Giggling, Sundance returned her daughter’s nuzzle. “I thought you might.”

Seeing Velvet and Rarity’s confusion, Twilight shrugged “It’s an alicorn thing.”

Both of them laughed

“I don’t know what to do with wings . . . especially those of an alicorn.” Velvet commented, starting to massage her daughter’s back “However, I can do this.”

Sighing in pleasure, Twilight leaned into Sundance’s side so Velvet could reach all of her back.

Sundance and Velvet laughed

Velvet stopped her massage when she noticed that Rarity had finished the changes to Twilight’s wedding dress.

“I’m sorry, Twilight.” Rarity said, nuzzling her friend “Don’t worry, I fixed the problem.”

Sighing in relief, Twilight walked back to the middle of the room before allowing Rarity to help her into the dress again. Sundance and Velvet sat next to the bed while Rarity got to work.

Twilight didn’t say anything because she was busy listening to Magic.

The spirits of the other Elements and I have taken care of everything on our end. We’re just waiting for you, and your friends, to call us.

A couple of minutes later, she continued. Harmony asked me to tell you that she’s ready as well. The only thing that she’s not sure of is how she’s going to explain things to everyone.

I think I’ve found a way for her to do that. Twilight responded

What? Magic asked, clearly surprised We weren’t expecting you to help us, but I suppose we should have. Thank you.

Twilight struggled to suppress her laughter. You’re welcome.

What did you come up with?

I’ve been talking to Mom, and you, off and on for four months now. Twilight answered This means that I might be sensitive enough to spirits to allow Harmony to speak through me. My connection to the Element of Magic, and the fact that the physical version was returned to the Tree of Harmony a few years ago, should also help.

That could work. Magic slowly replied Hold on, I need to discuss this with Harmony. After a moment, she laughed. She says that your plan is perfect. However, she wants me to make sure that you’re willing to allow her to do that.

It was my idea. Twilight pointed out Regardless, I understand why she wants to confirm it. Please tell her that my answer is yes.

A few minutes later, Magic responded. She says “Thank you” and asked me to assure you that she will not cause any harm to you or your daughter.

I’m sure she won’t. Twilight replied

“Alright.” Rarity said, levitating her pins over to her bag. Then she moved Twilight’s necklace so that everyone could see it. “Now that the dress has been taken care of, I need to work on your mane. I’ve thought of several styles, but I think the curly look suits you best.”

Twilight and Velvet nodded.

Sundance wasn’t sure what Rarity was talking about, so she just watched.

Twenty minutes later

Rarity finished styling Twilight’s mane and stepped back to admire her work. I ended up using the same style that she wore for her brother’s wedding. The only difference is that I left the headpiece off. “Now there’s just one more thing.” She levitated a box over and opened it to reveal Twilight’s crown.

“I almost never wear my crown.” Twilight commented, watching Rarity levitate it onto her head. “Wait a minute. What’s it doing here? I know I left it in Canterlot.”

“I asked Princess Celestia to bring it, of course.” Rarity answered, adjusting the crown so that it was centered on the top of Twilight’s head.

Before anyone could say anything else, everyone turned at a knock on the door. Twilight opened it to reveal Celestia.

Celestia’s eyes widened “You look beautiful, Twilight!”

Sundance, Velvet and Rarity laughed when Twilight blushed.

After nuzzling her sister, Celestia said “Everyone else is ready.”

Twilight took a deep breath before teleporting the five of them to the hallway outside of the receiving room. She found the girls, Flurry and Night Light waiting for her.

Night Light nuzzled his daughter. “You look beautiful, Twilight.”

Twilight returned his nuzzle. “Thanks, Dad”

Fluttershy’s eyes widened “Oh my.”

“Pretty!” Pinkie exclaimed, bouncing over to give Twilight a hug

Rainbow nodded

Applejack smiled “Here’s your bouquet, Twi.” She held up a large bouquet of dark blue moonflowers that were evenly mixed with bright lavender bellflowers.

“Thanks, Applejack” Twilight replied, taking it in her magic

Sundance tilted her head “The colors are certainly appropriate, and it smells lovely, but what are these flowers called?”

Twilight giggled “The blue ones are Moonflowers and the lavender ones are Bellflowers.”

“That’s perfect.” Sundance breathed “Does Artemis know about this?”

Twilight, and the rest of the girls, smiled before shaking their heads.

After a moment of shock, Sundance giggled “He’s in for a surprise.”

Laughing as well, Twilight, Celestia, the girls, Velvet and Night Light nodded.

Velvet opened the door enough for herself, Sundance, Celestia and Fluttershy to slip inside. Just before she closed the door behind her, she whispered “Open the door in two minutes.”

After the two minutes had passed, Night Light, Twilight and the girls moved to their positions.

Flurry was first, of course. She held a basket full of red rose petals in her magic.

Night Light was standing on Twilight’s left side. Applejack was standing behind Twilight while Rainbow was standing behind Night Light. Rarity was standing behind Applejack while Pinkie stood behind Rainbow.

Night Light used his magic to open the door.

Celestia, Cadance, Artemis, Sundance, Midnight Armor, Spike, Velvet, Fluttershy and Shining Armor turned towards the door.

Artemis found himself barely able to breathe as he looked at his fiancé. She looks beautiful. Wait a minute. Her dress looks like . . . He gasped softly . . . my Night Sky!

Flurry slowly flew down the aisle, using her magic to scatter the rose petals as she went. Her job done, she set the basket on the floor before landing on her mother’s back.

Fluttershy nodded to her songbirds. Sundance and Midnight Armor were surprised when the birds started singing.

Night Light and Twilight slowly walked down the aisle. Applejack, Rainbow, Pinkie and Rarity followed them. When they got to the other side of the room, they stopped in front of Celestia, Cadance and Spike.

Artemis found his eyes drawn to Twilight’s wedding bouquet. After taking a closer look, his eyes widened T-those are Moonflowers!

Night Light hugged his daughter before moving to stand next to his wife. Velvet nuzzled her husband before turning her attention to Celestia.

Sundance and Midnight Armor stood on the other side of the aisle. She nuzzled her husband before turning her attention to their children. After draping a wing over his wife’s back, he did the same.

Artemis stepped forward to join Twilight before both of them looked at Celestia and Cadance.

In the stars, Star Swirl looked at Sundance and Midnight Armor’s stars. “Their stars are very bright right now. I’m not sure what’s going on but, whatever it is, they’re happy.”

After thinking for a few minutes, his star brightened considerably. “It should be midnight by now. That means it’s time for the smaller wedding.” He laughed “That must be why they’re so happy.”

His star flickered “They’ll probably have fun tomorrow, but the next day is the one that one they’ll really enjoy.”

In Ponyville, Celestia and Cadance smiled at each other before turning to Twilight and Artemis. As one, they said “You may now kiss the bride.”

Artemis pulled his wife into a deep kiss.

Everyone else cheered

Pinkie pulled out a party cannon but stopped when she saw that it was surrounded by Twilight’s magic. Curious, she looked at her friend.

“That’s not a good idea, Pinkie.” Twilight explained “It’s the middle of the night, remember? That means everyone else in Ponyville is asleep.”

Pinkie pouted for a moment. Then she grinned. “That’s OK! We’ll just get the party ready the old fashioned way!”

Rarity turned to Twilight “You simply must take that dress off before the party starts! You need to wear it for the large wedding as well, but we don’t have enough time to clean it.” She looked at Artemis “The same applies to you.”

Midnight Armor glanced at his son before turning to Rarity. “If you give them time to take their clothes off . . .”

“We won’t be seeing either of them for a while.” Sundance finished

“That’s OK!” Pinkie replied “We can use that time to get the reception ready.”

Artemis responded by teleporting himself and his wife to their room.

Everyone else laughed

In Artemis and Twilight’s room, they appeared in the middle of the room. Artemis immediately began taking his suit off.

Rarity had done an excellent job on it. Not only did it fit him perfectly, it was only two shades darker than his coat. After he had taken it off, he hung it in the closet. He looked at his wife in time to see her take the last of the curls out of her mane.

Twilight sighed in relief as she set her crown on her desk alongside all of the pins that Rarity had used to keep the curls in place. She surrounded the zipper of her dress with her magic, but paused when she felt her husband’s breath on her neck.

“Allow me.”

Before she could respond, he unzipped her dress, removed it and hung it in the closet next to his suit. After closing the closet, he turned his attention back to Twilight.

Twilight moaned when he kissed the back of her neck. “A-Artemis . . .”

Artemis paused long enough to cast a soundproofing spell around their room before returning his attention to his wife. He kissed his way down her neck before working his way back up to her horn.

Twilight shuddered in delight when he ran his tongue along her horn before taking the entire thing into his mouth.

Still sucking on her horn, he moved to stand over his wife. Then he slowly pushed inside her. Finally releasing her horn, he moaned in pleasure when their hips met.

Twilight let out an identical moan.

Artemis nibbled on the tip of her left ear. Releasing her ear, he whispered “I hope you’re ready.”

She nodded before moaning again when he began to thrust slowly. After a few minutes, her moans turned into screams when he suddenly sped up. It only took another minute for her orgasm to hit. She let out a scream that shook the room as her wings flew from her sides.

Artemis smiled before her pulsing and clenching passage pushed him over the edge as well. He groaned in pleasure as he released his seed into his wife.

When she recovered, the first thing Twilight noticed was that he had pulled out of her. Looking over her shoulder, she asked “Why did you pull out?”

Panting softly, he pulled her into a kiss. When it broke, he whispered “Trust me, we’re not done. I just thought we should move to the bed.” Before he could say anything else, she teleported them there.

On the bed, Twilight lay down before rolling onto her back.

Artemis took a moment to look at his wife. Stars, she’s beautiful. He nuzzled her stomach before kissing it. Then he kissed and nuzzled his way up her body, enjoying the soft moans he received in response. Reaching her head, he pulled her into a deep kiss.

Twilight moaned into the kiss. When it broke, she whispered “Please”

He hesitated when something occurred to him. “I don’t want to hurt you, or our daughter.”

Twilight smiled up at him before casting a shield over her stomach. “You won’t.”

Artemis moved over her before thrusting back inside her. He moaned in pleasure when he noticed that her passage was already pulsing around him. “I won’t be able to hold back much longer.”

“Don’t” Twilight replied, trembling in anticipation

Surprised, he asked “Don’t what?”

“Don’t hold back!” She shouted

He smiled “As you wish” Before she could respond, he began thrusting again. As she requested, he didn’t hold back.

“YES!”

Artemis’ smile widened as he listened to her screams of pleasure echo around their room. It only took a couple of minutes for his second orgasm to hit.

The feeling of her husband pumping his seed into her sent her into the most powerful orgasm she’d ever experienced.

When his orgasm ended, he collapsed on top of her. T-thank goodness she thought to cast this shield over her stomach. I can’t move right now, even if I wanted to. For several minutes, he just lay there as he caught his breath. Then he kissed his wife before pulling out of her. “We should take a bath before heading to the reception.”

Nodding, Twilight released her shield and climbed off of their bed.

They walked into the bathroom together. After the tub was full, they lay down side by side.

Twilight lay her head on his shoulder. “I love you, Artemis”

He immediately pulled her into a deep kiss. “I love you, too, Twilight.”

In the receiving room, almost an hour had passed since Artemis and Twilight had vanished. In that time, the wedding had been cleaned up before the party had been set up.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Cadance, Flurry, Shining Armor, Velvet, Night Light, Spike, Applejack, Rainbow, Rarity, Pinkie and Fluttershy turned at a flash of moonlight. They smiled when they saw Artemis and Twilight standing in the middle of the room.

Celestia walked over to her siblings. “Did the two of you have fun?”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “What do you think?”

Everyone else laughed

When he’d finished laughing, Artemis looked around the room.

For the most part, everything was set up as it had been. The main difference was that the floor of right third of the room was now covered with dozens of cushions and pillows. Looking to the other side of the room, he noticed that the food table was still in the same spot . . . and still piled high with food. However, there was one addition . . . their wedding cake.

Twilight and Artemis walked over to get a closer look at the cake. It was a two tiered cake that had been frosted in a dark blue icing. White sprinkles had been very carefully placed so that they mimicked the stars in the Night Sky. Instead of the usual cake toppers, the top of the cake was decorated with his silver crescent moon that had her pink six pointed star nestled inside it.

“Don’t worry!” Pinkie said, suddenly in between them “I’ll put the cake topper on the cake for the big wedding in Canterlot!”

Twilight smiled at her friend “I’m not worried at all, Pinkie. I like it this way.”

Artemis nodded

Pinkie sighed in relief

Cadance levitated a knife over to Twilight. “The two of you have to cut the first slice.”

Twilight nodded to her sister before turning to Artemis. Working together, they cut two slices. Then they moved to the other side of the room and settled on the cushion that Rarity had made for the baby party.

Everyone else got their cake before joining them.

Sundance lay on a cushion next to Artemis. Midnight Armor lay on one that had been placed next to Twilight. Celestia lay on their father’s other side. Everyone else lay on cushions nearby.

“I’m sorry”

Twilight and Artemis looked at each other, wondering why in Equestria Pinkie was apologizing. They looked at her to see that her ears were back as she looked at the floor, her cake untouched.

“What’s wrong, Pinkie?” Twilight asked “The cake is delicious.”

Artemis nodded

Pinkie looked up at them “This is supposed to be a party!” She pouted “Princess Celestia told me that I can’t do that because everypony else in Ponyville is asleep.”

Twilight laughed “I’ll tell you what. We’ll make this a slumber party. However, you and Discord get to go all out for the reception for the big wedding.”

Pinkie’s eyes lit up “R-really?”

“Yes” Artemis answered “Everyone’s expecting it to be a big party, so you can also make it as loud as you want.”

Pinkie suddenly popped up between Twilight and Artemis before pulling both of them into a tight hug. “Thank you! It will be the best party ever, I promise!”

Sundance stared at Pinkie H-how did she do that?!

Midnight Armor looked from the cushion that Pinkie had been laying on to where she was now and back again. I-I’m not sure which surprises me more. The fact that she did that or the fact that no one else seems surprised by her actions. He watched Pinkie walk back to her cushion and lay down as if nothing had happened.

Twilight laughed when she saw the expressions on Sundance and Midnight Armor’s faces. “Pinkie does things like that all the time.”

Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow and Fluttershy nodded

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked at each other for a moment before turning back to their youngest. “I-I see.”

After everyone had finished their cake, Celestia levitated their plates and silverware over to the table. Then she cast a preservation spell on the food. “That will keep everything fresh until tomorrow.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled both of his daughters “We should get some sleep.”

Sundance nuzzled their son “Your father’s right.”

Everyone nodded before relaxing where they lay.

The next morning, Artemis and Celestia woke to the pull of their respective celestial bodies. Artemis gently woke Twilight before following his sister onto the balcony.

Twilight nuzzled Sundance and Midnight Armor.

“What’s going on?” Sundance mumbled, rubbing her eyes

Midnight Armor slowly opened his eyes as Twilight nuzzled him again. Smiling, he returned her nuzzle.

“I’m sorry for waking you,” Twilight whispered “but I thought you would like to see the sunrise.”

Both of them immediately nodded. Twilight led the way to the balcony. Sundance and Midnight Armor followed her, careful not to wake anyone else.

The three of them watched Artemis lower the moon and stars before turning to his sister. Celestia smiled at her brother before turning her attention to the sun.

Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped softly when the sun began to rise.

Their job done, Celestia and Artemis turned to see that Twilight and their parents were standing behind them.

Celestia nuzzled both of their parents. “How did you like your first sunrise in fifteen hundred years?”

“It was beautiful.” Sundance answered, nuzzling her eldest.

Midnight Armor nodded, nuzzling all three of his children

The five of them went back inside and joined everyone else. Instead of waking anyone, they snuggled together and went back to sleep.

Six hours later

Spike shook Artemis’ shoulder a few times. Artemis tried to move out of the way, but ended up rolling into his father’s side.

Midnight Armor opened his eyes “What is it?”

“It’s time for lunch.” Spike told him “Then we need to pack a few things for the trip to Canterlot.”

Midnight Armor nodded

Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nodded as well.

The five of them stood and stretched before walking over to the food table.

After they had eaten, everyone worked together to take what little food was left to the kitchen and put it away. Then everyone went to their rooms to pack their bags for the trip to Canterlot.

Sundance and Midnight Armor went to Twilight and Artemis’ room with them. They watched their youngest two children carefully pack their wedding outfits.

A knock on the door drew everyone’s attention. Artemis used his magic to open it. “Yes, sister?”

Celestia smiled “The chariot is here.” Before anyone could respond, she teleported everyone back to the receiving room.

Twilight turned to their parents “We’d like to cast a Camouflage Spell on both of you.”

Celestia nodded “In addition to keeping anypony from seeing you, it will hide your presences.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded “Good idea”

Celestia cast the spell on both of their parents before the five of them walked outside.

Shining Armor, Velvet, Night Light, Spike, Applejack, Pinkie and Rarity were already on the chariot. Cadance, Flurry, Rainbow, and Fluttershy were standing next to the chariot.

“To avoid any accidents,” Celestia began “We’re going to fly on the left side of the chariot.” Lowering her voice, she added “Mother and Father, please stay to my left. That way, no one will accidentally run into either of you.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded again

Everyone took to the air.

Thirty minutes later

The chariot landed at the side entrance to the castle. After everyone had gotten out of it, the guards put it away.

Meanwhile, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Sundance, Midnight Armor, Cadance, Flurry, Shining Armor, Velvet, Night Light, Spike, Applejack, Pinkie, Rarity, Rainbow, and Fluttershy walked into the castle.

Once they were inside, Artemis turned to Spike. “Please show Velvet, Night Light and the girls to their rooms.”

“Sure thing, Artemis” Spike replied

Celestia smiled at everyone “We’ll meet in the dining room for dinner.”

Also smiling, they nodded

Celestia teleported herself, Sundance, Midnight Armor, Artemis, Twilight, Cadance, Shining Armor and Flurry to her room. As soon as they got there, she cast a soundproofing spell before releasing her camouflage spell.

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Cadance, Shining Armor and Flurry smiled when Sundance and Midnight Armor reappeared.

“Well done.” Sundance commented, sighing in relief “I don’t think anyone, other than those we traveled with, knows that we’re here.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “That will change tomorrow.”

Everyone, except for Flurry, laughed.

Celestia lay on her bed with Twilight on one side and Artemis on the other. Sundance lay next to her son while Midnight Armor lay next to his youngest. Cadance and Shining Armor snuggled together, not far from Sundance. Flurry looked at everyone before flying to Midnight Armor and landing on his back.

Midnight Armor chuckled before levitating Flurry to a spot in between his forehooves. Flurry smiled up at him before snuggling into his chest.

For the next fifteen minutes or so, everyone just relaxed. Then Cadance looked at Twilight.

“I just thought of something.” She commented “I should be calling you “Aunt” Twilight now.”

Twilight blinked “What?”

Shining Armor laughed “She’s right, Twily.” He looked at Artemis thoughtfully “The question is . . . are you my uncle or my older brother?”

Everyone, except for Artemis, Twilight and Flurry, laughed

Artemis and Twilight looked at each other for a few minutes.

Turning to Cadance, Twilight spoke slowly “I like you better as a big sister . . . besides, it would be weird to have a niece who’s older than I am.”

Cadance laughed

Celestia thought for a few minutes. “I took Cadance in because I needed to teach her how to be a princess. However, she didn’t want me to be her adoptive mother.”

Curious, Sundance turned to Cadance “Why not?”

Wincing, Cadance quietly replied “I-I’d rather not discuss that.”

Sundance reached over and nuzzled Cadance. “It’s alright. I won’t force you to answer the question.”

Sighing in relief, Cadance returned Sundance’s nuzzle. “Thank you”

“What do you think, Artemis?” Midnight Armor asked

Artemis looked out the window for a minute before returning his attention to Shining Armor. “If I had to choose between the two, I’d go with younger brother. I’m not sure why, but it feels right.”

Shining Armor chuckled “Same here.”

“The thing is,” Celestia continued “we never went to court. Not long after she moved into the castle, Cadance suddenly began calling me “aunt”.”

Sundance turned to her eldest “So it’s not official?”

Celestia and Cadance shook their heads.

“Everypony in Equestria simply accepted it.” Cadance explained

Midnight Armor tapped his chin with a hoof. “In that case, why don’t you simply drop the “Aunt” and “Uncle”?”

Shining Armor blinked “What would that make everyone?”

“You’re my big brother.” Twilight answered “Cadance is my big sister because the two of you are married. Celestia is my big sister because she’s Artemis’ big sister.”

Artemis tilted his head “Celestia is my older sister, of course. My marriage to Twilight makes Shining Armor my younger brother and Cadance my younger sister.”

“That means I have two older siblings, Celestia and Artemis.” Cadance shook her head “That feels stranger to say than I thought it would.” I’m not sure why I didn’t ask her to be my older sister from the start.

Everyone laughed

“Anyway,” Cadance continued “Twilight is still my little sister.”

Celestia laughed “That also means Cadance and Twilight are my younger sisters, and Artemis and Shining Armor are my younger brothers.”

Sundance laughed “That makes things much easier.”

Midnight Armor looked at his wife. “That doesn’t change anything for us. We started with two children” He smiled at Twilight “and gained a second daughter.”

Twilight returned his smile

Flurry nuzzled Midnight Armor before carefully saying “Midnight”.

Chuckling, Midnight Armor nodded “That’s right.”

Then Flurry looked at Sundance. “Sun- . . . um”.

Sundance giggled before slowly saying her name.

Two tries later, Flurry slowly repeated “Sundance”

“Good job” Sundance replied, laughing

Everyone else laughed as well

Everyone jumped when they heard a knock on the door. Celestia waited for Twilight to cast a Camouflage Spell on their parents before opening it. They found Apple Crunch standing next to a cart that was loaded with food.

“I apologize for the interruption, Princess Celestia.” He said, bowing “Pinkie Pie told me that you were having a “Royal Family Sleepover” tonight and insisted that I bring your dinners to your room.”

Celestia smiled I’ll have to remember to thank her tomorrow. “I’m sorry. I must have forgotten to tell you about that.”

“It’s alright, princess.” Apple Crunch replied “I’ve prepared a three-cheese quesadilla with a large side of honey glazed steamed carrots for Princess Flurry Heart. Everypony else will be eating a broccoli and cheese casserole. Everyone will be drinking large glasses of milk. For dessert, I’ve prepared a large platter of chocolate chip cookies for everypony to share.”

Celestia’s smile widened “Thank you, Apple Crunch”

After Celestia had closed the door, and recast the soundproofing spell, Twilight released her Camouflage Spell.

Flurry looked up at Sundance and Midnight Armor. “Why were you hiding?

Sundance and Midnight Armor glanced at each other but, before they could say anything, Twilight giggled.

“They’re playing a special game of hide and seek.” She answered

Flurry’s eyes lit up “Really?”

Twilight nodded “No pony else is supposed to see them right now. That means you can’t tell anypony about them until we’re ready.” She paused “Do you think you can do that?”

“Okay!” Flurry excitedly replied

Midnight Armor nuzzled his youngest “Good idea”

After everyone had eaten, Celestia and Artemis performed their celestial duties from where they lay. Then everyone just relaxed until they fell asleep.

The next morning, Celestia and Artemis woke to the pull of their respective celestial bodies. Glancing at each other, they quietly performed their celestial duties. That done, Celestia nuzzled Twilight before reaching over her sister to nuzzle their father. Artemis nuzzled their mother. Once the five of them were awake, they woke Cadance, Shining Armor and Flurry.

Twilight cast a Camouflage Spell on her parents. As soon as she was done, Celestia teleporting her family to the dining room. They found Rainbow, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rarity, Velvet, Night Light and Spike waiting for them.

Apple Crunch brought out a large platter of breakfast pastries for them to share. Flurry drank milk while everyone else drank orange juice.

When everyone had finished eating, Celestia teleported her family and friends to the throne room.

Twilight leaned close to Fluttershy. Catching her eye, she whispered “Is he here yet?”

A small lion paw reached out of Fluttershy’s mane, gave Twilight a thumb’s up and disappeared into her mane again.

Twilight smiled “Good”

Cadance turned to her daughter “I need you to stay on Daddy’s back until I say otherwise, alright?”

Flurry nodded “Yes, Mommy”

As they had planned, Twilight sat in front of the throne with Artemis to one side and Celestia on the other. Still covered by their daughter’s Camouflage Spell, Sundance sat next to Celestia and Midnight Armor sat next to Artemis.

Cadance, Shining Armor, Rainbow, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rarity, Velvet, Night Light and Spike stood to the right. Flurry lay down on her father’s back. Twilight cast a Camouflage Spell on them before turning to face the door to the throne room.

Celestia used her magic to open the doors to the throne room. Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang walked into the room first. They took their usual positions as several dozen ponies filed into the room.

The Royal Family, their friends and guards, watched as the nobles forced everypony else to stay in the back third of the room.

In the left corner, facing the throne, stood a group of five unicorns. They worked together to cast a powerful communication spell.

Celestia resisted the urge to shake her head. It seems that Golden Thunder wants a large audience this time.

In the center of every town in Equestria, stood a trio of unicorns. Each team worked together to create a large sphere of magic.

As expected, in each town, this drew a large crowd. Eventually, there wasn’t a single pony in Equestria at work. Instead, everypony was watching what was going on in Canterlot.

In Canterlot, Golden Flash took a couple of steps forward before clearing his throat. “Good morning, Princess Celestia, Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight.”

“Good morning, Golden Flash.” Celestia, Artemis and Twilight replied

Celestia raised an eyebrow when Golden Flash didn’t say anything else. “Is there something that we can help you with?”

Golden Thunder responded by stepping out of Golden Flash’s body. Before anyone could say, or do, anything, he launched an attack at Celestia, Artemis and Twilight.

Their Royal Necklaces instantly began to glow. In the blink of an eye, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight were each surrounded with their father’s barrier. When the barriers faded, they noticed that Golden Thunder was standing in the center of a large field of magic.

Golden Thunder chuckled when he saw that Artemis’ horn was glowing. “Don’t bother. I’ve made it impossible for any attack, no matter how powerful, to enter my field of magic from the outside.” He closed his eyes as his horn began to glow.

Everyone watched a pale orange dome form over the field of magic.

Opening his eyes, he smiled at Celestia and Artemis. “I apologize for attacking you, but I felt that it was necessary. This is because I didn’t want you to attack me before I had the opportunity to cast my field of magic spell.” He looked Celestia and Artemis in the eye. “I know that you can speak with your parents whenever you want, but I’ve decided to let you see them.”

Everyone in the throne room gasped

Sapphire Wing narrowed his eyes. What is he up to? This is almost . . . nice.

“I’ve adjusted my spell so that you can call their souls to join us.” Golden Thunder explained “All you have to do is walk into the field of magic and focus on one of them.” I’m sure they know that this is a trap. However, I’m hoping that their desire to see their parents is stronger than their caution.

Celestia and Artemis glanced at each other. Both of them were thinking the same thing. This is the most obvious trap I’ve ever seen.

Sundance saw the expressions on her children’s faces and correctly guessed their thoughts. Moving silently, she stood before leaning closer to Celestia. Making sure that all three of her children could hear her, she whispered “You’re right, I’m sure that this is a trap. However, I’d like you to do it anyway.”

Also moving silently, Midnight Armor stood before leaning closer to Artemis. Speaking as softly as possible, he said “Your mother’s right. Once you pretend to summon us, we’ll be able to help you without hiding. Additionally, this is much easier than what we originally had planned.”

Taking a deep breath, Celestia and Artemis approached the field of magic. Sundance, Midnight Armor and Twilight silently followed.

Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Steel Night and Midnight Fang gasped. What are they doing?!

That’s it. “One last thing.” Golden Thunder remarked, looking at Artemis “In order for them to appear, their souls cannot be attached to anything. Unfortunately, this means that you have to release whatever spell you’re using to keep their souls attached to their stars.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor suppressed a gasp.

Celestia turned to Artemis, making sure that her mane blocked Golden Thunder’s view of their faces. Speaking just above a whisper, she asked “Mother, Father, are you sure about this?!”

“It’s alright.” Twilight said softly “As strange as this sounds, I need you to do this as well.”

“Really?!” Artemis asked softly, shocked W-why would she want me to do that?!

Twilight nodded “It’s actually required if Harmony’s plan is going to work. Don’t worry. We created a spell that will allow me to protect their souls if he tries anything.”

I don’t trust Golden Thunder at all, but I do trust Twilight. Speaking softly, Midnight Armor said “Cast it now.”

Making sure that her actions weren’t visible to anyone else, Twilight did as their father asked. “Done. I’ll cancel the Camouflage Spell as you walk through the dome. This will make it appear as if you were summoned as they walked inside it.”

Seeing the concern on her son’s face, Sundance whispered “It’s alright, Artemis. You can always reattach our souls to our stars later.”

Nodding slightly, Artemis reluctantly released his spell.

In the stars, Star Swirl watched as Sundance and Midnight Armor’s stars lost most of their brightness. “Their souls are no longer attached to their stars.”

His star brightened considerably “So far, everything is going according to plan.”

In Canterlot, Celestia lifted her head and faced Golden Thunder again.

Golden Thunder immediately noticed that Celestia, Artemis and Twilight’s horns were glowing. They must be trying to stop me from taking their parents’ souls. It’s a shame that they won’t be able to do that.

Now I just need to think of a way to get Princess Twilight to enter my field of magic as well.

Taking a deep breath, Celestia walked through the dome and into Golden Thunder’s field of magic.

Everyone in Equestria gasped when another alicorn mare suddenly appeared, walking on Celestia’s right side. They watched Artemis walk through the dome as well . . . and gasped again when another alicorn stallion suddenly appeared, walking on Artemis’ left side.

They watched the four alicorns stop a few feet in front of Golden Thunder.

In Canterlot, everyone in the back of the throne room gasped when Celestia and Artemis nuzzled Sundance and Midnight Armor. Both of them said the same two words “Mother” and “Father”.

Pretending to be surprised, Sundance and Midnight Armor looked around for a moment before returning their children’s nuzzles.

I don’t want to give Golden Thunder a chance to attack Twilight while she’s by herself. I know that her necklace will protect her, but I’d feel better if she was next to me. Looking over his shoulder, Midnight Armor smiled at his youngest. “Please join us, Twilight.”

Steel Night and Midnight Fang gasped in horror when Twilight walked inside the dome as well.

Sundance reached over Celestia while Midnight Armor leaned over Artemis. Both of them nuzzled Twilight. The five of them looked up when they heard Golden Thunder laugh. The first thing they noticed was that he had surrounded himself with another dome.

That went perfectly! I’ll have to thank King Midnight Armor later. “Hello, King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance.” Golden Thunder began, bowing “Welcome back to Equestria.”

“Why did you call Sundance and myself from the stars?” Midnight Armor asked Golden Thunder doesn’t know that Artemis is the one who did that . . . and I’m not going to tell him.

“The answer is simple, my king.” Golden Thunder answered, letting out a sinister chuckle “I’d like to pick up where I left off fifteen hundred years ago. Now that I have the five of you in my trap, it will be easy for me to kill the entire Royal Family of Equestria.”

Everyone, except for the nobles, let out gasps of horror.

“Well, that’s not entirely accurate." Golden Thunder said thoughtfully "I do plan on letting two of you live . . . for now.”

Before anyone could say anything, everyone jumped when they suddenly heard laughter.

Confused, Golden Thunder looked around “Who’s there?!”

Cadance released Twilight’s Camouflage Spell before jumping behind Celestia.

Golden Thunder glared at her “Who are you?!”

Cadance spread her wings “My name is Cadance, Princess of Love and co-ruler of the Crystal Empire.”

Golden Thunder’s eyes widened “What?!” N-no one told me that she was an alicorn!

“Now that the introductions are out of the way,” Cadance continued “I’d like to get down to business. You have several things that don’t belong to you.” She cast a spell that Celestia had created as a part of one of her back up plans. “I’m going to take one of them back.”

Golden Thunder was about to ask her what she was doing, but stopped when he noticed that Celestia was surrounded with light blue magic. Before he could react, Cadance pulled Celestia out of his field of magic.

Celestia nuzzled her sister “Thank you, Cadance.”

Growling, Golden Thunder turned to Artemis . . . only to see that he was surrounded by golden magic. He instantly turned back to Celestia, but noticed that her horn wasn’t glowing. Returning his attention to Artemis, he asked “What’s going on?!”

Artemis looked at Golden Thunder, but said nothing.

Golden Thunder looked around when he heard more laughter. After a couple of moments, he noticed that there were three unicorns standing behind Artemis. I know that the two smaller ones are Princess Twilight’s parents, but who is the other one? “You, in the front, who are you?”

Shining Armor smiled “Shining Armor, Prince and co-ruler of the Crystal Empire."

Golden Thunder’s eyes widened T-that’s Princess Twilight’s brother?!

Shining Armor turned so that Golden Thunder could see who was sitting on his back.

Golden Thunder stared “An alicorn foal?!”

Horn glowing, Flurry spread her wings before glaring at Golden Thunder. “My Uncle Art! You can’t have him!”

Golden Thunder found himself taking a step back. S-she has quite a glare for such a little filly.

Working together, Velvet, Night Light and Shining Armor guided Flurry’s magic. This allowed them to cast Celestia’s spell. Everyone watched as Artemis was pulled out of Golden Thunder’s trap. Flurry set him next to her father before reaching over to nuzzle him.

Artemis returned Flurry’s nuzzle. “Thank you”

Golden Thunder’s glare returned “That’s fine. I still have King Midnight Armor, Queen Sundance and Princess Twilight Sparkle in my trap. Unless you’re hiding more alicorns, they’re not going anywhere.”

Before he could say anything else, Golden Thunder noticed that Twilight was surrounded with magic. He watched as she was pulled out of his trap and gently set next to Artemis. That’s not her magic signature. Somepony else just saved her. “What just happened?!”

Celestia and Artemis lit their horns, drawing everyone’s attention. Looking outside, everyone noticed that the sun and the moon were both visible in the sky.

Golden Thunder paid that no mind. Turning to Twilight, he demanded “How did you escape?!”

Twilight smiled “One of my friends saved me.”

“That’s not possible!” Golden Thunder snapped “It would take somepony with alicorn-level powers to pull you out of this trap.”

Twilight laughed “This particular friend isn’t a pony at all. However, his power does rival that of an alicorn.”

“That’s not possible!” Golden Thunder repeated, louder this time “Who could possibly be that powerful?!”

Golden Thunder suddenly noticed that he was staring into a pair of glowing yellow eyes with red pupils. Scrambling backwards, he asked “W-who are you?”

Discord summoned a top hat and cane before bowing. “Discord, God of Chaos, at your service.”

Golden Thunder gasped H-He’s here?!

Turning his back on Golden Thunder, Discord winked at Twilight before smiling at Sundance and Midnight Armor. “Sunny! Nighty! It’s nice to finally meet you!” A flash of magic later, he was standing between them with an arm over each of them. After giving them a hug, he released both of them before floating into the air.

“W-why would the God of Chaos interfere?!” Golden Thunder stammered

“Simple” Discord responded, munching on a pink cotton candy cloud “Little Twily is my friend.” Suddenly right in Golden Thunder’s face again, he growled “I won’t let you harm her.”

Twilight smiled “Thank you, Discord”

Golden Thunder blinked several times. “The God of Chaos is friends with the Princess of Friendship?!”

“Makes your head hurt, doesn’t it?” Discord scratched the back of his head for a moment before shrugging and looking out the window. Then he turned to Celestia and Artemis. “Celly! Arty! I love what you’ve done with the place!” He looked out one window. “Is it Day?” He looked out another. “Is it Night?” He laughed “I can’t tell!”

Golden Thunder shook his head several times, trying to clear it. “Fine!” He snapped “I still have the souls of King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance in my trap. They have no bodies, so you can’t use that spell to pull them out of my trap.”

"Is that so?"

Everyone, except for Twilight, jumped before looking around.

“Who are you?!” Golden Thunder demanded “Where are you?!”

"That’s none of your concern." Magic replied "It’s time for our plan, Twilight." Speaking to Twilight directly, she said Execute step one.

Twilight smiled “You got it.” Closing her eyes, she focused for a moment before summoning two things to the throne room.

Everyone gasped when Sundance and Midnight Armor’s bodies appeared in the middle of the field of magic.

Well done. Magic told Twilight

The spirits of the Elements of Harmony, each speaking to their bearer directly, said the same thing at the same time. Move on to step two.

Sundance and Midnight Armor turned to Twilight, about to ask her why she had done that, but paused when they took a closer look at their youngest and her friends.

Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow, Rarity, Pinkie and Fluttershy were glowing.

Eyes wide, Golden Thunder stammered “W-who are you?!” That kind of power can’t be normal!

Applejack took a step forward “Applejack, Bearer of the Element of Honesty”

Rainbow joined her “Rainbow Dash, Bearer of the Element of Loyalty”

Rarity stepped forward “Rarity, Bearer of the Element of Generosity”

Pinkie bounced forward “Pinkie Pie, Bearer of the Element of Laughter”

Fluttershy flew forward “Fluttershy, Bearer of the Element of Kindness”

Twilight spread her wings “Twilight Sparkle, Bearer of the Element of Magic”

As one, the girls said “Together, we wield the Elements of Harmony!”

Golden Thunder gasped “W-what?!” He noticed that Twilight’s horn was glowing. “Oh no you don’t!” He tried to stop whatever spell she was about to cast, but suddenly found himself blocked. W-what the-?

Twilight giggled

Golden Thunder stared at her I-it can’t be. “Y-you blocked my magic signature?!”

“That’s right.” Twilight replied “I won’t allow you to interfere.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis laughed at the look of pure fury on Golden Thunder’s face. Well done, Twilight!

Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow, Rarity, Pinkie and Fluttershy lit up from within as each of them called on the spirit of their Elements. Then their eyes shone white as a rainbow burst from them. This rainbow circled around Sundance and Midnight Armor’s souls and bodies.

Sundance sensed that Twilight was casting a spell of some kind but, before she could say anything, her vision went dark.

Celestia and Artemis, and everyone else in Equestria, watched the column of rainbow colored magic swirling in the center of the throne room. When it finally faded, they saw Sundance and Midnight Armor’s bodies, but their souls had vanished.

Eyes wide, Artemis turned to Twilight “What did you do?!”

Twilight didn’t answer because she was focused on finishing the spell. Then she carefully watched Sundance and Midnight Armor.

Confused, Celestia and Artemis did the same.

Harmony was also paying careful attention to both of them. At the right moment, she released her Life Support Spell.

A couple of minutes later, Sundance and Midnight Armor slowly opened their eyes. The first thing they noticed was that they were standing closer to Golden Thunder than they were before. The second was hearing Twilight’s voice.

“Pull Mom and Dad out of the trap, Celestia.”

Celestia stared at her sister “B-but-”

“Trust me.” Twilight said softly “It will work.”

Taking a deep breath, Celestia cast her spell on both of her parents . . . and was shocked when she was able to remove them from Golden Thunder’s trap. “W-what?!”

Sundance and Midnight Armor watched as Celestia gently set them on the floor in front of their children.

Turning back to Twilight, Artemis repeated his question. “What did you do?!”

Twilight let out a laugh of pure joy. “The girls and I used the Elements of Harmony. Then I cast the second spell that I created for Harmony. The two combined allowed us to put Mom and Dad’s souls back in their bodies where they belong.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Golden Thunder stared at Twilight in stunned silence for several minutes. Then they, and everyone else in Equestria, shouted “What?!”

Twilight grinned at her family “That’s the first part of Harmony’s plan.”

Golden Thunder was too stunned to move. At the moment, there was only one thought going through his head. W-who in Equestria is Harmony?! Shaking himself out of his shock, he shouted “This shouldn’t be possible! I killed both of you fifteen hundred years ago! My creation ripped your souls from your bodies!”

Twilight ignored him “I’m going to need a little help explaining the second part of Harmony’s plan.” She paused “Don’t worry, she has my permission to do this.”

Celestia blinked “What, and who, are you talking about?”

“You’ll understand in a minute.” Twilight replied, closing her eyes Please tell Harmony that I’m ready, Magic.

Thank you, Twilight.

Everyone gasped when Twilight’s body was suddenly surrounded with pure magic. When she spoke, her voice thrummed with raw power.

"Do not be alarmed. I am not harming Twilight Sparkle, or her daughter, in any way. She has kindly allowed me to speak through her."

Sundance’s eyes widened “A-are you who I think you are?!”

"Yes, Sundance. I am the Spirit of the Tree of Harmony, but please call me Harmony."

Golden Thunder’s eyes widened as well. W-what?!

Everyone else gasped

“V-very well.” Sundance said slowly Now I know how Twilight must have felt the first time she spoke to Magic.

"As Twilight Sparkle stated, returning your souls to your bodies was the first part of my plan for you and your husband."

Sundance thought for a moment. “How was Twilight able to do that?”

Harmony laughed "I don’t blame you for being curious but, before I explain anything, I’d like to start with an apology. I know that you, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis were angry about the fact that you were not told about my plan." She paused "Now you see why we weren’t sure if it was possible."

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia and Artemis nodded

"Now then, I’d like to explain what I’ve done . . . and why."

"My original plan was for you and your husband to wield the Elements of Harmony. In fact, at the time of Golden Thunder’s attack, both of you were nearly ready to connect with three of the Elements."

Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped “Y-you wanted us to wield the Elements of Harmony?!”

"That’s right. The two of you were going to be the only ones to do so. Unfortunately, Golden Thunder’s actions threw that plan off track. At first, I thought he had ruined it entirely."

"That’s when I noticed that your son managed to keep your souls alive. I decided that, as long as your souls were alive, I would make sure that your bodies were as well."

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis nodded again

"As you know,-"

Golden Thunder glared at Twilight. “Are you saying that I didn’t kill either of them?!”

"No, you didn’t. Don’t interrupt me again, Golden Thunder."

Something in her tone made Golden Thunder flinch. Eyes wide, he silently nodded.

"As I was saying . . . As you know, Celestia and Artemis were able to wield the Elements of Harmony. However, they’re not the ones who I intended to wield them."

After thinking for a moment, she continued. "I didn’t expect anypony else to be able to wield them. Therefore, I was pleasantly surprised when the current bearers connected with their Elements."

"When they defeated Tirek, I realized that they might be able to help me get my plan back on track. Unfortunately, none of them were able to communicate with the spirit of their Element." She laughed "That changed when Twilight Sparkle heard Magic’s voice."

"I decided to test your daughter’s determination by asking Magic to call her bearer to the Cave of Harmony in hopes that she would discover your bodies on her own."

Midnight Armor laughed “I’d say that she passed that test.”

"You are correct, Midnight Armor. That’s why I asked Magic to tell her about my plan. You already know what happened next."

Nodding, Celestia, Artemis, Midnight Armor and Sundance smiled at Twilight.

"This brings me to the second part of my plan. I’d like to return to the plan I had for the two of you from the start . . . with a couple of changes."

Sundance exchanged glances with her husband. “What do you mean? The Elements of Harmony currently have bearers.”

"That’s where the changes come in. Midnight Armor, your role is two-fold. For now, you will protect the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony."

I don’t have a problem with that. In fact, I would have done that anyway. Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow. “For now?”

"Five of the current bearers are mortal. After each one passes, you will become the Bearer of their Element. Eventually, you will wield five of the six Elements of Harmony."

“What about the sixth?” Sundance asked

"I cannot bring myself to separate Twilight Sparkle and Magic. Therefore, she will continue to bear the Element of Magic."

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled “That’s good to know.”

"Your role is different, Sundance. You will be my bearer."

Sundance gasped “What?!”

"Like the current bearers, you will be able to speak with me whenever you want. Additionally, when necessary, I will allow you to wield my power."

Stunned, Sundance stared at Twilight for a moment before stammering “I-I see.”

"For now, the two of you will work together with the current bearers of the Elements of Harmony to protect Equestria. After the current mortal bearers pass, the two of you will work with Twilight Sparkle to perform this task."

"This is, of course, in addition to helping your children rule Equestria."

Celestia and Artemis smiled while their parents nodded.

"Now that I’ve finished the explanation, I’ll let you get back to the matter at hoof. I’ll be speaking with you soon, Sundance."

Sundance nodded

Harmony paused "One last thing. Twilight Sparkle will need a few minutes to recover from the fact that her body has been channeling so much magic."

Artemis lay down next to his wife before using a wing to pull her down next to him.

Harmony withdrew her magic from Twilight’s body. Everyone watched as Twilight’s head immediately fell onto Artemis' shoulder.

Realizing that Harmony was no longer present, and Twilight couldn't defend herself, Golden Thunder launched an attack at her.

Before her necklace could react, a barrier appeared around Twilight and Artemis. The difference was that this one was magenta instead of dark blue.

Stunned, Golden Thunder stared at it for a moment before stammering “T-that’s King Midnight Armor’s barrier!” But that isn’t his magic signature. He was torn from his thoughts by a voice.

“I won’t allow you to harm my little sister!”

Surprised, Golden Thunder turned to see Shining Armor glaring at him. Don’t tell me that he’s the one who cast that barrier!

Midnight Armor smiled “Well done, Shining Armor. I’m impressed with how quickly you were able to master my barrier.”

“Thank you, Midnight.” Shining Armor replied, smiling as well

Golden Thunder gasped again “What?!”

Before anyone could respond, they heard a soft moan. Surprised, they turned to Twilight in time to see her open her eyes.

Golden Thunder cursed as he looked down at himself. I’ve been out of a body for far too long. Reentering Golden Flash’s body won’t help. He’s nowhere near powerful enough to be able to help me. That means I’ll have to enter somepony else’s body.

Artemis nuzzled Twilight before whispering “Have you recovered enough to cast your force field?”

Nodding, Twilight cast her updated force field around the throne room. Then she altered it so that there was a hole in the middle. There were only six ponies in this unprotected area. After taking a moment to catch her breath, she cast another force field around those in the middle. This one was designed to keep Golden Thunder, and any attacks, inside.

Golden Thunder instantly understood what Twilight had done. No matter. I’ll just enter one of their bodies. Princess Celestia is the most senior of the current ruling bodies. Additionally, the rest of them won’t be able to bring themselves to attack her.

Grateful that Celestia was standing nearby, Golden Thunder entered her body . . . and rushed back out a few seconds later. Turning to her, he asked “How do you stand all that heat?!”

Celestia laughed “My body isn’t usually this hot.”

Surprised, Golden Thunder asked “Then why is it so hot now?”

“Your attempt to take over my body has angered the sun.” Celestia answered “Thanks to our bond, solar flames don’t hurt me. Therefore, the sun decided to use them to force you out of my body.”

“I-I see” Golden Thunder stammered “Perhaps Prince Artemis would be a better target.” He gasped when Night’s voice echoed around the throne room.

"Come on in. Just remember, I’m already in here."

Golden Thunder shuddered “N-never mind. Perhaps I should try Princess Twilight instead. She doesn’t have any connection with the sun . . . or another soul in her body.”

"Try it. I’d love to see how long you can last against me."

Eyes wide, Golden Thunder turned to Twilight “W-who’s voice is that?!”

“The spirit of the Element of Magic.” Twilight answered

Golden Thunder’s eyes widened even further. I can’t defeat magic itself! He paused Wait a minute. King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance are back in their bodies! If I can control one of them . . . He paused when he saw that Midnight Armor was glowing with several colors.

Bemused, Midnight Armor looked down at his body. “It appears that the spirits of the other Elements of Harmony are willing to protect me.” I’ll have to find a way to thank them.

Speaking together, Loyalty, Laughter, Honesty, Generosity and Kindness replied You just did.

Midnight Armor blinked I didn’t know that you could hear my thoughts. I’m not supposed to take over as your bearer until Twilight’s friends pass . . . and that shouldn’t happen for at least a few decades.

You are the one who was originally supposed to bear the Elements of Loyalty, Honesty and Generosity. Kindness explained Therefore, each of them formed a link with you fifteen hundred years ago. Laughter and I formed our links with you after your body was placed under the Tree of Harmony.

I-I see. Midnight Armor slowly replied That’s going to take some getting used to. In fact, everything that happened today feels like a dream. It’s probably going to be a while before it really sinks in.

Loyalty, Laughter, Honesty, Generosity and Kindness laughed

Sundance’s eyes widened when her body suddenly began to glow a pale blue. Is this Harmony’s magic?

That’s right. Harmony replied I have no intention of allowing that pony inside your body.

Thank you. Sundance turned to Golden Thunder “As you can see, Harmony is protecting me.” She smiled “It doesn’t look like you’re going to be able to take over any of us.”

“I can see that.” Golden Thunder growled “Since I can’t take over your bodies, I’ll just have to kill you.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded to each other before turning to their children. Midnight Armor nuzzled Twilight before gently pushing her inside her force field. Sundance did the same to Celestia and Artemis.

Genuinely confused, Golden Thunder asked “Why did you do that?”

Speaking together, Sundance and Midnight Armor replied “Your fight is with us.”

Chapter 73

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 74

Five hours later

Sundance rolled onto her side as she began to wake up.

“Mmph!”

Confused, Sundance opened her eyes and looked towards the voice. After blinking a few times, she noticed that there was something lavender pinned between herself and her husband. Lavender? It took a minute for her to wake up enough to realize who it was. Gasping softly, she moved over to give Twilight more space. “I’m sorry, Twilight! I didn’t-” She stopped when her youngest nuzzled her.

“Don’t worry, Mom.” Twilight said quietly “I’m not hurt.”

Sighing in relief, Sundance returned her daughter’s nuzzle. “Are you ready to eat breakfast?”

Twilight giggled “It’s almost time for lunch.”

Sundance gasped “Did I really sleep that late?!”

“It’s alright.” Twilight replied, nodding at the rest of their family “As you can see, everyone else did as well.”

Sundance nuzzled her youngest again. “I’d like to cast a magic scan on you.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “Why?”

“Stress can be dangerous for a pregnant mare.” Sundance explained “I want to make sure that the events of yesterday morning didn’t harm you or Lavender Selene.”

You’re right about stress being dangerous for Twilight Sparkle. Harmony waited a moment before hesitantly continuing. However, if you don’t mind, I’d like to ask you a question.

Surprised, Sundance replied I don’t mind at all. What’s the question?

Who is Lavender Selene?

Sundance smiled My granddaughter.

Harmony gasped THAT’S what Twilight Sparkle decided to name her daughter?

Yes. Sundance answered

That’s a beautiful name. Harmony said softly

You’re right. Sundance responded

“It’s alright.” Twilight quietly replied “You can cast a magic scan on me.”

Sundance smiled at her daughter before casting an advanced magic scan. She sighed in relief again when she got the results. “There was no harm done to either of you.”

“That’s good to hear.” Midnight Armor said quietly

Sundance and Twilight jumped slightly before turning to him.

Laughing softly, he reached over Twilight to nuzzle his wife. “We should wake Celestia and Artemis.”

Nodding, Sundance nuzzled Celestia while Midnight Armor nuzzled Artemis. Celestia and Artemis snuggled closer to their parents before slowly opening their eyes.

Celestia focused on the sun for a moment. “Well, we’re definitely not eating breakfast.”

“What do you mean?” Artemis asked

“Lunch will be ready in a little over an hour.” Celestia answered

“I see.” Artemis said slowly “In that case, perhaps we should use that time to take a bath.”

Sundance smiled “Good idea”

Twilight turned to her husband. “Should we head to our room?”

“That’s not necessary.” Celestia replied, smiling at her sister “My bathtub is large enough for all of us.”

“We’ll get to that in a minute.” Midnight Armor said, turning to his son.

Artemis raised an eyebrow when he saw the expression on his father’s face. “Is something wrong?”

Blushing slightly, Midnight Armor shook his head. “I need to relieve myself, but I’m not familiar with the contraption that you call a “toilet”.”

“It’s alright, Father, I understand.” Artemis replied, climbing off of his sister’s bed “I went through the same thing when I returned.”

Sighing in relief, Midnight Armor climbed off of the bed as well before following his son into the bathroom.

Artemis poked his head into the room a few minutes later. “Father is done. You should probably do the same with Mother, sister.”

Twilight stayed in bed while Celestia and Sundance stood before heading into the bathroom as well.

Midnight Armor returned to the room roughly five minutes later. “Please join us, Twilight.”

“Yes, Dad.” Twilight replied

Midnight Armor smiled as he watched her climb off of the bed before walking over to him. They walked into the bathroom together.

In the bathroom, Celestia, Artemis and Sundance waited for Midnight Armor and Twilight to walk closer to the bathtub. Then Celestia showed her parents how to set the temperature and start the water. All five of them walked into the tub when it was full. Sundance and Midnight Armor they lay down side by side in the middle of the tub.

Sundance sighed in pleasure. “The bath we took as spirits was lovely, but I think this one is even better.”

“You’re right, Honey.” Midnight Armor remarked, also sighing in pleasure

Smiling, Artemis lay down next to his father. Celestia lay down next to her mother before noticing that Twilight was walking towards Artemis. With a mischievous smile, she used a wing to send a wave of water at her sister.

Twilight gasped in surprise when the wave of hot water washed over her head. She lifted her head above the water, and shook her mane out of her eyes, before turning to her sister. “What was that for?!”

Celestia, Artemis, Sundance and Midnight Armor instantly began to laugh.

Harmony began to laugh as well. Your mischievous side is the reason that you were originally going to be the bearer of the Element of Laughter. It appears that Celestia is just as mischievous as you are.

You’re right. Sundance replied Midnight says that she gets it from me, but that’s not entirely true. He hides it well, but he also has a mischievous side. As for Artemis, he may appear serious but he has a mischievous side as well. Not many ponies know this, but he used to play pranks on Celestia all the time when they were younger.

Clearly surprised, Harmony said I never would have guessed that. In fact, I was surprised when he connected with the Element of Laughter because I had expected Celestia to be the one to wield it.

If I had to guess, I’d say that Artemis suppressed his mischievous side when it appeared that Midnight and I died. Sundance suppressed a sigh. Most of Equestria shunning him and his Night probably didn’t help matters. Of course, all of this was before Night-Terror Knight took over his body . . . the first time. Then he was banished to, and sealed in, his moon.

That makes sense. Harmony thought for a moment. Wait a minute. It’s not as pronounced as Celestia’s, but Artemis clearly has a mischievous side.

I’m sure Celestia had a part in bringing that out in him again. Sundance replied

I think Twilight Sparkle did as well. Harmony commented

Sundance smiled You’re probably right.

Twilight’s horn began to glow. I’m going to get her for that.

What are you going to do about it? Magic asked, struggling not to laugh I don’t want to anger my bearer, but that was funny.

You’ll see. Smirking, Twilight levitated a large sphere of water over her sister.

Celestia was shocked when what felt like a waterfall suddenly fell on her head. She immediately turned to Twilight.

Magic laughed So THAT’S what you had in mind.

That’s right. Twilight laughed at her sister’s expression. “What? You started it!”

Harmony began to laugh again. T-that was even better!

You’re right. Sundance replied, laughing as well Twilight hides it well, but she’s a little prankster.

I-I had no idea! Harmony responded, still laughing She seems so serious!

Midnight Armor and Artemis immediately began to laugh again as well.

Celestia raised an eyebrow. “You think that’s funny?”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Artemis were laughing too hard to speak, so they just nodded.

Celestia smirked “I see. In that case, you’ll love this.” She used her magic to dump water on all three of them at the same time.

It quickly turned into a five-way water fight. They only ended it when everyone was out of breath. Celestia, Artemis, Midnight Armor and Sundance lay down again. Twilight lay down next to Artemis.

Sundance lay her head on her husband’s shoulder. “I needed that.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “Agreed”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nodded. The five of them made an unspoken decision to relax for a while.

Sundance turned her attention to Harmony. Do you mind if I ask you something?

Of course not. Is something wrong?

I was about to ask you the same thing.

What do you mean?

I noticed that you seemed hesitant when you asked me a question earlier.

If Harmony was a pony, her face would have been bright red. I was just worried that I may have been annoying you by talking too much.

Confused, Sundance asked Why would you think that?

After a moment of shock, Harmony began to laugh again. Now I know how Magic, Laughter, Honesty, Generosity, Kindness and Loyalty felt.

Sundance was surprised, and even more confused, by the sudden change of topic. What are you talking about?

Magic, Laughter, Honesty, Generosity, Kindness and Loyalty have never been able to talk to anyone other than each other . . . and me. Harmony explained That changed four months ago.

Sundance suppressed a gasp. Of course! That’s when Twilight heard Magic’s voice for the first time.

That’s right. Do you remember how happy Magic was?

Yes. Twilight was confused because Magic kept laughing. We thought that was strange because, at the time, Golden Thunder was trying to take the souls of Midnight and myself.

I assure you that Magic didn’t mean anything by it. It’s just that she was so happy to finally be able to speak to her bearer. Kindness, Loyalty, Generosity, Laughter and Honesty had the same reaction when Twilight Sparkle helped them connect with their bearers. They were so happy that they spoke to their bearers every chance they got.

That makes sense. Sundance responded

In fact, I’m amazed that Twilight Sparkle was able to get any research done when she wasn’t able to speak to you.

Surprised, Sundance asked Why?

Magic spoke to her bearer as often as she could. She even did so when Twilight Sparkle was trying to teach her students. Harmony laughed Twilight Sparkle eventually had no choice but to tell Magic to be quiet.

Sundance laughed as well.

Once class was over for the day, Twilight Sparkle and Magic had a long discussion. It took a few hours, but they’ve reached an understanding.

Do you mind if I ask what it is?

Not at all. Magic is allowed to speak to her bearer whenever she wants. However, there’s no guarantee that Twilight Sparkle will respond if she’s busy with class, court or her research.

That makes sense. Sundance said slowly. As for you, you’re probably going through the same thing that the spirits of the Elements did.

That’s right. Harmony responded

Sundance thought for a moment. You told me that I can talk to you whenever I want, so I don’t see any reason why you can’t do the same.

Harmony gasped Are you sure?

Sundance laughed again Of course. However, I might not respond if I’m busy with court, or my lessons with my children.

That’s fine with me. Harmony quickly replied

“Mother?”

Startled, Sundance jumped before looking around to see that her family was watching at her. Celestia, Artemis and Midnight Armor were clearly confused.

Twilight had a knowing smile on her face. “Let me guess. You were talking to Harmony.”

Blushing, Sundance nodded

Twilight laughed “I knew it. If she’s anything like Magic, she’s probably very happy that she’s able to speak to you.”

Sundance nodded again

Harmony, Magic, Celestia, Artemis and Midnight Armor laughed as well.

Do you have a minute, Midnight Armor?

Please call me Midnight, Loyalty. Midnight Armor replied The same applies to you, Honesty, Laughter, Kindness and Generosity.

Speaking together, the five of them said. Alright.

I assume you want to discuss something. Midnight Armor commented

That’s right. Loyalty responded I thought this would be a good time to discuss how communication would work between the six of us.

Alright. Midnight Armor responded What do you have in mind?

Laughter, Kindness, Honesty, Generosity and I will answer your call whenever you need us. We’ll also answer any questions that you have for us. Loyalty paused I hope this doesn’t offend him. However, we’d like to spend most of the time focusing on our current bearers.

I don’t have a problem with that.

Loyalty sighed in relief. Thank you, Midnight.

However, I do have a request.

Yes? Loyalty nervously replied

I want the five of you to tell me whenever danger approaches those girls. I’m supposed to protect them, but I can’t do so if I don’t know that they’re in danger.

We will. Loyalty, Laughter, Kindness, Generosity and Honesty immediately promised.

Thank you. Midnight Armor replied

“Father?”

Midnight Armor jumped “Yes, Artemis?”

Artemis chuckled “Which Element were you speaking to?”

Midnight Armor blushed “Loyalty”

Harmony, Loyalty, Magic, Honesty, Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight laughed.

Celestia levitated several bottles of body wash over to them. Midnight Armor chose the citrus scent while Sundance chose the rose scent. Artemis used the ocean scent, Celestia used the vanilla scent and Twilight chose the lavender. Once everyone was clean, Celestia showed their parents how to empty the tub. When they were done, the five of them returned to Celestia’s room.

Midnight Armor, Celestia, Twilight and Artemis began walking towards the door to the hall, but paused when Sundance gasped.

Midnight Armor turned to see that his wife was staring at his right flank. Why is she staring at me like that? “What is it, Sundance?”

“Y-your Soul Mark!” Sundance stammered

Confused, Midnight Armor asked “What about it?”

“I-it’s changed!” Sundance answered

“What?!” Midnight Armor immediately looked at his Soul Mark. His eyes widened when he noticed the change, but he was too stunned to say anything.

Celestia and Twilight echoed their father. “What?!”

Artemis looked at his father’s Cutie Mark. “Mother’s right! Father’s Cutie Mark used to be a pair of crossed swords behind a silver shield.”

Celestia looked at her father’s Cutie Mark as well. “That part hasn’t changed, but current versions of the Elements of Harmony are on the shield now.”

Sundance took a closer look at her husband’s Soul Mark. “The Elements are arranged in a circle. The Element of Magic is at the top of the shield. The Element of Loyalty is on one side and the Element of Honesty is on the other. The Element of Kindness is on the other side of the Element of Honesty and the Element of Laughter is on the other side of the Element of Loyalty. The Element of Generosity is between the Elements of Kindness and Laughter, opposite of the Element of Magic.”

“It looks like your Cutie Mark has changed as well, Mom.” Twilight said quietly

Sundance gasped again “What?!” Her eyes widened when she looked at her left flank.

Midnight Armor, Artemis and Celestia instantly looked at Sundance’s Cutie Mark as well.

“Twilight’s right.” Midnight Armor said slowly “Sundance’s Soul Mark used to be half a dozen silver six-pointed stars.” He laughed “For some reason, they always shimmered when she moved.”

“That part is still the same.” Artemis pointed out “However, it looks like the stars are falling on the Tree of Harmony now.” He took a closer look. “The Tree of Harmony also has the current physical versions of the Elements of Harmony on it.”

Celestia and Twilight gasped again.

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked at each other, both asking the same thing. “What’s going on?!”

Harmony used her connection to Sundance to speak to all of them. “Midnight Armor, your Soul Mark tells everyone about your connection to the Elements of Harmony. You may not have a connection to the Element of Magic, but you do have a connection to its bearer.”

“As for you, Sundance, your Soul Mark tells everyone about your connection to me.”

Worried, Twilight asked “Does that mean their specialties have also changed?”

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Artemis and Celestia’s eyes widened.

“Don’t worry.” Harmony responded “Sundance’s specialty is still magic and Midnight Armor’s is still warfare.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis sighed in relief. Twilight was about to say something, but paused when her stomach growled. Harmony, Magic, Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis laughed when Twilight blushed.

Artemis nuzzled his wife before turning to his sister. “We should head to the dining room.”

Celestia responded by teleporting them, and the cart that had held last night’s dinner, there.

In the dining room, Apple Crunch turned at the sound of a teleportation spell. He smiled when he saw the Royal Family. “Good afternoon, your highnesses.”

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Artemis, Twilight and Celestia returned his smile. “Good afternoon.”

Apple Crunch waited until they were seated at the dining table before continuing. “Lunch and dinner are going to be relatively light meals because of the festivities that are scheduled for later tonight.”

Twilight and Artemis smiled at each other before returning their attention to Apple Crunch.

“I’ve prepared two cucumber, lettuce and tomato sandwiches for each of you with a side of fried potatoes.” Apple Crunch continued “Each of you will be drinking a large glass of milk.”

“Thank you” Celestia replied

Apple Crunch brought out their lunches before taking the cart into the kitchen.

Twilight quickly finished her sandwiches before turning her attention to her fried potatoes. As she worked her way through them, she thought about what had happened over the last couple of months.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis looked up when they heard Twilight laugh.

“Twilight?” Sundance asked

Twilight looked at Sundance and Midnight Armor. “I said something that I need to take back.”

Confused, Midnight Armor exchanged glances with his wife before returning his attention to their youngest. “What are you talking about?”

“Remember when you visited Artemis’ dream last month?” Twilight asked

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded

“I told you that there would be too many ponies around for the two of you to come to the larger wedding.” Twilight reminded them

Midnight Armor, Sundance and Artemis laughed.

“That’s no longer an issue.” Celestia commented, laughing as well

Twilight giggled “That’s why I said that I needed to take it back.”

The five of them laughed again before standing and walking out of the dining room.

“What do you want to do now?” Midnight Armor asked

“How about a tour of the castle?” Artemis responded

Sundance nodded “Good idea”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight showed their parents the gardens, the training yard, the throne room, Twilight’s classroom, the library and the ballroom.

“What’s next?” Sundance asked as they walked down a hallway.

“The hospital wing” Celestia answered, leading them inside

In the hospital wing, Stone Steps and Ivy looked up at the sound of hoofsteps.

“Thank goodness” Stone Steps said, sighing in relief “I was about to send somepony to bring you here, Princess Twilight.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “Why? My next appointment isn’t until next month.”

“That’s true, princess.” Ivy replied “However, we’d like to make sure that the events of yesterday haven’t harmed you or your foal. Don’t worry, it won’t take long.”

“Alright” Twilight responded, watching Ivy cast a magic scan.

Sundance raised an eyebrow. That magic scan is fine for checking Twilight’s health, but it’s nowhere near detailed enough to reveal anything specific about Lavender Selene’s. Thank goodness already I checked on both of them.

Perhaps you should show them how it’s done. Harmony suggested

I’ll probably do that at a later date. Sundance replied

A few minutes later, Ivy sighed in relief. “There was no harm done.”

“I already knew that.” Twilight responded “Mom was worried about that as well, so she cast an advanced magic scan on me this morning. I didn’t say anything because I knew that you would insist on checking anyway.”

Stone Steps smiled “I see.”

Ivy bowed to Sundance. “You’re Queen Sundance, right?”

Sundance nodded It’s going to be a while before I get used to that title again.

Harmony laughed

“I know I’ve read your name before.” Ivy levitated over a medical book and opened it to a page near the front. “If I recall correctly, it should be right over . . . here.” Gasping, she looked up at Sundance. “Y-you’re that Sundance, aren’t you?!”

“Unfortunately, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Sundance slowly replied

Ivy turned the book so Sundance could read it. She paused when she saw Sundance’s expression. “Is something wrong?”

“Mom and Dad don’t know how to read the current written language.” Twilight explained “Well, perhaps I should say that they don’t know how to read it yet.”

Midnight Armor turned to his youngest. “Yet?”

“Celestia and Artemis will teach the two of you about the way court is currently run, the current legal system, taxes . . . well, let’s just say that it’s a long list.” Twilight responded

Celestia and Artemis laughed

“I’ll be teaching you about history, science and things like that.” Twilight continued “However, the first thing I’m going to teach both of you is how to read the current written language.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled at their children. “Thank you”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight returned their parents’ smiles. “You’re welcome.”

Twilight looked at the book that Ivy was holding in her magic. After reading it for a moment, her smile widened. “It looks like you’re the one who invented all of the magic scans in this book, Mom.”

Ivy gasped again I never thought I’d get to meet the pony who invented most of the magic scans that are in use today.

Sundance stared at the book in shock. “H-how is that possible?! It’s true that I created several magic scans, but that was fifteen hundred years ago.” She thought for a moment before turning to Celestia. “Did you save my notes?”

“Artemis and I did better than that.” Celestia replied “We had them turned into a medical book. It’s been translated and reprinted several times over the centuries. The book in front of you is the current version.”

Eyes wide, Ivy stared at Sundance for a moment. I’ll wait until she’s had more time to adjust to the modern era. When she’s settled in a bit more, I’d love to ask her a few things.

Stone Steps turned to Sundance and Midnight Armor. “First of all, welcome back.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled “Thank you”

“Second,” Stone Steps continued “I’d like to perform physical exams on both of you. I’d also like to make sure that both of you receive the necessary vaccinations.”

Sundance blinked “What are those?”

This is bad. Artemis turned to Celestia. “Is that really necessary?”

“Yes” Celestia answered “You know that it has to be done.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Artemis responded “Does that have to happen today?”

Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Why do you ask?”

“You remember what those vaccines did to me, right?” Artemis asked

“I still think you were over reacting.” Celestia replied “There isn’t anything in any of those vaccines that can make a pony sick.”

Artemis narrowed his eyes. “I was not overreacting, sister.”

Midnight Armor and Sundance exchanged glances before turning to their children. However, before either of them could say anything, they felt several sharp needles enter their hindquarters. Both of them whirled around to see that Ivy had sixteen empty syringes suspended in her magic.

“Why did you do that?!” Midnight Armor demanded, horn glowing

Stone Steps’ eyes widened when he noticed that that Sundance’s horn was glowing as well. “I-I’ve learned that it’s better if I don’t tell ponies that it’s coming.”

Sundance allowed her magic to fade before speaking in a low voice. “Don’t do that again. Midnight and I almost took it as an attack.”

Midnight Armor allowed his magic to fade as well. “Sundance is correct.”

Stone Steps gulped “I-I understand. The good news is that you’ve received all of the necessary vaccines.”

They might not have the same reaction you did. Night said softly

Artemis winced as he remembered his first experience with vaccines. I really hope you’re right.

“I-I think we should move onto the physical exam.” Ivy said slowly

“That’s fine.” Midnight Armor replied “However, I’m going first.” This way, if any part of it is painful, Sundance will be able to prepare for it.

Good idea. Kindness responded

Nodding, Stone Steps and Ivy got started.

Over the next ten minutes or so, Sundance and Midnight Armor became increasingly uncomfortable. Then both of them levitated trashcans to them before beginning to violently lose their lunches.

Harmony, Loyalty, Kindness, Laughter, Honesty and Generosity gasped. Are you alright?!

A-ask me later. Sundance slowly replied I’m a little busy at the moment.

I’m not sure. Midnight Armor answered I’ve never had this reaction to medicine before.

Night sighed It seems you were right to be worried, Artemis.

Artemis sighed as well. “I was afraid of this.” He turned to his sister. “Do you still think I was overreacting?”

Eyes wide, Celestia shook her head before turning to Stone Steps. “What’s going on?!”

“I-I don’t know, princess.” Stone Steps stammered “This doesn’t make any sense. We gave them the mildest versions available.”

“Well, something’s obviously wrong.” Celestia replied “Please figure it out as quickly as possible.”

Stone Steps bowed “Yes, Princess Celestia.” He thought for a couple of minutes before turning to Artemis. “I don’t remember you having this reaction.”

“Of course you don’t.” Artemis replied, unable to keep the anger out of his voice. “You had other things on your mind at the time.”

Celestia turned to her brother. “What do you mean?”

Sundance and Midnight Armor lifted their heads out of the trash cans before looking at their children.

“I’d rather not discuss it right now.” Artemis answered

“You should tell us what happened, Artemis.” Celestia responded “It might be something that Stone Steps needs to know for Mother and Father’s care.”

Artemis narrowed his eyes. “Trust me, it’s not.” Leave it alone, Celestia. Please.

Does he really plan to withhold information that could help Mother and Father?! Celestia gave her brother a look. “Artemis . . .”

Night sighed again I really wish Celestia would leave it alone. Artemis doesn’t need to relive that . . . especially on his wedding day. He was pulled from his thoughts by Artemis’ voice.

“Fine.” Artemis growled “I’ll show you what happened.”

- - Artemis’ Flashback - - -

Celestia and Artemis walked into the hospital wing. “This is the hospital wing, Artemis.”

Artemis shook his light blue mane out of his eyes before looking up at his sister. I can’t wait until my magic recovers enough for me to regain my proper form. “These “Doctors” are what we used to call healers?”

Celestia smiled at her brother. “That’s right.” She turned to an earth pony stallion. “Good morning, Stone Steps. I trust you’re settling in well?”

Stone Steps, clearly a new doctor, tore his gaze from Artemis before bowing to Celestia. “Yes, Princess Celestia.”

“That’s good to hear.” Celestia replied “I’d like you to give my brother a full physical exam.” She thought for a moment. “You should also ensure that he receives all of the necessary vaccines.”

Artemis blinked “What are “vaccines”?”

“Stone Steps will answer that, and any other questions you have.” Celestia answered, leaning down to nuzzle her brother “I’m afraid I can’t stay because I’m needed in court. When you’re done, you can rest in your room. Do you remember how to get there?”

Artemis returned his sister’s nuzzle. “Yes, sister.”

Celestia smiled at Artemis before walking out of the hospital wing.

Artemis turned to see that Stone Steps was glaring at him. Taking a step back, he asked “Is something wrong?”

Ignoring the question, Stone Steps turned to a nearby unicorn stallion. “Are the vaccines ready, Splint?”

Splint walked over with eight syringes suspended in his magic. “I have them right here.”

“Good.” Stone Steps responded “Go ahead and administer them.”

Nodding again, Splint proceeded to give Artemis all eight vaccines at the same time.

Eyes wide, Artemis jumped backwards as he used his magic to remove the empty syringes from his rear end. “What was that for?!”

“If you don’t like it, take it up with Princess Celestia.” Stone Steps snarled “We’re just following her orders.”

W-why is he treating me like this? “I-I understand.” Artemis replied

“Come on then.” Stone Steps responded “It’s time for your physical exam.”

Ten minutes later, Artemis began to squirm uncomfortably. “Stone Steps?”

Stone Steps was trying to take Artemis’ pulse. “What do you want?”

“I think something is wrong.” Artemis said slowly

“What makes you say that?” Stone Steps snapped

“I don’t feel good.” Artemis replied “In fact, I think I’m going to be sick.”

Stone Steps rolled his eyes. “You’re fine.”

Artemis levitated a trash can over before beginning to violently lose his breakfast.

Stone Steps smiled “I never thought something as simple as vaccines would be able to bring you down, Night-Terror Knight.”

Artemis waited until his stomach was empty before raising his head. “I-I’m not Night-Terror Knight. My name is Artemis.”

“Sure it is.” Stone Steps responded “You may have fooled Princess Celestia, but you can’t trick me.”

Artemis walked towards the door as tears began to well up in his eyes.

“Get back here!” Stone Steps called “Your physical exam isn’t over yet.”

Sobbing now, Artemis teleported to his room.

- - End Flashback - - -

“I remember now.” Stone Steps said quietly “I had just started working at the castle. The pony that was showing me the ropes had convinced me that you were still Night-Terror Knight, so I treated you accordingly.”

Celestia stared at him in horror. “What?!”

“Most of the ponies in the castle treated me like that whenever you weren’t around.” Artemis explained, struggling not to yell at his sister. Knowing that she was going to ask, he added. “They did so for several months. In fact, the only ones who didn’t were you and a few members of my Night Guard.”

“I-I had no idea.” Celestia whispered

Midnight Armor was about to say something, but stopped when another wave of nausea hit him. He managed to put his head back in the trash can before more of his lunch came back up. Why did they treat Artemis like that?!

Good question.Kindness said softly It should have been obvious that he wasn’t Night-Terror Knight.

No one could see it because her head was also in the trash can again, but Sundance was crying. I can’t believe Artemis had to go through that . . . on top of everything that he had just gone through.

Agreed. Harmony said sadly He didn’t do anything to deserve being treated like that.

Artemis glared at his sister. “Now you know why I didn’t want to discuss it.”

Celestia’s ears drooped “I’m sorry, Artemis.”

Artemis took several deep breaths before glancing at his parents. “I guess they won’t be able to attend the wedding after all.”

Celestia’s eyes widened “What do you mean?”

“I spent the rest of that day in my room.” Artemis reminded her “If I wasn’t in bed, I was in the bathroom . . . with my head in the toilet. Additionally, I wasn’t able to keep anything solid in my stomach for the next two days. It will probably be the same for Mother and Father.”

Celestia winced “I see.” That must be why he didn’t want Mother and Father to get the vaccines today.

Artemis began to walk towards the door.

“You’re leaving?” Celestia hesitantly asked

“I need to calm down.” Artemis paused long enough to have a quiet discussion with Twilight. He left the room as soon as she nodded.

Celestia raised an eyebrow when her sister began to walk towards the door as well. “Where are you going, Twilight?”

“The library.” Twilight gave her sister a look. “You should stay here so you can take care of Mom and Dad.” She teleported out of the room before anyone could say anything else.

Celestia sighed Great. I’ve managed to anger both of them . . . on their wedding day.

Midnight Armor lifted his head out of the trash can, and wiped his mouth, before turning to his eldest. “You shouldn’t have done that, Celestia.”

“Your father’s right.” Sundance commented, raising her head and wiping her mouth as well. “Artemis specifically told you that he didn’t want to discuss it.”

Celestia sighed again “I thought it might be information that we could use to help you feel better.”

“Why did you allow ponies to treat your brother like that?” Midnight Armor asked

“I didn’t know that it was happening.” Celestia answered, using her magic to dry her mother’s eyes. “As Artemis said, they never acted like that when I was around.”

“What about the memory that Artemis showed us?” Sundance asked “I know you weren’t there to see it, but you had to know that something had happened.”

“You’re right, Mother.” Celestia replied “I went to Artemis' room after court was done for the day. As soon as he saw me, he buried his face in my chest and began to cry. I immediately asked him what was wrong, but he was crying too hard to say anything. In fact, he cried himself to sleep. I asked him about it the next morning, but he didn’t want to talk about it.”

Sundance’s ears drooped. “I see.” I don't blame Artemis for not wanting to discuss it, but he should have told his sister what was going on. I'm certain that she would have immediately put a stop to it. She turned to Stone Steps. “Are you finished with Midnight’s exam?”

Stone Steps nodded I’ll find a way to apologize to Prince Artemis later.

“In that case, I suppose it’s my turn.” Sundance replied

Stone Steps and Ivy began the exam, pausing whenever Sundance needed to return to the trash can.

Meanwhile, Twilight had just appeared in the library. Her students, and their parents, looked up at the sound of the teleportation spell. They were about to say something, but stopped when they saw her expression.

Twilight closed her eyes as her horn began to glow.

Her students’ jaws dropped when every book in the medical section flew towards her. The foals watched in awe as most of the books were returned to their shelves. They looked on as she opened the nine that remained in front of her.

Her students’ parents’ eyes widened as they watched her carefully read them before chewing her bottom lip for a few minutes.

Sapphire Wing watched Twilight summon a scroll and quill before taking some notes. “What is she doing?”

“I’m not sure.” Amber Gem replied

Ice Blossom watched Twilight for a couple of minutes. “I see. She’s creating a new spell.”

Surprised, Winter Night looked up at her mother. “Really?”

Ice Blossom nodded

Crystal was still struggling with some of the larger words. She gently poked Astral Flash before pointing to the book that she was reading. “What’s this word mean?”

Twilight glanced at the word that Crystal was pointing at.

“In . . . intimid-” Crystal said slowly

“Intimidated” Twilight said softly “It means “scared”.”

Crystal gasped “P-princess Twilight, I-”

Twilight smiled at the filly. “It’s alright. I got stuck on that word all the time when I was your age.”

Crystal sighed in relief. “Thank you, princess.”

Ice Blossom walked closer to Twilight before bowing. “I couldn’t help but notice that you aren’t in a very good mood, princess. Do you mind if I ask what the problem is?”

Twilight sighed “Mom and Dad are having a negative reaction to the shots they were given.”

Her students gasped “They had to get shots?!”

Twilight nodded “Both of them were given eight at the same time.”

All of her students shuddered. “Ouch”

“That’s no fun.” Thunder Spark commented

Sapphire Wing opened his mouth.

Twilight shook her head “You’re right. There’s more to it, but I’d rather not discuss it.” She paused “Don’t ask Artemis or Celestia. In fact, it’s probably best if you leave it alone.”

“Yes, princess.” Sapphire Wing replied, bowing “Were you able to find a way to help King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance?”

Twilight nodded again “If this spell works, they’ll be feeling better soon.”

I’d be surprised if her spell doesn’t work. Sapphire Wing sighed in relief. “Good”

Twilight smiled at everyone “I’d better go. I need to cast this spell on them as soon as possible. I’ll see you at the wedding tonight.”

Her students and their parents bowed “Yes, Princess Twilight.”

Twilight returned the books to their shelves before teleporting out of the room.

In the hospital wing, Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Stone Steps and Ivy looked up at the sound of a teleportation spell to see that Twilight was standing near the door.

“Why did you go to the library, Twilight?” Celestia asked

“Artemis told me exactly how the vaccines affected him.” Twilight answered “I wanted to look up a few things.”

“I see.” Celestia said slowly “What did you discover?”

“Those vaccines don’t affect me because I’ve been exposed to them since I was very young.” Twilight explained “They don’t affect you because you’ve been exposed to them since they were invented.” She thought for a moment. “Artemis has had four years to adapt to the medical advances of the modern era, so they don’t affect him anymore.”

“What about Mother and Father?” Celesta asked

Twilight sighed “Mom and Dad are used to the medical practices that were used fifteen hundred years ago. Therefore, their bodies see most modern medicine, including the vaccines, as poison. This is because the chemicals that they’re made of didn’t exist fifteen hundred years ago.”

Ivy gasped “Of course! That’s why their bodies reacted by removing everything in their stomachs!”

I can’t believe I didn’t I think about that! Stone Steps winced “That must be why Prince Artemis had the same reaction.”

Celestia tilted her head "There wasn't anything poisonous in the vaccines, so Mother and Father should recover quickly."

"You're right, princess." Stone Steps thought for a moment. “Prince Artemis told us that he was sick for two days. It will probably be the same for King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance.”

Twilight turned to her parents. “Artemis asked me to create a spell that would ease your symptoms.”

Sundance gasped Artemis did what?

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened “Were you able to?”

Twilight nodded “The effects are temporary, but I created a spell that should erase them entirely. Unfortunately, I’ll have to cast it a couple of times a day until your bodies adapt to the vaccines.” She sighed “As Stone Steps said, it will probably take a couple of days.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded

“I tested my spell as thoroughly as possible, but the two of you will be the first to feel its effects . . . if you allow me to cast it on you.” Twilight paused “I won’t be offended if you don’t want me to.”

“Go ahead.” Midnight Armor replied

Twilight blinked That was fast. “Are you sure?”

Sundance pulled the trash can closer. After a couple of minutes of dry heaves, she raised her head. “Yes, we’re sure. I know I said this before, but that was written on a scroll. This is something that you need to hear.” She made sure that she had her daughter’s attention. “We trust you, Twilight.”

Harmony laughed I’d be surprised if you DIDN’T.

Twilight’s eyes widened

Midnight Armor laughed softly. “After everything that you’ve done for us, we’d be crazy not to.” He nuzzled his youngest. “Please cast your spell.”

“A-alright.” Twilight cast her new spell on both of her parents at the same time. It took a couple of minutes for the full effect to kick in but, when it did, Sundance and Midnight Armor sighed in relief.

“How do you feel?” Twilight cautiously asked

Midnight Armor smiled “Much better.”

Sundance nodded, smiling as well.

Thank goodness. Harmony said softly

“Good.” Twilight replied, sighing in relief as well “Tell me when you feel your symptoms returning and I’ll cast it again.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nuzzled their youngest. “Thank you”

Celestia sighed in relief before turning to Twilight. “Do you know where Artemis went?”

Twilight shook her head “He didn’t tell me where he was going.” She saw the expression on her sister’s face. “It’s alright. I can figure out where he is now.”

“Please do.” Celestia replied

Twilight focused on the link between them. “He’s in the garden behind the castle. I’d better go see if I can calm him down.”

“Good idea.” Midnight Armor responded “Please bring the three of us with you.”

Sundance and Celestia nodded

“Yes, Dad.” Twilight used the link created by the Linking Spell to teleport the four of them to Artemis’ side.

In the garden, Artemis was relaxing in the shade of a large tree. He looked up at the sound of a teleportation spell to see that his family was standing in front of him. “Is everything alright?”

“Yes” Twilight replied, watching him stand and walk over to them. “I was able to create the spell you asked for and have already cast it on Mom and Dad.”

Artemis sighed in relief “Well done.”

Twilight nuzzled him “Thanks”

Artemis returned her nuzzle, and draped a wing over her back, before turning to their parents. “How are you feeling?”

Sundance smiled “Much better.”

Midnight Armor nodded “Twilight will have to cast her spell on us a couple of times a day . . . for a couple of days. However, at least for the moment, we don’t feel sick at all.”

Artemis smiled “That’s good to hear.”

Sundance nuzzled her son “Thank you.”

Surprised, Artemis asked “For what?”

Midnight Armor laughed “You told Twilight how those vaccines affected you before asking her to create a spell to ease our symptoms.”

“I had to do something.” Artemis replied

Sundance laughed as well “That’s why I said “Thank you”.”

Midnight Armor smiled at his children. “What do you want to do now?”

“Why don’t we head back inside?” Artemis responded

“Good idea.” Celestia replied, walking towards the castle “We should finish the tour of the castle.” Sundance, Midnight Armor, Artemis and Twilight followed her.

“I thought we already finished that.” Midnight Armor remarked

Twilight shook her head “You haven’t seen the room that Artemis and I share." She paused "Well, you've seen it with Mom's spell, but we want both of you to really see it. We also have to show you the room that you’ll be using.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight smiled, all three of them thinking the same thing. For now.

For now? Magic repeated

That’s right. Twilight replied Celestia, Artemis and I are creating a suite for Mom and Dad. We started getting it ready when we decided to bring their souls to the Waking World. It was initially going to be a place for them to stay during their visits.

Now that they’re really back,Magic began

They’ll be using it whenever they’re in Canterlot. Twilight finished

Magic gasped Do your parents know about this?

No. Twilight answered Celestia, Artemis and I wanted it to be a surprise.

That’s a great idea! I’m sure they’ll love it.

I hope you’re right. Twilight replied It will be ready tomorrow.

Sundance paused when she saw the expressions on her children’s faces. They’re hiding something.

Harmony listened to Magic for a moment before returning her attention to Sundance. You’re right.

Surprised, Sundance asked Do you know what it is?

Yes. Harmony answered Twilight Sparkle and Magic just finished discussing a surprise that your children have planned for you and your husband.

Sundance raised an eyebrow. Wasn’t returning our souls to our bodies enough of a surprise?

Harmony laughed I understand why you feel that way. However, I assure you that both of you will be happy with what they have planned.

I’d be surprised if we didn’t like it. Sundance responded

Midnight Armor nuzzled his wife. “Is everything alright?”

“I was talking to Harmony.” Sundance said softly “I don’t know what it is, or when they’re going to reveal it, but it seems that our children have a surprise planned for us.”

“I thought having our souls returned to our bodies was enough of a surprise.” Midnight Armor quietly replied What do our children have planned for us this time?

Sundance laughed “That’s what I told Harmony.”

Midnight Armor laughed as well. Neither of them noticed that their children were looking at them. Celestia, Artemis and Twilight glanced at each other before turning back to their parents.

“Is something wrong?” Celestia asked

Startled, Sundance and Midnight Armor jumped before turning to their children.

“No.” Sundance answered, smiling at her children “Your father and I were just talking.”

Midnight Armor nodded

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight returned their mother’s smile as they walked into the castle.

A few minutes later, they walked into Artemis and Twilight’s room.

After looking around for a moment, Midnight Armor chuckled. “Some things never change.”

Sundance laughed “You’re right, Midnight. Artemis has always liked the darker shades of blue and silver.” She thought for a moment. “However, there’s one thing that I think you should add.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow. “What’s that, Mother?”

Sundance smiled at Twilight. “At least one shade of purple.”

Celestia glanced at her sister before turning to Sundance. “Actually, Artemis . . .” She was forced to stop speaking when her muzzle was suddenly surrounded with her brother’s magic.

Artemis gave Celestia a look before releasing his spell. “Not now, Sister.”

Celestia looked at her brother in confusion. “She doesn’t know?”

Artemis sighed “She didn’t.”

Celestia’s eyes widened “I’m sorry. I thought you had already told her.”

Artemis shook his head “It was supposed to be a surprise.”

Confused, Twilight looked between Artemis and Celestia a couple of times before settling her gaze on Artemis. “What are you talking about?”

Artemis glared at Celestia for a moment before turning to Twilight. “I was planning to show you after the wedding tonight.”

Twilight smiled at him. “It’s alright. You don’t have to show me until you’re ready.”

Artemis nuzzled his wife. “Thank you”

Sundance glanced at her husband before turning to their son. “In that case, we’ll come back tomorrow to see what you’ve done.”

Midnight Armor nodded

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight, Artemis and Celestia walked into the hall.

“Now that that’s settled,” Celestia began “I’d like to show you where you’ll be sleeping tonight . . . well, tomorrow.”

“What do you mean?” Sundance asked

“We thought you and Father would appreciate some alone time after the reception tonight.” Celestia explained “Therefore, I’ve had a room prepared for you. It’s just a guest room, but . . .”

Midnight Armor nuzzled his eldest. “It’s alright. I’m sure you weren’t expecting us to return so suddenly . . . if at all.”

Laughing, Celestia shook her head. I’m certainly not complaining, but I wasn’t expecting that at all. Mainly because I didn’t know that it was possible to return their souls to their bodies.

“Therefore, you wouldn’t have thought to prepare anything for us.” Midnight Armor finished

Twilight suppressed a giggle. That’s what he thinks.

Magic laughed I can’t wait to see their expressions when you show them their suite.

Five minutes later, they stopped next to a door. Artemis opened it before stepping aside to allow their parents to enter the room. Sundance and Midnight Armor looked around the room as they walked inside. Celestia, Artemis and Twilight followed their parents into the room, but stayed near the door.

The entire room was decorated in royal purple with gold accents. All of the furniture was white. There was a large four poster bed against the back wall. However, it was positioned so that they could watch the sunrise without getting out of bed. The floor was marble with a large area rug covering most of the center of the room. There were a couple of comfortable couches and armchairs scattered around the room. The wall across from the bed was made entirely of glass, granting them a beautiful view of Canterlot.

Midnight Armor noticed another door to the right of the bed. He opened it to reveal the bathroom. The bathroom is actually larger than the bedroom.

“This is a guest room?” Sundance asked, looking around in wonder “I don’t think our room in our old castle was this big. It certainly wasn’t this luxurious.”

“Yes, Mother.” Celestia responded “This is one of the rooms we give visitors from the royal families of other countries. As strange as this sounds, most of them expect accommodations like this.”

“I see.” Sundance replied “What about Cadance, Shining Armor and Flurry Heart? They may be royalty, but I can’t imagine the three of them being comfortable in this type of accommodations.”

Artemis laughed “You’re right. They insist on being given regular rooms when they visit.”

Sundance smiled “That sounds like something they’d do.”

Celestia smiled as well. “We’re aware of the fact that neither of you are fond of extravagant rooms like this one. Therefore, you’ll only be using this room until we’re able to prepare something better for you. Don’t worry, it shouldn’t take long.” Twilight, Artemis and I still need to finish a couple of things. Even so, Mother and Father’s suite should be ready tomorrow afternoon.

Midnight Armor smiled at his children. “Thank you.”

Celestia returned his smile before glancing at the sun. “It’s time for dinner.”

Artemis teleported the five of them to the dining room.

In the dining room, Apple Crunch turned at the sound of a teleportation spell. “Good evening, your highnesses.”

Midnight Armor glanced at his wife before turning back to Apple Crunch. However, before he could say anything, Apple Crunch shook his head.

“You don’t need to say anything, King Midnight Armor. Ivy told me about what happened in the hospital wing. I know that Princess Twilight’s spell has erased your symptoms, but I don’t want to take any chances. Therefore, I’ve prepared a meal that both of you should be able to keep in your stomachs.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor sighed in relief.

“The five of you will be drinking Apple Family apple juice.” Apple Crunch explained “As for the meal, I’ve prepared individual servings of Apple and Grape Pasta Salad for each of you.”

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Midnight Armor and Sundance smiled at him. “Thank you.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor took a few cautious bites. Both of them sighed in relief when the food showed no sign of coming back up.

Celestia, Artemis, Midnight Armor, Twilight and Sundance were just finishing their dinner when Cadance, Shining Armor, Night Light, Velvet, Spike, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rarity and Rainbow walked into the dining room.

Squealing in delight, Flurry jumped off of her mother’s back and flew over to them. “Auntie Twily! Auntie Tia! Uncle Art! Sundance! Midnight!” As she said each name, she nuzzled the appropriate pony.

Everyone else laughed as they watched Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Twilight and Artemis return Flurry’s nuzzles.

Flurry landed on Midnight Armor’s back before nuzzling him again. “You have to play with me!”

Midnight Armor hid a smile. “Oh really?”

Quite serious, Flurry nodded “Mommy said it’s your turn!”

Midnight Armor chuckled “Very well. However, you need to eat dinner first.”

Flurry pouted “Okay, but then its playtime!”

Everyone laughed

Apple Crunch returned to the room with servings of Apple and Grape Pasta and bottles of apple juice for everyone else.

Cadance waited until everyone had finished eating before walking over to Sundance. “Shiny and I heard about what happened in the hospital wing.” She whispered “We thought playing with Flurry would help you feel better.”

Sundance gave her a knowing smile. “What’s the other reason?”

Cadance smiled sheepishly I should have known that she would catch that. “We need someone we can trust to keep her occupied while we get things ready for the wedding tonight. Additionally, she should take a nap. If she doesn’t, well . . .”

“It’s alright, I understand.” Sundance replied, laughing “We can’t have a cranky Flower Girl.”

Midnight Armor laughed as well “Don’t worry. We’ll take care of her.”

Cadance smiled at Celestia “I need your help in the ballroom.”

Celestia nodded

Velvet turned to Artemis and Twilight. “We’d like the two of you to help Sundance and Midnight keep Flurry occupied.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow. “Are you suggesting that Mother and Father can’t handle a two year old?”

Everyone laughed

“Of course not.” Rarity responded “We just need something to keep the two of you occupied.”

Ivy told us that Artemis and Twily were very angry earlier. Shining Armor shook his head. Keeping them occupied is one thing, but I’m more concerned with calming them down. Playing with Flurry should do that.

“Keep us occupied?” Twilight repeated “Why would you need to do that?”

Rarity gave Artemis and Twilight a look. “We don’t want the two of you handling the set up for your wedding this time.”

This time? Sundance turned to Twilight and Artemis. “Please tell me that you didn’t set things up for the other wedding.”

“We had a few hours to kill before everyone arrived.” Artemis responded “Therefore, we decided to start getting things ready.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor stared at Artemis and Twilight.

Twilight rolled her eyes. “We didn’t even do that much. We just cleaned the receiving room, gathered the cushions, created the perch for Fluttershy’s songbirds, placed it by the window, lengthened the table, set it against the wall, placed the chairs against a different wall and set the materials that Rarity had asked for out for her to use.”

It sounds like they did almost everything. Harmony said slowly

Agreed. Sundance’s eyes widened “How can you call that “not doing that much”?”

“We would have done more,” Twilight answered “but Rarity stopped us. She said that we weren’t supposed to handle the set up for our own wedding.”

“You’re not!” Rarity protested

Everyone else nodded

“Celestia told us that we needed to rest so we’d have enough magic to bring you and Dad to the Waking World.” Twilight continued “That’s when we took a nap.”

“That settles it.” Midnight Armor remarked “Both of you are spending the evening with us.” He turned to his eldest. “We’ll be in our room.”

Celestia nodded “I’ll come get you when it’s time for Artemis and Twilight to get ready.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Flurry, Twilight and Artemis disappeared in a flash of Midnight Armor’s magic.

“That should keep them occupied.” Celestia commented

Nodding, everyone else followed her out of the dining room.

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Twilight, Artemis and Flurry appeared in the middle to Sundance and Midnight Armor’s room. Midnight Armor levitated Flurry off of his back and gently set her on the floor.

Sundance smiled at Flurry. “What game do you want to play?” Hopefully it’s one that I know the rules to.

Harmony laughed I’m sure that Twilight Sparkle and Artemis will be able to answer any questions you have.

Flurry thought for a moment before looking up at Sundance. “Mommy makes a butterfly with her magic! Then she lets me chase it!”

Sundance blinked Ponies still do that?

Twilight tilted her head “I read about that.”

“Really?” Artemis asked

Blushing, Twilight nodded “I’ve been reading books about pregnancy, giving birth and caring for newborns.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Artemis asked “I would have read them with you.”

“You insist that I relax as soon as class is finished for the day.” Twilight answered

“Of course I do!” Artemis immediately responded “You need your rest!”

Midnight Armor laughed “Well done, Son.” He turned to Twilight. “What does that have to do with the books?”

Twilight shrugged “I read while I wait for Celestia and Artemis to finish whatever they’re doing.”

“I see.” Artemis said slowly

Sundance laughed “Midnight did the same thing during both of my pregnancies. In my case, I used the time to knit blankets and cold weather clothes for Celestia and Artemis.”

Twilight blushed “I don’t know how to knit.”

Sundance nuzzled her youngest. “I can teach you if you want.”

Twilight nodded

Sundance smiled I think I’ll ask Velvet to join us. “Anyway, your father didn’t let me do anything but rest for the last few weeks.”

“What did you expect me to do?!” Midnight Armor asked “You were tired all of the time, so I made sure that you got some rest.”

Sundance nuzzled her husband. “I know, Midnight.”

Twilight was about to say something, but paused when she felt something on her back.

“Auntie Twily!” Flurry whined “Butterfly!”

“Right.” Twilight replied “I’m sorry, Flurry.” She used her magic to create a purple butterfly.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Artemis and Twilight laughed when Flurry began to chase it around the room. Smiling, Artemis created a midnight blue butterfly.

Flurry gasped in surprise when it landed on the tip of her horn. Before she could do anything else, a light blue butterfly landed on her nose while another dark blue butterfly hovered in front of her. Her eyes widened when they joined the purple one. “More butterflies!”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight and Artemis laughed harder when Flurry went back to chasing the butterflies. They gave their butterflies extra speed before splitting them up. Flurry began moving from one butterfly to the next, trying to catch them. Sundance finally allowed the filly to catch hers.

“Yay!” Flurry shouted “I got one!”

Chuckling, Midnight Armor allowed Flurry to catch his next. Artemis and Twilight did not. They began to move theirs faster and higher. Flurry chased the last two butterflies for twenty minutes. Yawning, she landed on the middle of the bed and curled into a ball.

Sundance and Midnight Armor watched Artemis and Twilight’s butterflies land on the bed next to Flurry.

Closing her eyes, Flurry mumbled “The butterflies are sleepy, too.” She was asleep in less than a minute.

Laughing softly, Sundance nuzzled her children. “Well done.”

“Thanks.” Twilight returned Sundance’s nuzzle before laying down next to Flurry.

Chuckling, Artemis lay down on Flurry’s other side. We’ll be doing this with Lavender Selene soon.

Sundance lay next to Artemis while Midnight Armor settled next to Twilight.

Twilight cast a shield and a soundproofing spell around her niece. “That should allow us to talk without waking her.”

Midnight Armor smiled “Good idea.”

“Is there something that you wanted to talk about?” Sundance asked

Twilight shook her head. “I’m sure you have questions.”

“Good idea, Twilight.” Artemis commented, turning to their parents “This is a good time for us to answer at least a few of them.”

Midnight Armor turned to Twilight. “Now that you mention it, you said something that confused me yesterday.”

“What’s that, Dad?” Twilight asked

“You told Pinkie Pie to stop breaking the laws of physics.” Midnight Armor responded “What were you talking about?”

“Good question, Midnight.” Sundance commented

“Physics is an advanced science.” Twilight explained “Unfortunately, you won’t understand it until I teach you the basics.”

Sundance nodded “That makes sense.”

“However, I can explain some of what Pinkie did.” Twilight continued

“Please do.” Midnight Armor replied That’s what I really wanted to know.

“Gravity is the force that keeps ponies, and objects, on the ground . . . or another heavy object.” Twilight explained “Pegasi and alicorns overcome this by flapping their wings hard enough to get, and stay, airborne.” She thought for a moment. “Some unicorns are strong enough to use their magic to take to the air.”

“Alright.” Sundance responded “I understand that, but what about Pinkie Pie? She doesn’t have wings or magic. How was she able to stay in the air like that?”

Twilight laughed “She’s the exception to almost every rule that I know of. As you saw, she can stay in the air for long periods of time. She can also move so quickly that you would swear that she teleported. Additionally, she can pop out of random places or objects.”

On cue, Pinkie poked her head out from in between the cushions of one of the couches. “Like this!”

Midnight Armor, Sundance and Artemis jumped before turning to her.

Twilight smiled at her friend. “Hi, Pinkie”

Pinkie giggled “Hi, Twilight!”

“H-how did you do that?” Sundance stammered

Pinkie giggled again “It’s easy, silly filly! It’s also really fun!”

Twilight laughed “You should go back to helping everyone get things set up for the wedding, Pinkie.”

“Okie Dokie!” Pinkie replied, pulling her head back into the couch.

Sundance stared at the part of the couch that Pinkie’s head had popped out of. I haven’t been called a filly in several centuries.

Harmony laughed

Sundance turned to Twilight. “How did she do that?!”

Twilight laughed “I’d love to know how she does things like that, but I also like my sanity. Therefore, I don’t bother asking anymore.”

“I-I see what you mean.” Sundance said slowly

Artemis stared at Twilight for a moment before shaking his head. “I’m not even going to ask.”

That’s probably a good idea. Night said slowly

Artemis turned to Twilight and their parents. “I need to raise the moon and stars.”

Midnight Armor nodded “Go ahead.” Can you hear me, Laughter?

Of course. Laughter replied

Did you know that Pinkie Pie was going to do that? Midnight Armor asked

No. Laughter answered In fact, I didn’t even know that she COULD do that.

Shaking his head, Midnight Armor looked outside in time to see the moon rise into the night sky.

Laughter focused on Pinkie for a moment before returning her attention to Midnight Armor. Pinkie just started preparing Twilight and Artemis’ wedding cake. It’s going to be a very large one, so that should keep her busy for a while.

Good. Midnight Armor replied I don’t have anything against Pinkie Pie, but I don’t think I can go through that again.

Laughter laughed It’s alright, I understand.

Chapter 75

Midnight Armor waited for Artemis to finish placing the stars in the Night Sky before smiling at his family. “What do you want to do now?”

Sundance was about to respond, but paused when Twilight gasped. Concerned, she turned to her youngest. “Is something wrong?”

“I can’t believe I didn’t think of this earlier!” Twilight replied

Confused, Midnight Armor glanced at his wife before turning to their daughter. “What are you talking about?”

“The spell I created to erase your symptoms.” Twilight answered

“What about it?” Sundance asked “It’s working just fine.”

“I know.” Twilight responded “The thing is, I don’t have to cast it on you at all.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow. “What are you talking about? If you don’t, Mother and Father will feel horrible for the next couple of days.”

Twilight shook her head. “I should teach Mom how to cast it. That way, she can take care of their symptoms as soon as they return.”

“I see.” Artemis replied “That’s a good idea.”

Sundance laughed “You can do that later, Twilight.”

“Huh?” Twilight asked, turning towards their mother

Also laughing, Midnight Armor nuzzled his daughter. “I think your mother wants to spend this time resting.”

Sundance nodded before smiling at her children. “We can’t have the two of you falling asleep during your wedding or the reception.”

Twilight returned their mother’s smile before laying her head on a pillow and closing her eyes. Artemis did the same. Sundance and Midnight Armor spread their wings over Twilight, Artemis and Flurry before laying their heads on the bed and closing their eyes as well.

Meanwhile, Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor, Velvet, Night Light, Spike, Rainbow, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie walked into the ballroom. They looked around to see that most of the set-up had already been done.

On the other side of the room, opposite of the door, there was a space for Celestia and Cadance to stand while they conducted the ceremony. There were two small tables next to where the two of them would be standing. Each of them had a large vase that was decorated like Artemis’ Night Sky sitting on it. There was a large bouquet of lavender roses in each vase. As with Cadance and Shining Armor’s wedding, there was a long rug that stretched from there to the door. The difference was that this rug was dark blue instead of red.

There was a large perch for Fluttershy’s songbirds next to one of the windows. There were more bouquets of lavender roses in vases were scattered around the room. Some of them were in more vases that had been placed on small tables while others were attached to the walls with magic.

“It seems that the castle staff has been hard at work.” Celestia looked around for a moment. “Additionally, it seems that everything has already been done.” She looked up at the ceiling. “Well, almost everything.”

Cadance, Shining Armor, Velvet, Night Light, Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow, Pinkie and Spike watched Celestia close her eyes as her horn began to glow.

A couple of minutes later, Celestia looked up at the ceiling again. “Much better.”

Everyone else looked up at the ceiling as well . . . and gasped in surprise when they saw that the ceiling was now a perfect replica of Artemis’ Night Sky.

Pinkie was about to say something, but paused when her entire body began to vibrate.

Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Are you alright?”

“Pinkie Sense!” Pinkie replied before vanishing

Celestia stared at the space where she had been standing in shock. She was even more surprised when Pinkie reappeared in front of her a little over a minute later.

Pinkie gasped in horror when she looked at the watch on her right foreleg. “Oh no! I gotta go! Bye!” She ran out of the room so quickly that everyone else didn’t see anything but a pink blur.

Where did she get the watch? Forget that, did she just teleport?! Celestia opened and closed her mouth a few times before settling on the most obvious question. “What just happened?”

“Trust me, princess.” Applejack replied, shaking her head “Ya don’t want to know.”

Rarity, Rainbow and Fluttershy nodded.

Celestia was about to respond, but paused when she felt the pull of the sun. “Please excuse me.” She walked over to the window before lowering the sun.

Everyone else joined Celestia at the window as the moon and stars were placed in the Night Sky.

“Well,” Cadance said slowly, drawing everyone’s attention “it doesn’t appear that we need to do anything else in here. What should we do next?”

Celestia smiled at everyone. “Why don’t we retire to our rooms so that we can relax for a while before we get ready for the wedding? Let’s meet back here in four hours.”

Nodding, everyone followed Celestia out of the ballroom.

Four Hours Later

Celestia looked up when Cadance, Shining Armor, Night Light, Velvet, Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie, Applejack and Rainbow walked into the room. “All of you look very nice.”

Rarity had done an amazing job on their wedding outfits. Night Light and Shining Armor were wearing dark blue suits over white shirts. Velvet was wearing a dress that was the same shade of blue as her husband’s suit. Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rainbow and Pinkie’s dresses were all dark blue with lavender trim. Each of their dresses had silver thread sewn in to look like stars in the Night Sky and their Cutie Marks sewn onto their chests.

Cadance and Celestia’s dresses were lavender with gold trim. Their Cutie Marks incorporated into the design so that they were right over where their Cutie Marks were on their bodies. Celestia’s mane flowed as it usually did, but Cadance’s mane was styled the same way that it had been for Twilight’s coronation.

Celestia looked around the room. “Where is Spike?”

“I’m right here, Celestia.”

Everypony turned to see that Spike was standing in the doorway. His suit looked almost identical to the ones that Shining Armor and Night Light were wearing. The only difference was that Twilight’s Cutie Mark was sewn onto the pocket. Additionally, there was a lavender rose in that pocket.

“I’m sorry I was late.” Spike walked towards his friends and family. “I had to stop by the Royal Jewelers to get Artemis and Twi’s wedding rings.” He opened two small boxes to reveal two rings, both made of white gold with diamonds set in them. Twilight’s had the diamond cut into a crescent moon and Artemis’ had the diamond cut into a six pointed star.

Celestia smiled as she watched him tuck the rings into his pocket. “It’s alright.” She looked at everyone. “Most of you will remain here with me. The only exceptions are Rarity, Shining Armor, Night Light, Velvet and Spike. Rarity, Velvet and Mother will be helping Twilight get ready. The three of you will be doing this in Mother and Father’s room.”

Rarity and Velvet nodded.

Celestia turned to Shining Armor, Night Light and Spike. “You should head to the room that Artemis shares with Twilight. Father and Artemis will be joining you soon. That’s where the four of you will help Artemis get ready.”

Spike, Night Light and Shining Armor nodded as well before the five of them walked out of the ballroom.

Midnight Armor lifted his head and looked at his children.

Sundance raised her head when she heard her husband laugh softly. “What’s so funny, Midnight?”

Midnight Armor nodded at their children.

Sundance raised an eyebrow, but looked at Artemis and Twilight. She laughed softly as well when she noticed that both of them had fallen asleep. She was about to say something, but paused when she heard a knock on the door. “Is it time already?”

“I suppose so.” Midnight Armor replied, using his magic to open the door.

Velvet and Rarity walked into the room. They were about to say something, but paused when they noticed that Twilight, Artemis and Flurry were asleep.

“It’s time for Artemis and Twilight to get ready for their wedding.” Velvet quietly told Sundance. “The three of us will use this room to help Twilight and Flurry get ready.”

Sundance nodded

Velvet turned to Midnight Armor. “Shining Armor, Night Light and Spike are waiting for you and Artemis in the room he shares with Twilight.”

Sundance nuzzled Twilight while Midnight Armor nuzzled Artemis.

Artemis grumbled something as he buried his face in his father’s shoulder.

Laughing softly, Midnight Armor nuzzled his son again. “It’s time to wake up, Artemis. You need to get ready for your wedding.”

Yawning, Artemis raised his head before nodding to his father. He and Midnight Armor carefully climbed off of the bed.

Flurry immediately felt the loss of warmth, woke up and began to cry.

Cursing under his breath, Artemis leaned down to nuzzle Flurry, but paused when his mare made a sudden move.

Opening her eyes, Twilight spread a wing over Flurry. “It’s alright, Flurry.”

Flurry sniffled as she snuggled closer to Twilight.

Twilight nuzzled her niece. “Are you ready to put your pretty dress on?”

Flurry immediately stopped crying. “Yes, Auntie Twily.”

Velvet, Rarity, Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled while Artemis stared at Twilight in shock.

Unaware of this, Twilight nuzzled Flurry again before climbing off of the bed. That’s when she saw the way that her husband was staring at her. “What?”

“H-how did you do that?” Artemis asked

Twilight shrugged “I’ve learned a few tricks over the years.”

Rarity tilted her head. “What do you mean, Darling?”

“You try waking up a cranky baby dragon.” Twilight responded

Everyone else, except Flurry, shuddered.

“I don’t even want to think about that.” Midnight Armor said slowly

Velvet, Rarity, Sundance and Artemis nodded.

Your father is correct. Magic commented

Twilight shrugged again. “I’ve learned that it’s a good idea to have a way to stop the tears, or fire, as soon as possible.”

Fire? Harmony repeated

Do you remember how Spike protected me with his fire during the battle with Golden Thunder? Sundance responded

Yes. Harmony answered

Imagine that fire . . . completely uncontrolled.

After a moment of stunned silence, Harmony shakily said I-I think your husband is correct. I’d rather NOT think about that.

Sundance laughed softly.

“In that case,” Rarity said slowly “we should get Flurry ready first. I have her dress right here.” She opened the smaller of the two garment bags that she had suspended in her magic. The dress that she pulled out was lavender with an exact image of the Crystal Heart sewn onto the chest. The dress was also trimmed with gold thread.

I love how the image of the Crystal Heart actually looks like crystal. Generosity commented You did a wonderful job on that dress, Rarity.

Thank you. Rarity replied

Flurry stared at the dress. “That’s mine?”

Smiling, Rarity nodded “Do you like it?”

Flurry flew to Rarity, landed on her back and nuzzled her. “Thank you!”

Midnight Armor smiled at everyone. “I think Artemis and I should be leaving now. He needs to get ready as well.”

Everyone else nodded

After Artemis and Midnight Armor left the room, Rarity turned her attention to Flurry. She used her magic to levitate the filly onto the floor in the middle of the room before helping her into the dress. “Please spread your wings.”

Flurry did as she was told, pushing her wings through the holes in the dress as she did.

Rarity watched the dress, and the filly wearing it, carefully. “You can fold them now.” She waited until Flurry had folded her wings before turning her attention to the hem of the dress. “Let’s see . . . the length is fine . . . the dress won’t interfere with her wings, so her flight won’t be affected . . . everything else fits properly.” She sighed in relief. “I don’t need to make any adjustments.” She turned her attention to Flurry’s mane. After a few minutes, she stepped back. “Done.”

Velvet nuzzled her granddaughter. “You look beautiful, Flurry.”

Giggling, Flurry returned her grandmother’s nuzzle.

“It’s your turn, Sundance.” Rarity commented

Sundance blinked “Excuse me?”

Rarity smiled at her. “I wasn’t able to make a dress for you because I don’t have your measurements. However, I would like to style your mane.” She paused “That is, of course, if you’ll allow it.”

Surprised, Sundance just stared at Rarity for a moment. “V-very well.”

Rarity’s smile widened “Thank you. I’ve been thinking of styles ever since Twilight, Artemis, Princess Celestia and Princess Cadance called you here.”

Sundance’s eyes widened. What?

“Simply putting your mane up wouldn’t suit you at all.” Rarity continued “Tight curls wouldn’t work, but I think soft curls would suit you perfectly.”

Sundance waited patiently while Rarity used her magic to give her mane the soft curls that she was talking about. Curious, she looked in the mirror that Rarity had suspended in her magic. W-wow. I never thought about doing that to my mane.

It looks very good on you. Harmony said softly

T-thank you. Sundance looked on as Rarity gathered the top third of her mane.

“I’d like to do something different with this part,” Rarity said slowly “but I’m torn between a few different options. Twilight, what do you think about . . . Twilight?”

Sundance and Velvet followed Rarity’s gaze to see that Twilight had a thoughtful expression on her face as she looked at Sundance.

Twilight looked from Rarity to Sundance. “Do you mind if I try something?”

Curious, Rarity shook her head.

Sundance smiled at her daughter. “Of course not.”

Twilight returned her mother’s smile as she took the top portion of Sundance’s mane from Rarity. She started to braid it, but paused when she realized that something was missing. After a moment’s thought, she created two silver ribbons that shimmered like the stars in her mother’s Cutie Mark.

Rarity’s eyes widened. “They’re beautiful, but what do you plan to do with them?”

Twilight answered the question by incorporating one of them into the braid. When the braid was finished, she wound it into a bun before securing it with the second silver ribbon. She turned to Rarity. “It’s probably not as fancy as what you were planning, but-”

“Nonsense, Darling!” Rarity interrupted, shaking her head “I think it’s beautiful.” Now that I think about it, Sundance doesn’t strike me as the type that would wear those styles anyway.

You’re probably right. Generosity responded The style that Twilight chose may be simple, but it’s beautiful. Furthermore, I think it suites Sundance perfectly.

You’re right. Rarity replied Perhaps I’ll make a fashionista out of Twilight after all.

Generosity laughed

Rarity is correct. Harmony commented Additionally, the fact that the silver part matches your Soul Mark is a nice touch.

Agreed. Sundance nuzzled her daughter. “Thank you, Twilight. It’s perfect.”

Sighing in relief, Twilight returned her mother’s nuzzle. “You’re welcome, Mom.”

Rarity smiled at Twilight. “It’s your turn.”

Nodding, Twilight walked to the center of the room before allowing Rarity to help her into her wedding dress.

Magic was watching Flurry squirm. You might want to think of something fast, Twilight. Your niece is getting impatient.

Thanks for warning me. Twilight’s horn began to glow.

Flurry gasped when a purple butterfly suddenly appeared in front of her. Everyone else laughed when she squealed in delight before beginning to chase it around the room.

“Good idea, Twilight.” Velvet commented “That should keep her occupied.”

Ten minutes later, Rarity pinned the last of the curls in Twilight’s mane before setting her crown on the top of her head. She moved Twilight’s Royal Necklace so that everyone could see it. Then she stepped back to admire her work. “That should do it.”

Twilight smiled at her friend as she allowed Flurry to catch the butterfly. “Thanks, Rarity.”

Ten minutes later

Rainbow, Applejack, Pinkie and Night Light looked up when Sundance, Twilight, Velvet and Rarity walked up to them. Flurry was sitting on her grandmother’s back.

Velvet nuzzled her daughter as Flurry jumped onto her grandfather’s back. “The guards will open the doors when we’re ready for you.”

Twilight nodded as Rarity picked up her bouquet.

“Here is your bouquet, Darling.”

Smiling, Twilight took it in her magic. “Thanks, Rarity.”

Velvet and Sundance slipped into the ballroom and closed the doors behind them.

Inside the ballroom, Sundance and Velvet walked to the front of the room.

Sundance’s ear twitched when she heard many of the ponies whispering as she walked past them. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. Midnight and I did appear seemingly out of nowhere. Additionally, most of them had never heard of us before the battle with Golden Thunder.

Finally reaching the front of the room, Velvet walked over to stand next to her son while Sundance went over to her husband.

Midnight Armor turned to Sundance, about to say something, but paused when he saw her. Surprised, he just stared at her for a moment. I’ve never seen her wear her mane like that before. Shaking himself out of his shock, he nuzzled his wife. “You look beautiful, Honey.”

You’re right. Kindness said softly

Sundance blushed “T-thank you. Rarity insisted on styling my mane, but was having trouble choosing a style. She did the bottom and Twilight did the top.”

“Both of them did a wonderful job.” Midnight Armor replied, nuzzling his wife again.

Both of them turned towards the front of the room. Celestia, Cadance, Artemis and Spike stood on a dais. Fluttershy stood next to the perch while her songbirds perched on it.

Fluttershy’s birds began to sing when Steel Night and Midnight Fang opened the door. Everyone turned towards the door to see that Flurry was slowly flying down the aisle, scattering lavender rose petals with her magic as she went. As she had done at the small wedding, she set the basket on the floor and landed on her mother’s back when she was done.

The ponies in the crowd began to whisper to each other when Night Light walked down the aisle alone.

Twilight took the opportunity to look around the ballroom. W-wow. There are actually more ponies here than there were for Shiny and Cadance’s wedding.

Magic laughed I’m not surprised.

Stopping next to Midnight Armor, Night Light whispered “Come with me, please.”

Concerned, Midnight Armor glanced at his wife before following Night Light back up the aisle. “Is something wrong?”

Night Light waited until they had reached Twilight before turning to Midnight Armor. “Everything is fine, Midnight. I just wanted to ask you to help me walk Twilight down the aisle.”

Twilight, Rarity, Rainbow, Pinkie and Applejack gasped, but Midnight Armor tilted his head in confusion.

“Why do you want me to do that?”

Shaking herself out of her shock, Twilight nuzzled Night Light. “I don’t think he understands what you want him to do, Dad. That tradition didn’t exist when he became a star.” She glanced at Midnight Armor before returning her attention to Night Light. “Do you want to explain it, or should I?”

“Go ahead.” Night Light replied

Curious, and confused, Midnight Armor turned to his daughter.

“I’m not sure when it started,” Twilight began “but it’s become a tradition for the father of the bride to walk her down the aisle at her wedding so he can “give her away” to the pony that she is marrying.”

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened as he turned back to Night Light. “Why do you want me to do that? It’s true that I’ve accepted Twilight as one of my children, but you are her father.”

“That may be true.” Night Light replied “However, I won’t be here forever. After I pass, you will be the one filling that role.”

Midnight Armor gasped

“I’ve already discussed this with Velvet and both of us agree.” Night Light lowered his voice. “Twilight is no longer the daughter of just Velvet and myself. From now on, she is the daughter of you, Sundance, Velvet and myself.” He looked Midnight Armor in the eye. “I’m counting on you to take care of her when I am no longer here to do so myself.”

Midnight Armor stared at Night Light in stunned silence for several minutes. Then he lowered his head, not quite a bow, but a show of respect. “I understand. Don’t worry. I will take care of her.” He raised his head, glanced at Twilight and returned his attention to Night Light. “Is it appropriate for me to “give her away” when the pony that she’s marrying is my son? Even if it is appropriate, are you sure that you want me to do so?”

Twilight shook herself from her shock and turned to Midnight Armor. “I don’t think it’s ever been done before, but there’s nothing that says that it can’t be done.”

Night Light nodded “Twilight is correct. Velvet and I went to the library yesterday so we could look it up. There is nothing preventing us from doing this . . . and yes, I’m sure.”

“V-very well.” Midnight Armor replied

Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow, Pinkie and Rarity smiled but, before they could say anything, a miniature Discord appeared in the air next to Twilight’s left ear.

“Is everything alright, Little Twily?” Discord quietly asked “Artemis is starting to worry.”

Twilight’s smile widened “Everything’s fine, Discord. It seems that both of my fathers are going to walk me down the aisle. Please let Artemis, Celestia and Cadance about this. Then ask Fluttershy to tell her birds to start singing again.”

Discord nodded to Twilight before vanishing.

At the other end of the throne room, Celestia, Cadance and Artemis jumped slightly when the miniature Discord appeared in front of them. Discord passed Twilight’s message before teleporting to Fluttershy.

Celestia and Cadance smiled

Artemis stared at his father, Night Light and Twilight. F-father is going to walk Twilight down the aisle as well? He was pulled from his thoughts when Fluttershy’s songbirds began to sing again.

Everyone turned towards the door as Twilight, with Night Light on her right and Midnight Armor on her left, began walking down the aisle. Her friends followed. When the seven of them got to the other end of the room, Night Light and Midnight Armor nuzzled Twilight before moving to stand next to their wives. Artemis moved to stand next to Twilight.

“What was that about?” Sundance whispered to her husband.

Midnight Armor made sure that his horn was touching his wife’s before sharing his memory of what had just happened. Sundance’s eyes widened but, before she could say anything, her attention was drawn by Celestia’s voice.

“Welcome, everypony.”

“We are here to celebrate the love of two very special ponies.” Cadance continued, smiling at Twilight and Artemis “Artemis, Prince of the Night and Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship.”

In the stars, Star Swirl was looking thoughtfully at Sundance and Midnight Armor’s stars. “The fact that their souls haven’t been reattached to their stars means that they are still in Equestria.” He paused “Either that, or they’ve been . . .” His star flickered. “No, I can’t think like that. Our plan must have succeeded. I’m sure that Artemis has simply been too busy to bring everypony here.”

“It’s difficult to tell the passage of time up here, but I’m fairly certain that it’s around midnight of the third night. That means tomorrow is the fourth day. If our plan wasn’t successful, their souls will be reattached to their stars in a matter of hours.”

In Canterlot, Celestia and Cadance smiled at each other before turning to Artemis and Twilight. As one, they said “You may kiss the bride.”

Everyone cheered when Artemis immediately pulled Twilight into a deep kiss.

Celestia smiled “I now present Artemis, Prince of the Night and Prince of Friendship.”

“And I present Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship and Princess of the Night.” Cadance finished, also smiling

Artemis and Twilight turned to face the crowd but, before either of them could day anything, Sapphire Wing and Silver Shadow bowed to both of them.

Sapphire Wing smiled at both of them. “Congratulations, Prince Artemis and Princess Twilight!”

Also smiling, Silver Shadow nodded. It’s about time. “There are so many ponies present that we simply don’t have enough space to have the reception in the castle.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “Where are we going to have it?” I hope he doesn’t say that it’s been cancelled. Pinkie will never forgive me if we don’t have one.

Magic laughed You’re right.

“The same place we had Blueblood’s trial.” Cadance answered

Celestia laughed “There are so many ponies that I had to expand the park again.”

Pinkie bounced over. “Discord and I have already set everything up. Let’s go! Let’s go! Let’s go!”

Artemis laughed as well. “It’s going to take a while to get all of these ponies to the park, Pinkie.”

“No, it won’t!” Pinkie replied

Twilight and Artemis were about to ask her what she was talking about, but paused when Discord snapped his eagle talons. A bright flash of light engulfed the ballroom. When the light faded, everyone noticed that they were standing in the middle of the park.

Midnight Armor shook his head. “That certainly takes care of that.”

You’re right. Laughter responded, laughing

Everyone else laughed as well.

Artemis and Twilight looked around the park.

There were a dozen tables lined up at the left side of the park. Most of them held a combination of breakfast and dinner items. Two of them were piled high with desert items. Their wedding cake was on the last table.

“W-wow” Twilight said softly “The cake is bigger than I am.”

Laughing softly, Artemis nuzzled his wife. “I think it’s larger than I am.”

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor, Velvet, Night Light and Spike laughed as well.

Shaking her head, Twilight examined the rest of the park. A DJ booth had been set up near the food tables and the center of the park had been turned into a large dance floor. Several games had been set up on the other side of the park, opposite of the food table. The foals had already gathered around the usual Truth or Dare, Twister, and pin the tail on the pony games. There were also several large buckets full of water balloons scattered around the park.

Celestia walked over to Rainbow. “Aren’t you supposed to be doing something?”

Rainbow grinned “I’ll be right back, princess!”

Confused, Sundance and Midnight Armor watched the pegasus fly away.

“Why did she leave?” Midnight Armor asked

Twilight laughed “She’ll be back.” She glanced at her parents before returning her attention to Artemis’ Night Sky. “You might want to look up.”

Curious, Sundance and Midnight Armor did as their daughter suggested. The first thing they noticed was that Rainbow was flying straight towards them. The next thing they noticed was that a circle of rainbow colored light was spreading out from the spot where Rainbow had been when she broke the sound barrier. They heard the sonic boom a few seconds later.

Midnight Armor stared up at the Sonic Rainboom. I haven’t seen a Sonic Rainboom in centuries. In fact, not since the last time I did one.

Loyalty gasped Y-you can do that?!

Yes. Midnight Armor answered Not many ponies know this, but I’m the one who created the Sonic Rainboom . . . even though I did so by accident.

Loyalty gasped again.

You created the Sonic Rainboom . . . by accident? Honesty repeated

That’s right. Midnight Armor replied I was chasing one of the creatures that lived in the Everfree Forest because it had grabbed Celestia and was flying away with her.

Loyalty, Honesty, Kindness, Generosity and Laughter gasped in horror. What?!

She couldn’t escape, or defeat, it because she was only two years old. Midnight Armor explained Anyway, I was pushing myself to go faster so that I could catch up to them and, the next thing I knew, I had just performed the first Sonic Rainboom.

I-incredible! Loyalty stammered

Needless to say, Midnight Armor continued I caught up to the creature very quickly. The first thing I did was take my daughter away from the creature and place her on my back. Sundance caught up to us a little over a minute later. We worked together to destroy the creature before turning our attention to our daughter. Fortunately, Celestia hadn’t been hurt.

Kindness sighed in relief. Thank goodness.

Midnight Armor thought for a moment. Celestia doesn’t know this, but she’s the one who came up with part of the name for that technique.

What do you mean? Generosity asked

Midnight Armor laughed softly. Sundance and I thought Celestia would be terrified, but she was laughing and shouting “Rainbow Boom!”

Loyalty, Honesty, Kindness, Generosity and Laughter laughed as well.

I shortened that to “Rainboom”. Midnight Armor explained Sundance added the “Sonic” part because of the sonic boom that was created when I broke the sound barrier.

That makes sense. Honesty commented

I’m glad you were able to save my previous bearer. Kindness said softly

Midnight Armor blinked Celestia was your bearer?

That’s right. Kindness replied She was also the Bearer of the Elements of Magic and Loyalty. Artemis bore the Elements of Honesty, Laughter and Generosity. She paused Well, that was before Celestia used all of the Elements of Harmony to . . . well, you know.

I see. Midnight Armor said slowly

“Midnight?”

Midnight Armor jumped before turning to his wife. “Yes?”

“Is everything alright?” Sundance quietly asked

Smiling, Midnight Armor nuzzled his wife. “Of course. I was telling Loyalty, Honesty, Kindness, Generosity and Laughter about the day I created the Sonic Rainboom.”

Sundance returned her husband’s smile. “I see.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked up when Celestia, Artemis and Twilight walked over to them. Both of them smiled wider before nuzzling all three of their children.

“What do you want to do first?” Sundance asked

“Games!” Pinkie shouted, suddenly popping up in between Artemis and Twilight.

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Celestia stared at her in a combination of shock and confusion.

H-how does she do that?!

That’s a very good question, Sundance. Harmony slowly replied

Twilight nuzzled her mother. “Don’t bother trying to figure her out. Trust me, you’ll just drive yourself crazy.”

Midnight Armor tilted his head. “What makes you say that?”

Twilight giggled “I tried to figure her out not long after I moved to Ponyville . . . and nearly went crazy because I couldn’t do it. That’s when I learned that it’s better if I just don’t ask.”

Sundance stared at Twilight for a moment before taking a deep breath. “I’ll take your word for it.”

Pinkie giggled as well. “Not that that’s settled, let’s play! It’s time for a water balloon fight!”

Twilight used her magic to light several of the lavender and dark blue paper lanterns that were hanging from the nearby trees. Careful to keep her expression neutral, she also levitated a water balloon closer before throwing it at Pinkie.

Pinkie gasped in surprise. “Twilight!”

Twilight giggled again “What? I thought I’d get the water balloon fight started.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis began to laugh as well.

Twilight took a closer look at the stain on Pinkie’s dress. “That wasn’t filled with water.”

Discord laughed “I filled some of them with chocolate milk.”

Curious, Celestia used her magic to throw one at Discord. Everyone raised an eyebrow when Discord’s lion arm was covered with whipped cream.

Pinkie giggled “I filled some of them with whipped cream!”

Twilight glanced at her wedding dress. “I’d better take this off. Getting it dirty is one thing, but Rarity will kill me if I stain it with whipped cream and chocolate milk.”

Cadance walked over to them. “You’re probably right.”

“It’s alright.” Shining Armor added, smiling at Twilight and Artemis as he joined his wife. “Cadance has already informed the rest of your friends that the two of you will be removing your wedding apparel.”

Cadance gave Artemis and Twilight a sly smile. “I don’t think anyone will complain if the two of you also take some time to “freshen up” a bit.”

Artemis and Twilight vanished in a flash of moonlight.

Everyone instantly began to laugh.

Pinkie turned to the crowd. “Water Balloon Fight!!!”

Everyone, especially the foals, cheered.

Discord snapped his eagle talons again. When the light faded, everyone noticed that their clothes had been removed. “Before you ask, I teleported everyone’s clothes to their room in the castle . . . or their homes.”

Rarity, and several of the other nearby ponies, sighed in relief.

Celestia smiled “Thank you”

Now that I don’t have to worry about their clothes, I can be as messy as I want. Grinning, Discord decided to get things started by throwing a balloon at Celestia.

Artemis and Twilight appeared in the middle of their room. Artemis immediately took his suit off while Twilight removed her crown and took the curls out of her mane.

Twilight took her dress off before hanging it in the closet next to Artemis’ suit. She used her magic to close the closet as she turned to her husband. “Are you ready to show me whatever you and Celestia were talking about earlier?”

Artemis pulled his wife into a kiss and released his spell while she was distracted.

When the kiss broke, Twilight slowly opened her eyes. Her eyes widened as she looked around their room. “W-wow”

The walls, which had been a dark blue, now resembled the sky during the time in between Day and Night.

Artemis looked at the walls as well. “You allowed my Night Sky into your castle, so I brought your twilight into our room.” He paused when he heard her gasp. Curious, he turned to see that she had discovered the second surprise.

Their bed was positioned against the wall, directly across from the wall of windows and balcony. There were originally two black nightstands, one on either side of the bed. The one on the right side still stood between their bed and the door to their room. However, the one on the left side had been replaced with a sturdy lavender crib with dark blue sheets. A lavender changing table, already stocked with everything they would need, stood next to that.

“It’s perfect.” Twilight said softly

Artemis nuzzled his wife. “There’s more.” He led her over to the wall on the left side of the room. This was lined with half a dozen bookcases. Three of them held books that Artemis was reading as he worked to catch up on things that he had missed during his banishment.

Twilight’s eyes widened when she noticed that two of them had been filled with several of her favorite books. The last one had been filled with baby books for them to read to Lavender Selene when she finally arrived. A comfortable lavender rocking chair stood next to the last bookcase with the second nightstand next to that. She turned to see that Artemis was watching her carefully. “I love it.”

“There’s one more surprise.” Artemis responded, sighing in relief “Unfortunately, it isn’t safe for me to bring you to see it right now.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “Why not?”

“It’s still under construction.” Artemis nuzzled his wife. “Don’t worry. Our daughter’s room will be ready long before she’s born.” In fact, it should be ready next week.

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “I thought we were going to give her an existing room close to your tower.”

Chuckling, Artemis shook his head. “Celestia and I spent the last couple of months discussing that. We didn’t tell you about it because I wanted it to be a surprise.”

“Where is her room going to be?” Twilight asked

“Lavender Selene’s room will be in the same tower as ours.” Artemis answered “I’m having part of the first floor turned into her room and another part turned into the nursery.” He glanced at their daughter’s crib. “She’ll sleep in here with us at first. We’ll move her, her crib and the changing table to her room when she no longer needs to nurse in the middle of the night.”

Twilight smiled “Good idea.”

“I’ll let you know when they’re ready.” Artemis glanced at the moon before returning his attention to his wife. “We should head to the reception.” He waited for her to nod before teleporting them back to the park.

In the park, everyone looked up at a flash of moonlight. They saw Artemis and Twilight standing in the middle of the park.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Cadance, Shining Armor, Night Light and Velvet walked over to them.

“That was fast.” Shining Armor remarked

“I thought you’d be gone for at least an hour.” Cadance commented

Artemis instantly knew what she meant. “Trust me, we will be taking care of that.” He chuckled when Twilight blushed. “We’re just going to wait until later before we do so.”

Celestia tilted her head. “In that case, you were gone for longer than was necessary for simply removing your clothes. What else did you do?”

Twilight smiled at her sister. “He showed me a few surprises.”

Celestia returned the smile. “I see. What did you think?”

Twilight nuzzled her husband. “I love it.”

Celestia nudged her brother with a wing. “I told you.”

“What are you talking about?” Sundance asked, looking at her eldest in confusion

Celestia giggled “Artemis actually thought Twilight wasn’t going to like what he did to their room.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “There was no reason for you to worry about that.”

Artemis was about to respond, but paused when Pinkie bounced over to them. “What is it, Pinkie?”

“You gotta cut the cake!” Pinkie answered, pulling Twilight over to the table with the Wedding Cake on it.

Curious, Twilight spread her wings and lifted into the air. Artemis did the same. Both of them gasped in shock.

The cake had eight tiers. Like the cake for the smaller wedding, it was frosted in dark blue buttercream and had white star shaped sprinkles. However, this time, the sprinkles had been deliberately placed so that all of Twilight’s favorite constellations were on the cake. The top of the top tier had been frosted to look like the moon. The cake toppers were chocolate three dimensional versions of Twilight and Artemis. They were positioned so that they were standing side-by-side on the moon.

“I’d love to really do that at some point.” Twilight commented

Artemis glanced at her. “What are you talking about?”

Take a closer look at what your chocolate versions are doing. Night said softly

Curious, Artemis did as he was told. He gasped in shock when he understood what they meant. S-she wants to visit my moon?! His eyes widened as he turned to his wife. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Twilight nuzzled her husband. “I didn’t bring it up because I know that it’s a sensitive topic for you . . . especially with Blueblood’s recent actions.”

Artemis opened his mouth, but paused when she shook her head.

“It’s alright.” Twilight said softly “I’ll wait until you’re ready.”

Artemis returned her nuzzle. “Thank you” He waited until they were on the ground again before looking at Pinkie. “Why did you put those specific constellations on the cake?”

“They’re Twilight’s favorites!” Pinkie responded

What?! Eyes wide, Artemis turned to Twilight.

Twilight blushed “I told you that I’ve been an amateur astronomer since I was a filly.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow. Amateur astronomer? He stared at his youngest for a moment before shaking his head. I’ll ask Twilight to explain it later.

Laughing, Cadance levitated a knife over to Twilight. “That’s enough discussion about what the cake looks like. I think it’s time to eat it.”

Twilight smiled at her sister before she and Artemis worked together to cut two slices of cake. After they had put them on plates, and grabbed a couple of forks, they moved off to the side so that everyone else could get a slice.

Artemis and Twilight were just finishing their slices when Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Cadance, Flurry and Shining Armor walked over. Smiling, they waited for their family to eat their cake.

Shining Armor nuzzled his little sister. “It’s time to get the dancing started, but we can’t do so until the bride and groom have their first dance.

Twilight turned bright red. “You know that I’m a horrible dancer, Shiny.”

Laughing softly, Cadance nuzzled her little sister as well. “It’s alright, Twilight. I’m sure you’ll be fine.”

Artemis stood before walking to the middle of the dance floor. Twilight nervously followed him.

The DJ, a unicorn mare, started a slow, romantic song. For a few minutes, everyone just watched the bride and groom dance.

“Relax, Twilight.” Artemis whispered “You’re doing fine.”

Twilight finally relaxed when Sundance, Midnight Armor, Cadance, Shining Armor, Velvet and Night Light joined them on the dance floor. Several other ponies quickly followed suit. Artemis and Twilight left the dance floor as soon as the song was over.

Artemis lay down on the grass and watched Twilight walk over to the food tables. A few minutes later, he smiled when his wife lay down next to him before setting two plates of food, and two bottles of apple juice, on the grass in front of them.

“I thought you might be hungry.” Twilight explained

Artemis was about to respond, but paused when he heard Twilight’s stomach growl. Laughing softly, he nuzzled his wife. “It sounds like our daughter is even hungrier than I am.”

Blushing, Twilight took a large bite out of an apple turnover before looking up when the rest of their family joined them.

Sundance, Velvet, Celestia and Cadance smiled as they watched Twilight finish the turnover before moving onto two apple breakfast pastries.

Twilight raised an eyebrow as she swallowed the last of her breakfast. “I don’t care what any of you say. I am not eating anything else right now.”

Sundance, Velvet, Celestia and Cadance instantly began to laugh. Midnight Armor, Artemis, Night Light and Shining Armor quickly joined them.

Twilight raised the other eyebrow. “What’s so funny?”

“We weren’t going to say anything about that.” Celestia answered

“Right.” Twilight replied “I haven’t forgotten about what happened before the smaller wedding.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Artemis, Velvet, Night Light, Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor laughed harder.

Twilight shook her head. “I’m not even going to ask. In fact, I think I’ll go see how Pinkie is doing with the games instead.” She paused “I’m not playing Twister.”

Cadance giggled “I promise I won’t rig the game this time.”

Twilight glanced at her sister. “Do you want me to lose my balance and fall on my stomach?”

Cadance’s eyes widened “Good point.”

Everyone else nodded

Standing, Artemis helped his wife to her hooves before turning to the rest of their family. “You can come with us if you want.”

Also standing, everyone else nodded again.

Pinkie, Fluttershy, Rainbow, Rarity, Applejack, Spike and several foals looked up when the Royal Family approached.

Squealing in delight, the foals dropped what they were doing and ran over to them. “Princess Celestia! Prince Artemis! Princess Twilight!” They paused, looking at Sundance and Midnight Armor in confusion.

Laughing softly, Celestia and Artemis lay down so that they were on the foals’ level.

Celestia glanced at her brother before turning back to the foals. “These are our parents. Our mother’s name is Sundance and our father’s name is Midnight Armor.”

Smiling, Sundance and Midnight Armor lay down next to their children. “Good morning.”

“Good morning.” The foals replied

Water Lilly gently poked Artemis in the chest. “Daddy told me that they’re the King and Queen."

Twilight lay down next to Artemis. “That’s right.”

Silver Spark lay down in between Twilight’s forehooves before looking up at her. “Mommy told me that your baby is a girl.”

Twilight nodded “Her name is Lavender Selene.”

Water Lilly’s eyes widened “Pretty!”

Twilight smiled at Water Lilly before looking at the rest of the foals. “You don’t have to stop playing. We just wanted to see how the games are going.”

“We just finished playing Twister.” Silver Spark replied

“I see.” Cadance responded, laying down next to Twilight “Did you have fun?”

All of the foals nodded.

“What do you want to do now?” Shining Armor asked, laying down next to his wife

“It’s time to dance!”

Surprised, Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Cadance, Shining Armor and the foals looked up to see that Rainbow was hovering in the air above them.

Pinkie bounced over to them. “That’s right!” She turned to the DJ. “Turn it up!”

The unicorn mare chose a song before doing as she was told.

Rainbow pulled Twilight into the air. “You’re up here with us. The same goes for you, Artemis.”

Nodding, Artemis and Celestia took to the air as well. Cadance stayed on the ground so she could dance with Shining Armor.

Sundance glanced at her husband before looking up at Rainbow. “I think we’re going to sit this one out.”

Midnight Armor nodded “We’re not familiar with the current dances, so it’s better if we observe.”

Pinkie pouted, but Rainbow nodded as well. “It’s cool.”

Sundance tilted her head. What does she mean by that?

I’m not sure. Harmony answered I assume there hasn’t been a drop in the temperature.

No. Sundance slowly replied

Twilight noticed her parents’ confusion, flew down and landed in front of them. “The word “cool” has taken on many meanings.” She quietly explained “There are too many to go into right now, but Rainbow basically just said “that’s alright”.”

“Ah.” Midnight Armor remarked “That makes more sense.”

Sundance nuzzled her youngest. “I’m sure we’ll be discussing this in greater detail later.” She waited for Twilight to nod before nudging her towards Artemis. “Thank you. For now, you’d better get up there.”

Velvet and Night Light watched their daughter return Sundance’s nuzzle before returning to Artemis’ side. Everyone in the air immediately began to dance.

Midnight Armor watched his children for a couple of minutes before glancing at his wife. “I thought Twilight was just going to teach us how to read the current written language.”

Sundance opened her mouth to respond, but paused when she heard laughter. Surprised, she turned towards the voice. “Velvet?”

“I’m sorry.” Velvet replied, laying down not far from Sundance “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“That’s alright.” Sundance responded “What’s so funny?”

“There’s no way that Twilight would stop there.” Velvet answered “She probably plans to teach both of how to write in the current written language as well.”

“I see.” Midnight Armor slowly replied

Night Light smiled at both of them as he lay down next to his wife.

Forty-Five Minutes Later

Midnight Armor looked up when Shining Armor lay down next his father while Cadance lay down next to her husband.

Sundance raised an eyebrow when she noticed how hard Cadance and Shining Armor were breathing. “Are you alright?”

Both of them nodded.

Smiling, Sundance levitated a couple of drinks over to them. “This should help.”

Cadance returned Sundance’s smile as she took one of the drinks in her magic. “Thank you.”

Shining Armor instantly downed half of the other one before taking a deep breath. “Thank you, Sundance. I needed that.”

Sundance tilted her head. Should I ask him now, or wait until tomorrow?

What are you talking about? Harmony asked

Sundance was about to respond, but paused when she heard Shining Armor’s voice.

“Is everything alright, Sundance?”

Startled, Sundance looked around to see that her husband, Cadance, Shining Armor, Night Light and Velvet were staring at her. “I’m sorry. I was just trying to decide if I should ask a question now or wait until tomorrow.”

Cadance raised an eyebrow. “I don’t see any reason why you can’t ask it now.”

Sundance glanced at her husband before turning to Cadance, Shining Armor, Night Light and Velvet. “I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, but Artemis and Twilight decided that they wanted Midnight and I to be the first to know about their . . . I believe Twilight called it an engagement.”

Cadance, Shining Armor and Velvet shook their heads.

Night Light smiled “We weren’t aware of that but, now that I think about it, it doesn’t surprise me.”

Velvet laughed “Same here.”

“Star Swirl found out about it when we did.” Midnight Armor continued “Celestia walked into Artemis and Twilight’s room not long after Twilight told Sundance.”

“That means she was the fourth to find out.” Cadance commented

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded.

“What does that have to do with the question?” Shining Armor asked

“Twilight decided to tease Celestia.” Sundance responded “I made her stop before telling her that it was too important not to tell Celestia about.” She looked at Shining Armor. “She was instantly offended and shouted that she wasn’t her brother.”

Cadance, Shining Armor, Night Light and Velvet gasped.

“She explained the situation a few minutes later.” Sundance explained “Therefore, we already know about some of what happened. I brought that up because it leads to our question.”

I think I know what the questions is. Cadance glanced at her husband before returning her attention to Sundance.

“Why didn’t you tell your sister that you were going to marry her former foal sitter? Or invite her to your wedding?” Midnight Armor asked

Shining Armor sighed “There was a threat against Canterlot. Therefore, Princess Celestia had asked me to provide additional security for the city.”

Cadance nodded “He surrounded the entire city with his shield.”

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened “You can make it that large?”

Shining Armor nodded as well. “At the time, I was the Captain of Princess Celestia’s Royal Guard. That means I had several obligations . . . in addition to preparing for the wedding. I hate to say this, but informing Twily wasn’t on my list of priorities.”

Cadance gasped I couldn’t tell Twilight about the wedding because I had already been captured by Chrysalis. “If you didn’t tell her about the wedding . . . who did?”

“I did”

Everyone looked up as Celestia lay down next to her father.

“I didn’t know that she was unaware of your engagement.” Celestia explained “Therefore, I sent Spike the wedding invitation and a request for Twilight and her friends to come to Canterlot so they could help us prepare for the wedding.”

Shining Armor gasped as well. “She found out about the wedding when you asked her to plan it?!”

Celestia nodded

Shining Armor’s ears drooped. “No wonder she was so angry when she arrived in Canterlot.”

“W-wait a minute.” Cadance said slowly “That means she went through that before . . .”

“What’s wrong?” Shining Armor asked, turning to his wife

“None of you believed her when she tried to warn you about the “fake” me.” Cadance reminded him

Shining Armor sighed “You’re right. Instead of listening to my sister, I told her not to even come to the wedding.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped in shock. “What?!”

Shining Armor looked at the grass under his hooves. “To make matters worse, we left her in the throne room . . . alone with Chrysalis. That gave Chrysalis the perfect opportunity to send Twilight to the caves.”

Midnight Armor gasped again.

“Oh, Twilight.” Sundance said softly I can’t believe she had to go through that. She thought for a moment. Now that I know what happened, I’m not surprised that she reacted that way.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Cadance, Shining Armor, Velvet and Night Light looked up when they heard a couple of familiar voices. They watched Twilight and Artemis fly towards them. The newlyweds were laughing as they landed next to their family. Artemis nuzzled his wife before laying down next to his mother.

Twilight was about to lay down next to her husband, but paused when she saw that she was surrounded with her mother’s magic. Confused, she looked up as Sundance levitated her youngest in between herself and her father. “Is something wrong, Mom?”

Sundance pulled her daughter into a tight hug.

Twilight shifted so that she could look at Sundance’s face. Sundance responded by hugging her tighter. Shrugging, Twilight snuggled closer to her mother.

“What’s going on?” Artemis whispered to Velvet.

“You don’t want to know.” Velvet quietly replied Twilight and Artemis don’t need to be thinking about that on their wedding day.

Artemis raised an eyebrow, but decided to let the subject drop.

That’s probably a wise decision. Night remarked

Artemis was about to respond, but paused when he heard several voices at once.

Curious, the Royal Family turned to see that a large crowd of ponies had gathered behind them. Deciding to see what was going on, they stood before turning towards everyone. Twilight took a couple of steps forward, and was about to ask what they wanted, but paused when she took a closer look at them.

Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Rainbow, Pinkie, Discord, Spike and the foals of Canterlot threw dozens of “water” balloons at Twilight.

Twilight suddenly found herself covered in a combination of whipped cream and chocolate milk. She sighed as she took a closer look at herself. Great. I’m going to have to take a long bath to get this out of my wings, coat, mane and tail.

Artemis stared at his wife. I hate to say this, but I’m very glad that they didn’t include me in that.

I don’t blame you. Night responded

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Artemis and Celestia shuddered as they imagined the feeling of all of that on their coats . . . as well as in their wings, manes and tails.

Everyone else instantly began to laugh.

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “You think that’s funny?”

They were laughing too hard to say anything, so they just nodded.

Twilight used her magic to pull Celestia’s head closer to hers before whispering. “Please get a Teleportation Spell ready. I need you to bring you, me, Mom, Dad and Artemis to the castle.”

“What are you going to do?” Celestia quietly asked

“I’m going to see how they like it.” Twilight quietly responded

Celestia suppressed a giggle as her horn began to glow. “Let me know when you want me to cast it.”

Nodding slightly, Twilight’s horn began to glow as she turned back to everyone else.

Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Rainbow, Pinkie, Discord, Spike and the foals couldn’t see it, but the remaining water balloons rose into the air. Then Twilight used her magic to remove the balloons before bringing the whipped cream, chocolate milk and water closer.

I thought she would have done something to get back at us by now. Cadance opened her mouth, but paused when she noticed the look on her little sister’s face. She’s up to something. She was pulled from her thoughts by Twilight’s voice.

“Enjoy your bath.”

Confused, everyone else looked at Twilight as well.

Twilight combined the whipped cream, chocolate milk and water into a uniform mass before dumping the entire thing on Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Rainbow, Pinkie, Discord, Spike and the foals. She made sure that the only ones who got wet were the ones who had thrown the water balloons at her. Then she nodded to Celestia.

Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Rainbow, Pinkie, Discord, Spike, the foals and everyone else were forced to close their eyes when a bright flash of sunlight lit up the area. They opened them a few moments later to find that Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight had disappeared.

Rainbow shuddered as she slowly moved her wings. “I can’t believe she did that! It’s going to take forever to get this out of my wings!”

“Well,” Cadance said slowly “we did do the same to her.”

“Princess Cadance is right.” Fluttershy said softly “Twilight is probably really tired, but it’s going to take at least two hours for her to clean that out of her wings.”

“That’s not including the time it will take to clean her coat, mane and tail.” Rarity commented, shuddering as well

Rainbow glanced at her friends. “Oh, yeah.” She sighed “I’d better go. I need to get this out of my wings, coat, mane and tail.”

Discord laughed “I wouldn’t worry about that.” Everyone looked at him in time to see him snap his eagle talons. A bright flash of magic later, they noticed that everyone was clean and the mess had vanished.

Cadance sighed in relief. “Thank you, Discord.”

Shining Armor looked towards the castle. “It looks like Twily will be taking a long bath.”

Velvet laughed “It’s alright. I’m sure that Sundance, Midnight, Princess Celestia and Artemis will help her.”

“You’re right, honey.” Night Light responded “I’m also sure that Twilight and Artemis will be going to bed as soon as they’re done.” He thought for a moment. “Sundance and Midnight will probably do the same.”

Cadance, Shining Armor, Rarity, Rainbow, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Applejack and every adult within earshot immediately began to laugh when they understood what he meant.

Pinkie bounced to the middle of the park. “Let’s get back to the party!”

Laughing, everyone did as they were told.

The Royal Family appeared in the middle of Celestia’s bathroom. Celestia started the water while Artemis levitated several bottles of shampoo and body wash over to the tub.

Sundance glanced around the room before spotting a stack of folded washcloths. Shaking her head, she levitated all of them closer to the bathtub. It may take all of these to get Twilight clean.

Harmony looked around the room. It looks like there are more of them near the door.

Thank you, Harmony. Sundance levitated a dozen more washcloths over to join the rest.

“Ugh.” Twilight slowly spread her wings. “It’s going to take forever to get this stuff off.” Sighing, her horn began to glow as she prepared to teleport to the bathroom attached to the room that she shared with Artemis.

Sundance and Midnight Armor exchanged glances before turning back to Twilight.

Twilight gasped when she noticed that she was suspended in dark blue magic. Surprised, she allowed her magic to fade as she turned to see that Midnight Armor was watching her. “Dad?”

Midnight Armor laughed “Where do you think you’re going?”

“To take a bath.” Twilight answered

Midnight Armor responded by lowering his youngest into the full tub.

Twilight raised an eyebrow when Celestia, Artemis, Midnight Armor and Sundance walked into the tub as well. Then she turned to Midnight Armor. “Why did you do that?”

Midnight Armor nuzzled his youngest while Celestia got to work on her sister’s mane. “Did you really think we weren’t going to help you?”

“I, uh-” Twilight cut herself off with a moan of pleasure. Surprised, she turned to see that Sundance had spread her wings before beginning to clean the feathers. That’s when she noticed that Artemis was washing her tail.

Midnight Armor lay down next to Twilight as he began to wash her back. Twilight sighed in pleasure as she leaned into her father’s side. Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis laughed, but didn’t stop what they were doing.

It didn’t take Artemis long to finish cleaning his wife’s tail. He decided to work on her rear end and hind legs next. With a mischievous smirk, he gently ran a soapy washcloth over her marehood.

Gasping in shock, Twilight turned in time to see her husband run the washcloth over her marehood again. “A-Artemis?!”

“What?” Artemis innocently asked, wiping her marehood a third time “I have to make sure that you’re clean.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis laughed again when Twilight shuddered in delight as his actions sent lightning bolts of pleasure up her spine.

Twilight allowed herself to lean a little further into her father’s side as she used a washcloth to clean her stomach before moving onto her face. I-I am definitely going to get him back for that.

Magic laughed You know you enjoyed it.

I never said that I didn’t like it. Twilight replied However, I am saying that I wish he wouldn’t do it in front of Celestia and our parents.

Magic laughed again

Twilight sighed in relief when Artemis moved on to her hind legs.

Meanwhile, Celestia had finished washing her sister’s mane and had begun to wash her sides while Midnight Armor washed his daughter’s chest and neck. When they finished, Artemis lay down on Twilight’s other side and Celestia lay down next to her brother.

Sundance spent the next twenty minutes carefully cleaning Twilight’s wings. When she finished, she lay down next to her husband.

Twilight nuzzled Midnight Armor and Artemis before smiling at Celestia and Sundance. “Thank you. That would have taken a few hours if I had done it myself.”

“There’s no way we would have allowed that.” Celestia replied

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Artemis nodded. The five of them climbed out of the bathtub and dried themselves off.

Celestia drained the tub before leading her family to her room. Yawning, she nuzzled her parents and siblings. “I hate to say this, but I need to get some sleep.”

Sundance, Artemis and Twilight laughed.

“It’s alright.” Midnight Armor replied, laughing as well “The rest of us should get some sleep as well.”

Twilight glanced at her husband before turning to their parents. “We’ll take both of you to your room before heading to ours.”

Sundance sighed in relief. “Thank you”

Celestia smiled at her family as they walked out of her room. Then she used her magic to close and lock the door as she climbed into bed. She was asleep within a couple of minutes.

Chapter 76

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Artemis and Twilight headed towards the room that Sundance and Midnight Armor were using. As they walked, Artemis and Sundance began to discuss the plan for the next couple of days.

Midnight Armor slowed down while everypony else continued down the hall. He smiled as he watched his wife walk with their son. I never thought I’d get to see her really do that again. His smile faded as he let out a sigh. It’s just a shame that this won’t last much longer.

What do you mean? Generosity asked

Midnight Armor was about to respond, but paused when he felt a gentle nuzzle. Surprised, he looked down to see that Twilight was standing in front of him.

“Is something wrong?” She asked softly

Midnight Armor returned her nuzzle. “It’s nothing.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “I hope you don’t expect me to believe that.”

Midnight Armor stared at his youngest for a moment before laughing softly. “There’s nothing wrong, Twilight.” He sighed again. “I just wish this didn’t have to end.”

Twilight tilted her head. “What do you mean?”

“This is the fourth day.” Midnight Armor reminded her “Additionally, it’s only a matter of hours until Moonrise.”

Fourth day? Confused, Twilight stared at her father for a moment. Then she suddenly understood what he was talking about. I guess it hasn’t really hit him yet. Laughing softly, she nuzzled him again. “You seem to be forgetting something very important.”

Equally confused, Midnight Armor tilted his head. “What are you talking about?”

“Harmony’s plan worked.” Twilight said softly “You’re really back, Dad. Mom is as well.”

Stunned, Midnight Armor just stared at her for a moment. Then he sat down, and used his magic to pull her closer, before wrapping his wings around her. “Thank you, Twilight. I don’t know how I could have forgotten that.”

“You’re welcome.” Twilight replied, snuggling closer

Sighing happily, Midnight Armor nuzzled his youngest again.

Sundance and Artemis suddenly realized that Twilight and Midnight Armor weren’t next to them. Concerned, they looked around for a moment before smiling at what they saw. Not wanting to ruin the moment, they quietly walked towards their family.

Unaware of this, Twilight looked up at her father. “I’ve been meaning to ask you something.”

“Go ahead” Midnight Armor responded

“It’s about the spell that I finished for Artemis.” Twilight said slowly “Specifically, one of the additions that I made to it.”

“Which one?” Midnight Armor asked

“Did everything feel real to you?” Twilight responded

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow. “Why do you ask?”

“Celestia, Artemis and I are planning to bring Star Swirl here a day or two after Lavender Selene is born.” Twilight replied “That’s why I want to make sure that the spell worked properly when we brought the two of you here. If it didn’t, I need to know what went wrong so I can fix it.”

“That’s a great idea.”

Startled, Twilight shifted so that she could see around her father’s wings. “Mom?”

Laughing, Sundance leaned down to nuzzle her youngest. “We should bring Star Swirl here.”

Midnight Armor nodded “Your mother and I will give Artemis some of our magic when he’s ready to cast that spell.”

Artemis gasped “Really?” Celestia, Twilight and I were already going to combine our magic. If I add Mother and Father’s, I’ll have enough to bring Star Swirl here for the full four days.

Sundance nodded as well.

Midnight Armor glanced at his wife before turning back to their daughter. “You don’t have to worry about that spell. Trust me, it worked perfectly.”

Sundance giggled “Your father is correct.”

Twilight sighed in relief.

Magic sighed in relief as well. Well done, Twilight. I’m glad you were able to help your father.

Sundance nuzzled her husband. “We’d better get moving.”

Midnight Armor returned his wife’s nuzzle as he folded his wings. Then he and Twilight stood before the four of them continued down the hall. They arrived at the door to Sundance and Midnight Armor’s room a few minutes later.

Twilight turned to her parents. “There is something that I need to take care of before Artemis and I head to our room.”

“What’s that?” Midnight Armor asked

“I need to cast my spell on both of you again.” Twilight answered I’ll teach Mom how to cast it tonight.

Good idea. Magic replied Sundance is probably too tired to learn such a complex spell right now.

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure? I feel fine.”

Twilight nodded “It’s supposed to wear off in a little under an hour.”

“I see.” Sundance said slowly “You want to cast your spell on us now so that your father and I will be able to get some sleep.”

Twilight nodded again

“Good idea.” Midnight Armor remarked

Closing her eyes, Twilight focused for a moment before casting her spell on both of her parents.

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled at their youngest. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Twilight glanced at Artemis in time to see him nod. She turned back to their parents. “We’ll see you later.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded

Artemis smiled at his parents before teleporting himself and his wife to their room. Laughing softly, Midnight and Sundance opened the door to their room.

Artemis and Twilight appeared in the middle of their room. He walked into the bathroom while she lay down on their bed.

Artemis returned to the room a few minutes later. He smiled when he noticed was that she was smiling as she looked at their daughter’s crib. I’m glad she likes it.

Night laughed softly I told you that you didn’t need to worry.

I know. Artemis replied Even so . . .

Night laughed harder. Take care of your wife, Artemis. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.

Artemis was about to respond, but paused when he heard Twilight’s voice.

“Are you coming to bed?”

Surprised, he turned to see that she was looking at him instead of the crib. His smile widened as he walked over to their bed. “Of course.” He used his magic to close, and lock, both doors as he climbed into bed.

Twilight used her magic to pull the curtains over the windows before turning to her husband. She was met with a kiss. Moaning softly, she closed her eyes and returned it.

When the kiss broke, Artemis cast a soundproofing spell on their room as he rolled his wife onto her back. He moved so that he was standing over her before nuzzling her stomach. “I’m sorry, Lavender Selene.” He whispered “Your mother and I are going to get a little rough.”

Twilight laughed softly “I’m sure she won’t mind.” Can you hear me, Magic?

Yes. Is something wrong?

No. Twilight replied I just wanted to let you know that Artemis and I are about to . . . well, let’s just say that we’ll need some privacy for a while.

Magic laughed I see. Thank you for warning me.

You’re welcome. Twilight thought for a moment. Mom and Dad are probably going to do the same . . . if they haven’t started already. Can you please let Harmony, Loyalty, Honesty, Laughter, Kindness and Generosity know that they’ll need some privacy as well?

Of course. Magic replied I’m glad she thought of that. She laughed softly Have fun.

Twilight blushed slightly T-thank you.

Artemis kissed Twilight’s stomach before beginning to kiss and nuzzle his way up her body. Reaching her head, he pulled her into a deep kiss. It quickly turned into a desperate make-out session.

A few minutes later, Twilight pulled back so she could take a couple of deep breaths before pulling him into another deep kiss.

Artemis broke the kiss a little over a minute later. He nibbled on the tip of her left ear for a moment before running his tongue along her horn.

Panting softly, Twilight whispered “I love you, Artemis.”

Artemis smiled “I love you too, Twilight.” He created a shield over his wife’s stomach as he slowly entered her.

Twilight moaned in pleasure when she felt him pushing deeper into her. She moaned again, louder this time, when he touched the entrance to her womb.

Artemis let out an identical moan before leaning down to nuzzle his wife. “I hope you’re ready.”

Twilight nodded as she began to tremble in anticipation.

Laughing softly, Artemis pulled out as slowly as he had entered. He continued his slow thrusts for a few minutes before pausing when he heard her whine. Concerned, he looked down at her. “Twilight?”

“F-faster” She panted

“As you wish.” Artemis began to thrust faster. He smiled when her moans grew louder. This continued for a couple of minutes before he sped up again.

Twilight screamed in pleasure when the sudden increase in speed pushed her over the edge.

The feeling of her passage pulsing and clenching around him pushed him over the edge as well. He thrust into her once more before releasing his seed.

Recovering first, Twilight opened her eyes to see that Artemis had collapsed on top of her. Smiling, she sent a wave of warmth through his entire body.

Artemis moaned in pleasure before opening his eyes and looking down at his wife. “That was a little different than usual.”

Twilight giggled “Did you like it?”

He pulled her into a kiss. “Of course.” I need a minute before I’ll be able to get started on round two. In that case . . . He used his magic to spread her wings.

Surprised, Twilight glanced at her wings before returning her attention to her husband. She opened her mouth, about to ask him what he was doing, but a moan came out when she felt a wave of warmth move through her wings. She moaned louder when he ran his tongue along her horn before taking it into his mouth.

He sucked on her horn for a couple of minutes, enjoying her moans of pleasure. Then he released her horn before standing. Instead of waiting for her to ask what he was doing, he pulled back before thrusting into her with enough force to shake her entire body.

Twilight’s scream of pleasure shook their room.

Smiling, he leaned down to kiss her. When the kiss broke, he began thrusting again. This time, he didn’t hold back. This only continued for a couple of minutes before his second orgasm hit.

She screamed in pleasure when the feeling of his seed rushing into her pushed her to her second orgasm as well.

Artemis waited until his breathing returned to normal before pulling out of his wife. Then he released his shield and lay down next to her before pulling her close.

Twilight snuggled closer before laying her head on his chest. She smiled when he wrapped his wings around her.

“Now everypony in Equestria knows that you’re mine.” Artemis said softly

Twilight laughed “I’m pretty sure they already knew that.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow “What makes you say that?”

She nuzzled deeper into his chest. “I am carrying your foal.”

Artemis lifted her head before pulling her into a deep kiss. I love hearing her say that. He sighed in pleasure when the kiss broke. “We should get some sleep.”

Nodding, Twilight returned her head to his chest. “I would say “Good Night”, but it’s still the middle of the day.”

Artemis laughed “It’s alright.” He watched Twilight fall asleep before closing his eyes and following her into the Dream Realm.

Meanwhile, Midnight Armor closed the door behind them as Sundance walked into the bathroom. After a moment’s thought, he cast a soundproofing spell on their room and pulled the curtains over the windows.

Sundance walked out of the bathroom a few minutes later. “It’s your turn, Midnight.”

The first thing he noticed was that she had taken everything out of her mane. He smiled at his wife. “I’ll be right back.”

Sundance used her magic to pull the blanket back before climbing into bed. “This room may be more luxurious than I’d like, but at least the bed is comfortable.” She rolled onto her back and stretched before sighing in pleasure when she heard a few pops from her spine. I have to keep reminding myself that we’re really back. I’m pretty sure that Midnight is going through the same thing.

You’re right. Harmony responded In fact, that’s what he was discussing with Twilight Sparkle a few minutes ago.

Really?

Yes. He was slightly depressed because he thought the two of you were going back to your stars at Moonrise.

That’s not good. Perhaps I should talk to him.

Don’t worry. Harmony responded Twilight Sparkle reminded him that my plan was successful.

I see. Sundance said slowly I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. I’m certainly not complaining, but neither of us were expecting this.

Midnight Armor returned to the room and looked around for a moment before walking over to the bed. He sighed in pleasure as he settled next to his wife.

It’s alright. Harmony responded I understand.

Sundance immediately noticed the drop in Harmony’s mood. What’s wrong?

Harmony sighed Neither of you would be going through this if I had allowed Twilight Sparkle to tell you about my plan.

Midnight Armor allowed his gaze to roam over his wife’s body. His attention was almost immediately drawn to her wings. Suppressing a sigh, he shook his head as he used his magic to spread both of them. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. It has been fifteen hundred years. Regardless, I can’t leave them in this state.

Sundance didn’t know what her husband was doing, but she wasn’t concerned. Instead, she returned her attention to Harmony. It’s alright, Harmony. You’ve already explained the reason behind your actions. It’s true that it will probably take Midnight and I a while to . . . She cut herself off with a moan when a lightning bolt of pleasure raced through her right wing. “M-midnight?!”

Midnight Armor finished cleaning one of her feathers before lifting his head. “Shh. Let me take care of you.” He kissed her before returning his attention to her wing.

Sundance moaned again when she felt his tongue move between two of her feathers before carefully cleaning the next.

Curious, Harmony asked What is he doing?

Sundance moaned again. H-he’s preening my wings.

Preening? Harmony repeated

P-preening is the act of cleaning one’s wings. Sundance moaned louder when her husband ran his tongue between two more feathers before taking another feather into his mouth. Pegasi and alicorns usually take care of their wings themselves, but there are a couple of exceptions.

Such as?

P-parents will take care of their foal’s wings until they are old enough to do so themselves.

That makes sense. Harmony responded What’s the second exception?

Sundance’s body began to shake. I-I’m not sure if it’s still done this way, but partners used to take care of each other’s wings.

I see. Harmony slowly replied

Midnight Armor raised his head, about to ask his wife to stay still, but paused when he saw the expression of pure pleasure on her face. Smiling, he shook his head as he stood. I suppose I can’t blame her. He moved over his wife before laying down on top of her.

Why did you do that? Loyalty asked, clearly confused

Sundance moaned louder when her husband began to clean the feathers closer to the base of her wing.

She was shaking so much that I was having trouble grasping her feathers. Midnight Armor cleaned the last feather on his wife’s right wing. This way, I can keep her still enough to work on her wings without harming her. I know that I could have used my magic to accomplish the same thing, but I prefer this method.

I see. Kindness said slowly. Why are you doing this?

Her body has been under the Tree of Harmony for fifteen hundred years. Midnight Armor answered, switching to Sundance’s left wing This means that her wings are definitely in need of a good preening.

Sundance began to pant softly.

The same could be said for your wings. Honesty commented

I’ll take care of my wings later. Midnight Armor replied Right now, taking care of Sundance is more important.

Generosity laughed softly This is a perfect example of why you were chosen to be my bearer from the start.

Midnight Armor wasn’t sure how to respond to that, so he focused on his wife’s wing. He smiled when she began to shake harder. She’s close.

Close to what? Kindness asked

You’ll see. Midnight Armor shifted slightly so that he could run his tongue between the last two feathers on her wing.

Sundance screamed in delight when the orgasm that had been building finally overcame her. She began to shake so hard that her husband had no choice but to wait until she stopped before cleaning the final feather.

Wow. Harmony said softly That must have felt amazing. She listened for a moment. I hope Magic can wait. I want to see what Midnight Armor does next. She returned her attention to her bearer in time to hear Sundance’s reply.

Y-you have no idea. Sundance moaned softly when her husband cleaned the last feather on her left wing.

Midnight Armor carefully examined his wife’s wings. Much better.

Harmony suppressed a sigh. I hate to say this, but Magic is getting annoying. I’d better see what she wants. She made sure that Sundance couldn’t hear her. What is it, Magic?

Magic hesitated when she sensed Harmony’s anger. P-perhaps I should have waited . . . T-twilight asked me to give you a message.

Very well. Harmony responded What’s the message?

Magic passed Twilight’s message.

Harmony gasped A-are they really going to do that? She paused thoughtfully I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. It’s been at least fifteen hundred years since the last time they’ve been able to do that.

I don’t want to make her even angrier, but I can’t just leave. That would make her really angry. Magic made sure she had what she wanted to say worded correctly before turning her attention back to Harmony. That is everything that Twilight asked me to tell you. It’s clear that you’re busy, so I’ll leave you alone.

That got Harmony’s attention. What? Magic, wait! She listened for a couple of moments, but didn’t hear a response. Worried, she tried again. Magic? Still nothing. Sighing, she returned her attention to Sundance in time to see Midnight Armor pull his wife into a deep kiss. I shouldn’t have treated her like that. I’ll make sure that I apologize to her later.

Meanwhile, Magic had turned her attention to her fellow Element Spirits. I need to tell you something.

We’re a little busy. Loyalty replied

She’s right. Honesty added This is getting good.

We should listen to what she has to say. Kindness commented

You’re right, Kindness. Generosity responded What is it, Magic?

Twilight asked me to ask you to give her parents some privacy. Magic answered

Why would she do that? Laughter asked

Sundance and Midnight Armor are probably going to engage in . . . marital relations. Magic explained It wouldn’t be right to watch them when they do that.

You said “probably”. Loyalty pointed out

That’s right. Magic replied I don’t know for certain, but it’s quite likely that Twilight is correct.

You don’t know for certain, so there’s no reason that we can’t watch whatever Midnight does. Kindness said slowly

Kindness is correct. Honesty responded Our current bearers are focused on the party. That means Midnight is the only pony that we can talk to right now.

Laughter, Loyalty, Kindness, Generosity and Honesty returned their attention to Midnight Armor.

Magic sighed I don’t know why I bothered. Oh well, at least I did what Twilight asked me to. She focused on her physical form in the Cave of Harmony. Twilight has asked for privacy . . . and everyone else is focused on their bearers. I guess I’ll take a nap. She allowed herself to fall asleep.

In Canterlot, Harmony, Laughter, Loyalty, Generosity, Honesty and Kindness looked on as Sundance and Midnight Armor’s kisses increased in passion. All six of them were thinking the same thing. Magic was right.

Twilight Sparkle asked Magic to tell me that you would need some privacy.Harmony told Sundance. Therefore, I’ll talk to you later.

T-thank you, Harmony. Sundance moaned softly when her husband began to kiss her neck. I’ll have to remember to thank Twilight later. She thought for a moment. I wonder why Harmony seemed sad. I’ll have to remember to ask her about that later.

We’ll talk to you later. Kindness said softly

Midnight Armor didn’t stop what he was doing. Is something wrong?

No. Honesty answered It’s just that Twilight asked Magic to tell us that you would like some privacy.

I see. Midnight Armor replied In that case, I’ll talk to you later. He gently bit his wife’s neck. I’ll have to thank Twilight when I see her later.

In the Cave of Harmony, Harmony, Laughter, Loyalty, Generosity, Honesty and Kindness focused on their physical forms.

“Magic?” Harmony asked

No response.

Starting to worry, Harmony turned to the spirits of the other Elements. “Do any of you know where Magic is?”

“No” Honesty, Loyalty, Generosity and Laughter answered

“Shh” Kindness said softly “She’s sleeping.”

Harmony, Laughter, Loyalty, Generosity and Honesty instantly turned their attention to the bright pink six-pointed star on the Tree of Harmony. Sure enough, they saw that Magic was asleep.

Harmony sighed “I see.”

“Is something wrong, Harmony?” Laughter asked

“I need to talk to Magic.” Harmony responded “It’s alright. I’ll wait until she wakes up.” In fact, I think I’ll join her.

Laughter, Loyalty, Generosity, Honesty and Kindness watched Harmony fall asleep as well before beginning to quietly discuss the events of the last couple of days.

In Canterlot, Midnight Armor lifted himself off of his wife before pressing himself to her entrance. He smiled when she shivered in anticipation.

Sundance moaned in pleasure when he slowly pushed inside her.

Midnight Armor let out an identical moan when their hips met. He waited a moment before slowly pulling back.

Sundance used her magic to bring his head closer before pulling him into a kiss. When it broke, she whispered. “Midnight”

Midnight Armor thrust into his wife once more before pausing. He was about to say something, but stopped when he saw the expression on her face.

She moaned when she felt him touch the entrance to her womb. For a moment, she couldn’t focus on anything but the pleasure. Then she opened her eyes to see that he was looking at her.

“Is something wrong?” He asked

She shook her head. “I just wanted to say something.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow. “What is it?”

“Take me.” Sundance said softly “And don’t hold back.”

Midnight Armor stared at his wife in stunned silence for a moment. Then he pulled back before thrusting in so hard that her entire body shook. He smiled when she screamed in pleasure.

Her eyes widened when she realized that she had forgotten to cast a soundproofing spell. She started to gather the necessary magic, but was distracted when he began thrusting. She couldn’t hold back a scream of delight. She also couldn’t help but allow her magic to fade. I-I can’t use magic like this!

He instantly noticed that she was trying to suppress her screams of pleasure. Oh no you don’t. I don’t care if anyone else hears you, Sundance. I want to hear you scream. Fortunately, I know exactly what I need to do. He suddenly increased his speed. His smile widened when her screams instantly got louder. That’s it.

Her body began to shake as he pushed her closer to another peak.

A few minutes later, he thrust into her once more before groaning in pleasure as he released his seed into his wife.

Sundance screamed in delight when the pleasure pushed her to her second orgasm of the morning.

Midnight Armor collapsed on top of his wife. After catching his breath, he lifted his head so that he could look at her. He smiled when she slowly opened her eyes. Those beautiful hazel eyes that I always get lost in. “How was that?”

She smiled as well. “Perfect” Now it’s my turn.

He was about to respond, but paused when he noticed that her horn had begun to glow. What is she doing? He gasped when he suddenly found himself lying on his back on the bed with her on top of him.

Sundance moaned in pleasure when the new position pushed him deeper inside her.

She’s never done this before. Midnight Armor looked up at his wife. “What are you doing?”

Sundance pulled him into a kiss as she used her magic to spread his wings. She turned her attention to his wings as soon as the kiss broke.

Midnight Armor moaned in pleasure when she ran her tongue along the bridge of his left wing. “S-sundance . . .”

“Your wings need to be preened as well.” She said softly “Allow me to take care of that.” She returned her attention to his wing.

His moans grew in volume as she carefully cleaned every feather on his left wing. Then she shifted so she could preen his right wing. Both of them moaned in pleasure when the movement caused his tip to grind against the entrance to her womb. He began to pant when she ran her tongue along the bridge of his right wing before cleaning the feathers at the tip of his wing.

Sundance suppressed a giggle when her husband’s body began to shake. Raising her head, she took a moment to admire her work before returning to her task. She pressed her body against his so she could keep him still enough for her to get a good grip on his feathers. He should reach his peak soon.

He pressed his head into a pillow and let out a loud moan of pleasure when she gently pulled out a loose feather. His eyes widened when he suddenly realized that he was close to another peak. No! Not yet.

Sundance cleaned the last feather on her husband’s right wing before lifting her head. She struggled to hide her disappointment as she examined his wings. Why wasn’t I able to push him to his peak? Did I do something wrong?

Midnight Armor flipped them over so that he was on top of her again.

Sundance gasped in surprise. “Midnight?” Her eyes widened when she took a closer look at her husband. I haven’t seen that expression on his face since . . . She moaned when she felt his lips on her neck.

“You’re mine.” He whispered in between soft kisses.

“Yes” She breathed “Always”

Lifting his head, he pulled her into a fierce kiss before beginning to thrust again. This time, his thrusts were much harder than they were before. He smiled when she pressed her head into the pillow before letting out a scream that shook the room.

She closed her eyes as her body began to shake again. D-does he really plan to push me to a third peak?

He struggled to hold back his orgasm. Determined to push her to her peak first, he ran his tongue along her horn before sucking on the tip.

She screamed in delight when this pushed her over the edge. “Midnight!”

The combination of her passage pulsing and clenching around him, and hearing her scream his name, pushed him to his second peak. Releasing her horn, he groaned in pleasure as he released more of his seed into his wife. He collapsed on top of her as soon as his orgasm ended. Neither of them moved for a couple of minutes.

Sundance slowly opened her eyes. “T-that was incredible!”

Midnight Armor chuckled as he pulled out of his wife. Standing, he moved so that he was next to her before laying down. Then he rolled onto his side before pulling her close. “I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

Sighing in pleasure, she nuzzled into his neck. “I don’t think “enjoyed” is a strong enough word.” She said softly “In fact, I don’t think the word “perfect” is appropriate to describe what just happened.”

Midnight Armor wrapped his hooves and wings around her. “Good”

“I love you, Midnight.” Sundance whispered

Midnight Armor kissed the top of his wife’s head. “I love you too, Sundance.” He looked on as she fell asleep in his hooves. I’d be surprised if she wasn’t tired. This is the first time that I’ve pushed her to three peaks. He smiled at his wife. It’s also the first time that she’s pushed me to two.

Sundance shivered slightly in her sleep before nuzzling deeper into his neck. Laughing softly, Midnight Armor pulled the blanket over both of them and lay his head on a pillow before allowing himself to fall asleep as well.

Several Hours Later

In the Cave of Harmony, the bright pink six-pointed star on the Tree of Harmony began to glow softly. Noticing this, Kindness quietly woke Harmony.

“What is it?” Harmony asked

“Magic is waking up.” Honesty answered

“Thank you for waking me.” Harmony replied, turning her attention to Magic

The physical version of the Element of Magic glowed brightly for a moment when Magic completely woke up. When the light faded, she looked around the cave. The first thing she noticed was that Harmony, Kindness, Loyalty, Honesty, Generosity and Laughter were focused on her. “What’s going on?” Don’t tell me that something happened while I was asleep!

This isn’t good. She’s beginning to panic. “Calm down, Magic.” Harmony said softly “There’s nothing to worry about. I just wanted to speak with you.”

Sighing in relief, Magic turned to Harmony. “I-I’m sorry I interrupted you earlier. I just wanted to give you Twilight’s message. I . . .”

Of course she thinks she’s the one who needs to apologize. Harmony suppressed a sigh. “Magic, please.”

Magic instantly stopped speaking. Oh no. Did I anger her . . . again?! She nervously waited for Harmony to say something.

“You didn’t do anything wrong.” Harmony continued “In fact, I need to apologize for the way that I spoke to you earlier.”

What? Magic was too surprised to respond.

“I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that.” Harmony explained

After a moment of stunned silence, Magic slowly replied “It’s alright.”

“No, it’s not.” Harmony responded “You were just trying to do what Twilight Sparkle asked you to.” She sighed “I snapped at you because I wanted to pay attention to what Sundance and Midnight Armor were doing.”

Magic was about to respond, but paused when she sensed something. “Twilight is awake already?”

Surprised, the rest of them focused on their bearers.

“Pinkie isn’t.” Laughter commented

“Neither is Rainbow.” Loyalty remarked

“Applejack is still asleep.” Honesty added

“So is Rarity.” Generosity replied

“Fluttershy is still asleep, but Midnight just woke up.” Kindness gasped “This is bad. He’s beginning to panic.”

“The five of you need to calm him.” Harmony focused for a moment before sighing in relief. “Sundance is still asleep.”

Meanwhile, in Canterlot, Celestia woke to the alarm clock on the yellow nightstand next to her bed. Yawning, she slowly opened her eyes as she used her magic to shut off the alarm. She took a couple of minutes to stretch before standing and levitating her Royal Finery onto her body. Then she teleported to Artemis and Twilight’s room. She laughed softly when she saw that both of them were still asleep. She walked over to their bed before nuzzling both of her siblings.

Twilight buried her face in Artemis’ shoulder.

Laughing softly, Artemis nuzzled his wife before looking up at his sister. “What’s going on?”

“We need to finish Mother and Father’s room.” Celestia replied

Nodding, Twilight lifted her head before climbing off of the bed. She stretched for a moment before moving over so that Artemis could get up as well.

Celestia smiled at her siblings before teleporting the three of them to their parents’ suite. She looked around. “It looks like everything’s done.”

“Almost everything.” Twilight responded

Curious, Artemis and Celestia looked at her in time to see her cast a spell. They were about to ask her what she’d done, but paused when she looked up. Looking up as well, they saw that the ceiling was now a perfect replica of Artemis’ Night Sky.

“Good idea” Celestia commented

Celestia is correct. Magic said softly I’m sure that your parents will love it.

I hope so. Twilight replied

Celestia and Twilight turned to Artemis in time to see him pull a blanket out of the closet and set it on the bed.

Celestia gasped “I-is that what I think it is?”

Artemis nodded “Father’s favorite blanket . . . well, a newer version of it.”

“It’s perfect.” Celestia said softly “I’m sure he’ll love it.”

Twilight looked around the room one last time before turning to her sister and husband. “Should we go get them?”

Celestia and Artemis nodded

Midnight Armor woke up around the same time that Artemis and Twilight did. Opening his eyes, he looked around the room in confusion. For a moment, he had no idea where he was. He tightened his grip on Sundance as his horn began to glow.

Calm down, Midnight.

Startled, Midnight Armor lifted his head. Is that you, Loyalty?

Yes, it’s me. Loyalty said softly

Midnight Armor sighed in relief as he allowed his magic to fade. I’m sorry. I’m not sure where that came from.

It’s alright. Kindness replied

Kindness is right. Honesty added You’re still adjusting to everything that’s happened over the last week.

I suppose that makes sense. Midnight Armor laid his head on the pillow again as he took several deep breaths. He released his wife so that he could stretch . . . and laughed softly when she rolled over before pulling the blanket over her head.

You’re safe, Midnight. Laughter promised

She’s right. Generosity said softly

Before anyone could respond, all of them heard a knock on the door.

Surprised, Midnight Armor used his magic to open it. He smiled when Celestia, Artemis and Twilight walked into the room. “Is it time for dinner already?”

Celestia shook her head. “Not quite.”

Artemis smiled at their father. “We have something that we’d like to show both of you.”

Twilight walked over to the bed, and used her magic to pull the blanket down, before nuzzling Sundance. She squealed in surprise when her mother responded by pulling her onto the bed before burying her face in her neck.

Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis smiled while Harmony, Magic, Honesty, Loyalty, Kindness, Laughter and Generosity laughed.

Also laughing, Twilight nuzzled her mother again. “It’s time to wake up, Mom.”

“Hmm?” Sundance mumbled

“We have a surprise for you and Dad.” Twilight whispered

Sundance responded by pulling her youngest into a tight hug. They stayed that way for a few minutes before she released her daughter and climbed out of bed. She took a moment to stretch before turning to her children. “What do the three of you have planned for us?”

Twilight giggled “We’re not going to tell you because we want both of you to see it.”

Celestia and Artemis nodded

Midnight Armor chuckled “Very well” He climbed out of bed, and stretched, before walking over to his children.

Sundance joined her family as they walked out of the room.

Sundance and Midnight Armor followed their children through the halls of the castle. The five of them stopped next to a door in a different part of the castle.

“This part of the castle is where our rooms are.” Celestia explained “The door that leads to the tower that contains my room is over there.” She nodded to the right.

Looking in that direction, Sundance and Midnight Armor saw a door at the other end of the hall with a painting of Celestia’s Cutie Mark.

“The one that leads to the room that Twilight and I share is at the other end of the hall.” Artemis added, nodding to the left

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked in that direction to see a door with a painting of Twilight’s Cutie Mark nestled inside of Artemis’.

Curious, Sundance and Midnight Armor took a closer look at the door that they had stopped next to. Both of them gasped when they saw that the current versions of their Soul Marks had been painted on the door.

Midnight Armor turned to his children. “I-is this what I think it is?”

Celestia smiled “Why don’t you take a look?”

“A-alright” Sundance said slowly, using her magic to open the door

Sundance and Midnight Armor slowly walked inside. Both of them gasped in shock.

They found themselves in a small sitting room. It was furnished with a soft couch that was the color of Sundance’s mane and tail. There were also a couple of white armchairs and a large wooden coffee table. Two tall floor lamps stood next to the couch, one on either side.

Sundance noticed a medium sized wooden box next to one of the armchairs. Curious, she walked over to see what was in it. She gasped softly when she saw that it was filled with several balls of yarn. There are so many different colors . . . and there’s even a pair of knitting needles. She smiled I already know what I’m going to make first. She turned to Artemis and Twilight. “I hope you don’t mind if I knit a few things for Lavender Selene.”

Artemis laughed while Twilight walked over to Sundance.

Twilight nuzzled her mother. “We’re expecting it.”

Midnight Armor and Celestia laughed as well.

Sundance returned Twilight’s nuzzle. “Thank you”

Celestia nuzzled her father. “There’s more.”

Midnight Armor returned his daughter’s nuzzle before walking down the short hall that leads to the main room. Celestia, Artemis, Sundance and Twilight followed him.

Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped again.

The right wall was made entirely of glass so that they had a beautiful view of the gardens behind the castle. When they wanted a bit of privacy, all they had to do was pull a dark blue curtain over the window.

Midnight Armor smiled when he noticed that the floor was hardwood and there was a large dark green area rug in the center of the room. Hardwood is Sundance’s favorite type of flooring . . . and the rug is my favorite color.

Sundance smiled when she took a closer look at the bed. This must be Artemis’ doing. It may be larger than the one we used to have, but it’s a sturdy wooden four poster. Her smile widened when she looked outside. I’m glad that Celestia remembered that Midnight and I like to look at nature. It may not be a forest like the view from our room in our old castle, but the gardens are lovely.

There were two doors to the right of the bed. The first led to a large closet. The second led to a large bathroom. Curious, Sundance and Midnight Armor walked into the bathroom. Celestia, Artemis and Twilight followed them.

The first thing that Sundance noticed was that a large rectangular tub had been sunk into the floor. She suppressed a giggle. That seems to be common now. There is one in Celestia’s room . . . and one in the room that Midnight and I used in Twilight’s castle. Shaking her head, she examined the rest of the bathroom. The toilet is against the right wall and a counter with a couple of sinks are against the back wall. A large mirror has been mounted on the wall above the counter.

Midnight Armor watched his wife walk over to a large cabinet that stood next to the counter before using her magic to open it. It seems that the right side has been stocked with several towels and washcloths . . . dark green for me and light blue for Sundance.

Sundance turned her attention to the left side. There is a set of brushes and combs . . . and several bottles of body wash in here. She laughed softly when she took a closer look at the pictures on the labels. It looks like Celestia remembered our favorite scents. There is lemon for Midnight and rose for me.

Midnight Armor turned towards the left wall. He stared in confusion at a large square stall that was made of glass. There is a drain on the floor and something mounted on the wall. He carefully examined it for a couple of minutes before turning to his children. “What is this?”

“That is a shower.” Artemis answered

“A shower?” Sundance repeated, joining her husband

Nodding, Twilight used her magic to start the water before pulling the shower head off of its mounting bracket on the wall. “Sometimes, ponies need to get clean, but don’t have enough time for a bath. Other ponies prefer showers to baths. Additionally, a shower makes it possible to focus the water on a certain part of the body. This is useful if something is sore . . . or if you want to clean part of your body without getting the rest of you wet.”

“I see.” Midnight Armor slowly replied, watching his youngest stop the water and return the shower head to its place on the wall.

Twilight nuzzled her father. “We should return to the main room because there are a few things that you haven’t seen yet.”

“Very well.” Midnight Armor replied

The five of them returned to the main room. Twilight walked over to the last wall. Sundance and Midnight Armor noticed that this one was lined with a dozen bookcases.

Twilight pointed to the first three bookcases. “All of these books are written in Equestria’s ancient written language.”

Sundance sighed in relief. “That means we can read them.”

Twilight nodded “I copied some of them from books that we have in the library.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow. “Why did you do that?”

“Artemis told me that Mom likes to take notes in books as she reads them.” Twilight explained “Unfortunately, that is a problem because most ponies don’t like reading books that other ponies have taken notes in.”

Celestia nodded as well. “Mother can take notes in these books because they belong to the two of you.”

“Thank you” Sundance thought for a moment before turning to her youngest. “You said that you copied some of them.” She paused until Twilight nodded. “Where did you get the rest?”

Twilight blushed “I translated several books from the current written language into the ancient written language.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled his youngest. “Thank you.”

Twilight returned his nuzzle before pointing to the fourth bookcase. “All of these scrolls are blank so you can take notes . . . or write anything you want.”

Sundance noticed that there were only two books in that bookcase. Curious, she levitated both of them closer before opening them to see that both were blank. Surprised, she turned to Twilight. “What are these for?”

“Look at the front covers.” Twilight replied

Curious, Sundance and Midnight Armor did as they were told. Both of them gasped when they saw that her Soul Mark was on one and his was on the other.

Sundance looked at Twilight again. “Are these what I think they are?”

Twilight nodded “Journals”

“H-how did you know . . .?” Sundance trailed off when she heard Artemis laugh. She raised an eyebrow as she turned to her son. “What’s so funny?”

Artemis nuzzled his mother. “Celestia and I told her that you and Father used to record the events of your day in personal journals.”

Celestia nodded “As soon as she heard that, she insisted on creating new journals for each of you.” She gestured to the shelf that had held the journals.

Sundance and Midnight Armor glanced at the shelf to see that there were several bottles of ink.

“There is enough ink there to last a year.” Celestia explained “Let one of us, or a member of the castle staff, know when you need more.”

Midnight Armor smiled at his eldest. “Thank you” He turned to the rest of the bookcases. “What about the last eight bookcases?”

“These books are written in the current written language.” Twilight answered, walking over to one of them “I thought you might like to practice your reading without other ponies watching you. That’s why I made sure that these books range from easy to hard and everything in between.”

Midnight Armor sighed in relief. “Thank you, Twilight. I’m glad you thought of that.”

Twilight smiled at him before glancing at Sundance. “Like the books in the first three bookcases, all of these are copies. That means you can take notes in these as well.”

“Thank you” Sundance replied

Celestia nudged her brother with a wing. “Don’t you have something to show Father?”

Curious, Midnight Armor turned to his son. “What is your sister talking about?”

Blushing slightly, Artemis levitated the blanket over to his father.

Sundance, Celestia, Twilight and Artemis watched Midnight Armor take it in his magic before unfolding it.

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened “I-is this what I think it is?”

Artemis nodded “It’s a recreation of your favorite blanket.” He glanced at the blanket before turning back to his father. “I know it’s not the one you used to have, but . . .”

Midnight Armor set the blanket on the bed as he walked over to his son. He pulled Artemis into a hug before whispering. “Thank you, Artemis.” I’m not sure why that means so much to me, but it does. Perhaps it’s because so many things have changed during my time as a star.

That makes sense. Kindness commented It may not be the blanket you had fifteen hundred years ago, but it’s something familiar.

Artemis sighed in relief. “You’re welcome”

Sundance smiled at her husband and son before turning to her daughters. “Twilight said that there were a few things that the three of you wanted us to see. This means that there is one more.”

Celestia smiled at her sister. “You should show them this one.”

Twilight shifted nervously. “Look up”

Curious, Sundance and Midnight Armor did as they were told. Both of them gasped in shock when they saw the stars on the ceiling.

“It’s beautiful.” Sundance whispered, watching a shooting star move from one side of the room to the other. It was one thing to see this with my spell, but it’s something else entirely to see it with my own eyes.

You’re right. Harmony thought for moment. Twilight Sparkle must be trying to help the two of you feel comfortable in your new room.

Feel comfortable? Sundance stared up at the ceiling for a moment before gasping when she suddenly understood what Harmony meant. Of course! Midnight and I are used to seeing stars because . . . well, we were stars.

Exactly. Harmony responded You may not be stars anymore, but her spell allows the two of you to look at them whenever you want.

You’re right. Sundance smiled at her youngest. “It’s perfect.”

“Your mother is correct.” Midnight Armor said softly, levitating his youngest closer before pulling her into a tight hug. “Thank you”

Twilight sighed in relief. “You’re welcome.”

Giggling, Celestia nuzzled her sister before turning to their parents. “She was worried that you wouldn’t like it.”

Midnight Armor released his youngest before draping a wing over her back. “Why would you think that?”

Twilight looked up at him. “These stars aren’t real.”

“I see.” Midnight Armor said slowly “You thought your mother and I would be offended because we’re used to seeing the real thing.”

Twilight hesitantly nodded

Laughing softly, Sundance nuzzled her youngest. “There’s nothing to worry about.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled Twilight as well. “Your mother is correct. We’re not offended at all.”

Twilight sighed in relief again. “Good”

Midnight Armor looked around him for a moment before something occurred to him. He turned back to his children. “Your mother and I returned two days ago.”

Smiling, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nodded.

“How could you have prepared all of this so quickly?” Midnight Armor slowly asked

Eyes wide, Sundance turned to her children as well. “That is a very good question, Midnight.” Especially when you consider the fact that we were with them for most of that time.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight began to laugh.

Confused, Midnight Armor looked at his wife for a moment before turning back to their children. “What’s so funny?”

“W-we’ve been preparing this suite for months!” Twilight answered

Celestia and Artemis nodded

Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped “What?!”

By this point, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight were laughing too hard to say anything else. Midnight Armor and Sundance looked on as their children collapsed to the floor.

Sundance stared at her children in shock. What’s going on?!

Harmony began to laugh.

What’s so funny, Harmony? Sundance asked

I think it would be best if your children answer your first question. Harmony replied A-as for the second . . . I’m sorry, but your expression is too funny.

It’s alright. Sundance looked up in time to see that her husband’s horn had begun to glow.

Midnight Armor used his magic to move his youngest in front of him before gently setting her on the floor. He raised an eyebrow when Twilight collapsed to the floor again. Shaking his head, he lay down next to her before covering her with a wing.

It was almost fifteen minutes before Twilight was finally able to stop laughing. She tried to sit up, but Midnight Armor tightened his wing around her. Surprised, she looked up at him. “Dad?”

Midnight Armor just looked at her. “You’re not going anywhere until you tell me what that was about.”

I want to see what he does. Twilight suppressed a giggle as she attempted to spread her wings.

“Oh no you don’t.” Midnight Armor responded

Confused, Twilight looked at her wings to see that they were surrounded with her father’s magic.

Midnight Armor chuckled “That won’t get you anywhere.”

Twilight blinked “Huh?”

Midnight Armor nuzzled his youngest. “There isn’t much you can try that Celestia and Artemis haven’t already done.”

Laughing, Sundance nodded as she lay down between Celestia and Artemis. “Celestia used to do that all the time when she was a foal.”

Twilight turned to Celestia. “Really?”

Blushing, Celestia nodded

Sundance laughed harder. “Celestia was an energetic and extremely mischievous filly.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow. “She got that from you.”

“I’m not going to take all of the blame for that.” Sundance responded, still laughing “You’re the one who thought it would be funny to teach her the Camouflage Spell. Then you told her to wake me up at dawn.”

“That wasn’t just funny.” Midnight Armor replied, laughing as well “That was hilarious. I’ll never forget the look on your face when she decided to wake you by jumping on your stomach.”

Twilight stared at Celestia. “You did what?!”

“Hey!” Celestia exclaimed “I was just doing what Father told me to. B-besides, I was only three years old!”

Harmony began to laugh. You’re right, Sundance. Midnight Armor has a mischievous side as well.

Trust me, I know. Sundance smiled at her son. “Celestia taught Artemis the Camouflage Spell when he was four.”

Celestia and Artemis suddenly began to laugh.

Confused, Twilight looked at them for a moment before returning her attention to Sundance. “Why are they laughing?” She raised an eyebrow when her mother began to laugh as well. “What did they do?”

“Celestia taught me that spell as my birthday present that year.” Artemis explained, still laughing “We thought it would be fun to play a prank on Mother and Father while they were in court.”

“They cast the Camouflage Spell on themselves before entering the courtroom.” Midnight Armor explained “As I’m sure you can imagine, your mother and I were shocked when Celestia and Artemis began poking me . . .”

“And tickling me.” Sundance added

“We had to figure out where Celestia and Artemis were before we could even think about catching them.” Midnight Armor finished

Twilight laughed

“Then we had to explain what they had done to the petitioners.” Sundance shook her head. “Fortunately, they were too impressed by what Celestia and Artemis had done to be angry.”

Celestia and Artemis laughed as well.

Midnight Armor nuzzled Twilight. “Don’t think I forgot about what started this.”

Twilight looked up at him. “Huh?”

“You told us that the three of you have been preparing this suite for months.” Midnight Armor reminded her

“That’s right.” Celestia responded “We began creating your suite soon after we decided to bring your souls to the Waking World.”

“Why did you do that?” Sundance asked

Twilight giggled “Did you really think that we were only going to bring the two of you here once?”

Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped “What?!”

Artemis laughed at his parents’ expressions. “Celestia and I didn’t know anything specific about Harmony’s plan, so we couldn’t have known that you would be really coming back.”

Twilight nodded “Additionally, Harmony, Magic and I weren’t sure if Harmony’s plan was going to work. That’s why Celestia, Artemis and I decided to bring the two of you here as often as possible.”

Celestia nodded as well. “We originally created this suite as a place for the two of you to stay during your visits.”

“Now that we’re really back . . .” Midnight Armor began

“The two of you will be using it whenever you’re here in Canterlot.” Artemis finished

“I see.” Sundance said slowly

“The room that you used in my castle has been set aside for the two of you to use whenever you’re in Ponyville.” Twilight nervously looked from Sundance to Midnight Armor and back again. “Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to set it up like this one.”

Laughing softly, Midnight Armor nuzzled his youngest. “It’s alright, Twilight.”

Sundance smiled at Twilight. “Your father is correct. We’re not upset at all.”

Twilight sighed in relief.

Laughing, Celestia smiled at her sister before focusing on the sun for a moment. Then she turned back to her family. “It’s time for dinner.”

Midnight Armor smiled at his eldest. “In that case, we should head to the dining room.”

“There’s something that I need to do first.” Twilight tilted her head. “Actually, there are two things that I need to do.”

Sundance raised an eyebrow. “What are you talking about?”

“The spell I cast on you and Dad will wear off in roughly half an hour.” Twilight responded “That means I need to cast it on you again.” She looked at Sundance. “Additionally, I thought this might be a good time to teach you how to cast my spell.”

“Good idea, Twilight.” Celestia said slowly

Artemis and Midnight Armor nodded.

Twilight cast her spell on both of her parents before teaching Sundance how to cast it.

“Incredible” Sundance said softly I never would have thought of creating a spell like this.

Same here. Harmony carefully examined Twilight’s spell. Regardless, I’m glad she did.

So am I. Sundance replied If she hadn’t created this spell, Midnight and I would be extremely uncomfortable right now. She blushed when her stomach growled.

Laughing, Celestia teleported the five of them to the dining room.

Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Night Light, Velvet, Spike, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow, Rarity and Pinkie looked up at a flash of sunlight. They saw that Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight were standing near the door.

Flurry waved both forehooves. “Hi!”

Everyone else laughed while Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight made their way to the table. They looked up when Apple Crunch walked into the room.

His eyes widened when he saw Sundance, Midnight Armor, Artemis, Celestia and Twilight. “My apologies, your highnesses. I didn’t realize that you were here.”

Sundance smiled at him. “It’s alright. We just got here.”

Apple Crunch sighed in relief. “I’ll be right back.” He returned roughly five minutes later with a cart loaded with an extra-large broccoli and cheese casserole for all of them to share, plates, silverware and large glasses of milk for each of them. When everyone had finished their dinners, he returned with three apple pies and a large tub of vanilla ice cream.

Once they had finished eating, Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Night Light, Velvet, Spike, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow, Rarity and Pinkie turned to Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight.

“Cadance, Flurry and I need to go to sleep soon.” Shining Armor remarked

Sundance raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

Cadance laughed “We have to get back to the Crystal Empire.”

“That makes sense.” Midnight Armor responded They have been here for almost a week.

Shining Armor nodded “We’re getting up early and leaving right after breakfast.”

“It will probably be a while before we’re able to make it back to the Crystal Empire.” Twilight commented, ears drooping

Standing, Cadance walked around the table so she could nuzzle Twilight. “It’s alright, Twily. We’ll be back soon.”

Twilight looked up. “Huh?”

Shining Armor laughed “We’ll be back in seven months.”

“I see.” Artemis said slowly “That’s why you were in the hospital wing yesterday.”

Cadance nodded “Now we know when Twilight’s due date is.”

Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow, Rarity and Pinkie stood as well.

“We’re going to bed as well.” Rarity announced

Applejack nodded “We’re going back to Ponyville tomorrow. All of us have a lot of work to do when we get home, so we need to get some rest.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor exchanged glances before looking up when they heard Celestia’s voice.

“It’s alright. Mother, Father, Artemis, Twilight and I will be going with you.”

Sundance blinked That’s right. Artemis did say that we were going back to Ponyville for the rest of the weekend. She tilted her head. I believe he said that the reason is that Celestia, Artemis and Twilight want Midnight and I to be able to relax in a location that isn’t as hectic as Canterlot. She smiled at everyone. “In that case, I believe all of us should retire for the evening.”

Nodding, Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Night Light, Velvet, Spike, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow, Rarity and Pinkie returned to their rooms.

Midnight Armor turned to his children, but paused when he saw the expression on Celestia’s face. He opened his mouth but, before he could say anything, she teleported the five of them to her room.

“Why did you do that?” Sundance asked

Celestia closed and locked both of the doors to her room. Then she lowered the sun before nodding to her brother. Artemis returned the nod as his horn began to glow. Sundance and Midnight Armor looked outside in time to see the moon rise into the sky. Artemis placed the stars in the night sky before turning back to his family.

Sundance and Midnight Armor opened their mouths, about to ask what was going on, but the five of them vanished before they could say a word.

In the stars, Star Swirl turned at a flash of moonlight. When the light faded, he saw that Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight were standing in front of him. He sighed in relief. “Thank goodness. I was getting worried.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight, Artemis and Celestia laughed.

Star Swirl looked at Sundance and Midnight Armor for a moment before turning to Twilight. “I probably don’t need to ask, but how did it go?”

Twilight laughed again “There were a couple of things that we didn’t plan for, but everything still went more or less as we planned.”

Star Swirl brightened considerably. “Good”

Sundance and Midnight Armor glanced at each other before turning back to Star Swirl. “Thank you”

Confused, Star Swirl asked “For what?”

Midnight Armor laughed softly “You already know that Sundance and I were aware of the fact that you helped Twilight create the second spell for Harmony.”

Star Swirl briefly brightened

“Harmony told us that you’ve been helping Twilight.” Sundance commented “That leads me to believe that you did more than just help create a spell.”

Star Swirl briefly brightened again before pausing for a moment. “You said Harmony told you that I’ve been helping them.” He said slowly “How did she do that?” Did she ask Magic to pass a message to Twilight?

“That’s one of the things that we didn’t plan for.” Twilight replied

“What do you mean?” Star Swirl asked

“It has become apparent that I need to be more involved in the protection of Equestria.”

Star Swirl stared at them in stunned silence for a couple of minutes before stammering. “I-Is that who I think it is?”

Sundance nodded “Harmony”

Star Swirl gasped “H-how am I able to hear her?”

“Sundance is my bearer.” Harmony answered “Therefore, I can use my connection to her to allow everyone around her to hear my voice.”

“I-I see.” Star Swirl slowly replied Twilight is right. We definitely didn’t plan for that.

Chapter 77

There is no way that all five of us will fit on this cloud. Artemis created another cloud before merging it with the existing one. Then he turned to his family. “We should make ourselves comfortable.”

Nodding, Midnight Armor walked onto the cloud before laying down. “Good idea, Artemis. This discussion will probably take a while.”

Sundance lay down on her husband’s right side. Artemis lay down on his father’s left. Celestia lay down next to her brother and Twilight lay down on Sundance’s other side.

“You’re right, Midnight.”

“Who said that?” Star Swirl asked

“Honesty” Midnight Armor answered

“How was she able to do that?” Star Swirl asked I know that she has a bearer, but Applejack isn’t here.

Honesty laughed “Loyalty, Kindness, Laughter, Generosity and I have a connection to Midnight. This means that we can allow those around him to hear our voices.”

Star Swirl gasped W-we didn’t plan for that either. “What happened?”

Sundance opened her mouth, about to begin the explanation, but paused when she heard Artemis’ voice.

“We might be able to give Star Swirl enough magic to visit my dream.”

Sundance’s eyes widened as she turned to look at her son. “Are you sure?”

Artemis nodded “There are five of us now, so I know that we have enough magic.”

“You mean six.”

Artemis blinked “I’m sorry, Night. I didn’t know that you wanted to help.”

Night laughed

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight and Celestia stared at Artemis for a moment before all of them said the same thing. “A-alright.”

Laughing softly, Artemis lowered his head. Twilight shifted so that she could touch her horn to his. Sundance, Midnight Armor and Celestia followed suit.

Harmony, Magic, Kindness, Loyalty, Honesty, Generosity and Laughter looked on as Celestia, Twilight, Midnight Armor and Sundance gave Artemis some of their magic. Then Night added some of his before Artemis gave their combined magic to Star Swirl.

“I would offer to cast a sleeping spell on all of us, but . . .” Celestia glanced at Twilight.

“It isn’t safe to cast sleeping spells on me.” Twilight finished

Celestia nodded

Sundance laughed “It’s alright, Celestia. I know another way to get Twilight to fall asleep.” She spread a wing over her youngest.

I may not know what she has planned, but I trust her. Smiling, Twilight nuzzled her mother before laying her head on the cloud and closing her eyes.

Sundance began to sing her lullaby.

Sighing happily, Artemis snuggled closer to his father before also laying his head on the cloud and closing his eyes.

Celestia lay her head on the cloud and closed her eyes as well before focusing on her mother’s voice. I never thought I’d get to really hear her do this again.

When the song was over, Sundance looked around to see that all three of her children were asleep. Laughing softly, she turned to her husband. “That solves that problem.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled his wife. “Great idea, Honey.”

Where did you learn that song? Harmony asked

I wrote it not long after Celestia was born. Sundance answered

It’s beautiful. Harmony said softly

Thank you. Sundance smiled at her children for a moment before turning to her husband. “We should get some sleep as well.”

Midnight Armor nodded

Star Swirl looked on as Sundance and Midnight Armor lay their heads on the cloud before casting a sleeping spell on themselves.

In the Dream Realm, Artemis opened his eyes and looked around. He took a few moments to just look at the stars around him before bringing Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Twilight into his dream.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Twilight looked around in varying degrees of shock for a moment before turning to Artemis in time to see him create a large cloud under them. The five of them lay down while they waited for Star Swirl to arrive.

Star Swirl arrived in Artemis’ dream roughly five minutes later. He looked around for a moment before spotting the cloud above his head. He was about to say something, but paused when he noticed that he was suspended in a field of dark blue magic. This is Midnight Armor’s magic. He was pulled from his thoughts when he felt Twilight’s magic sweep over his body before Midnight Armor set him next to Artemis. He smiled at Midnight Armor and Twilight. “Thank you”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Artemis, Twilight and Celestia laughed. They looked at each other for a moment before showing Star Swirl almost everything that had happened since Sundance and Midnight Armor arrived in the Waking World.

Star Swirl stared at them for several minutes in stunned silence. Then he slowly turned to Sundance and Midnight Armor. “If I ever did, or said, anything that angered either of you . . . I’m sorry.” Additionally, I hope I never anger either of them.

Surprised, Sundance and Midnight Armor stared at Star Swirl for a moment before beginning to laugh. Celestia, Artemis and Twilight quickly joined them.

Star Swirl waited until everyone was calm enough to listen. “Let me get this straight. Sundance is the Bearer of the Spirit of the Tree of Harmony. Midnight Armor is the future Bearer of the Elements of Honesty, Loyalty, Laughter, Kindness and Generosity.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Artemis, Twilight and Celestia nodded.

Star Swirl took a deep breath. “That definitely wasn’t part of the plan.”

Surprised, Midnight Armor turned to Twilight. “Really?”

Twilight nodded “We knew that Harmony was going to ask you to protect Applejack, Rainbow, Rarity, Pinkie, Fluttershy and I. However, we didn’t know that she was going to have you take over as the Bearer of their Elements when they pass.” She glanced at Sundance before turning back to Midnight Armor. “Additionally, we knew that she had an important role for Mom, but didn’t know exactly what it was.”

Midnight Armor glanced at his wife before turning back to their youngest. “I see.”

Sundance raised an eyebrow. I wonder why Harmony kept such an important part of her plan hidden from Twilight. I’ll have to remember to ask her about that tomorrow.

Star Swirl thought for a moment before turning to Twilight and Artemis. “Are you really planning to bring me to the Waking World after your daughter is born?”

Artemis smiled at his friend. “Of course.”

Twilight giggled at Star Swirl’s confused expression. “We could give you enough magic to visit Artemis’ dream, but we want you to really meet her.”

“I-I see.” Star Swirl said slowly “Thank you”

“You’re welcome.” Twilight and Artemis replied

Sundance snuggled closer to her husband before returning her attention to Star Swirl. “Do you have any other questions for us?”

Star Swirl shook his head. “Your memories of the last week answered most of my questions . . . and you just answered the few that I had left.”

“I see.” Midnight Armor replied “In that case, does anypony have anything that they want to discuss?”

Sundance, Celestia, Star Swirl and Artemis shook their heads.

“Well,” Twilight said slowly “there is something that I’ve wanted to ask you and Mom for a while now.”

Curious, Sundance turned to her youngest. “What is it?”

“Remember when you and Dad visited Artemis’ dream for a week?” Twilight asked

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded

“We talked about how Artemis and I met, remember?” Twilight waited for her parents to nod again. “I was wondering how the two of you met.”

Celestia’s eyes widened “That’s a good question, Twilight. Artemis and I haven’t heard that story either.”

Surprised, Twilight turned to her sister. “Really?”

“Mother and Father spent the last fifteen hundred years as stars.” Celestia explained “We usually discussed whatever was going on around Artemis and myself when they visited Artemis’ dream.”

“As for before they became stars . . .” Artemis sighed “We had other things on our minds at the time.”

Midnight Armor winced

Also wincing, Sundance nuzzled her son before whispering something in his ear.

Smiling slightly, Artemis returned her nuzzle. “I know, Mother.”

Sundance nuzzled Artemis again before turning to Twilight. “You said that you’ve been curious about that since we discussed how you met Artemis.” She paused until Twilight nodded. “That was three and a half months ago. Why didn’t you ask us about it sooner?”

Twilight lowered her head. “I-I didn’t think I had the right to ask.”

“Twilight Sparkle”

He's never called me by my full name before. Surprised, Twilight lifted her head so she could look at Midnight Armor. Her eyes widened when she saw the expression on his face. “Y-yes, Dad?”

“I don’t want to hear you say that again.” Midnight Armor responded

Twilight blinked “Huh?”

Midnight Armor pulled Twilight closer before covering her with a wing. “You are one of our children. As such, there isn’t anything that you don’t have the right to ask us.”

“Your father is correct, Twilight.” Sundance reached around her husband to nuzzle their youngest. “We will let you know if you ask about something that we don’t want to discuss.”

“O-okay.” Twilight slowly replied

Celestia and Artemis smiled at each other before turning back to their parents.

“This is going to be a long story.” Sundance commented

“That’s alright.” Artemis replied “We still have several hours.”

Sundance giggled “Alright.” She glanced at her husband. “I’ll get things started.”

Midnight Armor nodded “Go ahead.” That makes sense. After all, her part comes first.

- - Sundance’s Flashback - - -

“Sundance?”

A much younger Sundance turned towards the voice to see that an elderly earth pony mare was standing behind her. “Yes, Ma’am?”

The mare smiled “You don’t have to be so formal when nopony else is around, dear. In situations like this, you may call me Lila.”

Sundance bowed her head. “I understand.” She raised her head again. “Did you want me to take care of something?”

Lila nodded “I noticed that we’re almost out of firewood. Ordinarily, I would never even consider sending a young mare like yourself out of the village on this type of errand. However . . .” She glanced at Sundance’s horn and wings before looking the younger mare in the eye. “You are stronger than the best fighter in the village.”

Sundance suppressed a sigh as she levitated her saddlebags onto her back and turned towards the door. I know I should be grateful that she allows me to stay with her . . . especially since nopony else will. However, I wish I didn’t have to complete all of her chores. She waited until she had reached the doorway before pausing and looking over her shoulder. “I probably won’t be back until after dark.”

Lila tilted her head. “Whatever do you mean, dear?”

“Unfortunately, the other ponies in the village have cut down all of the trees that used to grow close to the village.” Sundance sighed “That means I’ll have to go into the forest.”

Lila gasped in horror. “The forest?! Won’t you reconsider? The forest isn’t safe . . . even for a pony with your abilities. I would hate to see you get injured again.”

“I don’t have a choice.” Sundance responded “It’s the only place where I can collect the amount of wood that we need and still have a chance of making it back to the village today.”

“I-I see.” Lila stammered “Very well. I will be praying for your safety.”

“Thank you.” Sundance walked outside before pausing when she heard a voice.

“There you are, Monster. Where do you think you’re going?”

Sundance looked around for a moment before noticing that an earth pony stallion was standing off to the left.

Neither of them noticed that Lila was standing in the doorway of her house.

I’m not going to bother speaking to him. Instead, I’ll just fly to the forest. If I hurry, I should be able to avoid the other two. Sundance spread her wings. She winced when a rock hit the right side of her head. She didn’t bother turning to see who had thrown it. Never mind. It’s clear that both of them are already here. She dodged the next three rocks by taking to the air.

“What do you think you’re doing?!”

Surprised, all four of them turned to see that Lila was glaring at the three earth pony stallions.

Gasping in shock, the stallions dropped the rocks that they had been about to throw at Sundance. “E-elder Lila!”

Lila allowed her glare to fade as she looked up at Sundance. “Go ahead, dear. I will take care of things here.”

Nodding, Sundance flew over the wall that surrounded the village. It only took her a couple of minutes to reach the forest. Thank goodness. There don’t appear to be any Chimeras nearby.

- - End Flashback - - -

“P-ponies really treated you like that?”

Sundance turned to see that Twilight had tears in her eyes. Laughing softly, she reached around her husband to nuzzle their daughter. “You have to understand that things were very different back then. At the time, the three tribes were still living separately.”

“Ponies usually fought when they came across a member of another tribe.” Midnight Armor explained “Additionally, alicorns were extremely rare.”

Sundance nodded “At the time, I had never seen another one.”

Never seen another alicorn? Twilight gasped softly “That’s right. You said that you don’t remember your parents.”

Sundance nodded again

- - Sundance’s Flashback - - -

Sundance was walking through a dense part of the Everfree Forest. “I thought I heard somepony scream. I need to make sure that there isn’t somepony in danger back here before I gather the firewood for Lila.”

She walked into a clearing and looked around. It didn’t take her long to spot four ponies off to the left. “It must have been the mare’s scream that I heard. It looks like she’s traveling with three stallions.” The unicorns must be from the village that lies on the other side of the forest.

She took a couple of minutes to observe them. “It looks like the mare has injured one of her hind legs. Two of the stallions are fighting each other while the third is guarding the mare.” She raised an eyebrow when she focused her senses on the third stallion. He has surrounded part of his body with magic, but it doesn’t appear to be for defense. Instead, it appears to be for concealment. I wonder what he’s hiding. She shrugged Oh well. It’s none of my business.

She began to walk towards them. “I hope they don’t attack me.”

- - End Flashback - - -

Sundance smiled at her husband. “It’s your turn.”

Midnight Armor returned his wife’s smile before turning to Star Swirl, Artemis, Twilight and Celestia. “I’m going to pick up where Sundance left off.”

All four of them nodded.

- - Midnight Armor’s Flashback - - -

Midnight Armor suddenly heard the sound of hoofsteps. I hope it isn’t another monster. He turned towards the sound . . . and couldn’t help but stare at the mare that was slowly walking towards them. S-she has wings and a horn?! He glanced at his side. His wings, which were hidden by a Camouflage Spell, twitched slightly. This is the first time that I’ve seen another pony like me. He was pulled from his thoughts by a soft voice.

“Don’t worry. I won’t harm you. In fact, I can help her.”

Midnight Armor’s left ear twitched when the mare laying on the ground behind him whimpered softly. He turned to the pale yellow mare with an orange mane and tail. “It’s alright.” He quietly told her before returning his attention to the mare that was still slowly approaching the four of them. She’s beautiful. Her coat is pure white while her mane and tail are light blue.

One of the other stallions disentangled himself from his sparring partner before walking over to stand next to Midnight Armor. “Midnight Armor is right, Amber. We won’t let her harm you.”

“I don’t think she plans to harm any of us.” Midnight Armor said slowly

The stallion who had just spoken glanced at Midnight Armor. “What makes you say that?”

“Isn’t it obvious, Thunder?” Midnight Armor responded “She wouldn’t have revealed herself if she planned to attack us.”

Thunder, a unicorn stallion with a bright green coat, used his magic to move part of his yellow mane out of his bright blue eyes before nodding to Midnight Armor. “Good point. If that’s what she wanted to do, she would have attacked us from the cover of the trees.”

“I suppose you’re right.” The third stallion moved so that he was standing next to Thunder. “What do you think we should do?”

Midnight Armor glanced at Amber before returning his attention to the third stallion. “Didn’t you hear what she said, Smoky?”

Smoky, a stallion with a gray coat, shook his white mane out of his black eyes before nodding to Midnight Armor. “She said that she can help Amber.”

Midnight Armor nodded as well. “I think we should let her. We can’t treat Amber’s injuries because we don’t have any medicine.” I still can’t believe we entered the forest without bringing any medicine with us. What were we thinking?!

“Good idea.” Smoky turned to Amber. “Is that alright with you? The three of us will stop her if she tries to do anything that could harm you.”

Thunder nodded to Smoky before looking down at Amber. “He’s right.”

Midnight Armor turned to Amber as well. Her injuries aren’t severe enough to kill her right away. However, she could fall ill if her wounds aren’t treated soon. If that happens . . . well, that’s what could kill her.

Obviously nervous, Amber chewed her lip for a moment as she looked the two deep gashes in her right hind leg. Then she looked up at the three stallions. “A-alright.”

Midnight Armor nodded to Amber before turning back to Sundance. “If you try to harm her . . .” He stopped when Sundance laughed softly. Why is she laughing?

“If I really wanted to harm any of you, don’t you think I would have done so by now?” Sundance used her magic to remove, and open her, saddlebags before pulling out an assortment of herbs and bandages. Then she pulled out a wooden bowl and used it to gather water from the stream at the edge of the clearing.

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow. She has enough medical supplies to treat all of us . . . and still have some left over. He looked up at Sundance. “Why do you have so many medical supplies?”

“I ran into three Chimeras the last time I came here.” Sundance answered

Amber gasped in shock. “H-how are you still alive?!”

Sundance winced as she allowed herself to think about that fight. “Several of the ponies that live in the earth pony village at the edge of the forest happened to be nearby and heard me scream. I was severely injured by the time they made it to me. They defeated the Chimeras before turning to me.”

Thunder raised an eyebrow as he stared at Sundance’s horn and wings. “They really helped you?”

Sundance nodded “I had fallen so that my mane was covering my horn . . . and they couldn’t see my wings from their position. Therefore, they thought I was an earth pony.”

“I assume it didn’t take them long to discover the truth.” Midnight Armor remarked

Sighing, Sundance shook her head as she cleaned Amber’s wounds. “Fortunately, the elder was with them. She didn't allow any of them near me. In fact, she treated my injuries herself and allows me to stay with her.”

“I’m not surprised.” Smoky commented “Elder Lila is the only earth pony that is worth talking to.” He shook his head. “I assume the rest of the ponies in that village aren’t as welcoming.”

“You could say that.” Sundance replied “Anyway, that is why I have so many medical supplies.”

Amber nodded “That makes sense.” She watched Sundance create a paste that was made of water and several different herbs before spreading it on her wounds. She waited until Sundance began to wrap her leg before looking up at the mare’s face. Her eyes widened when she noticed that Sundance was bleeding. “What happened?”

Sundance kept her gaze on Amber’s leg. “What are you talking about?”

“Y-you’re bleeding.” Amber replied

“I am?” Sundance glanced at Amber’s face to see that the unicorn was staring at the right side of her head. “Oh. That’s nothing to worry about. I’ll take care of it later.”

“What happened?” Amber repeated

“Some of the stallions that live in the village throw rocks whenever they see me.” Sundance replied “Unfortunately, their aim is improving.”

Midnight Armor narrowed his eyes. “They dare attack a mare?!”

Sundance let out a bitter laugh. “They don’t see me as a mare.” She sighed when she saw their confused expressions. “They call me a monster.”

Smoky’s eyes widened “They what?!”

“Unfortunately, it’s the same wherever I go.” Sundance explained “Very few ponies have seen a pony with wings and a horn. Therefore, I’m almost always treated like some sort of abomination.”

“You have magic.” Midnight Armor pointed out. “Why don’t you just hide your wings?” Perhaps I should teach her the Camouflage Spell . . . if she doesn’t already know it.

Sundance’s eyes flashed. “Why should I do that?!”

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened when he saw how angry she was. “Ponies wouldn’t treat you like that if they didn’t know that you have wings and a horn.”

Sundance took a couple of deep breaths before returning her attention to Amber’s leg. “It’s true that I could conceal my wings, horn or both. I refuse to do so because my wings and horn are important to me. As far as I’m concerned, to hide them is to hide who I am.”

“I understand.” Amber said softly “I would feel the same way if somepony told me that I had to hide my horn.”

Thunder and Smoky nodded.

Midnight Armor glanced at his side before turning back to Sundance. I didn’t think about it like that. I began hiding my wings because I needed to hide my identity. “I’m sorry. I did not intend to anger you.”

Sundance took another deep breath before smiling at him. “It’s alright.” She paused “I’m sorry. I haven’t introduced myself. My name is Sundance.”

Her name is as beautiful as she is. Midnight Armor returned her smile. “It’s alright. We are guilty of the same. My name is Midnight Armor.”

Amber laughed “My name is Amber.”

Thunder nodded “My name is Thunder.”

“I’m Smoky.” Smoky added

“It’s nice to meet all of you.” Sundance carefully examined Amber’s leg as she quietly added. “Especially since none of them treat me like some kind of monster.”

Amber, Smoky, Midnight Armor and Thunder winced. “It’s nice to meet you as well.”

“Unfortunately, I have to leave now.” Sundance commented “I still need to gather firewood for the elder before heading back to the earth pony village.” She began to put her medical supplies back in her saddlebags.

“Wait!”

Surprised, Sundance looked up. “Yes, Amber?”

Amber picked up a clean bandage with her magic before beginning to wipe the blood off of Sundance’s face. “You treated my injuries, so it’s only fair that I do the same for you.” She blushed “I hope you don’t mind that I have to use your medical supplies to do so.”

Sundance laughed “I don’t mind.” She waited until Amber was finished before returning the rest of her medical supplies to her saddlebags. Then she stood and placed her saddlebags on her back before walking towards a dead tree at the edge of the clearing. “This one looks perfect.”

Midnight Armor, Amber, Smoky and Thunder looked on as Sundance used her magic to cut the tree into smaller logs before gathering them together and using a few long vines to tie them into a large bundle. They had a quiet discussion amongst themselves before turning back to Sundance.

Sundance turned to see that the four of them were watching her. “I’d better get going. I hope we will have the chance to meet again.”

“I hope so as well.” Thunder nuzzled Amber before smiling at Sundance. “I still have to find a way to thank you for treating my mare’s injuries.”

Sundance raised an eyebrow as she watched Amber blush before returning his nuzzle.

Midnight Armor walked over to Sundance. “I assume that look means you didn’t know that Thunder is courting Amber.”

Sundance shook her head. “They hide it well.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “You’re right. On another topic, I hope you don’t mind if I escort you back to the earth pony village.”

Sundance raised an eyebrow. “I don’t mind. However, I have to wonder why you would like to do so.”

“I have my reasons.” Midnight Armor watched Sundance raise the other eyebrow. I should have expected that. “The first is that I would like to get to know you. The second is that, despite what those earth ponies say, you are a mare and I intend to treat you like one.”

Sundance stared at Midnight Armor in shock. After a couple of minutes, she whispered “T-thank you.”

I wasn’t expecting her to react like that. It makes me wonder what she’s been though. Midnight Armor smiled at her. “You’re welcome.” He glanced at his friends before turning back to Sundance. “We were wondering if you would like to join us for a picnic tomorrow.”

Sundance’s eyes widened “What?”

Amber smiled at Sundance as well. “It’s going to be next to the river that runs to the left of the unicorn village. There is a group of three tall oak trees not far from the river.”

“I know where that is.” Sundance commented “Are you sure that you want me to join you?”

Thunder nodded “The picnic will start at noon. That way, everypony will be able to make it back home before dark.”

“A-alright.” Sundance replied

“Speaking of dark,” Midnight Armor remarked, glancing up at the sky “I think we should get going.”

Smoky nodded “The unicorns in the capital are lowering the sun. That means we should get home.” He glanced at Midnight Armor. “We’ll tell the elder that you will be a little late.”

Amber nodded as well. “I’m sure that Father will understand when we explain what happened today.” She smiled at Sundance again. “We’ll see you tomorrow.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor watched Amber, Thunder and Smoky walk away before heading in the opposite direction.

- - End Flashback - - -

“W-wow” Celestia said softly

Artemis nodded to Celestia before turning back to their parents. “What happened next?”

Twilight nodded as well. “I’d like to see the picnic.” She thought for a moment before turning to Midnight Armor. “When did you reveal your wings?”

Sundance laughed “Both happened the next day.”

- - Sundance’s Flashback - - -

Sundance looked up when Lila walked into the room. I hope this doesn’t take too long. Midnight Armor should be here soon. “Is there something that I can help you with?”

“I would like to discuss the way that you handled yourself yesterday.” Lila replied

There was something about her tone that made Sundance nervous. “Did I do something that I shouldn’t have?”

“Of course not!” Lila immediately replied “There is absolutely nothing wrong with what you did. However, I don’t think you understand the ramifications of your actions.”

“What do you mean?” Sundance asked

“You told me that the unicorn you treated was a young mare named Amber.” Lila reminded her.

Sundance nodded “That’s right.”

“Amber is the only living foal of the Elder of the unicorn village.” Lila explained

Sundance’s eyes widened “That means she is the future leader of the unicorn village!” I heard her call the unicorn elder “Father”, but I didn’t know that she was his only heir!

Lila nodded “Onyx sent me a message last night.”

If I recall correctly, that is the name of the elder of the unicorn village. “What did he want?” Sundance nervously asked

“He wants to meet on the neutral ground between our villages two days from now.” Lila answered “Additionally, he has assured me that there will be no hostility from his village during this meeting.”

Sundance raised an eyebrow. “Has that ever happened before?”

“Not to my knowledge.” Lila replied “However, there is another part to his request.”

“And that is?” Sundance asked

“I don’t know what Amber told her father, but it seems that she thinks highly of you.” Lila responded “He has requested that I bring you with me because he would like to meet you.”

Sundance’s eyes widened even further. “W-what?”

Lila nodded “We will be having this meeting in the morning. I would like you to begin traveling to the Meeting of the Tribes as soon as it is finished.”

Sundance took a deep breath before nodding. “Very well.”

Lila smiled “Thank you” Her smile suddenly became much more mischievous. “There is also the unicorn that escorted you back to the village last night. You are to be congratulated on catching the attention of such a handsome young stallion.”

Sundance’s face immediately turned bright red. “I-it isn’t like that! I just met him!” She paused “However . . .”

Lila had a knowing smile on her face. “Yes, dear?”

Sundance’s blush deepened “The four of them have asked me to join them for a picnic today. Midnight Armor told me that he wanted to escort me to that as well. He’ll bring me home when it’s over.” She glanced outside. “In fact, he should be here soon.”

“I thought you would be spending time with them today.” Lila replied “I hope you enjoy yourself.”

Sundance was about to respond, but both of them jumped when a shout echoed through the village.

“Unicorn approaching! Archers, take aim!”

Sundance gasped “That must be Midnight Armor. I hope they don’t hit him!”

Lila and Sundance raced outside just as the archers released their arrows.

“Stop this at once!” Lila shouted

All of the archers on the wall immediately lowered their bows and turned to her.

One of them climbed down from his post. “E-elder! A unicorn is . . .” He trailed off when Sundance spread her wings and lifted into the air.

Sundance sighed in relief when she saw that Midnight Armor was unharmed. “I’ll be right there.” She told him before landing next to Lila again. “It’s Midnight Armor. Fortunately, it appears that the archers missed him.”

“We didn’t miss him.” One of the archers on the wall grumbled. “He protected himself with a barrier.”

Lila sighed in relief as well. “Good.” She turned back to the archers. “That stallion is allowed to approach the village unhindered. I don’t want to hear that any of you have attacked him again.”

All of the archers nodded. “Yes, elder.”

Lila turned back to Sundance. “Enjoy yourself, dear.”

Sundance smiled “Thank you. I should be back well before it gets dark.” She walked through the gap in the fence and over to Midnight Armor. “I’m sorry about that. They think that any unicorn that approaches the village is going to attack them.”

Midnight Armor laughed “It’s alright. The unicorns in my village react the same way whenever a pegasus or earth pony approaches the village.” He smiled at Sundance. “Are you ready?”

Sundance nodded

Midnight Armor’s ears flicked when he heard the voice of a stallion.

“Good. This means that we won’t have to deal with the monster for a while.”

Sundance shook her head when Midnight Armor growled softly. “It’s alright. Unfortunately, that happens fairly often. I’ve learned to just ignore them.”

“Even so . . .” Midnight Armor paused when he heard Lila’s voice.

“Don’t call her that! Sundance is a lovely mare.”

Midnight Armor smiled “I think we should get going.”

Sundance returned the smile. “Agreed”

Ten Minutes Later

Sundance and Midnight Armor arrived at the picnic site just as Thunder, Amber and Smoky walked up to them.

Amber spread the blanket on the grass before turning to Sundance. “Hello, Sundance.”

Sundance smiled when she saw that, even though she was limping, Amber was walking without help. “Hello, Amber. It’s good to see that your leg is healing nicely.” She turned to the stallions. “Hello, Thunder and Smoky. Thank you for inviting me.”

“Of course.” Thunder replied “I’m glad you could make it.”

Smoky set a picnic basket on the blanket before turning to Sundance. “Are you alright?”

Sundance raised an eyebrow. “Yes. Why do you ask?”

“Midnight Armor told us about the reception you received when you entered the earth pony village last night.” Amber replied

Sundance’s ears drooped. “I see.” She gave them a weak smile. “It’s alright. They always treat me like that.”

Amber stared at Sundance for a couple of minutes before shaking her head. “Come on, everypony. Let’s sit down and eat.”

Sighing in relief, Sundance sat down not far from Amber. Thunder sat next to Amber and Smoky sat down not far from Thunder.

Sundance’s smile widened a little when Midnight Armor sat next to her. I’m not sure why, but I find myself drawn to him. I still have no idea what he’s hiding, but I don’t think it matters.

Thunder pulled four wooden plates out of the basket and set one in front of each of them.

Amber pulled out a large salad for them to share. When they had finished that, she pulled out a large bowl of fruit. There were fresh apples, oranges and pears.

Sundance’s eyes widened. “You have apples?”

Amber smiled “I take it that you like apples.”

Nodding, Sundance levitated an apple over to her before taking a bite. She sighed in pleasure before taking another bite. I love the sweet variety of apple. Unfortunately, I don’t get to eat them often.

All five of them gasped when they heard several roars. As one, they looked up to see that a group of five Chimeras were flying towards them.

Smoky gasped “Chimeras aren’t supposed to be this far from the forest!”

“Somepony needs to tell them that.” Thunder replied

This is bad! I was so distracted by the commotion at the front gate that I forgot to bring my saddlebags! That means I don’t have my medical supplies! Sundance glanced at Amber. “Stay here. You’re in no condition to fight.”

Audibly gulping, Amber nodded as she watched Sundance stand and spread her wings. Midnight Armor moved to stand on Sundance’s left while Smoky moved to her right. Horn glowing, Thunder stood in front of Amber. The five of them watched the Chimeras approach.

Sundance watched their movements carefully. With any luck, they’ll simply fly over our heads and keep moving. She sighed when the largest one dove towards them. The other four followed suit. So much for that. I was seriously injured when I tried to take on three at once . . . there is no way that I can handle five.

Midnight Armor created a barrier over the five of them.

Sundance raised an eyebrow when it actually stopped all five of the Chimeras. He’s more powerful than I thought. In fact, this is the first time that I’ve met a unicorn that was able to create a defense this powerful.

Thunder sighed in relief. “Good job, Midnight Armor. That should hold them off for at least a couple of minutes.”

The largest Chimera launched a blast of fire that shattered Midnight Armor’s barrier.

Midnight Armor gasped “That’s never happened before!”

I’ll just have to take my chances. Sundance leapt into the air and flew past the Chimeras. As she expected, they immediately turned towards her. That’s it. Focus on me. Hopefully, Midnight Armor, Thunder and Smoky will help from the ground. She smiled slightly when Midnight Armor, Amber, Thunder and Smoky began to attack the Chimeras from behind. Perfect. Additionally, Amber should be relatively safe because the Chimeras are focused on me. She launched a powerful beam of magic at the largest one from point blank range.

Midnight Armor, Amber, Thunder and Smoky smiled when that Chimera immediately fell to the ground. Smoky launched another beam of magic that finished off the first Chimera.

The four of them looked up to see that the other four Chimera had surrounded Sundance and were about to launch powerful blasts of fire at her.

- - End Flashback - - -

Raising an eyebrow, Artemis turned to his mother. “Why did you stop?”

Sundance laughed “Your father should explain this part.”

Midnight Armor laughed as well. “Very well.”

Star Swirl, Twilight, Celestia and Artemis turned to him.

- - Midnight Armor’s Flashback - - -

Midnight Armor glanced at his side before looking up at Sundance again. Damn it! I wish there was something I could do to help her! Unfortunately, I can’t join her in the air because none of them know that I have wings. I’m sure that Sundance won’t mind, but Amber, Thunder and Smoky will probably . . . He was pulled from his thoughts by Amber’s voice.

“You should join her, Midnight Armor. It’s clear that you want to.”

Surprised, Midnight Armor turned to her. “What do you mean? I can’t-” He paused when she laughed softly.

“Father and I know about your secret.” Amber explained “We haven’t said anything because we decided to let you tell us when you were ready.” She glanced up at Sundance and the Chimeras before turning back to him. “Well, that was the plan.”

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened. H-how did they discover my secret?!

Confused, Thunder turned to Amber. “What are you talking about?”

Amber smiled at Midnight Armor. “It’s alright.”

Here goes nothing. I just hope they won’t be too angry with me. Taking a deep breath, Midnight Armor released his Camouflage Spell.

Thunder and Smoky gasped when they saw the wings at Midnight Armor’s sides.

“W-what the . . .?” Smoky stammered “Y-you have wings?!”

Eyes wide, Thunder asked “H-how did you-?”

Midnight Armor shook his head as he spread his wings. “I’ll explain later.”

Nodding, Thunder, Smoky and Amber watched him join Sundance in the air.

- -End Flashback - - -

This is getting annoying. Twilight turned to Midnight Armor. “Why did you stop?”

Artemis glanced at Twilight before turning back to their father. She has a point. I want to know how the battle ended.

Celestia raised an eyebrow. I wonder how Mother reacted to the fact that Father is an alicorn.

Chuckling, Midnight Armor nuzzled his youngest. “Your mother is going to take it from here.” He laughed harder when Twilight, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl immediately turned to Sundance.

- - Sundance’s Flashback - - -

Out of the corner of her eye, Sundance noticed that something was flying towards her. It better not be another monster! I’ve already got my hooves full. She dodged all four of the Chimeras’ attacks by suddenly increasing her altitude. Then she glanced to her left. Her eyes widened when Midnight Armor stopped next to her. That’s what he was hiding! H-he has wings! She stared at him in stunned silence for almost a minute. When she was able to speak, she stammered “Y-you’re a . . .!”

Midnight Armor blocked an attack from one of the Chimeras. “Don’t worry. I assure you that I’ll explain everything . . . after we’ve dealt with these things.”

“V-very well.” Sundance shakily replied

Sundance and Midnight Armor launched a barrage of magic blasts at the Chimeras. Two of them fell to the ground where they were finished off by Thunder and Smoky.

Midnight Armor returned his attention to Sundance in time to see her fly up so that the last two Chimeras attacked each other. He moved behind them before launching another barrage of magic blasts. He smiled when both of them fell to the ground as well.

Sundance and Midnight Armor landed in front of Thunder, Smoky and Amber. The five of them worked together to destroy the Chimeras’ bodies before turning to each other.

Midnight Armor opened his mouth, but paused when Amber shook her head.

“It’s clear that you and Sundance need to rest.” She looked from one to the other. “Both of you are out of breath . . . and wobbling a little.”

Nodding, Sundance moved onto the blanket before laying down. Midnight Armor did the same. Amber and Thunder lay down next to each other across from Sundance and Midnight Armor.

Smoky picked up a large wooden cup with his magic. “I’ll be right back. I’m going to get some water for them.”

“Good idea.” Thunder replied

Sundance lifted her head when the cup full of water was placed in front of her. “Thank you.” She drank half of the water before levitating the cup to Midnight Armor.

Midnight Armor sat up as he took it in his magic. “Thank you.” He drained the cup before setting it next to the picnic basket. Then he took a deep breath before turning to Sundance. “I’m sorry for hiding the fact that I have wings as well.”

H-he’s like me. “Y-you’re an alicorn.” Sundance said softly

“Alicorn?” Midnight Armor repeated

Sundance nodded “One of the researchers in the capital called me that because I have the traits of a unicorn, pegasus and an earth pony. You have the same traits, so that means you are an alicorn as well.”

“I-I see.” Midnight Armor slowly replied

“Why were you hiding your wings?” Sundance asked

“I’ve seen the way that you are being treated by most of the ponies in the earth pony village.” Midnight Armor replied “Unfortunately, I have been treated far worse.”

Sundance raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

Midnight Armor sighed “The unicorns in the capital saw me as nothing but a test subject . . . especially when they realized that I don’t appear to be aging anymore.” He shuddered “I can’t even count the number of times that they cut me open in their attempts to discover why I have the abilities that I do.”

Sundance, Amber, Thunder and Smoky gasped in horror. All four of them shouted the same thing. “What?!”

Sighing again, Midnight Armor nodded. “That was when they discovered that I heal faster than other ponies.”

“I do as well.” Sundance commented “In fact, it only took a week for me to recover from the injuries that I received from my last encounter with a few Chimeras.”

Midnight Armor glanced at her. “I’m not surprised.”

“What happened next?” Smoky asked

“The researchers decided that, when I wasn’t being experimented on, I was to be the sole defender of the capital.” Midnight Armor replied “As a result, I was forced into battle time and time again. Eventually, I had enough.”

Wide-eyed, Amber stammered “W-what did you do about it?”

“I left the capital one night after everyone had gone to sleep.” Midnight Armor answered “I flew as far as I could in a single night before landing near the Everfree Forest.”

“That’s where we found you.” Smoky remarked

Thunder nodded to Smoky before turning to Midnight Armor. “Why did you hide your wings?”

“I knew that the researchers in the capital would be looking for me.” Midnight Armor responded “I also knew that they would immediately recognize me if I didn't hide either my horn or wings. After a lot of thought, I decided that I wanted to appear as a unicorn. That’s why I cast a Camouflage Spell to hide my wings.”

Sundance slowly nodded “I suppose that makes sense.”

“It took a while, but the researchers eventually stopped looking for me.” Midnight Armor remarked “I recall hearing that they had found another pony to examine.” He glanced at Sundance. “I assume they were referring to you.”

Sundance nodded “As I said, I’ve also been to the capital. The researchers carefully examined me as well. However, they didn’t cut me open or force me to fight.”

Midnight Armor sighed in relief. “That’s good to hear. Anyway, by that point, I had adjusted to living as a unicorn.” He glanced at Smoky, Thunder and Amber. “I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you about this sooner.”

“It’s alright.” Amber replied “You had a powerful reason for wanting to stay hidden.”

Smoky nodded

“Why didn’t you release your spell when you realized that you were no longer being pursued?” Thunder asked

“How do you think the ponies in the village would have reacted if I had suddenly revealed my wings?” Midnight Armor responded

Smoky’s eyes widened “I see your point.”

“What are you going to do now?” Amber asked

“I’m not sure.” Midnight Armor answered “I could simply cast another Camouflage Spell on myself, but . . .” He glanced at Sundance. “I don’t know if that’s the right thing to do.”

Sundance thought for a moment before tuning to Midnight Armor. “I will be traveling to the western portion of the country in a couple of days.” She glanced at Amber. “In fact, I will be leaving as soon as the meeting between our villages has ended.”

Thunder raised an eyebrow. “Why will you be doing that?”

Amber thought for a moment before turning to Sundance. “Are you representing the earth pony village at the Meeting of the Tribes?”

Sundance nodded “Much to the chagrin of most of the ponies that live in the village.”

Surprised, Smoky stared at Sundance for a moment. “Why would Elder Lila ask you to do that?”

Sundance giggled “She has a devious reason for that.”

“What do you mean?” Amber asked

“She told me that the Meeting of the Tribes is held at a stone table that has been set up on the edge of a cliff.” Sundance answered

“She’s right.” Smoky replied

Thunder snorted “Supposedly, that is done for the comfort of the pegasi that attend the meeting. They prefer to sit on clouds instead of joining everypony else on the ground.”

“Father told me about that.” Amber commented “If they no longer wish to attend the meeting, or speak to somepony at it, they simply allow the cloud that they’re sitting on to float away from the table.” Her eyes widened for a moment before she began to laugh. “That’s what Elder Lila has planned.”

Thunder glanced at his mare. “What do you mean, Amber?”

“Sundance has wings, remember?” Amber responded, laughing harder

Confused, Thunder, Smoky and Midnight Armor nodded.

“Am I right in thinking that you can walk on clouds as well?” Amber asked Sundance.

Sundance nodded

Thunder began to laugh as well. “I see. Allowing their cloud to float away from the meeting won’t help the pegasi because Sundance will be able to follow them.”

Laughing as well, Sundance nodded again. "That is exactly what I plan to do."

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened as he turned to Amber. “Is that why your father asked me to represent the unicorn village?”

Amber nodded “He was hoping that you would stop hiding your wings before the meeting started.”

“I-I see.” Midnight Armor said slowly

Sundance glanced at Midnight Armor. “Perhaps we should travel together.”

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened. “Are you sure that you want me to travel with you?”

Sundance nodded “You told me that you wanted to get to know me. What better way to do that than to travel with me?” She blushed “B-besides, I’d like to get to know you as well.”

Amber, Thunder and Smoky smiled.

Midnight Armor stared at Sundance in stunned silence for a couple of minutes before nuzzling her. “Thank you.”

Sundance gasped softly. I-it has been a very long time since the last time somepony nuzzled me. She stared at Midnight Armor for a moment before returning his nuzzle. “You’re welcome.”

- - End Flashback - - -

“I had no idea.” Star Swirl said softly

Midnight Armor was about to respond, but paused when he heard somepony sniffle. Concerned, he turned to see that all three of his children had tears in their eyes. His eyes widened. “What’s wrong?”

Celestia used her magic to dry her eyes. I can’t believe Father had to go through that.

Artemis used a wing to wipe the tears from his eyes.

“I-I’m sorry.” Twilight whispered

Sundance turned to her youngest. “For what?”

“I-I shouldn’t have . . .” Twilight trailed off when she felt a gentle nuzzle.

“Don’t worry, Twilight.” Midnight Armor told her. “Your mother and I aren’t upset.”

“B-but I . . . eep!” She cut herself off with a squeak of surprise when Midnight Armor tightened his wing around her.

Midnight Armor laughed softly. This is rapidly becoming my favorite way to silence Twilight. It is amusing, effective and, most importantly, doesn’t harm her. “As I said, we’re not upset.”

Sundance giggled “Your father is correct.”

Celestia thought for a moment before turning to her father. “Were there two unicorn settlements?”

Midnight Armor nodded “The most important unicorns, like the researchers and the ponies that controlled the sun and moon, lived in the capital. However, there were some that didn’t like the way that those unicorns handled certain things. That was why they decided to leave and create a village of their own.”

“The earth ponies had five small farming villages that were scattered around the country.” Sundance explained “Lila had several foals. That allowed her to place one of her sons as a leader in each of those villages while she was in charge of all of them.”

“That makes sense.” Artemis commented “What about the pegasi?”

“None of them lived on the ground.” Midnight Armor answered “They chose to live in a village that they had built in the clouds instead. I don’t remember the name of that village, or even if it had one, but I’m fairly certain that their village eventually grew into the city that you know as Cloudsdale.”

“I see.” Celestia looked from one of her parents to the other. “You do realize that Artemis, Twilight and I would like to see your memory of the Meeting of the Tribes, right?”

Artemis nodded

Sundance giggled again “Of course.”

“I’d like to see how the meeting between the unicorn and earth pony villages went.” Twilight glanced at her father’s wings. “I’d also like to see the way that the unicorns in the village reacted when they discovered that you are an alicorn.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “Don’t worry. Your mother and I will continue the tale tomorrow night.”

“Good.” Celestia, Artemis and Twilight replied

Artemis glanced at his sister before turning to their parents. “This worked out perfectly.”

Celestia nodded to her brother before turning to their parents as well. “Artemis and I need to take care of the sun, moon and stars.”

“Very well.” Midnight Armor replied

Star Swirl smiled “In that case, I’ll see all of you in a couple of minutes.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight, Celestia and Artemis looked on as Star Swirl was pulled back to his star. Then Artemis woke the five of them.

In the stars, Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight, Celestia and Artemis opened their eyes at the same time. They smiled at each other before turning to Star Swirl. As one, the six of them said “Good morning.”

Laughing, Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight, Celestia and Artemis stood and stretched.

Sundance turned to her star. I never thought I’d be looking at my star like this. She was pulled from her thoughts by Artemis’ voice.

“We have to get going, but I’ll bring all of us back tonight.”

Star Swirl brightened “Thank you, Artemis.”

Midnight Armor smiled at Star Swirl’s star. “Enjoy your day.”

Star Swirl laughed “You as well.”

Artemis brought himself, Celestia, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Twilight back to Celestia’s room in Canterlot.

In Canterlot, the Royal Family appeared in the middle of Celestia’s room. The five of them opened their eyes before walking onto the balcony. Sundance, Midnight Armor and Twilight looked on as Celestia and Artemis took care of their celestial duties. Once they had finished that, they returned to Celestia’s room before walking into the hall.

Celestia turned to her parents. “We will be heading to Ponyville after breakfast. Is there anything that you want to bring with us?”

Sundance glanced at her husband before turning back to their eldest. “The only things that I can think of would be our journals, a couple of quills and some ink.”

Midnight Armor nodded

Twilight laughed “You don’t need to worry about the last two.” She laughed harder when she saw her parents’ confused expressions. “I run a library . . . and conduct a lot of research, remember? That means I have plenty of quills and ink.”

Sundance laughed as well. “Good point, Twilight. In that case, I suppose we just need to grab our journals.”

The five of them walked into Sundance and Midnight Armor’s room.

Midnight Armor levitated both journals off of the bookshelf before turning back to his children. “Is there something that we can place these in?”

Celestia laughed softly

Sundance raised an eyebrow. “What’s so funny, Celestia?”

“You didn’t take the time to see what is in your closet.” Celestia responded

Midnight Armor blinked She’s right. Sundance and I glanced in the closet yesterday, but didn’t take the time to really look at anything inside it. He walked over to the closet. Well, I think it’s time to change that.

Sundance followed her husband over to the closet, but paused in the doorway when she realized how dark it was inside. She glanced around before looking up at the ceiling. “What is that?”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight followed their parents over to their closet, but stayed in the main room.

Twilight followed her mother’s gaze. “That is a light. The switch that turns it on and off is on the wall to your right.”

Sundance glanced to her right before noticing something at her eye level. Curious, she examined it carefully. It looks like this part can be moved. She used her magic to move the switch up into the “on” position.

Midnight Armor glanced up when the light turned on. Interesting. Well, it’s certainly bright enough to see now. He examined the contents of the closet.

There were several shelves built into the wall on the right side of the small room. Most of them held sheets for the bed and several blankets. However, there were two sets of saddlebags sitting on a small table in the back.

Midnight Armor lifted both with his magic before returning to the main room. “I assume you were referring to these.”

Celestia nodded “As I’m sure you’ve guessed, the dark blue pair of saddlebags is yours and the white pair belongs to Mother.”

“I don’t think we need to bring both of them with us.” Sundance commented

“You’re right, Honey.” Midnight Armor replied

“You should bring both of them.” Twilight giggled when she saw Midnight Armor’s confused expression. “Trust me. You’ll be glad you did.”

Laughing softly, Midnight Armor shook his head. “Very well.” I could ask her to explain that, but I don’t think she will. Twilight seems to enjoy surprising us. The same applies to Celestia and Artemis.

Are you complaining? Honesty asked

Of course not. In fact, I’ve enjoyed all of their surprises so far.

Laughter laughed I thought so.

Midnight Armor used his magic to set his saddlebags on his back before placing his journal in one of the sides.

Sundance shook her head. I’m not going to bother asking her to explain that.

Why not? Harmony asked

Sundance took her saddlebags from her husband and set them on her back before placing her journal in one of the sides. Twilight seems to have another surprise planned for Midnight and I. If I’m right, she won’t answer the question.

Harmony laughed You’re probably right. Before you ask, I have no idea what she has planned this time.

Also laughing, Sundance turned to her children. “We should head to the dining room.”

Artemis responded by teleporting them there.

In the dining room, Cadance, Shining Armor, Flurry, Applejack, Rainbow, Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie and Spike looked up at the sound of a teleportation spell.

“Hi!” Flurry immediately shouted

Laughing, everyone else said “Good morning.”

Everyone turned when Apple Crunch pushed a large cart into the room.

“Good morning, your highnesses and honored guests.” Apple Crunch turned to the cart. “I have a large platter of pancakes for you to share. Of course, I also have butter and maple syrup for you to put on them. Additionally, everyone will be drinking milk.”

Everyone sat down while Apple Crunch placed everything on the table. Breakfast was eaten quickly because Cadance and Shining Armor were eager to get going.

When they finished eating, Sundance and Midnight Armor placed their saddlebags on their backs before following everyone else out of the dining room.

Everyone walked out of the main entrance of the castle together. They found two chariots waiting for them. A pair of Crystal Guards were harnessed to one while a pair of Day Guards were harnessed to the other.

Sapphire Wing and Silver Shadow were standing a few feet in front of the main entrance to the castle. Both of them bowed to the Royal Family.

“Everypony’s luggage has already been loaded into the appropriate chariot.” Sapphire Wing informed them.

Cadance smiled “Thank you.”

Everyone turned towards the sound of approaching hoofsteps to see that Velvet and Night Light were walking towards them.

Twilight and Shining Armor exchanged glances before turning to their parents.

“You’re up early.” Shining Armor commented

Velvet laughed “We wanted to see you, Cadance and Flurry off.”

Cadance smiled “Thank you.”

Flurry flew over to Night Light and nuzzled him before turning to Velvet. She nuzzled her grandmother as well before landing on her back. Smiling, Night Light and Velvet returned her nuzzles.

“Unfortunately, your mother and I have plans for this weekend.” Night Light remarked, turning to Twilight “This means that we won’t be travelling to Ponyville with you.”

“That’s alright.” Twilight replied “We’ll see you when we get back.”

Artemis nodded “Mother, Father, Celestia and I will be busy with court on Monday while Twilight will be teaching. However, both of you are welcome to join us for dinner.”

Velvet smiled “Thank you, Artemis. We’ll take you up on that.”

Night Light nodded

“Sundance!”

Sundance turned towards the voice to see that Flurry was flying towards her. Smiling, she nuzzled the filly. “I’ll see you in seven months.” She paused while Flurry nodded. “You need to behave yourself, alright?”

Flurry nodded again “I promise I’ll be a good girl for Mommy and Daddy.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled Flurry as well. “Good.” He glanced at the chariot before turning back to Flurry. “I hope you brought something to do during the long journey home.”

Flurry giggled before using her magic to shove the stuffed versions of Twilight, Artemis, Celestia and Cadance in front of Sundance and Midnight Armor’s faces.

Velvet smiled “I’m glad she likes them.”

Cadance laughed “She doesn’t just like them, Velvet. She loves them.”

Shining Armor nuzzled his daughter before turning to his mother. “Cadance is right, Mom. Flurry never goes anywhere without them.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “I see.”

W-wow. They’re even more detailed than I thought. Sundance was pulled from her thoughts by Cadance’s voice.

“We need to get going.”

Flurry pouted “Yes, Mommy.” She nuzzled Sundance and Midnight Armor again before flying over to the chariot and climbing inside. Cadance and Shining Armor followed their daughter.

Everyone watched the chariot take off. Spike, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie waited until it was out of sight before climbing into the other chariot.

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow. Why did Fluttershy climb into the chariot? Did she injure herself?

Don’t worry. Kindness answered Fluttershy hasn’t been injured. She prefers to ride in either a chariot or on the train because she isn’t a strong flier.

I see. Midnight Armor said slowly I have no idea what a “train” is, but I’ll take your word for it.

I-I’m sorry. Kindness said softly I keep forgetting that you don’t know about many of the inventions of the modern era.

It’s alright. Midnight Armor replied I believe Twilight mentioned a train at one point. I’ll ask her to tell me what it is later.

Kindness sighed in relief. Thank goodness. I don’t want him to be angry with me.

Celestia, Artemis, Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight and Rainbow spread their wings before taking flight. The guards pulling the chariot did the same.

Chapter 78

Sundance spent the first few minutes of the flight simply enjoying the scenery. Then she turned her attention to Harmony. Do you mind if I ask you something?

Of course not. What is it?

I noticed that you were upset yesterday.

Harmony sighed I should have known that you would catch that.

Sundance waited for Harmony to continue. When she didn’t, she hesitantly asked Is everything alright?

It is now. Harmony replied I was upset because I snapped at Magic when I shouldn’t have.

I see. Sundance slowly replied Don’t worry. I won’t ask you to go into detail. She paused while Harmony sighed in relief. However, if you don’t mind, I have another question for you.

What is it?

Why did you hide certain parts of your plan from Twilight?

How do you know about that? Harmony responded

It came up in our discussion with Star Swirl last night. Sundance answered

I see. Harmony said slowly As for your question . . . I hate to say this, but I felt that I couldn’t trust her to keep that part of my plan a secret.

WHAT?! Sundance exclaimed How can you not trust her?! Think of everything that Twilight has done for us!

I know that, Sundance. Harmony said softly I see now that I was mistaken. However, at the time, her anger worried me.

What are you talking about? Sundance asked

Twilight Sparkle was angry about the fact that I wouldn’t allow her to tell you, your husband, Celestia and Artemis about my plan. Harmony reminded her.

Of course she was! Sundance replied How would you feel if you were told that a similar plan existed for the sprits of the Elements . . . but that you weren’t allowed to tell them about it?

Harmony was silent for several minutes.

I’m waiting for an answer. Sundance commented

Harmony sighed I would be just as angry as she was.

I thought so. Sundance replied

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow when he sensed his wife’s anger. Concerned, he nuzzled her before quietly asking. “What’s wrong, Honey?”

“I’ll tell you later.” Sundance replied I don’t want Twilight to hear this.

Midnight Armor looked at his wife for a moment before nodding. “Very well.” I’m sure she has a good reason.

Good morning, Midnight.

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow. Good morning, Kindness. Is everything alright?

Yes. Kindness answered I just wanted to say “good morning”.

Laughter laughed The rest of us were about to say the same thing, but Kindness beat us to it.

I see. Midnight Armor replied In that case . . . good morning, Loyalty, Laughter, Honesty and Generosity.

Laughter, Kindness, Generosity, Loyalty and Honesty laughed.

I’m certainly not complaining. Midnight Armor remarked However, I thought the five of you wanted to focus on your current bearers.

You are correct, Midnight. Loyalty replied I DID tell you that. However, Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Honesty and I have decided that we should split our attention between you and our current bearers.

What made you change your minds?

Tirek was able to capture our current bearers. Generosity answered I don’t think he will be able to escape Tartarus again. However, it brought up a good point.

I think I see where you’re going with this. Midnight Armor said slowly Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie could be targeted, and captured, again. That means it may become necessary for me to wield your power . . . even if your current bearers are still alive.

That’s right. Kindness replied

Hmm. It might not be a bad idea for me to work with those girls.

What do you mean? Laughter asked

I don’t intend to turn them into soldiers, but I think those girls would benefit from a little training.

You’re right. Honesty responded That’s not a bad idea.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash have done most of the work themselves. Therefore, they shouldn’t require a lot of training.

Good point. Loyalty remarked

I’ll have to wait until Twilight gives birth before I can begin her training. Midnight Armor said thoughtfully. That leaves Pinkie Pie, Rarity and Fluttershy.

You’re right. Honesty commented

Pinkie Pie has a number of . . . unique . . . abilities. Midnight Armor shook his head. I’m not even going to pretend that I understand how she does what she does.

Laughter laughed Even I have no idea how she does some of the things that I’ve seen her do.

That means her training is probably going to be . . . interesting. Midnight Armor continued

Laughter laughed harder. You’re right about that!

Midnight Armor thought for a moment. From what I can tell, Rarity and Fluttershy haven’t had any training at all.

That is correct. Generosity replied Rarity will fight when she has to, but she says that isn’t “lady-like”. Therefore, she has no interest in physical combat or combat training.

That’s fine. Midnight Armor responded I don’t think physical combat is the right place for her anyway. However, I do think she can learn a few offensive and defensive spells. That will allow her to support her friends.

That’s perfect. Generosity responded I’ll help you convince her that it’s necessary.

Thank you, Generosity. Midnight Armor paused As for Fluttershy . . . it’s clear that she has a couple of unique abilities as well. It’s just that her abilities are nothing like the ones that Pinkie Pie possesses.

Kindness laughed Thank goodness.

Agreed. As Twilight once said, one Pinkie Pie is enough.

Kindness laughed harder. Loyalty, Laughter, Honesty and Generosity quickly joined her.

Loyalty waited until the five of them had calmed down before turning her attention back to Midnight Armor. When are you going to start training them?

Midnight Armor thought for a moment. I think I’ll wait until next weekend before I bring the idea up to the girls. That should give me enough time to come up with a way to convince them that it’s necessary.

You don’t have to worry about Rainbow. Loyalty replied

What do you mean?

She is already planning to ask you to give her some tips that will help her improve her flight. Loyalty answered She also plans to ask Sundance to teach her the barrel roll that she used in the fight with Golden Thunder.

Midnight Armor laughed Good. That will make things easy.

Loyalty laughed as well. You’re right.

As for the rest of the girls . . . Perhaps I should take some time to observe them before I bring up the topic.

How will that help? Generosity asked

I can learn a lot about them by watching the way they move. Midnight Armor responded

I see. Generosity slowly replied I’ve never heard of that, so it will be interesting to see what he does.

Twenty Minutes Later

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight, Celestia, Artemis, Rainbow and the ponies pulling the chariot landed in front of Twilight’s castle. Spike and the girls climbed out of the chariot. Twilight helped Rarity unload all of her bags before nodding to Celestia.

Celestia turned to the ponies that had pulled the chariot. “Thank you.”

As one, the guards bowed. “You’re welcome, Princess Celestia.” They bowed to the rest of the Royal Family before taking off again.

“Welcome to Ponyville.”

Surprised, everyone turned to see that Mayor Mare was standing behind them.

Twilight smiled “Thank you, Mayor Mare. We’d like to rest for a while, but I will see you in Town Hall after lunch for our regular meeting.”

Smiling, Mayor Mare shook her head. “In light of the recent development in the Royal Family, I have postponed our meeting until next week.”

Twilight’s smile widened “Thank you.”

Mayor Mare turned to Sundance and Midnight Armor before bowing. “Welcome back to Equestria, King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance.”

Surprised, Midnight Armor stared at her for a moment before smiling. “Thank you.”

Somehow, I keep forgetting that most of Equestria was watching our battle with Golden Thunder. Of course, she knows who we are. Sundance smiled as well. “Thank you.”

Mayor Mare turned to Twilight. “The citizens of Ponyville have been instructed to go about their weekend as they normally would.”

“Good idea.” Twilight replied, sighing in relief

Confused, Midnight Armor leaned down so he could whisper in her ear. “Why would she have done that?”

“Do you really want to deal with every citizen of Ponyville gathered around you?” Twilight quietly responded

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened “Good point.”

Mayor Mare smiled at the Royal Family. “Enjoy your time in Ponyville, your highnesses.”

“Thank you” Twilight, Sundance, Midnight Armor, Artemis and Celestia replied

Mayor Mare bowed once more before walking in the direction of her house.

Twilight turned to her friends. “We’re going inside so we can relax for a while. You’re welcome to join us.”

“Ah appreciate the offer, Twi.” Applejack responded “Unfortunately, ah can’t because ah have a lot of work waiting for me back on the farm.” She smiled at Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis before walking in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres.

Rainbow lifted into the air. “I need to go check in with the Weather Team.”

Twilight nodded “We’ll see you later.”

Rarity glanced at Sundance and Midnight Armor before whispering something to Twilight.

“After lunch.” Twilight responded

Rarity smiled “I’ll see you then.” She smiled at everyone else before levitating all of her bags to her side as she walked towards her boutique.

“I-I’m sorry.” Fluttershy said softly “I-I need to go take care of my animals.”

Artemis smiled at her. “It’s alright. We’ll see you later.”

Fluttershy returned his smile before walking towards her cottage.

Pinkie bounced over to Twilight. “You’re still coming to the bakery for lunch, right?”

Twilight laughed “Yes, Pinkie.” She thought for a moment. “I haven’t been grocery shopping in a while, so we’ll probably be there for dinner as well.”

“Okie Dokie!” Pinkie replied “I’ll have a big party waiting for you!”

Sundance and Midnight Armor exchanged glances before turning to Pinkie.

“Kidding!” Pinkie giggled “You guys are funny! Even I won’t do that . . . well, not today.”

“Why not?” Sundance hesitantly asked Do I want to know the answer?

Harmony laughed

“I have a party to plan!” Pinkie answered

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow. “What party is that?” Why is she planning another party?

Pinkie suddenly popped up in between Sundance and Midnight Armor before motioning with a hoof. “Down here!”

Curious, both of them lowered their heads to hers.

“Twilight’s birthday is Friday!” Pinkie whispered “I have to make sure that she has a super-duper fun party!”

Sundance smiled “I see.” I’m glad Pinkie Pie told us about that. This gives me enough time to make something for Twilight.

“Oops!” Pinkie glanced at Twilight. She sighed in relief when she saw that Twilight was talking to Artemis and Celestia. Then she turned back to Midnight Armor and Sundance. “It’s a surprise party. That means you can’t tell her about it, okay?”

Midnight Armor chuckled “Don’t worry.” He said softly “We’ll keep it a secret.”

Pinkie smiled at both of them before turning to everyone else. “I’ll see you later!”

Sundance, Celestia, Midnight Armor, Artemis, Twilight and Spike walked into Twilight’s castle. Each of them headed to their rooms to rest for a while.

Midnight Armor waited until he had closed the door of their room behind them before turning to his wife. “Why were you so angry earlier?”

Sundance walked over to the bed, climbed onto it and lay down before looking at her husband. “Harmony told me that she didn’t tell Twilight about certain parts of her plan because she felt that she couldn’t trust our daughter to keep them a secret.”

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened. “What?! How could she even think that?!”

“Twilight was angry about the fact that she wasn’t allowed to tell us anything specific about Harmony’s plan.” Sundance answered

“Do you blame her?” Midnight Armor asked

“Not at all.” Sundance replied “However, it concerned Harmony.”

Midnight Armor lay down next to his wife. “Both of us got angrier as time went on . . . and we still weren’t told what Harmony had planned for our souls. Unfortunately, there were times when each of us took that anger out on Twilight.”

Harmony gasped What?!

Sundance winced “Neither of us meant to do that. Additionally, we have repeatedly apologized to her.”

“I know, Honey.” Midnight Armor nuzzled his wife. “I brought it up because it brings me to my point.”

Sundance raised an eyebrow. “And that is?”

“Even then, Twilight didn’t reveal anything specific about Harmony’s plan to anyone that she wasn’t supposed to.” Midnight Armor replied “That should have proved that she could be trusted.”

Harmony suppressed a sigh. Midnight Armor is correct. I should have told Twilight Sparkle everything. She watched Sundance snuggle closer to Midnight Armor before both of them laid their heads on the bed and closed their eyes.

Three Hours Later

Midnight Armor opened his eyes when he heard his wife’s stomach growl. He was about to say something, but paused when his stomach growled as well.

Laughing softly, Sundance opened her eyes as well. “I think we should get our children and Spike before we head to the bakery for some lunch.”

Midnight Armor nodded “Let’s head to Artemis and Twilight’s room first.”

Sundance nodded as well. “Good idea.”

Both of them stood and stretched before heading into the hall.

Sundance and Midnight Armor walked over to the door to Twilight and Artemis’ room, but paused when they heard hoofsteps. Surprised, they turned towards the sound to see that Celestia and Spike were walking towards them.

Sundance raised an eyebrow. “Is everything alright?”

“Yes, Mother.” Celestia answered “We were just going to tell Artemis and Twilight that it’s time for lunch.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “Your mother and I were about to do the same thing.”

Celestia laughed as well. “In that case, Spike and I will join you. We can head to Sugarcube Corner after that.”

“Good idea.” Sundance opened the door to Artemis and Twilight’s room.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Spike paused just inside the room. They exchanged glances when Artemis and Twilight remained focused on something on the bed in between them. Artemis and Twilight looked up when Midnight Armor cleared his throat.

Twilight glanced at her husband. “When did they get here?”

Artemis shrugged

Sundance giggled as she walked over to the bed before nuzzling both of them. “We walked into your room almost a minute ago.”

“I see.” Twilight returned her mother’s nuzzle. “Is everything alright?”

Sundance nodded “We just wanted to tell you that it’s time for lunch.”

Artemis glanced outside before turning to his mother. “I’m sorry. We were so caught up in our book that we didn’t notice.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “It’s alright.”

Curious, Celestia walked over to the bed. “What are you reading?”

“Something that should come in handy in seven months.” Twilight answered

Artemis nodded “It’s a book about the last couple of weeks of pregnancy and giving birth.” He lifted another book off of one of the nightstands. “This one is about caring for newborns.”

“I see.” Celestia smiled at her siblings. “I’m sorry to interrupt your study time, but we need to get going.”

Artemis removed one of the feathers from his right wing and used it to mark their page. Then he levitated both books to the nightstand as he and Twilight climbed off of their bed.

Sundance gave them a moment to stretch before teleporting everyone out of Twilight’s castle. Twilight lead the way to Sugarcube Corner.

Pinkie, Mr. Cake, Mrs. Cake, Pound and Pumpkin looked up when the door opened. They smiled when the Royal Family walked inside.

Mr. and Mrs. Cake bowed. “Good afternoon, your highnesses. We already have everything ready.”

Pinkie walked around the counter with a large tray balanced on her back. “We made Macaroni and Cheese with Broccoli for Twilight, a bowl of rubies and emeralds for Spike and vegetable subs with hay fries for everypony else.”

Spike licked his lips as he sat at the table.

Twilight sat down across from him before smiling at her friend. “Thanks, Pinkie. It looks delicious.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis joined Twilight and Spike at the table as Pinkie placed their food on the table. Mrs. Cake walked over with a bottle of apple juice for each of them.

Lunch was eaten quietly because each of them was focused on filling their stomachs. They had just finished their food when Pinkie walked back into the room.

Twilight smiled “Thanks for lunch, Pinkie. Spike and I are going to take Mom, Dad, Artemis and Celestia to a couple of places in Ponyville.” She paused “Do you want to come with us?”

Pinkie shook her head. “Mrs. Cake asked me to help with the baking today.”

Additionally, you’re still planning her birthday party. Laughter commented

I can’t tell her that! Pinkie replied It’s a surprise party!

Laughter laughed

“That’s alright.” Twilight responded “We’ll be back for dinner.”

“Okie Dokie.” Pinkie replied “Have fun!”

Twilight laughed as she led her family outside.

“Where are we going?” Midnight Armor asked

“You’ll see.” Spike replied

They walked into Rarity’s boutique a few minutes later.

Sundance looked around. I recognize this. She turned to Twilight. “Why are we in Rarity’s boutique?”

Twilight was about to answer the question, but Rarity beat her to it.

“I asked her to bring you here, of course.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow as he turned to the unicorn. “Why did you do that?”

“I’m going to make something for each of you.” Rarity answered “Therefore, I need to get your measurements.” She levitated a pad of paper and a quill over to her.

What does she plan to make for us . . . and why is she doing so? Midnight Armor glanced at his wife before turning back to Rarity. “Very well.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight, Celestia, Artemis and Spike looked on as Rarity collected Sundance and Midnight Armor’s measurements.

Rarity wrote the last of the measurements down before levitating the pad and quill to her desk. “I believe I have enough to get started.” She turned to Twilight. “I’d like to get a few more details from you next weekend.”

“Alright.” Twilight glanced at her parents. “We should get going.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow as he followed his youngest outside. “Where are we going?”

“Sweet Apple Acres.” Twilight responded

Celestia and Artemis smiled at each other before turning back to their parents.

“Isn’t that the name of the farm that Applejack lives on?” Sundance asked

Spike jumped onto Twilight’s back before nodding to Sundance. “Applejack asked Twi to bring both of you there this afternoon.”

“Why did she do that?” Midnight Armor asked

Twilight smiled “You’ll see.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis followed Twilight to the farmhouse. They found Granny Smith, Big Mac, Applejack and Apple Bloom waiting in front of it.

Twilight turned to her parents. “I’d like to introduce you to the Apple Family. You already know Applejack.”

Smiling, Applejack nodded before gesturing to her grandmother. “This is my grandmother, Granny Smith.”

Granny Smith bowed slightly. “Welcome back to Equestria.”

We’ll probably be hearing that several times over the next couple of months. Midnight Armor smiled at the elderly mare. “Thank you.”

Applejack nodded at her siblings. “This is my older brother, Big Macintosh, and my little sister, Apple Bloom.”

Big Mac bowed slightly “Good afternoon.”

Apple Bloom grinned at Sundance. “It’s nice to meet ya!”

Sundance suppressed a giggle. I know that I’ve seen her several times with my spell, but she’s still a cute filly. “It’s nice to meet you as well.”

Applejack stepped forward. “Ah asked Twi to bring both of ya here because Granny Smith and ah have made a couple of things that we’d like ya to try.”

“I see.” Sundance replied

Big Mac opened the door to the farmhouse. Granny Smith led the way to the kitchen. Applejack, Big Mac, Apple Bloom, Twilight, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Spike followed her.

Sundance took a couple of minutes to look around the kitchen. I like the way this room looks.

“Is something on your mind, Queen Sundance?”

Startled, Sundance jumped slightly before turning to see that Granny Smith was looking at her. She smiled at the elderly mare. “My apologies. This kitchen is similar to the one that Midnight and I used to have in our old castle.” She glanced at the refrigerator and stove. “Well, except for . . . whatever those are.”

Granny Smith returned the smile. “Ah see.”

Confused, Apple Bloom looked at the refrigerator and stove before poking Twilight in the side. She waited until Twilight had leaned down before whispering “Why don’t they don’t know what a refrigerator and stove are?”

“Neither of those things existed fifteen hundred years ago.” Twilight quietly responded

“Oh.” Apple Bloom replied

“The bottom part of the larger one is called a refrigerator.” Celestia explained “It is used to keep food cold.” She pointed to the freezer. “This is called a freezer. As the name suggests, it is used to freeze food.”

Artemis nodded “The smaller one is called a stove. The top part is used for cooking food while the bottom part is used for baking.”

So the small one is for heating food and the large one is for cooling it. Sundance smiled “That’s easy enough to remember.”

Midnight Armor chuckled

“Applejack told me that your favorite fruit is apples, Queen Sundance.” Granny Smith commented

Surprised, Sundance turned to Applejack. “How did you know that?”

“Twi told me.” Applejack answered

Sundance glanced at her youngest before turning back to Applejack. “I see.”

Granny Smith gestured to the table next to her. “Applejack and ah made several things that we’d be honored if you would try.”

Sundance smiled “I would love to.”

Applejack turned to Midnight Armor. “We don’t specialize in blueberries, but Big Mac managed to get us a large shipment of fresh ones. Granny Smith and ah made more of those blueberry apple cupcakes that ya liked, some blueberry muffins and some homemade blueberry jam.”

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened “How did you . . .” He trailed off as he glanced at Twilight. “Let me guess. You told Applejack that blueberries are my favorite fruit.”

Twilight nodded

Apple Bloom pushed a large basket towards Midnight Armor. “Here are some fresh blueberries for ya.” She giggled when Midnight Armor levitated a few of them over to him before eating them.

Midnight Armor smiled at Apple Bloom. “Thank you.”

“Your apples are still on the trees.” Applejack told Sundance. “Ah just need to go out into the orchard and buck them for ya.”

“Buck?” Sundance repeated

“It’s how they harvest the apples.” Twilight explained

I have to see that. “Is it alright if we watch you?” Midnight Armor asked

Applejack nodded

Sundance sampled some fresh applesauce, an apple turnover, a small piece of apple bread and some dried apple slices before smiling at Granny Smith and Applejack. “Everything was delicious.”

Midnight Armor swallowed the food in his mouth. “The same should be said for the blueberry jam and the muffins.”

Granny Smith smiled “That’s good to hear.”

“Applejack and ah will deliver some fresh food to your castle tomorrow afternoon.” Big Mac told Twilight.

“Thank you.” Twilight replied

Sundance’s eyes widened as she turned to Twilight. “Is this why you told us to bring our saddlebags?”

Twilight giggled “Yes. I know that we have chefs in the castle, but Celestia, Artemis and I thought you might like to keep the food that Applejack and Granny Smith made in your room. They make good snacks.”

Artemis chuckled “If anypony knows about snacking at odd times of the day, and night, it’s Twilight.” He glanced at his parents. “She keeps food in our room in Canterlot.”

“Hey!” Twilight exclaimed “I’m pregnant!”

Artemis, Sundance, Celestia, Midnight Armor, Spike, Applejack, Granny Smith, Big Mac and Apple Bloom laughed.

That reminds me. The serving of macaroni and cheese with broccoli that Pinkie Pie gave her was rather small. Sundance cut a slice of apple bread and levitated it to Twilight. “Eat this. I won’t allow you to go hungry.” She laughed when the slice disappeared in less than a minute.

Twilight swallowed the food in her mouth before looking up at her mother. “What? You know that Lavender Selene likes apples!”

Laughing harder, Sundance nuzzled her youngest. “I know.”

Granny Smith, Big Mac, Apple Bloom and Applejack smiled at each other before turning back to the Royal Family.

“Ah think ah’ll go buck those apples.” Applejack looked at Sundance and Midnight Armor. “Do ya still want to watch?”

Nodding, Sundance and Midnight Armor followed Applejack outside. Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike joined them. The seven of them arrived in the orchards a few minutes later.

Sundance stared at all of the apple trees around her. “I’ve never seen so many apple trees in one place.”

“My family ships our apples and apple juice all over Equestria.” Applejack explained

“That makes sense.” Sundance replied

Midnight Armor looked on in confusion as Applejack placed three baskets at the base of several apple trees. “Why are you doing that?”

“The baskets are there to catch the apples.” Twilight answered

“I see.” Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow as he watched Applejack walk away from the apple trees. What is she doing now?

Honesty laughed I’ll let her show you.

Very well. Midnight Armor replied

Applejack turned around before galloping towards the apple trees that had baskets at their bases.

Sundance raised an eyebrow as well. “If she doesn’t stop soon, she’s going to run into the trees.”

Twilight laughed “No, she won’t.”

Midnight Armor raised the other eyebrow. “She’s faster than I thought.” That is unusual because earth ponies are typically known for their strength.

Applejack suddenly turned before bucking the trunk of the first tree.

Sundance’s eyes widened when the apples fell into the baskets that Applejack had placed at the base of the tree. She looked on as Applejack moved onto the next tree. “Impressive.”

Sundance is correct. Midnight Armor watched Applejack buck the apples out of the second tree. It takes a lot of skill to determine the correct amount of strength to put into each kick.

What do you mean? Honesty asked

If Applejack uses too much strength, she could break the trunk of the tree. Midnight Armor explained However, the apples won’t fall if she doesn’t use enough. He watched Applejack move onto the third tree. I’ve noticed that she seems to instinctively know how much strength to put into each kick. Part of that is her passive earth pony magic at work.

And the rest? Honesty asked

Experience. Midnight Armor answered She has clearly been doing this since she was very young. He was pulled from his thoughts by Twilight’s voice.

“Look out, Apple Bloom!”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis, Applejack and Spike followed Twilight’s gaze to see that Apple Bloom was walking out of the barn. They gasped when the drain above the door began to fall off of the roof.

“Oh no ya don’t!” Applejack pulled out a lasso as she began to gallop towards the barn. She used the lasso to pull Apple Bloom out of harm’s way before skidding to a stop next to her sister. The drain landed on the ground a few feet away from the sisters.

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened “Impressive.”

Sundance, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike nodded

Applejack nuzzled her sister. “Are ya alright, sugarcube?”

Nodding, Apple Bloom returned her sister’s nuzzle. “Thanks, AJ.”

Applejack smiled at her sister before walking over to examine the drain. Then she looked up at the roof that it had been attached to. She shook her head when she saw that the metal was rusty. “Ah know ah asked ya to tell Big Mac that he needed to replace that.”

“Ah did.” Apple Bloom replied “He said that he had to order a part from the store.”

“Ah’ll stop by the store later.”

Everyone looked up to see that Big Mac was walking up to them.

“Do you know if the part you need has come in yet?” Twilight asked

“Eenope.” Big Mac answered

Artemis levitated the drain over to the side of the barn so that no one would trip on it.

Applejack smiled at him. “Thanks, Artemis.”

Artemis returned the smile. “You’re welcome.”

Big Mac and Apple Bloom helped Applejack carry the apples back to the house. They placed the apples in a large basket that had been placed next to Midnight Armor’s basket of blueberries.

Sundance smiled at the Apple siblings. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Applejack, Big Mac and Apple Bloom replied

“Applejack, Apple Bloom and ah will bake both of ya fresh versions of everything that ya ate today.” Granny Smith turned to Twilight. “We’ll also bake ya a couple of loaves of apple bread.”

Twilight smiled “Thank you.”

“Great.” Artemis remarked “Something else for her to add to her food stash in our room.”

Twilight rolled her eyes as she turned to him. “You know that they probably won’t even make it to Canterlot.”

“Good point.” Artemis replied “They’re usually gone within two hours.”

Granny Smith raised an eyebrow. Ah think we should make her five loaves instead.

Everyone else immediately began to laugh.

Twilight turned to The Apple Family. “Unfortunately, we need to get going.”

“That’s alright, Twi.” Applejack responded “We need to get the ingredients together so we can start baking tomorrow morning.”

Sundance smiled at the Apple Family. “In that case, we’ll see you tomorrow.”

Applejack nodded “Have a good night.”

“I hope the four of you do the same.” Midnight Armor replied

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Spike arrived in front of Twilight’s castle a little over five minutes later.

Sundance raised an eyebrow when they stopped in front of the front door. Curious, she turned to Twilight. “Why are we stopping out here?”

Twilight scanned the sky. “She should be around here somewhere.”

“Who are you talking about?” Midnight Armor asked

Everyone jumped when they heard a shout that echoed throughout the village.

“Look out below!”

“There she is.” Twilight commented

Spike pressed his palm to his forehead. “Here we go again.”

Celestia was about to ask Spike what he was talking about, but jumped when she heard a couple of crashes that were followed by a loud thud.

Twilight sighed “We’d better hurry.”

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Artemis, Spike and Celestia followed Twilight around the right side of her castle before stopping when they saw that Rainbow had crashed through a couple of trees before hitting the ground so hard that she created a small crater around herself.

Midnight Armor, Artemis and Spike winced when they saw that three of her legs were broken . . . and that her right wing was dislocated.

Sundance, Celestia and Twilight quickly cast several different healing spells on her.

“T-thanks.” Rainbow tried to prop herself up with her good foreleg. “Damn it! I was sure that I was going to get it right that time!”

“Don’t move yet.” Sundance replied “We haven’t finished healing your injuries.”

“Got it.” Rainbow allowed herself to fall back to the ground.

Sundance watched her youngest carefully. Twilight is doing rather well. That is surprising because, as far as I know, she isn’t trained as a healer.

Perhaps it’s time to change that. Harmony suggested

I was already planning on it. Sundance replied I’m also planning to teach Celestia the final level of the healing spell that she is currently casting.

Harmony laughed I think both are good ideas.

It took Sundance, Celestia and Twilight almost thirty minutes to finish healing Rainbow’s injuries. Midnight Armor, Artemis and Rainbow looked on as the three of them sat down as soon as they were done.

Sundance cast a magic scan on Rainbow. Good. We didn’t miss anything. Satisfied, she turned to her daughters. “Well done, both of you.”

Celestia and Twilight smiled at each other before turning back to their mother. “Thank you.”

Twilight turned to Rainbow. “What happened?”

Rainbow slowly sat up. “I was trying to do the barrel roll that Sundance used against Golden Thunder.”

Sighing, Twilight shook her head. “I should have known.”

“I will teach you how to do it correctly.” Sundance responded “However, you are not allowed to perform that maneuver unsupervised until I give you permission. Is that clear?”

“Why not?” Rainbow asked

“I want to minimize the risk of you getting injured again.” Sundance answered “Do you understand?”

Rainbow nodded

“Good.” Sundance replied “Unfortunately, there will be no more training for you today.”

“Why not?!” Rainbow stood before slowly turning to face Sundance.

Sundance raised an eyebrow when Rainbow wobbled slightly. I can’t believe I need to answer that question. “You need to rest, Rainbow Dash.”

“Sundance is correct.” Midnight Armor remarked

“What do you mean?” Rainbow asked “I feel fine.”

“I don’t think you realize how hard you hit the ground.” Midnight Armor answered “In fact, I believe that you should refrain from training for the rest of the weekend.”

Rainbow sighed “Fine.”

Sundance suppressed a sigh of relief. Thank you, Midnight.

“Did you crash again, Rainbow?”

Surprised, Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight, Spike and Rainbow turned to see that Rarity, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were walking towards them.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight, Rainbow, Spike, Artemis and Celestia nodded.

“How did you know where we were?” Twilight asked

“It was rather obvious, Darling.” Rarity replied “We heard a simply headed towards the crashes that were followed by a rather loud thud.”

Rainbow winced

“I see.” Twilight turned to Rainbow. “You and Scootaloo are going to spend the night in my castle.”

“Good idea, Twilight.” Sundance commented “That will make it easier for me to check on her in the morning.”

Twilight looked at everyone around her. “I think we should head to Sugarcube Corner for an early dinner before heading to the castle for the night.” She turned to Rarity and Sweetie Belle. “Both of you are welcome to join us.”

“I wish we could, Darling.” Rarity replied “However, our parents are expecting us to be home for dinner soon.”

“That’s alright.” Artemis responded “I’m sure that we’ll be seeing both of you tomorrow.”

Rarity and Sweetie Belle nodded before heading for Rarity’s boutique. Everyone else walked towards the bakery.

Pinkie looked up when the Royal Family, Spike, Rainbow and Scootaloo walked into the bakery. “I thought you would be here early. Mrs. Cake made a really big vegetable casserole for everyone to share. We also have a couple of large pitchers of lemonade.

Twilight smiled “Thanks, Pinkie.” I have to go grocery shopping tomorrow.

Magic laughed

The meal was rather quiet. Sundance and Midnight Armor didn’t eat much because they were still full from sampling the Apple Family’s food. Everyone else ate their food before looking up when Pinkie walked back into the room.

“Thanks, Pinkie.” Twilight levitated a bag of bits to her friend. “This should cover lunch and dinner.”

Pinkie nodded “I’ll give it to Mrs. Cake.”

Celestia smiled at Pinkie. “We’ll see you tomorrow.”

Pinkie nodded again. “Good night!”

Laughing, everyone replied “Good night” before walking outside and heading to Twilight’s castle.

Twilight made a quick stop in the library to grab a couple of books before leading Rainbow and Scootaloo to the room that she had prepared for sleepovers. “The two of you can sleep in here tonight.”

Rainbow and Scootaloo nodded

Twilight levitated the books onto one of the beds. “I brought you a couple of Daring Do books.”

Rainbow smiled “Thanks, Twi.”

Twilight returned the smile. “You’re welcome. Have a good night.”

“Good night.” Rainbow and Scootaloo replied

Twilight closed the door before leading her family back down the hall.

“I’m going to read a few comics before going to bed.” Spike told Twilight.

I’m not surprised. Twilight nuzzled him. “Good night.”

“Good night.” Spike responded before walking towards his room.

Everyone else walked into the room that Twilight shared with Artemis and settled on the bed. They just relaxed until it was time for Celestia and Artemis to perform their celestial duties. Artemis brought all of them to the stars as soon as they were done.

In the stars, Star Swirl turned at a flash of moonlight. “Good evening.”

Everyone else laughed “Good evening, Star Swirl.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Night, Celestia and Twilight gave Artemis some to their magic. He added some of his own before giving their combined magic to Star Swirl.

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight moved onto the cloud and lay down. All of them were tired enough that it didn’t take them long to fall asleep.

In the Dream Realm, Artemis brought the rest of his family into his dream. The five of them lay down to wait for Star Swirl.

Star Swirl arrived in Artemis’ dream roughly five minutes later. He smiled at Celestia, Artemis, Sundance, Twilight and Midnight Armor as he lay down next to Artemis. Then he turned to Sundance and Midnight Armor. “Are you ready to continue your story?”

Laughing, Midnight Armor nodded to Star Swirl before turning to his wife. “I believe it’s my turn.”

Sundance laughed as well. “You’re right, Midnight.”

- - Midnight Armor’s Flashback - - -

Midnight Armor glanced at Sundance before turning to Amber, Smoky and Thunder. “I will return to the village after I have escorted Sundance back to the earth pony village.”

Amber smiled “It’s alright. We will wait here for you.”

Midnight Armor returned her smile. “Thank you.”

Sundance smiled at Amber, Thunder and Smoky. “I will see the three of you in a couple of days.”

Thunder, Amber and Smoky watched Sundance and Midnight Armor head in the direction of the earth pony village.

Twenty Minutes Later

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked up when they heard a shout.

“The monster is back!”

“Lower your bows!” A second stallion replied “She is with the unicorn that Elder Lila told us not to attack.”

“Take a closer look!” Another male voice responded “He isn’t a unicorn.”

“What do you mean?” The second voice asked “Y-you’re right! He is a monster as well!”

Midnight Armor sighed “I suppose I need to get used to hearing that again.”

Wincing, Sundance opened her mouth to respond, but paused what she heard the first archer’s voice.

“What should we do?”

Sundance and Midnight Armor exchanged glances before turning back to the village when they heard Lila’s voice.

“What’s going on out here?!”

“E-elder Lila!” The second stallion stammered “You need to see this.”

Sundance smiled when Lila walked over to the entrance to the village. “Good afternoon.”

Lila returned the smile. “Welcome back, dear.”

“Thank you.” Sundance gestured to Midnight Armor. “This is Midnight Armor.”

Surprised, Lila looked at him for a moment before turning back to Sundance. “I thought he was a unicorn.”

“I did as well.” Sundance replied

Lila raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean, dear?”

“We were attacked by five Chimeras during our picnic.” Sundance answered

Everyone within earshot gasped in shock. “What?!”

Sundance nodded “Midnight Armor revealed his wings before joining me in battle.”

“I-I see.” Lila stammered “W-what about the Chimeras?”

“There is no need to worry, Elder Lila.” Midnight Armor answered “We were able to kill all of them. Sundance and I fought them in the air while Amber, Thunder and Smoky assisted us from the ground.”

Sundance nodded “Additionally, we have already destroyed their bodies.”

Everyone, except for Sundance and Midnight Armor, sighed in relief.

“Thank goodness.” Lila replied

Midnight Armor turned to Sundance. “Unfortunately, I need to get going.”

Sundance smiled “I’ll see you in a couple of days.”

Midnight Armor returned her smile before spreading his wings and lifting into the air.

“Be careful on your way home.” Lila told him.

Midnight Armor’s smile widened “Thank you.”

Lila turned to Sundance. “Let’s get you inside. I want to hear all about your day . . . especially that attack.”

Laughing softly, Midnight Armor flew towards the picnic site. He landed in front of his friends a little over ten minutes later.

“How did it go?” Amber asked

Midnight Armor told them what happened as they walked towards the unicorn village.

Amber, Thunder and Smoky shook their heads.

“There you are. I was getting worried.”

The four of them looked up to see that a stallion with a black coat and green eyes was standing in the entrance to the village.

Smiling, Amber walked forward to nuzzle her father. “There is no need to worry, Father.”

Onyx raised an eyebrow. “We heard the roars of several Chimeras.”

“It’s alright, elder.” Thunder replied “Midnight Armor and Sundance battled them in the air while Amber, Smoky and I assisted them from the ground.”

Confused, Onyx turned to Thunder. “Midnight Armor battled in the air?”

Amber laughed “Take a closer look at him, Father.”

Onyx turned to Midnight Armor . . . and smiled when he saw the wings at his sides. “I see that you finally decided to stop hiding them.”

Midnight Armor nervously nodded “I needed to be able to use my wings in order to help Sundance battle the Chimeras.”

“We should head inside.” Onyx commented “I’m sure that we have much to discuss.”

Amber, Midnight Armor, Thunder and Smoky followed him through the village gates.

Midnight Armor suppressed a shudder when he noticed that several of the villagers were staring at him. Any minute now . . . He was pulled from his thoughts when a small filly ran up to him.

“Amber was right!” She squealed “You really do have wings!”

Surprised, Midnight Armor glanced at Amber before turning back to the filly. “That’s right, Summer.”

“Can I touch them?” Summer asked

Even more surprised, Midnight Armor stared at Summer for a minute before silently laying down in front of her and spreading one of his wings.

Summer gently ran a hoof over the feathers before looking back up at him. “They’re soft.” She glanced at the wing again before turning back to Midnight Armor. “Can I ride on your back while you fly?”

Onyx, Amber, Thunder and Smoky smiled.

Midnight Armor stared at her in shock for a couple of minutes.

Summer’s ears drooped as she looked at the ground. “Okay”

Finally shaking himself out of his shock, Midnight Armor nuzzled the filly. “I didn’t say “No”, Summer. I’m just surprised that you asked.”

Summer’s ears perked up as she raised her head. “Does this mean that I can?”

“If it’s alright with your mother.” Midnight Armor hesitantly replied

Both of them looked up when a unicorn mare walked up to them.

“I don’t have a problem with that.” She commented “I just ask that you stay above the village.”

Summer squealed in delight before climbing on Midnight Armor’s back.

“Don’t worry, Violet.” Midnight Armor replied “I will.” He stood and spread the other wing before glancing at the filly on his back. “Hold on tight.”

Nodding, Summer wrapped her forehooves as far as she could around his neck.

Midnight Armor slowly rose into the air before flying around the village a couple of times. Then he landed in front of Onyx and gently levitated Summer to the ground.

Summer bounced around him in a circle. “That was fun! Can we do that again?”

Midnight Armor chuckled “I need to discuss a few things with the elder. Perhaps I will be able to take you flying again tomorrow.” He raised an eyebrow. “But only if you behave yourself.”

“I will.” Summer immediately promised

Violet walked towards them. “Thank you, Midnight Armor.” She smiled when she noticed his expression. “I’m sure you are wondering why we aren’t treating you the same way that the members of the earth pony village treat the young mare named Sundance.”

Midnight Armor nodded

One of the villagers looked at everyone else before turning back to Midnight Armor. “There is no way that we would treat you like that. First of all, you have been living among us for a long time. Second, we are aware of the fact that you put your life on the line to protect us.”

The rest of the villagers nodded.

Violet stopped next to her daughter. “Elder Onyx told us about the night that you used all of your abilities to protect the village.”

Midnight Armor stared at her in confusion. She must be talking about that battle. But . . . how could she know about that? He turned when he heard Onyx’s laughter.

“I don’t blame you for being confused.” Onyx commented “You probably didn’t know that Amber and I were watching.”

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened W-what?!

Amber smiled at Midnight Armor. “We were walking towards the village gates when we saw you fight off a pack of Timberwolves before walking through the gate.” She glanced at her father before turning back to Midnight Armor. “That was when six Manticores attacked the village.”

Onyx nodded “Amber and I were about to wake several of the guards and ask them to assist you. However, we stopped when you revealed your wings. We were so shocked that we couldn’t do anything but stare at you.”

“We watched you place your barrier over the village before taking flight.” Amber continued “Neither of us had ever seen such skilled flying.”

“Or spellcasting.” Onyx added “We were planning to say something to you, but changed our minds when you cast another Camouflage Spell on yourself as soon as you landed. That was when we decided to let you tell us when you were ready.”

“I-I see.” Midnight Armor stammered

Summer looked up at Midnight Armor. “Why did you hide your wings? They’re really pretty.”

Midnight Armor winced “I’d rather not have to explain it twice in one day.”

“It’s alright.” Amber replied “We’ll tell them.”

Amber, Thunder and Smoky took turns telling the villagers what Midnight Armor had told them earlier.

All of the villagers gasped in horror.

Onyx stared at Midnight Armor for several minutes before slowly shaking his head. “I don’t blame you for that.”

Everyone else nodded

Onyx turned to his daughter. “What happened today?”

Amber told her father about the picnic and the attack.

Onyx shook his head again. “Now I really want to meet this young mare.”

Amber laughed “You will. Sundance told us that she will be at the meeting in a couple of days.”

Onyx smiled “Good.”

“She will also be travelling with me to the Meeting of the Tribes.” Midnight Armor remarked

Confused, Onyx turned to him. “Why will she be doing that?”

“Sundance is representing the earth pony village.” Amber answered

Onyx laughed as well. “It appears that Lila and I had the same idea.”

Midnight Armor, Amber, Thunder and Smoky nodded

Onyx looked at everyone around him. “I think it’s time for everypony to head home for the day.”

The villagers nodded to him before heading for their homes. Onyx, Amber and Midnight Armor headed for home as well.

- - End Flashback - - -

Midnight Armor turned to his wife. “It’s your turn.”

Sundance smiled at her husband before turning to Twilight, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl. “I am going to begin two days later, just before the meeting between the two villages.”

The four of them nodded.

- - Sundance’s Flashback - - -

Sundance twitched an ear when she heard someone enter her room. That must be Lila. “Is it time to leave?”

“Yes.” Lila walked over to Sundance before looking over her shoulder. She read the spell on the scroll before glancing at the younger mare’s face. “Are you still working on your new spell?”

“Yes.” Sundance answered “I’m sorry that it’s taking so long.”

“It’s alright.” Lila replied “I’m sure that Onyx won’t mind if we are a couple of minutes late.” She smiled “This is especially true if your spell works.”

Sundance stretched her wings a couple of minutes later. “It’s finished.” I know that it will work because I tested it as carefully as possible. Now I just need to cast it on Amber.

Lila’s smile widened “In that case, I believe we should get going.”

Sundance levitated her saddlebags onto her back before following Lila outside. They found the rest of the village waiting for them. They fell into step behind Sundance and Lila as they left the village.

“Is it wise for everypony in the village to come with us?” Sundance asked

“Why do you ask?” Lila responded

Sundance glanced at her. “What if there is a monster attack while everyone is gone?”

“I’m sure it will be fine.” Lila replied “This meeting isn’t supposed to last long.” She looked at the archers. “There will be no hostility between our villages before, during or after this meeting. I only allowed you to bring your weapons because there is a chance of a monster attack.”

Most of the archers nodded. “Yes, elder.”

Sundance glanced at the one who didn’t respond. I’d better keep an eye on him. She looked up when she heard the sound of approaching hoofsteps. She smiled when Midnight Armor, Amber, Thunder, Smoky and a large group of unicorns stopped a few feet in front of them.

The archer that didn’t respond suddenly reared back, drew an arrow, aimed at the unicorn stallion that was standing in front of the others and let the arrow fly.

Onyx’s eyes widened.

Everyone gasped when the arrow was suddenly caught in a field of light blue magic.

Sundance glared at the stallion who had shot the arrow. “Didn’t you hear what Elder Lila said, Storm?! There is no hostility between the villages today!” She broke the arrow in half before levitating the pieces back to him. “If you do that again, I will break you in half.”

“And we will help her.” The leader of the archers poked Storm in the chest. “Don’t you ever disobey Elder Lila again. Do you understand?”

Eyes wide, Storm silently nodded.

Lila sighed in relief. “Well done, Sundance.” She looked at Storm. “We will discuss your actions when we return to the village.”

Storm shuddered when he heard her tone. “Y-yes, elder.”

Lila turned to Onyx. “I’m sorry. It appears that he needs more training.”

“It’s alright, Lila.” Onyx replied “There was no harm done.” He turned to Sundance. “You must be Sundance.”

Sundance nodded

Onyx smiled “It is nice to finally meet you. I asked Lila to bring you because I wanted to thank you for treating my daughter’s injuries.”

“It is nice to meet you as well.” Sundance turned to Amber. “I created a new spell that I would like to cast on you.”

“What kind of spell?” Amber asked

“It is an advanced healing spell that will allow me to fully heal your injuries.” Sundance answered

“Go ahead.” Amber replied

“Are you sure?” One of the villagers nervously asked

“Yes.” Amber answered “Sundance has already proven that she can be trusted.”

Everypony looked on as Sundance used her magic to remove the bandages from Amber’s leg.

Lila winced when she took a closer look at Amber’s leg. “Her injuries are worse than I thought.”

Several of the members of the earth pony village winced as well before nodding.

Curious, Onyx walked around Amber so he that could get a better look at her leg. He shuddered when he saw the full extent of his daughter’s injuries.

I hope this spell is strong enough. Sundance cast her new spell on Amber.

Onyx’s eyes widened when Amber’s injuries began to slowly heal from the inside. “I-I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Everyone gasped when the last of Amber’s injuries healed a couple of minutes later.

Onyx carefully examined his daughter’s leg before turning to Sundance. “Y-you created that spell?!”

Sundance nodded “I finished it this morning.”

“I-incredible!” Onyx stammered

Every member of both villages nodded.

Onyx lowered his head. “Thank you for healing my daughter, Sundance.” Lifting his head, he glanced at Amber before turning back to Sundance. “She is the only member of my family that is still among the living.”

“You’re welcome.” Sundance replied

“Thank you, Sundance.” Amber used her magic to open her saddlebags as she walked over to Sundance. She levitated a small wooden bowl to Sundance. “I prepared some fresh apple slices for your trip.”

Sundance’s eyes widened for a moment before she smiled at Amber. “Thank you.” She placed the bowl into one of the sides of her saddlebags.

Midnight Armor took a couple of steps forward. “I believe we should get going.”

Onyx nodded “Good idea.”

“Be careful, dear.” Lila told Sundance.

Sundance spread her wings. “I will.”

Midnight Armor did the same. “We should be back in a couple of weeks.”

Everyone watched Sundance and Midnight Armor rise into the air.

- - End Flashback - - -

“It took three days to get to the site of the meeting.” Midnight Armor commented “I am going to skip to when we arrived.”

“Good idea.” Sundance replied

Star Swirl, Twilight, Celestia and Artemis immediately turned to Midnight Armor.

- - Midnight Armor’s Flashback - - -

Sundance and Midnight Armor landed next to the stone table, folded their wings and looked around.

“There isn’t anypony here.” Sundance commented

Midnight Armor shrugged “Perhaps we are the first to arrive.”

Both of them looked up when they heard a couple of voices.

“Have the representatives from the other tribes arrived yet, Cloud?”

“Not yet, Elder Gale.”

“Are we expecting Lila and Onyx again?” Gale asked

“No.” Cloud answered “According to this, a mare named Sundance is representing the earth pony village and a stallion named Midnight Armor is representing the unicorn village.”

Curious, Sundance and Midnight Armor spread their wings and lifting into the air.

Sundance noticed that a couple of pegasi were standing on a nearby cloud. She nodded to them before whispering. “Do you want to have a little fun?”

Midnight Armor nodded to Sundance before turning to the pegasi. “Good afternoon.”

Both pegasi jumped before turning towards the voice.

Sundance struggled to suppress her laughter. “My name is Sundance and this is Midnight Armor.”

Gale and Cloud stared at Midnight Armor and Sundance in stunned silence for a couple of minutes before turning to each other.

“T-they have wings and horns?!” Gale thought for a moment before turning to Cloud. “I thought those names were familiar.” He said softly “They must be the special ponies that the unicorns in the capital were searching for.”

Cloud nodded “This means that we won’t be able to use our usual tactic.”

“That’s right.” Midnight Armor replied as he and Sundance landed on the cloud.

The pegasi exchanged nervous glances before turning back to Sundance and Midnight Armor. All four of the ponies on the cloud jumped slightly when they heard a voice from the ground.

“Is anypony here?”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Gale and Cloud spread their wings before flying to the stone table. They found a pair of unicorn stallions waiting for them.

Midnight Armor suppressed a shudder when he saw one of them. Why is he here?! I know that he is the leader of the capital, but I thought he would send a representative like he usually does. “Hello, Silver and Cypress.”

“Good afternoon, Silver.” Sundance turned to the second unicorn. “It has been a long time, Cypress.”

Cypress nodded “It is nice to see both of you again.”

“Good afternoon, my precious test subjects.” Silver shook his head. “I mean Midnight Armor and Sundance.” He turned to Cypress before whispering. “Don’t let either of them out of your sight. We can’t afford to lose them again.” He said something else that was too quiet for everyone else to hear.

Cypress nodded “Yes, Emperor. I will send the message as soon as we are done for the day.”

“Good.” Silver replied

Sundance raised an eyebrow. “Emperor?”

Silver nodded “That is correct, Sundance. I expect you to address me as such.”

Sundance laughed “Not a chance.”

Gale and Cloud glanced at each other in confusion before turning back to Sundance and Silver.

“You dare to defy me?!” Silver growled

“You may be able to fool some ponies.” Sundance replied “However, I am well aware of the fact that that position does not exist.”

Silver narrowed his eyes. “Yet”

“It never will.” Sundance responded “The laws that govern those that live in the capital, yourself included, don’t allow it.”

Silver growled again. “Perhaps it was a mistake to force you to handle some of our more mundane research for us.”

Sundance just smiled at him.

Midnight Armor stared at Sundance for a moment before turning to everyone else. “I believe we should get started.”

“That is a good idea.” Gale responded “I would like to get things started by creating with a schedule for the pegasi to collect the food from the unicorn settlements and the earth pony villages.”

“I’m glad you brought that up.” Midnight Armor remarked “The unicorn village will not be supplying the pegasi with any food this year.”

“The same goes for the earth pony village and our associated farms.” Sundance added

Gale glared at both of them. “What are you talking about?! Of course you will! It is in the contract!”

Sundance levitated a scroll out of her saddlebags. “I’m glad you mentioned that, elder. This is a copy of the contract that was signed by you, Elder Lila, Elder Onyx, and Silver. According to this, the pegasi were supposed to provide the necessary rain for our crops to grow.”

Gale nodded “I am aware of that.”

“The contract clearly states that, if the pegasi fail to uphold their end of the bargain, the unicorn and earth pony settlements do not have to provide them with any of the crops that they manage to grow.” Midnight Armor continued

Sundance pulled another scroll out of her saddlebags. “Elder Lila has been tracking the weather over the last year. This is a copy of her records. As you can see, the pegasi didn’t bring a single raincloud to the village or any of our farms.”

Midnight Armor levitated a scroll out his saddlebags. “Elder Onyx has been doing the same thing . . . with the same results. There is only one reason that our crops have survived. We gathered the necessary water from the nearby river.”

Sundance nodded “The ponies in the earth pony village did the same thing. Unfortunately, our farms weren’t as lucky. The main village has been providing our farms with food because most of their crops died several months ago.”

“The capital didn’t receive any rain either.” Cypress commented “However, in our case, some of our unicorns were able to catch the rain clouds that drifted close enough. That is how we were able to water our crops.”

Growling, Gale turned to Cloud. “Whose idea was it to fail to provide rain to the earthbound settlements?!”

Cloud backed up a couple of feet. “D-do you really want me to answer that question, sir?”

Gale paused “What do you mean?”

“I-it was your idea, sir.” Cloud stammered “Y-you had been drinking and declared that it would be amusing to see how the unicorns and earth ponies dealt with a year without rain. I gave you a couple of days to recover before asking you again. You insisted that we wouldn’t be providing them with any rain.”

Gale’s off white coat instantly became several shades paler. “I-I see.”

“I agree with Sundance and Midnight Armor.” Silver gave Gale a slight glare. “You failed to uphold your end of the contract, Gale. Therefore, as stated in the contract, the earth pony and unicorn settlements won’t be giving the pegasi any of their food this year.”

Gale backed up a couple of feet. “W-we’ll starve!”

“You should have thought of that before you decided not to honor the contract.” Silver responded

Everyone looked up when the sun began to set.

Silver turned back to the other ponies gathered around the table. “I think we should retire for the evening and continue this in the morning.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Cypress, Cloud and Gale nodded before heading their separate ways.

Sundance and Midnight Armor walked over to a large group of trees. Silver and Cypress watched them gather firewood before moving to a spot a few feet away.

Midnight Armor placed some of the logs on the ground before using his magic to set them on fire. Sundance set the rest of the logs a couple of feet away from the fire before beginning to pull food out of their saddlebags.

Silver watched Sundance and Midnight Armor work together to prepare their dinner before laying down side by side and beginning to eat. He looked up when Cypress set a clay plate full of food in front of him. “Thank you”

Sundance and Midnight Armor glanced at each other.

“I didn’t know that Silver knew how to say those words.” Midnight Armor said softly

“This is the first time that he has said them around me.” Sundance quietly replied “He has certainly never said them to me.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow when he noticed that Silver and Cypress were also quietly discussing something. He watched Cypress stand and walk in the direction of the dirt path that connected the stone table to the rest of the country. “They’re up to something.”

“I know.” Sundance replied “We’ll have to keep an eye on them.” She looked at Silver for a moment before turning back to Midnight Armor. “I saw your reaction to seeing Silver. Did something happen between the two of you?”

Midnight Armor shuddered “He is the one who ordered the researchers to . . . examine me. Additionally, he was present every time they cut me open.”

Sundance shuddered as well. “I heard him call us his “precious test subjects”. Do you think that means something?”

“Probably.” Midnight Armor glanced at the moon before turning back to Sundance. “We should get some sleep.”

Sundance nodded “I have a feeling that tomorrow will be a long day.” She lay her head on her forehooves and closed her eyes.

Midnight Armor did the same.

- - End Flashback - - -

Chapter 79

“What happened next?” Twilight asked

Celestia glanced at her sister before turning to their parents. “Did Silver behave himself?”

Midnight Armor shuddered “No.”

“What did he do?” Artemis hesitantly asked

Sundance nuzzled her husband. “It’s alright, Midnight. I’ll show them this part.”

“Thank you.” Midnight Armor quietly replied

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight looked at each other for a moment before turning back to their parents.

“You don’t have to show us if you don’t want to.” Celestia said softly

Sundance turned to her eldest. “It’s alright. Your father and I knew that this part would be difficult for us. However, we think the three of you should know about this because it is part of the history of Equestria.”

“Are you sure?” Twilight slowly asked

Midnight Armor nodded as he levitated his youngest to his side before pulling her into a tight hug.

Twilight raised an eyebrow. Whatever happened next must be really bad. She nuzzled him before snuggling closer to his side.

Sundance watched this with a small smile. Thank you, Twilight. “I am going to start with what happened that night.”

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Star Swirl nodded.

- - Sundance’s Flashback - - -

Sundance woke to a bloodcurdling scream. Startled, she scrambled to her hooves as she looked around. The first thing she noticed was that she was alone. She looked up when another scream tore through the night.

T-that sounds like Midnight Armor. Sundance leapt into the air and quickly flew towards the sound. She paused when she noticed that a large group of unicorns was gathered in a circle around something. Where did all of them come from? I thought Silver and Cypress were the only unicorns here.

Shaking her head, she took a closer look at what they were doing. It seems that several of the unicorns are simply providing light. The rest of them are focused on the object in the center of the circle.

Sundance gasped when she got close enough to see what that object was. I-it’s Midnight Armor! H-he is unconscious and . . . She gasped in horror when she took a closer look at his injuries. T-they have cut his stomach open and are holding it open with at least a dozen large knives while they . . . She was pulled from her thoughts by Silver’s laughter.

“I’m glad you were able to join us, Sundance.” Silver remarked

All of the researchers instantly turned to him before following his gaze to her.

Sundance made sure that she was out of the range of all of them before glaring at Silver. “What you are doing to him?!”

“Conducting research, of course.” Silver glanced at something to her left.

Sundance turned to see that Gale and Cloud were flying towards them.

Both of them gasped when they saw what was going on.

“I really must thank you, Gale.” Silver remarked “I never would have found these two without your help.”

“What are you talking about?!” Gale demanded

“You sent me the names of the ponies that were going to be attending the Meeting of the Tribes.” Silver reminded him.

“Y-you mean that is why you . . .” Horrified, Gale stared at what they had done to Midnight Armor for a moment. Then he landed on the ground before proceeding to lose his dinner.

Silver laughed again before turning back to Sundance. “You don’t need to worry. I won’t kill him . . .” He paused while she sighed in relief. “Yet. We are going keep him alive until we understand why he has the abilities that he does. Then we will figure out what it takes to kill him . . . by killing him.”

Sundance gasped in horror.

Silver smiled at her. “I have a slightly different plan for you, my dear.”

Sundance shuddered I hate it when he calls me that. “W-what are you talking about?”

“You will bear as many of my foals as possible.” Silver answered “Then you will follow in Midnight Armor’s hoofsteps as soon as you have outlived your usefulness.”

There is no way that I am going to let him touch me! Sundance immediately backed up several feet. She waited until she was sure that her dinner was going to stay in her stomach before turning back to Midnight Armor. H-he won’t be able to take much more of that. I have to get him out of there . . . now.

Silver laughed when Sundance’s horn began to glow. “What do you think you’re doing? I am well aware of the fact that you have no combat experience.” He gasped in shock when she launched two very different beams of magic towards the ponies on the ground.

Sundance watched both of them carefully. I can’t warn Elder Gale because that would also warn Silver and the researchers. I’ll just have to apologize to him later. Tears began to well up in her eyes as she looked at Midnight Armor again. Please be strong enough to survive this.

The first beam of magic produced a shockwave that knocked all of the ponies on the ground off of their hooves. The second removed all of the knives from Midnight Armor’s stomach before she levitated him into the air.

Silver struggled to his hooves. “Give him back!”

Ignoring him, Sundance gently lay Midnight Armor on his back on a nearby cloud before landing next to him and folding her wings. Tears began to stream down her face as she knelt next to him before using her magic to hold his internal organs in place while she tried to close the wound. This isn’t working! Perhaps I’m not . . . She shook her head. No! I can’t give up. I’m the only one who can save him. She cast the advanced healing spell that she had created to heal Amber’s wounds.

Nothing happened for a couple of minutes. Then Midnight Armor moved his head a little.

“I-it’s working!” Sundance said softly

“Ugh . . .” Midnight Armor tried to roll onto his side.

“D-don’t move.” Sundance whispered “I haven’t finished healing you yet.”

“H-healing me?” Midnight Armor slowly opened his eyes. His eyes widened when he saw the tears on her face. “What’s wrong?”

Sundance nodded to his stomach.

Surprised, he just stared at his wounds for a moment before laying his head on the cloud again. “I-I remember now. I woke to an unusual noise. That was when Silver used a sword to slice my stomach open. I remember screaming in pain a couple of times . . . and then . . . I must have passed out from the pain.”

“I’m not surprised.” Sundance quietly replied “Your first scream woke me and your second led me to your location.” She shuddered “I-I’ve never seen so much blood. They were holding your stomach open with over a dozen knives and . . .” She trailed off as she shuddered again.

“How did you get me away from at least twenty unicorns?” Midnight Armor asked

“I created a new offensive spell after our battle with the Chimeras.” Sundance answered “It produces a shockwave on impact. I wasn’t planning to use it on ponies, but that is exactly what I just did. Then I levitated you into the air before they had a chance to recover. I placed you on this cloud and started to heal your wound.”

“T-thank you, Sundance.” Midnight Armor said softly “You probably saved my life.”

Sundance shuddered again before telling Midnight Armor what Silver had told her about his plans for them.

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened. “Y-you really did save my life . . .”

Sundance shook her head. “Not yet. I have to finish healing your wound.” She lifted her head so she could look him in the eye. “We also need to deal with them.”

“We will.” Midnight Armor assured her.

It took a little over an hour for Sundance to finish healing Midnight Armor’s wound. Then she stood before carefully helping him to his hooves. “How do you feel?”

He nuzzled her as he used his magic to dry her eyes. “I’m a little weak at the moment, but I feel much better than I did an hour ago.”

Sighing in relief, Sundance returned his nuzzle. “Do you think you can fly?”

Nodding, Midnight Armor spread his wings before slowly rising into the air. Sundance watched him carefully for a moment before joining him in the air.

Silver glared up at both of them. “Why did you do that, Sundance?!”

“I didn’t want Midnight Armor to die.” Sundance answered

“The two of you are my property!” Silver angrily replied “I will do with you as I see fit!”

“Stop here.” Sundance said softly

Midnight Armor did as he was told. “I assume we are just outside their range.”

Sundance nodded to Midnight Armor before looking down at Silver. “That is where you are wrong.” She turned to one of the researchers. “You gave Midnight Armor and myself an official name. Isn’t that right, Brook?”

Surprised, Brook nodded “Both of you are a type of pony . . .” He trailed off as a look of horror settled on his face.

“That has the characteristics, or traits, of an earth pony, a pegasus and a unicorn.” Sundance finished “Midnight Armor and I are members of the fourth pony tribe . . . the Alicorn.”

“T-that is correct.” Brook shakily replied

Sundance looked at everypony else. “All of you heard Silver say that he plans to kill the only two alicorns in existence.”

Gale and Cloud nodded. The researchers reluctantly did the same.

“There is one more thing.” Sundance returned her gaze to Silver. “You know what happens to a pony who conducts that type of . . . research . . . on other ponies, right?”

Silver’s look of rage shifted to one of horror as he finally realized the consequences of his actions. “I-I . . .”

Sundance surrounded Silver, Cypress and all of the researchers with her magic. “All of you are accused of conducting illegal research on a pony, attempted murder and planning to push a tribe of ponies to extinction.”

Gale spread his wings. “I am Gale, Leader of the Pegasus Tribe. I hereby recognize the existence of the fourth pony tribe . . . the Alicorn. I also recognize Sundance and Midnight Armor as the only known members of this new tribe.”

Silver gulped

Gale turned to Silver, Cypress and the researchers. “All of you are under arrest for the crimes that Sundance just listed. As such, all of you will be placed in the dungeons in the capital while we decide your punishment. Additionally, each of you is stripped of any title and power that you previously held.”

Silver, Cypress and the researchers shivered in terror when Sundance, Midnight Armor and Cloud landed in front of them.

Sundance glanced at Midnight Armor before turning back to the captured ponies. “We need to wait for Midnight Armor to fully recover before we can bring you to the capital. Unfortunately, that will take at least a couple of days.”

Gale turned to Sundance and Midnight Armor. “Do you have the ability to keep them restrained until then?”

“Sundance and I will combine our magic and create some type of enclosure for them.” Midnight Armor answered

Gale nodded “That sounds perfect.”

Midnight Armor leaned down and touched the tip of his horn to Sundance’s. She used their combined magic to create a large cage that was made entirely of magic.

Sundance placed the captured ponies inside it before creating a roof for the cage. Then she released her magic as she turned to Gale. “This will keep them contained. Additionally, we will be able to use it to transport them to the capital.”

Gale smiled at her. “Thank you.”

Midnight Armor turned to Sundance in time to see her wobble slightly. He looked at the rising sun for a moment before turning to Gale. “We can continue the Meeting of the Tribes later. However, right now, Sundance and I need to get some rest.”

“That is understandable.” Gale quickly replied “It has been a long night for both of you. We will continue when both of you have recovered.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor returned to their campsite and lay down next to each other again. However, this time, they snuggled as close to each other as possible. Sundance lay her head on her forehooves and allowed herself to fall asleep. Midnight Armor draped a wing over her back before doing the same.

- - End Flashback - - -

Sundance looked around to see that Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl had tears in their eyes as they stared at her in a combination of shock and horror. She turned to see that Twilight had a similar expression on her face. Midnight Armor had somehow managed to pull his youngest even closer before laying his head on his forehooves and closing his eyes.

Sundance leaned over Twilight and nuzzled her husband. “It’s alright, Midnight. The worst part is over.”

Midnight Armor shuddered T-thank goodness. I don’t even like to think about that memory, let alone relive it.

Twilight stared at her father for a moment before smiling slightly when she got an idea.

Sundance raised an eyebrow when her daughter’s horn began to glow. What is she doing?

Midnight Armor moaned in pleasure when he felt a wave of warmth move through his entire body. “T-thank you, Twilight.”

Twilight nuzzled her father. “You’re welcome.”

I see what she did. Laughing softly, Sundance nuzzled her youngest. “Well done, Twilight.”

“There is something that confuses me.” Celestia said slowly

Sundance turned to her eldest. “What is it?”

“Why were you so worried about Father dying?” Celestia responded “It is impossible for an alicorn to die from that type of injury.”

“We didn’t know that at the time.” Sundance answered “Therefore, I really thought your father was going to die.”

“I see.” Celestia said softly

Twilight stared at her sister for a moment before gently nuzzling their father.

Smiling slightly, Midnight Armor returned her nuzzle before opening his eyes and looking at his wife. “Would you mind showing them the next part?”

Sundance nodded to her husband before turning to Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl. “The Meeting of the Tribes resumed three days later. I’m going to start there.”

All three of them nodded.

- - Sundance’s Flashback - - -

Gale, Cloud, Sundance and Midnight Armor gathered around the stone table. The cage that held Silver, Cypress and the researchers sat a few feet away.

“The prisoners have been fed.” Cloud informed Gale.

“Thank you.” Gale turned to Midnight Armor. “Are you sure that you are ready for this?”

“I appreciate your concern.” Midnight Armor replied “However, I have recovered enough to continue.”

Gale nodded to Midnight Armor before turning to Sundance. “Thank you for taking the time to travel to my village. Your work has ensured that we will have enough food to survive until the next Harvest Season.”

“You’re welcome, elder.” Sundance replied “However . . .”

“Don’t worry.” Gale responded “I will ensure that all of the earthbound settlements receive enough rain.”

Sundance smiled “Thank you.” I am going to hold him to that.

“This year’s Meeting of the Tribes was a little unusual . . . for obvious reasons.” Gale commented “However, there will be a major change to the next one.”

“There are four pony tribes now.” Midnight Armor responded “As the only known alicorns, Sundance and I will both be in attendance.”

Gale nodded

“This means that Elder Lila and Elder Onyx will probably be here as well.” Sundance paused “That’s not entirely accurate. Amber will be of age by the next Meeting of the Tribes. This means that she may be representing the unicorn village.”

“Agreed.” Gale responded “Now then, we need to decide how we are going to transport the prisoners to the capital.”

“I think we should use the simplest method.” Midnight Armor replied

“And that is?” Gale asked

“Sundance and I will levitate the cage while the four of us fly to the capital.” Midnight Armor responded.

Cloud slowly nodded “I see. That is also the fastest method.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded as well.

Gale glanced at the cage before turning back to Sundance, Midnight Armor and Cloud. “You’re right.”

“I think we should leave as soon as everypony has eaten their morning meal tomorrow.” Sundance commented

“Good point.” Gale remarked “In that case, I believe all of us should retire for the evening. Please make sure that you get some rest.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Cloud nodded

The Next Morning

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Gale and Cloud worked together to pack enough supplies for their journey. Each of them placed a pair of saddlebags on their back before turning to the prisoners.

Gale and Cloud looked on as Sundance and Midnight Armor worked together to levitate the cage into the air. The four of them spread their wings and took flight, bringing the cage with them.

Silver glared at Sundance and Midnight Armor. “You better not drop us!”

“Don’t tempt me.” Sundance replied

Midnight Armor, Cloud and Gale laughed when Silver suddenly became extremely interested in the scenery.

Seven Hours Later

Everypony looked up when Sundance, Midnight Armor, Gale and Cloud landed in the center of the capital.

Sundance and Midnight Armor gently set the cage on the ground next to them.

The unicorns gasped when they saw who was in the cage.

“Sundance!”

Surprised, Sundance turned to see that a young colt was staring at her with tears in his eyes. I still have trouble believing that this sweet colt is Silver’s son. Smiling slightly, she lay down where she stood. “Good afternoon, Bay.”

Bay rushed forward to nuzzle her. “A-are you alright?!”

Sundance returned his nuzzle before lifting her head so that she could take a closer look at him. “Why do you ask?”

“I-I heard some of the researchers talking last night.” Bay answered “T-they said that Daddy wanted them to kill you and Mr. Midnight Armor.”

“I see.” Sundance thought for a moment. “Can you tell me who your father left in charge of the capital while he was gone?”

“That would be me.”

Sundance looked up to see that a unicorn mare was walking towards her. She stood before turning to face the approaching unicorn. “Good afternoon, Star.”

“Good afternoon, Sundance.” Star glanced at the cage, and those inside it, for a moment before turning back to Sundance. “Would you mind telling me why my husband and the researchers are in a cage?”

Midnight Armor turned to her. “I was hoping that you were going to ask.”

Gale shuddered “Y-you should prepare yourself, Star. This won’t be easy for you to see.”

Obviously somewhere between confused and concerned, Star nodded to Gale before turning back to the alicorns.

Midnight Armor and Sundance took turns showing everyone what Silver had done.

Everypony else, except for those in the cage, gasped in horror.

Star stared at Sundance and Midnight Armor in shock for a moment before turning to her husband. “H-how could you do such a thing?!”

Silver glared at his wife. “Get me out of this cage, Star!”

“No.” Star replied. “Elder Gale is correct. You will be punished for your crimes.”

Silver’s glare deepened “We’ll see about that.”

“Yes, we will.” Star turned back to Sundance. “You have my sincerest apologies. I had no idea that my husband was doing such horrible things to either of you.” She looked at Midnight Armor. “I would like you to see a healer before you leave the capital.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

“I know that Sundance healed your injuries." Star answered "However, I would feel better if you would allow one of our healers to confirm it.”

“I see.” Midnight Armor slowly replied

“Don’t worry.” Sundance said softly “You won’t be going alone.”

Midnight Armor smiled at her before looking up when Star raised her voice.

“Silver has been stripped of his position and power as a result of his crimes. This means that the pony that he has placed in charge of the capital while he was gone is now the leader of the capital. Does anypony disagree with this?”

“Of course!” Silver shouted

Star glared at her husband for a moment before turning to the ponies around her. “Does anypony else disagree?”

No one else voiced any complaints.

Star nodded to the unicorns around her before turning to Gale, Cloud, Sundance and Midnight Armor. “I am Star, Leader of the Unicorn Capital. I hereby recognize the existence of the fourth pony tribe, the Alicorn. Additionally, I recognize Midnight Armor and Sundance as the only known members of this new tribe.”

Silver growled

Star glared at her husband before listing off the names of each of the ponies in the cage. “The ponies that I have just named are accused of the following charges . . . Conducting illegal research on another pony, attempted murder and planning to push a tribe of ponies to extinction. It is possible that additional charges may be added as we examine their actions. All of them will receive the appropriate punishment for their crimes when we have finished.”

All of the unicorns in the capital, except for those in the cage, cheered.

Star turned to Gale. “I would appreciate it if you, and your assistant, would stay in the capital until each of them receives their punishment.”

“I have no problem with that.” Gale glanced at Sundance and Midnight Armor before turning back to Star. “However, I would like to make a suggestion.”

“What is it?” Star asked

“We should give Sundance and Midnight Armor time to return to their respective villages so they can inform Lila and Onyx of this.” Gale replied “Then the four of them should return to the capital before any of the captured ponies receives their punishment.”

Star nodded “Good idea. The leaders of all four of the pony tribes, and major settlements, should be present for this.” She turned to Sundance and Midnight Armor. “Do you think a week, starting tomorrow, will be enough time?”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded

“Good.” Star replied “In that case, I would like you to see the healer tonight, Midnight Armor. Then the two of you should head to your respective villages tomorrow morning.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded again.

The Next Morning

Sundance and Midnight Armor said farewell to Star, Bay, Gale and Cloud before spreading their wings and taking flight. The flight was silent as each of them tried not to think about what had happened over the last week or so.

They arrived in the air above the Everfree Forest a little over six hours later. Both of them were surprised when they noticed a large group of ponies on the neutral ground between their villages.

“What do you think that’s about?” Sundance asked

Midnight Armor shrugged. “Perhaps we should find out.”

Sundance nodded before following Midnight Armor towards the group of ponies on the ground. They watched everypony else turn to them as their hooves touched the ground.

Lila, Onyx, Amber, Thunder and Smoky smiled as they walked closer to Sundance and Midnight Armor. Their smiled faded when they saw the expressions on the faces of the alicorns.

“What’s wrong, dear?” Lila asked Sundance.

Sundance glanced at Midnight Armor. “We might as well get it over with.”

Midnight Armor nodded “You’re right.”

Sundance showed everyone what had happened before, during and after the Meeting of the Tribes. Midnight Armor showed them what had happened in the capital.

Every member of both villages gasped in horror.

“O-oh my . . .” Lila said softly “I-I don’t know what to say.”

“I do.” Onyx growled “You, Sundance, Midnight Armor and I are going to start traveling to the capital tomorrow. We will see to it that those ponies receive the proper punishment for their crimes.”

Lila nodded “Agreed.”

One of the earth ponies that threw rocks at Sundance slowly turned to another. “I-I know that we treat her like a monster, but . . .”

“We don’t try to kill her!” The second quietly finished

“I-I don’t think we should treat her like that anymore.” The third stallion said softly

Every member of the earth pony village nodded.

Lila turned to Sundance. “You did a very good job, dear.”

Surprised, Sundance turned to her. “What are you talking about?” That entire experience was a nightmare!

“You ensured that we would be able to keep our food.” Lila responded “You also made sure that our farms would be able to keep what little food they have. Additionally, you helped ensure that the pegasi will be able to survive until the next Harvest Season.”

Onyx smiled at Sundance. “More importantly, you saved Midnight Armor’s life.”

“You also got Gale to agree to provide rain for us again.” Amber added

Everyone else nodded

Sundance blushed T-they make it sound like I did everything. “I-I’m sure that Midnight Armor would have helped me, but Silver . . .”

“It’s alright, Sundance.” Onyx assured her. “I’m not upset with him at all.” He turned to Midnight Armor. “I noticed that you were also able to convince Gale that we wouldn’t be giving the pegasi any of our food.”

Midnight Armor nodded

Onyx smiled at him. “Well done.” He turned to his daughter. “You are in charge of the village until I return.”

Amber nodded “Yes, Father.”

Midnight Armor noticed that she was upset. “Don’t worry. We will let you know how it goes.”

Amber smiled “Thank you.”

Onyx and Lila nodded to each other before turning to everypony around them.

“I’m glad that everypony is here.” Lila commented

“Agreed.” Onyx remarked “There is one more thing that we need to take care of today . . . and it is something that all of you need to hear.”

Every member of both villages immediately gave both of them their full attention.

“I am Lila, Leader of the Earth Pony Tribe.” Lila began

“I am Onyx, Leader of the Unicorn Village.” Onyx continued

They said the rest together. “We hereby recognize the existence of the fourth pony tribe, the Alicorn. Additionally, we recognize Sundance and Midnight Armor as the only known alicorns.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor were surprised when every member of both villages cheered.

Lila and Onyx smiled at each other before turning back to Sundance and Midnight Armor.

“I believe that is enough for one day.” Onyx commented

Lila nodded “Let’s get both of you home for some dinner and a good night’s rest.”

Lila, Onyx, Amber, Thunder and Smoky smiled when Sundance and Midnight Armor nuzzled each other. Then everypony walked towards their respective villages.

- - End Flashback - - -

“W-wow.” Twilight whispered “That isn’t in any of the history books.”

Laughing softly, Celestia turned to her sister. “As far as I know, this is the first time that Mother and Father have told anypony about this.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded

Celestia glanced at her brother before turning back to her sister. “Additionally, the unicorn capital was destroyed long before Artemis and I were born.”

Twilight turned to her parents. “What happened to it?”

“The capital was located near the border.” Midnight Armor answered “For some reason, the unicorns in the capital thought it would be a good idea to expand their city into the land that eventually became the Griffin Kingdom.”

Artemis shuddered “I can’t imagine that going well.”

“It didn’t.” Sundance responded “The griffins destroyed the capital before the other tribes or the unicorn village even knew what the unicorns in the capital had done.”

Midnight Armor nodded “Fortunately, the griffins were satisfied with that. They returned to their territory as soon as they were sure that they had killed all of the unicorns in the capital.”

Celestia’s eyes widened when something occurred to her. “That means every unicorn in Equestria is descended from the ones that lived in the village near the forest.”

Midnight Armor nodded again. “That’s right. It also means that Amber, who was the leader of the unicorn village by that point, suddenly became the leader of the Unicorn Tribe.”

Twilight’s eyes widened as well. “That must have come as a surprise.”

Sundance nodded as well. “She was certain that she wouldn’t be able to handle the responsibility.”

Midnight Armor smiled at his wife before turning to their children and Star Swirl. “Even so, she quickly proved herself to be a capable leader.”

Celestia smiled at Twilight. “That sounds familiar.”

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl laughed when Twilight blushed.

Midnight Armor nuzzled his youngest before turning to Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Star Swirl. “I’m going to start with what happened the next morning.”

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Star Swirl nodded.

- -Midnight Armor’s Flashback - - -

Midnight Armor woke to a gentle nuzzle. He slowly opened his eyes and looked around the room for a moment before noticing that Onyx and Amber were standing next to the soft pile of hay that served as his bed. Yawning, he stretched for a moment before standing. “Did I oversleep?”

“Yes.” Amber shook her head when she saw that Midnight Armor was about to apologize. “It’s alright. It’s clear that you haven’t fully recovered from your injuries.”

“Amber is correct.” Onyx commented “You lost a lot of blood. This means that you will be tired and weak for at least a few more days.”

Midnight Armor sighed “You’re probably right.” I hate feeling like this!

Onyx shook his head. “I’m still amazed that Sundance was able to save you.”

“I am as well.” Amber replied “I’m also surprised that she hasn’t earned her Soul Mark yet.”

Onyx nodded as the three of them sat down at the table for breakfast.

Amber levitated a bowl of apples and oranges to the center of the table while Onyx filled three wooden cups with water.

Midnight Armor took a bite of an apple and chewed it thoughtfully. Amber and Onyx watched him eat for a moment before beginning to eat as well.

Midnight Armor swallowed the food in his mouth before turning to Amber. “I don’t think Sundance’s specialty is healing.”

Amber raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean? She is so good at healing that it has to be her specialty.”

“Have you noticed that she creates her own spells?” Midnight Armor asked

Amber gasped “Y-you’re right! I’ve never met another pony who can do that.”

“Good point.” Onyx said slowly “Every unicorn that I’ve met uses the existing spells that have been passed down from parent to child.” He turned to Midnight Armor. “You’ve spent a lot of time with her recently. What do you think her specialty is?”

“I believe her specialty has something to with magic.” Midnight Armor answered

“That would be appropriate.” Amber said slowly

Onyx nodded again

Onyx and Midnight Armor finished their breakfasts heading to their rooms to pack for their journey.

Amber, Onyx and Midnight Armor headed outside fifteen minutes later. They found the rest of the village waiting for them.

“Midnight Armor!”

Midnight Armor, Amber and Onyx turned towards the voice to see that Summer was running towards them.

Summer skidded to a stop in front of Midnight Armor before looking up at him. “Are you really going away again?”

Midnight Armor lay down in front of her. “Yes, Summer. I have to go to the capital for a while, but I’ll be back in a couple of weeks.”

“A-are you going to get hurt again?” Summer tearfully asked

Midnight Armor nuzzled the filly. “Don’t worry. I’ll be careful.”

Everyone looked up when one of the ponies on the wall climbed down and walked over to Onyx. “Elder Lila and Sundance are approaching the village.”

“Please let them in.” Onyx replied

The stallion nodded before walking over to the gate. He returned a couple of minutes later with Lila and Sundance.

Onyx smiled at the guard. “Thank you.”

“Of course, elder.” The stallion nodded to Lila and Sundance before returning to his post.

Onyx turned to Lila and Sundance. “Good morning.”

“Good morning.” Lila replied “I’m sorry we’re late.”

Sundance nodded “I overslept because I was up late last night.”

“Do you mind if I ask why?” Amber asked

“I created a new spell.” Sundance answered “I hope I don’t need to use it, but I wanted it to be ready . . . just in case.”

Midnight Armor stood before turning to Sundance. “What kind of spell did you create this time?”

“It’s a defensive spell.” Sundance replied

Onyx raised an eyebrow. “This means that you have created three new spells in less than two weeks. A healing spell, an offensive spell and a defensive spell.”

Surprised, Sundance stared at him for a moment before nodding. Onyx, Midnight Armor and Amber smiled at each other before turning back to Sundance.

Lila smiled at Sundance before turning to Onyx. “I think we should get going.”

Onyx nodded to Lila before turning to Midnight Armor. “Are you ready?”

Midnight Armor levitated his saddlebags onto his back before nodding.

Onyx levitated his saddlebags onto his back as well before turning to Amber. “Take care of things here.”

“I will.” Amber followed them to the gate. “Be careful.”

“We will.” Sundance, Midnight Armor, Lila and Onyx smiled at Amber before walking through the gate.

Five Hours Later

Lila and Onyx were discussing something as they walked down the path. Sundance and Midnight Armor were walking a few feet behind them.

Sundance looked at Midnight Armor when he stumbled. “Are you alright?”

“Y-yes.” Midnight Armor slowly replied I can’t rest yet!

Sundance raised an eyebrow when he stumbled again. She turned to the ponies walking in front of them. “Elder Lila? I think we should take a break.”

Lila and Onyx looked over their shoulders in time to see Midnight Armor stumble again. They exchanged glances before turning back to the younger ponies.

“You’re right, dear.” Lila replied “It’s clear that Midnight Armor needs to rest for a while.”

Onyx looked up at the sun for a moment before turning back to the ponies. “I think we should also use this time to eat something.”

Lila, Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded before moving to a spot just off the path. Onyx joined them. The four of them set their saddlebags on the ground before laying down.

Sundance pulled some food from her saddlebags before turning to see that Midnight Armor had laid his head on his forehooves and closed his eyes.

Onyx and Lila smiled when Sundance set her food on a wooden plate before nuzzling Midnight Armor.

Midnight Armor slowly opened his eyes. “What is it?”

“You should eat something before you get some sleep.” Sundance opened one of the sides of his saddlebags and pulled out a large apple. “Here.”

Midnight Armor lifted his head as he took it in his magic. “Thank you.”

Sundance stood and spread her wings as she levitated a large wooden cup out of her saddlebags. “I’ll go get some water from the river.”

“Good idea.” Lila replied

Midnight Armor had just finished his apple when he noticed that Sundance was flying towards them. He watched her land next to him and lay down before offering him some water. He drank some of the water before setting the cup on the ground in front of her. “Thank you.”

Sundance smiled “You’re welcome.” She watched Midnight Armor lay his head on his forehooves and close his eyes again.

Onyx, Lila and Sundance quietly ate their lunches before laying their heads on their forehooves as well.

Onyx let Midnight Armor sleep for an hour before lifting his head. “Sundance?” He waited for her to open her eyes and lift her head before continuing. “I think we should get going. Would you mind waking Midnight Armor?”

Sundance nodded to Onyx before turning to see that Midnight Armor had shifted in his sleep so that he was lying against her right side. Blushing slightly, she lowered her head and gently nuzzled him.

Midnight Armor mumbled something unintelligible as he snuggled closer to her. Onyx and Lila laughed softly when Sundance’s blush deepened.

Sundance nuzzled Midnight Armor a little harder. “It’s time to wake up.”

Midnight Armor slowly opened his eyes. “Hmm?”

“We need to get going.” Sundance quietly told him.

Midnight Armor yawned as he slowly lifted his head. “Very well.”

Lila and Onyx laughed harder when Midnight Armor blushed as soon as he realized how close he was to Sundance.

“I-I’m sorry.” Midnight Armor whispered to Sundance as he scooted over.

“It’s alright.” Sundance said softly “You were asleep.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor stood and levitated their saddlebags onto their backs before turning to Lila and Onyx. They glanced at each other when they saw the mischievous smiles on the faces of both of the elders.

“What is it?” Sundance nervously asked

“Should we find the two of you a room for tonight?” Lila responded

Sundance’s face instantly turned bright red. “E-elder Lila!”

“W-why did you say that?” Midnight Armor stammered

Laughing, Lila nuzzled Sundance. “Relax, dear. I was just teasing you.”

Sundance sighed in relief.

“Or was she?” Onyx asked

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened. “What do you mean?”

“Neither of you refused.” Onyx pointed out.

“I-I . . . um . . .” Sundance stammered

Midnight Armor opened his mouth, but paused when Onyx and Lila laughed.

Onyx waited until he had finished laughing before turning to Lila. “We should get going.”

Lila nodded “You’re right.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor sighed in relief as they fell into step a couple of feet behind Lila and Onyx.

Six Hours Later

Lila turned to Onyx, Sundance and Midnight Armor. “I think we should stop here for the night.”

“Good idea.” Onyx replied “We should be able to make it to the capital tomorrow afternoon.”

Sundance headed over to a large group of trees to collect firewood. Onyx and Lila began to unpack their saddlebags while Midnight Armor went over to the river to collect water.

The four of them worked together to prepare a salad for their main meal and slices of fruit for dessert.

Onyx raised an eyebrow when he noticed that Midnight Armor was looking around them. “Is something wrong?”

“I am fairly certain that something dangerous lives around here.” Midnight Armor slowly replied “I’m trying to remember what it is.”

“I haven’t walked down this path in several years.” Onyx replied “Unfortunately, this means that I don’t remember what lives here.”

Midnight Armor thought for a couple of minutes before gasping in shock. “I remember now! There is a group of cockatrices living in that large group of trees over there!”

Lila turned towards the group of trees before gasping as well. “There are five of them heading straight towards us!”

“I could enclose us in a barrier.” Midnight Armor remarked “That would stop the cockatrices from attacking us directly, but they would still be able to turn us to stone.”

“This means that I need to use my new spell.” Closing her eyes, Sundance focused her magic for a moment before surrounding the four of them with her new shield.

Midnight Armor, Lila and Onyx gasped when all of the cockatrices were suddenly turned to stone.

Onyx turned to Sundance. “H-how did you do that?!”

Sundance opened her eyes. “My new shield has the same reflective properties as a still pond. This means that I can send attacks back to the original attacker. In this case, it allowed me to turn the cockatrices stone.”

“I-incredible!” Lila said softly

Eyes wide, Onyx and Midnight Armor silently nodded.

Sundance allowed her shield to fade. “Unfortunately, it requires a lot of magic. This means that I can’t keep it up for long.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled Sundance. “That’s alright. You were able to keep your shield up long enough to protect us.”

“Midnight Armor is correct.” Lila smiled at Sundance. “Well done.”

Sundance returned Midnight Armor’s nuzzle before turning to Lila. “Thank you.”

I don’t care what Elder Onyx and Elder Lila say about this. Midnight Armor draped a wing over Sundance’s back before casting his barrier around the four of them.

Onyx and Lila smiled at each other before turning back to Sundance and Midnight Armor.

“I don’t hear you complaining, dear.” Lila commented “It seems that our earlier comments weren’t that far off.”

Lila and Onyx laughed when Sundance blushed and shook her head before snuggling closer to Midnight Armor.

Onyx turned to Midnight Armor. “I know that I am not your father. Therefore, I will keep this brief. This mare is obviously very special. You better take care of her.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled Sundance again. “I will.”

Lila laughed harder when Sundance’s blush deepened. “I think that’s enough excitement for one day. Let’s get some sleep.”

All four of them nodded before laying their heads on their forehooves and closing their eyes.

- - End Flashback - - -

“W-wow!” Twilight whispered

Artemis nuzzled his wife before turning to their parents. “She’s right.”

Celestia nodded

Midnight Armor nuzzled his wife before smiling at their children. “All three of you are correct.”

Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Star Swirl laughed when Sundance blushed.

“I-I think we should show them what happened next.” Sundance stammered

Artemis laughed again “We still have a couple of hours until I need to lower the moon and stars.”

“That should be enough time.” Sundance turned to her husband. “I’ll show them this part.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “Alright.”

Sundance turned to Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Star Swirl. “I am going to begin with what happened when we arrived in the capital.”

The four of them nodded.

- - Sundance’s Flashback - - -

Lila, Onyx, Sundance and Midnight Armor looked up when Gale flew over to them. “I’m happy to see that the four of you are safe.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow when he saw how concerned Gale was. “Is there a reason that we wouldn’t be safe?”

“It seems that my husband has escaped.”

The five of them turned to see that Star was walking over to them.

Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped “What?!”

Sighing, Star nodded “Unfortunately, he was able to convince some of the guards on the night shift to free him. He asked the researchers to give me a message. He has promised to kill Sundance and Midnight Armor.”

“Where are those guards?” Onyx growled

“They have been imprisoned.” Star answered

“Good” Lila responded

Sundance glanced at Midnight Armor. “He knew that we were going to return to the capital.”

Midnight Armor nodded “You’re right. That means he is probably still here.”

“You are probably correct.” Star nodded to the six stallions behind her. “These guards will be with you at all times.”

Midnight Armor glanced at Sundance before turning back to Star. “I appreciate the offer, but no thank you.”

“Why don’t you want the guards?” Lila asked

“We know that some of them are still loyal to Silver.” Sundance explained

Midnight Armor nodded “This means that there is no way to be sure that those guards will actually protect us.”

Lila’s eyes widened “Good point.”

Sundance watched one of the guards pull out a scroll and write a message on it before rolling it up again. Then he slowly backed away from the other guards. That’s strange.

The guard gasped when he noticed that he was suspended in a field of light blue magic. “Put me down!”

Sundance levitated him closer. “Let’s see what we have here.” She took the scroll from him, unrolled it and read it aloud.

Emperor,

Unfortunately, you were correct. The test subjects known as Sundance and Midnight Armor have refused the guards that were offered to them. This is because they know that some of us remain loyal to you. I will commence our back up plan as soon as I deliver this message.

Your Loyal Servant

The rest of the guards glared at the one that was suspended in Sundance’s magic.

“How could you betray our leader?!” One of them asked

The captive returned the glare. “I didn’t. We swore loyalty to Emperor Silver. This means that all of you are the ones who have betrayed our leader.”

“I have read the oath that each guard takes.” Sundance commented “It states that they will remain loyal to the leader of the capital and unquestionably follow any order from that leader.”

One of the other guards nodded. “You are correct, Miss Sundance. This means that we are loyal to the current leader, Star.” He turned back to the captured guard. “You know the punishment for your actions.”

The captured guard gulped.

Midnight Armor looked at the five guards that still stood behind Star.

The one who had spoken to Sundance noticed this. “You don’t need to worry, Midnight Armor. We won’t break our oaths.”

The other four stallions nodded.

Midnight Armor searched their faces for any trace of deceit. Finding none, he glanced at the captured guard before turning to Star. “In that case, perhaps you would be willing to take custody of him.”

Nodding, Star turned to the guard that had spoken to Sundance and Midnight Armor. “Please see to it that he is placed in the dungeons while he awaits the punishment for betrayal, Ridge.”

Ridge nodded “Of course, Leader.” He took the prisoner from Sundance and levitated him towards the entrance to the dungeon.

Lila sighed in relief. “Well done, Sundance.”

“Agreed.” Gale remarked “That is one less pony to worry about.”

“Out of how many?” Onyx asked

“Unfortunately, we don’t know the answer to that question.” Gale answered

Star turned to Onyx, Lila, Sundance and Midnight Armor. “Each of you has been provided with a room. I believe that all of you should get some rest. We will continue searching for Silver in the morning.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Onyx and Lila nodded before following her to a building not far from the entrance to the capital.

Later That Night . . .

Sundance was lying in bed and trying to relax enough to fall asleep. Sighing, she rolled on to her right side. This isn’t working. Perhaps I should . . . She was pulled from her thoughts by a knock on the door. Who could that be? She cast a standard shield spell around herself before using her magic to open the door. Sighing in relief, she released her shield when she saw Midnight Armor standing in the hall.

“May I come in?” Midnight Armor asked softly

Sundance nodded

“Thank you.” Midnight Armor walked into the room and closed the door behind him before turning back to Sundance. “I see that you can’t sleep either.”

Sighing again, she shook her head. “I’m too nervous to sleep.” She moved over to make enough space for him on the bed. “Silver has sworn to kill both of us . . . and we have no idea where he is.”

Midnight Armor walked over to the bed, lay down and covered her with a wing. “Perhaps we will be able to sleep if we surround ourselves with a couple of defensive techniques.”

“Good idea.” Sundance replied

Sundance created a standard shield around herself and Midnight Armor. Midnight Armor created a barrier just inside that.

Sundance nuzzled Midnight Armor before laying her head on her forehooves and closing her eyes. Smiling, Midnight Armor looked at Sundance for a moment before laying his head on his forehooves and closing his eyes as well.

The Next Morning

Sundance and Midnight Armor woke to the sound of somepony knocking. Confused, they opened their eyes and looked at each other for a moment before turning towards the sound. They found Lila, Onyx, Gale and Star standing just outside of Sundance’s shield.

Gale, Lila, Onyx and Star smiled when Sundance and Midnight Armor released the shield and barrier before standing and stretching.

“I see that the two of you have found a way to ensure that nopony would be able to harm you while you sleep.” Star commented

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded

“That was a good idea.” Lila responded

The six of them walked outside before heading towards Star’s house.

Sundance glanced at Star. “Were you able to figure out what Silver’s back up plan is?”

Star shook her head. “The pony that you captured yesterday refuses to tell us anything.”

“That’s alright.” Gale remarked “We know what Silver’s goal is.”

“Good point.” Onyx replied “We just need to keep Sundance and Midnight Armor with us during the day. I’m sure that he’ll show himself soon enough.”

Everyone sat down at a large table before beginning to eat the fruit salad that was in front of them.

Sundance lifted one of the apple slices with her magic. Unfortunately, they only have tart apples here. She suppressed a sigh and ate the rest of her food.

Everyone finished eating their breakfasts before heading back outside. They walked around the capital for several hours before noticing that there was a bright light coming from the center of the capital. Curious, they headed in that direction before stopping when they saw Silver standing in front of the well. He was surrounded by a dozen loyal guards.

Silver smiled at Sundance and Midnight Armor. “Good afternoon, my test subjects.”

Midnight Armor shook his head. “We are not toys for you to play with, Silver.”

Onyx’s horn began to glow. “I hope you’re ready to pay for your crimes, Silver.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that, Onyx.” Silver’s horn began to glow as well. “I have learned from what happened at the Meeting of the Tribes.”

“What do you mean?” Lila asked

Everyone jumped when a scream of horror and pain echoed through the capital. They turned to see that Sundance was suspended in Silver’s magic.

Midnight Armor gasped when he noticed that her body was convulsing. He glared at Silver. “What are you doing?!”

“Testing a few of the spells that the researchers have created.” Silver replied “I will deal with you as soon as she is out of the way.”

“What are you doing to her, Silver?!” Star demanded

“These spells are working together to slowly destroy her mind.” Silver answered “When I’m done, she will be the perfect slave whose only goal will be to please me. As I said before, she will bear as many of my foals as she can before I kill her.”

Everyone gasped in horror.

I-I have to break out of this! Sundance somehow managed to focus enough to examine the spells that Silver had cast on her. She sighed in relief when she realized which ones they were. I’ve seen all three of them before. They were in the books that Silver made me read because he was too lazy to do so himself. She shook her head. There is no way that he actually read those books. One of the researchers must have taught him how to cast these spells.

Midnight Armor noticed that Sundance’s horn had begun to glow. He smiled slightly before turning back to Silver. “You won’t get away with this.”

Silver laughed “What can you do to stop me? I am being protected by a dozen of the most powerful guards in the capital.”

Midnight Armor’s horn began to glow. “I think you need a few more guards.”

Silver raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“You know what I am capable of.” Midnight Armor replied “Wasn’t it your idea to make me the sole defender of the capital?”

The guards exchanged nervous glances before moving closer to Silver.

Silver glared at Midnight Armor. “You wouldn’t dare.”

Midnight Armor responded by launching a barrage of magic blasts that took out all of the guards at once.

Onyx surrounded all of the guards with his magic and levitated them into the air.

Midnight Armor turned back to Silver. “Release her at once!”

Silver backed up until he bumped into the well. “W-why do you care about what happens to her?”

“There are two reasons.” Midnight Armor replied “The first is that she is one of only two known alicorns.”

“What is the second?” Silver asked

“She is my mare.” Midnight Armor answered

Silver’s eyes widened. “Y-you are courting her?”

“That is correct.” Midnight Armor responded “I won’t let you have her.”

Silver was about to respond, but paused when he noticed a bright light above him. He immediately looked up.

Everypony else quickly did the same. They gasped in shock when they saw that Sundance was surrounded with a sphere of light.

Lila glared at Silver. “What are you doing to her?!”

“I-I’m not doing this!” Silver stammered “Something must be wrong with the spells!”

Everypony was forced to close their eyes when the light got even brighter. When the light faded, they opened their eyes and looked up to see that the magic that had been holding Sundance in place had vanished.

Sundance glared at Silver for a moment before glancing at Midnight Armor.

Midnight Armor instantly understood what she was going to do. He quickly cast a barrier around himself, Lila, Onyx, Gale and Star before casting another barrier around the ponies in the crowd. Then he nodded to Sundance.

Sundance cast the one of the spells that she had used to free Midnight Armor from Silver and the researchers at the Meeting of the Tribes. As before, it created a shockwave that knocked Silver off of his hooves.

Onyx immediately levitated him into the air to join his guards.

Silver glared at Onyx. “Let me go!”

“No.” Onyx replied

Gale, Lila, Onyx and Star watched Sundance land in front of them and fold her wings.

Midnight Armor quickly took a couple of steps forward and nuzzled her. “Are you alright?!”

Panting, Sundance wobbled slightly before returning his nuzzle. “Y-yes. Thank you for distracting Silver and taking care of his guards. That gave me enough time to break out of his magic.”

Onyx gasped in shock before turning to Midnight Armor. “Is that true?!”

Midnight Armor nodded “I noticed that her horn had begun to glow. I didn’t know what she had planned, but decided to keep Silver focused on me so that he wouldn’t be able to interrupt her. I also decided to use that as an opportunity to take care of Silver’s guards.”

“I can’t believe I fell for that!” Silver growled

Lila carefully examined Sundance’s injuries. Her eyes widened when she suddenly noticed something. “S-sundance! Look at your flank!”

Why is she so shocked? Sundance’s eyes widened as well when she looked at her right flank. “I-I earned my Soul Mark!” It must have happened when I overpowered Silver’s spells.

Midnight Armor gasped as well when he took a closer look at Sundance’s Soul Mark. “Six six-pointed stars?!”

“I-I’ve never seen anything like that before.” Star said slowly

“I have.” Sundance said softly “There is a book in the library that explains what Soul Marks mean. According to that book, a six-pointed star is the symbol for magic.”

“Does that mean what I think it does?” Midnight Armor asked

Sundance nodded “My specialty is magic.”

“I’m not surprised.” Onyx remarked

Midnight Armor chuckled “Neither am I.”

Everypony else gasped in shock.

Sundance glanced at Silver before turning to Star. “It appears that we have a couple of new charges to add to the list.”

“You are correct, Sundance.” Star glared at her husband for a moment before turning to his guards. “Additionally, each of you will be charged with betraying the leader of the capital.”

All of the former guards gasped in horror.

Gale thought for a moment before turning to Star, Onyx, Lila, Midnight Armor and Sundance. “If I understand correctly, the addition of the new charges means that Silver has just earned an early death.”

Silver gasped in horror. “Y-you can’t do that!”

“Yes, we can.” Star replied “We will make the necessary arrangements and take care of that tomorrow morning.” She noticed that Sundance was leaning into Midnight Armor’s side. “I would like you to see the healers as soon as possible.”

I knew she was going to say that. Sundance nodded to Star before glancing at Midnight Armor.

“Don’t worry.” Midnight Armor said softly “I’m not leaving you alone.”

Sundance smiled slightly “Thank you.”

Three Hours Later

Sundance and Midnight Armor walked outside to see that Star, Lila, Onyx and Gale were waiting for them.

“How did it go?” Lila nervously asked Midnight Armor.

“Fortunately, she wasn’t exposed to Silver’s spells for long.” Midnight Armor replied “This means that there wasn’t any permanent damage.”

Star, Lila, Onyx and Gale sighed in relief.

“As you can see, the healers were able to heal all of her wounds.” Midnight Armor continued “However, they made it clear that she needs to rest for the rest of the day.”

“I was going to insist on that anyway.” Lila glanced at Sundance before turning back to Midnight Armor. “I would like you to stay with her.”

“Good idea, Lila.” Onyx turned to Midnight Armor as well. “I want you to immediately tell us if you notice anything wrong.”

“I will.” Midnight Armor promised

“We will bring both of you something to eat later.” Star told Midnight Armor. “For now, both of you should get some rest.”

Midnight Armor nodded to everyone before leading Sundance back to the room that they had slept in the night before.

Sundance lay down on the bed and looked up at Midnight Armor. She smiled slightly when he lay down next to her and covered her with a wing. “I-”

Midnight Armor shook his head. “You need to get some rest.”

Surprised, she shifted so that she could look him in the eye. “I just-”

“Get some sleep.” Midnight Armor insisted “I will listen to whatever you have to say when you wake up.”

Sundance sighed “Alright.” She lay her head on her forehooves, closed her eyes and allowed herself to fall asleep.

- - End Flashback - - -

Sundance looked around to see that Twilight and Star Swirl were staring at her in shock.

Celestia scooted closer to her mother before nuzzling her.

Smiling, Sundance returned her daughter’s nuzzle before looking up when she heard her son’s voice.

“Please tell me that you took care of Silver.” Artemis said slowly

Midnight Armor nodded “He was killed the next morning. The captured researchers were as well.”

Sundance nodded as well. “The guards that were charged with betrayal were never allowed to leave the dungeons again.”

Celestia, Artemis, Twilight and Star Swirl sighed in relief. “Good.”

Artemis and Celestia lifted their heads and looked at each other.

Knowing what that meant, Midnight Armor turned to Star Swirl. “We’ll see you in a couple of minutes.

Artemis woke the five of them after Star Swirl had been pulled back to his star.

In the stars, Sundance, Midnight Armor, Artemis, Celestia and Twilight opened their eyes at the same time.

Star Swirl brightened “Good morning.”

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Artemis, Twilight and Celestia laughed. “Good morning, Star Swirl.”

“We should head back to Ponyville.” Celestia commented

“You’re right.” Artemis brought the five of them back to the room that he shared with Twilight. They he lowered the moon and stars before turning to his sister.

Celestia raised the sun before turning to Twilight. “Should we head to the bakery?”

Twilight shook her head. “Mr. Cake, Mrs. Cake and Pinkie aren’t awake yet. Additionally, they need to bake some fresh bread, muffins and breakfast pastries before they can open the bakery. That means we need to give them at least three hours before we head over there.”

“In that case, your mother and I will go to our room.” Midnight Armor responded

Sundance nodded “We would like to relax for a while before taking a bath.”

Celestia climbed off of the bed as well before following her parents over to the door before looking back at her siblings. “We’ll meet back here in three hours.”

Twilight and Artemis nodded

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Celestia walked into the hall and closed the door behind them before heading to their rooms.

In Celestia’s room, she walked into the bathroom and started the water before turning to the bottle that was sitting on the counter. She smiled when she saw a short message written in Twilight’s magic in the air above it.

I bought a bottle of vanilla scented body wash for you when I went shopping a couple of weeks ago. Unfortunately, the store was out of the matching shampoo. I’ll look again when I go shopping later.

That’s just like her. Shaking her head, she levitated the body wash and a washcloth over to the tub and walked into the hot water.

In Midnight Armor and Sundance’s room, he closed the door before turning to see that his wife had just climbed into bed and lay down on her side. Smiling, he walked over to the bed and lay down next to her.

Both of them sighed in pleasure as they snuggled closer to each other and lay their heads on a couple of pillows.

After roughly half an hour of relaxing, Midnight Armor lifted his head and turned to his wife. “Do you know if our children have anything planned for this morning?”

“I don’t think so.” She replied “Why?”

“There is something that I would like to do.” He responded “However, I wanted to discuss it with you before bringing the idea up to our children.”

Sundance turned to him. “What is it?”

Chapter 80

Three Hours Later

Sundance stood and stretched before turning to her husband. “I’m going to check on Rainbow Dash.”

Midnight Armor stood and stretched as well before nodding to his wife. “Good idea. I’ll come with you.”

Sundance raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

“I may need to remind her that she needs to rest today.” Midnight Armor answered

“Good point.” Sundance responded

The two of them walked into the hall and closed the door behind them before looking around for a moment.

“I believe the sleepover room is that way.” Sundance commented

Midnight Armor followed his wife down the hall.

They stopped in front of a closed door a couple of minutes later.

Rainbow looked up when she heard a soft knock. She glanced at the filly curled up against her right side. I don’t know who that is, but I can’t let them wake Scootaloo. Maybe they’ll go away if I don’t say anything.

I highly doubt it. Loyalty responded Sundance and Midnight want to check on you before they head to Sugarcube Corner for breakfast. Don’t worry, I’ll tell Midnight that they need to be quiet.

Thanks. Rainbow replied

Rainbow is awake, but Scootaloo is still asleep. Loyalty commented

“Thank you for warning me.” Midnight Armor quietly opened the door and walked into the room.

Sundance silently followed him. She smiled when she took a closer look at Scootaloo. Shaking her head, she cast a magic scan on Rainbow. She sighed in relief when she got the results. “You should be back to full strength by tomorrow morning.” She said softly “However, you rest today.”

I was afraid she was going to say that. Sighing, Rainbow nodded

“We will bring both of you something to eat in a little while.” Sundance quietly continued

“Thanks.” Rainbow lay her head on the pillow and closed her eyes.

Sundance and Midnight Armor walked into the hall and closed the door behind them. They looked up when they saw a flash of gold magic in front of the door to Twilight and Artemis’ room.

Celestia and Spike turned when they heard hoofsteps. Both of them smiled when they saw Sundance and Midnight Armor walking towards them.

“How is Rainbow Dash doing?” Celestia asked

“She will be fine as long as she is able to rest today.” Sundance answered

Midnight Armor nodded “We will need to bring breakfast for her and Scootaloo when we leave the bakery.”

“I’ll take care of that.” Spike replied

Artemis and Twilight looked up when they heard a knock on the door. Twilight levitated the book that they were reading to the nightstand while Artemis used his magic to open the door. As they expected, they saw Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Spike standing in the hall.

Twilight climbed out of bed and stretched her wings before turning to the rest of her family. “Are you ready to go?” She waited for them to nod before teleporting everyone outside.

Celestia laughed “Hungry, Twilight?”

Blushing, Twilight nodded

Everyone else laughed as well.

They walked into Sugarcube Corner a few minutes later.

Pinkie poked her head out of the kitchen. “There is a big pile of waffles on the table for all of you to share.”

Twilight stared at her friend. “Um, Pinkie? You have some flour on your nose.”

“And in your mane.” Celestia added

“And on the tip of your left ear.” Artemis remarked

Sundance raised an eyebrow. Flour? Is that what the white stuff is called? “Is everything alright?”

“Yep!” Pinkie replied “I was baking with Pound and Pumpkin this morning. They were a little messier than usual.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight, Spike, Celestia and Artemis laughed as they sat at the table and pulled a couple of waffles towards them. Breakfast was eaten quietly because all of them were focused on filling their stomachs.

When they finished eating, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis, Sundance and Spike stood before walking outside. Twilight stood as well before walking around the counter and into the kitchen. She looked around for a moment before noticing that Pinkie was standing near a table in the back of the room.

You might want to act fast. Laughter commented Twilight is walking this way.

Pinkie immediately dropped the pencil that was in her mouth and turned around. “You can’t come in here!”

Surprised, Twilight stopped in her tracks. “But I just-”

Pinkie suddenly popped up next to Twilight. “Out!” She gently pushed her friend into the dining room.

Why did she react like that? Twilight asked

Who knows? Magic replied We ARE talking about Pinkie.

Good point. Twilight summoned a bag of bits and set it on Pinkie’s back. “I just wanted to pay for breakfast.” I was also going to ask her if she wanted to spend the morning with us, but it’s obvious that the answer to that question is “No”. Her ears drooped as she turned towards the door. “I guess I’ll see you later.”

Laughter watched Twilight walk outside and close the door. You shouldn’t have done that.

“I know.” Pinkie said sadly “It’s just that I didn’t want her see what I’m making.” She sighed “I’ll talk to her when she comes in for lunch.”

Don’t forget to apologize. Laughter responded

“I won’t.” Pinkie walked back into the kitchen and set the bag of bits on the table. “I’ll give this to Mrs. Cake when she gets home.” Then she picked up the pencil with her mouth and turned back to the drawing that she was working on for Twilight’s birthday cake.

Artemis raised an eyebrow when his wife walked out of the bakery. “What’s wrong?”

Twilight told everyone what had happened in the bakery.

Spike glanced at the bakery’s front door. “That’s weird . . . even for Pinkie.”

Celestia nuzzled her sister. “We’ll ask Pinkie Pie to explain herself when we see her this afternoon.”

Artemis nodded “Good idea.”

Twilight nodded to both of them before turning to Spike. “Didn’t you say that you have something planned today?”

Spike nodded “Rarity asked me to help her today. I’ll go there after I bring Rainbow and Scootaloo their breakfast.”

Of course she did. Twilight laughed softly “I guess this means that I’ll see you later.”

Spike jumped onto her back and gave her a hug before jumping off again and heading towards the castle.

“I know that you will be going grocery shopping this afternoon, Twilight.” Sundance waited for Twilight to nod before continuing. “I am also aware of the fact that we will be flying back to Canterlot this evening.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nodded.

“Do any of you have anything planned for this morning?” Midnight Armor asked

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight shook their heads.

“In that case,” Sundance replied “there is something that your father and I would like to do.”

“What is it?” Celestia asked

“We would like to visit our old castle.” Midnight Armor answered

I knew they were going to want to do that soon. “Very well.” Celestia replied “We will see both of you when you get back.”

“We were hoping that the three of you would come with us.” Midnight Armor replied

Celestia was the only one who saw Artemis’ eyes widen slightly. She turned back to their parents. “I don’t think that is a good idea.”

Sundance raised an eyebrow. “Why not?”

“Artemis and I rarely go there.” Celestia replied “In fact, neither of us have been there since Artemis returned.” She sighed “It brings back bad memories for both of us.”

Artemis nodded

“It seems that we were right.” Sundance whispered to her husband.

Midnight Armor nodded to his wife before turning back to their children. “We would like the three of you to come with us.”

Why do you say that? Kindness asked

Midnight Armor was about to respond, but paused when Celestia unknowingly asked Kindness’ question aloud.

“Why do you say that?”

“Both of you need to deal with this before you will be able to move on.” Midnight Armor answered

Artemis opened his mouth, but paused when his mother shook her head.

“Don’t worry.” Sundance said softly “You won’t be doing it alone. Your father and I will be there to help you.” I’m sure that Twilight will be able to help Artemis as well.

Harmony suppressed a sigh when she took a closer look at Celestia and Artemis. I hope I’m wrong, but something tells me that this is a bad idea.

Sundance looked at both of her older children for a moment. “Let’s go.”

Sighing, Celestia and Artemis spread their wings. Midnight Armor, Sundance and Twilight spread theirs as well. The five of them lifted into the air. Sundance and Midnight Armor looked around for a moment before leading the way to their old castle. Celestia, Artemis and Twilight reluctantly followed.

They landed in what used to be the front garden roughly five minutes later.

Sundance’s ears drooped. This used to be my favorite place to relax. She looked around. There is very little to suggest that this used to be a beautiful garden. She slowly walked over to a rotten stump that was all that was left of what used to be a mighty oak tree. Artemis spent hours in the branches of this tree when he was a foal. “Everything is dead.”

Midnight Armor smiled sadly “Unfortunately, I’m not surprised. The only things that live here now are the wild plants that have taken over everything.”

Sundance turned to her husband. “We should head inside the castle.” What’s left of it.

Midnight Armor nodded to his wife before turning towards what used to be the main entrance. The large double doors have long since succumbed to the passage of time. However, given the fact that they were made of wood, I can’t say I’m surprised. He climbed the short flight of stairs before pausing in the doorway. The roof is gone, but it looks like the stone walls survived relatively well. He looked up at a large hole in the wall on the other side of the room. Well, most of them. He shook his head. I wonder what caused that.

Sundance walked past her husband and inside the castle. After a moment’s thought, she walked over to the right of the room before heading down the short hallway that lead to the throne room.

Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight silently followed. Everyone stopped just inside the room.

Midnight Armor laughed softly “It looks like our children altered our thrones.”

“We weren’t the ones who did that.” Celestia quietly replied

Sundance turned to her eldest. “What do you mean?”

“This happened a little over a hundred years after the first battle with Golden Thunder.” Artemis said softly “Celestia and I began travelling to the other side of Equestria for a couple of weeks every two or three years.”

“Was something wrong?” Midnight Armor asked

Celestia shook her head. “We did that so we could help those who couldn’t make it all the way to the castle to ask for our help.”

“I see.” Sundance commented “That was a good idea.” She glanced at the thrones for a moment before turning back to her children. “What does that have to do with the thrones?”

“We always left a few nobles that we trusted in charge of the castle while we were gone.” Artemis answered “We found the thrones like this when we returned from one of our trips.”

Celestia nodded “The nobles told us that the citizens believed that it would be more appropriate for Artemis and myself to be seen on thrones that reflected us instead of the two of you.”

That makes sense.

“I see.” Midnight Armor remarked You’re right, Generosity. I suppose that was bound to happen eventually.

Sundance looked up at the ceiling. She paused when she saw a large hole in the roof. “What caused that?”

Artemis winced “T-that happened when I-”

“That wasn’t you, Artemis.” Celestia interrupted

Celestia is correct, Artemis. Night said softly I am the one who attacked your sister that day.

“I see.” Sundance quietly replied I think I know where this is going.

What do you mean? Harmony asked

Celestia turned to her parents. “That happened during my first battle with Night-Terror Knight.”

Sundance’s ears drooped. I thought so.

I see. Harmony said slowly

Sundance was about to suggest that they move on, but paused when she heard Celestia’s voice.

“Our battle took place inside and outside of the castle.” She looked up at the ceiling as well. “This was just before I used the Elements of Harmony to . . . well, you know.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Artemis and Twilight nodded.

“I was flying above the throne room when I was struck in the chest by one of his attacks.” Celestia continued

Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped in horror. “What?!”

Celestia turned back to her parents. “I crashed through the roof and landed over there.” She nodded towards a spot on the floor off to the left. “Fortunately, I was able to recover relatively quickly.” She lowered her head as she whispered the last part. “That was when I used the Elements of Harmony.”

Artemis shuddered as he remembered being struck by the Elements of Harmony before they sealed him in the moon. I hope I never have to go through that again. That was . . . He was pulled from his thoughts by a gentle nuzzle. Surprised, he looked down to see that Twilight was standing next to him. Smiling slightly, he returned her nuzzle before turning back to their parents.

Midnight Armor stared at his eldest for a moment before quietly saying. “I think we should move on.”

“You’re right, Midnight.” Sundance lead the way out of the throne room.

Sighing in relief, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight followed her.

Sundance poked her head into the library and looked around for a minute. The library is in need of repairs, but it is in surprisingly good condition. I wonder if any of the books are still legible.

Don’t worry. Harmony responded Most of them are in relatively good condition.

How do you know that? Sundance asked

Twilight Sparkle has made several trips here over the last couple of months. Harmony answered

Sundance’s eyes widened. Really?

Yes. Harmony replied This is where she obtained some of the information that she needed to create the spell that returned your soul to your body.

I see. Sundance continued down the hall. The damage gets more extensive the further we go. She paused at a fork in the hall before choosing to continue straight.

No one noticed that Artemis had turned down the hallway that led to the left.

Perhaps you should turn back and join your family. Night said softly

Artemis barely heard him. Instead, he stared at a large indentation in the wall for a moment. Then he slowly walked past it and into the room at the end of the hall. He stopped in the middle of the room and looked around. This used to be my room. His ears drooped. I-it’s also where I . . .

I think you should turn back, Artemis.

Artemis didn’t respond because he was lost in a memory from the past.

Meanwhile, Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Twilight walked into the room at the end of the hall.

Sundance looked around the room. “This used to be Celestia’s room.”

Midnight Armor walked over to the heavy wooden desk that stood in the corner. He shook his head when he noticed that is was covered with a thick layer of dust and dried leaves. How long has it been since the last time somepony entered this room? He was pulled from his thoughts by a soft sob. Concerned, he turned to see that his eldest was facing away from him. “Celestia?”

Sundance and Twilight turned to Celestia as well. All three of them exchanged glances before walking over to her. Their eyes widened when they saw that tears were streaming down her face as she stared at something that she had suspended in her magic.

“I recognize that.” Sundance commented “Artemis gave it to you for your tenth birthday.” She laughed softly “You insisted on bringing it with us when I took you to the ocean.”

Celestia slowly shook her head before whispering. “That doll was destroyed in a fire several centuries ago.”

“I see.” Midnight Armor replied “Where did you get the one that you’re holding?”

“I still can’t explain why, but losing that doll truly upset me.” Celestia said softly “Artemis must have noticed this, because he made me a new one for my next birthday.”

Sundance smiled “That sounds like something that he would do.”

Celestia laughed softly “I was one hundred years old . . . and excited to get a hoof knitted doll for my birthday.” She glanced at her mother. “This doll has a secret.”

“What do you mean?” Sundance asked

Celestia removed the pink fabric on the mane and tail to reveal the light blue mane and tail underneath.

Sundance gasped “I-it’s me.” Artemis made this?!

He did a wonderful job on it. Harmony commented

You’re right. Sundance replied

Celestia nodded “We were extremely close when I was really young.”

“I know.” Sundance whispered

What happened? Harmony asked softly

We gradually grew apart as she got older. Sundance quietly replied At first, I thought it was because she was an adolescent. I didn’t do anything about it because I was sure that things would work themselves out when she got older. Then Celestia and Artemis began telling Midnight and I what they had discovered about Golden Thunder. Her ears drooped. I’m sure you already know this, but we didn’t believe our children.

Harmony wasn’t sure what to say, so she stayed quiet.

Both of them were extremely upset by this. Sundance suppressed a sigh. They began spending most of their free time together. Then . . . She was pulled from her thoughts by Celestia’s voice.

“Artemis was the only one who truly understood how devastated I was when it appeared that we lost you.”

Tears began to well up in Sundance’s eyes as she stared at her daughter. Celestia . . .

Celestia laughed again, just as softly as before. “He didn’t tell me about the doll’s secret. Instead, he waited for me to discover it on my own.” She paused thoughtfully “You know, I don’t think he is aware of the fact that I know about it.”

“How has it survived all this time?” Midnight Armor asked

“Artemis cast a powerful preservation spell on it before he gave it to me.” Celestia answered “Even so, I thought this was lost forever.”

Sundance nuzzled her eldest before glancing at the tears that were still streaming down her face. “Why are you crying?”

Celestia’s ears drooped. “He gave this to me around the time that I began putting my duties to Equestria above those to my little brother. Artemis often asked me if we could do something together, but I always told him that I was too busy. It eventually got to the point that we only saw each other during court. Even then, I rarely spoke to him . . . except to tell him to do something. I see now that it was the beginning of . . .” She trailed off as another sob escaped her.

Midnight Armor pulled his eldest into a tight hug. His ears drooped when she buried her face in his shoulder. I haven’t seen her like this in a very long time. “It’s alright, Celestia. You don’t have to finish.”

Celestia was about to respond, but paused when she heard her sister’s voice.

“Where did Artemis go?”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Celestia looked up. “What?!”

“I know he was with us in the hall.” Midnight Armor commented

Sundance nodded “Perhaps he went to his old room. Let’s go check.”

The four of them returned to the hall before turning down the hall that Artemis had gone down earlier. Sundance, Midnight Armor and Twilight sighed in relief when they saw him in the room at the end of the hall.

Celestia’s eyes widened when she saw that he also had tears streaming down his face. “Why is he crying?”

The four of them immediately began to walk faster.

Artemis was still standing in the center of his old room. He didn’t notice that his family had entered his room because he was also still lost in a memory from the past.

Night sighed in relief when Midnight Armor, Twilight, Sundance and Celestia walked into Artemis’ room. Thank goodness. Perhaps one of them can snap him out of it.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Twilight exchanged glances when they noticed that Artemis’ eyes were squeezed shut and his body was shaking.

Midnight Armor sighed It looks like he’s lost in a memory that is extremely unpleasant.

You’re right. Kindness replied Is there a way to get his attention?

We’ll find a way. Midnight Armor nuzzled his son. “Artemis?”

Artemis didn’t respond.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight and Celestia gasped when a voice echoed around the room.

“Artemis cannot hear you because he is lost in a memory from a thousand years ago. Unfortunately, not even I can get through to him at the moment.”

“I-is that who I think it is?” Sundance asked

Celestia nodded “Night”

“I see.” Midnight Armor slowly replied

Artemis was finally able to escape the memory that he had been trapped in. Unfortunately, he continued to hear voices from the past.

There he is.

You’re right. It’s the evil bringer of the moon. What is he doing here?

I’m sorry, Artemis. I wish I could go flying with you, but I can’t spare the time at the moment.

Did you hear? Prince Artemis has been entering our dreams.

I know. We can’t even escape the evil bringer of the moon when we sleep.

You must be imagining things, Artemis. Our subjects would never treat you like that. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have work to do.

Did you know that he has been entering the dreams of our foals? He must be trying to turn them against us.

You’re right. We need to tell Princess Celestia about this.

Good idea. I’m sure that she will be able to stop him.

I’m sorry, Artemis. I won’t be able to join you for dinner. I wish I could, but this can’t wait. Tell one of the chefs to send my meal to my room.

We need to deliver this invitation. However, we must ensure that it gets to Princess Celestia.

That’s true. We don’t want Prince Artemis to know about this.

Good point. He isn’t invited . . . is he?

Of course not. Why would we invite the evil ruler to our celebration?

“Artemis?”

“Leave me alone!”

Artemis! Night shouted Open your eyes and look at who you just yelled at!

Artemis’ eyes flew open. The first thing he noticed was that Twilight was standing in front of him. His eyes widened when he saw that her ears were pinned flat against her head and her mouth was open in shock. Her eyes were wide and tears were beginning to spill down her cheeks. He gasped in horror. Please tell me that I didn’t do what I think I did.

Night didn’t respond.

Artemis took a tentative step forward. “T-twilight?”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Night and Artemis looked on as Twilight suddenly vanished in a flash of magic.

Artemis stared at the space that his wife had occupied for a moment before closing his eyes again as fresh tears began to stream down his face. I-I hurt Twilight . . . T-then she . . . His horn began to glow.

Celestia, Midnight Armor and Sundance gasped when Artemis vanished as well.

Midnight Armor turned to his wife and their daughter. “Where did they go?!”

“I-I don’t know.” Celestia replied

“That wasn’t Twilight’s magic signature.” Sundance commented “Somepony teleported her away from us.”

“You are correct, Sundance.” Harmony replied “Magic was worried that Artemis’ use of the Royal Voice would cause harm Twilight Sparkle’s foal. Therefore, she decided to get her bearer out of the situation.”

“Where is Twilight now?” Midnight Armor asked

“I assure you that she is safe.” Harmony answered

Sundance narrowed her eyes. “Harmony.” She said slowly “Where is my daughter?!”

Celestia’s eyes widened as she turned to Sundance. I haven’t seen Mother this angry in a very long time.

Harmony hesitated. I could tell her that one of them is right in front of her. However, something tells me that that would not be a good idea. “Magic teleported Twilight Sparkle to her room in her castle in Ponyville.”

“Send me there as well.” Sundance instantly replied

“Magic believes that her bearer needs some time to herself.” Harmony slowly replied

“Don’t make me repeat myself.” Sundance growled

I am fairly certain that Sundance doesn’t realize how powerful she really is. If she continues like this . . . No. This is not the right time for her to discover the full depths of her power. Harmony quickly did as her bearer had requested.

What just happened?! Loyalty, Honesty, Laughter, Generosity and Kindness asked

Magic teleported Twilight away from us. Midnight Armor replied Artemis vanished a little over a minute later. Then Harmony teleported Sundance to Twilight. As for the rest, I’ll let you know when I figure it out.

It’s obvious that you have a terrible headache. Honesty commented

I’ll deal with my headache later. Midnight Armor replied Right now, I need to . . . He paused when a healing spell swept over his body. Surprised, he looked up to see that his daughter’s horn was glowing. “Thank you.”

Celestia smiled at her father. “You’re welcome.” Her smile faded. “What should we do now?”

Midnight Armor took a deep breath. “Your mother will take care of Twilight. I think we should look for your brother.”

Celestia nodded “Good idea. He might still be somewhere in the castle.”

They spent the next thirty minutes carefully searching the castle, but couldn’t find any trace of Artemis.

Meanwhile, Sundance appeared in the middle of the room that Twilight shared with Artemis. She instantly noticed that Twilight was laying on the floor next to her.

“Oh Twilight.” Sundance dropped to the floor before draping a wing over her sobbing daughter. She was standing right in front of Artemis when he used the Royal Voice. I know that he didn’t mean to harm her, but I’m sure that her headache is much worse than mine.

Harmony and Magic watched Sundance cast her pain relieving spell on herself and Twilight before teleporting both of them to the bed.

Sundance rolled onto her side before wrapping both of her forelegs around her daughter. Twilight buried her face in her mother’s chest, but didn’t stop crying.

“That’s it.” Sundance whispered “Just let it out.”

Harmony looked on as Sundance began to quietly hum her lullaby. Perhaps it is a good thing that I teleported Sundance here.

It was almost half an hour before Twilight was calm enough to speak. She slowly lifted her head. “I-” Her eyes widened as her body suddenly went rigid.

Concerned, Sundance nuzzled her daughter. “What’s wrong?” I hope she doesn’t tell me that something else happened.

“H-he’s gone . . .” Twilight whispered

“Who is?” Sundance asked

“Artemis!” Twilight exclaimed

How does she know about that? “It’s true that he vanished, but your father and Celestia are looking for him.” Sundance said softly “Perhaps they’ve already found him.”

“You don’t understand!” Twilight shouted “I can’t sense his magic!”

Sundance gasped “What?!”

Twilight buried her face in Sundance’s chest as she began to sob again. “He’s gone!”

That can only mean one of two things . . . and neither of them are good. Sundance turned her attention to Harmony. Please ask one of the spirits that Midnight is able to communicate with to teleport him and Celestia to us . . . right now.

Understood. Harmony immediately replied Sundance is correct. This has the potential to be very bad.

Midnight Armor and Celestia appeared next to the bed a little over a minute later.

Sundance raised an eyebrow. Why did that take so long?

Loyalty thought it would be a good idea to inform them of the situation before teleporting them to your current location. Harmony answered

I see. Sundance looked up at her husband. “What do you think we should do about this?”

Midnight Armor leaned down to nuzzle Twilight. “Please bring the four of us to Artemis’ last known location. That may help us figure out what happened to him.” At this point, it’s the only lead we have.

Twilight began to shake. “B-but he said . . .”

Celestia lay down next to her sister before gently nuzzling her. “Please, Twilight. You are the only one who can take us to Artemis.”

Sundance nuzzled her youngest as well. “Your sister is correct. Your father and I will deal with Artemis’ anger.” If he gets angry at all.

Twilight took a deep breath before doing as she was told.

In the stars, Night turned when he heard the telltale sound of a Teleportation Spell. I was wondering how long it would take Twilight to get here. His ears drooped when he took a closer look at her. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. She was standing less than a foot away from Artemis when he yelled . . . in the Royal Voice. Additionally, she probably doesn’t know that his words weren’t directed at her.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight and Celestia gasped when they saw the black-coated stallion.

Midnight Armor quickly moved in front of his wife and their daughters. Then he spread his wings and took a fighting stance as his horn began to glow. “What have you done to my son?!”

Night just looked at Midnight Armor for a moment. That is the stance of an ancient, but extremely effective, fighting style. He resisted the urge to shake his head. I would love the chance to spar with him, but this isn’t the time for that. For now, I’d better answer his question. “Nothing. Artemis is so distraught that he dove deep into our shared mental landscape. In fact, he went so deep that I had to take over his body in order to keep his vital organs going.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight and Celestia gasped again. “What?!”

“You are capable of mental communication with him, correct?” Sundance cautiously asked

“Yes.” Night answered “I have been attempting to contact him, but he has not responded.” He walked past Midnight Armor before laying down in front of Twilight.

Midnight Armor quickly moved to stand next to his wife. He better not try to harm Sundance, Celestia, Twilight or Lavender Selene. If he does . . .

Sundance instantly tightened her wing around her youngest. “What are you doing?!”

Celestia looked at Night thoughtfully. I don’t sense any hostility from him. What does he plan to do?

Night ignored all three of them. Instead, he used his magic to gently lift Twilight’s head. “I believe you are the only one who can reach Artemis.”

“B-but he said . . .” Twilight began

I thought so. “I know what he said.” Night said softly “However, he wasn’t talking to you when he said that.”

Twilight’s eyes widened “What?”

Night sighed “As I said, he was trapped in a memory when the four of you found him. He eventually escaped that, but was still hearing voices from the past. That is who he was yelling at. He was about to apologize when you teleported away from him.” He lifted his head when a voice echoed around them.

“Twilight didn’t cast that Teleportation Spell . . . I did.”

“You must be Magic.” Night remarked I know that it could also be Harmony, Honesty, Loyalty, Kindness, Laughter or Generosity. Even so, I’m fairly certain that it’s Magic.

I’m not going to bother asking him how he knew that. “That’s right.” Magic replied “I was concerned that Artemis’ use of the Royal Voice would harm their unborn foal.”

I don’t blame her for that. Especially since it is a valid concern. “I see.” Night replied “Unfortunately, Artemis believes that Twilight left him. He also believes that he hurt her . . . both physically and emotionally.”

“I see.” Magic slowly responded

Sundance glanced at her youngest. Artemis is correct. He did hurt Twilight. However, I don’t think it would be a good idea to tell him that.

You’re right. Harmony replied

“How am I supposed to reach Artemis if you can’t?” Twilight asked

Night turned back to her. “Are you familiar with the technique that allows one pony to enter the mental landscape of another?”

Surprised, Twilight nodded “I know the theory, but I’ve never actually done it.”

“Good.” Night replied “As you know, my soul is linked with Artemis’. This means that I can allow you to enter our shared mental landscape. You should be able to reach him from there. He may not be responding to me, but I am certain that he will respond to you.”

“That could work.” Celestia said slowly “However, that technique is dangerous because the mind of the second pony could attack the mind of the first.” She glanced at Twilight. “This is complicated by the fact that Artemis’ mind could attack Twilight’s as well.”

Sundance stared at her eldest in shock. She knows quite a bit about this technique. Has she used it before?!

Night shook his head. “That is not a concern in this particular situation. My mind will not attack Twilight’s because I am willingly allowing her inside. As for Artemis . . . he would never purposely harm her.”

“That is a good point.” Midnight Armor finally allowed his magic to fade. “If I understand correctly, Artemis is in this situation because he believes that he hurt Twilight.” He sighed “His emotional state at the time probably made things worse.”

“You are correct.” Night replied “He was already extremely upset because of the memory that he had just relived. Then he was forced to listen to several voices from the past.” He turned to Celestia. “One of them was yours.”

“What was I saying?” Celestia hesitantly asked

“You were repeatedly refusing to spend time with him.”

Celestia winced. I was afraid of that.

“There is one more thing.” Night remarked I know that this will upset her, but she needs to know about it. “He told you about the way that your subjects were treating him . . .”

“But I didn’t believe him.” Celestia quietly finished “Then I pushed him away so that I could focus on what I was working on at the time.”

Night nodded

“No wonder he was so upset.” Sundance said softly

Midnight Armor nodded as well. “You’re right, Honey.” Artemis was clearly horrified when he realized that he had accidentally hurt Twilight. Then she vanished before he could apologize. That must have been what pushed him over the edge.

You’re probably right. Kindness said softly

Twilight wasn’t listening to the conversation taking place in front of her. Instead, she was going over what she had read about the technique that Night had mentioned. She took a deep breath before looking up at him. “I’ll do it.”

Sundance, Celestia and Midnight Armor gasped. “Twilight?!”

Thank goodness. Night smiled “Don’t worry. I will take care of the necessary preparations.”

Nodding, Twilight lay her head on her forehooves and closed her eyes. Night made sure that his horn was touching hers before doing the same.

Inside Artemis and Night’s shared mental landscape, Twilight opened her eyes and looked around. Surprised, she just stared at her surroundings for several minutes. “I’m not sure what I was expecting, but it definitely wasn’t this.” She took a couple of steps forward. It looks like my castle is on the moon. She jumped when Night’s laughter echoed around her.

“This is a combination of the things that mean the most to each of us. For me, it is the moon and night sky. For Artemis, it is your castle.” He paused “Well, that’s not entirely accurate. What really matters to him lives inside your castle. Before you say anything, I am not referring to that young dragon. I am talking about you.”

Twilight smiled slightly. “In that case, I’ll probably find him inside.” She started walking towards her castle. It only took her a couple of minutes to reach the front door. She tried to open it, but was surprised to discover that it was locked. That’s a new one. I’m locked out of my own castle. She was about to try to unlock it, but paused when a different voice echoed around her.

“What is it, Night?”

Night made sure to keep his thoughts quiet. I’m not going to answer him because he needs to realize that Twilight is here. Hopefully, she’ll . . . He was pulled from his thoughts by Twilight’s voice.

“It’s me.” She said softly

Night suppressed a sigh of relief. Perfect.

Artemis gasped “T-twilight?! I-is that really you?”

“Yes.” Twilight replied “May I come in?” I can’t believe I’m asking for permission to enter . . . She was pulled from her thoughts when the front door unlocked and opened for her. She walked inside before watching the door close behind her. She turned her attention to the hallway in front of her. “If this was a normal situation, I would just head to our room. However, this isn’t a normal situation. Maybe I should . . .” Her eyes widened when a glowing moonflower appeared in front of her.

“Thank you, Artemis. It’s beautiful.” She took a moment to smell it before placing it in her mane, just in front of her left ear. “Where are you?” There was a flash of Artemis’ magic in the direction of the staircase. “Maybe he really is in our room. In that case, I’ll look there first.”

Twilight arrived at the door to their room a few minutes later. She was about to knock, but paused when it opened for her. The first thing she noticed was that he was laying down on the large purple cushion that he had given her four months before. However, in this case, it had been placed on the floor in the center of their room.

Artemis silently watched her walk into their room.

She walked over to the edge of the cushion. However, instead of immediately joining him, she stopped there and took a moment to look at him. It’s obvious that he has been crying for as long as I have . . . if not longer.

Why is she just standing there? Artemis was about to ask her what she wanted, but paused when she walked onto the cushion before laying down next to him.

Stunned, he just stared at her for a moment. Then he managed to stammer a single word. “W-what . . .?”

“I already know most of what happened.” Twilight said softly

“H-how do you know about that?” Artemis responded

“You went so deep into your mental landscape that Night had to take over your body in order to keep both of you alive.” Twilight shifted a little so that she could face him. “As I’m sure you’ve guessed, I instantly sensed that your magic had disappeared. I brought Mom, Dad and Celestia with me when I teleported to your last known location. We found Night waiting for us. He explained the situation.”

“I see.” Artemis said slowly I suppose that makes sense. His eyes widened. Wait a minute. “What are you doing here? N-not that I’m unhappy to see you . . . it’s just that . . .” He trailed off when she laughed softly.

“Night allowed me to enter your shared mental landscape.” She explained “He did so because he believed that I was the only one who could reach you.”

Artemis gasped “Y-you took the risk . . .”

“Of course I did.” Twilight paused “To be honest, there wasn’t much of a risk. Night promised that he wouldn’t harm me. That just left you.” She smiled at him. “I knew you wouldn’t hurt me. In fact, I was more worried that you wouldn’t let me in.”

Artemis laughed softly before repeating Twilight’s words. “Of course I did.” His smile faded. “Why did you teleport away from me?”

“I didn’t.” Twilight replied “Magic teleported me to our room in Ponyville because she was worried that your use of the Royal Voice would hurt Lavender Selene.”

“I see.” Artemis quietly replied “I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to harm you.”

“It’s alright.” Twilight responded “I’m not in any pain.”

Artemis gave her a skeptical look. “You were standing right in front of me when I used the Royal Voice.”

“Mom appeared in our room a little over a minute after I did.” Twilight explained “She immediately cast her pain relieving spell on both of us.”

Artemis sighed in relief. “That’s good to hear.”

Twilight nuzzled him. “Are you ready to take control of your body?”

“Y-yes.” Artemis hesitantly replied

“Don’t worry.” Twilight said softly “All of us are there with you.”

“Very well.” Artemis paused “Unfortunately, I need to force you out of my mind before I can take over my body.”

Twilight smiled “That’s alright. I’d much rather have you in control of your body.”

Artemis pulled his wife into a deep kiss. When it broke, he whispered “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Twilight replied

Artemis gently pushed her out of his mind.

In the stars, Midnight Armor, Sundance and Celestia sighed in relief when Twilight opened her eyes.

Night opened his as well. He lifted his head and smiled at her. “Well done, Twilight.” He closed his eyes and allowed Artemis to regain control of his body.

Midnight Armor, Twilight, Sundance and Celestia smiled as they watched Night’s black colored coat turn to a deep sapphire before Artemis opened his eyes.

“Thank goodness.” Sundance nuzzled her son. “You had us worried.”

Artemis slowly turned to face his mother. I don’t want to anger her, but . . . He was pulled from his thoughts by another gentle nuzzle.

“Don’t worry.” Sundance said softly “Your father and I won’t get angry with you.”

Midnight Armor leaned down to nuzzle his son as well. “Your mother is correct, Artemis. Tell us what you’re thinking.”

Even so, I should choose my words carefully. Artemis took a deep breath. “Now you know why Celestia and I didn’t want to go to our old castle.”

Celestia nuzzled her brother before turning to their parents. “I don’t think you understand how deeply it affects us.”

“We will deal with what happened in the past.” Artemis promised “However, we are not ready to do so yet.”

“I understand.” Sundance gave her children a sad smile. “I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry as well.” Midnight Armor nuzzled both of his older children. “Your mother and I will help you when you’re ready to deal with what happened in the past.” Sundance and I will come up with a plan to ensure that this doesn’t happen again.

Good idea. Kindness said softly Generosity, Laughter, Loyalty, Honesty and I will help you.

Surprised, Midnight Armor lifted his head a little. I’m not complaining, but your reaction confuses me. Why would you do that?

Celestia and Artemis were our previous bearers. Honesty explained We would like to help them.

I see. Midnight Armor replied Thank you.

You’re welcome. The five of them replied.

Midnight Armor turned to Twilight. “I need to apologize to you as well.”

Twilight blinked “Why?”

“The events of this morning wouldn’t have happened if we hadn’t forced the three of you to accompany us.” Midnight Armor explained

Sundance pulled her youngest closer. “Your father is correct. Both of us share some of the blame for what happened today.”

Twilight opened her mouth, about to say that it was alright, but paused when her mother shook her head.

“It’s not alright.” Sundance said softly “Don’t worry. Your father and I will find a way to make it up to the three of you.”

Midnight Armor smiled slightly “Your mother is correct.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight glanced at each other before turning back to their parents.

Artemis was about to respond, but paused when his stomach growled. Surprised, he turned to his sister. “What time is it?”

“Give me a moment.” Celestia focused on the sun for a moment before turning back to her brother. “It’s time for lunch.”

“I know that.” Artemis glanced at Twilight before turning back to his sister. “I was just wondering if we were going to be eating a late lunch.”

Celestia laughed softly “Don’t worry. It’s almost twelve-thirty.” She stood before lifting the doll with her magic.

Artemis’ eyes widened. “Is that what I think it is?”

Celestia smiled at her brother. “It’s the doll that you gave me for my one hundredth birthday. I found it in my old room.”

Artemis glanced at the doll. I wonder if she has discovered that doll’s secret yet.

It has a secret? Night asked

That’s right. Artemis smiled slightly when Celestia removed the pink mane and tail. “I see that you have figured it out.”

Celestia laughed a little harder this time. “I discovered this doll’s secret centuries ago.”

That looks like your mother. Night said softly

That was the point. Artemis replied

I see. Where did you get that?

Artemis blushed slightly I made it.

You made it? Night slowly repeated

Yes. Mother taught Celestia and I how to knit when we were very young. It’s not my favorite hobby, so I don’t do it very often.

Perhaps you should.

Artemis was about to respond, but paused when Twilight nuzzled him. Surprised, he turned to her. “Yes?”

Twilight glanced around them for a moment before turning back to her husband. “We can’t eat the stars.”

Night laughed

Oops. Artemis blushed “I’m sorry.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Twilight laughed as Artemis’ horn began to glow. They found themselves in his room in the castle in the Everfree Forest a little over a minute later.

Midnight Armor immediately teleported the five of them outside.

Sundance nuzzled her husband before whispering. “Good idea.”

Midnight Armor watched his children carefully for a moment before shaking his head. “I thought so.”

“What are you talking about?” Sundance quietly asked

“Take a closer look at Celestia and Artemis.” Midnight Armor said softly

Concerned, Sundance did as she was told. She shook her head when she noticed the same thing. “I see what you mean.”

What are you talking about? Harmony asked

Celestia and Artemis are angry . . . and that anger is probably directed at Midnight and I. Sundance turned back to her husband. “I don’t blame them for being angry. However, we have to address the way that they are dealing with it.”

Midnight Armor nodded “We can’t allow them to bottle their anger. That will only make things worse.”

“You’re right.” Sundance replied “However, I think we should wait until after lunch before we talk to them.”

“Good idea.” Midnight Armor raised his voice as he turned to his children. “Let’s head back to Ponyville and get something to eat.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight responded by spreading their wings and taking flight. Sundance and Midnight Armor did the same.

In Ponyville, Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight landed in front of Sugarcube Corner. They glanced at each other for a moment before silently walking inside.

Pinkie, Mr. Cake, Mrs. Cake, Pound and Pumpkin walked out of the kitchen when they heard the door open.

Twilight forced a smile as she stopped just inside the bakery. “I’m sorry about the unannounced visit. I haven’t had a chance to go grocery shopping yet.”

Mrs. Cake returned the smile. “It’s alright, Twilight. You have good timing. We’re making our lunch right now, so it will be easy to make more. Is cucumber, lettuce and tomato sandwiches alright?”

Twilight nodded “That sounds good.”

The Royal Family sat at the table to wait for their food. They looked up when Pinkie walked over to them with a large tray balanced on her back. The tray held three sandwiches for each of them, a large pitcher of lemonade and five glasses.

Celestia levitate the tray to the table before looking at Pinkie in time to see her nuzzle Twilight.

“I’m sorry.” Pinkie told her. “I’m working on the recipe for a new cake.” She smiled “I want you to be the first to try it.”

“Why didn’t you want me to see it?” Twilight asked

“It’s not ready yet.” Pinkie answered “I’ll let you know when it’s done.”

Twilight nodded again “Alright.”

Well done. Laughter commented

Thanks. Pinkie replied “I have to get back to the kitchen.”

“Are you still baking?” Artemis asked

Pinkie nodded

Artemis nodded as well. “We are leaving about an hour before sunset.”

“Okie Dokie” Pinkie walked back into to the kitchen.

The Royal Family quietly ate their lunches. Celestia summoned a bag of bits and set it on the table before they walked outside when they were done.

Sundance and Midnight Armor waited until they had walked into Twilight’s castle before turning to their children.

“You will be spending this afternoon with me, Celestia.” Sundance commented

“The same applies to you, Artemis.” Midnight Armor remarked

Artemis blinked “What?” I’m not complaining, but this is unexpected.

“Why?” Celestia asked I thought we already had plans for this afternoon.

“You’ll find out.” Sundance turned to Twilight.

Twilight didn’t give her mother a chance to say anything. “I’m going grocery shopping. This way, we won’t have the same problem next weekend.” She paused “Well, Artemis and I will be coming to Ponyville next weekend . . .”

Midnight Armor smiled at his youngest. “Your mother and I would like to come as well.”

Twilight nodded “I need to go see what we have so I know what I need to buy.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis watched her walk down the hall before turning to each other.

“Your father and I have noticed that both of you are angry.” Sundance began “Additionally, we are aware of the fact that your anger is probably directed at us.”

Celestia and Artemis flinched.

“We don’t blame either of you for that.” Midnight Armor assured them. “However, we won’t allow you to bottle your anger.” He turned to his son. “We will be returning to our old castle.”

Artemis’ eyes widened. What?!

Night stared at Midnight Armor. Did he learn anything from what happened this morning?!

Midnight Armor shook his head. “Don’t worry. We won’t be going inside. Instead, we will be using what’s left of the training course behind the castle.”

Artemis sighed in relief. “Yes, Father.”

Night quickly revised his opinion of Midnight Armor’s plan. I stand corrected. This may be just what Artemis needs.

Sundance watched her husband and their son walk out of Twilight’s castle before turning to her daughter. “I don’t believe we need to use such a physical tactic. Therefore, we will be in your room.”

Celestia responded by teleporting both of them there.

Sundance resisted the urge to laugh. Instead, she waited to see what her daughter would do, or say, next. She was surprised when Celestia didn’t move. This is unexpected. She is waiting for me to make a move.

Harmony laughed I think you’re right. You taught her well.

I don’t remember teaching her this. Sundance replied

Perhaps she learned it by watching you. Harmony suggested

You may be right. Sundance slowly responded I used this tactic fairly often when Celestia and Artemis were young.

Celestia raised an eyebrow when her mother didn’t move either. It appears that both of us are doing the same thing. I know from experience that Mother can keep this up for hours. Ordinarily, I would consider that an amusing challenge. However, I’m not in the mood for it at the moment. She walked over to a pair of couches that were positioned next to the large window and sat down on one of them.

Sundance sat on the other couch. This tells me that she is not completely comfortable.

What do you mean? Harmony asked

We would be lying on her bed if she was completely comfortable.

I see.

Celestia waited for her mother to say something.

I’m not falling for that, Celestia. Sundance silently waited for her daughter to begin.

Celestia resisted the urge to laugh. I should have expected that. If I’m right, she has already figured everything out. This means that she is purposely allowing me vent some of my anger. “Artemis and I wouldn’t have cared if you and Father visited the old castle by yourselves. This is because, despite what ponies currently call it, that was your castle. Additionally, we knew that you would want to visit it at some point in the near future. The problem came when you forced us to accompany you. I told you that we didn’t want to go to the old castle. I also told you why.”

Sundance nodded, but didn’t say anything.

“However, that isn’t the reason behind my anger.” Celestia continued “What really angered me was the way that your actions hurt Artemis and Twilight. That wouldn’t have happened if you and Father had listened to me.”

I knew it. Sundance smiled slightly. She has grown into the perfect older sister.

You’re right. Harmony slowly replied Celestia doesn’t seem to care about the fact that she suffered as well today.

Sundance finally opened her mouth. “I am not dismissing your anger, or the concerns that caused it, but I want to make sure that you understand the reason behind the actions of your father and myself.”

“If I understand correctly,” Celestia began “both of you believe that Artemis and I need to put the past behind us.”

“That is the overall goal.” Sundance agreed “However, it was not the reason behind our actions this morning.”

Confused, Celestia tilted her head. “Then what was?”

“Your father and I did not expect either of you to resolve anything today.” Sundance explained “We simply wanted to get the healing process started. Additionally, we wanted to ensure that we were present when that happened. This is because we needed to know where each of you are in the healing process.”

Celestia’s eyes widened “Now that you have that information . . .”

“We will use it to create a plan to help both of you when you are ready to deal with what happened.” Sundance finished

“I see.” Celestia slowly replied I should have known that Mother and Father had a good reason for their actions. It’s true that their actions caused us pain today, but the information that they gained will help Artemis and myself in the future. However . . . She looked up at her mother. “What about Twilight?”

“I made her come with us because I knew that she would be able to help your brother.” Sundance sighed “I did not expect Artemis to lash out like that.”

Neither did I. “You were right.” Celestia said slowly “He was obviously upset when I mentioned using the Elements of Harmony during my first battle with Night-Terror Knight.”

Sundance nodded “She was able to comfort him.” She sighed again. “Your father and I also didn’t expect Artemis to have such a negative reaction to seeing his old room.” She shook her head. “I wish I knew why he was so upset . . . aside from what Night told us.”

“I am fairly certain that Artemis was standing in the exact spot where he was when Night took over his body and power a thousand years ago.” Celestia said softly

Sundance gasped in shock. “What?!”

Celestia nodded “If you look at the floor of his old room, you will see two different sets of hoof prints. One is Artemis’ and the other is Night’s. Both are in the center of the small crater that must have formed when the change occurred.”

Sundance gasped “That might be the memory that he was reliving when we found him!”

Celestia gasped as well. “I bet you’re right!”

“I have no intention of asking your brother to tell us exactly what memory he was lost in.” Sundance commented

“Same here.” Celestia replied “This means that we will probably never know for sure.”

“You’re probably right.” Sundance looked out the window towards the ruins of the castle in the Everfree Forest. “Hopefully, your father will be able to calm Artemis.”

Celestia nodded

Sundance turned back to her daughter. “You should stay here and relax. Perhaps a long, hot bath will help.”

“What about you?” Celestia asked

“I am going to find your sister.” Sundance replied “I need to ensure that she is taken care of as well.”

Celestia smiled “Good idea.”

Both of them stood. Sundance nuzzled her daughter before turning towards the door. Celestia watched her mother closed the door behind her before walking over to the bed and laying down.

Meanwhile, Artemis and Midnight Armor had walked out of Twilight’s castle. They nodded to each other before spreading their wings and taking flight.

They arrived at the castle in the Everfree Forest a little over ten minutes later. Midnight Armor didn’t even glance at the main entrance to the castle. Instead, he flew around the left side towards the training course that he had built. Artemis silently followed his father.

Midnight Armor landed in a clearing and looked around. There is nothing left. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised . . . it has been fifteen hundred years.

What are you going to do? Loyalty asked You were planning to use that course to help Artemis.

That’s not entirely true. Midnight Armor replied I just needed a location that was relatively empty. It doesn’t matter how rough we get here because everything around us is already in ruins.

Honesty laughed In that case, your current location is perfect.

You’re right. Midnight Armor turned to his son. “You should take everything off and stretch. I will let you know when I am ready to begin.”

Curious, Artemis did as he was told. What does he plan to do? Celestia told me that the training course was destroyed centuries ago.

Fifteen minutes later, Midnight Armor finished stretching and turned to his son. “Are you ready?”

Artemis finished stretching his wings before folding them and nodding to his father. “What will we be doing?” He couldn’t be planning to do that . . . could he?

Curious, Night asked What are you talking about?

If I’m right, you’ll see soon enough. Artemis replied

Midnight Armor took a fighting stance. “I’m sure that you have already figured it out.”

I was right. Shaking his head, Artemis took a fighting stance that was a little different than the one that his father was using.

Midnight Armor carefully examined his son’s defenses. Impressive. He has found a way to cover this fighting stance’s only weak point. He smiled slightly. This should be interesting.

Night, Loyalty, Honesty, Laughter, Generosity and Kindness gave Midnight Armor and Artemis their full attention.

As if there had been some sort of signal, both of them charged each other and met in the middle.

Midnight Armor’s smile widened when his son easily blocked his first blow. His horn began to glow as he pretended to prepare a powerful beam of magic.

Nice try, Father. I’m not falling for that. Artemis ignored the beam of magic. Instead, he blocked the blow that Midnight Armor aimed at his stomach before aiming one of his own at his father’s chest.

Midnight Armor grunted as he was pushed back a couple of feet. He spread his wings and used them to propel himself towards his son. “I know that you can speak while you train, Artemis.” He raised an eyebrow. “Or have you lost that ability during your time on the moon?”

“Of course not.” Artemis blocked another of his father’s blows before launching one of his own. “What do you want to discuss?”

Midnight Armor dodged the attack by taking to the air. “I am sure that you already know.”

Artemis spread his wings and joined his father in the air. “I assume it has something to do with what happened this morning.”

“That is correct.” Midnight Armor replied “I’m sure that you have something to say about it.” He dodged another of his son’s attacks before launching one of his own.

Artemis easily dodged it. “Why didn’t you listen to Celestia?”

I knew he was going to ask that question sooner or later. Midnight Armor’s horn began to glow again. I wonder if he will ignore this one. “As I said earlier, you need to deal with what happened in the past before you can move on.”

Artemis resisted the urge to laugh as he watched the beam of magic head towards him. I wonder if Father knows how predictable he is.

What do you mean? Night asked

When training, the first beam of magic is almost always a bluff. Artemis explained However, the second is always real. The ones after that are harder to predict, but there is usually a way to tell which one he is going to use.

I see. Night replied

Artemis created a shield around himself just before his father’s attack hit him. He released his shield before launching a beam of magic of his own at his father.

Midnight Armor surrounded himself with a barrier that easily blocked the attack. He raised an eyebrow when his son charged him while he was lowering the barrier. “You realize that my size makes it difficult for you to knock me out of the air with a charge like that, right?”

Artemis’ head on attack was a feint. The second, aimed at his father’s left side, hit its mark. He watched his father fall several feet. “Size isn’t everything, Father.”

Chapter 81

Night looked on as Midnight Armor barely managed to stop himself from hitting the ground. Impressive. Artemis is stronger than I thought. He thought for a moment. Now that I think about it, I never actually fought him. Instead, I took advantage of his emotional state at the time to take over his body and power before he could do anything to stop me.

Midnight Armor sighed in relief. I’m glad I didn’t hit the ground at that speed.

Night watched Artemis dive towards his father. Seeing Artemis like this makes me wonder how things would have gone if I had tried to fight him directly.

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened when Artemis tackled him to the ground. He teleported into the air above his son before launching a strike of his own.

Artemis easily dodged it. “I may be smaller than you, but I am also faster.”

Panting softly, Midnight Armor took a moment to carefully observe his son’s movements. He’s right. In fact, he is much faster than I am. “Well done. You finally figured out how to use your size to your advantage.” He launched another beam of magic at his son.

That isn’t an illusion. Artemis performed a back flip so that he returned to his original position after the attack had gone under him. Then he launched an attack of his own at his father.

Impressive. He didn’t waste any magic by casting a shield. Instead, he dodged my attack and put himself in the perfect position to launch a counter attack. Why didn’t I think of that? Midnight Armor dodged Artemis’ beam of magic.

Both of them looked at each other for a moment before suddenly vanishing. They reappeared roughly five feet higher in the air couple of moments later before crashing into each other.

Midnight Armor’s size allowed him to push his son back several feet. He watched his son carefully before shaking his head. Artemis is never going to rid himself of his anger at this rate. He smiled slightly That just means I need to push him a little harder. “Come on, Artemis. I know you can do better than that.”

Night stared at Midnight Armor for a moment before shifting his gaze to Artemis. Does this mean that Artemis is holding back?

If that’s what he wants . . . Artemis narrowed his eyes. “Be careful what you ask for.”

What does he mean by that? Midnight Armor’s eyes widened when Artemis vanished. Again?! Where will he appear this time? He braced himself and waited for his son to make his move.

Loyalty gasped Artemis is directly above you!

You need to act fast! Honesty shouted He has already launched a barrage of magic blasts!

Surprised, Midnight Armor barely managed to cast a barrier around himself in time to block the attack. He lowered his barrier when the attack ended and looked above him to see that the space that his son had occupied was empty. What?! Where is he now?! He turned when he saw a flash of dark blue out of the corner of his eye.

Artemis tackled Midnight Armor from the right this time. He waited until his father had fallen a foot before launching another barrage of magic blasts.

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened. I can’t raise a barrier in time to block that! He dodged as many as possible before one of them hit the back of his neck. A second struck the bridge of his left wing.

Kindness gasped Are you alright?!

I’ll be fine. Midnight Armor gasped when he noticed that Artemis’ horn was glowing again as he rapidly closed the distance between them.

What are you going to do now, Father? Artemis launched a beam of magic from point blank range.

I-I am very glad that I didn’t fight Artemis a thousand years ago. Night stammered H-he would have destroyed me!

H-he’s relentless! Midnight Armor teleported out of the way of his son’s attack. Panting heavily, he reappeared in the air above tree at the edge of the clearing before landing on the largest branch. I-I can barely keep up with him! He shook his head. No . . . I can’t even do that. Artemis is much stronger than he was fifteen hundred years ago. Additionally . . .

It seems that you noticed the same thing I did. Honesty commented

Midnight Armor nodded This isn’t his full strength.

What?! Generosity exclaimed Y-you’re saying that Artemis is STILL holding back?!

That’s right. Midnight Armor replied

I-incredible! Laughter said softly I had no idea that my previous bearer was so strong.

H-how strong IS he?! Loyalty slowly asked

I have no idea. Midnight Armor responded I will have to spar with him at least a few more times before I will be able to answer that question.

Artemis landed on the ground in the middle of the clearing. That’s strange. Father should have launched a counter attack by now. He sent a wave of magic through the clearing. Ah. There he is. What is he waiting for? Curious, he turned towards the tree line at the edge of the clearing . . . and raised an eyebrow when he saw his father’s expression. “I assume this means that we’re done.”

Midnight Armor nodded “It is clear to me that I am no match for you at the moment.”

“Why do you say that?” Artemis asked

Midnight Armor took a moment to catch his breath before giving his son an amused look. “You never lost your breath . . . even during all of that exercise. Additionally, you were faster when you used the training course in the Crystal Empire. The only logical conclusion is that you are still holding back.”

I should have known that he would catch that. Artemis lowered his head. “I-I’m sorry.”

Night stared at Midnight Armor in shock. H-he was still holding back?! He turned his attention to Artemis. Perhaps I should find a way to spar with Artemis instead of his father. In fact, I think I’ll give him a couple of days to truly calm down before visiting his dream.

Midnight Armor laughed “It’s alright. I’m not upset at all. In fact, I’m impressed.”

What? Artemis lifted his head. “Why?”

“You have dramatically improved since the last time that we trained together.” Midnight Armor flew down and landed in front of his son. He hid a wince as he folded his wings.

That looks serious. Kindness said softly You should ask somepony to take a look at your wing.

Don’t worry, Kindness. I’ll ask Sundance to heal it later. Midnight Armor turned back to his son. “Additionally, you have come up with a couple of techniques that I wish I had thought of fifteen hundred years ago.”

Artemis’ eyes widened “What?”

“We will discuss that at a later date.” Midnight Armor assured him. “For now, I’d like to return to the original topic.”

“Very well.” Artemis replied

“Your mother and I needed to see where you and your sister are in the recovery process.” Midnight Armor explained

“Why didn’t you just ask us?” Artemis asked

“Can you honestly tell me that you would have answered all of our questions?” Midnight Armor responded

“No.” Artemis reluctantly replied “I don’t like to think about what happened, let alone discuss it.”

“I thought so.” Midnight Armor responded “That is why your mother and I decided to ask the two of you to accompany us during our trip to the castle. We asked Twilight to come with us because we knew that she would be able to comfort you.”

“I see.” Artemis slowly replied

Midnight Armor sighed “There is no way that we could have known what was going to happen when we entered your old room.” He shook his head when his son opened his mouth. “That wasn’t your fault. I am certain that you didn’t know that we were there when you yelled.”

Artemis shook his head as well. “I discovered that when Night yelled at me. He told me to open my eyes and look at who I had just yelled at.”

“I thought so.” Midnight Armor replied

“Aren’t you going to ask about the memory I relived . . . and voices that I heard?” Artemis nervously asked

I need to choose my words carefully. “It is true that your mother and I would like to know what you saw and heard.” Midnight Armor shook his head again when he saw his son’s expression. “We have no intention of forcing you to tell us. However, we will listen if you want to talk about it.”

Well said. Kindness commented

Agreed. Honesty responded You managed to be honest and kind at the same time.

Artemis sighed in relief. “Thank you, Father. I will keep that in mind.”

Midnight Armor looked at his son for a moment before sighing in relief as well. Thank goodness. He is much calmer now. “I think that is enough for today. Would you like to head back to Ponyville?”

Nodding, Artemis levitated his Royal Finery onto his body. Then he spread his wings again and returned to the air. Midnight did the same.

In Ponyville, Sundance was walking through the castle as she searched for Twilight. This castle looks much smaller from the outside.

You’re right. Harmony commented

Sundance found another staircase heading down. How many floors does this castle have?! Shaking her head, she headed downstairs. Once there, she paused and looked around. I recognize this. This is the first floor. “Perhaps Twilight has already returned. If so, she could be putting the food away.”

Sundance walked down the hall before coming to a stop next to the door to the kitchen. She walked inside and looked around for a moment. “There’s nopony here.” She returned to the hall before pausing. “I can’t believe I didn’t think of this sooner.”

Think of what? Harmony asked

“Will you please ask Magic to tell us where Twilight is?” Sundance responded

Surprised, Harmony was silent for a moment before beginning to laugh. I can’t believe I didn’t think of that. She listened to Magic for a moment before turning back to Sundance. Twilight Sparkle returned to her castle fifteen minutes ago. She has already put everything away and is currently in the library.

“Thank you.” Sundance looked around for a moment. “Now I just need to find the library.” She headed down the hall. “That door leads outside.” She walked past a few more doors before nodding at another one. “That one leads to the Receiving Room.” She walked past a few more doors before Harmony spoke again.

The library should be the next one on your left.

“Thank you.” Sundance opened the door with her magic. She stopped in the doorway and looked around for a moment before sighing in relief when she saw that Twilight was lying on a cushion in the back. “There she is.”

Twilight looked up when she heard hoofsteps. She raised an eyebrow when she saw that Sundance was walking towards her. I thought she was going to spend the afternoon with Celestia.

Sundance’s ears drooped when she took a closer look at her youngest. She is trying to hide the fact that she is still upset.

You’re right. Harmony replied

Sundance stopped next to the cushion that her youngest was lying on. “What are you reading?”

Twilight moved over to make enough room for her mother to lay down next to her.

Smiling slightly, Sundance accepted the invitation. She lay down on the cushion and spread a wing over her youngest. “You didn’t answer my question.”

Blushing, Twilight lowered her gaze to the open book that was laying in between her forehooves. “Y-you’re going to laugh.”

Sundance raised an eyebrow. “What makes you say that?”

“It’s a book from the foal section.” Twilight’s blush deepened “I-I was reading it to Lavender Selene.”

“Why would I laugh?” Sundance asked “I used to do the same thing when I was pregnant with Celestia and Artemis.”

Surprised, Twilight looked up at her mother. “Really?”

Sundance nodded “It was one of my favorite ways to relax after a long day in court.”

Twilight turned to look out the window. I’m glad she didn’t laugh at me. I wonder if she also . . . She was pulled from her thoughts by a gentle nuzzle.

Sundance waited until Twilight turned back to her. “I can tell that you are upset.”

Sighing, Twilight closed the book and levitated it to a nearby table.

Sundance waited for Twilight to say something. After a couple of minutes of silence, she nuzzled her daughter again. “Tell me what’s bothering you.”

I hope this doesn’t anger her. Twilight looked up at her mother. “Why did you and Dad do . . . that?”

I thought so. Sundance was about to answer the question, but paused when Twilight kept speaking.

“I know that Dad said that Artemis and Celestia need to deal with what happened in the past, but . . .” Twilight trailed off.

Neither of them noticed that Midnight Armor and Artemis were quietly walking towards them.

However, Sundance did notice that Twilight was nervous. “It’s alright. I won’t get angry with you.”

Midnight Armor and Artemis glanced at each other as they stopped a couple of feet away from their wives. Instead of speaking, they waited for Sundance and Twilight to continue.

“I don’t claim to know exactly what either of them went through.” Twilight said slowly “However, I do know that those experiences qualify as “traumatic”.”

“You’re right.” Sundance quietly replied

Twilight chewed her bottom lip for a moment as she carefully considered her words. “This is probably the beginning of the healing process . . . especially for Artemis.”

Sundance nodded

“According to what I’ve read,” Twilight continued “it is never a good idea to begin that process by forcing the affected pony, or ponies, to confront the traumatic experience head on. This is because they almost always respond by lashing out in some way.”

Sundance’s ears drooped. “Like Artemis did today.”

Artemis winced when Twilight reluctantly nodded.

“I don’t blame him for what happened.” Twilight looked outside again. “According to what I read, this reaction is involuntary. This means that he couldn’t help it.”

Artemis stared at his wife in stunned silence.

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow. What kind of books has she been reading?!

Good question. Honesty slowly replied

Sundance suddenly realized what her daughter had just said. “Why have you been reading books on this subject?”

That is another good question. Generosity commented

Twilight blushed slightly as she turned back to her mother. “I’ve read almost every book in this library. The same can be said for those in the library in Canterlot Castle.” She paused thoughtfully “In fact, I’ve read some of those books several times.”

Midnight Armor and Artemis’ jaws dropped.

Shocked, Sundance just stared at her daughter for a couple of minutes before slowly shaking her head. “I’m not sure how to respond to that.” She sighed “As for your question, your father and I needed to know where Celestia and Artemis are in the healing process.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “Why didn’t you just ask them?”

Midnight Armor suppressed a laugh. Artemis asked the same question.

“We knew that Celestia and Artemis wouldn’t have answered all of our questions.” Sundance answered

Twilight was about to respond, but looked up when she saw something move out of the corner or her eye. Her eyes widened when she saw Midnight Armor and Artemis.

Concerned, Sundance followed her daughter’s gaze. She raised an eyebrow when she saw that her husband and their son were standing a couple of feet away. When did they get here?

Artemis walked closer before leaning down to nuzzle his wife.

“I’m sorry.” Midnight Armor said softly “We didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“It’s alright.” Sundance replied Twilight and I will continue this discussion later.

Midnight Armor turned to his youngest. “We should eat dinner before we return to Canterlot.”

Nodding, Sundance and Twilight stood before walking out of the library. Midnight Armor and Artemis followed them.

Twilight led the way to the kitchen.

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Twilight and Artemis paused when they heard hoofsteps. They looked up to see that Celestia was walking towards them. The five of them walked into the kitchen together.

Twilight turned to her family. “I was planning to make quesadillas for dinner. Is that alright with everyone?”

Smiling, Celestia and Artemis nodded as they sat at the table.

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked at each other in confusion before turning back to their youngest.

“What are you talking about?” Midnight Armor asked

Twilight levitated a package of large tortillas out of the pantry. Then she levitated a block of cheddar cheese and a stick of butter out of the refrigerator. She placed everything on the counter and pulled out a large pan before turning to her father. “It is a type of food. You’ll understand more after I’ve made it.”

Curious, but willing to wait, Midnight Armor joined Celestia and Artemis at the table.

Equally curious, Sundance walked over to the stove. “Do you mind if I watch?”

Twilight shook her head as she turned on the stove and placed the pan on one of the burners. She pulled out ten tortillas and spread butter on one side of each while she waited for the stove to get to temperature.

Sundance watched her youngest pull a strange metal contraption out of one of the cabinets. “What is that?”

“It’s called a grater.” Twilight replied “It is used to shred foods, like cheese or potatoes.” She thought for a moment. “There are many other foods that can also be grated.”

“Potatoes?” Sundance repeated

“It is a type of vegetable.” Twilight explained “Potatoes can be cooked in a large variety of ways. They can be cooked as part of a vegetable stew, sliced and fried, or shredded and fried in a slightly different way . . . there are other ways to cook potatoes.” She thought for a moment. “Do you remember the fried food that we were eating when I told you that I needed to take something back?”

Surprised, Sundance thought for a moment before nodding. “You’re saying that those were “potatoes”?”

Twilight nodded as well. “They were peeled, cut into cubes and fried in a pan with butter. Then a variety of seasonings were added.”

“I see.” Sundance watched Twilight place one of the tortillas in the pan before spreading some of the shredded cheese on it and placing another tortilla on top.

Twilight let it cook for a couple of minutes before flipping it over. She let it cook for a couple of minutes before levitating it onto a plate. She repeated this process with the other four quesadillas before cutting each one into quarters.

Celestia and Artemis smiled when Twilight levitated the plates to the table before turning to the fridge. Artemis pulled out the silverware while Twilight pulled a container of sour cream and a jug of milk out of the fridge. Celestia pulled five glasses out of the cupboard and levitated them to the table.

Twilight put a large dollop of sour cream on each plate while Artemis poured a glass of milk for everyone.

Artemis smiled at his wife as she sat down next to him. “It looks delicious.”

“Artemis is correct.” Celestia replied “However, I’m confused. You were never very good at cooking when you lived in Canterlot. When did you learn to do this?”

Twilight laughed “Pinkie and Applejack went crazy when they found out that I didn’t know how to cook. They, and Mrs. Cake, insisted on teaching me how to cook several different dishes.”

Celestia laughed as well. “That makes sense.”

“Spike still does most of the cooking.” Twilight continued “However, I can now make something besides sandwiches when he isn’t around.”

Midnight Armor patiently waited for his children to finish speaking before turning back to Twilight. “What is the white stuff that you put on our plates? It looks sort of similar to . . .”

“It isn’t whipped cream.” Twilight interrupted

Celestia and Artemis instantly began to laugh.

Midnight Armor stared at his older children for a moment before turning back to his youngest. “I see . . .”

“It’s called sour cream.” Twilight used her magic to lift one of the pieces of her quesadilla and dip part of it in the sour cream before taking a bite. She chewed and swallowed her food before smiling at her father. “Some ponies like it on their quesadillas and others don’t. I gave both of you some so that you can try it.”

Curious, Sundance dipped one of her quesadilla pieces in sour cream and took a bite.

Midnight Armor did the same. He swallowed his food before making a face. “No thank you.”

Sundance raised an eyebrow as she swallowed the food in her mouth. “I like it.”

Artemis laughed “Try taking a bite without the sour cream, Father.”

Midnight Armor did as he was told. He chewed and swallowed his food before sighing in relief. “Much better.”

Celestia and Twilight laughed as well.

“These are cheese quesadillas.” Twilight commented. “There are other types that include vegetables or beans.” She looked at her parents. “I decided to start with the most basic version to see if you like them. We can ask Apple Crunch to add things like tomatoes, onions or other vegetables next time.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor nodded.

They were just finishing their meal when they heard the front door open.

“Is anypony here?”

“We’re in the kitchen, Spike.” Twilight called back.

Spike walked through the door a little over a minute later. He stopped just inside the kitchen and sniffed the air. “Quesadillas?”

Everyone nodded

“Do you want me to make you one?” Twilight asked

“It’s alright.” Spike replied “I just left Sugarcube Corner.”

“I see.” Twilight responded “We’re leaving soon.”

Spike nodded “I’m staying here this week. Applejack asked me to help out on her farm tomorrow.”

Twilight nodded as well. “Send a letter if you need anything.”

“I will.” Spike promised

All of them walked into the hall.

Midnight Armor turned to his family. “I’ll be right back.” He teleported to the room that he shared with his wife. He returned a minute later with two pairs of saddlebags suspended in his magic.

Sundance took hers and placed them on her back while he did the same with his.

Artemis nuzzled his wife. “I’ll go get yours.” He vanished in a flash of midnight blue magic before she could respond.

Twilight smiled when he reappeared a little over a minute later with her saddlebags suspended in his magic. “Thanks.” She placed them on her back before raising an eyebrow when she saw his expression. “What’s wrong?”

Artemis turned to his mother. “How much longer do you think it will be safe for her to carry additional weight?”

Sundance smiled I was wondering when he was going to ask me about that. “It’s alright. She still has a couple of months.”

Artemis nodded to his mother before glancing at his wife. I would insist on carrying her saddlebags, but I know how stubborn she is. However, I’m altering my saddlebags so that I can carry everything we need when that time comes.

Good idea. Night replied

Everyone walked outside to find Applejack, Apple Bloom, Big Mac, Rarity, Sweetie Belle, Rainbow, Scootaloo, Fluttershy and Pinkie waiting for them. Big Mac was harnessed to a cart that was loaded with food.

Sundance’s eyes widened “That’s much more than I was expecting.”

Applejack laughed “We ended up baking more than we expected. Apple Bloom and ah will put whatever ya can’t carry in the kitchen of Twi’s castle.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor levitated some of their baked goods into their saddlebags.

Apple Bloom smiled at Twilight. “Granny Smith made ya five loaves of apple bread.”

Twilight’s eyes widened “Five?” They usually make me two.

Laughing softly, Artemis nuzzled his wife while he levitated all five of them into her saddlebags. Ordinarily, I would complain about the extra food in our room. However, she deserves to be pampered a little . . . especially after what happened this morning.

Twilight looked up at him. I’m surprised that he hasn’t said anything.

Smiling, he shook his head. “It’s alright.”

Pinkie bounced over to Twilight. “I’m sorry. I couldn’t finish that cake in time.”

“It’s alright, Pinkie.” Twilight replied

“I’ll bring some to Canterlot as soon as I finish it.” Pinkie promised

Twilight was about to tell her that it could wait until the weekend, but paused when she heard her sister’s voice.

“We should get going.”

“You’re right, Celestia.” Sundance replied I need to get started on Twilight’s birthday gift.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight spread their wings and lifted into the air.

Sundance was about to do the same, but paused when she saw that her husband hadn’t moved. Concerned, she whispered “What’s wrong?”

Midnight Armor made sure that his horn was touching hers before sharing his memory of his training session with their son.

Sundance stared at her husband in shock for a moment before shaking her head as her horn began to glow. “Well, you always told me that he would eventually surpass you.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “Trust me. I’m not upset at all. In fact, I can’t wait to start training. As soon as I catch up to our son, I’m going to ask him to be my sparring partner.”

Laughing softly, Sundance shook her head again as she cast a healing spell on her husband. “I’m not surprised. You’ve been looking forward to that since the day that he saved you and those four fillies.”

Smiling, Midnight Armor nodded.

Sundance finished healing his wounds before both of them joined their children in the air.

“B-be careful.” Fluttershy stammered

“See you later.” Spike replied

Everyone else waved goodbye.

Half an Hour Later

“Welcome back, your highnesses.”

Surprised, the five of them landed in the garden behind the castle and folded their wings before turning towards the voice. They exchanged glances when they saw that Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night were standing near the back entrance to the castle.

Celestia smiled “Thank you.”

Artemis smiled as well. “The four of you should get some rest because I’m certain that tomorrow will be a busy day.”

All four of the guards bowed. “Yes, Prince Artemis.”

The alicorns waited until the guards were out of sight before turning to each other.

“I believe we should get some rest as well.” Midnight Armor remarked

“Good idea.” Celestia replied

Sundance and Midnight Armor nuzzled each of their children before teleporting to their room. Celestia nuzzled both of her siblings before doing the same. Artemis teleported himself and his wife to their room.

Midnight Armor and Sundance appeared in the middle of their room.

Sundance looked around for a moment before nodding at the coffee table in the sitting room. “I think we should put the food there for the time being.”

Nodding, Midnight Armor levitated his food out of his saddlebags and set it on the table. “We can ask for a better place to store it tomorrow.”

Sundance placed her food next to her husband’s and cast a preservation spell on all of the food. Then she set her saddlebags on one of the armchairs as she settled on the couch.

Midnight Armor did the same before joining his wife on the couch. He smiled when she levitated the knitting needles and several balls of yarn towards her. I was wondering when she was going to do this. “What are you going to make?”

“Twilight’s birthday gift.” Sundance replied

“What did you have in mind?” Midnight Armor asked

Sundance smiled at him. “A blanket . . . and maybe a pillow.”

Midnight Armor chuckled “Good idea. She is almost at the point in her pregnancy where she will need to take a nap every day.” He thought for a moment. “If your pregnancies were anything to go by, that should start in a month or two.”

Laughing, Sundance nodded “You’re right. When that time comes, she will probably find herself taking a nap as soon as class is over for the day.”

“What color will you use?” Midnight Armor asked

“I haven’t decided yet.” Sundance carefully examined the balls of yarn in front of her before returning most of them to the box. Then she glanced at her husband. “I’ll make them pink.”

“Like one of the stripes in her mane and tail.” Midnight Armor commented

Sundance nodded again “I haven’t knitted anything in a very long time, so I think it will be a good idea to start with something simple . . . and purple would be too obvious.” Especially with the name that she has chosen for her daughter.

Midnight Armor laughed “You’re right.”

Celestia started the water as she walked into her bathroom. “I think I’ll take a long, hot bath and go to bed early. If Twilight is correct, and she probably is, court will be very busy tomorrow.”

She levitated her shampoo and body wash over to the tub and walked inside it as soon as it was full.

Artemis and Twilight appeared in the middle of their room. He levitated her saddlebags off of her back and gently nudged her towards their bed.

Twilight giggled “I have to use the bathroom first.”

“Alright.” He put the loaves of apple bread in the small cabinet that had been placed next to the couch and set her saddlebags on the floor next to his desk. Then he walked over to the balcony door. Instead of heading outside, he just watched the clouds float past.

Night waited five minutes before commenting. Twilight doesn’t usually take this long to use the bathroom. Perhaps you should check on her.

You’re right. Artemis walked into the bathroom as well. He looked around for a moment before noticing that she was standing in front of the full length mirror that had been mounted on the wall next to the counter.

Twilight glanced over her shoulder when she heard hoofsteps.

“Is everything alright?” He asked softly

Twilight nodded “I was just looking at my stomach.”

“I see.” He nuzzled her. “I know that it’s too early to go to sleep, but I think we should relax.”

Nodding again, she followed him out of the bathroom. They settled on the bed a little over a minute later.

Artemis rolled onto his back and pulled her close. He smiled slightly when she immediately placed her head on his chest. Fifteen minutes later, he looked outside in time to see the sun slowly sink below the horizon. He waited until it had vanished completely before raising the moon and stars.

“Artemis?”

Surprised, he looked down to see that she was looking up at him. “Are you alright?”

“I was about to ask you that.” She quietly replied

He raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

She raised an eyebrow as well. I can’t believe he has to ask. “You went through a lot today.”

Artemis winced I was hoping that she wouldn’t want to discuss that tonight. “I . . .” He trailed off when she shook her head.

“I’m not going to ask any questions about what happened this morning. I just wanted to make sure that you are alright.”

He gave her a skeptical look. “I know you better than that. You have several questions about what happened.”

Twilight laughed softly “Of course I do. However, I will wait until you are ready to talk about it. Right now, I just want to do what I can to help you.

He stared at his wife in stunned silence for several minutes before gently nuzzling her. “This is more than enough.”

“Are you sure there isn’t something else I can do?” Twilight was about to say something else, but paused when he used his magic to pull the blanket over both of them.

“I’m sure.” Artemis whispered “Just holding you like this means more to me than you will ever know.”

Twilight carefully examined his face before nodding. If this is what he wants . . . She nuzzled him before returning her head to his chest and closing her eyes.

Artemis’ breath caught as he stared at her. He kissed the top of her head before laying his on a pillow. T-thank you, Twilight.

They lay like that for a long time. Artemis felt her head slide off of his chest a little over two hours later. Concerned, he lifted his head and looked at her.

Twilight mumbled something in her sleep before rolling over.

Laughing softly, he used his magic to gently lift her head and place a pillow under it. Then he placed her head on the pillow before rolling onto his side and curling his body around hers.

Night looked on as Artemis returned his head to his pillow, closed his eyes and finally allowed himself to fall asleep. Well done, Twilight. He allowed himself to fall asleep as well.

The Next Morning

Celestia woke to the pull of the sun. Yawning, she rolled over in time to watch the moon slip below the horizon as the stars faded. Smiling slightly, she raised the sun before climbing out of bed and stretching. I think I’ll wake Mother and Father before heading to Artemis and Twilight’s room. She levitated her Royal Finery onto her body before walking out of her room.

Midnight Armor was awakened by a knock on the door to the room that he shared with his wife. What time is it? Yawning, he used his magic to open the door. He smiled when Celestia walked into the main room a little over a minute later. “Good morning.”

Celestia returned the smile. “Good morning, Father.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled his wife. “It’s time to wake up, Honey.”

Sundance buried her face in her husband’s shoulder. “Why are we getting up this early?” I don’t know what time it is. However, I do know that it is, as Twilight says, “way too early”.

Harmony instantly began to laugh. It is just after sunrise.

Sundance groaned Like I said . . . way too early.

Harmony laughed even harder.

Midnight Armor glanced at his eldest. “That is a good question.”

“We need to go get Artemis and Twilight.” Celestia answered “Then we need to eat breakfast before court starts for the four of us and class starts for Twilight.”

“Fine.” Sundance mumbled

Laughing softly, Midnight Armor stretched before climbing out of bed and walking into the bathroom.

Sundance waited until he returned to the room before teleporting to the bathroom. She walked back into the main room a few minutes later. “Should we wake Artemis and Twilight?”

Midnight Armor nodded

Celestia laughed “Artemis is already awake, but Twilight is probably still asleep.”

The three of them returned to the hall before walking to the door at the other end of it.

Celestia opened the door with her magic and walked inside. “Good morning, Artemis.”

Midnight Armor and Sundance silently followed.

Artemis glared at his sister. “Shh! Twilight is still asleep!”

“I thought so.” Celestia replied “She needs to get up because it is time for breakfast.”

Sighing, Artemis gently nuzzled his wife.

“Ugh . . .” Twilight buried her face in his shoulder. “Too early.”

Harmony laughed That’s what you said.

Sundance laughed as well.

Celestia walked over to the bed and nuzzled her sister. “It’s time for breakfast, Twilight.”

“I’ll eat later.” Twilight mumbled

Celestia suppressed a sigh. “We’ve had this discussion before, Twilight.” Several times.

So much for sleeping in. “You’re right.” Twilight replied “We agreed that there is no reason for me to get up at sunrise because I can wake up at eight and still have plenty of time to eat breakfast before class starts at nine. We also agreed that I can sleep in later than that on the weekends when we don’t have anything planned.” She finally opened her eyes and looked at her sister. “You told me that we would start that the first workday after the wedding.” Which is today.

Celestia hid a wince. I can’t believe I forgot about that. “I’m sorry. Do you want to go back to sleep?”

Twilight lifted her head and lay it on her husband’s chest. “I’m awake now.”

Celestia didn’t bother trying to hide her wince this time. And we can’t cast a sleeping spell on her.

Sighing, Twilight levitated a purple alarm clock over from the nightstand. “I guess I won’t need the alarm.” She turned off the alarm before turning to her family.

Sundance glanced at her husband before turning back to their eldest. “Your father and I will be sleeping until eight as well.”

Celestia nodded I’m not surprised. Mother does like her sleep.

“Thank you.” Midnight Armor replied

“I think we should agree to meet in the dining room at eight on every workday.” Artemis thought for a moment. “Perhaps we should plan on meeting in the dining room at nine on the weekends.”

Twilight smiled “I like that idea. It would allow most of us to sleep in.” She turned back to Celestia. “It would also give you enough time to take a long, hot bath before breakfast.”

Celestia’s eyes widened. Why didn’t I think of that? It is my favorite way to relax. “Good point.”

Artemis nuzzled his wife. “I think we should get some breakfast.”

Twilight nodded “We might as well.”

Celestia waited until her siblings had climbed out of bed and stretched before teleporting everyone to the dining room.

Apple Crunch smiled when the Royal Family appeared in front of him. “Good morning, your highnesses.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia, Artemis and Twilight noticed that glasses of orange juice had already been poured for them. They returned the smile as they sat at the table. “Good morning, Apple Crunch.”

“We have decided to make a slight change to our schedule.” Artemis remarked

“What do you mean, Prince Artemis?” Apple Crunch asked

“We have decided to let Mother, Father and Twilight sleep in from now on.” Celestia explained “Therefore, breakfast will be at eight on weekdays and nine on weekends. This new schedule will start tomorrow morning.”

Apple Crunch bowed “Yes, Princess Celestia.” Lifting his head, he smiled at them before returning to the kitchen. I wasn’t expecting that, but I’m certainly not complaining. This will give me more time to make better breakfasts for them. That will become even more useful once Princess Lavender Selene is old enough to eat baked goods. His smile widened. I can’t wait for the young princess to arrive.

Apple Crunch returned to the dining room ten minutes later. “I have prepared two breakfast pastries stuffed with cooked apples for Princess Twilight and two for Queen Sundance.”

Sundance’s eyes widened “H-how did you know that I like apples?”

Apple Crunch chuckled “I have my sources, your majesty.” I really need to thank Miss Applejack for that information.

“I see.” Sundance slowly replied

Apple Crunch turned to Midnight Armor and Artemis. “I have a large stack of pancakes topped with blueberry compote and powdered sugar for each of you.”

Artemis smiled “Thank you.” He turned to his father. “Trust me. You’re going to like this.”

Surprised, Midnight Armor nodded

Apple Crunch turned to Celestia. “I have prepared a large cheese omelet and half a dozen maple glazed donuts for you, princess.”

Celestia smiled as her breakfast was placed in front of her. “Thank you, Apple Crunch.”

Curious, Sundance took a bite of one of her breakfast pastries. Her eyes widened as she chewed. “This is delicious! I understand why you like these, Twilight.”

Giggling, Twilight nodded before taking another bite of her breakfast.

Apple Crunch smiled

Midnight Armor took a cautious bite of his pancakes. His eyes widened as he turned to his son. “You were right, Artemis. This is very good.”

“I’m glad you like it.” Apple Crunch bowed again before heading back to the kitchen.

Everyone finished their breakfasts before standing and walking into the hall.

“What would you like to do now?” Midnight Armor asked

“Good question.” Sundance commented “There is still time before court starts.”

“I’m going to my classroom.” Twilight replied “I might as well recheck my lesson plans for the day.”

Celestia smiled at her sister. “Good idea.”

Sundance watched her youngest until she was out of sight before turning back to her eldest. “What about the rest of us?”

Celestia responded by teleporting the four of them to the throne room.

Midnight Armor immediately noticed that the dais was much larger than it was before. Confused, he turned to his children. “What’s going on?”

Artemis was obviously just as confused. “I have no idea.”

Celestia laughed “For the last thousand years, there was only a need for one throne because I ruled alone. Even after Artemis returned, there wasn’t a need for a second throne because we held separate courts.”

“What about Twilight?” Midnight Armor asked

“Twilight’s throne is in her castle in Ponyville.” Celestia answered “I didn’t have one made for her here because she rarely attended court.”

“That makes sense.” Sundance commented

“There are four of us holding court now.” Celestia continued “However, the dais has been expanded so that it will be able to hold five thrones.”

“I see.” Midnight Armor said slowly “That is because Twilight will be joining us in court when she is no longer teaching.”

Celestia and Artemis nodded

“That doesn’t explain why we are here so early.” Sundance commented

Celestia nodded to a unicorn mare that was standing in the doorway of the side entrance to the throne room.

The mare returned Celestia’s nod before walking closer. She set a large bag on the floor next to her as she bowed to the alicorns. “Good morning, your highnesses.”

“Good morning.” They replied

“This is Willow.” Celestia turned to her mother. “Willow is the one that makes the clothes that we wear.” She paused “Well, anything that isn’t made by Rarity.”

Willow laughed “I would be honored to work alongside Miss Rarity. I have wanted to do so ever since I saw Princess Twilight wear one of her dresses to the Grand Galloping Gala a few years ago.”

Artemis laughed as well. “You may get that chance. Rarity will be making a couple of things for my parents and several things for my daughter.”

Willow’s eyes lit up. “That’s great news, Prince Artemis!”

Sundance smiled “I see.”

“Willow will be taking your measurements.” Celestia explained “She will be making a suit and a dress for the two of you to wear to the next Gala. She will also be assisting the Royal Jeweler in the creation of your crowns.”

“Why do we need crowns?” Midnight Armor asked

Celestia resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “The citizens of Equestria suddenly decided that Artemis and I needed to wear crowns roughly eleven hundred years ago.”

Artemis laughed “I remember that. We resisted at first, but eventually gave in after we received . . .” He tilted his head. “I believe it was three thousand petitions.”

Celestia laughed as well. “It was actually closer to four thousand.” She shook her head. “Anyway, you don’t need to wear them all the time. Twilight only wears hers for formal occasions.”

“Your father and I will probably do the same.” Sundance immediately replied

Midnight Armor nodded

Celestia nodded as well. “I thought you were going to say that. Artemis and I wear ours all the time because we’re used to it. However, there is nothing that says that the two of you have to do so as well.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor sighed in relief. They patiently waited while Willow took their measurements.

Willow turned to Artemis. “I would like to get your measurements as well.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

Good question. Night remarked I thought she already had them.

She does. Artemis replied Celestia made sure that Willow obtained my measurements as soon as I regained my proper form.

“The measurements that I obtain today will also be passed to the ponies that are building your thrones.” Willow explained “Princess Celestia informed me that Princess Twilight will probably be slightly smaller than you are when she finishes growing. Therefore, we will use your measurements for her throne as well. This way, we won’t have to keep altering it as she grows.”

Sundance smiled Twilight will be grateful for the extra space during the last few months of her pregnancy.

Good point. Harmony commented

“I see.” Artemis looked on as Willow measured his body and took careful notes.

Willow levitated her notes and measuring tape to her bag and bowed to the Royal Family. “I believe I have enough to get started.”

They waited until the door had closed behind her before turning back to each other.

“There is only one throne.” Celestia glanced at it before turning back to her parents. “It is the right size for Artemis and myself, but it is probably too small for the two of you.”

Sundance walked towards the throne. “I’ll test it. If it is too small for me, then there is no way that Midnight will fit on it.”

“Good point.” Midnight Armor remarked

Sundance carefully examined the throne. “On second thought, I’m not going to risk it. I am fairly certain that I won’t be able to get up again after sitting on this.”

Midnight Armor held his breath. Don’t laugh! That is a surefire way to anger her. He quietly let out his breath once he was fairly certain that the danger had passed.

Unfortunately for him, Laughter chose that moment to speak up. Sundance probably would have gotten angry, but I thought it was very funny.

Midnight Armor wasn’t able to suppress his laughter this time.

Sundance raised an eyebrow as she turned to her husband. “You thought that was funny?”

Damn it! “I’m sorry.” Midnight Armor quickly replied “I was laughing at something that Laughter said.”

Sundance looked at him for a moment before turning back to Celestia.

Artemis moved closer to his father before quietly saying. “Well played.”

Midnight Armor sighed in relief. That was close. “Thank you, Artemis.” That wasn’t funny, Laughter!

Laughter laughed harder. I’m sorry, but I am going to have to disagree with you.

Midnight Armor resisted the urge to shake his head. I’m going to have to be careful with that one.

Laughter instantly began to laugh so hard that she could barely breathe. S-stop it, Midnight!

Stop what? Midnight Armor turned to his family in time to see Celestia sit on the floor in front of her throne.

“I think we should just sit on the dais until our thrones are finished.”

Nodding, Sundance sat down to the right of her eldest.

Smiling, Midnight Armor walked onto the dais and sat down next to his wife. “Good idea.”

Artemis sat down next to Midnight Armor. The four of them nodded to each other before Celestia used her magic to open the main entrance to the throne room.

Sapphire Wing and Silver Shadow walked in and immediately took up their positions in front of the Royal Family.

A large number of ponies filed into the throne room.

Celestia and Artemis exchanged glances when a group of ponies gathered just to the left of the dais.

“Aren’t those the foals in Twilight’s class?” Sundance whispered

Confused, Celestia and Artemis nodded.

Sundance turned back to the ponies in front of her. What are they doing here?

Meanwhile, Twilight was walking down the hall towards her classroom. She smiled when she saw Steel Night and Midnight Fang standing next to the door. “Good morning.”

Both of them bowed. “Good morning, Princess Twilight.”

Twilight unlocked the door and walked inside. Her guards followed her and took their usual positions just inside the door.

Twilight sat at her desk and pulled out her lesson plans. “Let’s see. I was worried about the days that they missed last week, so I slightly altered the lesson plans for the last couple of weeks. This means that the foals are actually a couple of days ahead of schedule. In fact, I will be teaching them Wednesday’s lessons today. We’ll take it easy over the next couple of days. If I do this correctly, we’ll be back on schedule by next Monday.”

Steel Night and Midnight Fang smiled at each other before turning back to Twilight.

Twilight spent the next fifteen minutes carefully rereading the lesson plans for the entire week before suddenly realizing that no one had arrived yet. Confused, she looked up at the clock. “That’s weird. Cobalt and Winter Night should be here by now.” Sapphire Wing and Ice Blossom always drop their foals off early before heading to court. The rest of the foals should trickle in over the next ten minutes or so.

Twilight, Midnight Fang and Steel Night walked into the hallway and looked around. They looked at each other in confusion when they saw that the hallway was empty.

Twilight waited fifteen minutes without seeing anyone else. “Okay. Now I’m worried.” She closed and locked her classroom before glancing at her guards. “We’re going to court to see if Celestia has heard anything.

Nodding, Steel Night and Midnight Fang fell into step behind her.

Meanwhile, in the Throne Room

The petitioners had spent the last five minutes excitedly whispering to each other and gesturing to Sundance and Midnight Armor.

Sundance exchanged glances with her husband before turning to their children. “Why haven’t one of you said something?”

“Artemis and I were expecting this.” Celestia quietly replied “We’re letting them get it out of their systems before we officially open court.”

I suppose that makes sense. Sundance nodded to her eldest before turning back to the ponies in front of them in time to see three ponies walk into the room. “What is Twilight doing here?”

Everypony in the crowd gasped and turned towards the door. “Princess Twilight is here?” They immediately cleared a path from the door to the dais.

Twilight smiled at them. “Thank you.” She walked towards her family before pausing when she saw her students. “There you are! I was getting worried.”

The parents of her students smiled when their foals immediately ran forward to nuzzle their teacher.

Sapphire Wing glanced at his son before turning back to Twilight. “I’m sorry, princess. We didn’t mean to worry you.”

Ice Blossom nodded “Our foals have been asking to meet King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance since they day they returned. Therefore, we decided to bring them to court today.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “Mom and Dad will be eating lunch with Celestia, Artemis and I. This means that your foals would have met them then.”

“But we have so many questions for them!” Astral Flash protested

All of the petitioners laughed.

Celestia laughed as well. “It would probably be best if all of you spend the day here.”

Artemis nodded “I’m sure that at least a few of the petitioners have questions for you as well, Twilight.”

Twilight’s eyes widened when several of the petitioners immediately nodded. “A-alright.” She walked to Artemis’ other side. I guess it’s a good thing that my students are ahead of schedule.

Steel Night and Midnight Fang positioned themselves in front of the dais so that they were slightly to the right of Twilight. Silver Shadow moved to stand next to Sapphire Wing.

Artemis’ personal secretary grabbed a large lavender cushion from a nearby table. I’m glad I brought this today. There is no way that I’m going to allow Princess Twilight to sit on the floor! She jumped into the air and flew towards the Royal Family.

That must be for Twilight. Artemis smiled “Thank you, Azure Rose.”

Azure Rose placed the cushion on the floor next to Artemis before returning the smile. “You’re welcome, Prince Artemis.”

Twilight smiled at Azure Rose as she sat on the cushion. She spent a moment trying to find a comfortable position before pausing when she felt a gentle nuzzle. Surprised, she looked up as Artemis leaned down so he could whisper in her ear.

“Perhaps you would be more comfortable if you lie down.”

Twilight blushed slightly “I don’t want to be the only one laying down!”

Artemis responded by laying down next to the cushion before using a wing to gently pull his wife down as well.

Midnight Armor chuckled when Twilight let out a soft sigh of relief. “Good idea, Artemis.” He, Sundance and Celestia lay down as well.

Everyone else smiled when Twilight’s students immediately lay down in front of the dais.

Sundance smiled at the foals before turning to everyone else. “I’m sure that many of you have questions for Midnight and myself.” She paused while many of the petitioners nodded. “Would you mind if we answered the foals’ questions first? I assure you that we will get to your questions when we are done.” If they have any questions after the foals are done.

Good point. Harmony replied

All of the adults in the throne room shook their heads.

Midnight Armor smiled “Thank you.” He turned to his youngest. “Twilight?”

Twilight nodded to her father before turning to her students. “You are going to have to take turns.”

All of her students nodded “Yes, princess”

“Each of you may ask one question.” Twilight smiled when she saw their worried expressions. “Mom and Dad will be joining us for lunch and recess every weekday. If you’re good, they might answer more questions at that time.”

All of the adults laughed when her students cheered.

Sundance suppressed a sigh of relief. I’m glad Twilight set a clear limit for the foals.

Harmony laughed

“You’re first, Cobalt.” Twilight commented

Cobalt turned to Sundance and Midnight Armor. “Daddy told me that you’re Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis’ Mommy and Daddy.”

Midnight Armor laughed softly “That’s right. My name is Midnight Armor and my wife’s name is Sundance.”

Marigold looked at Artemis and Celestia for a moment before turning back to Sundance and Midnight Armor. “If they’re the Prince and Princess . . . Does that make you two the King and Queen?”

Sundance giggled “Yes.”

“Are you in charge now?” Thunder Spark asked

“I suppose you could say that.” Midnight Armor answered “However, Sundance and I have decided not to change anything right now.”

Sundance nodded “We were gone for a long time. This means that we have a lot to learn.”

Cloud Night tilted his head. “You were gone? Where did you go?”

“No fair!” Cobalt protested “That was two questions . . . and Princess Twilight said that we’re only allowed to ask one!”

Midnight Armor laughed softly “I believe we will treat both of them as one question.”

“Good idea, Father.” Artemis turned to Cloud Night. “Mother and Father spent the last fifteen hundred years as stars in the night sky.” He chuckled when all of the foals’ eyes widened. “Were you watching the battle with Golden Thunder last week?”

Everyone nodded

“That was actually our second battle with him.” Celestia explained “Fifteen hundred years ago, he created a monster that pulled Mother and Father’s souls out of their bodies.”

All of the foals screamed while all of the adult petitioners gasped in horror.

“I was able to stop the monster from eating their souls.” Artemis explained “Then I created their stars before attaching Mother and Father’s souls to them.”

“Y-you created their stars?” Moondust repeated

Artemis nodded “I am the Prince of the Night. This means that I have the power to create new stars. I don’t do it very often because it is very difficult. It also takes a lot of magic. In fact, I have only made three stars.”

Midnight Armor glanced at his son. I didn’t know that. He turned back to the foals just as Sunshine opened her mouth.

“I always stay up late so I can look at the stars. Which ones were yours?”

W-what?! Sundance stared at the filly for a moment before slowly replying. “There are three stars to the right of the moon.”

“Oh, I know those stars!” Winter Night exclaimed “Their names are “Dance”, “Armor” and “Star”.” She giggled “I always thought it was weird to name a star “Star”.”

Midnight Armor stared at Winter Night in stunned silence for a couple of minutes before slowly shaking his head. “The star named “Dance” belongs to Sundance. As I’m sure you’ve guessed, “Dance” is short for “Sundance”.”

The foals immediately turned to Sundance. “Really?”

Sundance nodded

Wait a minute . . . His name is “King Midnight Armor”. Dazzle turned back to Midnight Armor. “Does that mean the star named “Armor” is yours?”

Midnight Armor nodded as well.

“Who does the one named “Star” belong to?” Buttons asked

“A close friend of Artemis and myself.” Celestia smiled at her brother before turning back to the foals. “You know him as “Star Swirl the Bearded”.”

All of the petitioners gasped.

“Well,” Ice Blossom said slowly “that explains why that star is named “Star”.”

Artemis chuckled “That’s right. I didn’t want to use his full name for his star . . . and couldn’t think of another name for it.”

All of the petitioners nodded

Ruby thought for a moment before looking up at Sundance. “You said you have a lot to learn. Does this mean that you are going to school?”

Sundance laughed softly “In a manner of speaking. Celestia, Artemis and Twilight will be teaching Midnight and I about the things that have changed over the last fifteen hundred years.”

Crystal’s eyes widened “Princess Twilight is going to be your teacher?”

Midnight Armor laughed “That’s right.”

“That’s good.” Ivory Spirit replied “She’s a good teacher.”

Lightning Sky nodded “Her lessons are really fun.”

All of the other foals nodded as well.

Twilight stared at her students in shock while all of the other adults in the throne room instantly began to laugh.

Sundance smiled at her youngest before turning back to the foals. “We’re looking forward to it.”

“Are you coming to class with us?” Astral Flash asked

“That wouldn’t be a good idea.” Twilight responded “Mom and Dad need to learn different things than the fourteen of you do.”

All of her students pouted. “Aww.”

Twilight giggled “They’re going to eat lunch with us, remember? They’re also going to be joining us at recess.”

“You mean we get to play with them?” Marigold asked

Twilight nodded

“Yay!” The foals shouted

Everyone else began to laugh again.

Celestia waited until everyone had calmed down before turning to the foals’ parents. “Why don’t we make today a special one? I think you should take your children home early.”

Twilight nodded “Class will start at the usual time tomorrow.”

The parents nodded “Yes, your highnesses.”

Celestia nodded to one of the Day Guards that were stationed by the side entrance to the throne room. She waited for him to get closer. “Please tell Apple Crunch that the foals won’t be eating lunch in the castle today.”

The guard bowed before leaving the room. The foals, and their parents, also bowed to the alicorns before walking out of the throne room.

Midnight Armor waited until the last foal had left the throne room before closing the doors and turning back to the petitioners. “I’m sure that you still have questions.” He paused until all of them nodded. “We will answer as many as we can.”

Ice Blossom and Arctic Breeze nodded to him before turning to River Glow.

“You can ask the first question.”

Sundance tilted her head slightly. I’m sure that I have seen her before.

How could you recognize her? Harmony asked slowly If you had met her after your return, then I would recognize her as well.

Sundance thought for a couple of minutes before suppressing a gasp. I remember now. I saw her in Artemis’ memories! She was the one who asked Twilight and Artemis why they were having a foal so early in their relationship . . . I believe her name is River Glow.

I see. Harmony slowly replied

Sundance turned her attention to the mare in front of her in time to see her bow. “Good morning, your highnesses.” She lifted her head. “Welcome back, King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance. My name is River Glow.”

I thought so. Sundance smiled “Thank you.”

River Glow turned to Twilight. “My question is for you, princess.”

Twilight nodded

“During the battle with Golden Thunder, Prince Artemis mentioned that you knew that Golden Thunder was going to try to take King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance’s magic.” River glow waited for Artemis and Twilight to nod. “How did you know that?”

“I think it would be best if I showed you what happened.” Twilight replied

Confused, River Glow nodded

Twilight showed everyone what happened the day that she, Celestia and Artemis returned from the Crystal Empire.

All of the petitioners gasped in a combination of shock and horror when the memory got to the part with Jade Butterfly.

“Golden Thunder was willing to do that to a young filly, so I knew that he would want to do the same to Mom and Dad.” Twilight explained

“I-I see.” River Glow stammered

The rest of the morning flew by in a blur of questions.

Celestia focused on the sun for a moment before suppressing a sigh of relief. She turned back to the petitioners. “It is time for the lunch break. Court will resume at one.”

Artemis teleported his family to the dining room before anyone could respond.

All five of them immediately sighed in relief as they sat down where they stood.

“I was starting to think the questions would never end.” Artemis looked down to see that Twilight had leaned into his right side before laying her head on his shoulder. Smiling, he nuzzled her before teleporting both of them to the table.

Chapter 82

Celestia, Sundance and Midnight Armor stood before walking over to the dining room table as well. The five of them looked up in time to see Apple Crunch push a cart of food into the dining room.

Midnight Armor let out another sigh of relief. Thank goodness. I think all of us are ready for lunch.

Laughter laughed when Twilight immediately took a large bite of her cucumber, lettuce and tomato sub. It looks like you are correct. Then again, that was just Twilight.

That’s not true. Loyalty commented Artemis, Celestia and Sundance just did the same thing.

Laughing softly, Midnight Armor shook his head before taking a bite of his sandwich. Like I said . . . all of us are ready for lunch.

Generosity, Loyalty, Kindness, Honesty and Laughter laughed as well.

Sundance waited until everyone had finished eating before turning to her children. “We still have about forty minutes before court resumes. What would you like to do now?”

Celestia smiled “We usually head outside when we finish eating.”

Artemis nodded “We like to get some fresh air and relax next to one of the fountains in the garden.”

Midnight Armor returned his daughter’s smile. “That sounds good.”

Twilight responded by teleporting the five of them to the garden behind the castle. Everyone else laughed when she immediately lay down in the shade of a large tree.

Artemis lay down next to his wife before gently nuzzling her. Celestia lay down on Twilight’s other side. Midnight Armor lay down next to his son and Sundance settled next to her eldest. The five of them lay their heads on the grass with sighs of contentment. None of them spoke. Instead, they closed their eyes and relaxed.

Thirty Minutes Later

Celestia lifted her head and looked at her family. She laughed softly when she saw that Twilight had snuggled closer to Artemis’ side before falling asleep.

Curious, Sundance, Midnight Armor and Artemis lifted their heads as well. Seeing that she had their attention, Celestia nodded at Twilight.

Sundance and Midnight Armor followed her gaze . . . and smiled when they saw that their youngest was asleep.

I’m not surprised. She did wake up just after sunrise. Also smiling, Artemis gently nuzzled his wife.

Yawning, Twilight slowly opened her eyes and looked up at him. “What is it?”

“We need to head back to court.” Artemis quietly replied

“Alright.” Twilight yawned again before standing and stretching. Then she began to walk towards the castle.

Celestia and Artemis stood and stretched as well before following her.

Midnight Armor stood before turning to his wife. “It looks like she’ll be using your gift sooner than we thought.”

“You’re right.” Laughing softly, Sundance stood and stretched her wings before folding them again. She was about to say something else, but paused when she heard her son’s voice.

“Mother? Father?”

Midnight Armor and Sundance turned towards the rear entrance to the castle. They immediately noticed that all three of their children were looking at them.

“We’ll be there in a minute.” Midnight Armor turned back to his wife in time to see her smile.

“I should be able to finish the blanket tonight.” Sundance commented “As for the pillow, I’ve decided not to make a new one. Instead, I’ll make a cover for an existing one.”

Midnight Armor smiled “Good idea.” Now I just need to figure out what I am going to give Twilight.

Perhaps you should spend time with her. Generosity suggested That might give you a couple of ideas.

Good point. Midnight Armor replied

Sundance returned the smile as they walked over to their children.

The five of them found themselves in the throne room a couple of minutes later. They lay down on the dais in the same positions before turning to each other.

“We still have a little time before court resumes.” Artemis remarked

Everyone else nodded before laying their heads on their forehooves. Artemis nuzzled his wife before doing the same.

Five minutes later, Celestia glanced out the window before turning back to her family. “It’s time.” She waited for them to lift their heads and nod before using her magic to open the main entrance to the throne room.

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow when a large group of ponies walked inside. “I am certain that I have seen at least a few of them before.”

“You’re right, Midnight.” Sundance quietly replied “I believe most, if not all, of them work in the castle.”

“That is correct.” Celestia responded “Artemis and I allowed our guards to close the castle early because the castle staff would also like the chance to meet the two of you.”

“I suppose that makes sense.” Midnight Armor said slowly

“What about the nobility?” Sundance asked “I know that several of them were arrested the day your father and I returned, but that can’t be all of them.”

“You are correct, Queen Sundance.”

Startled, the Royal Family jumped slightly before turning to see that Arctic Breeze was standing a few feet away.

Arctic Breeze bowed “I apologize for the interruption, but I couldn’t help overhearing part of your conversation.” He lifted his head before turning to Sundance. “The remaining nobles have requested to meet you as well. There is only one issue.”

“What is the issue?” Midnight Armor asked

Artemis rolled his eyes before turning back to his parents. “They are demanding that it be at a Royal Ball. It will be two weeks from this Friday.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor’s eyes widened as both of them said the same thing. “What?”

Celestia resisted the urge to roll her eyes as well. “That is why Rarity took your measurements a couple of days ago. She is making the outfits that you will be wearing.”

“I see.” Sundance slowly responded

Midnight Armor thought for a moment before turning back to his children. “There is one pony that isn’t a member of the nobility, but I would like to meet him anyway.”

Curious, Twilight turned to her father. “Who are you talking about?”

“The stallion named Blueblood.” Midnight Armor narrowed his eyes. “There are a few things that I would like to say to the pony who tried to banish, then kill, my son.”

Artemis stared at his father for a moment before slowly shaking his head.

Sundance turned to her son. “Is something wrong?”

“No, Mother.” Artemis slowly replied “It’s just that I am torn between telling Father that that isn’t a good idea . . . and asking him if I can watch.”

Night instantly began to laugh. I vote for the second option.

Everyone else in the throne room began to laugh as well.

Midnight Armor waited until everyone had calmed down before giving his son a mischievous smile. “Would it help if I told you that I want the four of you to be there?”

Sundance laughed “That certainly solves that problem.”

Artemis slowly nodded

Laughter began to laugh as well. This is going to be GOOD.

Sundance’s expression suddenly turned serious. “Besides, I would like to speak to the mare who tried to kill one of my daughters and my granddaughter.”

Twilight’s eyes widened

“Dahlia’s cell is right next to Blueblood’s.” Celestia slowly responded

“Good” Sundance and Midnight Armor replied

Arctic Breeze glanced at Ice Blossom. “I wish there was a way that we could see that.”

Ice Blossom silently nodded

Twilight slowly shook her head before turning to the castle staff. “I am going to show you what happened this morning. This should answer several of your questions.”

Midnight Armor smiled at his youngest. “Good idea. This way, your mother and I shouldn’t have to repeat ourselves.”

Everyone looked on as Twilight showed them her memory of that morning.

Laughing, Stone Steps shook his head. “You were correct, Princess Twilight. That certainly answered all of my questions.”

Apple Crunch glanced at Sundance and Midnight Armor before turning to Artemis. “I still can’t believe you created stars and attached their souls to them.”

Aqua nodded to Apple Crunch before turning to Artemis as well. “It’s not that we don’t believe you, it’s just that we can’t believe it.”

“It really happened.” Midnight Armor responded “Trust me.”

Sundance nodded “Having one’s soul ripped from their body and attached to a star is a unique experience, but it isn’t something that we would make up.”

Artemis laughed when everyone else silently nodded.

Twilight glanced at her parents before turning back to the ponies in front of her. “If nopony else has any more questions, I think we should call it a day.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow as she turned to her sister. “Are you tired?”

“That’s not it.” Twilight gave her sister a mischievous smile. “I want to see how Blueblood reacts to meeting Mom and Dad.”

Artemis chuckled “That makes two of us.”

Everyone else immediately began to laugh.

When she had finished laughing, Ice Blossom glanced at everyone else before turning back to the Royal Family. “You do know that we are going to be asking about that tomorrow, right?”

Sundance giggled “I don’t have a problem with that.”

Celestia smiled at her mother before turning back to the ponies in front of her. “In that case, I am going to release most of you for the day. Please enjoy the rest of your day.” She turned to Apple Crunch in time to see him shake his head.

“I appreciate the offer, but I am going to have to respectfully decline.” He glanced at Sundance and Midnight Armor before turning back to Celestia. “I need to get dinner started.”

I knew he was going to say that. Celestia smiled “We will see you at the usual time.”

Most of the ponies in the throne room bowed to the Royal Family before walking out of the room.

The guards waited until the main entrance closed behind the last pony before turning to the Royal Family.

“I hope you weren’t expecting us to leave as well.” Silver Shadow remarked

Midnight Fang nodded “Both of the ponies that you plan to visit have attacked at least one of you.”

Laughing softly, Artemis shook his head before turning to his sister. “I should have seen that coming.”

He’s right. Celestia smiled at her brother before turning back to their guards. “Very well. The four of you may accompany us.”

The guards sighed in relief as the Royal Family stood.

Midnight Armor was about to lead the way, but paused when he realized that he didn’t know where they were going. He turned to his children. “Why didn’t we visit the Royal Dungeons during the tour of the castle?”

“That was done intentionally.” Celestia answered

Artemis nodded “We wanted to celebrate the fact that you had returned . . . a visit to the Royal Dungeons would have ruined that.”

“I suppose that makes sense.” Midnight Armor slowly replied

Silver Shadow stepped forward. “Please follow me.”

Everyone else silently followed him out of the throne room.

In the Royal Dungeons

A large, sturdy wooden table with two matching chairs had been placed in a corner next to the staircase that led up to the rest of the castle. The chairs were occupied by two members of Celestia’s Day Guard. The first guard was a unicorn stallion with a light green coat, matching eyes and an orange mane and tail. The second guard was an earth pony stallion with a chestnut brown coat, steely blue eyes and a black mane and tail.

“Guard!”

The first guard turned to the second. “Is it your turn or mine?”

The second guard rolled his eyes. “I brought the ingrate his lunch. It’s your turn to see what he wants.”

The first guard stood “Maybe he has finished eating and wants me to take his empty plate away.”

“Good luck with that.” The second guard replied “He probably wants you to bring him something else.”

The first guard narrowed his eyes. “If this is another demand for a grilled cauliflower steak, steamed broccoli and a baked potato . . .”

The second guard gave the first an amused look. “What are you going to do if it is?”

“I will send you into that cell with him, Walnut.” The first guard responded “You will get to keep him entertained.”

Walnut glanced towards the cells before turning back to the first guard. “One question, Forest.”

Forest raised an eyebrow. “What is it?”

Walnut smirked “Can I bring my spear?”

“Lucky for him, the answer is no.” Forest replied Walnut would destroy that miserable excuse for a stallion in less than five minutes.

Walnut’s smirk turned into a scowl. “You’re no fun.”

“GUARD!”

“Keep your mane on.” Forest muttered as he walked down a short hall before reaching a crossroads. He stopped there for a moment as he considered his options. Unicorns to the left, pegasi to the right and earth ponies straight ahead. I am fairly certain I know who the noisemaker is. He turned left. Then he paused for a moment and just looked at the long hallway that stretched in front of him. There were cells lined along the left side and all of them were filled.

We are nearly at full capacity. Forest shook his head as he started walking again. This is the first time in a long time that we have had more than three prisoners at any given time. A few minutes later, he stopped in front of the cell at the end of the hall and looked at the pony inside. “What do you want?”

Blueblood was attempting to look regal as he reclined on his small prison bed. He glared at Forest. “How dare you speak to me like that?!”

Very easily. “What do you want?” Forest repeated

Blueblood glared at Forest for a moment before nodding at the plate of untouched food on the small wooden table in the corner of his cell. “I can’t eat that rubbish. I demand that you bring me a more appropriate meal.”

Forest resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “There is nothing wrong with your vegetable sub, Blueblood. In fact, the food that you receive here is better than prisoners in any other Equestrian prison would get on their best day.”

Enraged, Blueblood rolled off of his bed and rushed over to the cell door. “How dare you speak to me like that?!”

We have already had this part of the conversation. Forest was pulled from his thoughts by the sound of hoofsteps. He glanced at the cell next to Blueblood’s to see that the occupant had walked over to the door to her cell. “Yes, Dahlia?”

Dahlia glanced at Blueblood. I know what he thinks, but I no longer believe anything he says. She turned back to Forest. I will ask him instead. “Are the rumors true?”

“What rumors?” Forest responded

“Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis’ parents . . . are they really in Canterlot?” Dahlia hesitantly asked

Blueblood snorted “Of course not. I keep telling you that they don’t exist.”

Forest opened his mouth, but paused when he heard Walnut’s voice.

“Attention! The Royal Family has entered the Royal Dungeon!”

All of the prisoners, except for Blueblood and Dahlia, gasped before rushing to the doors to their cells.

Forest raised an eyebrow. Why would they come here? He glanced to the right when he heard hoofsteps.

The unicorns in their cells immediately began to whisper amongst themselves as the Royal Family walked past them.

Sapphire Wing, Silver Shadow, Midnight Fang and Steel Night silently followed the Royal Family.

Celestia stopped in front of Dahlia’s cell. Instead of looking at the incarcerated mare, she smiled at the guard. “Good afternoon, Forest.”

Forest bowed “Please forgive me, your highnesses. I was unaware of the fact that there was going to be a Royal Inspection.” That isn’t a problem because the Royal Dungeon is always held to the proper standard. The problem is that I wasn’t able to greet the Royal Family as soon as they entered the Royal Dungeon.

Twilight shook her head. “That is not why we are here.”

Forest lifted his head. “What do you mean, princess?”

“We would like to speak to a couple of the ponies here.” Sundance explained

Dahlia’s eyes widened slightly as she looked up at Sundance and Midnight Armor. They are even taller than Princess Celestia . . . Her eyes widened even further as she focused on Sundance. W-wait a minute . . . Is she who I think she is?!

Midnight Armor took a couple of steps forward before turning so that he was facing Blueblood.

Sundance silently moved so that she was standing next to her husband. I will let Midnight speak to Blueblood while I figure out the best way to word what I would like to say to Dahlia.

Good idea. Harmony responded

Another alicorn?! Not just one, but two?! Blueblood stared at Sundance and Midnight Armor for a moment before turning to Celestia. She is probably going to tell me that they have been placed in positions of power as well. “What is going on here?!”

Celestia was careful to keep her expression neutral. “Good afternoon, Blueblood. Artemis, Twilight and I would like to introduce you to a couple of ponies.”

Blueblood silently waited for her to continue.

“The ponies in front of you are the parents of Artemis and myself.” Celestia explained “Our mother’s name is Sundance.”

“Our father’s name is Midnight Armor.” Artemis added

Dahlia barely managed to suppress a gasp of shock. I was right.

Where have I heard those names? Blueblood tilted his head slightly as he thought. A little over a minute later, his eyes widened slightly. I remember now. Golden Flash and Golden Thunder mentioned them every time they visited me. If I recall correctly, Golden Thunder was saying something about needing to find their souls so he could destroy them. He promised to free me and restore my title in exchange for some of my magic. His eyes widened even further when he suddenly realized what Celestia and Artemis had said. Wait a minute. He turned back to Celestia. “Parents?!”

“That’s right.” Twilight showed Blueblood, Dahlia and Forest her memory of that day’s court sessions

Good idea. Magic commented That should answer some of his questions.

Forest stared at Artemis for a moment before whispering a single word. “Incredible!” I didn’t know that he has the power to create stars!

Midnight Armor turned back to Blueblood. “I have heard a lot about you.”

“Why is this lowlife speaking to me?!” Blueblood muttered “Doesn’t he know who I am?!”

Lowlife?! Loyalty angrily repeated Does he know who he is speaking to?!

I highly doubt it. Midnight Armor responded It is clear that he wasn’t paying attention to the memory that Twilight just showed everyone.

You are probably right. Honesty commented

Midnight Armor turned back to Blueblood. “I know exactly who you are.”

He certainly doesn’t act like it. Blueblood glared at Midnight Armor. “Why should I care about what you think?”

Forest’s eyes widened slightly. You should not have said that, Blueblood.

“I can give you a very good reason.” Artemis waited for Blueblood to look at him. “Father is the King of Equestria. Before you ask, Mother is the Queen.”

Instantly enraged, Blueblood shouted “WHAT?! How could you give newcomers those titles?!”

Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Mother and Father are hardly newcomers. In fact, a unified Equestria was their idea. They laid the groundwork and got the process started long before our first battle with Golden Thunder.” She glanced at her brother before turning back to Blueblood. “Artemis and I merely finished what our parents started.”

I suppose that makes sense. Blueblood glared at Sundance and Midnight Armor for a moment before turning back to Celestia. “Why did you give them the titles of King and Queen?!”

“I didn’t give Mother and Father those titles.” Celestia answered “They had them all along.”

Surprised, Blueblood just stared at Celestia for a moment before saying a single word. “What?”

Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Haven’t you ever wondered why Artemis and I are the prince and princess instead of the King and Queen?”

“I asked you why you were just a princess almost ten years ago.” Blueblood responded “You simply told me that you would answer my question when I was older.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow ever so slightly. I didn’t know that he was actually listening to me. I certainly didn’t expect him to remember what I said to him that day.

“What does that have to do with anything?” Blueblood asked

Night let out an irritated sigh. That stallion is officially an idiot.

Agreed. Artemis turned back to Blueblood. “Celestia and I retained our titles of “Princess” and “Prince” because we refused to take our parents’ titles.”

Celestia smiled at her brother before allowing that smile to fade as she turned back to Blueblood. “Therefore, Father and Mother have been the King and Queen of Equestria for almost two thousand years. Most of Equestria didn’t know about them because they were living as stars.”

“If they were living as stars, what are they doing here?” Blueblood asked

“I created the spell that returned their souls to their bodies almost four months ago.” Twilight answered “I cast that spell during the battle with Golden Thunder a few days ago.”

“Mother and Father have resumed their original positions.” Celestia finished “This means that the five of us will be ruling Equestria together from now on.”

Blueblood stared at Celestia, Artemis and Twilight in stunned silence. In fact, it was a couple of minutes before remembered to close his mouth. He was silent for a few more minutes before stammering two words. “I-I see.” He stared at a random spot on the wall over Twilight’s right shoulder for a minute before looking up when he heard someone clear their throat.

Everyone turned to see that Midnight Armor had fixed Blueblood with a slight glare.

“Now that that has been cleared up, I would like to move onto a more pressing matter.” Midnight Armor remarked

“What is it?” Blueblood asked Perhaps he is going to release me. He suppressed a smile. If so, I might be able to convince him to give me my title back as well.

What do you intend to say? Kindness hesitantly asked

Don’t worry. Midnight Armor replied I will be civil towards him until he proves that he no longer deserves to be treated that way.

I have a feeling that he will do so rather quickly. Honesty remarked

You are probably correct. Regardless, I will give him the chance that he does not deserve. Midnight Armor’s glare deepened slightly. “What do you have against my son?”

That is not what I thought he was going to say. “What do you mean?” Blueblood asked

I can’t believe he has to ask. “I am aware of the fact that you repeatedly tried to trick Artemis before attempting to have him permanently banished to the moon.” Midnight Armor struggled to control his temper. “When that didn’t work, you ordered another pony to murder him.”

“He doesn’t deserve his title, position or power!” Blueblood immediately shouted “I should be the Prince of Equestria!” He glared at Artemis for a moment before turning back to Midnight Armor. “Instead, that title was given to him because he is Princess Celestia’s brother!”

That does it. Loyalty snapped That miserable excuse for a stallion no longer deserves to be treated with any form of courtesy.

Agreed. “Artemis has been a prince of Equestria since the day he was born.” Midnight Armor all but growled. “He earned the official title “Prince of Equestria” when he was twenty-three years old.”

“He earned two titles that day.” Sundance commented “The first was “Prince of Equestria” and the second was “Prince of the Night”.”

“Right.” Blueblood scoffed “What did he do to earn those titles?”

Sundance narrowed her eyes. “Celestia and Artemis protected countless ponies before destroying two threats to Equestria. That was also the day that Celestia and Artemis gained the ability to control their respective celestial bodies.”

“If that is the case, why didn’t Princess Celestia earn any official titles?” Blueblood responded

“I also earned two official titles that day.” Celestia answered “The first was “Princess of Equestria” and the second was “Princess of the Day”. Over the years, the citizens of Equestria gave me a third title . . . “Princess of the Sun”. I gave Artemis the title of “Prince of the Moon” when he returned to Equestria and resumed his celestial duties.”

“Why did you do that?” Blueblood asked

“It was only fair that he was given a third title as well.” Celestia replied

Honesty looked at Blueblood thoughtfully for a moment before turning to Midnight Armor. I wonder why Blueblood feels entitled to that title.

I was just wondering the same thing. Midnight Armor cleared his throat and waited for Blueblood to look at him. “Why do you believe that you should have Artemis’ title? As far as I know, you have done nothing to earn it. In fact, your recent actions prove that you don’t deserve the title.”

How dare he speak to me like that?! “I am the last living descendant of Princess Platinum!” Blueblood shouted

“Platinum?” Midnight Armor repeated Where have I heard that name before? He thought for a couple of minutes before laughing softly. “Ah yes. The filly that Celestia and Artemis took in centuries ago.”

Blueblood had been glaring at Artemis, but was so surprised that he allowed his glare to fade as he turned back to Midnight Armor. “What?”

“This happened before Artemis and I succeeded in unifying Equestria.” Celestia explained “I had been patrolling the southern border and was on my way home. That was when I found a unicorn filly in the desert. I knew that she wouldn’t survive on her own, so I brought her to the castle in the Everfree Forest. The nobles immediately tried to place her in their care so that Artemis and I could focus on our official duties.”

“We didn’t allow that because we didn’t trust any of them.” Artemis continued “Therefore, we granted Platinum the title of “Princess” and adopted her as our niece. We raised her ourselves and assigned her a few minor Royal Duties when she reached legal age.”

“Why did you do that?!” Blueblood demanded “A Princess such as her shouldn’t have had to do anything!”

Midnight Armor resisted the urge to shake his head. He obviously doesn’t know anything about being a proper prince.

He obviously doesn’t know anything about being a proper pony. Honesty replied

Agreed. Midnight Armor replied

“That was done to quiet the nobles who had been insisting that she was a princess in name only.” Celestia answered

Enraged, Blueblood shouted “What?!”

“They wanted to take Platinum’s title and place her in their custody.” Artemis explained “Celestia and I avoided that by giving her Royal Duties to attend to.”

Blueblood’s anger faded slightly. “I see.”

“We also gave Platinum permission to pass her title on to her children. It eventually worked its way down to her last living descendant.” Celestia gave Blueblood a look. “That is why you were given the title of prince when you were born.”

Blueblood’s eyes widened when he suddenly realized how that affected him. “You are telling me that I am not from a royal bloodline?! That my esteemed ancestor was a common pony that you “found in the desert”?!”

Celestia and Artemis nodded

Magic immediately began to laugh. In fact, she laughed so hard that it took her a couple of minutes to calm down enough to speak. I find that VERY ironic. He insisted that you would never be a “real” princess because you aren’t from a royal bloodline . . . and he isn’t from one either!

Twilight’s body shook slightly as she struggled to suppress her laughter. You’re right.

“That cannot be true!” Blueblood glared at Celestia. “I demand that you provide some sort of proof!”

Celestia thought for a moment before turning back to Blueblood. “I am willing to show you my memory of the day that I found Platinum. Will that suffice?”

Blueblood nodded

“Very well.” Celestia replied

- - Celestia’s Flashback - - -

A much younger Celestia nodded to the earth pony stallion standing in front of her before spreading her wings and taking flight. She took a moment to get her bearings before heading to the northeast. I need to fly over the desert, several farmlands and the small villages near the forest before going over the forest to reach the castle. She shook her head. It sounds simple enough, but the journey takes almost three days by air. She sighed I hope Artemis was able to keep the nobles in line during my absence.

She flew for six hours straight before landing on a large cloud and folding her wings. “I think I will stop here for the night. There aren’t many ponies here and those that do live here are mostly earth ponies. This means that they shouldn’t be able to reach me up here. That said, the desert is dangerous at night.” She cast a shield around the cloud before laying down and using her magic to pull an apple out of her saddlebags.

She finished her apple and placed the core in her saddlebags before looking up at the two stars to the right of her brother’s moon. “Good night, Mother and Father.” She lay her head on the cloud and closed her eyes. It didn’t take her long to fall asleep.

The Next Morning

Celestia woke to the pull of the sun. Yawning, she opened her eyes and lifted her head in time to see the moon slowly slip below the horizon. She raised the sun before standing and looking around her. “There aren’t any rain clouds in sight.” She sighed “This means that there won’t be any relief from the heat.” She released her shield, spread her wings and took flight.

After a couple of hours of peaceful flight, she heard a scream from below. “That sounded like a filly.” Concerned, she flew lower as she scanned the desert. That was when she saw a pony with a pale lavender coat running almost directly under her. “That has to be the one who screamed.” She looked closer at the ones chasing the filly before shaking her head. “Of course. Bandits.” It looks like two of them are earth ponies and the one in the lead is a unicorn.

Celestia landed on the sand between the filly and three stallions. “Stop this at once!”

The stallions gasped in shock as they skidded to a stop in order to avoid running into her. All three of them stammered the same two words. “P-princess Celestia!”

Also skidding to a stop, the filly looked over her shoulder. “D-did they say Princess Celestia?!” Her eyes widened when she saw Celestia. “It is her!”

Celestia glared at the stallions. “I don’t care what she has done. There is no reason for the three of you to be chasing a foal through the desert. You know that the exertion alone could kill her . . . especially when the heat starts to increase.”

The largest stallion narrowed his eyes as he took a couple of steps forward. “If I may explain, princess.”

Celestia nodded I have to hear this.

The stallion’s expression immediately lightened. “That filly has been stealing from us for a couple of weeks.”

“I didn’t take any of your money or treasure!” The filly immediately protested “I only took one small jar of water a day! I asked nicely, but you told me that I had to pay you. I gave your friend all of my money on the first day, but he only gave me enough water for one hour!” She shook her silver mane out of her purple eyes and glared at the stallions. “Then he told me to go away and never come back!”

It seems that there is some good in the filly. She did steal, but purposely avoided the money and treasure. Instead, she only took what she needed to survive. Celestia used her magic to open her saddlebags and pull out a bottle of water. She kept her gaze on the stallions while levitating the water to the filly.

The filly squealed in delight as she sat down and grabbed the bottle with both forehooves. “Thank you, princess!” She immediately drank almost half of the bottle in a single gulp.

“Drink the rest slowly.” Celestia waited for the filly to nod before turning back to the stallions. “Explain yourselves.”

The stallion that had spoken to Celestia turned to the one to his left. “How much money did the thief give you?”

The second stallion reached his muzzle into his saddlebags, pulled out a decent sized bag and dropped it on the sand in front of him. “Just under three hundred bits and a valuable necklace.”

“That’s a lot of money for such a little filly.” The third stallion remarked

The first stallion snorted “She probably stole it.”

“I did not!” The filly protested “My mommy gave it to me just before the bad ponies hurt her with their swords! She told me to go into the desert and find the ponies living there.”

Celestia glanced over her shoulder at the filly. “Why did she do that?”

The filly set the empty bottle on the sand and stood. “She told me that my Daddy lives in the desert. I was supposed to find him and give him that bag. She said that he gave her the necklace as a present a long time ago. She also told me that my Daddy promised to take care of me if she couldn’t.”

The third stallion’s eyes widened “I-It couldn’t be.” He took a few steps forward. “What is your name?”

The filly glared at him. “Platinum.”

The third stallion gasped in shock as he staggered back a couple of steps. “T-that means . . . W-what happened to Gold?”

Platinum’s ears dropped as she looked off to the side. “I ran away and hid until the bad ponies went away. Then I went back to Mommy, but . . .” She began to cry. “T-there was a lot of blood and s-she wasn’t breathing.”

Everyone else gasped in horror.

Platinum suddenly realized what the third stallion had said. She used a forehoof to dry her eyes and lifted her head. “H-how do you know my Mommy’s name?”

The third stallion sighed “My name is Dune and . . . I am your father. Your mother was correct. I did promise her that I would take care of you if anything happened to her.”

Everyone else gasped again . . . in shock this time.

Dune took a deep breath before turning back to his daughter. “Come along. Let’s get you back to camp.”

“No!” Platinum shouted

Celestia turned so that she was facing the filly directly. The fact that Dune provided Platinum’s mother’s name without being asked tells me that he is the filly’s father. “This is the pony that you have been searching for. Why don’t you want to go with your father?”

Platinum pointed at her father. “When they were chasing me, he . . . he told me that he was going to kill me!”

“I didn’t know who you were!” Dune protested “I had been travelling for over a month and finally made it back to the camp late last night.” He turned to Celestia. “I told her that she was going to die if she didn’t stop running.”

“Why didn’t you know that you were chasing your daughter?” Celestia asked

“I had never seen her before.” Dune explained “I knew her name and gender because Gold sent me a letter when our daughter was born.” He sighed again. “Gold wanted to stay in the city on the border, but city life isn’t for me. We decided that it would be best if Platinum stayed with her mother because the desert is no place for a young filly.” He glanced at Platinum before turning back to Celestia. “As for the chase today, I didn’t know who we were chasing or what they had done. I was asked to join in because I am the fastest pony in camp.”

Celestia looked at Platinum thoughtfully. She is shaking. It is clear that she is afraid of her father. Under normal circumstances, I would try to keep a family together. However, I don’t believe that is the best course of action to take in this particular situation. She tilted her head slightly. In this case, the best course of action would be . . . Her mind made up, she turned back to Dune. “I was on my way back to the castle. I will bring her with me and see to it that she is taken care of.”

Dune’s ears drooped “I understand.” He used his magic to open the bag that still sat on the sand.

Everyone else looked on as he levitated a necklace into the air before turning to his daughter.

“I gave this to your mother long before you were born.” Dune said softly “I chose a gold chain because of her name. I searched the desert for months to find a gem that was her favorite shade of purple. Then I had an . . . acquaintance . . . turn the gem into the pendant before giving it to her.” He levitated it to Platinum. “I want you to have it.” He gently placed the necklace around his daughter’s neck.

Eyes, wide, Platinum just stared at her father in shock.

Everyone else looked on in stunned silence as Dune turned around and started the long journey back to camp.

His anger gone, the first stallion looked from Dune’s retreating figure to Platinum and back before turning to Celestia. “Please excuse me, princess. I need to go help him.”

Celestia nodded “Don’t let him do anything foolish.”

The first stallion bowed to Celestia before lifting him head and turning to the second stallion. “Grab the money and let’s go. We need to catch up to Dune.”

The second stallion silently did as he was told.

Celestia watched them until they were out of sight. This is not how I was planning to spend the day. No matter. The filly is my responsibility now . . . now I just need to figure out what I am going to do with her. She was pulled from her thoughts by a soft voice.

“Princess?”

Startled, Celestia jumped slightly before turning to her new charge. “Yes?”

“What are we going to do now?” Platinum asked

“We are going to the castle.” Celestia answered

Platinum gasped “The castle?! Why are we going there?!”

Celestia laughed softly “That is where I live. I have been travelling around Equestria for almost three months and would like to go home.” It will take weeks to walk out of the desert at her pace. That doesn’t include the farms, villages or the forest. I don’t have enough food and water for that. This means that the only option is to fly. She levitated the filly onto her back. “Hold on tight.” She waited for Platinum to wrap her forelegs around her neck before spreading her wings and taking flight.

- - End Flashback- - -

Blueblood just stared at Celestia for a little over a minute before he was able to shake himself from his shock. A-aunt Celestia would never lie to me . . . especially about something like this. T-this means that its true. I am not part of a royal bloodline. He was pulled from his thoughts by Midnight Armor’s voice.

“I would like to get back to the original topic.” Midnight Armor remarked “Simply put, your actions towards my son were unacceptable.”

Blueblood turned to see that Midnight Armor was glaring at him again.

I need to make one thing absolutely clear. “You realize that you are not entitled to anything . . . let alone a position of power.” Midnight Armor gave Blueblood a look that left no room for argument.

Suppressing a shudder, Blueblood silently nodded.

There are several additional things that I would like to say to that pony, but I don’t think it would be wise to do so. Midnight Armor glanced at Sundance. “It’s your turn.”

Sundance nodded to her husband before narrowing her eyes slightly as she turned to Dahlia. “If I understand correctly, you are the one who tried to kill one of my daughters and my granddaughter.”

Dahlia barely managed to suppress a shudder. S-she is trying to hide it, but I can tell that she is extremely angry with me. Her eyes widened when she suddenly realized what Sundance had said. Queen Sundance probably referred to Princess Twilight as her daughter because she is in a relationship with Prince Artemis. As for the rest . . . She turned to Artemis and Twilight. “Granddaughter?”

Twilight nodded “Artemis and I are having an alicorn filly.”

Artemis nuzzled Twilight before turning to Dahlia. “We have named our daughter Lavender Selene.”

“That’s beautiful.” Dahlia whispered

I hate to admit it, but Dahlia is right. That is a beautiful, and regal, name. Blueblood glanced at Artemis. I still don’t think he deserves his title, but he has given his daughter an appropriate name.

Sundance cleared her throat and waited for Dahlia to look at her. “I understand that you attacked Twilight in an attempt to kill Lavender Selene.”

Twilight was unable to suppress a shudder as she briefly allowed herself to think about that day.

Seeing this, Artemis draped a wing over his wife’s back before leaning down to gently nuzzle her.

Dahlia reluctantly nodded

“Why?” Sundance asked

Good question. Harmony commented

“I was trying to protect Equestria.” Dahlia answered

What in Equestria is she talking about? Harmony slowly asked

I’m not sure. Sundance turned back to Dahlia. “How could you have thought that killing an unborn foal would do that?”

“At the time, my husband had recently been arrested for his role in Blueblood’s plan to remove Prince Artemis from power.” Dahlia explained

“It’s Prince Blueblood to you!” Blueblood shouted

“Shut up.” Dahlia snapped “You are not a prince!”

Forest’s body began to shake as he struggled to resist the urge to laugh. It’s about time someone told him that . . . in that manner.

Midnight Armor barely managed to suppress his laughter. I did not expect her to say that.

Laughter didn’t bother trying to suppress her laughter. In fact, she was forced to wait until she was calm enough to be understood before listening to Pinkie. Then she turned back to Midnight Armor. That was EXTREMELY funny. Pinkie thinks so as well. In fact, she is still on the floor of the bakery.

I can’t say that I blame her. Midnight Armor responded

“I made several trips here to visit my husband.” Dahlia continued “I also visited Blueblood because he had convinced me that he was the rightful ruler of Equestria.” She sighed “That was when I was misled into believing that Prince Artemis’ Nightmare Form would take possession of his child in order to be reborn into a body of his own.”

Sundance glared at Blueblood. “I think I can guess who was responsible for that.”

Blueblood just smiled at her. That was one of the best ideas I ever had. The only way that it could have gone any better is if Dahlia had succeeded in killing the Royal Foal.

“I was told that the only way to prevent that was to kill the foal before it could be born.” Dahlia finished “As I said, I honestly thought I was protecting Equestria.”

I need to set this straight. Night turned his attention to Artemis. Would you mind letting me have control of your body? There are a few things that I would like to say to the two idiots in front of you.

I don’t want you harming either of them. Artemis replied

I won’t touch either of them. Night responded

Artemis focused on his connection to Night for a moment before tilting his head slightly. I don’t sense any deceit from him. Besides, I am sure that Twilight will stop him if he tries anything.

Night laughed If it makes you feel any better, I assure you that I won’t try anything. I am well aware of the fact that your wife has the power to stop me. As I have said before, I do not have a death wish.

Very well. Artemis closed his eyes.

Everyone else’ eyes widened when Artemis’ coat began to darken as he got taller.

Dahlia gasped in shock as she staggered back a couple of feet. W-why is he here?!

Aren’t you worried? Loyalty asked

A little. Midnight Armor admitted However, I know that Artemis wouldn’t have allowed this if he thought Night was planning to harm anypony here.

Good point. Honesty responded I hope he is right about that.

Night opened his eyes a little over a minute later. “Do not be alarmed. Artemis has allowed me to have control of his body for a short amount of time.”

I don’t like this. Sundance nervously glanced at Night. She was slightly reassured when she saw that he was calmly standing next to Twilight.

Harmony carefully examined Night’s facial expression and body language. I don’t think he poses any danger to anypony around you.

I hope you are right. Sundance replied

Celestia glanced at Night. He is clearly annoyed, but I don’t sense any hostility from him.

“Why did he do that?” Twilight asked

Night glanced at Twilight. “I would like to speak to two of the ponies here.”

“I think I can guess which two.” Twilight commented

Night smiled at her. “You would be correct.” He allowed his smile to fade as he turned to Blueblood. “I will get to you in a minute.”

Blueblood barely managed to suppress a shudder as he silently nodded.

Night turned to Dahlia. “I am sure that I don’t need to introduce myself.”

Trembling slightly, Dahlia shook her head.

“There is no need to be afraid. I am not going to harm anypony.” Night resisted the urge to laugh when Dahlia relaxed slightly.

Magic listened to the spirits of the other Elements of Harmony for a moment before turning to Twilight. Your friends are aware of the situation. They have already agreed to let you borrow their power if it becomes necessary.

Twilight tilted her head slightly. I appreciate the offer, but I don’t think that will be necessary.

I hope you’re right. Magic replied

“I will make this as simple as possible.” Night waited for Dahlia to nod. “The Elements of Harmony purified me when they purified Artemis. They also bound our souls together. As a result, I can’t leave Artemis’ body.”

Dahlia tilted her head slightly. Something about the way that he said the last sentence . . . “Do you want to?”

Night shook his head. “The events of four months ago have convinced me that Artemis needs to be protected. The best way to do that is to make sure that I am always with him.” He glanced at Twilight before turning back to Dahlia. “As I am sure that you noticed when you attacked Twilight, I am willing to protect her as well.”

“I-I see.” Dahlia stammered

“Don’t listen to him!” Blueblood shouted “That thing is just trying to gain your trust so that it will be easier to destroy you!”

“It doesn’t matter if you trust me.” Night responded “If I want to, I can easily destroy both of you ten times over in less than two minutes.”

Artemis began to laugh. Well said.

Dahlia’s eyes widened while Blueblood gasped in shock.

Laughter laughed Pinkie HAD managed to stand up, but she is laughing so hard that she is on the floor again. Pound and Pumpkin think she has lost her mind.

Applejack is laughing as well. Honesty remarked She would be on the ground, but her brother shoved her onto a hay bale.

Kindness giggled Even Fluttershy thought that was funny.

Rarity just smiled and shook her head. Generosity commented She believes that Night needs tact . . . but said that he has a good point.

Rainbow was trying to perfect her newest trick, but she started laughing so hard that she couldn’t concentrate on her flight. Loyalty laughed She fell onto one of the clouds that happened to be beneath her and is now laughing so hard that she can barely breathe.

Midnight Armor shook his head slightly. I don’t blame any of them.

Everypony else, except for Night, struggled to suppress their laughter.

“If that is the case, why haven’t you attacked us?” Blueblood hesitantly asked

Night turned back to Blueblood. “Artemis made me promise that I wouldn’t harm either of you.”

Sundance smiled Well done, Artemis.

Blueblood’s eyes widened “What? I thought he didn’t like me.”

“Artemis can’t stand you.” Night responded “In fact, I would even say that he hates you.” And I don’t blame him.

“I can’t say that I blame him.” Celestia resisted the urge to laugh when Blueblood immediately glared at her. “You tried to dethrone him. You tried to force me to permanently banish him to the moon.” She gave Blueblood a look. “Then you ordered Blaze to kill my brother.”

“That was his fault!” Blueblood retorted “None of that would have happened if your brother had stepped down from his position as Prince of Equestria and turned his Royal Duties over to you!” The final step of my plan was to trick Aunt Celestia into naming me Prince of Equestria.

Every member of the Royal Family shouted the same word. “WHAT?!”

Night glared at Blueblood as his horn began to glow. That does it.

Do not harm him. Artemis responded

I don’t understand why Artemis is protecting the idiot. Night took several deep breaths before glancing at Sundance and Midnight Armor. “I believe it would be best if we end our visit now.” If this idiot keeps speaking . . . well, I may end up killing him anyway.

“Agreed.” Sundance immediately replied

Midnight Armor glared at Blueblood. I would love to take care of him myself, but that would cause more trouble than it is worth.

I am going to get all of you out of there. Harmony teleported the Royal Family and their guards to the garden behind the castle before Sundance could respond.

Forest stared at the space that the Royal Family had occupied for a moment before narrowing his eyes as he turned to Blueblood. “You won’t be getting dinner after that stunt.”

Blueblood narrowed his eyes as he turned to Forest. “You can’t do that!”

I am not going to bother giving him a response. Forest turned and walked down the hall towards the entrance to the Royal Dungeon.

In the Garden Behind the Castle

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia and Twilight turned to Night in time to see him allow is magic to fade as he closed his eyes. They smiled as they watched Artemis regain control of his body.

Artemis let out an irritated sigh as he opened his eyes. “I can’t believe that idiot said that.”

Laughing softly, Celestia shook her head as she walked over to her brother. “That isn’t appropriate language for royalty.”

“Who cares?” Artemis responded “The only ponies here are our family and guards.” I don’t care if the guards hear less than royal language from us.

Celestia laughed a little harder. “Fair enough.”

Midnight Armor took a couple of deep breaths that did nothing to calm him.

He really needs to calm down. Is there anything we can do to help? Kindness hesitantly asked

I appreciate the offer, but I have something else in mind. Midnight Armor turned to his son. “Take all of that off.”

The guards exchanged confused glances before turning back to Midnight Armor and Artemis.

“Why did King Midnight Armor tell Prince Artemis to do that?” Midnight Fang whispered

“I’m not sure.” Silver Shadow quietly responded “We should see what King Midnight Armor has planned.”

The guards turned back to the Royal Family.

Your father is even angrier at the idiot than you are. Night remarked

Smiling slightly, Artemis did as his father had asked. He set his royal finery in a neat pile on a stone bench next to one to the fountains before starting to stretch. I can’t say that I blame him. That idiot has repeatedly attacked one of his children.

I don’t blame him at all. Night replied

I know that I am no match for him. Midnight Armor took his favorite fighting stance. However, he is the only one that I can safely spar with.

Loyalty looked at Midnight Armor thoughtfully. He has a point. Midnight may be no match for Artemis, but the guards are no match for him.

Shaking his head, Artemis finished stretching before taking the same fighting stance that he had used against his father the day before.

That’s strange. Sundance carefully compared her husband’s fighting stance with the one that their son was using. “It looks like Artemis slightly altered Midnight’s favorite fighting stance.”

You’re right. Harmony commented

“That is exactly what Artemis has done.” Celestia replied

Sundance glanced at Celestia. “Do you know why he still uses that stance? I am sure that there have been several improvements during the fifteen hundred years that your father and I were gone.”

Good question. Sapphire Wing looked at Celestia as well.

Steel Night and Midnight Fang exchanged glances before turning to Celestia.

This is interesting. Silver Shadow carefully examined Midnight Armor’s stance before carefully examining the one that Artemis was using as well. “King Midnight Armor’s stance is impressive, but there is one weakness. Most ponies wouldn’t notice it, but it is obvious to the eye of a properly trained pony. As for Prince Artemis . . . I can’t find a weakness in his defense.” I wonder why we weren’t taught that stance in the Royal Guard Academy.

Midnight Armor idly flicked an ear in Silver Shadow’s direction. Impressive. That stallion is very sharp. Perhaps with a little training . . . He shook his head slightly. That is a thought for another time.

I wonder what he meant by that. Honesty mentally shrugged. I will ask him about that after he has calmed down.

“At first, it was his way of keeping Father’s memory alive.” Celestia answered

Sundance’s eyes widened. “What?”

“At first?” Harmony repeated

“That’s right.” Celestia turned back to her mother. “When we visited our old castle, I told you that I was devastated when it appeared that we lost you.”

Sundance nodded

“Artemis was just as devastated when it appeared that we lost Father.” Celestia continued “In fact, he was worried that he would forget Father. As such, he started using Father’s favorite stance almost immediately. It didn’t take him long to discover that stance’s only weakness.” She laughed softly “He spent years perfecting it. Over the years, it has become his favorite stance as well.”

Sundance turned back to Midnight Armor and Artemis. “I see.”

Midnight Armor stared at his eldest in stunned silence for a little over a minute before slowly turning back to his son. Artemis . . .

Artemis gave his father a small smile. “I am ready when you are.”

Midnight Armor returned the smile. “In that case, let’s get started.”

Sapphire Wing gasped in shock when Midnight Armor and Artemis suddenly vanished. “W-where did they go?!”

Steel Night was about to respond, but paused when he heard soft laughter. Confused, he turned to the rest of the Royal Family. “Princess Celestia?”

“You might want to look up.” Celestia smiled at them before following her own advice.

Everyone else on the ground looked up as well.

Midnight Armor and Artemis reappeared fifteen feet in the air before crashing into each other. As before, Midnight Armor’s size allowed him to push his son back several feet.

Still moving backwards, Artemis allowed a small smile onto his face as his horn began to glow. I doubt Father will be expecting this.

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow. What is he doing? His eyes widened when Artemis launched a beam of magic at him.

That didn’t take long. Loyalty remarked

Agreed. Midnight Armor dodged his son’s attack and launched one of his own.

That doesn’t look like an illusion. Night commented

It isn’t. Artemis performed a back flip so that his father’s attack went under him before returning to his original position.

I thought you said that his first attack is usually a bluff. Night remarked

That only applies when we are training. Artemis carefully examined his father’s body language and facial expression. I think it is safe to say that we aren’t training at the moment.

Good point. Night slowly replied

Midnight Armor used his magic to boost his speed as he flew towards his son.

Artemis laughed “Nice try, Father.” He easily blocked the blow that Midnight Armor had aimed at his chest before launching one at his father’s right side.

Midnight Armor grunted at his son’s attack forced him a couple of feet to the left. He watched Artemis carefully for a moment before smiling slightly when he noticed something. He hasn’t covered it properly. I can use that to my advantage.

What are you talking about? Honesty asked

You will see soon enough. Midnight teleported above Artemis before aiming a blow at one specific spot in between his son’s shoulder blades. His smile widened when his son fell several feet. I thought so.

“Incredible.” Sapphire Wing said softly

Artemis used his wings to slow his descent before suddenly vanishing.

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened as he looked around. Where did he go this time? He braced himself and waited for his son to make his move. He looked up when he saw a flash of dark blue above him.

“Too slow.” Artemis used both forehooves to physically push his father towards the ground before launching a beam of magic as well.

Silver Shadow glanced at Sapphire Wing. “That was incredible.”

Sapphire Wing and Midnight Fang silently nodded.

Steel Night tilted his head thoughtfully. “It looked like Prince Artemis deliberately created an opening in his defense. He allowed his father to attack him.” I wonder why.

Sundance glanced at Steel Night before looking up at her husband and their son. He’s right. Why would Artemis do that?

Midnight Armor managed to roll slightly to the left so that he landed on his side instead of on his wings. That was close. I could have broken both of my wings.

Artemis landed next to his father. “I was wondering how long it would take you to figure that out.”

Midnight Armor climbed to his hooves before turning to his son. “Excuse me?”

“As you know, your favorite stance has a single weak point.” Artemis explained “In fact, the way that you attacked me highlights that weakness. I discovered that when a rather large rogue manticore managed get a claw in just the right spot. The pain was so intense that I collapsed.” He shuddered “The manticore used that as an opportunity to take a bite out of my right shoulder. I rolled over as it went in for another bite.” He shuddered again “Fortunately, I was able to destroy it with a powerful blast of magic before it got the chance.”

Midnight Armor shuddered as well. I am glad that he was able to destroy that Manticore.

“That is why I decided to alter your favorite stance.” Artemis finished

“I see.” Midnight Armor slowly replied I don’t blame him for that.

“You won’t be able to do that again.” Artemis chuckled when his father’s expression changed. “It looks like you don’t believe me.” He smiled “Would you like to try it?”

This is new. My son is testing me. Midnight Armor answered the question by vanishing.

Laughing softly, Artemis shook his head before vanishing as well.

“Where did they go this time?” Steel Night asked

Midnight Fang was about to respond, but paused when he noticed that Twilight was looking at a particular part of the sky. Curious, he followed her gaze. There is nothing there.

I wonder if they are able to track Artemis and Midnight. Sundance glanced at her daughters. Celestia has the right idea, but she is looking in the wrong direction. She laughed softly when Celestia suddenly looked in the opposite direction. It appears that she is a couple of seconds behind them. As for Twilight . . . She smiled when she saw that Twilight’s eyes were darting from side to side. It appears that she is able to track their movements.

Harmony took a closer look at Twilight’s expression. Why is she confused?

She probably doesn’t know what she is sensing. Sundance answered I am certain that this battle style hasn’t been used in centuries.

What are Midnight Armor and Artemis doing? Harmony asked

They are repeatedly hitting each other and teleporting away from each other. Sundance answered Both of them are doing this so quickly that most ponies aren’t able to track them.

I thought Artemis was faster than his father. Harmony commented

Sundance smiled It is true that Artemis is physically faster than his father, but this battle style focuses on their magic. Their spellcasting speed is roughly the same.

I see. Harmony slowly replied

Sundance and Twilight suddenly looked straight up. Sundance was about to react, but paused when Twilight quickly cast her force field. Everyone else gasped in shock when Artemis fell out of the sky.

Artemis landed on his back on top of his wife’s force field. He took a moment to catch his breath before rolling onto his hooves.

“What happened?” Steel Night asked

“Midnight surprised Artemis.” Sundance watched her son shake his head before closing his eyes.

There he is. Artemis opened his eyes.

What happened?! Night demanded I couldn’t track either of them. The next thing I knew, Artemis was falling out of the sky!

“I was careless.” Artemis muttered “It won’t happen again.”

Everyone in the shield looked on as Artemis vanished again.

Sundance glanced at Twilight. “Well done.”

Twilight released her force field before smiling at her mother. “Thanks.”

Everyone on the ground returned their attention to the sky. Their eyes widened when Midnight Armor and Artemis suddenly reappeared.

It was clear that Midnight Armor had tried to exploit his favorite stance’s weak point again, but Artemis had rolled onto his back in midair.

Artemis launched a beam of magic at his father from point blank range.

Thinking quickly, Midnight Armor teleported out of the way. He reappeared to the left of his son, but at a slightly lower altitude. I’d like to see him block me this time.

Chapter 1

“See, Rainbow Darling, I told you that a hoofacure was the Best . . . Thing . . . Ever!” said Rarity with her usual dramatic flair as she and the rest of her friends walked out of the Ponyville Day Spa, where they had spent the last several hours.

“Yeah, yeah”, Rainbow Dash replied from her place in the air as she flew along above the group “It did feel good, but it’s way too girly for me. I’ve got a reputation to maintain and I can’t be seen at the spa! Nopony will take me seriously ever again!”

“Um . . . it wasn’t that bad . . . right, Rainbow?” stammered Fluttershy as she walked next to Rarity. “It can be really relaxing and. . . Eep!” The last part came out as a squeak because Fluttershy was suddenly pounced on by and disappeared under a blur of bright pink.

“Yeah, Dashie! I was baking all morning and was super-duper sore because I was standing the WHOLE time!” exclaimed Pinkie Pie as she bounced along, now next to Fluttershy.

“Pinkie, you never just stand anywhere or anytime. Ah think ah speak for us all when ah say that you’re never still, sugarcube.” Applejack spoke up as she walked next to Twilight on the other side of Rarity. The rest of the girls started giggling.

“Ugh, Twilight, help me out here!” Rainbow wined.

Twilight was still caught up in her giggles but managed to squeeze out a reply. “Sorry Rainbow, I like a good massage every now and then. I mean . . .” Suddenly she froze.

That got the attention of the girls. They all turned to her and asked “Twilight?”

Twilight didn’t answer. Instead, she spread her wings and launched herself into the air. “I really hope that’s not what I think it is.” She muttered to herself as she hovered above the girls. She closed her eyes and focused her magic and her senses on the disturbance she felt from Canterlot. Unfortunately, she didn’t sense anything that did not confirm her worst fear.

Twilight knew there was no time to waste. From her place in midair, she gathered her magic and cast a long distance teleport straight to Canterlot Castle.

“What the hay was that all about?!” asked all of the girls at the same time.

After a moment, Applejack said “Let’s go to Twilight’s castle, maybe Spike’ll know somethin’.”

“Good idea,” Rarity replied “Even if he doesn’t, he can send a letter to Princess Celestia and ask her what’s going on.” The other girls agreed and headed in the direction of the Castle of Friendship.

Meanwhile, Twilight came out of her teleport in a flash of purple light. She looked around only to find the throne room of Canterlot Castle in a state of chaos that would make Discord proud.