When the group arrived at the Crystal Palace, they all gathered around the Crystal Heart. Starswirl stood back farther than the rest, gazing upon the Heart from a distance and taking in the entirety of the area beneath the palace. He put a hoof to his chin and stroked his beard. Then, he broke the silence.

"Are there any protections for the Crystal Heart that we need to disable in order to examine it, or is it simply protected by its own magic?"

Shining answered, "There aren't any spells or other protections in place at the moment. The Heart is generally able to protect itself, with some notable exceptions."

"For example," Sunburst said. "King Sombra was able to incapacitate it using his dark magic when he took over the Empire a millennia ago."

"It's also particularly vulnerable to alicorn magic, as we discovered at Flurry Heart's crystalling," Twilight added.

"An interesting note, for sure, but as your letter implied, it appears that unicorn magic is sufficient to manipulate the Heart, even if it cannot harm it." Starswirl slowly approached the Heart, looking at it from several angles. "The question is: was the other Starswirl's manipulation the sole reason Sunburst was sent here, or was another factor at play?" Starswirl and the others looked at Sunburst.

"Well, the original target of the spell was a slightly withered houseplant," he said. "It wasn't like my Starswirl was working hard to achieve a particular result. My ending up here is probably a random accident."

"Almost certainly not," said Starswirl. "The Crystal Heart's power is exceeded only by the Elements of Harmony themselves. It is not something that can be tamed at a whim. The magic of love is as complex and organic as the feeling itself."

"You're suggesting," said Twilight, "that like the Elements and the Tree, the love magic concentrated inside may have given the Heart a degree of sentience."

Starswirl nodded. "I have studied this relic extensively. Although it is potentially vulnerable to certain types of alicorn magic—as you three discovered not too long ago, King Sombra himself failed to destroy it, despite his best efforts, and had to hide it away instead. Few ponies throughout history have managed to successfully manipulate it. This implies that it may have a degree of free will. Or at least, that it operates on a complex system of rules."

"So, it may have actually sent Sunburst here on purpose," said Starlight. "When it came time for the spell you did in the other universe to activate, it might have picked Sunburst over Flurry and the plant."

When he first heard it, the idea perplexed Sunbust. To this point, he hadn't considered the possibility that the Crystal Heart itself may have wanted to send him here. He had assumed he was taking a hit for Flurry, not that he had been chosen. He and Starswirl, the one from his universe, had been working on the assumption that the spell itself was simply using the Crystal Heart like a fuel source, but perhaps it was a more equal relationship between the spell and the Heart, or perhaps they had the relationship completely backwards.

The Crystal Heart may have wanted to send him here. And not in the way that a chemical reaction "wants" to achieve a lower energy state, but in the way a pony wants a particular food at a restaurant. In that case, the spell hitting him over Flurry wasn't an accident, but a deliberate act.

Is this all happening for a reason? The thought caused Sunburst to scratch at his goatee. The follow-up thought made him open his eyes in wonder. "Did the Crystal Heart want to reform something about me?"

"Perhaps," Starswirl said. "The source and focus of the Heart's magic is love. As a result, I believe we may safely assume that it is also motivated to spread and foster love."

Starswirl walked around the Crystal Heart. His eyes were like daggers. It was as if he was stabbing into the Heart's essence and hungered for it to divulge its meaning. After the fourth or fifth circuit, the unicorn halted and nodded to himself.

"I believe that we may need to help the Heart's magic run its course," he said. "I fear its will in this may be too important for us to attempt to override the spell directly."

"What would that look like?" asked Shining Armor.

"What do you mean?" Starswirl said. He stopped and looked around at the other ponies, finding that they all held equally blank expressions. "Based on your letter, I thought it was obvious what the Heart wanted to happen."

Starlight shook her head. "It's not obvious to us. Maybe your outside perspective on this makes it more clear, but we've been pretty stumped until now."

"How do we help the Heart's magic run its course?" Twilight asked.

In a matter-of-fact tone, Starswirl said, "Princess Twilight should go on some dates with Sunburst."

"What?!?" All the other ponies said in unison.

Starswirl gave a light laugh. "I don't see why you're so surprised. If Sunburst was sent here by the Crystal Heart because he needs to reform his behavior in regards to love, then what better way is there for him to discover that part of himself?"

The other four ponies stood in silence. Starlight looked at Sunburst. Sunburst looked at Twilight. Twilight looked at the ground. Shining Armor was the first one to speak.

"That makes sense, but isn't there another way?" Shining asked. He moved to stand right next to his sister.

"Why do we need another...?" Starswirl paused. He looked at Twilight, and found that she appeared far from happy about this plan.

Sunburst could see what was going through Twilight's head. The way she held herself was similar to how she looked when she first learned that her Sunbust had been taken away from her. He couldn't imagine what it would be like if the pony he loved was lost, and he were desperately trying to get her back, and then to be told that now was the time to go on a date with somepony else.

"I see." Starswirl walked over to Twilight and put a hoof on her shoulder. "Twilight Sparkle, I have seen you face difficult challenges, and I've heard stories of the great things you have done. I didn't consider the weight that this would put upon you."

Twilight looked up at Starswirl. "There's a part of me that feels like this is wrong. My Sunny is lost somewhere else and I need to help get him home. The idea of going on a date with somepony else is like betrayal. Even if it is with another Sunbrust..."

"You don't have to do this if you don't want to, Twily," said Shining Armor. "We can find another way."

"But it makes sense," Twilight said. She moved away from Shining and Starswirl and began to pace back and forth. "The logic is there. If the Crystal Heart sent this Sunburst to our universe in particular, the fact that we're in a relationship together is likely a key factor. And since the Heart is powered by love, it makes perfect sense that it would see his lack of desire for a relationship as a flaw—something to be reformed."

"Maybe we should think about this more," Starlight suggested. "There's no need to put yourself through that emotional trial if we have other options."

Twilight shook her head. "The longer we wait, the longer Sunny is trapped another universe or in limbo or wherever he is. If the situation were reversed, he would do everything he could to get me back as quickly as possible." Then, she turned to Sunburst. "What do you think?"

Suddenly, all eyes were on him. Sunburst backed up slightly. This was exactly the sort of situation he did not want to find himself in. He could tell how fragile Twilight's emotions were. But he could see the logic in Starswirl's idea. And then he was fighting with his own feelings. He also wanted to get back home as quickly as possible. And his reasoning for that wasn't entirely selfish. He was sure that in his universe, Starswirl and Princess Cadence were trying everything they could to get him back. The sooner he succeeded here, the sooner they could stop worrying. And of course, the sooner this Twilight could have her Sunburst.

When he looked at Shining Armor and Starlight, he could understand where they were coming from as well. Shining was worried about his little sister. Of course, knowing what he did, he couldn't be entirely sure that Starlight's motivations were pure, but the idea of stopping to think this through wasn't unreasonable. He could certainly use some time to work through this.

"I think we should wait a bit. Not days or anything, but at least a few hours to consider what this would mean." At that, Twilight nodded, but started to pace again. It was obvious that she was becoming stressed.

"Twilight," Sunburst walked over to her and made her look him in the eye. "I'm as eager to get home as you are to have your fiancé back. But I don't want you to jump this without taking a look at the implications. The last thing I want to do is hurt you while we're trying to help me."

Upon hearing that, Twilight actually smiled. She put her hooves around Sunburst in a hug.

As he held her, Sunburst happened to catch Shining Armor's eye. The stallion mouthed a "thank you" to him.

Starswirl went over to Twilight and Sunburst as they broke apart. "I think that was a wise choice, Sunburst. Patience is a virtue. And that fact is even more critical when you are in a committed relationship."

"I'd like some time alone until this evening," said Twilight. "I want to think some things through."

"Of course," said Starswirl. "Take your time. Let's plan on meeting back here for dinner to discuss this and make a decision."

Author's Note

To come back after a time, only to end the chapter on a cliffhanger, isn't what I wanted. But, as they say, "The show must go on." That was always how this chapter was going to end. I just wish I'd gotten it out long before now. And here's hoping the next one comes much quicker.