Author's Note

Time to put this story to bed! Thanks for reading, and I hope you've enjoyed it! Keep being awesome, everyone!

Epilogue: The Birth of the Future

The outside of our door felt a lot smaller standing there in my current situation. Normally, it was inviting, with an air of friendliness and companionship such that no other door had. At least, none that I’d ever witnessed. But in this moment, it felt so small, and almost like a portal to hell itself even though I knew that a small slice of heaven was happening on the other side. My breathing was rapid, and I found myself doing what I’m sure a lot of stallions (and humans) in my position had done for generations: pacing. I’m sure I wore a rather sizable hole in the castle carpet as I wandered back and forth aimlessly, listening to my beloved screaming in pain on the other side. Even though I knew every scream brought the both of us closer to a goal, it tore my heart apart to hear them.

Our first foal had not been easy to come by. Our wedding night in Manehattan had been fairly rambunctious, but nothing had come of it. We were both thankful for that, because we knew we weren’t ready for parenthood just yet. But then, one morning, Twilight rolled over in bed and whispered in my ear that she wanted to start a family. My response was groggy at first, but then I sat straight up. “A…are you sure?” I asked her.

“Yes, darling,” she replied with a sincere smile, “we’re both ponies right now, and I’d like our firstborn to be Equestrian.”

“Well…I’d kinda like it to be American,” I said honestly, “I mean, I still love my home country.”

She sighed and sat up on her haunches to meet me. “I know you do,” she said, “and to be honest, I do, too. But Equestria is still first in my heart, and I must remain true to that.”

“But I still love America just as much as you love Equestria,” I contradicted, “and I have to remain true to that!”

“Look, Stony,” she huffed, “our first baby is going to be Equestrian born!”

“American born!”

“Equestrian!”

“American!”

We growled at each other and turned away. My head was like a standard ping pong ball, bouncing back and forth between my love for her and my duties to my home world. As the Prince of Equestria, of course I held a great love for my new home. But my old home still held a great amount of sway over me as well, and I wanted my child to reflect that. Don’t lose your cool, I told myself, there are gonna be moments like this.

Then I remembered the promise I made to myself, to never stop loving her, no matter what. So, I turned back to her. “I’m sorry, Twily,” I said, putting a hoof on her shoulder. When Celestia crowned me prince, I had gone through a growth spurt as well, so now Twilight and I were the same size. “I shouldn’t have yelled at you like that.”

She turned back to me. “I’m sorry as well,” she said, “I think we both need to realize that, no matter where our baby’s born, it’s going to hold qualities that reflect both of our cultures and ways.”

I smiled and pulled her into a kiss. “You’re right, darling,” I said when we broke, “and I’d love to begin a family with you.”

With that, we began a weeks-long process of attempting to get Twilight pregnant. I’m fairly sure many comparisons to the average rabbit were drawn by the castle staff about us, and we got a lot of unsavory publicity thanks to whistleblowers, but it was a nice time for the two of us. Our bond got stronger with every loving touch we made and every small kiss, public and private. We both knew what was at stake, and every time we allowed ourselves to be free with each other, it was a very natural and beautiful event.

Finally, Twilight came home with the news and the castle and surrounding towns were awash in celebration. She even pulled a fast one on her brother, sister-in-law, and our little niece. She created a scavenger hunt for them to complete, just as they had done when Flurry Heart was on the way. “So,” Flurry, who was a young school foal by this point, said, “our job is to find everything on the list?”

“That’s right, Flurry!” Twilight said cheerily, “now, go help your mommy and daddy, and then you’ll find out what the big surprise is!”

Flurry smiled and trotted off to join her family. I pulled Twilight into a hug, being very careful not to disturb what was growing inside her. “It’s amazing, isn’t it? Soon, we’ll be seeing our foal trot.”

“Oh, I know!” Twilight said, tears in her eyes, “I can’t wait!”

I kissed her cheek and we sat back to wait. It didn’t take long, and within a couple of hours, Flurry came bounding back with her mane and tail in a tizzy. “Auntie Twily, Uncle Stony!” She cried in delight. I had taken to her like a fish to water. She was so unbelievably adorable, and I loved her just as much as Twilight did.

“Did you find everything?” I asked.

“Yes, yes!” She squealed, “we found everything, and I figured out what the surprise is!”

“Oh?” Twilight asked, “and how did you do that?”

“All of the things on the list had something in common: they all had to do with a foal! You two are gonna have a baby, aren’t you?!”

Twilight and I smiled and bent down to hug her. She spread her small wings and flapped them about in joyous delight. Her mother and father were right behind her, and they came over and embraced us as well. “We’re both so happy!” Cadance said, her eyes shining, “I mean, to think that we’re gonna get to be an aunt and uncle, and Flurry’s finally gonna have her first cousin!”

Flurry trotted over to Twilight’s belly and poked a tentative ear up to it. “Is the baby really in there?”

Twilight smiled. “It is,” she said warmly…

…That had been months before. Now, as I sat outside the room where the midwives were attempting to help bring my first child into the world, I had the chance to reflect on my entire adventure. I would not have picked anypony, or anybody, but Twilight to have it with. I truly loved her, and I knew I was going to do my best to be an excellent father to our firstborn.

As I sat there thinking, and sweating with nervousness, I heard an ear piercing shriek. A few moments later, one of the nurse ponies peeked out of the room. “Your Majesty,” she said, “you can come in, now. There’s somepony special you need to meet.” I got up and trotted into the room behind her. Once there, I found a breathless and morbidly exhausted Twilight holding a small bundle in her wing. I moved over and quietly peeked inside, finding our first foal just opening its small eyes.

My mouth shook and I didn’t know what to say. “Twilight…” I breathed.

My poor bride was too tired to respond, so I gently kissed her head and turned to the same nurse. “What is it?”

“It’s a little filly,” the nurse said in quiet excitement, “and I think your wife already has a name picked out.”

I turned back and looked. Our daughter had a light purple coat, and her mane was grey with purple and pink streaks running through it. She had a tiny nose, like her mother, and wide set eyes like me. “Twilight,” I whispered, “what’s her name?”

“It’s…Diamond Sparkle,” Twilight managed to get out.

I looked with pride at my new little girl. Hello, my Diamond, I silently told her, welcome to the world. You have so much to learn and explore! I’m proud to be your father, and I’m even more proud that you have a mother as wonderful, smart, and beautiful as you do. You’ll be our little filly forever, my love, and nothing will ever come between us. Unless, of course, you fall in love with some human who stumbles into Equestria. But who on Earth would ever do that?