Two Alicorns took up residence in the infirmary, it had been a rather long day for both of them. Celestia was proud of her sister who had just hours before, given birth to a baby filly and watched over her as she rested. Luna on the other hand was sleeping peacefully with her filly wrapped in her forelegs. The pain of childbirth was almost too much for her to bear, but it brought a wonderful bundle of joy into her world, a daughter left by her late husband. The Solar Princess couldn't help but smile at the tiny midnight blue niece in her sister's embrace, how her orange mane and tail contrasted this. The two ponies were sleeping peacefully together in a way that made the older of the two sisters protective of them. She wasn't going to allow anypony disturb their slumber.
A few hours passed and Luna finally awoke, the birthing process had been pure agony for her, but the infant that she held in her forelegs made it all worth it. This was her daughter, her own flesh and blood. She had given birth to her and couldn't be more proud. She felt a strong connection to the Alicorn foal that slumbered quietly against her. She used a hoof to brush the mane of her little child. Celestia walked back over to her, noticing that she was awake, "How are you feeling, Luna?" she asked, concerned for the wellbeing of the Lunar Princess.
The younger of the two sisters looked up at her older sister with a weak smile, "Drained, in a lot of pain right now, but I'll live. It looks like little Dusk Glow made it into the world without any complications. I am sad that her father isn't here to see the little foal that he helped create," she responded truthfully.
"Princess!" a voice chimed as a mulberry Alicorn galloped into the room.
Celestia looked at her faithful student with a smile, "Twilight, you're just in time. Luna just woke up after the ordeal of childbirth. Come say hello to my little niece," she offered.
The Princess of Friendship trotted over to the bed where the Lunar Alicorn lay and she smiled at the younger Princess, it was obvious that she was tired, but she was also loving and protective of her own child. "She's so small, a lot like Flurry Heart. Yet she seems a lot calmer, I bet it's because you're her mother, Princess Luna," the mulberry Alicorn noted.
The midnight blue Alicorn smiled, before she had been pregnant with her foal, she and her sister had been planning on retiring from being Princesses, but now that she had a child, she couldn't think of any better place to raise her foal. "Celestia, I want to stay in Canterlot, I want to continue to be a Princess. It's a perfect place to raise a child. We have a nursery and caretakers that can be there for her when we cannot. Twilight and her friends will be able to help us as well. I'm sure that Cadance and Shining would be happy to have a friend for Flurry that's around her age," she told her older sister.
The Solar Alicorn smiled, and spread her wings to embrace her sister and niece in them, "I agree with you, Luna. I've spent one thousand years away from you, I was sad and lonely. I will not leave you behind, dearest sister," she said.
The two sisters smiled at each other, but the small foal started to stir. She was only a few hours old and had taken a nap, which was the first time that she had been silent upon entering the world. Her orange eyes looked around the room, looking for her mom. When she couldn't find her mother, she became fussy. But a blue magical aura enveloped the child, bringing her into the forelegs of Luna. "Shhh, my little one. I'm here for you, I will always be here for you. You're my own flesh and blood and I will always love you," she said as she gently hugged the foal.
Dusk Glow immediately started to settle down at the soothing voice of her mother. She wasn't able to speak, but she felt safe and secure, she felt like she was where she belonged. The Princesses in the room looked at the foal, expecting some sort of noise to come from her, but there wasn't a peep, just quiet as the infant looked around the room.
Celestia looked towards Twilight, "Perhaps we should give some privacy to my sister and her newborn daughter. I'm sure they would like to rest together," she stated.
Twilight nodded and the two other Alicorns left the room, leaving Luna and her daughter alone. She grabbed a bottle in her magic, a bottle with milk in it and brought it up to the foal's mouth. Dusk Glow immediately started to feed from the bottle and this caused the Lunar Princess' heart to melt. She had never thought that she would know the joy of being a mother, she had never thought that she'd have the time to be a mother, being the guardian of the dreams of ponies. But she quietly swore to herself that she would make time. "Dusk, I promise that every night, even on the days that as a Princess, my duties make it difficult to spend time with you during the day, I will visit you in your dreams at night and I will be there for you. Your Aunt Celestia will be there when I cannot, we both love you with all of our heart and... and..." she started to trail off at the end as her thoughts returned to her late husband. A tear rolled down her cheek and impacted the foal, who looked up at her curiously.
"I promise that I won't let anything happen to you, for as long as you live, you'll be safe. Your father made sure of that," Luna said sadly.
The foal went back to feeding and once she was done, curled up against the older Alicorn and went back to sleep. Her orange mane contrasting against her own and her mother's midnight blue coats. The Lunar princess could only help but smile softly at this, "I will never forget the promise I made to you on this day," she said.
