Princess Twilight tried not to share her surprise at what she had just heard, as she slowly set her cup down on the table before her. "I'm not sure what you mean Luster?"
She and her faithful student were sharing a quiet afternoon in Canterlot Castle's Tea Garden, though neither mare drinking tea at the moment. Twilight had been thrilled to discover that the unicorn disliked tea as much as she did.
Celestia herself might have had a stroke if she knew what was being done in her favorite spot of the whole castle. But as Twilight would be quick to say, it wasn't her castle anymore, now was it?
Of course, she would never actually say that to her mentor. Twilight still had too much respect for the elder alicorn, and more than likely, always would. But it was fun to think about.
Luster set her coffee down. "I mean, why did you pick me to be your student?"
Twilight frowned slightly. "Why wouldn't I? You were top of your class at the School for Gifted Unicorns. I saw much potential in you, and so I made you my student."
Luster bit her lip. She didn't like having to say this, but her life since moving to Ponyville, and the friends she now had, forced her to ask it. "Is that the only reason? Because I'm a unicorn?"
Twilight's frown grew slightly. "What are you saying, Luster?"
Luster almost quit right then and there, the look in her mentor's eyes scaring her a bit, but if there was one thing she was, it was too stubborn to quit when she could. "I talked to Headmare Starlight, even to my mom since she was in the same place I am once. They both said it's a tradition for a princess to pick a unicorn as their personal student."
Twilight's frown began to melt away, as she began to see where her faithful student might be going with this. "Celestia said that it was too help find the next bearer for the Element of Magic."
Luster looked up at Twilight's crown, and the Element of Magic imbedded in it. "Isn't that you though?"
Twilight nodded, smiling slightly. "Well, yes. I am the current Element of Magic, though it's been many years now since I have had to even think about it. Let alone use it."
Luster looked over at Gallus, who had a knowing smirk on his beak and a gleam in his eyes. It was all Luster needed as she looked back at her mentor and asked the question that had been bugging her for some time. "Then why keep taking a unicorn as a student? You're not gonna hoof all of this on me, are you? I don't want it. I never wanted it."
Twilight let head fell slightly. She had been expecting that to be honest, but not quite like this. "No Luster. I don't plan to force any of this on you. You're not the first to say it though. But those who did never really thought about it enough. I know you have."
Luster let out an audible sigh of relief. "Oh, thank... Well, you. That's a weight off my shoulders." She shook her head. "I just discovered the joy of having friends. I'm still getting used to Ponyville, even though everyone's been super nice to me. I don't even know what I want to do with my life."
Twilight smiled. It always gladdened her heart to hear that from someone. "And I will not force you into something you don't want Luster. You will always have a place here. Never think you can't come back to Canterlot. But you can be anything you want, or go anywhere you want."
That made Luster feel ten feet tall right then and there, as her eyes gleamed in delight, but soon she brought herself back to the question that had started all of this. "So why then are you still picking a unicorn as a student?"
Twilight sighed as she sipped her drink. "Are you saying that I shouldn't have picked you, My Faithful Student?"
Luster gasped in horror and rushed over to the princess's side, muzzling her. "No, of course not! I love everything you've taught me. Everything we've done together! You've made me a better pony."
She looked up into her mentor's eyes and tried to smile. "But you're holding yourself back. You started the School of Friendship, for all races to learn more about friendship. You went to Canterlot High and made friends with the entire school, full of people you didn't know very well if at all. A species you didn't even know much about, even by the end."
Twilight smiled at that. It was true of course. Even if the connection between worlds was gone forever now, she and Sunset were still friends with the Rainbooms and all of Canterlot High. It had been those first three days that had helped her become a better princess and a better pony.
Even now, twenty years later, and fifteen years after the connection between worlds had been cut for the final time, she still lived by the words Principal Celestia had told her that night, at the Fall Formal. Words of wisdom she had repeated to herself every morning.
"A true princess in any world leads not by forcing others to bow before her, but inspiring others to stand with her."
And the more Twilight about what Luster was saying, the more and more she began to see that her student was right. She had been holding onto this tradition, even though she knew it no longer served a purpose.
Luster saw that her words were beginning to have an effect, and muzzled her mentor once more. "I'm not saying you should never have another unicorn student. That's not very nice. But another pony might come along and impress you with something they do. What if you don't even think about it because they're not a unicorn? That's not fair to them, or to you. You know it isn't."
Twilight was silent for a moment before her smile grew and she pulled Luster into a hug with a wing, one the unicorn leaned into. "I see the student has surpassed the teacher in some ways. You've come a long way Luster, and I couldn't be prouder of you."
Luster blushed as she looked away, but her smile was still there.
"And you're right. It's not fair to other ponies that I never once considered taking a non-unicorn as a student. No more. I won't hold myself to just a unicorn from now on." She smirked at the unicorn next to her. "Unless you don't want any competition?"
Luster shook her head. "It does get kind of lonely, being your only personal student. I wouldn't mind if you took another."
Twilight nodded, filing it away for later. She kissed the top of Luster's head, just below her horn. "Thank you again, My Faithful Student. You've given me a lot to think about, and I wouldn't trade it for the world."
Author's Note
Just to clear on one part. Luster Dawn, in all the stories she is in that I write, is in no way, shape, or form, related to Starlight and Sunburst.
It's just a coincidence that she looks like she could be their daughter. They're not even married. They never even thought about something like that.
Cover art was done by LimeDazzle. As was the case for the sequel.
While it was true that Celestia and Luna had retired from ruling Equestria and all that went with that, that did not mean that they didn't keep up with all the news coming out of Canterlot.
Celestia was the first to admit that she had never been more proud of Twilight and all she and her friends had done for Equestria. While Twilight ultimately had the final say, the Council of Friendship had done far better than either her or Luna had thought it might.
Twilight also made it a point to keep them up to date during her visits to the sisters. She had grown much in the intervening years, but somethings seemed to never change.
Most visits were friendly of course, and Twilight had grown more confident in her ability to talk to Celestia and Luna not as princesses or even equals but as friends.
Some visits were, of course, her needing their guidance and assistance, and just doing it through a letter didn't feel right. Celestia and Luna did their best, but as they had told Twilight several times now, one day she would need to stop asking them and rule on her own without any of their advice or wisdom.
Not that they had any plans of dying of course. Alicorns couldn't die unless a massive amount of magic was used against them, and even then it couldn't be done on purpose.
Today though, Celestia was rather surprised by what her former student was talking about. She hummed as she set her teacup down. "I see then. Your student has finally asked the question then?"
Twilight nodded. "Yes. I always wondered if she would after she moved to Ponyville. I know she's spoken with Starlight, and who knows what Sunset taught her while she was growing up. I just didn't expect it to hurt so much."
Celestia chuckled. "It's hard to believe Luster is Sunset's daughter. She sounds so much like a unicorn student of mind that seemed to think that friendship was a waste of time as well."
"Hehe," Twilight chuckled sheepishly as her eyes darted about, looking at anything but her mentor. "But, yes. I asked Sunset about it. She and Flash don't know where their daughter could have gotten those ideas. Sunset hasn't been like that in years, and Flash never was."
Celestia nodded, putting her hoof over Twilights. "Some children are like that, no matter what their parents do. But that leads me back to why you are here."
Twilight sighed, slumping in her chair. "I don't know if I'm doing the right thing though. This is going against over a thousand years of tradition. This is your legacy I'm messing with."
Celestia shook her head. "Twilight. My legacy is right in front of me. You and Sunset, your friends, and everything you've done will last longer than some silly old school. Never doubt that I am not immensely proud of everything you have all done."
She sighed. "And as you know, the School for Gifted Unicorns was founded to help find the next Element of Magic. Oh, that was never said anywhere, nor did most ever know that. But it is the truth."
Twilight nodded. She had been shocked to finally hear the truth about the school. But a part of her was not completely surprised to hear it either. Neither had Sunset. What might have been had Sunset stayed and been the one to bond to Magic, would never be known. "I know. And since I'm not going anywhere, Magic is still connected to me. Gallus might have once wielded it, but that was temporary. I can still feel the bond."
Celestia nodded, eyeing the griffon in question who was doing his best to not look like he was eavesdropping on them. It might have even worked too if Celestia hadn't seen it all before. "Then what are worried about, Twilight? Surely Neighsay doesn't have anything against this?"
Twilight chuckled. "No. He was actually the first to say he was glad I was doing this. No law ever said I had to only choose a unicorn as a student. All of my friends are behind it too. Heck, all of Ponyville is behind the idea."
Celestia nodded, sensing there was more to it than that. "But you're still not fully convinced that this is the right thing to do?"
Twilight sighed, as she plopped her head on the table before the two of them. "This is overturning over a thousand years of tradition. It's going to upset a lot of ponies, even though I'm not excluding unicorns from the school."
Celestia sighed, taking another sip of her tea. "Twilight. If there is one thing that I have learned in my long life, it is that you cannot possibly please everypony. It is simply impossible. The Woke and Politically Correct ponies tried to do that, and they barely lasted a year because of it. Yes, ponies will be upset, there is nothing you can about that."
She took Twilight's hoof in her own and smiled her best teaching smile. "But I have also learned that while some will be upset and mad at you, far more will stand with you because they believe in what you are trying to do. You and your friends have shown them that. The acceptance and growth of the School of Friendship is a perfect case of that very thing."
Celestia's smile grew as something came to mind. "Do you remember the Fall Formal, where you ran against Sunset?"
Twilight chuckled, rolling her eyes as she lifted her head. "How can I forget? I don't think I'll ever forget those three days."
Celestia nodded. "Then you remember how all of Canterlot High stood with you that night? Someone they still only barely knew. Yet they stood with you, because they believed in you and what you stood for. You could have easily taken your crown back and returned to Equestria, or any number of things. But you did not. Because you are not the type of pony to do the easy way out."
Twilight giggled. It was true. Only Applejack refused to take the easy way more than she did. "So you think that I'm doing the right thing, then?"
Celestia nodded. "You don't need my permission to do anything anymore, Twilight. You haven't needed it for a long time. Ponies will complain. But I've learned those that refuse to accept change are those that are not worth listening to in the first place."
They both giggled, as Twilight wiped her eyes. "I thought you weren't my teacher anymore, Celestia? Yet you've been teaching me since I got here."
Celestia smirked. "I guess somethings I never forget. Teaching young ponies is one of those I suppose."
Their laughter lasted long into the night.
Author's Note
So I thought this deserved a bit more. Plus it felt weird to leave out Celestia's reaction to Twilight's choice moving forward with her Faithful Students. So here it is.
I admit the idea that alicorns can only be killed by an accidental blast of a massive amount of magic is based in part on something SamSwordsman123 wrote somewhere.
So now, Twilight can't kill herself. Nor can she have another alicorn kill her. It wouldn't work. Hence why she survived Cozy's blast in Season 9's finale.
