Twiastasia

Anon and Twilight were awoken in the morning to the furious shouts of a certain griffon and pony.

“I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU LET ME FALL ASLEEP GILE-”

“I-I WAS ASLEEP BEFORE YOU WERE!”

“WERE NOT!”

Gile pointed an accusatory claw at Anon, a grumpy Twilight laid out across his chest beneath the blanket.

“T-THEY DID IT! OH, I CAN’T BELIEVE THIS FIZZY! IT WAS YOUR STUPID IDEA WHY DIDN’T YOU STAY AWAKE!?”

Whilst Gile and Fizzy argued back and forth, Twilight peered a sleepy eye up at Anon.

“Annooonnn… Tell them to shut up and get out… Train’s still movin’...”

Anon chuckled.

“Long night you two? I imagine Gile wasn’t very good in bed, hm?”

Fizzy stomped her hoof. “We didn’t fuck!”

Anon blew a drawn out whistle.

“That bad huh? Sorry Gile…”

“S-shut up Anon! We were trying to listen through the wall, but we didn’t hear anything! What’s the deal!?”

Twilight pulled the bed curtain up past her head, trying to block out the invading sunlight.

“Mmh, was getting advice from my friends… Go away now…”

Gile spun on his heel to face Fizzy.

“I TOLD you she wasn’t in there yet! I would’ve heard the door open!”

“Oh yeah? Then how come you didn’t!?”

“BECAUSE I WAS ASLEEP!!”

“You two would’ve been disappointed anyways. We just cuddled.”

“Kissed too…” Twilight mumbled. She understood now why Fizzy had brought it up before. Kissing was really nice…

Anon jokingly shushed her.

“Whatever man… going to get breakfast…”

Fizzy huffed and followed, still grumbling.

…

Canterlot was a city on lockdown. Everywhere one looked, guards clad in golden armor were about doing something. Building fortifications, inspecting buildings, questioning the few citizens who still walked the streets for whatever reason…

But it seemed the city had froze, when Twilight was spotted exiting the train station. Almost immediately, guards fell to her side and formed a rigid defense around her and her friends. Orders were barked by stern-faced ponies, demanding the road to Canterlot castle be cleared and the group to advance.

As they did, each creature present marveled at the city’s beauty. Canterlot rivaled Cabaluus in opulence and majesty. Where Cabaluus housed horrid slums, packed densely and away from the nobles however, Canterlot seemed to possess no such thing. Perhaps that was a slight against it, simply not allowing the poor to congregate anywhere near the city at all. The native Echidnans doubted this though. Equestria was not like home. Canterlot had to be a living inspiration, shining high above at the top of Equestria, showing all ponies who saw it a reminder that their homeland was good and just.

No one talked very much during the walk. The reaction from the guards had been so jarring that the creatures just silently obeyed. Twilight’s old friends seemed to understand the situation and trusted the guards, while Anon and the gang were rather… shocked. None of them had ever seen such mobilization before, nor had they ever really been recognized and stopped by strangers, besides, well, the Black Stripe.

Soon enough, the entourage had been faced with Canterlot Castle. From what Twilight’s old friends had said, this was the home of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna.

“Well Twilight, seems this is it.”

A guard called for the huge golden doors to be opened.

“G-guess so.”

“Nervous?”

“Y-you could say that, heh…”

Anonymous smiled down at his marefriend.

“Don’t be. We’ll all be right here with you.”

Twilight looked back and saw her friends, new and old, smiling back. She turned her gaze back to Anon, his face gentle.

“Ready?”

“...”

“Ready.”

…

The creatures were led down many halls, leading to the throne room. The inside of Canterlot Castle was perhaps more ornate than the outside. A somber quiet dominated the castle interior, save for the falling steps of Twilight and her friends. The majority of the guards stayed outside, begrudgingly being forced to return to their posts. It seemed every item that adorned the grand halls had been placed with purpose, from the statues and paintings down to the rare piece of furniture. It made for an aesthetic unmatched in it’s contemplative beauty, though Rarity had made note of how… different the mood had felt in the castle since the last time she had been there with her friends.

As they neared the entrance of the throne room, she remarked how a certain warmth had been missing from the castle since Twilight had gone missing.

…

“... Think she’s just in the bathroom or something?”

“I don’t think goddesses go to the bathroom, Gile.”

“Why wouldn’t they?”

One of the accompanying guards shushed the griffon. The two thrones at the end of the room were empty. It gave those who’d never seen this room before time to gawk. The throne room was a long corridor. Huge stylized marble pillars separated rows upon rows of immaculate stained glass windows. Each displayed a different image: Unicorns, pegasai, and earth ponies uniting together under one flag, a large white pony using some sort of gemstones on a similarly large dark pony, etc.

As Twilight marveled, her eyes caught one particular window: Six ponies stood together, using those same gems she’d seen previously on a strange amalgamation of many creatures.

“H-hey! I think I read about this in Cabaluus! Who are those ponies?”

“C-could it be…?”

A distant voice could be heard coming through a rather unassuming doorway closer to the thrones. Another followed with it.

“I-it is your majesty! I couldn’t believe the news myself, but the guards who reported it to me claimed they had seen her with their own eyes!”

All eyes watched the two ponies enter. One was rather normal: A light gray pony with a dark brown mane done up in a bun, sporting a pair of glasses. The other…

The first thing Twilight noticed was her size. She was nearly twice the size of the earth pony beside her. Her regalia was shimmering and golden, her coat the most immaculate white, and her mane a long shimmering array of pastels that danced on stagnant air. What was most peculiar were her wings… and her horn. Twilight did not know such a thing was possible. The tiara atop her head confirmed it:

This was the sun-goddess, Princess Celestia.

The two pairs of eyes met and left Twilight frozen. Not out of fear, but out of… something else entirely. She could not place her feelings, nor could she collect her thoughts.

‘Is this what staring at divinity is like?’

The smaller pony backed away, leaving the princess to her reunion. Slowly, as if she thought she was dreaming, the white pony advanced forward. Her voice came out deafly quiet, though her word still reached Twilight’s ears.

“Twilight…”

The unicorn felt the wetness of tears on her face, and, like when she’d first met Spike, she knew not why.

At least now, she could guess though.

Twilight cautiously stepped forward, meeting the princess in the middle.

“Please, speak to me, so I know this is real.” Celestia whispered.

“I-I’m Twilight Sparkle. Can… Can you help me?”