Sparkle in the Night

"We are gathered here today to witness the union of Princess Twilight Sparkle and her beloved consort, Shooting Star."

The glorious day had finally arrived.

Amidst the whirlwind of celebrations that followed after her pregnancy and wedding announcement, neither Twilight nor Star had had the time to let it sink in that this moment was really happening — that the two of them were about to devote their life, love, and soul to one another. But there, standing before the adoring crowd of friends, family, reporters, and nobility...it finally hit both of them, and they couldn't have been more overjoyed at that fact.

"By the power vested in me as the Princess of Love, and as a Princess of Equestria, I now pronounce you...mare and stallion!" Cadance exclaimed with a jubilant flourish of her hoof, a wide grin spreading across her face as the two lovers' lips met before her. It was an image for the ages; defying their differing social strata, it was a chaste and picturesque kiss that overflowed with an aura of love so blindingly bright that it made Cadance shudder from head to hoof — proving, once and for all, the depth and intensity of their love.

It was a sight that brought Cadance back to memories of her own wedding to Twilight's brother — the happier parts, anyway. The resemblance did have her wondering, if only momentarily, whether a changeling queen might be about to barge into the room and assault them, but thankfully nothing of the sort had happened. "Yet," she finished mentally.

The uproarious cheers of the crowd were nearly deafening in the packed throne room, echoing off the grand architecture in a cacophony of noise.

Reactions ranged from jubilation to uncontrollable sobbing, and everything in between — Rarity and Fluttershy had joined in on the uncontrollable sobbing of Twilight's parents and brother, while Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Scootaloo were eagerly contributing to the crowd's deafening cheers. Applejack, maintaining calm neutrality, locked eyes with Twilight as the princess's eyes scanned the crowd, giving her a friendly tip of the hat before shooting Star a threatening "I'm watching you" glare.

Seated front row in the crowd, the Royal Sisters were having their own little discussion amidst the raucous celebration.

"You see, sister? Things can turn out fine without you having to meddle endlessly in them~!" Luna teased, elbowing her older sister in the ribs.

"Who says I didn't?" Celestia shot back with a wink, enjoying the blushing face and puffed-out cheeks of her younger sister in response.

"Celly..." Luna trailed off with a threatening tone...though it quickly lost its luster as Celestia broke out into a fit of giggles, waving her off.

"Oh, really though, I didn't have to poke or prod either of them! I'm honestly quite proud of Twilight for going out and bagging a stallion of her own! Faust knows I could use some companionship..." Celestia trailed off, frowning slightly as she lost herself in thought.

"Verily, although I fear our stations prevent us from such indulgences without scandalizing the populace's deific image of us..." Luna pointed out mindfully.

Celestia scoffed, rolling her eyes. "As if I needed a reminder, Lulu..."

Chortling to herself, Luna leaned into Celestia's ear, covering her mouth with a hoof to discourage eavesdroppers. "Although, there's always the young, handsome guardstallions. Mmh, the things I'd like to do to some of those young Night Guard recruits...rrrow~"

Barely able to keep from making a scene, the solar princess flinched as if struck, utterly scandalized as she replied in a harsh whisper, "Wha—bu—Lulu! You can't just say things like—I can't just do things like..." Luna's restrained snickering caused the solar diarch to trail off, expression flattening. "And...you're messing with me again, aren't you..."

It was all Luna could do not to bust a gut laughing at her older sister's expense, but she (barely) managed to keep from embarrassing herself in the midst of her fellow princess's wedding. "Ohh...stars, sister, but you are so terribly easy to tease..."

As the two sisters busied themselves with teasing each other to no end, Twilight and Star began their triumphant procession down the aisle, walking slowly aside one another and basking in the celebration of their union.

"This day has been just perfect!" Twilight squealed, leaping giddily on her hooves as she crossed through the ballroom's doorway into the castle foyer. It was a loss of composure entirely unbecoming of a princess — yet Star found it utterly adorable nonetheless.

"And that, my dear Dusk and Dawn, is how I met your father." Twilight finished warmly, running a hoof through the young ponies' manes as she continued talking to them in their sleep. She wasn't quite sure why she'd gone on for so long after they'd fallen asleep, but going over the events of her relationship with Star in her head had helped her realize just how much things had changed since she'd met him — and, as she gazed at the solemn, slumbering faces of her two young foals, how much change was still yet to come for the five of them.

"Momma...what're you doing?" Came the confused whisper of an adolescent Scootaloo, peeking her head through the door to the twins' room with a furrowed brow. "Didn't they fall asleep a while ago? Why are you talking to yourself in the middle of the night?"

"I could ask why you're up and about at such an hour too, young mare," Twilight replied stiffly, gently getting up off of the bed as she followed Scoots out of the room to let the twins rest undisturbed.

"I had to pee...and because of that, it was kinda hard not to notice you while I was up. These hallways echo a lot, y'know?" To demonstrate her point, Scootaloo's next hoof step landed firmly on the crystalline floor, echoing like a cannon-shot down the torchlit corridor. The atmosphere would've been a lot more unsettling, if it weren't for Twilight's castle being the most heavily-warded place in the entire country.

Twilight nodded thoughtfully, as much to herself as to Scootaloo, her thoughts still caught up in the past. "I...yes, I suppose that's fair...I'm sorry for keeping you up, Scoots." She conceded, ruffling her adopted daughter's mane as they came to a stop outside Scootaloo's room.

"It's not a big deal, mom. Just...try not to tell any more bedtime stories that turn into self-reflective monologues, alright?" Scoots asked, chuckling to herself.

Blushing in embarrassment, she shooed her daughter into her room with an insistent hoof, allowing herself a bit of laughter at her own expense. "Haha...no promises there, Scoots," she conceded, pecking the adolescent mare on the forehead and bidding her goodnight as she headed back to her bedroom, tiredness setting in as she realized how late it had gotten. Goodness, and she had another court session in the morning...

Shooting Star lay on the far side of the bed, tucked beneath the warm, downy covers as his soft exhalations made her heart flutter from sheer cuteness. Using her magic, Twilight quietly laid down in bed next to him, slipping beneath covers already warmed by his body heat as she snuggled into his back, spooning him with her larger alicorn frame.

It wasn't too long ago that she'd been the little spoon whenever they slept together, but like many things, times had changed...briefly, she allowed herself to wonder how much bigger she might be than him in a few years' time, but such thoughts brought with them the greatest curse of alicorn life — thoughts that were best left alone, to say the least. Better to enjoy what she had now, as fully and deeply as possible, than to dwell in the future. She had a certain experience with time travel to thank for that lesson...

Exhaling to herself, Twilight felt her thoughts begin to grow hazy as she stared into the hypnotic flicker of the bedside oil lamp...slipping off quietly into slumber, a Sparkle in the night.