In truth, he should have suspected her of being here from the moment he first tried to find her. Everypony else was celebrating Sombra's latest defeat, but while the likes of Rainbow and Pinkie were enjoying the high life of being Equestria's heroes for the umpteenth time, Twilight had taken herself off elsewhere. And Spike, being the dutiful aide that he'd always been, had set off after. But of course, here she was, staring out of the window of their old home. It had been a while since he himself had set foot here, and the moment he saw it again he smiled with fond nostalgic memories. But he couldn't dwell on that forever, as he again looked to his oldest friend, looking deep in thought as she gazed at the view of Canterlot from here, with stray books all around her as was so often the case here. Walking beside her, he glanced up to her with a smile. "Bit for your thoughts?"
A long sigh escaped the young unicorn. "Just...thinking about things."
Spike chuckled. "I'd be surprised if you weren't. Another baddie defeated and you on the fast track to one heck of a promotion. Gotta be a lot to think about!" Then, after seeing the way Twilight was just staying quiet, he slowly reached out, placing his hand gently upon her side to gain her attention. "Twilight?"
Twilight didn't look to him, instead turning her gaze away from the view of Canterlot in general to the distant sight of the royal palace. "Me...the ruler of Equestria."
For her sake, Spike put on a smile. "Well, you and your friends, remember? It won't just be heaped on you alone."
She finally looked to him, giving a smile that, it had to be said, was far smaller than his. "But I will be the one with the crown. The one ponies will look to. The one...with the responsibility." She turned from him, taking a few steps along the window as those thoughts marinated in her mind. "I hope I'm up to the task."
Spike chortled to that. "Of course you are! You're Twilight Sparkle! You've faced problems and dangers for years now! You're a hero to all Equestria! Several times over in fact! You've been getting used to being a princess for a long while now, and I really don't think Celestia or Luna would've considered asking you to do this if they weren't sure you could do it."
Hearing that, Twilight looked back to her number one assistant. "I keep telling myself that. That the princesses know what they're doing. That they have confidence in me and believe in me." She winced. "But...I'm not certain I do."
Spike waved her off. "Come on now, Twilight. This is you we're talking about! This job is going to fit you like a glove!"
Taking a step closer to him, Twilight frowned slightly, though more from frustration than anger. "It's not just about administrative duties or ceremonial roles, Spike! I'm stepping into something much bigger than that! I'm being asked to be the next...the next..."
Spike saw her worries overtake her, to the point where she couldn't even let herself finish her own words. So, in the end, the young dragon had to prompt things along. "The next...what?"
Slowly, and after taking a deep breath, Twilight finally answered. "...Celestia."
Instantly, Spike understood what she was trying to say, but unlike her he didn't seem to see this as any kind of issue, as evidenced by this smile. "Twilight, nopony is asking you to become some carbon-copy of Celestia. There's one of her and one of you."
He wasn't getting it, or at least that's what Twilight was feeling right now. So, after a few moments of silence, she figured out a better way to put all this to him. "Spike...when you and I first came to Ponyville, how did we or any other pony feel about her?"
Spike raised an eyebrow, but then glanced to the side, thinking back to those early days. "Well...we liked her obviously."
Twilight rolled her eyes. "A bit more please, Spike."
Thinking harder on it, Spike continued. "Back then...she was like...the most respected pony out there. Every time she came for a visit it was a big deal. Maybe even the biggest deal of that week." He paused here, folding his arms and really considering the matter. "Actually...I'd even go so far as to say there wasn't ever a pony who was more loved than she was."
Twilight nodded. "And now you're starting to get it. Consider also what she reigned over."
Spike looked to her with understandable confusion. "You mean...Equestria?"
Twilight pointed out of the window, to Canterlot. "Not just Equestria, Spike. I'm talking about her entire tenure as the sole sister. The thousand years that led up to the night you and I first went to that Summer Sun Celebration."
Spike actually managed to get a quick laugh in there. "Sheesh. A thousand-year career. That's loyalty to the job right there." Seeing Twilight's glare, he sheepishly clasped his hands behind his back. "Er, sorry."
Ignoring him, Twilight continued. "Celestia's reign over Equestria, at least when she was its only princess, was a thousand years. And more importantly, it was a thousand years of peace. Look across all stories and histories of that time, and the worst thing you'll find is an account like that of Granny Smith, where her family were harassed by Timberwolves. In the grand scheme of things though, Equestria had nothing but good times. Ten solid centuries of peace, harmony, prosperity, and our people never wanting for anything." Twilight stopped here, looking to several of the books that were in close proximity, many of which bore images of Celestia upon their covers. "Talk to most scholars and you know what they call that time?"
Spike shrugged. "The really, really, really long time?"
Twilight shook her head. "No, Spike. They call it the Golden Era. A time unprecedented and unmatched with any that had come before it, and maybe any that will come after. Where pony lives, according to some corners, were at their absolute best." A pause, but a short one. "And Celestia was there watching over it all." A dry chuckle came to her. "And her always being there only cemented that love people had of her." Realising that Spike probably needed explanation for that one, she looked him right in the eye before carrying on. "You've probably guessed, but most ponies don't live as long as she does. When she ruled, whole generations, dozens of generations would pass, and she'd be the one constant element in ponies' lives. They'd be born, and she'd be there, and when they closed their eyes for the final time she'd be there still." Again, she looked to the books that had her beloved mentor's image on them. "She was the eternal princess. Always there for them. Always guiding them. She was Equestria, and it was unthinkable that there would ever be a time when she simply...wasn't around anymore."
Spike, having listened intently to all of that, allowed his eyes to drift down to the floor for a while. "Well...geez, when you put it like that, it's no wonder you're freaked about being asked to step up to that."
A solemn nod from Twilight. "Change is always hard to accept, I know. And I know there will be ponies who will be fine with what's happening. Like you said, our friends and I have done a lot to earn the nation's trust. But even so, I can't help but feel that many will see this as Equestria...trading down."
Instantly, Spike seemed almost incensed by that. "What?! You're just as good a princess as Celestia is!"
Though at first grateful for his automatic defence of her, Twilight's smile faded shortly afterwards. "Spike, Celestia rules Equestria for a thousand years, by herself, and all was well for the entire time." She placed her hoof upon her chest. "I become a princess and what happens after that? Tirek terrorising all of ponykind. A time travel battle that nearly dooms us all. The release of an ancient shadow beast that nearly engulfs the land. Equestria's magic stolen by a literal child. And a great many other things too." She hung her head. "Celestia will be remembered for an age of peace. But me? My reign will conjure memories of disaster after disaster, and I haven't even been crowned yet!"
As was often the case with him, Spike tried his hardest to think of some way to alleviate her fears, and after wracking his braid for a few seconds, he'd arrived at what, he hoped, would be a good response. "Well...maybe they'll forget all that bad stuff one day?"
Twilight looked to him with the expected incredulity. "Forget? How could they forget all of that?!"
Spike shrugged. "Hey, it could happen. Until we first came to Ponyville, everypony assumed Nightmare Moon was just a myth, right?"
Slowly, Twilight nodded as she looked away from him. "Yeah...I suppose so."
Spike smiled here. "And until Celestia told you about them, neither you or anypony else had ever even heard of Discord, Sombra or Tirek, right?" He stepped closer to her. "So yeah, you've had dark times in your short time as princess so far, but given enough years maybe they'll be forgotten, just like all that bad things Celestia had to go through back before her long time of peace started?"
The child was not wrong, Twilight could not deny it. And she knew he was trying to make her feel better, which she appreciated. But still, something he'd said had stirred something in her. "Forget. Yeah, they might forget." Sadness came to her. "Just like they might forget her."
Concern came to Spike's expression. "Twilight?"
Walking over to one of the pedestals, she used her magic to open the book atop it, breezing through several of the pages, each of which contained references to some historic event Celestia had taken part in or simply been present for. "You're right. In enough time anything will be forgotten, even people. What if..." She sighed as she closed the book again. " What if that happens to Celestia too? I want to believe that, after all she's done, all the time she's spent watching over and guiding ponykind, that she'd be remembered fondly forever. But..." Gradually, she locked eyes with her companion. "What if she won't be? What if, after years of having me as their ruler, she becomes one more fable? One more story passed down through the generations, until ponies stop believing she was ever there?"
Spike seemed to not quite share her worries, as shown by his less-saddened tone. "Do you really think, after all those centuries of ruling, she'd be forgotten?"
To that, Twilight frowned. "Did we always know that Luna existed?" After seeing him fail to give an answer, she continued, allowing herself to sink further and further into her own fears of the future. "Damned if I do and damned if I don't. If I don't step up to the expectations of this role, I'll be seen as a downgrade from Celestia. And if I do better, I risk one of the ponies I care for most fading into obscurity." She grimaced. "And if neither happens. If I do no better or worse, then ponies will rightly ask what the point was of the change at all." A long sigh escaped her. "Spike...I'm...I'm not sure if I can do this."
Like her, Spike stood in silence for a long time, thinking long on everything that had been said. It would have been a lie to say that he'd wondered the same things as her, but now he could no longer deny the validity of such concerns. He saw her, dejected and overwhelmed by all these bitter scenarios she'd conjured for herself, and after a while, all he could do was speak from the heart. "Twilight...I've had more than a few times when I worried about the things others expected me to do. Starting the Equestria Games, taking part in the challenge to become Dragon Lord, and a fair few others to." Only when Twilight looked to him did he continue. "But you know...I realised in the end that all I can do is try my best. What others thought of me? That was all on them, and there was nothing I could do to stop them thinking what they did." His smile finally returned to him. "And you can't control what others think of you either. So really...you shouldn't let yourself get so down over it."
"But..." Twilight began.
But Spike interrupted her. "Not buts! Celestia chose you to take her place, and frankly, Equestria is lucky to have you. You saw good in people that everyone once thought to be only evil. You've accomplished things nopony thought possible. You've united people who've spent their whole history apart from one another or hating each other. And you've never wanted anything but the best for people." His smile growing, he placed his finger square into her chest. "You will be an amazing ruler, just as Celestia was. And amazing people..." He chuckled. "They don't get forgotten."
A long time passed, but eventually Twilight took a deep breath, eventually breaking out into an affectionate smile. She reached forward, embracing her lifelong friend, and after a solid minute of the two just hugging, the silence was broken by a whisper from the soon-to-be ruler of the nation. "Thanks, Spike."
Spike held her as dearly as family as he replied. "No problem, Princess Twilight."
