Chapters BPT: Two Heads... Aren't Easier Than One
A couple of tired ponies, one of them carrying something in his saddlebags, walked through the countryside, the town of Ponyville within sight. They'd come a long way and were relieved to finally reach the last leg of their journey, where they could rest, get a decent meal, and then take the next airship to their destination in order to deliver their package.
"I tell ya, mane, this has to be the suckiest job we've ever had to take," said one of the ponies, a pegasus who was below average in height, with a dark purple coat, icy blue mane, stormy gray eyes and his cutie-mark was a dartboard with three darts on the lower left. He was younger than his companion, around his mid-twenties.
"What're you complaining about?! You're not the one who's carrying this stupid thing! Urk..." the pony grumble as he paused to stretch out a kink in his back. He was older, around his late thirties, and definitely larger. His chest and forelegs were brawny from his old job as a lumberjack but with a paunchy gut tightened uncomfortably by the strap of his saddlebags, his coat silver-white, his mane dark brown that extended into a chinstrap beard, and his eyes were forest green. On his ample flanks was a lumber log with a saw cutting through it as his mark.
"I tried to carry the package, but you complained about how slow I was going," the other pony reminded, being a pegasus below-average in height. "Besides, a big tough earth pony like you? That should be no problem."
The earth pony snorted irritably as he thought, How did I let him talk me into this...?
"Oh c'mon, big guy!" the pegasus encouraged while nuzzling up to his stallion. "Once we make this delivery, we'll be paid enough to finally buy the cabin! Remember? Our own place to call home!"
That was their dream, a nice and cozy cabin to themselves where they could just be together. After losing his job for a lumber industry, the earth pony had all but given up on it until his little mane had suddenly gotten them an opportunity to get just the money they needed, and all they had to do was deliver a package. The pony who had given them this task however, some greasy-maned stallion with a golden skull with jewel eyes on his flank, had instructed them to take the package to a town called Ponyville - On hoof! - and meet with somepony, who'd give them tickets to the destination where they would make the delivery to its intended recipient, whose name the one they'd meet would also give to them.
They'd been instructed not to speak to the authorities and they had to make the delivery in two weeks, and if anything happened to the package the deal was off.
They'd walked a good trek for almost week, so they still had another week left to finish the job. Thankfully, Ponyville was in sight, they'd check into the local hotel or whatever, get a good night's sleep, and tomorrow they'd look for their contact and finally be on their way to getting paid for a successful delivery job.
The earth pony felt the pegasus nuzzle up to him and he couldn't help but crack a smile at the smaller stallion's optimistic smirk.
"We're almost there, Sturdy Birch," the pegasus assured.
"Heh, yes we are," Sturdy Birch hugged his stallion and they shared a smooch before Study said, "I'm kinda glad you were such a naughty colt, Bottom Bet, otherwise heaven might not have kicked you out and into my life."
"Oh Faust, you are so corny!" Bottom Bet laughed but his eyes twinkled with affection, "and I can't help loving you for it."
"Love you too, little mane," Sturdy chuckled, his deep voice rumbling in his strong chest before he said, "C'mon, it's getting dark and I don't fancy spending the night out here."
As the couple neared Ponyville, neither of them noticed the saddlebag on Sturdy's barrel giving a faint purple-blue glow.
BPT: Two Heads... Aren't Easier Than One
Late into the morning, Midnight and Twilight, along with Spike and their students, Sunburst and Starlight, were in the library, discussing the schedule. Captain Firestorm of the Harmony Guard, along with his lieutenants, Nightling, Lyra Heartstrings and Avalanche, as well as the Harmony Guard's Royal Smith and Armorer, Terra, were in attendance as well.
Apart from the Council of Friendship, these individuals made up Midnight and Twilight's "royal staff" in the Castle of Friendship.
"Alright, everypony," Twilight started off, levitating a pointer stick to the markerboard, "Princess Celestia and Prince Sombra are due to arrive today at noon. They're taking a week off and decided to have a family vacation here in Ponyville to relax with their son, Prince Sol."
"So who's holding the fort in Canterlot Castle?" asked Firestorm.
"Princess Luna, along with a team of trusted advisors and delegates," answered Midnight. "She also has one Astral Ink personally assisting her."
"Haha, is it just me or has Princess Luna been spending a lot of time with Astral Ink?" Starlight tittered to Lyra and Nightling, the both of them joining her in giggling like schoolfillies.
"Well, he is an astronomer," Midnight shrugged but smiled too, "I've heard them go on and on about constellations, movements of celestial bodies, the composition of nebulae, but they do seem really happy spending time together."
"In any case, Canterlot will be fine, Firestorm," assured Twilight with a clearing of her throat, "Moving along, the family is coming here to relax and enjoy themselves and while they don't want some big event tradition requires we do a gesture to honor them. I have some ideas, but I'd like to hear what you all think."
"Well, uh... if it's alright, I wouldn't mind crafting something as a gift to them," offered Terra. "I've been so busy with armor improvements and research into the geo crystals I haven't taken the time lately to craft some new jewelry."
"That sounds nice, Terra, but we'll need something else as well," Twilight gently insisted, her OCD rearing its ugly head yet again, "something a little... bigger?"
"Twilight..." Midnight said with a low tone, a gentle reminder to his wife.
"It doesn't have to be some big- bonanza or something!" Twilight protested, "Just something... well, not a party but definitely a grand gesture."
"Well, in that case, my Princess," Firestorm stood up, "I would like to volunteer the Harmony Guard for this 'grand gesture'. As it so happens, I've been running some training drills and we've been practicing our first ever military march."
"Military march...?" Twilight echoed and already finding the suggestion oddly appealing.
"Indeed, every military force needs one," Firestorm looked proud, "a show of strength, courage, determination! That though we are many, we are one unit, standing together to serve and protect our charges."
"That sounds like a fine idea, Captain," agreed Midnight. "The Harmony Guard's first-ever military march! Is it finished or...?"
"Well, I'd like to run a few more practice drills to be sure," Firestorm considered but furrowed his brows confidently, "but other than that it pretty much is done. Once we're ready, we'll get into position and start on your command."
"Excellent! You do those practice drills and-" Twilight was instructing when Spike BELCHED and out of his mouth burst a small gout of dragonfyre that quickly extinguished, revealing a message. Taking it and undoing the seal, Twilight said, "It's from Princess Celestia! Hold on, everypony...
"'Dear Twilight and Midnight,
"'My husband and son will be arriving in Ponyville by noon. However... we will not be coming as Celestia, Sombra and Sol. We will be coming as a regular family of unicorn ponies, as we wish to have as relaxing and enjoyable a family vacation as possible, which we cannot if everypony in Ponyville knows who we really are. So, we've decided to glamour ourselves and we'll pretend to be family friends visiting you in the Castle of Friendship from out of town.'
"Huh. That's a first," commented Twilight.
"Well, it kinda makes sense, Twily," Midnight reminded her, "remember when Celestia came to visit at Sugarcube Corner and everypony - Including you - made a big deal out of it and even the mayor caused that visit to be cut short?"
"And then Fluttershy took Philomena and what a mess that was..." Twilight remembered tiresomely. She was just glad that Spike's pet phoenix, Peewee, was so much better behaved than that feathery fiend Celestia had for a pet. Taking a deep breath, Twilight read the rest of the letter:
"'So, for the duration of our visit, I will be Miss Sunny Cheeks, my husband is Shady Mane, and our colt is Bright Smile. We'll come to the castle ourselves and give you the codeword 'kaleidoscope' to confirm our identities. We look forward to visiting with you and having a nice family vacation.
"'Best wishes,
"'PS, my husband chose my alias because I lost a coin toss...'"
It was at that moment Midnight, Spike, Sunburst, Terra, Firestorm, Nightling, and Avalance all burst into gutbusting laughter, uttering things like "Sunny Cheeks?!", "PRICELESS!!", "That's hilarious!", and "Oh my Goddess!!" and snorts and chortles and guffaws of outrageous amusement, which Twilight struggled to speak over.
"MMPH!!" Sturdy Birch grunted as he stretched out a kink in his back while welcoming the sunshine. He and Bottom Bet had checked into the local inn, the Nesting Pegasus, where they'd enjoyed a good night's sleep, but the earth pony still had an achy back from carrying their package such a long way.
Bottom Bet stepped up to his stallion's side, saying, "Sorry the spa was closed when we got here, big fellah, but lookit the positive side! We just gotta meet our contact, he'll give us our tickets and we'll be on the next airship to our pay!"
"Ugh, the sooner we get this over with the better..." Sturdy sighed and they made their way to the Ponyville Airfield.
The Airfield had become modestly successful. Ponyville had about five airships, three of which were for commercial travel, the other two for transporting cargo. The fact not a lot of travelers came to Ponyville made their skies rather clearer of airships coming and going than Canterlot or the other large cities in the nation. But the service still enjoyed enough income to stay in business even though it was more expensive yet faster than the Ponyville Express.
As the two ponies approached the building where travelers bought tickets, they noticed somepony there. He was an earth pony too, with a marble white coat, ashy black mane in a handsome style, he wore shades, a lapel, and had saddlebags on so they couldn't see his mark. He was standing beside a posterboard that had their cutie-marks, a lumber log with a saw cutting through it and a dartboard with three darts on its lower left side, drawn onto it.
Realizing this must be their contact, they approached him and he spoke softly, "Sturdy Birch and Bottom Bet?"
They nodded and Sturdy gestured to his saddlebag, "We got the package right here."
"Excellent, but I'm afraid you can't leave just yet," the contact replied, looking vigilant but they couldn't see his eyes through his shades. "There are some... issues, so you're gonna have to stay here for the rest of the day."
"What?!" Sturdy grumbled while wincing from the strap of his saddlebags tightened around his belly, "We're supposed to take the next airship from Ponyville to wherever this thing needs to go! Shouldn't we-"
"Look, it's not up to me!" the contact whispered harshly. He reached under his lapel and pulled out what appeared to be tickets, "Here, you need to take this airship at this time, got it?"
Sturdy and Bet accepted the tickets but Bet noticed, "Hey! This airship doesn't leave until late tonight! What're we supposed to do until then?"
"I dunno, relax? Mingle among the locals?" the contact sighed irritably before getting ready to leave. "Look, I gotta go now! Just keep a low profile, be here to take that airship to your destination, and take care of the package!"
"But what about-" Bet tried to ask more but the contact hurried off in a brisk trot, leaving both stallions to sigh wearily. They shared a look and Bottom Bet seemed so apologetic, that Sturdy hugged him close.
"Hey, it's alright, we... we'll just enjoy a nice day," Sturdy assured his little mane.
"Honestly, big guy? I..." Bottom Bet looked like a colt who'd been scolded into guilt, "I want this to be over with. For all my dumb decisions to be over with, my past to be over with!"
"Bottom, listen," Sturdy gently held Bottom Bet's withers and gazed into his stormy gray eyes with his own forest green eyes that were furrowed and determined. "It's like you said, we're almost there. We'll get on our airship tonight, deliver this package, get paid, and then finally, we'll find the perfect place and settle into our new home, together ."
Bottom Bet found reassurance and smiled a little at his big earth pony, and they touched foreheads, enjoying this tender moment... until Sturdy groaned a bit and reached for his back.
"Hey! This means we have time to check out that spa," Bottom Bet suggested, and immediately Sturdy's demeanor lit up. "I'm sorry for being a gloomy colt, but maybe this is a blessing in disguise."
"If that spa helps my back, then absolutely," Sturdy nodded with a grin. "C'mon, let's go check it out."
Sturdy held out his foreleg and Bet gladly accepted it and they made their way back into the Ponyville streets. They hadn't really taken it all in yesterday evening, but now that they had the rest of the day to enjoy themselves before leaving on their airship tonight, the two realized what a nice place Ponyville was in the middle of a nice sunny day. It wasn't big and crowded, like the larger cities of Canterlot, it had a positive atmosphere, the air was fresh and clean and smelled of flowers, good foods cooking from nearby restaurants, and the locals were out and about, smiling and waving to each other and to the couple as they passed them by.
Sharing a look, they both knew they were thinking the same thing - Perhaps, if there was one available, they could find a cabin here or around Ponyville.
"Oof/Oh!" Sturdy grunted as he bumped into somepony and they looked to see it was a unicorn stallion of pale gray, with a navy blue mane, green eyes, and a cutie-mark depicting a broken rock, revealing geode crystal inside. With him was a golden-white unicorn mare with a reddish-pink mane with a sunny yellow highlight, fine flanks that sported a sunflower for a cutie-mark, and her eyes were pinkish-purple.
Hanging from a foal-carrier strapped to her barrel was a little unicorn baby with a golden coat, creamy white mane, and his bright and curious eyes were bluish-green.
"Oh, please excuse me," said the unicorn stallion politely as he was levitating a few bags of luggage in his red aura. "My family and I are on our way to meet somepony so we can settle in and start our first family vacation!"
"You've bumped into my husband, Shady Mane," the mare spoke up before blushing slightly as she said, "I'm Sunny Cheeks, and this little ray of sunshine is our son, Bright Smile."
"Oh! So you're new to town too," Bottom Bet responded with a friendly smile while Sturdy stifled a chuckle from hearing Sunny Cheeks' name, "My coltfriend, Sturdy Birch, and I are just passing through, but we found out our flight won't leave till tonight, so we're just gonna stick around and explore the town for the day. Oh, and I'm Bottom Bet."
"Pleasure to meet you, gentlecolts," Shady offered a hoof and Sturdy accepted it, and was surprised by what a strong hoofshake Shady had for a unicorn. Especially since the ex-logger pony was taller and bulkier (and fatter, to his mental chagrin).
"Heh, that's a very interesting way of looking at it," smirked Sturdy when his back ached on him again. "Urk! Uh, sorry to cut this short, but..."
"Oh, you poor thing," Sunny Cheeks opened her saddlebag opposite the side of her barrel to which her baby was strapped, and levitated out a hooful of gold Bits. "Take this to the Ponyville Spa and ask for the deluxe treatment and massage."
"Oh ma'am, we can't accept your money!" Sturdy hesitated, but then another pain in his back caused him to wince so that he couldn't stop Sunny cheeks from putting the Bits in his other saddlebag.
"Oh, we insist," Sunny cheeks assured, "Besides, we make it a point to do at least one good deed a day."
"Well, if you're sure, thank you!" said a grateful Bottom Bet as gently patted Sturdy Birch on his withers. "C'mon, big daddy, the spa's a'callin'."
"Urf, thank you, and have a good one," Sturdy groaned while waving as he was led away by Bottom Bet.
"Bye-bye," waved little Bright Smile in the carrier on Sunny's side, causing his mommy and daddy to smile warmly at him.
"Do you want to look around Ponyville before we go to the Castle of Friendship?" asked Shady to his wife.
"No, dear, we promised Twilight and midnight we'd arrive by noon," Sunny gently insisted, "and you know how Twilight keeps a tight schedule."
"Very well then, let's go," Shady Mane shrugged and they continued on while Sunny cheeks couldn't help gazing back curiously, but she no longer saw Sturdy Birch or Bottom Bet. Shady noticed and asked,"Something wrong, love?"
"It's probably nothing, but..." Sunny shook her head no, "Oh, I'm probably just imagining things.
"What do you mean?" Shady raised a confused brow.
"Well... when we spoke with those two," Sunny brought up, "I thought I sensed something... familiar, but it was only for a brief moment. Oh, maybe my mind is just playing tricks on me."
"Well, after we see our students at their castle," Shady gently nuzzled his wife, "all you have to do is relax, unwind, and enjoy our family vacay."
BPT: Two Heads... Aren't Easier Than One
*Knock-Knock-Knock!!*
The doors opened and Twilight found a couple of unicorns and their baby standing before the threshold of her castle, and heard the mare say, "Kaleidoscope."
"Oh! Hello, Princ-" Twilight started to say, only to be interrupted by an exaggerated cough from the mare, the kind one would use to hint at something while pretending to clear their throat, and Twilight remembered, "I mean, uh... Good day, Miss Sunny Cheeks and Mister Shady Mane. Oh, and is that Bright Smile with you?"
"Hello, Twilight," Sunny smiled as she stepped in and gave Twilight a hug. They heard Bright Smile fuss a little over being left out, and so his mommy levitated him out of his carrier and included him, and they heard a 'CHK-Vvvt' sound and looked to see Shady had snapped a photo with a camera.
"Pardon me, it was just too sweet of a moment I had to immortalize it," Shady chuckled as he held the photo in his magic, waiting a moment, before presenting it to the mares and they smiled warmly at the sight of them hugging with little Bright between them, looking so adorable.
They shared a cheeky smile, knowing only they'd be in the know regarding this photo before Twilight said, "Well, we're happy to have you all here for your family vacation. Though, I just want to ask: Is this whole... Miss Sunny Cheeks, Mister Shady Mane and Bright Smile thing-"
"I understand it feels a little confusing, Twilight," Sunny said kindly but with a firm yet gentle undertone, "I just want for our first family vacation together to be... well, as private and hassle-free as possible. Hence the personas we're using to appear as these non-royal ponies we appear as."
"Is it some kind of glamour or shapeshifting?" asked Twilight, genuinely curious as she regarded her mentor and her family. If Sunny hadn't used the code-word to confirm their identities, Twilight would never have pegged these three unicorns to be Celestia, Sombra and Sol in disguise. It was so effective even their magical auras felt dissimilar to their true identities.
"It's sort of like... putting on a metaphysical costume," Sunny answered, trying to put it into words to explain, "we haven't changed our true physical forms, but rather cloaked ourselves in these alternate forms in a manner similar to putting on a full body suit. Only the suit itself isn't a physical thing, as it has a sort of... filter that disguises our magical auras to make them virtually unrecognizable from our true mystic signatures. Even in these alternate forms, our physical DNA is different from our real selves' DNA, but as to the rest it just gets more complicated."
"That's incredible!" Twilight was utterly fascinated, somewhat able to understand what Sunny was explaining. "You never even mentioned this to me during our lessons together! Could I do it?"
"You could, but it takes time to... create the 'costume'," replied Sunny. "I myself have around a dozen of them, but all of them were a painstakingly long process to fabricate. I had to help my husband with his and he assisted me in making one for our son."
"It's true, Twilight," Shady sighed wearily at the memory of the process. "It took a lot of work doing mine, though our colt's was a little easier. To be honest, I think Star Swirl himself would find it incredibly difficult just to make one of these... alter egos."
"Well, please, come in and we'll get you settled," Twilight bade them inside and led them down the hall to the grand hall of the castle. "We'll get you settled in the east wing, where there's several suites for you to choose from, and once you're ready, the Harmony Guard would like to treat you to something."
"Twilight, I hope you're not doing some big hullabaloo for us," Sunny brought up, "I told you in my letter, we don't want a fuss over our stay here."
"Oh no, it's not just for you," Twilight assured, "Captain Firestorm has been preparing this with our guard as of late, and you just happen to be here at the perfect time to join us in witnessing it."
"What is it?" asked Shady.
"The Harmony Guard's first-ever military march," answered Twilight. "Captain Firestorm and his lieutenants are looking forward to presenting it to us, and they would be honored to have you attend."
"Well..." Sunny looked to her husband, and Shady smiled at her while shrugging, so the mare sighed, "I think it would be fine to see a display of military coordination. Besides, it wasn't specifically prepared for us."
"Wonderful, then follow me," Twilight bade her guests as she led them in, "we'll cut through the castle and watch the march in our... backyard, so to speak."
Stepping out of the Ponyville Spa, Sturdy Birch and Bottom Bet sighed in blissful content and felt like a million bits. The generosity of Sunny Cheeks had allowed the two stallions to afford the best the Spa had to offer, and they'd been given a treatment so deluxe they'd felt practically like royalty.
"Ohhhhyeah..." Sturdy sighed in blessed relief that the pain in his back was gone, and though the saddlebags were still strapped a tad tight around his barrel, it no longer felt so burdensome to carry their package.
"Feeling better, big daddy? I know I am," chuckled Bet as he stepped up beside his stallion, feeling nice and refreshed himself, as he spread his wings and looked at his plumage. "I can't remember the last time my feathers looked so clean and vibrant!"
"Heh, yeah, I know earth ponies aren't exactly... equipped to preen pegasi," Sturdy smiled, a tad sheepish at the memory of the first (and last) time he'd tried to help his little mane with his feathers.
It hadn't gone well, to say the least.
"Well, what now?" Bottom Bet brought up. "We're rested, relaxed, we still got until tonight before our flight leaves. What should we do next?"
Before Sturdy could answer, he felt his belly rumble and struggle against the strap around it, and the two stallions shared an amused look and both said, "Lunch!"
They started walking through town, unsure of where to go to get some eats, Bet saying, "Should we ask a local where some good eating can be found?"
"Maybe... but it might be better if we avoid unnecessary... social interaction?" Sturdy considered when they heard a couple loud GASPs and looked just in time to see a couple ponies, one pink, the other blue, both with floofy manes and tails, suddenly zip off with uncanny speed and vanish around a street corner.
The two ponies shared a confused look, but didn't think much of it. So, they shrugged and decided to just follow their noses in search of grub.
Later, back in the Castle of Friendship, Twilight had tea and cakes with Sunny as they watched Spike play with little Bright Smile. The colt was having fun as Spike entertained him and kept him company, the sight of the baby foal and not-quite-anymore-a-baby dragon was sweet and heartwarming to the two mares.
Looking upon Sunny's face, it still fascinated and bewildered Twilight that this was really her mentor, Princess Celestia. This Sunny Cheeks persona she wore seemed and even felt like an almost entirely different pony. But Twilight was assured that this was the princess who had mentored her and been like a second mother to her ever since that Sonic Rainboom all those years ago. Though she looked like Sunny on the outside, she was still Celestia underneath that face, and it showed in the way she spoke, how she took her tea and enjoyed cakes (a little too much, really), and the same sparkle in her eyes whenever Twilight had made her teacher proud.
It was then Sunny noticed the look Twilight was giving her and asked, "Is something wrong, Twilight?"
"Oh! Uh- No Pr- Sunny! No, Sunny, heheh..." Twilight said with a slightly put-off giggle before clearing her throat. "Erm- It's... Well, it's still a little confusing, seeing you this way, addressing you by this other name. It rather reminds me of a phrase I once read, though I can't seem to remember the one who said it."
"What was the phrase?" asked Sunny, curiously.
"'Pity a mane in familiar places who yet feels like a stranger',"answered Twilight.
"Hm, a rather wise figure of speech," Sunny nodded as she considered the context, both of the phrase and how it correlated to this situation. But then her expression soured,"I recall the mane who originally said it. Educated sort, but unbearably pompous..."
"Yes, I have met my share of individuals whose intellects made them rather... unlikable," nodded Twilight, recalling such individuals from her days back in school, both among the school faculty and the student body. It was another part of the reason she preferred books over friends back then.
"Well, it was a... difficult and arduous process," Sunny sighed at the memory of it all, especially the paperwork. It never ends, the paperwork... she thought before continuing aloud, "Since so many candidates across the nation began their own campaigns to garner votes and support, we had to have preliminary elections in order to reduce the number of candidates, since there are fourteen seats on the council, each with their own duties and concerns to oversee."
"Fourteen? Shouldn't the number be odd instead of even?" asked Twilight curiously.
"We considered it, but then it was proposed that there would be an unofficial fifteenth seat," Sunny explained, "because, Twilight, I want for the nation and citizens of Equestria to grow and progress. Alas... I feel I have stood in the way of that for over a thousand years during my time as sole ruler. In time, but most likely a long time from now, I hope that Equestria will advance to the point where its citizens do not need alicorn royalty."
"I... never really thought about that," Twilight found herself perplexed by this notion. For all her life, and for nearly all of Equestria's history, Celestia, a princess, an alicorn, had ruled this nation and ponykind, in what seemed to be a benevolent and prosperous reign.
Now, however, she was older, wiser, and knew better. She knew now that Celestia was not the flawless and perfect ruler she had thought her to be for all of her foalhood. She had made mistakes, some worse than others, and she had made hard and difficult choices, some of which were in the wrong but ultimately for the greater good. But now? This idea of an Equestria without alicorn rule?
It confused her, gave her pause for thought... and she found herself surprised by how she found it appealing!
She then looked at Sunny and asked, "So then... what's this unofficial seat about?"
"Well, Twilight, the idea is... if ever the future councilors became deadlocked in a vote for something of great importance, with one side saying this and the other saying that," Sunny explained, "the alicorn royal who would fill the unofficial fifteenth seat would serve as a tie-breaker. Otherwise, alicorns would have only a limited role in the government affairs of the Equestrian Council.
"But even after the council is established and the table is filled, it will be a long time before it gets to that point. The future members of the council will need time to... get their hooves wet. To test the waters. To do what they will do in their roles as a vital part of our government. Mistakes will be made, and that's fine. This isn't going to be perfect right from the start. Making mistakes and learning from them will allow the council to improve and progress, making them better leaders in the long run."
"And at the end of that long run?" asked Twilight.
"They will no longer need us," Sunny shrugged, with a small smile that looked almost... relieved at the very idea.
Twilight considered that for a long moment, and then she asked, "So these... preliminary elections. Was there any other purpose to them?"
"Well, there was a period during them where too many of the larger cities were drawing an undue amount of support for their candidates," Sunny elaborated. "They were under the impression that if more candidates came exclusively from their cities it would mean those cities would gain more power over Equestria. It's why I made that announcement that any candidates who progress during these elections and ultimately made it through and became members of the council would have to serve the council in Canterlot, where they would gain all the support and guidance they'd need to fulfill their new roles, but also are reminded their loyalty is to Equestria as whole . Not the cities they were born in and call home."
"That makes sense. It would have been like the Aristocracy, individuals from certain entities trying to garner more power than they should have," noted Twilight.
"That is to say, there have plenty of promising candidates still in the running," Sunny brought up, "some of who were nominated by respected VIPS, including those among us alicorns. Midnight nominated Techorse, as I recall, my husband nominated one Tomato Sandwich, and even Luna nominated Astral Ink."
"Have you nominated anyone or considering someone to run for a seat in the council?" asked Twilight, curious.
"...No, I feel that I mustn't openly express my support of any particular individual," Sunny sighed. "As Princess Celestia, who has ruled for millennia, my voice carries perhaps the greatest sway over public opinion. Were I to personally nominate a potential candidate, no matter what seat on the council they were running for, it would most likely all but guarantee that individual won their campaign, but not because that individual was chosen of his or her own merit but because Princess Celestia openly supported them.
"Thus, I must keep my personal opinion to myself and not openly support any potential candidate, so that they are elected for the right reasons, not because the Princess of the Sun favors them."
"That... does makes sense," Twilight considered the greater scope of it, "The reason I haven't nominated or shown open support of any candidate is because I am inexperienced in politics. I know we went over lessons in political science before, but we didn't delve too deeply into the subject and much else related to it."
"...I have something to confess to you, Twilight," Sunny sighed as her body gave off a gentle radiance, and Twilight watched as the image of Sunny Cheeks faded away and the true appearance of Princess Celestia shined through, standing to the full of her height, much larger than she was as Sunny Cheeks, before Princess Celestia revealed, "There was so much more I had in mind for you when I first took you on as my personal protégé."
"What do you mean?" Twilight suddenly felt a tension over her withers, strangely finding herself daunted by whatever she was about to learn.
"...In spite of the prophecy that foretold the eventual return of Nightmare Moon, the hope that I would be reunited with my sister," Celestia spoke heavily, "I began to wonder... how long did I truly wish to be ruler?"
Twilight listened with rapt attention as Celestia went on, "I've given over a millennia of myself to my subjects and my nation, Twilight. I have done great things and helped and guided and protected many, and nurtured and mentored individuals to help them rise and reach their true potential. But I have done wrong as well... I have made mistakes, monumental ones. Some I regret to this day..."
"Celestia, what are you saying?" asked Twilight, speaking tenderly in response to how weary her mentor seemed.
"I can't go on forever, Twilight," Celestia answered, sounding tired, but not in the physical sense. "It might seem like I could, but I am not immortal. I can't rule Equestria forever, and I really don't want to. In the years leading up to the end of the millennium since I had banished my sister, I came to the realization that, eventually, I will have to retire as princess and ruler of Equestria. So... i began searching for a potential heir."
"Me?!" Twilight was stunned.
"Not at first," Celestia clarified, "I have mentored many students over the centuries, but it was only in the years leading up to Nightmare Moon's return that I actively sought a pupil... who could one day perhaps take my place. I went through several students, and though some showed promise, ultimately they proved to be either inadequate or they expressed qualities that I realized would not make them fit for ruling.
"I almost thought I found the right heir..." Celestia said, sounding bittersweet, "when I mentored Sunset Shimmer."
"Sunset Shimmer?! But... she murdered Midnight, didn't she?" Twilight brought up. "In order to save him, you cast the Spell of Reincarnation to give him a new life."
"Sunset... is among my deepest regrets and greatest failures," Celestia went on, "She had suffered a trauma... that resulted in a horrific disaster. I thought I could help her, but in the end she allowed her own pride, ambition, and insecurity to cloud her mind, and she made the wrong choices... There were other students, before and after Sunset, including Midnight. But then I met you, Twilight Sparkle."
Twilight felt a weight drop into her stomach as Celestia explained, "The power I felt from you from your magic surge, and witnessing what it was capable of, unbridled and even at a young age... The thought of teaching you and seeing you master your abilities filled me with excitement! But then, when you ignored friendship in favor of studying and research, I harbored doubts that you could be the one I was looking for... only for you to prove I was right after all in how you have grown and learned alongside your friends, who've brought out the best in you and you likewise did so for them."
"Celestia... you really chose me to be your heir?" Twilight's voice, Celestia noticed, was not excited or interested or even sounded appealed to the very idea.
No... she's afraid, Celestia realized, taking a moment before she answered aloud, "Once upon a time, I was certain that this was your destiny. But fate and new developments have given me much to reconsider as of late. So... no, Twilight. You will not be my heir."
Then Celestia looked to her baby and Twilight saw that baby Bright Smile (aka Prince Sol) was now napping, looking absolutely adorable as he rested his head on Spike's warm belly, the little dragon smiling tenderly at the little foal, sitting still and keeping quiet to let the tiny colt snooze peacefully.
Standing up, Celestia gently glowed again, her form shrinking as it faded away and Sunny Cheeks was back. Ever so gently, she levitated her baby from Spike and conjured a notepad and pen, scribbling something on it and showing it to Twilight and Spike.
I am putting the baby to bed, and i would appreciate it if you would watch over him, Spike.
Spike gave a salute, the two mares softly giggling in response.
Meanwhile, in the "backyard" of the Castle of Friendship, Shady Mane was marveling at the greenhouse and the plants it contained. The flowers, herbs, and young fruit-bearing trees were vibrant with life and color, and he could feel the energy in the atmosphere, see it even as faint shimmers of turquoise and magenta, like seeing vapor reflect light and create a rainbow.
"This is an amazing garden you and Twilight have cultivated, Midnight, but..." Shady looked to Midnight and his jaw-dropped as Midnight exhaled onto a flower, his breath appearing as a thicker vapor that glowed turquoise, as it settled onto the flower... and it grew larger, its petals glistening with dew, more leaves growing in, and it now stood as tall as a stalk of corn while it continued to glow a soft turquoise blue.
"It's something Firestorm taught me," Midnight explained as he examined his work on the flower. "Earth ponies passively channel mana into the earth, which helps them to grow flourishing and healthy crops so quickly. They can also use this ability to soothe and calm those they touch. Unicorns can do the same but they do it more directly and not as subtly as the earth ponies.
"From Firestorm, I've learned how to channel my own energy and stamina into my environment. The plants in this greenhouse, that is, and in doing so they grew quicker than they normally would have, even with earth pony care, while maintaining a healthy condition. The downside is, it tires me out, depending on how much energy I give. But the pros more than make up for the cons, as you can see."
Shady looked around and saw how these plants were vibrant and healthy, strong and bursting with life and color. Then, he noticed something else. He recognized some of these plants yet they somehow differed with subtle characteristics that they weren't supposed to have. He looked back at the sapphire stallion and said, "They take on characteristics in relation to whoever channels their mana into them, or am I wrong?"
"You got it in one," chuckled Midnight as he looked back at the flower he'd just boosted with his energy. "The plants we cultivate have slowly but surely taken on traits that they aren't known for. Twilight, Sunburst and Starlight and I have been studying samples, determining what new properties our plants have gained from my and Twilight's mana. If our research yields positive results, we plan to have Sunburst and Starlight contribute by them channeling their own mana into the plants too, and see what more we can learn and gain.
"But among the findings we've confirmed," Midnight gently touched the petals of the flower, "is that the plants to whom I've given my own energy have begun to take in energy not only from the sun but the moon as well."
Shady was stunned, "They're gaining your ability as a lunar pony to absorb moonlight energy! Midnight! The potential alone, Midnight, it- Crops that flourish under both the sun and the moon?! We could solve food shortages, perhaps even famine around the world! I know there are still some countries that struggle to feed their citizens."
"The lunar ponies of the Shetland Isles have already accomplished it," Midnight responded, "but they keep it discrete. They fear that, if the wrong ears heard about their lunar earth ponies having the power to grow food that flourishes under moonlight, then they would be targeted, exploited. Perhaps even attacked."
"That makes sense... and other nations might be intimidated by this new development," Shady considered before shrugging, "One step at a time, I suppose."
"Yes. Some would argue we should hurry and get ahead of this," Midnight sighed before turning to his disguised mentor, "but haste too often causes us to miss crucial details and miss the potential ramifications of the long-run."
Shady noticed Midnight seemed downcast and had to ask, "How goes Starlight's assignment? Any... promising developments?"
"So far, no," Midnight sighed woefully. "She spends nearly all of her free time on it, looking for a way to reverse the effects of what Catrina has done with Starlight's cutie-mark removal spell. Spearhead and a few other patients have been given room and board here in Ponyville and they've been doing well, all things considered.
"But Starlight just can't figure out how to undo Catrina's magic and restore their cutie-marks. I tell you, master..." Midnight furrowed his brows, "Removing someone's cutie-mark is one thing, but destroying it! ...And Goddess knows what else Catrina is planning. She basically declared war on Equestria. My Hoods are searching everywhere for a lead that could help us track her down, but... it's like she's a ghost."
Shady Mane looked upon his apprentice and descendant, and his form shimmered like the facets of a crystal reflecting light before it faded and Prince Sombra revealed himself and reached out to place his hoof on Midnight's shoulder. They shared a long look before Sombra assured, "No matter what she has planned, no matter what she may throw at us, in the end we will prevail. That is a promise, son."
Midnight smiled... and embraced the closest thing he currently had to a father, and Sombra warmly returned the gesture.
"Hi, Midnight, hi Somby! Bye Midnight, bye Somby!" said an all-too-familiar voice all of a sudden, followed by a few POP sounds.
"WHOA!!" The moment abruptly ended as they found themselves flecked with confetti and little streamers.
Looking around, they saw a couple of party-poppers, the kind that pop and release confetti and little streamers, for party and/or celebratory purposes. Then, they noticed something on a nearby table, and Midnight levitated it over to see it was a party invitation.
Opening it to give it a read, Midnight chuckled with a shake of his head, "A patented 'Welcome to Ponyville' party, hosted by Pinkie Pie, with the help of her big brother, Party Favor. Says it's for a couple of newcomers they encountered earlier today. To be held this evening in Town Square."
"Well, my family and I are here for a little vacay," Sombra shrugged as his form refracted with light and faded away, turning Sombra back into Shady Mane. "Plus, I don't believe I've had the pleasure of attending a 'Welcome to Ponyville' party. Even if it's not for me."
"Don't let Pinkie hear you say that," Midnight chuckled with an 'oh boy' demeanor, "She just might gasp so much air she'd pop like a balloon."
The two stallions shared a good chuckle before leaving the greenhouse to head back into the castle.
As the sun was setting, Sturdy Birch and Bottom Bet were walking around together, having had an enjoyable time exploring Ponyville. After a hearty lunch, they'd watched a Smash Fortune movie at the local cinema to pass some time, and now, as daylight slowly but surely gave way to the dusk, the two stallions felt increasingly assured.
"Just another few hours, big mane, and we'll be outta here," Bet exclaimed excitably.
"Yup, little mane, the first day of the rest of our lives is just around the corner," agreed Sturdy when he noticed something... off.
He slowed a little in his walk as he then began to notice that the streets were oddly quiet and scarce of locals, giving the present environment a somewhat... spooky feeling. Even the lampposts weren't so lively, as they hadn't been lit up yet. Ordinarily, lampposts in smaller towns were enchanted to steadily light up as the day transitioned to night, and though it wasn't night yet the lampposts should have at least started faintly glowing by now.
"Uh, Bet?" Sturdy paused and Bet looked to Sturdy, who was giving the street a sweeping gaze, "It's quiet. Too quiet..."
"Yeah, this is... kinda freaky!" Bet gulped nervously but shook it off and said with a forced swagger, "But I'm sure it's no big! I mean, maybe... Ponyville has a curfew? Or... perhaps there's some kind of local tradition or holiday?"
"I dunno, something just feels... I can't explain it," Sturdy was starting to feel the weight of their task all the more as his lunch weighed down in the pit of his stomach, tightening the strap of his saddlebags.
"It's still a few hours before our flight, Sturdy," Bet reminded as he followed his coltfriend down the street.
"I know, but I'd rather we just avoid any unnecessary complications and be close by to board our airship," Sturdy insisted as they turned a corner and saw Ponyville Square right ahead although it too was empty and quiet.
Bottom Bet smiled, assured by his stallion's certainty and nodded as they made their way straight through the square, and it was shortly before they reached the center when he said, "You're right, Sturdy. It's all smooth sailing from here on out. Our dream is finally within reach and we are gonna take it by-"
"SURPRISE!!!"
Lights flashed on, popping sounds burst with confetti and glitter, and the two stallions brayed and stumbled in alarm to see the square was now suddenly alive with activity! They saw dozens and dozens of the locals surrounding them, smiling and waving, a nearby refreshment table chocked with chips n' dip, pizza, hayburgers, several two-liters of soda, a couple punch bowls, platters of cupcakes, there were balloons, streamers, and a large party banner that read 'Welcome to Ponyville!' in outrageous colors.
Sturdy Birch and Bottom Bet stood there, in jaw-dropped stupor, unsure as to what the heck was going on-
"SURPRISE!!" They both cried out in alarm, Bottom Bet leaping into Sturdy's forelegs, and they saw a blue unicorn with a curly mane and tail and a balloon animal for a cutie-mark, giving them an excited smile.
"And I'm his little sister, Pinkie Pie!" interjected a pink earth pony popping out of nowhere, with a curly mane and tail of her own and a trio of balloons as her cutie-mark.
"We saw you earlier today-" "And I didn't recognize you guys-"
In response to the Party Pony brother and sister's words, the attendees all whooped, cheered, and stomped their hooves, some calling out warm welcomes and wishes to Sturdy and Bet, who were both looking around nervously at this unexpected development. The very sort of thing they'd been hoping to avoid while they'd waited for their departure.
"Well! That's... mighty kind of you all..." Sturdy drawled with a forced smile on his face, Bet gulping nervously.
"Nuh-uh-uh! No fake smiles at a Party Pony party!" Pinkie zipped to Sturdy's side and pulled at the corners of his mouth.
Sturdy and Bet looked at each other out the corners of their eyes and took in the party before them. It was bright and merry and exuberant, and even humbling and considerate that all of this was for them. If it weren't for their pressing engagement, they'd be partying already. This would be a great way to end their visit in Ponyville on a high note.
But then they saw the alicorn prince and princess, Midnight and his wife Twilight.
"THANKS FOR THE PARTY!"
Sturdy and Bet made like eggs and beat it, to the bewilderment of the Pie Siblings.
"Where ya going?!"
Everypony watched as Pinkie Pie and Party Favor chased after the guests of honor, popping up out of nowhere ahead of them to prevent them from going too far, appearing around every corner, to the point where Sturdy Birch and Bottom Bet tried loosing them in the crowd of attendees. Ponies leapt out of the way, ducked, or jumped, trying to avoid the runners and the pursuers, the former scrambling like mad to escape and the latter hilariously foiling their efforts.
"I don't get it, why are those guys trying to leave? This party is for them, after all."
But then... Sunny Cheeks felt the presence of something, a vibe that was disturbingly familiar, It's on the tip of my horn, but what is it?!
It was at that moment when Sturdy and Bet veered towards the water fountain in the square where things went pear-shaped. A bunch of confetti and a few streamers were slightly piled up on the ground and as soon as Sturdy's hoof landed on them he slipped! Tumbling head over tail, he yelped in alarm while the fastener on his saddlebag came loose... and out flew a round-shaped object, like a discus, with a distinctive symbol on it.
A symbol Sunny Cheeks (or rather Princess Celestia) recognized!
Her shout of alarm was too late as the disc-shaped object shattered upon the edge of the fountain... and then, everything went white!
BPT: Two Heads... Aren't Easier Than One
The white was so bright it was blinding to everypony in the square, causing them all to scrunch their eyes closed from how intense it was. Because nopony present could see, they didn't witness what followed after, as a wave of magic suddenly spread, washing over the ponies closest to the point of origin.
Sturdy Birch. Bottom Bet. Pinkie Pie. Cheese Sandwich. Rainbow Dash. Soarin. Midnight Blaze. Twilight Sparkle. Sunny Cheeks. Shady Mane. Applejack. Thunderlane. Rarity. Blueblood. Fluttershy. Macintosh.
A scream of wind filled everypony's ears and blew at their manes, the stallions instinctively pressed against their mares, trying to protect them while Sturdy pulled Bet into an embrace. Then there was a feeling like a heavy splash of water and the sheer discomfort of pins and needles spreading over their bodies as the strange magic worked a mysterious effect.
The Stallions and Mares of Harmony embraced each other, wanting to protect one another while also seeking comfort in their special somepony beside them, holding each other so tight as though they would melt into each other. Stalwart guts merged with constant support. A strange pressure bringing them together. Their bond bridging their feelings into one.
Finally, the bright whiteness dimmed, the cry of the wind settled, and the pins n' needles faded with blessed relief, and the members of the Council of Friendship all groaned and felt strange.
Midnight became aware that he was lying with his left cheek to the ground. The evening air tickled his ear. Groaning, he raised his head a little, dazed and his vision blurry. He heard his wife's moans to his immediate left, which somewhat relieved him. But despite his addled state of mind, Midnight quickly realized, something was off. He felt... lopsided. He could only feel the right side of his body. His right foreleg, his right shoulder, his right hind leg, his right wing... while his tail felt strangely fidgety, as though he couldn't fully control it.
But as weird as that felt, he had to be sure his Twily and their friends were alright.
As his vision began to clear up, Midnight looked to where he'd seen Sunny Cheeks and Shady Mane, but to his surprise, he saw Princess Celestia, sprawled upon the ground. Her "Sunny Cheeks" disguise was gone! Perhaps dispelled by whatever that blinding white light had been, for clearly it had been magical in nature, and for some reason Celestia had been alarmed by whatever had caused it.
Grunting, Midnight moved to stand himself up... but found it strangely difficult to do so as he didn't feel his left legs, and his right legs still felt a little tingly. Not only that, his body, despite only feeling half of it, felt somewhat heavier than he was used to. Even so, he somehow managed to stand up but the bizarre lopsidedness of feeling only his right side persisted.
"M-Midnight... what's going on...?" Midnight heard Twilight's voice again.
Right next to him.
Midnight turned his head left to look towards his wife.. and was startled by how he nearly bumped his face into hers, startling her too.
"Wh- Midnight?!" Twilight looked confused. "Why are you standing so close to me?"
"Well, how else am I able to do this?" Midnight replied by giving his Twily a nuzzle, and she warmly reciprocated, the both of them closing their eyes, enjoying the closeness... when they each raised a foreleg to touch their special somepo-
"OOF!/OUCH!"
Midnight and Twilight found themselves both on the ground, apparently from falling forward. The both of them a tad looped, they each pressed a foreleg to stand themselves upright again though it was shaky, almost like a baby foal struggling to stand for the first time.
"How did that happen?" Twilight wondered aloud.
"Uh... Twilight ?" The subtle alarm in her husband's voice made Twilight stiffen with suspense.
She looked over to him and saw him looking at her right shoulder, and she looked down... only to find she had no right shoulder. There, between them was a frame of a pony larger than either of them, a conjoining marked by the left half of that frame being Twilight's lavender coat and the right half Midnight's sapphire. The lavender half retained Twilight's slender curves while the sapphire half vaunted Midnight's broad musculature. The base between the left lavender shoulder and the right sapphire shoulder sprouted two heads, Twilight's and Midnight's, and the forelegs matched the corresponding side.
The Prince and Princess of Friendship stared in abject disbelief before their eyes met and they saw their mutual horrified realization of what had just happened! But before either of them could say anything...
"Ugghhhh, did... did anypony catch the license plate on that wagon" "What happened? I-I feel...strange." "Urp! Wha- Ah don' remember eatin' hay fries!" "Goodness, whatever was that light?" "Never mind that light... look at us!!!"
The rest of the Council of Friendship were beginning to notice they had all become closer with their romantic partners than they had ever wanted to be! Midnight and Twilight, Applejack and Thunderlane, Rainbow Dash and Soarin, Pinkie and Cheese, Blueblood and Rarity, and Macintosh and Fluttershy, they were now all conjoined into shared bodies but had their separate heads!
It was as if half of their own individual bodies had vanished and their respective halves had conjoined with their special somepony's and the difference split them right down the middle! Even stranger were how some of the pairs' combined bodies had changed somewhat.
Cheese was tall and skinny, but combined with Pinkie, their conjoined body was tall and plush!
Blueblood and Macintosh were both larger than their mares, but Rarity and Fluttershy seemed to have enlarged just enough to be more-or-less equal with their respective stallions, forming conjoined bodies that were larger than Rarity and Fluttershy normally were yet their halves retained their feminine traits.
Furthermore, it seemed Fluttershy had retained both of her wings while conjoined with Macintosh, and so had Thunderlane, who was conjoined with Applejack.
Rainbow Dash was only a little smaller than Soarin, so there was no major change to her by her conjoining with Soarin though they each retained their own wing on their respective side of the conjoined body, which had barely grown in size.
Remembering what had happened earlier, Midnight and Twilight looked towards where they'd seen the object had broken and they saw Sturdy Birch and Bottom Bet had likewise been paired into a two-headed pony too, with Bottom Bet's half of the body relatively equal in size with Sturdy Birch's side of their conjoined form... and so had Princess Celestia and Prince Sombra, their Sunny Cheeks and Shady Mane disguises gone.
Midnight hadn't noticed before, because he'd only seen Celestia. But now that she and Sombra were standing, their conjoined body was visible for all to see!
Alarm. Shock. Confusion. Disbelief. A multitude of emotional entanglement began to rile up the paired ponies who were now each sharing a body, but then they were reminded they weren't alone.
"AAAAUUGHHH!!!" "What happened to them?!" "Is that Princess Celestia and Prince Sombra?!?" "THE HORROR! The horror ...!!!"
Some heads bumped (due to an inconvenient condition of personal space) but the paired ponies soon saw the party attendees were gaping at them in abject shock, fear, confusion and shortly after, ponies (minus Party Favor, who'd fainted at the sight of his sister put together with her coltfriend, Cheese Sandwich) began screaming and running around in panic. The refreshment table got overturned, sending the spread all over the ground, the punch bowl spilling, the chips literally flew, the cupcakes went SPLUT in the dirt. A few ponies bumped into or crashed into some of the decorations, causing balloons to float away and streamers to fall.
Panicked screams and alarmed confusion was filling the evening air, and as the spooked ponies were running about, starting to bump into and hurt each other, Celestia furrowed her brows.
"Be ...STILL."
A gentle radiant magical aura of sunshine yellow spread throughout the square, immediately immobilizing every panicking pony on the spot, and the screams and shouts and cries stopped right then and there, and they were all befallen with a sudden silence.
The conjoined members of Council of Friendship, as well as the conjoined Sturdy Birch and Bottom Bet turned their eyes to Celestia, and saw Sombra was gaping at his wife with a similar stupefied look as Celestia spoke in a calm yet firm tone for all to hear:
"Everypony, please, calm down. I understand this situation is... disturbing, to say the least. Given this unexpected turn, I suggest everypony goes home and get some rest. The Council of Friendship, my husband and I will... get to the bottom of this and hopefully, very soon, we'll have it resolved and ourselves back to normal."
Then, with another flash of magic, all the conjoined ponies, along with the broken pieces of whatever Sturdy and Bet had been supposed to deliver, vanished while the other ponies all kerplopped to the ground, released from Celestia's hold.
Multiple FLASHES brought the conjoined ponies into the grand hall of the Castle of Friendship, and almost immediately confused and awkward chatter began.
"How did this happen?!" "Ow, Soarin, be careful!" "Wow, Pinkie! Our butt feels so pudgy!" "And we're so tall too, Cheesy!" "Of all things that could have occurred tonight, this is the worst. Possible! THING!!" "Ouch, Rarity, we don't have the fainting couch!" "Oh my...!" "Er- Jus'... take it easy, `Shy." "Thunder, would'ja stop flappin' yer wings? Yer ticklin' me!" "Sorry, AJ, this... oh Sweet Mother of Celestia, this is so weird!"
Midnight and Twilight stood next to Celestia and Sombra, with Sturdy Birch and Bottom Bet sitting nervously beside them, and finally, Twilight asked, "Celestia, wha... I don't even know what to ask-"
"I do," Midnight took a deep breath and yelled, "WHAT THE BUCK IS GOING ON HERE?!"
Midnight's shout echoed throughout the grand hall, all ears catching it and then all eyes turned to Celestia, and she noticed Sombra looking at her with a similar look demanding answers. Celestia took a breath and then said, "I'm not entirely certain myself, so let's ask them ..."
They followed her gaze to the conjoined Sturdy Birch and Bottom Bet, both of whom lowered their heads and gulped nervously at the sight of these conjoined ponies, alicorn royals among them, giving them different kinds of looks. A lot of them stink eyes.
"After all," Celestia levitated the pieces of the broken object up for all to see, "They had this with them, the apparent cause of our current predicament."
Sturdy and Bet shared an uncertain look before Sturdy sighed... and struggled to stand his and Bet's conjoined body, until Bet did his half of the work and they faced the music.
"My name is Sturdy Birch, and this is my coltfriend, Bottom Bet," Sturdy began. "We were... meant to deliver that object there to someone who was gonna pay us. It was gonna be a fresh start for ourselves, a chance to begin anew."
"We were given a saddlebag with something in it," Bottom Bet spoke up, "and instructed to walk to Ponyville to meet someone here. We did, and that someone gave us tickets for an airship that was scheduled to depart tonight. We were meant to deliver the package to wherever the airship was going and then we'd have gotten our pay and that would have been the end of it."
"What was this package you were supposed to deliver and who hired you to do it?" asked Midnight.
"We don't what the package is," Sturdy replied, "We were told not to open it and to avoid unwanted attention... but the pony who hired us. He was an earth pony, greasy-looking mane, wore an orange polka-dot ascot, had a golden skull with jeweled eyes for a cutie-mark."
The friends all gasped to hear that, and Rainbow Dash started to blurt, "Hold on, golden skull, polka-dot ascot?! That sounds like Doctor-"
*ZIP*
"MMPH?! Mmnn!" Her lips magically zipped, Rainbow Dash threw an annoyed glare at Midnight and Twilight, the latter gesturing Sturdy and Bet to continue.
"We were on our way to the Ponyville Airfield when we walked into that... party," Bet shrugged his shoulder (making up the left side of his and Sturdy's conjoined body), "and we... well, we panicked, since we were supposed to keep a low profile and needed to get to our flight. We're so sorry! We had no idea something like this would ever happen..."
"Well, it is Ponyville," deadpanned Blueblood, only to get a soft shush from his wife and a slight boop to the nose with her hoof.
"Wait a minute, Celestia," Midnight looked over to her and Sombra and he pointed out, "Just before this... situation happened, before that object broke, you shouted something, like something had alarmed you."
"Yes, but we should move this to the map room," Celestia suggested.
Easier said than done, as the conjoined ponies only control their own halves of their combined bodies. It sort of reminded some of them, especially Applejack and Macintosh, of Seven-Legged Races. Only, this wasn't two ponies each with one of their legs tied together, it was two ponies with their bodies merged into a conjoined two-headed form that still had four legs overall. It was very much like learning how to walk all over again.
There were baby-steps, more than once a pair tripped and fell, but despite the little bickerings, a few snickers from the sheer ridiculousness in some points, the conjoined ponies all managed to wobbly make their ways into the map room... only to find they had another problem.
"Ugh, twelve thrones, all too small for each of our combined butts," Soarin was the one to say it, and several groans and sighs let him know they agreed.
But then, the thrones all seemed to give off a strange glow! To everypony's bewilderment, the thrones all inched together in pairs, the crystal armrests flowing together before receding... and the seats of the paired thrones melding together as well as the backs of the thrones, until finally, there were six thrones now (not counting Spike's), and so the seats were larger and the backs put together while displaying the marks of the conjoined ponies meant to sit in them.
Everypony was dumbfounded, until Sombra asked, "Has... anything like that ever happened before?"
"Never!" Twilight responded as she and Midnight shared a confused look.
"Can we please just take it for what it is and get off our hooves?" Rarity grumbled, "Mine are starting to ache, I'm... I'm not used to being this..."
"Er- Yes, let's... get comfortable," Twilight agreed.
While the conjoined members of the Council of Friendship took their seats, Twilight lit up her horn and conjured some extra-sized comfortable chairs for Celestia & Sombra, and Sturdy Birch & Bottom Bet. Since the thrones had melded together for them, there was a little more space between them, allowing the other two pairs to join them at the table. Once they were all comfortable (as much as they could be) Celestia cleared her throat as she levitated the broken pieces of the object onto the table top.
She arranged them just so to more-or-less form the correct shape and the image on it:
Midnight and Twilight both eyed it curiously. The object itself appeared to be a flat disc of petrified wood, while the symbol seemed vaguely familiar to them.
"For those of you who don't know this symbol," Celestia began, "It is the cutie-mark of an accomplished unicorn witch, long dead. Her name was Hecate."
"Hecate? I'm certain I've read that name somewhere before," Twilight commented.
"I know of her, she was an accomplished enchantress," Midnight spoke, "using her knowledge of magic to craft magical tools and objects. She was actually my biggest inspiration when I studied Enchantment. Except... for all I know about her, there's so much I feel that I don't."
"Hecate preferred it that way," Celestia explained, "She used her knowledge of magic to develop and progress the advancements of her fields of expertise. She was also quite a trickster in her own right, making magical objects that would induce a silly effect on whoever came across them. I remember she tried experimenting with Poison Joke to replicate its effects, but I don't know if she ever succeeded.
"She kept to herself, but truly, when it came to her magical prowess and skill, she was second only to Star Swirl the Bearded."
"So then... Hecate is responsible for this object that bears her cutie-mark?" gathered Sombra. "If that's the case, what was its purpose? It breaks and for some reason it causes all of us to be... merged like this?"
"Hecate kept some of her secrets close to the vest, even from me," Celestia answered, "and she protected some of her secrets by using traps that, when triggered, would cast some kind of spell upon those who'd dared attempt to take from her what she wasn't willing to share. That's not to say Hecate was greedy... only that she knew some of her work could be dangerous if misused by those who didn't understand it.
"What's happened to us?" Celestia gestured to her and her husband's conjoined body and then to everyone else, "This is exactly the sort of thing Hecate would do to protect her secrets. Thankfully, her spells weren't permanent, but..."
Celestia hesitated to say more until Sombra raised a brow and said, "Tia..."
I hate it when he takes that tone... Celestia thought before sighing and she said, "Hecate wasn't just about magic, but also learning. Learning about one's self and how to be... better or clever. She designed some of her magicks to dispel when those under their effects learned something, about themselves, their situations, about others, or even an important lesson about life in general.
"Hecate had this odd way of thinking, often talking about choices, and how every choice we make is a crossroads. Where one choice can lead us to something good, another can lead us to something bad, and so on."
"Wait, Auntie..." Blueblood gulped, "You... you're not saying that... you can't-"
"Dispel this magic and split us all back into our separate selves?" Celestia dismally shook her head no. "I'm afraid not, nephew."
Everypony started to worry and get nervous, when Pinkie said, "What's the big deal? I think this is actually pretty awesome!"
"Awesome ?!" Rainbow echoed indignantly, "Pinkie, how, in Stormbreaker's Thundering Skies, is this awesome?!"
"Yeah, Pinks, I gotta agree with Dash," Soarin felt really uncomfortable, having to share his personal space, and his body, even with his mare. "We can't live like this, stuck together this way!"
"Oh, Soarin, din'cha hear the princess?" Cheese waved off Soarin's concern, "She said this magic is only temporary until we figure something out. Some... big lesson or whatever. We do that, and before we know it we'll be our own individual selves again, easy-cheesy!"
Not everypony had the same optimism as the party ponies, as Rarity asked with hopeful desperation, "Princess Celestia, you really can't use some kind of counter-spell to undo this?"
"I am sorry, Rarity, but no," Celestia shook her head. "Ordinarily I could do just that, but Hecate was able to work such intricate and detailed magic that even what she willingly shared was tricky to understand. Other unicorn mages who tried to undo her spells without enough knowledge of them were subject to more magical effects that worked against them. Like when you cut corners it only leads to more corners and adds to the problem instead of bypassing it."
"Maybe this thing could tell us more," Thunderlane pointed with his (left) forehoof to the broken relic on the table. "If we put it back together, I mean."
"Easier said than done," Blueblood sighed, recalling his own magical studies. "Ordinarily, a simple repair charm could fix a broken object, except this is a magical relic that is centuries old. Not something mundane like a shattered dinner plate or a busted clock."
"Blueblood raises a valid point," Twilight sighed wearily. "When a magical relic is broken like this, it's too risky to use magic to fix it unless you have an adequate understanding of the relic's power and the magic that composes it. Directly using a spell for repairs on a broken relic without knowing what you're doing could cause unforeseen side-effects."
"So, fer th' time bein'... wer' all stuck like this," Applejack gathered.
"I'm afraid so, everypony," Celestia sighed woefully and everypony was already sharing troubled looks of dismay and worry and confusion. "How you all handle this is your choice, but remember. This condition is temporary, so until it ends... we'll all just have to make the best of it."
"If... nopony wants to go home tonight," Twilight offered, "you're all welcome to stay here for as long as you need. There's plenty of suites and guestrooms."
"Twilight, we- We can't just... hide ourselves away in your castle," Rarity protested despite knowing the bizarreness of their situation, "We all have our lives and our jobs to see to! I'm about to start my next line of Olympia Couture !"
"Oh my, Mackie!" Fluttershy looked at her husband, "The twins! We left them with Faerie Tail and we're already late!"
"Eeyup," Macintosh nodded and the conjoined parents wobbly stood up. "Shy an' Ah, wer' gonna head over t' pick up our foals, get some stuff from our house, then we'll be right back."
"Here," Midnight lit up his horn and conjured a comfortable cloak, draping it over Macintosh and Fluttershy's back. "If you meet anyone, you can say you both were feeling chilly so you're sharing this cloak."
"Eeyup," Mac agreed with a thankful look.
They all watched as Macintosh and Fluttershy shakily walked out of the Map Room, but appeared to be getting the hang of walking with their combined body right before they disappeared out the door.
"So, in the meantime..." All eyes turned to Midnight as he pressed his hoof onto his forehead, "We're all just... gonna have to make the best of it. If you all have to go out and do stuff, that's up to you. But remember, our neighbors are already aware of what's happened to us, and it won't be long before the rest of Ponyville knows.
"You can hide yourselves, or you can just go about your lives and businesses and let everypony see you as you are. Just assure anypony who asks that this condition is not contagious or something, and that it's temporary. Brace yourselves for a lot of stares, awkward situations, it's... it's gonna be an experience, everypony."
"Um..." Eyes turned to Sturdy Birch and Bottom Bet, who were sitting in a chair that was backed away from the Map, the two of them looking nervous and uncertain. "What should we...?"
"You guys are staying here," Midnight said firmly. "First off, because you're both afflicted with this magical condition, same as us, which is technically your guys' fault. Second, to answer questions about the individuals you were doing business with. We understand that you didn't mean for this to happen, but it is what it is."
"We understand, Your Majesties..." Sturdy and Bet lowered their heads, feeling awful when-
*Kershplatter *
All eyes turned back to the doorway and they saw Starlight and Sunburst, with Spike standing between them, having apparently been holding a plate with snacks on it. But he'd dropped it as he, Starlight and Sunburst gawked in utter stupefied shock at the map room full of two-headed ponies.
"Uh- Starlight? Sunburst, Spike!" Twilight flummoxed trying to find the right words-
"AAAAUUUGGGGHHHHH!!!!!" "WHAT THE HELL?!" "I'm going to bed..."
As the two unicorns and young drake left, the Council of Friendship shared a bemused look of confusion, when Celestia said, "Well... that's a start."
Author's Note
For the record, the conjoined ponies make up one half of their combined bodies, as in one pony is the right side and the other is the left side, R-L. To clarify who is what, they are:
R - L