Any news, captain?

Negative, your highness. There have been no sightings within Equestria of a fifth alicorn that have born any truth.

What about the operatives in Griffonia or south of Equestria?

Negatives on both as well.

Sister, how’s everything going?

Lulu, we have nothing. No sightings other than mistaken identities, no whispers of her, not even a way to track where she reappeared!

Perhaps she isn’t wanting to be found?

She’s a filly. How could she know how to disguise herself in the wilderness for so long?

That isn’t natural. Somnia licked her lips as she gazed on the rows upon rows of apple trees. She moved up to the nearest packed tree and tried bucking it to get an apple to drop.

Her body made a tight turn, followed by the fluid motion of her back-legs to impact the tree, producing a single thud as her hooves made contact, but nothing more. The tree wasn’t some hallucination she was having. It was real. After checking around the tree, she confirmed that not a single apple had dropped.

Is this really your greatest priority? I’m certain the farmer will give you one to eat.

Fine. She huffed, trotting off further into the orchard. Her stomach growled in anticipation, calling out for something a bit more substantive than berries. She spent a good hour walking in metaphorical - and sometimes literal - circles. Some trees in the orchard the farmers had organized, while others were more random, and going in a straight line only got her cornered against a small cliff. She passed the same rock a few times, going so far as the keep twigs leaned against it to mark the iteration. Four twigs later, she got out of that section of the orchard.

I’m lost. She pouted to herself just before a motion to her left caught her eye. There was... a pony! Finally, somepony to talk to besides a half-dead phantom! Not that I don’t mind talking to you, Grar. She apologized tongue-in-cheek, trotting over to the small yellow and red filly and seeing they were an earthlite. Not much of a surprise given the earthlite genetic talent with farming.

“Hiya!” Somnia called out, startling the filly into dropping the stack of baskets they had balanced on their back. “I’m lost. Can you tell me where to find the town guard?”

The earthlite gave her a confused look at first, saying something Somnia didn’t recognize. This doesn’t bode well.

Somnia tried making motions with her hooves in the standardized non-verbal hoof language, requesting directions toward a market. Some ponies were taught it in parts of the empire, especially when they had to deal with non-pony creatures unable to speak the Equinish script, but it was a long shot this pony would know it.

Not getting any response she understood, Somnia pointed in the direction the filly had come from, raising a brow, hoping they would at least understand that she was getting at. After getting no coherent answers or motions from the filly besides a scratch on the back of the head, Somnia gave up and trotted in the direction the farmer had come from.

After reaching a fence, she turned to follow it along as far as she could. She would reach the front gate eventually, even if it wasn’t the optimal solution to her predicament. Luckily, a path came into view on the other side of the fence. Somnia climbed over the wooden post barrier and followed the path, her course leading her to what appeared to be the edge of a town. She trotted into the streets with a greater skip in her step, her eyes scanning around for any indications of key structures.

The town hall would hopefully have somepony who speaks her language.

“Thanks again for the extra quills!”

“You’re welcome, princess! Come back anytime!” Davenport waved Twilight goodbye as she left Quills and Sofas. Once clear of the shop, Twilight gave a deep sigh. The most recent round of papers from Princess Celestia had resulted in all her quills breaking and a few instances of spilled ink. She considered having a sturdier quill custom-made, but given her limited budget prior to becoming a princess, she never had the bits to afford a craftspony to make it.

It was still relatively early in the day, only a few hours away from her lunchtime picnic with the girls before leaving for Canterlot. The grass was still a little wet from the rain the previous day, small droplets dotting the blades, shimmering in the morning sun. A few birds flew in the sky or perched atop the roofs of buildings and a weirdly familiar crow stared at her from a clothesline. A few ponies smiled widely and waved to her, trying to get her attention. She still wasn’t used to being a Princess of Equestria, even if it wasn’t official until the coronation tomorrow.

She gave a smile and small wave to the ponies as she passed, hastening her pace back to the library. Gratefully, a familiar face turned to see her, waving her over to talk.

“Good morning, Twilight! My, isn’t it a little early to be shopping?” Rarity smiled, tilting her head to see the saddlebags with quill feathers poking out.

“I could say the same for you. What brings you into town?” Twilight tucked the flap on her saddlebag down to cover the feathers. “Getting more supplies for dressmaking?”

“I ran out of aquamarine thread. I can’t have a mismatched thread on a customer’s dress, now can I?”

“Guess not.” Twilight looked around the market. There were a few ponies up-and-about shopping, a few she even remembered the names of. The local guard, Idle Patrol, certainly seemed to be in a hurry, and Lyra was shopping for groceries. After lunch was when most of the traffic would come by the market, meaning she had time to chat without receiving unwanted attention. “How’s my coronation dress coming along?” She turned back to Rarity, who had finished paying for the thread, or threads rather.

“It’s looking lovely! Regal, yet still all you. That’s all I’m going to tell you until I show you tomorrow. I don’t want to spoil anything!”

“I can’t wait to see it! I know how hard you’ve been working on it.”

“All I’m hoping is that you love it as much as I loved--“

“MAORDA!” A loud shout came from across the market, turning several heads to the pony who had yelled it. Twilight turned to see a filly with an atrocious mane galloping towards her, tears running down her face. Twilight barely had time to even register she was galloping at her before she was tackled onto her haunches as the filly made impact to bring her into a tight hug. Besides the surprise, within Twilight’s chest, she felt an odd sensation of relief. Her own eyes started tearing up by looking at the foal. None of it made sense to her, but right now she might as well figure out why she was being hugged and by whom.

She sobbed into Twilight’s fur, speaking some language she didn’t quite understand. “Hisa jirt hims!” She cried out, hugging as tightly as she could. The feeling in Twilight’s chest sank, although she didn’t know why she was getting choked up seeing the filly cry. Do I know her? A confused Twilight turned over to an amused Rarity holding back a laugh.

“A little help?” Twilight asked her friend.

“You two look adorable. She even has a highlight in her mane like you do. Must be a huge fan.” Rarity walked over to the assaulter, brushing the foal’s messy mane with her hoof. “She certainly looks like she’s come a long way to see you.” The unicorn picked a twig from the mane.

“Most fans don’t run up to their idols to give them hugs randomly.” Twilight muttered, turning to the filly: “Do you speak Ponish?”

She looked at her teary-eyed, a little confused at what Twilight had asked. “Hisi firsint umiska jisut scitus mital? Dens Excalia scitus?”

Twilight looked back to Rarity. “We should get her to city hall. I don’t recognize the language and I don’t recognize her from around here. We’ll need to reach out to the University of Canterlot for a translator.”

“Wonderful idea.” Rarity responded. Once she got back onto her hooves, Twilight inspected the filly. The dark purple messy mane and tail had a light blue and pink highlight ran through it, similar to her own, except the mane was too much of a disaster to create a straight line. A massive clump of mane got tangled right above her forehead, making it impossible to tell if she was a unicorn if Twilight didn’t already notice the wings, and her light blue eyes matched the strip through her mane.

The cutie mark was something else, though. A darkened sphere overlaid by a closed eye, with six differently colored stars surrounding it. It was more detailed than most other cutie marks she had seen, comparable to Cadance’s cutie mark in some ways.

The coat wasn’t anything vibrant, being a light bluish-gray. Faint darkened stripes wrapped around her legs, stopping once they reached her body. Her wings were very smooth, and larger than they should have been for her approximate age. As for the rest of her body, there were minor cuts that were healing, but a few that were fresh. Wherever the filly had come from must have been muddy, as brown muck trailed from her hooves up to the rest of her body. She really needs a bath.

As they walked along towards town hall, the filly kept right against Twilight, smiling to her without a care in the world. Neither adult pony spoke while they walked, listening to the remarks of the foal in her own language, but since they didn’t even understand each other, conversation was rather one-sided.

Rarity pulled out a comb from somewhere, attempting to disentangle the mess of a tail. As she finished the tail, Rarity focused her attention on the filly’s wings, humming to herself.

“Twilight, her wings need preening as well. If we can’t get her back to her parents soon, do you know of somepony that could help with that?” Rarity asked, pulling another leaf from the tail.

“Cheerilee can help. She knows how to preen foals better than I do.” Twilight hoped that it wouldn’t come down to that, given the sensitivity related to preening a foal. The white unicorn moved the comb to the ball of tangled hair in the filly’s mane, first separating the loose strands. The filly wincing a bit as the comb worked through the tangles. Bit-by-bit, it was coming apart.

They all heard several clicks as Rarity ran the comb through deeper. Both Rarity and the filly stopped dead in their tracks, much to Twilight’s confusion. “Why did you stop? Town hall’s right there.” She pointed to the building that loomed across the square they reached.

“One second.” Rarity approached the filly, using her hooves and magic to poke into the messy mane. The filly giggled a bit at the act, saying something to the two mares. After a few seconds, Rarity stopped what she was doing, turning to Twilight in shock.

“What? What is it?” Twilight asked, worried it was a wound, or dead animal. It wouldn’t surprise her, given the condition of the foal. She moved next to Rarity, looking into where Rarity had made a hole in the mane. Her heart pounded loud enough to hear in her ears. She did one last look at the filly’s wings before lowering her voice: “Let’s get her into town hall. Princess Celestia needs to know about this before anypony else.”

With a simple nod from Rarity, the three continued to trot into the town hall. Rarity took the filly back to the washroom to clean her up a bit more while Twilight rushed back out towards the library. Her mind raced about the discovery, and she was there to make it.

There was a fifth alicorn in Equestria.

Nervously pacing back and forth, Twilight thought about everything that was going on. The mayor let Twilight and Rarity use her office to keep the alicorn filly in until Princess Celestia arrived, Rarity staying with the foal so that she wouldn’t be alone. It wasn’t half-an-hour later when the first chariot came into view. Then another immediately following afterwards.

The first chariot touched down to the side of city hall, six guards departing with luggage and taking it to the nearby house that served as the ‘town garrison’. It didn’t calm Twilight’s nervousness to see guards arriving. Is this mere coincidence related to her own impending princesshood, or are they reinforcing the garrison in relation to the filly? The second chariot landed in front of her, containing both regal sisters along with a large crate, yet another bad sign.

Celestia stepped down from the chariot, donning her typical motherly grin. “Princess Twilight, my faithful student! It is good to see you again!” She gave a slight bow to Twilight, who gave her a full bow. Stepping down from the chariot with the crate in her magical grasp, Luna stared at the town hall doors.

“Is she inside?”

Twilight nodded, leading them in and toward the back offices. Before they got to the door, Celestia took a deep breath and turned to Twilight. “Please let us handle this privately, if you wouldn’t mind. I’m afraid the situation is extremely sensitive and we all must handle this with the utmost care.”

“Sensitive? How so? Do you know her?” Twilight asked in curiosity.

“There are things you do not understand, Twilight Sparkle. Old, uncomfortable, and far-off things. It is for the best that Celestia and I speak with her alone before anypony else.” Luna stated, focused on walking ahead.

“Oh...” Twilight turned to Celestia in disappointment. The eldest princess winced, slapping her sister on the back of the head with her wing, receiving an annoyed glare in response.

“I wouldn’t have put it so bluntly.” She said to her sister with annoyance. The trio came to the door, Twilight opening it for them to enter. The filly was kicking her hind-legs back and forth on one of the office chairs, smiling up to Twilight as the door opened.

“Rarity? If you wouldn’t mind waiting outside for a few minutes, we need to address with the little one’s language issue.” Celestia ordered with her usual gentle grace, although Rarity made no fuss as she trotted from the room. Once outside, Luna’s magic slammed the door shut and locked it, leaving the two mares to only guess what they were about to do.

“Did she say anything? Does she know who she is?” Rarity pressured a conflicted Twilight with a giddy grin on her face.

“I-I... don’t know.”

“Apple Bloom said she saw a filly wanderin’ the farm earlier. Didn’t speak a lick of Ponish, but they sound like the one ya found.” Applejack added to the group’s understanding of what this was all about, taking a bite of her cucumber sandwich. It had been several hours since the princesses had entered, long enough for lunchtime to come about. Rather than having a picnic out in the fields, they setup in town hall. Four guards had positioned themselves around the main chamber, all of which being from the first chariot Twilight had seen.

Thanking the guard she was talking to, Rarity trotted back over to the group. “He knew nothing either, only that he is being permanently reassigned to the Ponyville garrison on the princess’ orders.”

“Maybe I could try talking to her?” Fluttershy suggested.

Twilight shook her head. “The princesses locked the door and put up a soundproof barrier. There’s no way we can ask them until they come out.”

“Two alicorns in a week! That deserves a party of some sort. Maybe we can have a super-duper big double-coronation party!” The party pony gasped. “I know! We’ll make today a holiday! That way we celebrate when two alicorns appeared in Ponyville every year!” Pinkie exclaimed with a squee.

“Hey, aren’t all alicorns royalty? Does this mean we will need a second coronation dress?” Rainbow Dash asked, dreading the answer that Rarity would give.

“In a few years when she’s older, probably.” The white unicorn answered, secretly relishing the idea of designing yet another coronation dress. “Assuming the princesses abide by that archaic law, of course.”

“Aren’t we gettin’ a little ahead of ourselves?” Applejack asked. “How do we know she’s actually an alicorn? Apple Bloom said she didn’t have a horn when she saw ‘er.”

“That’s because it was under her mane.” Twilight countered. “Rarity had to go digging to find it.”

“Hmmm... you don’t look like you’ve been digging.” Pinkie knelt down to stare at Rarity’s hooves. “Looks like they got polished and scrubbed to perfection!”

The group heard a door open from down the hall, all standing just in case it was the princesses. Turning the corner were the two regal sisters, the crate still in Luna’s grasp, and the little filly with a deep frown on her face. Her mood picked up a bit when she saw Twilight though, biting her lip and wagging her tail a little.

“I see you brought the other elements.” Celestia's voice carried a slight edge of approval.

“Hehe, we kinda had plans to go on a picnic.” Twilight responded, rubbing a hoof on her other foreleg. “How did it go in there? You were gone quite a long time.”

“There was much that needed to be discussed.” Luna said, cracking a smile. “But we are done. Oh, by the way, the papers within are for you. The box is for Somnia.” She dropped the crate in front of Twilight.

“Huh?” Twilight looked at the still sealed crate curiously before turning back to the princesses. “So her name’s Somnia?”

“Yup!” The filly replied. “I slept a lot as a foal, so y- my parents named me Somnia!”

“Indeed.” Celestia added with a chuckle, bringing her head close to Somnia’s ear to whisper: “Are you sure you are alright?”

Somnia nodded back to Celestia. “Grar or mom can help me if I have problems.”

“Very well.” Celestia stood up tall. “Princess Twilight Sparkle and the Element Bearers of Harmony.” She began, sending a nervous shiver down Twilight’s spine. This was her royal decree voice, something Twilight had the misfortune of experiencing whenever she got into trouble.

“I, Princess Celestia of Equestria,” “And I, Princess Luna of Equestria.” Luna included, taking a regal stance and attitude similar to her older sister with wings extended, “do hereby decree that the subjects of our decree, Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria and the administration of Equestria, recognize her daughter, Princess Somnia Temporus of Equestria and the whole of Equus, as a de jure and de facto dependent and child of Princess Twilight Sparkle, among other declarations.

By our divine will, gifted by Queen Faustinia of Equestria and spoken before five prominent nobles of Equestria, do authorize the full decree in its written form as legal truth and fact. Should there be any dispute, Princess Cadance of the Crystal Empire will be the judge of the validity of the decree according to Equestrian law as set under the Treaty of Unicornia.”

The room stood in stunned silence for a few seconds before Somnia spoke up. “Can I go back to her now?” Receiving a nod from Celestia, they trotted over to Twilight, rubbing into her side. “Do you got any food? I’ve had nothing but blueberries to eat the past couple of days.”

“Uh, we got sandwiches. Want some?” Applejack suggested, leading the filly over to the blanket while the rest processed what happened.

“Huh?” Rainbow vocalized, brain having shut down.

“I’m sorry. Did you say daughter?” Rarity rubbed her ears, making sure she heard correctly.

“I-I, but...” Twilight took a breath to calm herself a bit. “WHAT?!”

“Twilight, we have the utmost confidence in your abilities to take care of Somnia.” Celestia smiled at her former student. “Consider this a test if that makes you feel better, although do not treat it as one. She still needs time to grow before she can handle herself on her own. I trust you will be the best option to raise her in the long term.”

“I’m disputing this! Twilight doesn’t have a daughter!” Rainbow blurted out, raising a hoof.

“And you are free to do so. Remember to contact Princess Cadance. I’m certain it will surprise her to learn she has a niece-in-law.” Luna provided a smirk to the multicolored pegasus. “Not that you would win such a dispute.”

“I don’t know, Rainbow. She does have a similar highlight.” Fluttershy rubbed her foreleg as she herself didn’t want to admit it made sense.

“That means nothing! Plenty of ponies have highlights in their manes!” She countered, not noticing that Pinkie and Rarity had made their way over to the picnic blanket where Applejack and Somnia were chatting.

“Princess Celestia, I mean no disrespect, but have you lost your mind?! I don’t have a daughter!” Twilight snapped back at the regal sisters.

“You do now, as you have had for longer than you can remember.” Celestia said, voice teeming with hidden knowledge, further annoying her student. “We are fixing the legal side of things now that she has returned.”

“Raising a grown foal isn’t so bad.” Luna added while waving a dismissive hoof. “Ask your mother if you need help. I’m sure she has plenty of experience with the two she had to raise.”

“That’s not the point! Why wasn’t I told about this earlier?” Twilight stamped the hard floor beneath her, before taking a moment to calm herself down. “What’s this all about? Who is she? I at least deserve to know that much if I’m going to be raising her.”

Celestia grinned to her sister, who returned the expression. “You should ask her yourself. I’m sure you will find you are more related than you believe.”

“That doesn--“

“I never meant it to. That is for you to discover.” Celestia cut her off, approaching Twilight to whisper so others wouldn’t hear. “If I told you who she is, you wouldn’t believe me. It is a truth you need to find. Talk to her, care for her, make sure she doesn’t get herself killed.” She finished with a serious expression. “I’m entrusting her to you because she trusts you. It is in her interest you are the one that continues to raise her, and it is in the interest of Equestria that somepony trusted raises her. If you want to dispute this, bring it up at the Princess Summit next weekend. But right now, Luna and I must return to Canterlot.” The two regal sisters walked straight past Twilight toward the doors.

“Hey, uh, Twi? You alright?” Rainbow floated down next to her. The princesses both winked at her before leaving the town hall.

“Yeah. Just peachy.” She said through gritted teeth. Turning back towards the picnic blanket, she saw her four other friends having a friendly conversation with the filly. Her head ached from the different thoughts racing, all the conflicting emotions battling each other for dominance. Anger, shock, nervousness, fear, guilt. Wait, guilt?

Guilt for what? Not accepting a filly who would go to live with the princesses in lavish luxury? Why should she feel guilty about that? Who was she to the filly?

Yet the feeling persisted along with others. Why did she feel compelled to smile at the foal’s smile? Why did she want to hug her tighter when she was crying? She’s a foal, yes, but that didn’t explain the emotional investment. Why does seeing her safe and happy make a part of her weep with joy? What’s going on?

She took a breath that turned out more ragged than she intended, Twilight turning to Rainbow Dash. “I don’t know.” She said, unsure of what to make of this. It was too sudden, too much of a shock.

“Uh, why are you crying?” Rainbow landed next to Twilight concerned about her friend’s emotional state.

“What? I’m not–“ She felt her face. Without a doubt, whatever wetness she felt was tears. “I-I don’t know.”

“You wanna go back over?” Rainbow gestured with her head. “Or do you need a few?”

“Just... give me a few minutes. I’ll be right back.” Twilight trotted into the hallways of town hall in search of a washroom. The moment she got inside, she looked at herself in the mirror. Whatever tears she had were slowly drying. She took the towel and wiped her face down before returning to the group, the rest chatting away.

“Ya should teach me some of that language of yours. Apple Bloom won’t know what hit ‘er.” Applejack chuckled with Rainbow Dash.

“It probably sounds like gibberish to somepony who doesn’t know it.” Somnia took another bite of her sandwich. “Probably could get away with saying random things that sound like words.”

“Darling, don’t speak with a full mouth, please.” Rarity chastised.

Somnia swallowed the bite. “Hehe, sorry. I haven’t had something this good in a while.”

“What did ya mean by only havin’ berries?” Applejack asked while Rarity motioned over Twilight. “Sounds like ya were roughin’ it in the wilderness.”

“I was lost in the woods for a few days after returning. It was the only thing that didn’t require effort.” She admitted.

I told you we could have hunted animals. That would have been a better meal.

Shut up, Grar.

“Returning from where?” Fluttershy inquired.

“Dunno. Celestia and Luna thought I might have been trapped in limbo.” She said as though everypony knew, however, only Twilight had a visible reaction that wasn’t confusion.

“You came from limbo?” Somnia nodded to her caretaker. “How long were you in there?”

She thought for a moment. “Celestia and Luna said a few tens of thousands of years. Maybe more than a hundred thousand?”

Twilight’s jaw floored. “W-What? That’s impossible except for a masterful wizard to do! How did you get trapped in limbo?”

“Uh, what’s limbo?” Rainbow asked.

“A place outside of time.” Twilight simplified for her friends. “Star Swirl the Bearded wrote a paper on limbo before his disappearance...” I wonder if that’s where he went? Twilight mused to herself, something to look into later.

Somnia shrugged. “Don’t know. I was being chased by a shadow monster–“

Void entity, remember what I told you.

“Void entity, and then I reappeared in a different forest. I thought Fae, Grar, or my brother had something to do with it, but Grar says he didn’t and Fae wouldn’t have known how.”

Fae also teleported away, so she had no line-of-sight, which would have made casting the spell increasingly difficult. I have my own suspicions, but we’ll look into it another time.

“Who’s Grar and Fae? Are they friends of yours from back then?” Fluttershy asked.

“Yeah, they are some of my closest friends!” Somnia said, puffing up her chest. “Fae was a few days younger than me, and Grar is super old.”

Ow, my pride.

“You really don’t know how you got trapped in limbo?” Twilight asked again, receiving a shake of the head from the filly. “Hmm... What did you and the princesses talk about?”

“They don’t want me to tell you.” She admitted with a half-smile. “Nopony remembers who I am, and it’s better off staying that way for now.”

“And who are you?” Rainbow followed up.

“I’m Somnia!” She scooted over to hug her mother. “And this is my mom!”

“Maybe in name, but aren’t ya gettin’ ahead of yerself?” Applejack raised a questioning brow. “Twi doesn’t have any foals that she’s told us about, an’ it doesn’t seem right to have ya adopted by her right after meetin’ her.”

The other elements agreed while Somnia mulled over her words. “That she knows about.” She countered, grazing her eyes between the gathered ponies, her smile fading. “Nopony who would know me is alive. I’m all alone except for my mom and Grar. She’s the one pony that reminds me of home.”

“Are you alright, darling?” Rarity asked Twilight with concern.

Wiping away the extra tears, she bit her lip and looked into the filly’s eyes. The feelings only got muddied at the hope within those eyes, bouncing between different emotions that all fought for dominance. Why does this filly she never met before today seem so familiar?

“Yeah, she’ll be alright.” Somnia answered for her guardian, giggling along with Fluttershy and Pinkie. “She’s going to need sometime to come to terms with it.”

“I’m gonna need time to come to terms with it.” Applejack muttered to Rainbow while Somnia finished her sandwich.

“Thanks for the food.” Somnia let out a yawn. “I really should get to bed.”

“It’s lunch...?” Fluttershy said, pointing to the clock on the wall.

“L-Let’s finish lunch, then I’ll take you back to the library. We’re heading to Canterlot in a few hours, so you’ll have plenty of time to sleep on the train.” Twilight replied, receiving an affirmative nod from her forced ‘daughter.’

Twilight slammed her head onto the table. If there was ever mind-numbing paperwork, this was it. Nearly all the forms were identical in some manner, with minor changes to the language used and who it was in addressed to. Practically every single mayor, lord, count, or duke in Equestria had a sheet of paper that she needed to sign by hoof or horn. If Princess Celestia didn’t go through the busywork of forming the letters, Twilight was sure she would have just ripped off her wings right then-and-there to return to being a no-name unicorn.

Her hoof sifted past the seeming endless stacks of paper addressed to bureaucrats, finding the papers related to Somnia. A royal decree, birth certificate, a short ‘Guide to Parenting’ written by Celestia, and various scattered documents related to Somnia’s new life. Looking through the royal decree, she read every line twice to make sure she was understanding it correctly. While a decent chunk was legal exemptions related to investigations into why the filly appeared from nowhere, there were sections that peaked Twilight’s interest.

The first was regarding her guardianship. It claimed: ‘All inquires related to the appropriateness or legality of the adoption are to be addressed to Princess Celestia or Princess Luna. Contacting Princess Twilight or anypony other than those listed with such inquires can and will result in a fine not exceeding five-thousand bits and/or incarceration not exceeding four moons.’

The second section of interest was in relation to the media. There apparently was a legal provision that allowed the monarchs of Equestria to suppress information. In this situation, it was the royal decree itself and Somnia’s existence. Nopony could report on these things for as long as the monarchy didn’t provide the information publicly. This isn’t like her. Twilight creased her eyebrows. Princess Celestia lets ponies and businesses operate without restraint as long as it doesn’t harm other ponies. What’s changed? Is Somnia in danger?

The birth certificate confirmed what the decree had said. Twilight wasn’t just Somnia’s guardian, she was Somnia’s actual mother, according to the documentation. The father was recorded as ‘Mystic Nightflight of House Therisin - Current identity unknown’ and Twilight’s was ‘Miracle Spark of House Excalion - Currently known as Twilight Sparkle of House Sparkle’, along with the obligatory ‘Age: Pre-Equestrian, assumed to be around 10 years of biological age at document creation.’

Included underneath Somnia’s documents were sealed folders with each of the element’s names on them. Opening hers, she carefully examined the signed and stamped documents. Apparently, each of her friends were officially being granted noble titles and the minor privileges that came from being greater nobility, most of which were already granted because of their status as Element of Harmony bearers. As she bit her bottom lip, she considered heading out to deliver the documents, ultimately deciding to leave it until after the coronation.

A small wooden box laid at the bottom of the crate, engraved with something written on top. Twilight assumed it was the box Celestia mentioned, although she couldn’t deny her curiosity about what exactly it was. Taking it out, she carefully examined the small box with her magic.

It radiated magical energies from multiple sources. Twilight could make out four unique magic signatures, two of which she identified as the regal sister’s magic. The other two were different, making up the lock for the box, while the sisters’ magic was more of an after-thought to prevent chaotic energies from whisking it away like what Discord did with the Elements of Harmony.

“Is that what she wanted me to see?” A tired Somnia asked from behind Twilight, startling her into dropping the box onto the floor.

“GAH! How’d you get behind me so quietly?!” She asked, getting her heart under control while Somnia picked up the box.

“I got it from my dad.” She smiled, following it with a giggle as a memory came back. “He used to scare you a lot.” She undid the lock, rolling an engraved metal sphere into her hoof. Taking a quick look over it, she shrugged.

“D-Do you know what it is?” Twilight asked in fascination, her eyes unable to be peeled away from it. At the back of her mind, wisps of ideas came and went on their own, further keeping her vision affixed on the single artifact.

“Yup.” was all she said in reply, putting the sphere back inside and heading back to the upper landing where the beds were.

With a shake of her head to clear the unnatural thoughts away, she called back: “That’s it? Just ‘yup’?”

“Yup.” came the muffled response as the filly collapsed back into bed.

Dear Celestia, she’s another Shining Armor. Twilight shook her head and got back to signing the papers. After another hours of signing, she put down her quill and walked to the upper level to rouse Somnia from her sleep.

Cradled in her grasp was the box held tight to her body. Her face was all scrunched up, and a few tears fell from her eyes as she whimpered in her sleep. Nudging her awake, Twilight expected... something, but not what she got.

“Is it time to go?” Somnia opened her eyes, smiling up at her mother.

“Yes...” She wanted to ask about the crying, but they needed to get to the train. “Spike will meet us at the station.”

“Is Spike your coltfriend?” She sat up to stretch while Twilight furrowed her brow.

“Spike’s my assistant.” Twilight's weary voice answered. “He’s a bit young to be my coltfriend, and it wouldn’t feel right since I raised him.”

“So he’s your son?” Somnia perked up. “I have another brother?!”

“No, he’s–“ She sighed. “Nevermind. I have a pair of saddlebags that you can take.”

Twilight and Somnia went back to the main floor where Twilight put the saddlebags on the filly while taking the suitcase herself. They made their way through town, a few ponies giving curious glances their way. The actual walk was uneventful until they got to the station where the other elements were waiting for them with Spike.

“Hey, Twilight!” The baby dragon waved to her, smiling at the accompanying pony. “You’re Somnia, right? Rarity told me you’re going to be staying with us at the library.”

“Yup!” She trotted closer, eyeing him from top to bottom. “I wasn’t expecting you to be a dragon.”

“I’m Spike, I’m Twilight’s number one assistant!” He shook hooves with her proudly.

“Who’s number two?”

“Owlicious. He’s Twi’s pet.”

While the two chatted, Twilight wandered off to talk to her friends. Pinkie was the first to ask: “Why the frown, grumpy?”

“You’ll never believe what I found in that crate.” Twilight sat next to Fluttershy while they waited for the train. “I’m listed as Somnia’s actual mother on the birth certificate!”

“I’m certain the princess had an excellent reason.” Fluttershy tried comforting her confused yet frustrated friend.

“I’m not sure, Flutters.” Rainbow muttered. “This seems too far, if you ask me.”

“Let’s think of this logically, hmm?” Rarity spoke up, all eyes turning to her. “A new alicorn filly shows up after being lost in the woods for a few days. The princesses seem to know her already, and she is supposedly from a very long time ago. Are we certain you aren’t a reincarnation of her mother?”

“Impossible!” Twilight countered. “Star Swirl the Bearded deduced that reincarnation was impossible without using highly advanced forbidden soul magic!”

“That doesn’t exactly refute what Rarity said.” Applejack disagreed, the other elements coming to the same conclusion.

“I would never use magic like that! If I’m anything like I am now, then it would be unthinkable!”

“Are you sure you’d be the same as back in those days?” Rainbow cringed at the thought. “You don’t seem to remember anything about what happened. Have you tried asking Somnia about it?”

“I haven’t had the chance! Between the paperwork Princess Celestia gave me and her napping the entire time, I haven’t...” She stopped herself as she remembered the crying. Did something happen? What about her father? What about her siblings? Wait, no, those are another mess to come to terms with.

“It’s alright, Twilight. I’m sure you’ll make for a great mom. You just need to have faith in yourself.” Fluttershy tried to comfort her again, placing her forehooves atop one of Twilight's.

“I’m sure she will.” Somnia hopped up onto the bench opposite Fluttershy, hugging her mother. “Spike was telling me his life story. Did you really hatch his egg?”

“Somnia, you mentioned you had a brother...” Twilight had a question burning straight through her tongue, but she didn’t want to accept it. “How many siblings did you have?”

“Just my brother and sister. They were a lot older than me, by like, three thousand years.” She tried thinking of the exact age difference. “I don’t know. They never really celebrated their birthdays after the first few hundred years.”

“Celestia and Luna are just over a thousand! How old was I?!” She cringed at the legitimacy of her supposed parenthood, but better to let it slip than to correct it.

“I don’t know. Over ten thousand?” She shrugged. “Never came up in conversation.”

18,217 by the Fall of Excalicorn. Only was married for the last 3,628 years. Grar broadcast for the others to hear, spooking them.

“Who was that?!” Rainbow looked around. “Show yourself!”

“That’s Grar.” Somnia giggled. “He’s my oldest friend, in more way than one.” She winked.

Ugh, that was awful.

Sue me.

“Y-Your friend Grar is still alive? I thought you said everypony who you knew were gone!” Twilight glared at Somnia.

“Well, of course he’s still around! He’s attached to me like glue between pieces of paper.” She hugged herself. “Can’t go anywhere without him.”

Didn’t have much of a choice. Either I stay with her, or I fade into nothingness.

“Grar is a weird name. Are you from some super far away land?” Pinkie asked, moving her face close to Somnia’s.

It’s just Somnia’s nickname for me. You can call me Archmage Grogar the Brilliant of the Harmonic Empire, if you wish.

“You’re Grogar?!” Twilight shirked away from the filly. “B-But–“

Did something happen? You’ll have to fill me in on what my lesser half got up to.

“Well, Og kinda killed everypony in Excalicorn...” Somnia added.

We know that, but they wouldn’t.

“I swear, if you are anything like your ‘other half’, I’ll...” Twilight couldn’t actually think of what she could do. “Do something!”

“Good luck with that. I’m keeping him.” Somnia giggled, snuggling into her mother’s side. “He’s my friend. Yeah, he’s made mistakes, and his other half killed a lot of ponies, but he’s not like that anymore. He’s kind and very helpful. I didn’t know how old you were back then, but he did. Probably knows a lot of other interesting stuff!”

I’ve had millennia to study things and memorize. I lived a very boring life since the early days of Excalicorn.

“What about the time you shot dad with molten metal?”

“Say what now?” Rainbow landed to listen just as the train started slowing down into the station.

“I’ll tell you all about it on our way to Canterlot...” She grinned around to the others. “It’s a blast!”

Author's Note

Normally I would use Pony Town to design any OC, however they don't have filly-sized models. I tried the 3d Pony Creator by PonyLumen, but it wasn't terribly helpful for the color scheme due to shininess on the model. Use the descriptions provided for a complete appearance, this is just for the color scheme:

IMAGE REMOVED PENDING REPLACEMENT

Yes, I realize she looks like a complete meme about bad OCs. I tried my best to prevent a bad color scheme for her in spite of the detail gore. Also updated on 23/04/25, removed the image. Again, use the details in the story. I haven't updated the imagery yet for the characters in the story, so if I do, it will be here.