Ponyville was bustling and full of the lively faces of cheerful ponies everywhere. The sun was shining as the pegasi had cleared the clouds, allowing for just a few stray cirri clouds to remain and provide some shade and a breeze. Ponies went throughout their days without seemingly large worries, other than avoiding the galloping white unicorn who seemed to be going nowhere fast. She knocked over a cart of flowers as she ran, pausing only a moment to help pick them up hastily and shove them back in the cart. “Sorry darling, I’m in such a rush. But I must get going right now! I’m sure you can rearrange them anyway. After all, you’ve done it before!” Rarity shouted as she kept up her pace. The cinnamon-colored pony rolled their eyed and began pulling the flowers out to arrange them again. Rarity ran all the way to Twilight’s castle, where Twilight and Spike were waiting at the front doors for her. “I am so TREMENDOUSLY sorry dear, but I simply had to finish this beautiful scarf arrangement for Spikey here. Scarves are almost in season after all, and you need to be ahead of the curve if you are to use those fabulous wings for any useful fashion!” Rarity beamed at Spike.

“Sure, what else would wings be for…” Spike mumbled as he lowered his eyes in slight contempt for the ensemble piece.

“What was that dear?” Rarity asked as she fixated the red scarf with emerald inlay around his neck.

“I said it looks great Rarity! As always” Spike responded as he blushed and turned even further away from her gaze.

“Wonderful! It looks magnificent!” Rarity said with glee as the final knot was pulled. She took a few steps back to admire her handiwork.

“Rarity,” Twilight started, “while we appreciate the scarf, I’m sure you know that isn’t the reason I asked you over today. I’ve been meaning to ask you for a favor.”

“OOOOH of course Twilight dear, whatever shall I do for you?”

“Well, for starters, Spike,” she nodded at him. He ducked his head and excused himself outside, fiddling with his scarf as he walked out into the sun that most certainly didn’t treat a scarf too kindly in this heat. Once the door closed behind him, Twilight refocused on Rarity. “I need to ask, but only because I am so inexperienced and all the reading in Equestria couldn’t help me figure this one out so I figured I would ask a close friend but as I started thinking about who—”

“Twilight dear slow down and just say it!” Rarity put her hooves on her friend’s shoulders to steady her quickened breathes. “It is just a simple question, what could all this fuss be over?” Twilight shuffled nervously around her foyer.

“I need to know if I… I mean if you, or anypony, Creature for that matter, I just want to know if…”

“Yes dear? Just spit out the words you can do it.”

Twilight paused looking at the floor.

“Am I really meant to take over and rule Equestria alone?” The question seemed to hurt asking even as she spoke it. Rarity cocked her head to a side as she looked at her downtrodden friend.

“Whatever do you mean dear? We are here for you, are we not?” Twilight crossed a hoof in front of another, signifying her discomfort with the topic.

“Well, sure, but ever since I became an alicorn, my aging is slow and will eventually stop. I live forever while all my friends…” she trailed off, not wanting to think about that inevitable end far off in time but getting ever closer.

“Twilight, my dearest friend” she put her hoof to her chest, “you are strong and smart. You hardly need us now! And of course, we will be with you to the end and beyond!” Twilight let out a soft smile and closed her eyes for a moment.

“Yes of course, but eventually I’ll have to make new friends. And it’s not exactly like there’s a line of immortal stallions I can afford to fall in love with for eternity while shirking my princess duties.”

Ever since Celestia and Luna had proposed to Twilight and her friends that they would inherit the kingdom of Equestria, Twilight had been drawing up plans, working on new protection spells, and finding anything to help her choose assistants that would succeed the current ones. Needless to say, she was not exactly relaxed about it. She already knew she would pass the school on to Starlight, but that was one problem of a seeming million she just happened to solve. Plus, the castle was large and awfully lonely between herself, Starlight, and Spike. Truth be told Twilight had wanted someone to be her special somepony once she had a close group of friends there in ponyville. She always felt too embarrassed to say anything, as her friends got along just as well without one. Applejack had the farm to run, a sister to raise, and a grandmare to care for. Rainbow Dash had the wonderbolts, training, and as many races as the world could provide to think about. Pinkie’s baking would attract any stallion with a belly for sweets, so she never had any trouble flirting with the right customers. Fluttershy preferred her animal friends anyway, and everyone knew she and Discord saw each other more than any “friends” would for tea parties. Rarity could have any stallion she wanted, and she knew it, hence Twilight asking her over in the first place. Maybe she could help find somepony special that would treat Twilight right for the time being. Sure, Twilight loved her reading and studying, but she felt as though she had come so far that there was hardly much for her to read anymore anyway. She had once sensed a connection with Sunburst, Starlight’s friend from the Crystal Empire, when he came to town to visit and boded with Twilight about the magic and properties of the land. But he and Starlight had been friends since foalhood, she couldn’t exactly just make a move on someone clearly so close to Starlight. Twilight sighed, and Rarity looked up at her.

“Twilight, I know how you must feel, but surely you don’t think that a stallion will solve your problems, do you?”

“No! Of course not” Twilight said with a hoof in the air, “but don’t I deserve somepony special to love even if I am a princess?”

“Of course, but like you said, immortal stallions are awfully hard to come by. Come to think of it, there isn’t even an alicorn stallion, is there?” Rarity questioned. She had actually never thought of the possibility of a prince existing in the land. The only immortal “stallion” they had met was king Sombra, and he had been vanquished not once, not twice, but three times at the hooves of their friends.

Twilight groaned and stood a little straighter. “There was a few a long time ago, before even Celestia was born. They were the students of an earth pony sorcerer who taught Starswirl almost everything he knows.”

“I’m sorry, did you say earth pony sorcerer?” Rarity peered at Twilight as though she had sprouted another hoof from her head.

“Yes, but he was lost to history a long time ago. Even Starswirl has vague and little memory of him, probably lost memories from his time in limbo, but he used to teach talented wizards and sorcerers from all over, leading to many earning wings or other magical abilities otherwise thought to be unattainable by males.” Twilight shook her head. “But that is hardly relevant, I need a real stallion in today’s time, not getting caught up in legendary stallions of the past like all my other books.”

Rarity chuckled a bit at the admission of Twilight’s fantasies over her heroes in literature rather than real ponies. “Yes, yes, of course. And I assume that is the favor you have come to ask of me? Matchmaker?” Twilight shuffled again and crossed her hooves.

“Yea. I just figured you get so many ponies falling for you, maybe a few leftover would fall over to me? If it isn’t too much to ask anyway.”

“Darling of course not! I can’t very well love ALL the stallions in ponyville now, can I?” Rarity said with a wink. She moved behind Twilight and began pushing her to the library where they would begin reviewing the long lists of potential candidates. “I have so many ponies for you to try things out with! I can’t tell you how excited I really am for this adventure we are going…”

The voices faded away, as a dark pony retreated from the window after having eavesdropped on the two friends. She could not help but feel a little guilty and jealous of the options princess Twilight had due to her close friendship with the most attractive mares in all ponyville.

“You fool, get over yourself and get ready for retirement. You are too old for anypony anyway. Might as well get used to Celestia’s pancake princes. They’ll be the only men waiting on you for eternity.”

Princess Luna sighed and turned away from the castle to begin leaving, but she was caught off guard by the small dragon that was standing behind her.

“Uhhh… princess Luna?” Spike asked as he looked up at her.

“Oh, my apologies, young dragon, I was just... uh, looking at Twilight’s décor for some… inspiration for my own.” Luna sold with a faulty grin to Spike. He didn’t buy it for a second. He crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes.

“You know I know better, after all, I know what they were talking about because Twilight asked me first, you know, being her closest friend and all.” He said with the bravado of a full-grown dragon.

“I—er yes Spike of course you do.” She sighed with defeat. “I had been monitoring Twilight Sparkle’s dreams and noticing her planning for companionship and was just curious how she would move forward, nothing more.” Spike shrugged, seeming to buy it for now.

“You could always just ask her, you are friends after all, and I think she knows you watch her dreams sometimes.” Spike waved a hand at her. “I’m headed into town now, if you want to come look at her potential ‘suitors’, but I wouldn’t hold your breath.”

“No thank you, I must return to Canterlot and continue packing.” She turned away and spread her wings but just before looking back and asking “and Spike? Please don’t let Twilight know I was watching. I will tell her in time, but I must think first.”

“Sure, why not, you watch people’s dreams anyway. What’s looking at them through a window going to change?” Spike said as he turned back, but Luna was already up and gone. “Of course, I’m just the dragon who knows everyone’s secrets.” He sighed again as he started into town, wondering why anypony got so obsessed with love or another pony in the first place.

Author's Note

First chapter to kick things off. A little on the slower side compared to how it opened, but I'm just trying to pace it well. This story mainly focuses on Luna, but does feature other characters in their own arcs. Again, leave any feedback you have please, or just enjoy the read!