Just A Heartbeat Away.

by deadpansnarker

Rating: everyone
Tags: Twilight Sparkle, Slice of Life, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Human, Sad
Length: 1460

In an most unexpected turn of events, the Queen has woken up this morning to discover an alicorn in her bed. Just what is the meaning of this?

In an most unexpected turn of events, the Queen has woken up this morning to discover an alicorn in her bed. Just what is the meaning of this?

Published 2024-02-22 23:40:00 UTC
Last updated 2024-02-22 23:40:00 UTC

1. We are not amused.

It was as the Queen rose early that sunny summer morning in her castle and rubbed her eyes to let in the light of a new day, she received quite the fright.

It wasn’t that Jeeves had forgotten to bring up the breakfast things or even neglected to leave her favourite newspaper by the tray, that would’ve been bad enough.

The velvet curtains were drawn, her goose-feather pillows had been fluffed, the nice moustached man with the stethoscope had gone… everything seemed to be in perfect order. Except…

Somehow, under the cover of night, one of her prize horses had seemingly escaped from the palace stables and crept into her bedroom to invade her living space.

If she thought that occurrence was somewhat unusual, the current location of said steed was to cause Her Majesty even greater concern.

For the equine intruder had only gone and snuck under her covers to sleep peacefully next to her under the sheets! She could see the top of its head just poking out from the duvet, and soft breathing rhythmically at her side.

Well, what a fine how-do-you-do! In all the years I’ve been alive, and there’s been plenty of those mark my words, I’ve never known anything like this happen before. This is most unprecedented. I suppose I better summon help to have it removed…

For some reason though, and even though it was handily located on a bedside table well within her reach, the Queen couldn’t quite summon the necessary strength to tinkle the bell which would normally alert her nearby servants that she required assistance.

So she had no choice but to just lie there powerlessly and watch this horsey interloper take up practically half her four-poster as it slumbered, but she didn’t have to wait much longer. For it was only a few minutes later when slight movement could be detected, and…

“Oh my, what a wonderful nap! I must say, that’s the most comfortable mattress I’ve ever slept on! Anyway, I’m guessing you have a lot of questions, judging by the puzzled look on your face…”

Questions?! The shocked Queen felt she was either on the verge of a nervous breakdown, or her creeping senility had finally caught up with her ailing brain. For not only was this not a horse as first thought but a genuine bona-fide pony, its rich fur was various shades of lavender that our animal-lover ruler had never seen before on any native creature. But that wasn’t even the half of it…

“You can talk? You have a horn? A-And are those wings…?” The Queen reacted in astonishment as her unexpected guest stretched all body parts freely after her long rest, revealing a long pair of feathery adornments attached to her back. “S-So that’s how you got in. Through the window. At least I won’t have to fire anyone now…”

“Yes. Sorry for the big surprise, but you were resting when I arrived and you looked so peaceful that I didn’t want to wake you up. So, I must have dozed off myself… and, well now I feel all kinds of awkward…”

Awkward? You’re not the one talking to a mythical beast lying where your husband used to sleep! Hang on… ‘mythical’. Does that mean… “Excuse me, but are you a unicorn?”

“I was once, but a few years ago a very special friend of mine granted me powers beyond my imagination, and… well, to cut a long story short, now I’m an ‘alicorn’.” The purplish four-hooved stranger seemed to stare into the distance wistfully for a few seconds as the memories came flooding back, before turning to her elderly host once more. “I’m also a Princess, believe it or not. Which brings me neatly to why I’m here today…”

Curiouser and curiouser. The Queen was just pondering the whole bizarre arrangement in inducting a mere animal as a member of the highest echelon of aristocracy (though clearly this articulate and well-educated creature was no ordinary equine) when a sudden alarming thought snapped her out of her complacency.

“Wait. You’re not here to take my place, are you?! I won’t let you! My son is next in line to the throne, and he’s been waiting long enough as it is! Besides, my people, as open-minded and open-hearted as I know them to be, will never take to a pony being their monarch. As amazing as a specimen you appear to be, I simply won’t allow it.”

Rather than be offended by her somewhat curt words, the alicorn smiled back at the concerned Queen with a great deal of understanding. “Don’t worry. I have no intention of taking control either of this world or your country, for I have my own kingdom to rule back home now. It was hard to adjust at first, especially when I’d lived for most of my life as a humble librarian, but thanks to a lot of support from good friends and family along the way, I feel more confident than ever about the future of Equestria.”

Breathing a sigh of relief and sensing she was talking to a bit of a kindred spirit, the Queen felt herself relax again. “I feel I can relate to you. It also took me a time to get used to the idea of taking on such an important role so young, but the last seventy years have been a dream come true. It’s only recently I’ve started to feel very tired, but I can’t let my subjects down. No matter how hard it gets.”

The alicorn listened to every word carefully with regular empathic nods, before addressing the Queen softly. “ You’ve worked so hard, I know. Tell me. Have you ever felt like… taking a holiday?”

“A… holiday? No, I can’t travel at the moment. Doctor’s orders, you see. I can’t even go for a stroll, because my legs…”

“I was thinking of somewhere a bit further than that. Would you like to see where I come from? Would you like to visit… Equestria?”

The Queen was staggered by the strange alicorn’s unexpected proposal, but intrigued all the same of seeing another world beyond her comprehension. “B-But… what will my family and citizens do without me? Will my corgis be taken care of? Who are you, anyway? I don’t even know your name…”

“Your family and people will be fine, as will your pets. You’re just going away for a little while, that’s all. They’ll know you’re always watching over them. And my name is ‘Twilight Sparkle’. You won’t need to pack anything, everything you could ever possibly need is waiting for you there. Along with lots of new friends who can’t wait to meet you. Let me know when you’re ready to go, and I’ll fly you there myself. Don’t worry, everything will be fine… you’ll see, Elizabeth.”

“B-But how do you know my... I never told you…”

“Ssh, rest now. For we have a long journey ahead of us, and you must save your strength. Shall we depart?”

“Y-Yes, I think so. And, Twilight?”

“What is it, ma’am?”

“C-Can I just have a slip of tea first, a-and…?”

“Of course you can.”

“Thank you.”

*************************

When Jeeves arrived later that day, and after hesitantly entering Her Majesty’s bedchamber after receiving no reply to his roughly one-hundred knocks, he saw no sign of her whatsoever.

Foul play was naturally suspected, but being as there were no obvious hints of forced entry or DNA evidence, the police had very little to go on before reluctantly closing the file for good.

The infamous case would go down as one of the biggest unsolved mysteries in British history, and it was under this cloud of uncertainty that sparked a new lease of life in the previously moribund institution of monarchy during the early 21st century.

So when Charles III ascended to the throne later that year, he not only had the public’s goodwill and affection to help get him settled into his new prestigious position…

…But also a little note given to him in secret by Jeeves, scribbled in his mother’s inimitable handwriting, which simply said…

IT’S BEEN AN HONOUR.

Author's Note

This story will probably mean a lot more to you if you're British, but I came up with the idea during one of my occasional story 'jam' sessions and I felt it was good enough to expand on so... here we are.

Plus, real-life events may have inspired it a tad, but anyway... :fluttercry:

It's a bit of a world away from my usual 'funny' fics, but I hope you enjoyed it for what it was and maybe even got something from it yourself.

As always, feedback is always appreciated. Ciao! :twistnerd: