“It's not weird that I'm here for the thing is it?” asked Twilight warily, checking her profile in the mirror.

Rarity carefully brushed mascara onto her own eyelashes. “No. Nonsense. They invited you. You're a foreign dignitary who played a significant role in reconstruction and reunification. We're building bridges or roads rather. It makes sense.”

“I know. It just feels weird being the only pony present.”

“My father's here somewhere,” replied Rarity, batting her eyelashes. “I'm sure there would be other VIPs if they knew any. It's like Kirin just got to a big party and you're the only one there they know.” She screwed her mascara shut. “Ready?”

“Ready.”

“To the carriage.” She turned to lead her out of the dressing room and down to their awaiting coach. “The roads are a great deal better now you'll notice. Much less bumpy. Each city is responsible for maintaining their halves of two city roads and the one in between that goes to the Unity Plaza.”

The two stepped outside and were greeted by the chauffeurs who showed them up the steps into Rarity's royal carriage. They promptly closed the door, hitched up and soon they were on their way, rolling down the Sky's Edge promenade.

“I’m sure you'll be doing this exact same thing again for the library ribbon cutting,” mused Rarity as she watched the bustling city go by the window.

“Now that will be an exciting day,” laughed Twilight.

"I do hope Spikey Wikey is available to come out then."

They came upon Fizzle’s house which had an uncharacteristic amount of activity in the front of it. A mare and stallion sat on chairs, apparently visiting. Fizzle sat on her porch swing with a foal on either side of her. They were too young to have ever lived in Sky's Edge. Fizzle smiled and waved to her as they rumbled by.

“They came back,” whispered Rarity in amazement. - - -

“And so it is with great pride that I pass the torch to my tenacious daughter, Princess Winter Wind. May she reign in peace and unity.”

Equinox set the silver tiara upon Winter's head and the crowd erupted with cheers. Autumn and Rarity and Twilight clopped their hooves from their seats behind the altar. Cookie, Hondo and Sweetie Belle watched from the crowd as Winter took the podium to make her first address as ruling princess of the Ice Clan.

At the after party festivities the unflappable Hondo was unexpectedly very popular being an easily approachable foreigner. Twilight mingled vicariously beside Rarity and the other princesses while servants prepared the feast in the banquet hall.

Cookie left the crowd and wandered alone through the sparsely populated gallery, looking at paintings both new and old. Some were landscapes or important historical scenes but most were formal portraits. She stopped in front of the only face she'd ever seen in real life, her former boss and now former queen. The portrait was done shortly after her coronation. It depicted a young Princess Windchill making intense eye contact with the viewer.

“Diamond Dust?” came a voice from behind.

Her insides tried to leap out of her skin. Cookie turned around to see former Queen Equinox still in her full royal regalia with drink floating in the air.

“It's been a long time since someone called me that.”

“I didn't even know you came. I hope you're not still standoffish after the whole… almost accidentally killing your family thing.”

“I know I was invited but I still wasn't sure if I was really supposed to come so I compromised and came as a ghost. I still feel funny about all this.”

Equinox sipped her drink as she eyed her own portrait. “You mean like I'm going to spring a trap on you for flouting my orders twenty-six years ago?” she laughed. “Honestly I was always more upset about losing one of my best than the principle of your insubordination. And the mission itself wasn't a complete loss; it still caused unrest which was what we wanted.”

Cookie shook her head absently. “No. It's not that. It's probably the fact that never in a million years could I have predicted a day like today… How it all fits together… How it all turned out. It all just seems like a fever dream.”

“Likewise… Forgive me if this sounds rude but how did you manage to raise such a Kirin with your… skill set and background.”

Cookie laughed weakly. “Well, I didn't do it alone. I do give her pony father a lot of credit for her… sensitivity. That and the environment in Equestria was… just so different from here. You wouldn't believe.”

“But I assume the confidence and smoke bombs she inherited from you.”

“Yeah, sounds about right.” She swept a hoof through the air, gesturing at the old portrait. “It's been such a long time but I never really saw you as motherly either.”

“You never really know what you're capable of until you're there,” she shrugged. “Having a foal forced me to see things differently and suddenly I was terrified of everything and the one thing that mattered most in the entire world was that she was safe and I was going to make everything safe by conquering it.”

“Sounds like a familiar parental journey.”

“Does it? You trained your daughter to combat adversity while I stood in front of mine to block the wind.”

Cookie knitted her brow. “But she's the reigning princess now. Are you saying she's not ready?”

“No. I just feel like her better qualities are in spite of me, not because. I wish I hadn't wasted so much time making a mess… I wish I could just get things right the first time.”

“I think we all do but getting it right eventually isn't bad and that's the way anyone learns.”

Just then a sharply dressed servant stallion appeared at their side. “Pardon my interruption, madame, the feast is ready.”

“Thank you, Zero. I'll be there shortly.”

The stallion nodded and turned to go inform other partygoers.

The two turned slowly toward the banquet hall.

“I hear you're not interested in relocating out this way.”

Cookie screwed up her face in thought. “No. I mean… at least not for a long time. You’ll have to tell me someday what retirement life is like here though.”

Author's Note

The end.

Woooooooo~ That was a LONG one. (At least for me.)

If you’d like to support my hard work or see what my stories look like without ponies, you can buy one of my novels.