Twilight let out a long sigh as she walked down the streets of Canterlot. It had been three days, now, since she had last seen or heard anything about Pennington's condition. Constant Care and Whipstitch never came out of the apartment, Ace and Lily didn't seem to know anything at the castle, and Pennington himself hadn't contacted her in any way, shape, or form. She had gone to the apartment several different times, usually two or three times a day, but her knocking was always met with silence. She had tried to find Luna again, but the princess had been too busy with royal duties to try to meet with her. She had taken the time to read all of Pennington's letters to Lily, many of which brought her to tears as he praised her with attributes that she didn't believe that she even had: grace, beauty, strength, and even a few comments regarding her "adorable dorkiness" were all mentioned with the utmost eloquence, more than she thought she deserved.
Her parents had done the best that they could to help, even offering to take care of Spike while she spent a "day on the town." With a shrug, she had decided to take a long walk through the city, wandering without any kind of destination. Somehow, though, she always found herself walking towards the same place: Rosebud Lane. No matter how many times she turned around to walk back towards the castle, she would somehow wind up walking back there, again.
She had pondered visiting her brother, Shining Armor, but had discovered that he was currently in Fillydelphia, attending a new guard training program the the Princesses were considering bringing to the Royal Guards. Once again, the drew in a long breath of air, feeling her lungs expand in her chest, then let it out again in a long sigh.
To her surprise, while she walked, she began to see bubbles floating down from the sky. One hovered in front of her face for a moment, then moved forward and popped on her nose. She looked up to see a familiar wall-eyed pegasus floating down towards her.
"Twilight! I have a letter for you!" Derpy grinned as she stumbled onto the pavement, nearly losing her balance on the landing. Her yellow eyes twinkled with excitement as she pulled a scroll out of her backpack.
"Derpy? Twilight blinked in surprise. "What are you doing here in Canterlot? Don't you deliver Ponyville's mail?"
"I go wherever ponies need somepony to deliver mail in a pinch!" She giggled as she handed Twilight both the scroll and a muffin. "I just follow the bubbles! Have a nice day!"
Just as quickly as she had appeared, Derpy flew off into the sky and disappeared again. Twilight shook her head quietly as she broke the wax seal on the scroll. "That pony makes no sense, sometimes..." As she opened up the letter, Twilight recognized Princess Celestia's near-flawless penmanship.
My dear and faithful student,
I'm not sending the guards to get you this time, I can see now that that was completely unnecessary the last time that I asked you to see me, but I would like to ask you to come to the castle, preferably immediately if not sooner. There is an important pony here requesting to see you.
I hope that you receive this as soon as possible.
Your loving mentor,
Princess Celestia
Twilight eyed it curiously, trying to overcome her suspicion of her intent. Celestia had been nothing but rude, especially when the subject of Pennington had been brought up, and Twilight had some doubts about her intent with this. The last time she asked me to come "immediately," we had a huge fight... But if there's an important pony, then it can't just be because she's mad at me again, right? With another sigh, Twilight took a bite out of the muffin and turned towards the castle.
"Mmm, chocolate chip..." She muttered with a smile. "How did she know?"
As Twilight walked calmly into the grand hall, she braced herself for anything. This meeting could be for a thousand reasons, or with a thousand different "important ponies." Canterlot was filled with important ponies, and many of them had wanted to speak with the "princess's personal student" in the past, normally in an effort for some kind of endorsement or visit to a public event.
What she wasn't prepared for, however, was the sight of Pennington and Celestia together, laughing as if one of them had told a joke only moments before. They were both sitting at a small table in the center of the room, both eating lunch together as if they were old friends.
"So, the gorgon says, 'What are you, some kind of stoner?' and I reply, 'Not unless you have your way with me!' That, of course, just makes her even more furious!" Celestia and Pennington both laughed at the story for a moment before he continued. "So, the snakes on top of her head start to get really crazy, and-" Pennington paused in his story as they both looked to see who had entered the room. His eyes lit up with joy when he saw her, and he seemed to forget what he had been saying. "Twilight?"
"P-Penny?" She asked, looking at the stallion, who appeared to be in poor condition. All of his legs were wrapped in mummy-like bandages, and he had a large amount of gauze around his head and horn, as well. His chest was lightly wrapped, but she could see that he had been tugging on it, and tufts of blue fur were sticking out. His eyes were normal, again, filled with the happiness and the insatiable wonder that she knew was the true Pennington Inkwell. It was him. Beaten and bruised and nearly broken... But it was him.
"P-Penny?" She almost whispered the name in her flabbergasted state.
"Twilight..." Pennington stood up from his chair, landing gingerly on the floor. "It's okay, I'm not-"
"Shut up." Twilight cut him off. "It wouldn't matter if you were half, three-quarters, or one hundred percent changeling... It's not going to stop me." She slowly began to walk forward, her pace building as the gap between the two of them closed. As Pennington began to first walk, then trot towards her, Twilight didn't hold back any more, sprinting towards him until they finally met. As they were about to crash into one another, Twilight reached out and grabbed him, turning the impact into a passionate embrace. She grabbed him and held him tight with all of her strength, refusing to let go. "It- it's really you. You're back. You're really back!" She felt like her heart was about to burst from joy, and her spirits couldn't have been higher. "You're back and you're here and you're real! I missed you so much!"
"T-Twilight! PAAAIN!" Pennington cried, squirming weakly in her grip.
"Ohmygosh!" Twilight instantly released him, jumping backwards. "I'm so sorry!"
"My body feels roughly as if I've been put through a meat grinder, then put back into a general pony shape..." He whispered, instantly laying down, spread-eagle on the floor. Twilight covered her mouth in shock as she could see blood seeping into the bandages. "But... it was worth it."
"Pennington and I were just talking." Celestia used her magic to gently lift Pennington into the air and set him in the seat again. "I asked him why he would go through such pain when all that he really had to do would be to wait until his body had fought off the changeling within him," her horn flashed as she cast another quick spell, and Pennington's grimace eased as the bloodstains disappeared. "His answer surprised me... Would you like to tell her?" She turned to Pennington, who nodded with a smile.
"I needed to show my devotion to you." He spoke as calmly as if he were mentioning taking a walk to the store. "Your parents obviously didn't like me, at first... and from what you've told me, you didn't either, did you, Princess?" When Celestia shook her head, he continued. "I knew that there was only one way to redeem myself in their eyes, so I accepted the pain as a way of being reunited with you again. I needed to show them that I would do anything for you."
Twilight blinked quietly, trying to comprehend what he was saying. "So... you went through agonizing, crippling pain that could have killed you to impress my parents?"
"Well, to be fair, your father did want to kill me on the spot..." Pennington chuckled, and Twilight felt a wave of emotion as his twisted sense of humor returned. "And I had to prove myself to one of the greatest ponies in all of Equestria..."
Celestia shook her head, moving her gaze between Twilight and Pennington a few times as she spoke. "I really owe both of you an apology... Twilight, I am sorry for doubting your judgment about Pennington and trying so hard to force the two of you apart. And Pennington, I am truly sorry for judging you so harshly... While I never had a stallion, or even a husband, Twilight is the closest a pony has ever come to being my daughter, and I suppose that I overreacted to the idea of her becoming involved in a relationship... I know that love has ruined many a prosperous filly. And when I discovered that you had been starting rebellions in the changeling hive, well..."
"You assumed I was a troublemaker?" Pennington completed the thought with a chuckle. "That may be true, but I never make trouble where it isn't already brewing!"
Celestia nodded. "I was so wrapped up in being overprotective, I didn't see that we wanted the same thing: what was best for Twilight!"
"Well, it all worked out for the best, I suppose!" Pennington raised his glass of cider to the Princess before taking a long sip. "I'm well on the road to recovery, we discovered that we actually have much in common, and I'm hoping that I have redeemed myself in the eyes of Twilight's parents?" With a nod from Twilight, he laughed and took another sip. "So how could I not forgive you?"
Twilight nodded, as well, as a servant brought in a chair and a bowl of salad for her. "I forgive you, too, Princess... I understand why you did what you did, now." She laughed as she looked over at Pennington, who was wearing a smug grin in spite of his injuries. "But please just tell me the next time that you're worried about me!"
"Rest assured, I will..." Celestia laughed. "I suppose I was the one learning a lesson about friendship, this time! Now, I'm not going to judge you for anything that you say or do until I've heard the whole story... so tell me the whole story! Don't leave anything out!"
As the three of them laughed together and Pennington recounted the story of how they had met and gone on an adventure (often with some help on the details from Twilight), Twilight moved her chair next to Pennington's and leaned gingerly on his shoulder. She had known that she had missed him, but she had forgotten how comforting it felt to be with him, as if nothing in the world could hurt her as long as he had a smile on his face. When he didn't flinch, she leaned with a little more of her weight, until one of his front legs wrapped around her shoulders and pulled her closer.
"It's okay, you know... I'm not going to lose control like I did last time." He whispered during one lull in the conversation. "You don't have to be afraid to be close to me."
Twilight nodded. "Yes, but I don't want to push our luck in front of my teacher..."
Regardless, however, the two of them grew closer and closer as the story continued on, with Pennington's hoof moving down towards her midsection and Twilight continuing to rest her head on her shoulder. When it came to the fights and the "adventure" parts of the story, Pennington really showed his talent for storytelling, bringing Celestia into the story and making her lean forward in excitement as he described what had happened blow by blow, in detail. Meanwhile, Twilight filled in the gaps in his memory, simply happy to have somepony else to tell the story. After a while, though, Pennington seemed to grow uncomfortable, glancing at the doors every few seconds. After a while, Celestia finally brought the story to a momentary stop.
"Pennington, what is bothering you?"
"Oh, you know... just a few leftover instincts..." He muttered, glancing at the door again. "For instance, I can tell that Constant Care absolutely loathes me right now, and that she's coming this way..."
Twilight blinked, unsure of which question to ask first. Luckily, Celestia asked one first.
"You still have a changeling's instincts?"
"Well, Luna told me that the mental changes won't ever leave entirely... I can feel others' emotions, but I can't feed off of them..." Pennington replied with a grin. "I can only imagine how that can come in handy..."
"And Constant is mad at you because... why, exactly?" Twilight sat up, reluctantly relinquishing her spot on Pennington's shoulder to look him in the eyes.
"Well, I'm actually still supposed to be in the apartment, trying to rest and recover!" Pennington gave an impish smile, glancing between Twilight and Celestia. "But I snuck out because I was going absolutely stir crazy in there! I needed to get some air! When Celestia's note came asking me to meet with her some time soon for lunch, I simply thought that there was no time like the present! But... Pillows under a blanket can't fool the Care sisters for very long." He looked down at his hoof, as if he were wearing a watch, which he wasn't. "Three, two-"
"INKWELL!" Constant screamed as she stormed into the room, more enraged than Twilight had ever seen her before. Her face was twisted into a scowl of rage as she finally spotted him, and she immediately began to advance, obviously restraining herself in front of Princess Celestia. She looked almost ready to kill her patient. Pennington seemed to be playing very thoroughly off of the Hippocratic Oath.
For such a kind, sweet mare, she's scary when she's mad...
"Oh! Constant! What a coincidence! Gee, what are you doing here?" Pennington nervously tried to play off her fruitful search as a mere coincidence, which it obviously wasn't.
"I swear, I am going to strap you down in that bed and give you a steady drip of sedatives if you don't come with me right now!" Constant yelled, rushing up to the table and yelling directly in Pennington's face.
"Well, when you put it that way, I'd be absolutely charmed to- whoa! Hey! Put me down!" He kicked his hooves vainly in the air as was carried away by Constant's magic. "It was nice to meet you, Celestia! A real pleasure! Bye, Twilight! Come to visit!" He seemed to pause for a moment, then spoke up one last time before he disappeared through the doors. "I love you!"
Twilight blushed as Celestia gave her a wry smile.
"Well, Pennington has already managed to get himself back into trouble..." She muttered, trying to hold back the blushing.
"He's not a bad pony... I'm glad that you found one who isn't afraid to say it."
Twilight nodded, still laughing inwardly at Pennington's reckless antics. "He's really great when he's not putting himself in life-threatening danger..."
Celestia rolled her eyes. "Well, if any pony is smart enough to make a stallion stop being dumb, it's certainly you!"
The two of them continued to laugh and eat for a while, and when she finally left to go home, she felt as if all of her problems with the Princess had been resolved. Once again, she could see her mentor as wise and fair, and perhaps even more relatable than she had been before.
When she came home, her parents immediately noticed a change in her, and she told them about everything that had happened. They were both delighted to hear that Pennington was recovering so well, and her father even suggested going to visit him the next day, with which her mother and Spike enthusiastically agreed.
Twilight went to bed with a smile on her face that night, one thought having been in the back of her mind the entire time.
He said "I love you." I knew that he did, but... he said it. He said "I love you."