The rumors surrounding Princess Celestia had long since been blown out of proportion. The list of sources claiming to have discovered her 'feelings' had reached a dizzying number, and the potential suitors could now fill an entire royal army battalion. As much as she and Luna had enjoyed tittering at the misconceptions, she would eventually have to make a statement to clear the matter up. An exclusive newspaper interview might do the trick. The Foal Free Press would be a good start.
In the wake of these widespread rumors, the princess's mail had doubled, if not tripled overnight, with communiqués ranging from foreign diplomats to starry eyed foals swamping the overburdened Royal Mail Division.
When a number of large boxes arrived at the castle, they sent the Guards in a frenzy of activity. Despite the sender being the princess's student, the packages were subjected to a barrage of tests, magical scans, and even prodding only marginally less time-consuming than that for the general public. Finally, they found themselves within Princess Celestia's chambers.
Events in the last few days had clearly been hectic for Twilight and her friends. Her student had, of course, attached a letter, detailing the events since Rarity’s departure from Canterlot. The young designer herself had written an entire page of her own, filled with profuse apologies for her until-then unnoticed eavesdropping.
As Celestia looked down at her bed, however, she knew that their troubles had all been worth it.
Six dolls sat on her mattress, paired into three separate groups. On one side sat Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, with the latter’s arms thrown around the pegasus’s body in a tight, but adorable hug. In the middle were Applejack and Rainbow Dash, one relaxing on top of the other as they appeared to laze about. And finally, on the right, Twilight Sparkle and Rarity were side by side, laying down next to each other as closely as possible. And every doll was sporting a small but colorful felt heart on their breast.
According to Twilight’s letter, these were all the original dolls, those which had caused the group much trouble, but also such joy. They’d decided that, while the gesture was indeed well intended, they’d preferred to stay true to the tradition, and make the dolls with their own hooves instead. Celestia giggled at one of Twilight’s margin notes, where the unicorn shared that Pinkie and Fluttershy had already started on their own dolls, but Applejack and Rainbow Dash had taken much cajoling and teasing before they eventually agreed to make their own.
By the sound of things, Rarity had been the most eager supporter of the idea. Twilight herself had suggested sending the first set of dolls to Celestia, both for safekeeping and to share the news of the relationships. But she’d insisted on sending the entire set, and that meant convincing Rarity to craft a doll of Twilight. It had taken a bit of prodding on the librarian’s part, but the wonderful little lavender doll was a testament to her success.
Celestia’s gaze wandered over to her desk, where another pair of dolls stood proudly. The replica of Luna matched her sister’s air, exuding all the grace and mystery that the younger alicorn projected with ease. Opposite to it sat Celestia’s own doll, which she’d finally completed the previous night. She allowed herself a mental pat on the back, smiling at how lifelike it appeared, though she had to admit Rarity’s touch of gemstone eyes was a wonderful addition she wished she’d thought of.
A small smirk formed on her lips as she levitated the midnight blue doll towards the others, and sat it in front of the lavender and white pair.
“Twilight Sparkle!” she said, imitating Luna’s tone. “I have heard of thy good news. I have decided to give thee a gift!” She then attempted to match Twilight’s voice. “Oh thank you, Princess! Is this a book?” Her smile grew as she switched back to Luna. “It is indeed. It is the Pony Sutra, a book I co-authored many millennia ago! You can practice its lessons with your marefriend!”
“It was only fifteen hundred years ago, ‘Tia, and you know it. Besides, I recall you posed for several of the plates.”
Celestia jumped as the voice spoke up from behind her, flaring her wings wide and latching her hooves around the dolls, in a pitiful attempt to hide them. Her face growing increasingly warm, she twisted her neck to look at Luna, standing in the doorway.
“What… What did you see, Luna?”
The young alicorn’s expression was neutral, but Celestia could swear she saw the hint of a smirk at the corner of Luna’s mouth. “I did not just see you playing with dolls, nor did I see you put my doll in an awkward situation with your student’s.”
“… Very well. Carry on.”
“I shall.” But Luna did not move, still staring at the white alicorn.
Celestia sighed, asking the question she might regret. “What is it, Luna?”
Luna’s cheeks colored slightly. With her dark coat, it tended to be very hard to see if she blushed, but after so many millennia together, even a millenium apart could not prevent Celestia from seeing it as clear as day.
“Can… Can I play too, ‘Tia?”
Celestia stared, then smiled gently at her sister. “Of course you can, Lulu. Always.”
A symbol used by rich and poor
to show love true and great.
To make a doll that means much more,
your replica create.
There are two rules you must obey
at any and all cost:
It must be made by you alone,
else magic will be lost.
And bear a heart of reddest felt,
sewed tightly as can be,
upon its breast, to show the world
your love for all to see.
Now take this gift straight to your dear
and change it for its pair.
And with this trade, you'll forge a link
that you shall always share.
Oh no! Complete already? Well, it's been a fun story, and although I would've expected maybe another chapter or two, it's possible that might have been stretching it a little.
Anyway, definitely one of the cutest stories I've read in quite a while, and you wrote some really nice interactions for both the AppleDash and FlutterPie pairings that are good examples of why I like both those couples. It's a bit sad we didn't actually get much that was quite on par with those between Twilight and Rarity, but it makes sense. Having Twilight instantly reciprocate would have been pretty unrealistic, so simply being open to the idea of giving it a shot was probably the best way to end it, even if it didn't allow for the sorts of cute and amusing scenes the other two pairs had.
It's also a bit of a shame to send the original dolls away, but again, that too makes quite a lot of sense. I've been thinking right from the start that they would all realize some of the meaning was lacking by having not made the dolls themselves, so it's appropriate that they would want to do it again once it was out in the open what they meant.
The Luna and Celestia portion on the side was amusing, even if I expected we'd get a little more story directly about that.
Hmm, what else? I kinda wondered if the CMC's doll would end up an abomination of all the other dolls combined. And then I wish we could see what the 2nd set of dolls will look like. Something tells me Rainbow Dash probably isn't the best at sewing and such, so I bet her doll will be rather interesting, at least. I guess they'll all be fitting in their own way, for each to represent the pony who makes it.
The feels, dood. This little prinny can't take this
I was hesitant at first but...I'm going to fav it, dood. and Like it.
Luna's last line was the perfect amount of d'awwww. Good story
Erk, right in the feels!
Great story!
Hm, I like the poem for the dolls. Imagine something like that in our society.
J'adore! I loved this.
Gah! this story! YUS! I want more like this.!
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I hadn't, truth be told. It was suggested to me through feedback - but it's a good choice. It would have fitted even before we knew of alicorn twi. Now, it's even more poignant - Rarity is far more right than she even realises at the point in that fic.
And yes, Dash doesn't think things through XD
Awesome spaceballs reference. Great ending too.
SO. MUCH. 'DAAAWWWWWWW.
I stopped what I was doing the second I saw this. And I was playing one of my favorite games from my childhood so that's not an easy feat. BUT YOU GAVE ME ALL THREE OF MY FAV SHIPS ASLDHASJHDASDJHAKSDHS
I loved how Dash just blurted the truth out and AJ just kept sitting there, facehoofing. That's so them xD
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Sorry! It just felt like it had more impact to end it there ^^
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All good things come to an end!
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I couldn't really picture it any other way. At first I was thinking that the others would discover her lack of doll in another way, a slipup or some other fashion...but this felt more natural, and more along the lines of the characters themselves ;)
Gah! My heart! It can't take the adorableness!
so much d'awws
I love it
All I feel I can say is well done. I enjoyed the tale from the start to the finish.
Bravo! That was a wonderful ending!
Very touching and sweet. I think AJ and Dash had to be my favourites.
I literally just recommended this story to a friend a couple hours ago,and it updates to completion. Well timed.
I have to say,this has probably been the best shipfic I've ever read,not that I read a lot of them. But of the small number,this is top of the list.
This story... was... BEAUTIFUL
Thank you, for just writing. You are now one of my favorite authors. Keep up the good work.
This story was simply beautiful.
Thank you for writing it.
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Probably because they're *my* favorites too. That likely reflects in the writing
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Oh my! I'm not sure it quite deserves that rank, but I'm glad to hear you like it. Thanks!
One of my favorite ship-fics. If you don't think that this is getting sent to all of my friends, then you're wrong.
I just need to say that I really don't like Pinkie/Fluttershy shipping. At all.
But when Pinkie kissed Fluttershy I was just...my heart melted, my friend. You may have converted me to this ship. I just don't even know what my OTP is anymore. (Lie, tis TwiPie, but still). This has been an amazing story and I really hope you write more like it soon. Your pacing, your characterization...everything is wonderful and perfect and...
Can I just say I love this story? Yes? Okay then.
I love this story.
Very sad to see it end (but alas, all good things must come to an end, mustn't they? No matter how much we wish to change that) but I loved the ending. I would have liked to have seen Luna's reaction to her doll, but I still think the ending was masterfully done for this. Leaving it at the end of the previous chapter would have felt unfinished, but this was great.
Okay, okay, I'll stop gushing. Sorry there isn't really any crit or anything in this review...I just don't have anything to say. Well, I do.
Keep writing. DFTBA.
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Yay, a convert!
To be quite honest, I do like TwiPie as well. But PinkieShy is utterly adorable (and RariShy is a great too). Bit for this fic, I just felt that those two fit together the best. The whole fic was aiming towards a lot of cute moments, and I don't think there's any pairing that can beat PinkieShy for sheer adorability.
You make a good point for Luna's reaction - I wish I'd considered that too, or at least some little nod towards it. But I think this fits just as well. Playing with her sister has just a lot of warm and fuzzy feeling :)
Thanks again for the lovely comment!
Altogether amazing. You have a gift, and have given one to us in this little doll of a story.
Aaaw, it's already over....
But it was soooo cute. And it had a really sweet premise. I really like that felt doll idea.
Got any other ideas? Maybe something involving Twinkie?
Tia is a giant kid.
Noone is surprised by the revelation.
Aww, this was such a sweet story
I laughed so hard as Rainbow and AJ's cover fell apart around them.
I was saddened for a bit there, because it seemed as though Fluttershy and Pinkie would end up with just some friendshipping. Still, it was worth it for the grin I got when the abrupt smooching happened.
Of course, I would've liked to see more of
unicorn master racethe spotlight couple after Twi decides to give it a try, but it was a good place for the ending.Great characterization all around. RD was a bit spastic in some parts, but I guess it works for her. I loved your Pinkie, though this may be because I'm so bad at writing her. You managed a good balance between the characters as well—I really liked the glimpses at the goings-on in Canterlot. I thought Spike would have a bit more presence in the final reveal, but the smile and the nod were enough.
Really loved this. Have a thumb and a fave
Awwwww
nice ending:)
Loved it, loved it, loved it all the way through.
But I just have to post this:
I'm surprised to see this ending so soon. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed it, and thought the whole idea was adorable. But I was hoping Pinkie and Fluttershy's relationship would be developed as much as Dash and AJ's. They seem like such a counter-intuitive pairing, it would have been nice to get some background into where their feelings came from, and how they grew. Instead it seemed like neither even realized they were there until they kissed.
Regardless, this was one of the cuter ship-fics I've read, and I'll be looking forward to what you do next.
You know, I wasn't 100% sure I'd get behind the Pinkieshy (Flutterpie?) in this fic.
I stand corrected.
I'd comment further, but I've got something of a raging migraine, I will just end by saying i love this fic.
2428489 Damn it! I wanted to do that!
Luna... That... I love you even more for that last line. That was hilarious
First of all, Congratulations. It's a wonderful little story.
Second of all: DAMN YOU! It's too short!
I loved it a lot, and there were definitely a lot of cute and heartwarming moments and the premise was wonderful. That said, the fact that you focus on three pairings detracts a little from each. (especially in the relatively short story this is.) Especially Rarity and Twilight, the supposed main pairing didn't get as much light in the sun as I would've hoped. (Yes, I know that's an opinion)
And now... well, I iterated on it with my second point: damn you. Now I want to see an honest to god Twilight x Rarity story in which it's about them.
I tend to ramble... sorry. Loved the story, hope to see more.
And hope not to have Steel as a go-between so I can kick your ass with logic myself.
D'aww, that was sweet and charming. I'm admittedly ambivalent about pairing off the main cast so neatly -- it can feel a bit contrived and overly convenient -- but regardless, you did a very nice job. Everyone felt pretty solidly in character. Twilight's little moment with Spike was lovely.
Also, that bit with Celestia and Luna at the end . . . priceless.
Such a wonderful, adorable story. Sad to see it end.
Not my favourite pairings; however I definitely thing this is one of the cutest and possibly best stories I have seen and one of my absolute all time favourites on FimFiction. I wish that you could carry the story on further but I fear it would ruin the sweetness of the story. Thank you for a great story
The Foal Free Press, when other newspapers can't do the job let the children handle it
This was wonderful!! An amazing and professional execution!
Nicely done... While the other pairings are not uncommon, Pinkie/Fluttershy seems to be quite rare; aside from you and that comic/tumlr/blog that showed up relatively early in the fandom, I can't immediately bring any other examples to mind, so bonus points for novelty.
Thought once again, poor old Spike gets left on the wayside. And watching his crush profess her love to Twilight right in front of him... I mean, ouch. I literally winced when the narrative said Spike was in the room.
It's probably mostly me being more... sensitive, if that's not too strong a word to such things, (thanks to this sort of thing being a little too frequent for my tastes in general and Spike ranking pretty high on my list of favourite characters), but that was the thing that I took away from that most; the ponies all got their happy ending, but Spike seemed to be left high and dry. Aside from his magnimously granting Twilight permission (and really, given Spike being who he is, what else could he have done?), we didn't really see Spike's real reaction or his feelings and I feel something like that maybe ought to have merited something. Though it might have been a slightly sourer note to the ending, so on the other one hoof, I can see why it might not be appropriate.
awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww
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I know AppleDash is your favorite, but in this particular fic, I actually liked FlutterPie and the way you wrote it the most. Just personal opinion.
D'AAAAAAAW
Damn! TwiShy is my OTP but,... FlutterPie is just too damn d'awww in this fic!
Loved this story. One of the best I've ever read.
2427189 Maybe not 'of all time' (for me, that's Alegrezza... I'm a sucker for OctaVinyl.)
But it's certainly very close.
Oh my, one of the best fics I've ever read. It was so cute, fluffy, and amazing. Your writing is perfect, my dear sir. I would love to see more from you.
Commence read. Happy times.
It is indeed. It is the Pony Sutra, a book I co-authored many millennia ago! You can practice its lessons with your marefriend!”
“It was only fifteen hundred years ago, ‘Tia, and you know it. Besides, I recall you posed for several of the plates.”
these two lines had me laughing to the point of tears. the fact that you referenced this particular book is amazing and to say that Celestia posed for some of them just put a splint in my side from laughter. this story was written amazingly well and had some great references. to boot. pinkie pie being as crazy as the madhatter for one the the kamasutra just damn near killed me im laughing so hard you are an amazing writer and I love your work.