Seduction

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Many ponies underestimated the power of checklists, but Twilight Sparkle wasn’t one of them. Almost any problem she faced could be solved with a checklist, just so long as she had time to compile one. They brought comfort and order to her life - they were precious to her. She still had her mammoth ’First Day At School’ checklist in safe keeping, alongside the even longer ’First Date (Mare)’ checklist (every item neatly ticked, some lines multiple times), ’First Date (Stallion)’ checklist (currently untouched) and the truly massive ’Moving to Ponyville’ checklist that took up half the box she kept them in (it had been a trying time for her).

One checklist, though, was special. It was written by her own hoof as she did not dare dictate it to Spike. Longer than any other, it laid down a complex plan of breathtaking audacity. She had started it shortly after moving to Ponyville, slowly plotting a course to a goal that she decided would be the ultimate achievement of her life. It was titled ’Seduction (Princess Luna)’. The thought of anypony actually finding it in its secret hiding place kept her awake at nights.

The Plan was years in the making, with seemingly insurmountable barriers halting progress for months until they fell before her great intellect. Twilight's biggest problem was that this Plan could not be allowed to fail. She needed a safeguard and after weeks of effort, modifying the time magics she found in the Starswirl the Bearded in of the Canterlot library provided the key.

With long and painstaking labour, she developed a spell that would allow her to 'save' and 'reload' her life, keeping all her memories between saves. With this spell, she could relive each day until it was perfectly spent getting closer and closer to Luna’s heart (and bedroom).

Twilight had listed all the problems that would need to be overcome with the powers of foreknowledge that the spell would grant her. Finding how to get close to Luna, finding the weaknesses of her terrifying guards, learning her likes and dislikes. All the knowledge thus gained was to be used for maximum effectiveness towards the triumphal day when she brought all the elements together to seduce the mare of her dreams. It would take years of subjective time to do, but Luna would be hers!

Creating the necessary spells and drawing up the Plan was a massive effort, but the memories from the fateful day of the one thousandth Summer Sun celebration kept her focused. That long night she saw Luna’s beauty and vulnerability that she so wanted to protect and cherish, but she also saw the power and glory of Nightmare Moon, the merest thought of whom sent delightful shivers down her spine. Luna combined in her graceful form the dichotomy of sweet vulnerability and commanding power that overwhelmed Twilight’s thoughts.

She could barely contain her excitement on the night that she finally triple-checked the checklist and found that it was complete. She was ready. Not willing to wait a moment longer than necessary, she rose at the crack of dawn on the first day of the great endeavour and cast the first of the complex spells she had crafted for the undertaking.

As the plan could take subjective years to fulfil, she ran the risk of coming back having forgotten the day-to-day affairs of Ponyville. The spell she cast captured her state of mind, sealing it in the strange bust in the centre of the library. When she came back and faced the bust, her memories of Ponyville and her friends would be returned to her. Satisfied that the spell was cast, she departed leaving a note to Spike informing him that he was in charge until she got back.

The train journey was nerve-wracking as she came ever closer to her love, her destiny. She spent the time quadruple checking the appendices in section three of the tertiary portion of the checklist (conversational gambits to determine Luna's favourite foods).

Disembarking from the train, she headed quickly to the palace. The place guards knew her, and would let her through without hesitation. She sneaked in anyway - she was worried that if they were to casually greet her she would break under the pressure and admit everything - it’s useful to know one’s own weaknesses.

With ninjistic stealth, vulpine cunning and the obligatory black catsuit, she slipped into the palace grounds. With ghostlike grace, she glided through the corridors unobserved by anypony who would raise the alarm (she was observed by a number of ponies who would not raise an alarm, because they had lived in the palace for years and knew Twilight Sparkle by now).

Twilight’s courage stayed with her until she reached the corridor that lead to Luna’s personal chambers. Here came the first test - the Lunar guards.

She had drawn up a number of plans for getting past them - the first one was to use the 'need it, want it' spell to ’persuade’ one guard to start making out with the other and slipping past while they were distracted. Despite having a ridiculously low projected success rate (2.3%), it had for some reason remained at the top of the checklist, ahead of several more practical options such as ’teleporting the guards to another part of the palace’ (87.9%) and ’asking nicely to see if she could speak with Luna’ (74.5%).

She read the checklist one last time. She quickly made a save point and reloaded to make sure it worked. She was ready. Satisfied, she squared her shoulders and haunches, held her head high and with a deep breath, rounded the corner to face the first great obstacle.

Luna’s bedchamber door was unguarded.

Years of meditation and training under the immortal Celestia had given Twilight superpony powers of control - she didn’t knock herself out with a face-hoof, just bruised herself slightly. When she recovered from her chagrin, she reloaded to lose the bruise and trotted up to the door nervously.

There was no immediate answer to her timid knock, so she steeled herself and did it again more forcefully. After a moment a beautiful yet sleepy voice called out “Enter”.

Twilight hesitantly opened the great doors and found herself facing complete nothingness. Her eyes strained but could not make out anything past the portal. Luna’s bedchamber lay shrouded in magical darkness - clearly the princess liked to sleep in the dark. With a gulp, she squared her shoulders and with one last glance at the empty corridor, she stepped into the abyssal void.

Testing the unknown with awkward hooves placed carefully on the unseen floor she entered the room. She turned, eyes aching for light, and reached with her magic for the door that she knew was there behind her, pushing it closed with a soft click. The faint and distant sounds of palace life were immediately cut off; all Twilight could hear was the hammering of her heart. She stood still, breathing deeply, until her heartbeat calmed and breathing slowed. Senses straining in the void, she became aware of slow breathing, some strides ahead of her.

“Luna?”

“Hmm? Twilight? Prithee, tell me what doest thou here?” The sound of a yawn followed the words in the darkness.

This was going to be he hardest, and longest, part of her campaign - the verbal seduction of Luna. This would be a slow game of cat and mouse, mapping out the perfect things to say to overcome Princess Luna’s defences and win her heart. She would save and reload, going through each conversation time and again with playwrights and poets until everything she said and did was perfect.

The first step was simple - establish a baseline. By having the most awkward conversation first, she could learn how Luna would react when things went wrong and she could start inuring herself against being shot down by the goddess (something that was bound to happen often).

She had even drawn up a recovery plan for dealing with the inevitable rejection (1. Eat as much ice cream as physically possible, 2. Reload, 3. Repeat as necessary). In previous visits she had reconnoitred the Canterlot ice cream parlours and identified the best one for emotional recovery. She had even drawn up a sliding scale listing which ice creams were to be consumed, based on the severity of her emotional distress - she would save the chocolate and dandelion for when things looked really bad.

Bracing herself for the divine retribution that was sure to follow, Twilight made her first move. The worst pick-up line she could think of.

“Hi Luna - I'm sorry to wake you. It’s just that I’m feeling really horny and was hoping that you were too...”

The silence that followed dragged on for what like hours until suddenly a sultry voice whispered into her ear “Why Twilight, we thought you’d never ask!”

----------------------------------------------------

Twilight, startled, leapt and spun to face the voice but could see nothing. The chuckle at her antics sounded <hungry> and her heartbeat raced with excitement and fear.

“Princess? I can’t see you...”

Twilight was desperately turning her head left and right, straining for any sight or sound of the alicorn. Complete silence was her only reward until she heard the faint whisper of a falling cloth in one direction. She sprung to face the noise, motionless, until Luna, satisfied that her distraction had worked, nipped at Twilight’s ear from behind.

“Aaaah!” Twilight shouted with a surprised shriek.

“Twilight Sparkle, thou hast disturbed the sleep of a Princess, and made lewd suggestions to our person! Thou shalt be punished!” The delight in Luna’s voice made her intentions clear, and Twilight gulped as heat started to gather in her hindquarters in anticipation. She instinctively backed away from where she thought the princess stood, only for her rear to collide with the hoof of Luna’s bed. She fell backward onto her haunches with a yelp. A silken muzzle stole a quick kiss from her lips and then darted away.

“Hmmm - it’s been so long... We don’t recall the correct punishment for thy crimes. We shall have to... improvise”

Before Twilight had a chance to respond with more than an intake of breath, she felt silken movement around her fore hooves. Her hooves were drawn tightly together as they were lifted inexorably above her head. With her weight on her haunches, she found herself with her belly, and her rapidly dampening marehood, fully exposed.

“Is this is alright, Twilight?” Luna asked, dropping her faux haughty air, “I mean it’s been so long. Am I going too fast? Is this too rough? Do you want this? We can do something else...”

“Oh goddess, please don’t stop!” Twilight exclaimed. “I mean, *ahem*, ’Oh no! I have insulted the princess of the night! I must be punished!’”

“Hehehe. We are greatly angered by thy villainous ways. Prepare to be it tickled!”

“Eeek!”

Luna set to tickling the helpless mare with both hooves, giggling along with her captive. Electric sparks danced up Twilight's spine as Luna's hooves brushed over her cutie mark. The tickles soon changed to caresses, the giggles to moans, and Luna started licking the purple fur in front of her. She slowly worked her way down from Twilight’s slender neck, across her teats, which were teased mercilessly, down her belly and finally to Twilight’s very damp and ready pussy.

Teasing Twilight’s slit and swollen nub with considerable skill, Luna delighted in the pants and moans coming from her captive. Normally she would have held back and prolonged both their pleasure, but no-one had shared her bed in centuries and she was too eager for her own satisfaction. She carefully and ruthlessly drove Twilight to a screaming climax.

Twilight lay gasping on the floor. The mysterious bindings slipped away from her hooves as she slowly recovered her breath and mind. Taking the hint, she struggled to her hooves.

“Now is the time to demonstrate your worth to your goddess, supplicant!” Luna declared, making little attempt to hide her desires behind her mock-arrogant tones.

Twilight would have liked nothing better but, “I can’t see you...” She said desperately. No sooner had she spoken than she felt a waft of air pass her face, carrying a captivating musk.

“The night is to be experienced with all your senses, Twilight.” Luna’s voice suddenly turned deep and seductive, “Feel your way.”

Twilight breathed in deeply and reached ahead with her hooves, to where the voice was coming from. A silvery laugh rang out when a hoof brushed a luxuriously soft flank that danced out of the way. Twilight stumbled, but when she rose, she found her muzzle scant inches away from the delectable odour he had smelt before. She eagerly leaned up and in to taste the night. Luna gasped with joy as Twilight’s tongue began to explore her nether regions, lapping up the juices now freely flowing from her. Her nervousness flowed away as she relished the experience. Her long exile and strong urges had, however, left her in even more desperate need than Twilight, and she barely lasted minutes before the pressure became unbearable and orgasms took her.

Twilight continued to lap at Luna’s lower lips until Luna pulled away with a gasping laugh, leaving her in the darkness. This time, though, Twilight thought she could see a distant spot of light. Eyes straining, she peered ahead at the distant spark that had caught her eye.

The spark was swiftly joined by a twin and then yet more motes of light, all dancing back and forth. The lights, (stars! Twilight thought) rushed to her until she was surrounded by he majesty of the night. Her eyes wide with wonder, the mare tried to take it all in as they flowed around and behind her. She span around to see their destination when normal lamp light came to her peripheral vision. The starfield moved away, revealing more of the bedchamber of the princess of the night. The star-studded darkness was still captivating her vision, until what she was seeing clicked in her mind - it was Luna’s tail.

Luna was reclining seductively on her queen-sized bed, her cosmic tail settling on the covers, still drifting in some aethereal wind. Her long, slender legs were clothed in long, purple and white striped stockings that drew the eye to her perfect flank. Twilight gaped at the beauty of the sight and then took a step forward towards the lovely vision. She paused a moment when a fore-hoof touched something soft - she glanced down and saw a single, long, midnight-blue stocking. It was creased strangely and Twilight blushed when she realised that it had recently done service binding her hooves.

Luna beckoned Twilight to the bed and the young mare gladly moved to her side, reverentially stepping onto the bed. Luna’s tail drifted to cover Twilight's haunches, her wings to blanket her back. Twilight snuggled up to the alicorn, feeling a immensely satisfied as she nuzzled Luna’s neck.

“Thank you, Twilight” Luna said, “I'm sorry that was so fast - after a thousand years of draught, I was getting a little tense.” Luna stretched delightedly on the silken covers, before turning back to face Twilight “That felt so good. I understand if you're too tired, but if you’re up for more...”

She was interrupted by Twilight’s nuzzling moving up her neck to her muzzle and their lips met in a kiss. Luna’s passion grew and the kiss became deep and hungry, tongues dancing with each other. Still kissing, Twilight rolled Luna onto her back and Luna gave way until the smaller mare was astride Luna, trapping her in her embrace. After a heavenly eternity, Twilight broke off from the kiss for air. She then started peppering Luna’s muzzle with little kisses. When she reached Luna’s neck the kisses started including little nips as well and Luna’s closed her eyes and started to hum with joy. Twilight mentallly noted Luna’s reaction and filed it in her mind for later as she worked her way back down Luna’s body to her marehood. Licking carefully around the sides of her slit, she boldly teased the goddess.

Luna quivered with delight under Twilight’s ministrations, her hips grinding the air furiously. She gasped and moaned as the pressure built and found to her embarrassment that the centuries of enforced celibacy had left her weak and her resistance to pleasure was still almost non-existent. Despite having only recently come, she could feel the pressure building and was helpless against it.

Twilight was loving every one of the squeaks, moans and gasps coming from the princess - The Princess! Having her at her mercy, unable to resist the pleasure she was giving her, made her feel empowered. Luna’s grinding hips were loosing coordination, her breaths coming in quick, short pants and her hooves weakly pressing Twilight’s head into her marehood.

Twilight redoubled her efforts, sensing that Luna was close and when her mouth pulled away from her slit to suck on Luna’s swollen clitoris, Luna’s feeble resistance gave way and she fell to the bed, spasming and crying out with joy.

Twilight awaited smugly for Luna to recover. She was already planning a fresh assault, to see if she could make her come even more swiftly. Toying with with ideas in her head and scanning the room for props, she became lost in her thoughts. She didn’t notice Luna’s breathing deepen and slow; she didn’t notice the set of the proud goddess’s jaw. Luna was not going to be humbled by this mare who was millennia her junior - she was going to turn the tables and would not stop until Twilight begged for mercy!

Silently sliding off the bedsheets behind Twilight, she gathered her power with a grin. She was a goddess and she had more tricks at her disposal than mere magic.

Twilight didn’t notice when her thoughts and ideas morphed into daydreams. The cunning plans to have Luna powerless at her hooves, writhing with pleasure, took on extra texture. She became lost in the thought as a hoof drifted down to her rapidly dampening pussy. A lazy grin formed on her face as the hoof began to slide back and forth and her eyes took on a distant cast. The dream Luna was bound in chains, looking up at her mistress with begging eyes. Twilight’s heat grew stronger and a second hoof drifted down to tease her teats. A moan broke from her lips and she was completely distracted by the vision in her head.

This was what the real Luna was waiting for. The blue silken sheets were suddenly seized with Luna’s magic and wrapped themselves around Twilight, trapping her hooves under her.

Breaking free from the daydream that Luna had trapped her in, Twilight found herself suspended several feet above the bed, tightly bound with the bedspread. She struggled, but her fore legs were trapped under her body and her rear legs kicked at the air, finding no purchase. Luna waited until Twilight was fully aware of her situation, her struggles achieving nothing, and then slowly started spinning her round, wrapping even more layers of sheet around the helpless mare.

As the room gracefully span around her, Twilight cast around in desperation. Her eyes caught on a pillow and she flung it with her magic at where she thought Luna stood. The long shot was awarded with a grunt, and the spinning stopped, but she was still helpless. Looking around for more ammunition, she saw with dismay as a blue aura seized all the remaining cushions and floated them from sight. She watched powerlessly as one pillow drifted with aching slowness into her face with the softest of blows before falling away behind her. She growled with annoyance, but was answered with a giggle.

“Now now, Twilight. You are clearly not showing me the respect that I am due as your princess. You must be taught the error of your ways. The punishment will continue until you apologise!” There was the sound of a drawer opening, and closing.

“Hah..,” Twilight huffed with mock defiance, “Never! I shall not bow to a tyrant!”

Luna giggled again, and finished wrapping Twilight in the sheets. Twilight, for her part, suddenly realised that whilst she was wrapped up snug like a pig in a blanket, her hindquarters were fully exposed and the princess had an excellent view, standing behind her. There was silence and then something cold, hard and wet touched her inside leg and she kicked reflexively and yelped. It slowly moved up her leg until her tail was magically moved aside and it reached her pussy where it held steady, only just touching her.

Everything was still for a tense moment. She then felt herself starting to slowly slide backwards, onto the object. She struggled and squirmed in vain as she was slowly impaled on it. It was a dildo, Twilight realised, as it worked its way in to her tight pussy. She instinctively clamped down on it, trying to halt the movement, but it was no good. The disconcerting experience made it impossible for her to gather her thoughts - without focus, all she could think was that she was equally grateful that it was well lubricated and that it was not divinely proportioned as it slid inexorably inside her.

The sliding stopped when the toy could go in no further. She moaned, unable to move the dong in or out, and tried to grind her hips in search of relief. After an eternity of stillness, she found herself moving forwards again as at the same time the phallus moved back, until it had nearly left her. Groaning with frustration, Twilight fought to overcome Luna’s magic with her own, but without focus it was no contest. The dildo started to slide back in, but at Luna’s pace, not Twilight’s.

“Aahhh... Please, princess... I...” Twilight begged

“Well, since you asked so nicely,” replied Luna with a smirk and she slowed the pace.

“Ah! I didn’t mean...”

“Oh, I'm sorry.”

The movement suddenly stopped entirely.

“Nooo! Don’t stop..”

“Make up your mind, little Twilight,” said Luna mockingly.

Happy that both Twilight and the toy were well lubricated, Luna started moving them both in counterpoint with steady vigour, filling the mare with powerful thrusts that Twilight was powerless to prevent. Twilight was gasping and grunting in time with the thrusts from the dildo and sweating from the heat of her cocoon and the frenzy of the action. She tried again to grasp the dildo with a purple aura, but the pleasure broke her thoughts entirely and her magic abandoned her.

Tensing and twitching, grunting and gasping, Twilight found herself on the precipice of orgasm. Luna saw this and didn’t hesitate to push over with a flurry of sudden, powerful thrusts. Twilight let out a hoarse scream of joy.

“Well, Twilight?” Asked Luna, “Are you ready to apologise for your rudeness?”

It took Twilight a while to recover enough breath to speak.

“Princess...” Twilight gasped, “I... haah, I... apologise. I am sorry that I threw a pillow at you.”

Luna was all smiles as she withdrew the dildo (eliciting further gasps and twitches from Twilight) and unwrapped the mare from the silken clutch of the bed sheets. “You are forgiven,” said Luna magnanimously.

Twilight was gently lowered to the bedroom floor where she lay panting for a while. Humming happily to herself, Luna settled down beside her, flank to flank, pulling over a blanket that had miraculously survived the encounter to cover them both and keep in their warmth.

“Thank you, Luna,” whispered Twilight, who found herself now exhausted and struggling to stay awake. “Sleepy...,” she murmured.

“Sleep well, my dear Twilight Sparkle.”

Luna, feeling better than she done for a millennia, lowered her head to her hooves. As she drifted back to sleep, a sly thought crossed her mind and she laughed softly.

“Hmmm - are you ready for round two, little one?”

With that Luna let herself fall asleep, to join Twilight in dreams.

Round 2

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Twilight was lying on a cold stone floor in a cell. She must have been arrested, although she was a little hazy on what crime had been committed. She was looking around desperately for a way of escape when her jailer came by to take her to trial.

The jailer seemed familiar, but she couldn't put her hoof on why. Cheerfully opening the door, the guard happily drove Twilight to the courthouse at a rapid trot. Whenever Twilight didn't trot fast enough, which seemed to be most of the time, the guard mare behind her nipped playfully on her behind. While this certainly had Twilight moving fast, it also left her very flustered.

----

The run to the courthouse seemed to take much longer than it should have to Twilight's confused mind and she felt that she was getting dangerously excited by the time that they had arrived. The bailiff failed to look suitably stern as she fitted Twilight's forehooves with leg irons and 'encouraged' her to the dock by swatting her haunches with her truncheon. This again only helped raise Twilight's ardour.

----

"All rise!", shouted the bailiff, in a voice that was loud enough to knock over the first row of jurors, somewhat defeating the purpose of her shout. Twilight was distressed to find that her tail was also following the bailiff's orders. Both order and chairs were quickly restored as Princess Celestia entered the chambers and took her seat, but Twilight's tail refused to behave and continued to swing high.

"Twilight Sparkle!", Celestia declared, "You are accused of taking advantage of my beloved sister's sweet innocence, seducing her and failing to cuddle afterwards!" The courtroom collectively gasped in horror at the last part. "How do you plead?"

Twilight cowered before the princess' divine wrath. "Not guilty?" she managed to squeak out.

"Call the first witness!" Celestia boomed, and the bailiff sauntered over to take to the witness stand.

"Princess Luna", Celestia said kindly to the witness, "could you please tell the court what happened on the day in question?"

"Oh, it was lovely!", the witness said, "Somepony broke into my room and kissed me in lots of places!" She seemed to be very happy about this.

"Is that person in the courtroom now?" asked the judge, to which the witness responded with eager nodding. "Could you please point out the person who committed this heinous crime?" She pointed at Twilight enthusiastically.

The courtroom gasped and the jurors seemed horrified. Twilight noticed with dismay that the jury consisted of Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Spike and no less than six Pinkie Pies - she was very embarrassed that her friends would see her like this.

"And what happened next?", Celestia asked the witness.

"She... she... She fell asleep! She didn't cuddle me or tell me how beautiful I am!" The witness burst into tears. The jury looked disgusted, except for two of the Pinkie Pies who were too busy making out with each other.

"Enough!", shouted an enraged Princess Celestia, "Has the jury reached its verdict?"

"We have, your honour," said Rarity.

"And how do you find the accused?"

"GUILTY!" all twelve jurors shouted at once. Twilight cowered and tried to make herself look as small as possible.

"Twilight Sparkle! You have been found guilty of a terrible crime. You shall be taken from this place, put in stocks and denied all access to quills, ink and paper until you have written a letter of apology to Princess Luna, telling her how beautiful she is!"

The witness seemed very happy with the sentencing, excitedly clapping with her hooves.

Twilight couldn't shake the feeling that the witness, who was very similar to the bailiff and her jailor, looked very familiar. She was unable to focus on this however as she was feeling very upset at how unfair the trial had been - the witness hadn't been sworn in!

She was not given an opportunity to object, though. She was lead away and placed in stocks in a deserted square in Canterlot. They weren't uncomfortable, but they held her neck and forehooves tightly - she couldn't even angle her head to admire the night sky. Her hind legs were held apart by manacles and her tail was swishing back and forth with her agitation. She tried to rub her thighs together to ease her want, but her legs were too far apart and she could not do it. A cool night breeze brushed against her damp nethers, causing her to whine with need.

Her tortuous solitude was interrupted by the sounds of an approaching policemare. She was whistling innocently, swinging her nightstick in a carefree fashion and wearing her police cap at a jaunty angle. The policemare was a magnificent sight with her long legs, slender horn and dark coloration, however her neatly folded wings obscured her cutie mark. Twilight was sure that if she could just see her cutie mark, she would know who it was.

The policemare's ambling gait finally brought her up to the stockade and she casually lent against it. "Hello, criminal," she said happily.

"Er, good evening officer," Twilight replied.

"Beautiful night, isn't it? Good visibility of the stars, nice soft moonlight - do you know how hard it is to soften moonlight properly? It takes hours with a tenderising hammer to get the glow just right. Yup, this is a good night."

"Uh, couldn't agree more officer. Um, maybe you can help me. You see, I think I'm supposed to write a letter-" She was brusquely cut off by the policemare.

"Oh, I don't think so. I can't just go around helping criminals - where would we be then? No, I just came by to ask if you'd seen a good salt lick around here?"

"Salt lick?", asked Twilight weakly, "No, I'm sorry, I haven't."

"Oh, you must have. Why, there's one right there on your head!"

"Oh no, that's just my horn. And please don't touch it, officer - it's a just mite sensitive right now. Hehe", Twilight said with a nervous smile.

"Nonsense! It looks delicious!", with that, the policemare darted forward and licked Twilght's horn from base to tip.

The stocks prevented Twilight's legs giving way as intense pleasure shot down her horn and stunned her mind.

"Hmm, you're right," said the policemare, "That isn't a salt lick. I can't quite place the flavour..."

"Uuuuhhh" moaned Twilight

"Maybe I should have another taste - just to be sure"

The policemare lost all pretence of hiding her grin as she took another lick of Twilight's horn, trailing her long tongue slowly along its length.

"Aaaaaahhh!" exclaimed a now-cross-eyed Twilight. She reflexively tried to shy her horn away, but the stocks held her tight.

With more gentle, teasing licks, the policemare continued to sample the now damp appendage. This drop in intensity gave Twilight a slight chance to recover her wits, but the respite didn't last for long.

A light rain of kisses fell on her horn, sending fireworks of pleasure off in her head. Twilight was breathing hard and now moaning, and now gasping. The dampness in her marehood had grown to the point that she could hear the steady drip of moisture onto the cobbles above the sound of her own struggling breath. The kisses stopped for a moment, and Twilight braced herself.

It wasn't enough. The beautiful policemare had now positioned herself to face the prisoner and could now take the entirety of Twilight's horn in her mouth. Twilight drew a deep, heaving breath as the sensation of heat and wet surrounding her horn threatened to overwhelm her. She was trembling all over, her haunches aching for contact, on the edge of some great precipice for what seemed an eternity, until the policemare sucked on her horn. Hard.

Twilight exploded with pleasure, her breath gone and a torrent of magic flowing through her horn and into the policemare's eager mouth. The intense suction didn't lessen, and the magic flow even intensified as the policemare's tongue, clinging to her horn, started to caress it. Twilight was unable to stop the flow and the pleasure continued to rise until she fainted.

Twilight had no idea how long it took for her to recover, but her senses slowly returned to find her gasping for breath, her weight entirely supported by the stocks that still held her and facing the grinning, flushed, beautiful policemare, who seemed a little out of breath herself.

"That was FUN!", the policemare said, "but I don't think you've paid your debt to society yet." She stood a moment, hoof on jaw, pretending to think.

"Aha!", she said, and she closed her eyes in concentration for a moment. Where once there was only one beautiful policemare, now there were suddenly two. "Huzzah! The fun has been DOUBLED!"

This was a mistake, however. The momentary lapse in focus required to conjure the second mare weakened the mental block Luna had put on Twilight. As the second grinning mare circled to Twilight's hindquarters, things clicked into place in Twilight's rapidly recovering mind.

"LUNA!", she roared, "you're doing this!" The stocks and manacles exploded.

"Ah! The prisoner has escaped! Run away!" the Luna standing behind Twilight blinked out of existence as fast as she had appeared. The one wearing the silly policemare outfit ran laughing down an alley.

Twilight chased after her in hot pursuit.

She followed the fast-disappearing shadow out of town and into a cornfield where ears of corn were growing about as high as her flanks. She chased the shadow into the corn without hesitation.

This was a mistake, as the heads of corn rubbed under her belly as she ran. They brushed her flanks, tickled her cutie mark and seemed to tease her teats and marehood with a mind of their own as she passed. Each stride she covered in her gallop caused the passing corn to excite her more, until she was forced to slow to a trot, breathing hard and not just from the running.

"If you build it, they will come!", a teasing voice shouted out of the darkness. Twilight spun to face the voice, about to charge, when she stopped and took a moment to collect herself.

Taking a deep breath, she bellowed with rage at the top of her lungs, "LUNA!"

There was a moment of silence and then the full moon above her was suddenly obscured as a dark alicorn serenely swooped down to settle in front of Twilight, the corn evaporating around her to give her room to land.

"Twilight, I felt your distress across the dreaming. Are you having a nightmare?" Luna's attempt at deception failed - Twilight noticed that while her smile appeared calm and her voice steady, her cheeks were deeply flushed and there were specks of drool around her muzzle.

Twilighted snorted angrily and Luna's smile dropped and her head drooped when she saw that Twilight was honestly upset.

"I am sorry, Twilight. I thought you might like it. I thought you would have fun. I only wanted to play", Luna said with a quiet voice, her head hanging low.

Twilight couldn't maintain her anger in the face of Luna's remorse. She sighed heavily. "I did enjoy it," she said, "but we needed to talk first."

Luna raised her head in askance. Twilight stepped forward to say more, but she had forgotten about the arousing corn. It brushed against her still-sensitive marehood, almost trying to work its way in, and pulled a groan from out of her. Luna quickly dismissed the corn and they were standing on a pavilion facing a meadow that glistened silver in the moonlight. There was the sound of a brook nearby.

Twilight smiled, blushing, at her surroundings. "Thanks, Luna. This is much better. Look, help me take care of this", she pointed to her dripping marehood with her prehensile tail, "as equals, and we can wake up and talk about this. About what we are."

Luna nodded. A faceless butler appeared at the foot of the pavillion, carrying a rectangular box suitable for holding duelling pistols. It solemnly marched up the steps and presented the contents of the box to the two mares. Resting in the faux-velvet box lining there were two large dildos.

Twilight couldn't hold back her laughter as she selected one of the tools and raised it with her magic. Turning to face Luna, she help her weapon aloft in mock-salute before manoeuvring it to Luna's moist pussy as she felt Luna position its twin to hers.

The butler drew forth a white hoofkerchief, held it aloft and then brought it down sharply. Its job done, the butler disappeared as the two mares raced to bring the other to climax first.

With a pounding rhythm, each mare drove their dildo into the other's marehood with enthusiasm. The force of the thrusts drove them forward until they were muzzle to muzzle gasping for breath.

Their eyes locked, and then their lips. The rhythm of their thrusts synchronised and a race became a dance, tongues and magic moving in unity.

It didn't take long. Luna was the first to come, falling to her knees and loosing control of her magic. Twilight was close enough that she could barely grasp the dong clenched tight in her lower lips with her own magic and drive herself to orgasm, frantically rubbing the swollen nub above her pussy with a hoof. She collapsed in front of Luna, and then edged herself forward, nuzzling Luna neck on neck, embracing her with her hooves.

They lay there, content, for a while before Twilight unsteadily rose to her feet. She kissed Luna on her nose. "You are beautiful. You are amazing. You are wonderful. I love you. But we need to talk. I'm going to wake up now. See you soon?"

Luna nodded with a weak smile as Twilight faded away as she awoke.

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"I'm sorry, Twilight", Luna said again as they stood facing each other in the gentle ruin they had made of Luna's bedchamber. "I got carried away. I thought it would be fun - that you would like it."

"I did, but... What are we, Luna? I can make it whatever you want it to be, really, but I need to know. One night stand? I'll walk out the door and never mention it again..."

"No!" Luna shouted forcefully, and then in a quieter voice, "No, please."

"Then do you want me to be your pet? I'll wear your collar. I'll come running when called. I will beg for treats. I would do anything to be with you, Luna."

"No, please. I just want to love you. To be loved..."

"But that's just it. Every time you've made love to me, I've been helpless - blind and with bound hooves, wrapped in sheets, held in stocks. I couldn't give back. If you're doing almost all the giving and I'm doing almost all the taking then I'm your pet", Twilight's voice was getting hoarse.

"No, no. I don't want a pet, I want you. I want a lover, a friend. It was just that you really seemed to like it. You really did. If you seemed unhappy, I would have stopped, I swear."

"I did enjoy it, but if you want me to be your lover, and I really want to be your lover, I need to be able to give too. We need to act as equals."

"We can do that", Luna was pleading, close to tears, "we can make this work, please? Please don't let me be alone again."

"I won't, I promise," Twilight kissed Luna's lips tenderly. "If that's what you want, we will make it work. But, uh, I think we both like being 'on top' sometimes, if you know what I mean. We might have to, um, take turns." This last came with a sheepish grin.

Luna lunged forward and held her in a tight embrace. "Yes! We can take turns. We'll make this work, please. And if we're setting boundaries, is there anything I should know? I don't want to make more mistakes."

"Well, let's be sensible - nothing too fast. Safewords like 'Red' for 'Stop', 'Amber' for 'Pause' or 'Slow down' and 'Green' for 'Go', or 'Harder, more?'", Luna nodded, "And, um, that thing you did to my mind? When I couldn't realise who you were and that we were in a dream?"

"Yes?"

"Looking back, that was hot, but I like to play too. I can pretend - you don't need to block my mind. If you want to, we can play like that. You know, cops and robbers, cowponies and buffalo, doctors and nurses, slave girl and demanding mistress, Princess and her naughty vizier..." Twilight's blush was growing stronger as the litany grew.

"Play Princess and Housemaid in dreams? Do you know who We are, peasant?" Luna was grinning broadly.

"Yes, you're Luna", said Twilight with a smile, "you're my princess and goddess and lover." She fell silent for a moment, "We don't have to be in dreams to play, you know..." One of Twilight's eyebrows arched suggestively.

Luna giggled, clutching her hooves to her mouth.

"Hmmm, Luna, if we're going to take turns, then I think it's my turn right now, and I owe you a horn-job."

Suddenly serious, if a little embarrassed, Luna nodded and lay down submissively in front of the younger mare. "How do you want me? I can conjure up some stocks if you like..." she said in a small voice.

Twilight relaxed, and smiled. "No need - we can use the honour system for this."

Luna looked curious.

"You just lie there, just like that. You are honour bound to not move a muscle while I play with you. I mean, take care of you". Luna gulped, but held still.

"Now there is a little problem - I can't get my mouth around all your horn - but don't worry, I've got it under control." Twilight's magic aura seized the blue stocking that was still lying at the foot of the bed and held it aloft.

"Your horn is lovely, mistress, but it looks a little dull", said Twilight in a suddenly more servile voice, "Hold very still, mistress, while your servant gives it a lick of spit and polish." Twilight's servile tone didn't stretch as far as her evil grin or laughing eyes.

"Now don't shy away while I'm doing this, mistress, or we shall have to start over."

Luna trembled a little as a grinning Twilight approached, tongue practically hanging out her mouth and stocking held aloft. This was going to be difficult, but promised to be lots of fun.

Return to Ponyville

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The mare that boarded the mid-day Canterlot train to Ponyville was grinning. It was a wide, toothy smile and it beamed at anypony who came near. Anypony who was not put off by the grin fled from the effusive friendliness of her greetings and declarations of happiness; for all they knew, her insanity could be contagious.

Twilight did not notice that she was putting off other ponies. She did not realise that she was grinning in a fashion that would make Pinkie Pie faint with delight. All she was aware of was how wonderful the world was and how everything was perfect.

The grin stayed plastered onto Twilight's face as she stepped onto the Ponyville train station platform in the early afternoon. The residents of Ponyville noticed the grin as she trotted to the library, but their panic subsided when they say that her mane remained well groomed; years of living near Twilight had raised their awareness of her warning signs to near-Pinkie Pie levels of precognition, but things appeared to be safe for now.

She was grinning as she opened the door and danced into her home, lost in a state of bliss. She greeted Spike with a gleeful hug.

"Oof! Oh hey, Twilight, welcome back. Good trip?"

"Oh Spike, it was wonderful. You are wonderful. Everything is wonderful."

"That's great! Tell me all about it."

Twilight's grin didn't slip. "Maybe when you're older. I'm going upstairs to drop off my saddlebags - I'll be back down soon." She continued to do what she thought of as dancing, moving towards her room. With reckless enthusiasm, she grabbed the horse-head bust from the centre of the room as a dance partner.

She was still grinning when the memory spell that she had left for herself the other day hit her right between the eyes. Her legs gave way beneath her and she flopped on the floor, her grin finally fading.

"Twilight!", shouted Spike as he rushed to her side.

Twilight wasn't grinning when she pulled herself off of the floor. Her head ached, her vision had taken a purple overtone and everything was strangely distorted, as though viewed through a twisted lens. Her ears roared with static.

Spike sounded as though he was speaking from underwater, "Twilight? What happened? Are you okay?"

"Ugh, that hurt. Sorry to worry you Spike. I just got hit by a memory spell that I had forgotten that I had left for myself. I'm fine."

"You forgot your memory spell. Maybe you should have cast a memory spell to remind yourself of your memory spell."

"Ha ha, very funny, Spike. Help me put this head back in place please."

She was definitely getting better. The headache would be with her for a while, she knew, but the distortion in her vision was concentrating into one area, taking the purple with it, and the sound effects were now becoming clearer. As her senses cleared, the distortion, colours and sounds slowly combined to take the form of a small purple unicorn filly who was talking to her. The filly was modelled on a young Twilight.

The filly's voice slowly resolved out of the static, sounding happy, cheerful and helpful. "...Twilight ...hear me? I'm you! You put me in your head to restore your memory. I'm here to help remind you of your boring, mundane life!"

Spike had been initially relieved by Twilight's assurances, but now she was staring into thin air and appeared to be hearing voices. Spike waved a claw in front of Twilight, catching her attention, "Are you sure you're okay? You look distracted. I'm really worried."

The illusionary little filly walked up to Spike as he was speaking, and said "This is Spike! He's a baby dragon and your sort of little brother. He likes a mare called Rarity, gemstones, sleeping in, being lazy, ice-cream, and you. In that order, I think."

Twilight did her best to ignore the filly as she described Spike in excruciating detail and tried to answer Spike's question.

"Sorry Spike. The memory spell created a mental figment that only I can see. Any time I focus on anything, the figment tells all about it, in detail."

"Wow, that sounds really annoying."

"Yes, it is," her voice was raised too loud, trying to speak over the sound of the filly that only she could hear describe Spike's eating habits.

"Can you get rid of it?"

"No, I can't," said Twilight, as the illusion finished describing Spike and started looking around curiously for something else to narrate.

"Why did you cast this spell on yourself again?"

Little Twilight look at her with a beaming smile and helpfully said, "You cast this spell because you were worried that you would forget everything in a decades-long attempt to snuggle with Princess Luna."

Twilight whimpered.

The little filly looked sad at Twilight's distress, but quickly perked up when a thought hit her, "Oooh. You have an appointment! In an hour! You have a spa date with your friends Rarity and Fluttershy."

Twilight briefly considered her options. It would take hours to research ways to remove the spell, and even then she might be stuck with it. Her other option was to ignore the spell and have a pleasant visit to the spa with her friends. She was weighing the pros and cons when Little Twilight reminded her that this spa date had been planned prior to her trip to Canterlot, so that she could gossip with Rarity and Futtershy. Twilight quickly realised that she couldn't wait another day to see to Rarity's reaction to her news. Twilight's grin returned.

----------------

Twilight met up with Rarity and Fluttershy at the Carousel Boutique. The tinkling of the shop door bell alerted the two friends to her presence and they trotted out of the backroom to greet her. Twilight went to embrace both mares, carefully ignoring the phantom Little Twilight bouncing up and down on their unheeding heads.

"Ooh ooh ooh. This is Rarity! She's your friend! She has a clothes shop! And a sister! And a vicious pet cat that you think might be part tartarus-spawn!"

Twilight finished embracing Rarity and turned to hug Fluttershy. "And and and this is Fluttershy! She's your friend too! She looks after cute little animals! And snakes! And bears! And she has a cunning pet rabbit that you're sure is part tartarus-spawn!"

Twilight was glad neither of her friends could see her face as it was buried in Fluttershy's luxurious mane.

"Darling! How fabulous that you could join us. You simply must share all the latest gossip from Canterlot! I'm so jealous of your little holiday!"

"I would like to hear about your day too, if that's all right," said Fluttershy, quietly.

"Girls, I'll tell you all about it when we get to the spa. I don't want to miss our appointment."

The three happily chatted about the quiet happenings of Ponyville on the way (even the cutie mark crusaders were being unusually non-destructive for once). Twilight did her best to ignore her unwanted helper but Li'l Twi was jumping up and down in the middle of the street ahead, eager for them to catch up. Twilight couldn't help but tense when a stallion walked straight through the non-existent filly.

"Twilight, darling, is everything all right? You seem a little... distracted."

"Heh. Sorry Rarity. I made a mistake with a spell earlier. I conjured an illusionary filly that only I can see. She's harmless, but very distracting. Don't worry, she'll fade away in a few days anyway."

Rarity sighed, "Even your magic mistakes are better than mine. I don't get prancing foals, I generally get headaches and strange smells. Although, one time, I accidentally conjured an exquisite porcelain statue of a dancing pony. Which Sweetie Belle promptly broke. Sadly, she didn't earn a cutie mark in statue repairing: despite her best efforts, tree sap could just not hold it together."

They laughed as they continued down to the spa. Twilight was sure to drop hints that she had some first-rate gossip, but refused to divulge it in public.

The spa was as delightful as ever, Aloe and Lotus attentive to all their needs. For the very first time this highly attentive service was unwelcome to Rarity: she was dying to hear her friend's news from the capital but Twilight refused to say a word whilst the spa ponies were present. She did hint, however, that her news was of a royal nature. This only served to further drive Rarity to distraction.

Once safely alone, lounging in the hot tub, Twilight finally agreed to share the gossip that she had been teasing Rarity about during their massages, hoof-manicures and facials.

"Now, first things first. You must both agree to keep this secret. It must not get out until it becomes public. Telling AJ, Pinkie and Rainbow is fine, but no-one else must know. Do you swear?"

"We swear. 'Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye'." As they were doing the hoof motions, Pinkie Pie surfaced from under the water, wearing a snorkel.

"Hi girls!", Pinkie said, "What's going on?"

Before Twilight could respond, little Twilight, who had been lying at the edge of the pool pawing half-heartedly at the bubbles, suddenly perked up and jumped over to Pinkie Pie. "This is Pinkie Pie! She's your friend. She doesn't make sense, except when she does. She has a pet alligator that isn't vicious or cunning or evil at all." She looked briefly confused, "Not sure what's going on there."

Pinkie was delighted when she caught sight of the Twilight's figment, "Ooh! Little Twilight! Where did you come from? Do you want to play hide-and-seek?"

Little Twilight eeped happily and scampered off to find someplace to hide. As neither competitor seemed bound by the normal rules of time and space, they both quickly disappeared, leaving the three bemused friends alone in the pool. Twilight knew that the purple filly would be back, but it was still nice not to have her around, particularly when discussing this gossip.

"Okay girls, here's what I found when I was Canterlot: Princess Luna is having an affair!"

Rarity gasped and brought her hoof to her muzzle in shock. Fluttershy cooed with interest and leaned in for more information.

"This is super-secret. I don't think anyone knows except maybe a few of Luna's guards, and they're fanatically loyal to her. Even Princess Celestia doesn't know."

"Oh my!"

"Why, this is positively scandalous! Tell me more. Are you sure? How did you find out? Are there any hints on the identity of her bold suitor? What do you think will happen when the news gets out?"

"Is Princess Luna happy?" Fluttershy chimed in, "I thought she looked rather sad on Nightmare Night. I want Luna to be happy."

"Well, she seemed very happy when I saw her. I have no idea what will happen when the news gets out; Luna is allowed to take to her bed whomever she likes, but the Canterlot nobility will probably have their usual uproar until Princess Celestia calms them down. They do so like their uproars," Twilight said this last with a matronising sigh, "As for how I know, well, when I got into Canterlot, I went straight to the palace..."

"Yes..." said both listeners, trying to draw out her story.

"And I went to Princess Luna's chambers..."

"Yes. Tell us!"

"And I seduced Princess Luna. So to answer your other question Rarity, yes, I'm pretty sure."

The girls' responses were everything she could have hoped for. Fluttershy meeped, blushed and stammered for several minutes, while Rarity reacted just as Twilight had hoped. Getting the fainting couch out of the pool was a chore, but great art requires sacrifices. Getting the smirk off of Twilight's face was also proving difficult.

She answered their questions as best she could: they were both serious and planned to court, as Luna put it, but as the physical side of the relationship had been so much fun it seemed a shame to give it up until they were done courting. They had discussed who should know: Luna would tell Celestia when the moment was right and Twilight would let the bearers in on it all. She planned to tell the others during tomorrow's picnic. She didn't know what the future would bring, but the present was perfectly fine.

They were still discussing this plan when Li'l Twi reappeared, bouncing, in front of Twilight. "I won!" said the happy little mare, before going to sleep by the edge of the pool.

When they were done at the spa they went their separate ways, a dazed Rarity returned to her boutique, sodden fainting couch in tow, Fluttershy, still blushing as pink as her mane, returned to her animals, and Twilight returned to the library, trying again to ignore Li'l Twi, who was busy trying to introduce her to all the citizens of Ponyville they passed.

Twilight retreated to her study and, sitting down at her writing desk, she pulled out the book that contained her notes on the memory spell. Her little hallucination leapt onto the desk and poked the book with her muzzle. She looked up at Twilight and told her authoritatively, "It's a book."

A few hours research confirmed what she had told Spike earlier: it would be too dangerous to try and remove the spell. She did have one option that she could think of: she could use her 'save/reload' spell to undo the mistake. Unfortunately, her last save was just before she entered Luna's chambers. On one hoof, if she reloaded she could relive that magical night all over again. On the other, she could make a mistake a second time through and loose her relationship with Luna. That entire night could have been a one-in-a-million jackpot. She just could not dare risk trying again and failing. She also decided that that first night was special and to relive it again would diminish it.

With nothing to remember for Twilight, the annoying little purple unicorn was dozing on Twilight's desk, lying on her back with her hooves twitching as she dreamed. She looked, Twilight was forced to admit, absolutely adorable. With a sigh, Twilight decided to push temptation out of reach. She made a new save and went to bed. It had been a long day and there was a lot to do tomorrow, so she decided to call it an early night.

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Sleep came quickly as long practised meditations drove the buzzing thoughts about her day from her mind.

Twilight found herself staring at a large poster on a wall. It said, in a cheerful voice, "This is a dream". The wall the poster was on changed constantly, from brick to paint to wattle and daub to sheet metal and on to stranger materials. The window in the wall looked out on a chaotic dreamscape.

Upon consideration, Twilight decided that she was inclined to give the speaking poster the benefit of the doubt.

A discrete cough from behind caused her to turn away from the wall and face a dark tan earth pony dressed as a waiter. He held himself with head high and a serious expression on his face as he solemnly said, "Madam, may I have the honour of bidding you welcome to this dream, lovingly sculpted by Princess Luna, Goddess of the Night, for your personal pleasure?"

"Er, thank you, sir."

"Princess Luna apologises that she can't be here to greet you personally, but she will be here shortly to take care of your needs. In the mean time I am bid to make you feel welcome. Tonight's entertainment will consist of an aperitif in the form of 'Criminal Stock', where you, as the damsel, shall be wrongly accused, held in pillory and unjustly 'interrogated' until the crime is solved," Twilight felt that the stallion's eyebrow waggle while enunciating 'interrogated' was a little excessive, but he continued on regardless, "It will be followed by the main course 'Sweet Trouble' where the tour of a confectionery factory goes terribly wrong when madam is captured by the insane proprietor. I have been asked to assure you that dream confectioneries hold no calorific value and may be consumed freely."

"How, er, nice." Twilight was shifting nervously from hoof to hoof.

"If madam would kindly follow me, I shall show her to her stocks."

"Well, I suppose it is Luna's turn to be 'on top'. Please lead on."

Twilight was lead into an area set up like a strip club. Countless faceless ponies dressed in high society fashion were sat around tables, making noises that sounded like small talk. There was a runway stage projecting to the middle of the room, at the head of which was a table set for dinner. Twilight saw with horrified eyes that the table had one normal cushion for a pony to sit at and one very out of place set of stocks.

"Wait, wait. I can't-- Not in front of all these ponies..." said Twilight, backing away.

"Princess Luna wishes to assure madam that the background ponies will not be participating in tonight's entertainment, they are purely here to provide ambience."

Twilight drew a deep breath and then continued her march of doom to the pillory. She was blushing furiously at the thought of all the eyes on her, but held her head high.

Once the interminable walk was done, she was assisted into the stocks (actually quite comfortable), and waited patiently as manacles were fitted to her hind legs, holding them wide apart. She did yelp when the waiter lifted her tail, exposing her already damp marehood, and carefully tied it back.

"Very sorry, madam," the waiter said, not sounding at all sincere. "Here is the script for the first part of this evening's entertainment." With that, he propped a card folded like a menu on the table in front of Twilight.

"Thank you, sir. Um, could I please have a glass of water while I wait?"

"Of course madam."

Twilight scanned the 'script'. It read:

"Criminal Stock"

A brief interaction between policemare and criminal, to whet the appetite

The beautiful and beguiling damsel, Twilight Sparkle, has been falsely accused of stealing Princess Luna's slippers. Gritty Bullet, Princess Luna's loyal law enforcement representative will interrogate the mare until they are found.

"Oh dear. Sounds like I will need to solve this dastardly crime with very little information to go on. Hmmm"

"Your water, madam."

"Thank you, kind sir."

The waiter took the script away when he left, leaving Twilight nothing to hide behind as she looked out at the gentlecolts and gentlemares on the floor below the stage. She had never felt so exposed to so many casual glances. The blush on her face was matched by the arousal she was feeling in her hindquarters.

She smiled weakly and tried to wave at the audience, but they didn't seem to notice. Lifting the glass with her magic, she gulped down her water and waited with mounting discomfort for Luna to show. Time passed slowly, and her arousal faded into irritation.

She was debating with herself the merits of breaking out of the stocks (trivially easy with her magic) when finally the spotlights clacked on and shone down into her eyes, temporarily blinding her. The noise of the restaurant ceased.

When her eyes recovered, she found herself in a circle of light, unable to see anything beyond its edge; the dinner table had gone. As her eyes strained to see beyond the light, Luna swooped in out of the darkness, coming to land in front of Twilight. She looked contrite, beautiful and magnificent in her full regalia and Twilight was suddenly finding it hard to remember why she had been annoyed.

"Twilight, I am so sorry I am late. I was delayed by a couple of nightmares that chose not behave. I needed to get everything in order so that we would not be disturbed. Can you forgive me?"

Twilight sighed, but stretched her neck out as far as she could to kiss Luna. "I understand what it's like when work gets ahead of you. At least these stocks are comfortable."

Luna blushed at Twilight's forgiving kiss. "Thank you, I will make it up to you, I promise. Now I need to remind myself what the script is for this one..." a loose sheaf of notes appeared in front of Luna, who sorted through them, clearly looking for something.

"'This one'? How many of these scenarios are there?"

Luna giggled and gave Twilight a knowing smile. "Lots. I have been looking forward to trying them out with someone. Ah ha! Here we go," said Luna, and pulled her 'naughty policemare' costume from nowhere and donned it. She carelessly tossed aside her crown to make space for a police cap. The notes were swapped for a nightstick and the costume was complete. "I am 'Gritty Bullet' and you have stolen Princess Luna's slippers!"

"No I haven't. I'm falsely accused!"

"Ah ha! That is just what you would say if you were guilty. I am not fooled!" 'Gritty' grinned triumphantly and began circling behind Twilight.

"Now officer, I can't have-- Ah!"

Gritty was trailing the nightstick along Twilight's flank as she walked behind her and the tingle turned electric when it passed over cutie mark. "What was that, criminal?" She tapped Twilight on the ass with the stick, to get a response.

"Oooh. I can't have-- Ah! --stolen the slipper-- Ah!" Luna was swinging the nightstick from its loop, the apex of each swing gently glancing off Twilight's pussy. With her legs separated by the irons and her tail tied back, she could do nothing to stop each swing, nor could she reliably anticipate it. It was very distracting.

Sorely tempted by the pert behind on display, Luna leaned in and licked around Twilight's hindquarters, slowly moving in to taste her labia. Twilight yelped in response. Luna took care to ensure that her gently flicking tongue avoided the more sensitive clitoris and carefully teased the captive mare without relieving her. Twilight was moaning happily.

Luna continued her slow circle around Twilight, this time with a wing caressing the captive's flank and cutie mark, eliciting groans. The tapping on Twilight's rear restarted and despite swaying her hips as far as she could, she was unable to avoid it. Her mind was fading into the fog of lust, but she still had enough focus to be impressed by Luna's skill.

Luna soon returned to Twilight's head and was happy with what she saw: Twilight was sweating, moaning and a trail of drool had started to form from her mouth. Time to pick things up.

"Criminal, since you refuse to cooperate, I shall have to stop going easy on you!"

The batten stopped batting Twilight's soaked pussy. It smoothly rolled its length over her lower lips until it was thoroughly lubricated and then presented itself for entry. Whilst this happened, Luna slowly leaned forward and lowered her mouth around Twilight's horn, but took care not to make contact. Twilight was trembling in anticipation.

The nightstick began slowly to move into Twilight's folds and Luna's tongue drifted up her horn, tracing out the groove of one of the spirals. Twilight groaned.

With a steady, simple rhythm both tongue and nightstick moved in harmony, undeterred by Twilight's moans and frantic squirming. Up and down, in and out.

The process continued as Twilight's bucking hips and twisting head lost rhythm and control. Luna took this as a sign to redouble her efforts. Her tongue pressed hard on Twilight's horn as she bobbed her head back and forth. At this same time, she made the nightstick start to vibrate.

Twilight couldn't withstand ten seconds of this treatment. She tensed, rigid, and let loose something close to a scream as she came. Her body shuddered twice and then sagged.

Luna stepped back and let Twilight recover. The nightstick flew back to its mistress, who pointedly licked its length as Twilight stared.

"Well, criminal? Do you have anything to say in your defence, or will I have to continue?"

A gasping Twilight replied, each word interspersed with a ragged breath, "I couldn't have stolen your slippers. You're still wearing them."

Luna looked down with apparent surprise, "Oh yes. How silly of me. They always in the last place you look, are they not? Oh well, no harm done; we shall magnanimously pardon you."

Luna couldn't hold a straight face as the stocks and manacles faded away. She stepped to a slightly disgruntled Twilight and they embraced. Twilight soon joined in with Luna's laughter.

They kissed and settled to the ground, flank touching flank and Luna's wing blanketing her lover.

"Didn't we already do stocks?"

"They are an evergreen classic, Twilight Sparkle. They're quick to set up, fun, and one of the safest ways to do a horn job, something you respond to very well. Also, you interrupted things before I could finish enjoying myself last time. Speaking of which, don't be too surprised if you find yourself in a large field of particularly 'horny' corn in the future. That corn wants to have its way with you."

"Please tell me you're joking - those leaves are rough."

"Hmm, good point. Maybe tentacles instead? Or snakes? How do you feel about snakes?"

"You put me in the middle of a field full of snakes and we are through," said Twilight, with absolute seriousness.

"Okay, tentacles it is," said Luna happily.

"No! I didn't mean..." Twilight was cut off by Luna's laughter.

The two lay side by side for a while, until Twilight started nuzzling Luna's neck. Mutual nuzzling and kissing ensued, escalating until Luna rolled Twilight onto her back and trapped her under her body. Twilight squirmed and wriggled delightfully, but was unable to escape.

Luna took this opportunity to nip at the ticklish Twilight's neck, causing her to laugh and squirm even more.

"I yield, I yield. Let me up."

Luna stood gracefully and allowed Twilight to rise. "You seem to have recovered your energy. Has your appetite returned, Twilight? Are you ready for the 'main course'?"

"'Sweet Trouble'? It sounds fun, but very vague. Is this food play?"

"Beautiful young mares should not accept personal guided tours from insane factory proprietors, as you will find, young Twilight Sparkle. Your innocent naivety and willingness to accept anything you are told may be your undoing. But fear not! Your endurance and ingenuity will see you through your tribulations, and if things become desperate then a cry for help may summon a mysterious heroine to rescue you," Luna waggled her eyebrows suggestively.

"Innocent and trusting mare in peril? I think I can do that," said Twilight with a grin.

"Remember: red, amber, green. And however many ponies you see, this is only you and me." Luna kissed Twilight and turned into blue mist which shot away, leaving Twilight standing alone in a circle of light.

Sweet Trouble

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The spotlight Twilight stood in began to expand. Slowly at first, and then faster and faster it revealed her surroundings. She was standing on a long cobbled street, a continuous terrace of small grey houses on one side, a tall redbrick wall with an intricate wrought iron gate on the other. Somepony had clearly put some effort into designing the gate – iron bars had been twisted and welded together to make a pattern that spelt out 'Bonkers Chocolate Factory' in flourishing letters, clearly spelling out Luna's sense of humour at the same time.

The gates themselves were closed, but a pull chain next to them looked promising. Twilight pulled it and peered through the gate as she waited. She could see through the wrought iron bars a huge redbrick building – it stretched as long as the street and stood five stories tall. The courtyard was empty, but the factory doors soon opened and an earth pony stallion came out to greet her, flanked by a couple of earth pony mares.

As the group got closer, Twilight saw that the slim stallion had a midnight blue coat with a black mane and azure eyes – Twilight liked what she saw. The mares were identical and monochrome – toffee brown all over. When they got closer, Twilight realised with surprise that gearing and sigils could be seen all over their bodies – these were not ponies, but golems.

"Ah, you must be Twilight Sparkle! Welcome, my dear, to my humble factory!", the stallion said with a booming, cheerful voice as he opened the gates.

"And you would be Mr. Bonker, then?", Twilight asked uncertainly.

"Not quite right. Slightly Bonkers, at your service. So glad you accepted my invitation. Please do come in – I can't wait to show you around."

"Thank you – I'm very much looking forward to the tour." Twilight smiled hungrily.

Slightly lead the way to the factory, the two golems moving to flank Twilight. She could help but cast side-long glances at the mares. They seemed to be the result of a mixture of arcane and technological arts – their coats had access panels. Slightly noticed her curiosity and laughed urbanely.

"I see that my type three workers have caught your eye. I'm very proud of the design."

"Type three?" asked Twilight.

“Yes, he's that imaginative.” Twilight started and looked round to see that it was one of the golems that had spoken. It playfully stuck its tongue out and winked at her and then turned to look ahead as if it had never spoken.

Slightly apparently hadn't heard the golem speak. "Oh yes. Originally, I inherited this factory from my father, Somewhat. The workers were ponies from the town – fine ponies all. Ponies from this town have worked at this factory for generations. And then they revolted! They were complaining that I had forgotten to open the factory gates for a week and that they needed to see their families. Can you imagine? I mean, I may have gotten a little distracted by my research into sweet technology, but I'm sure that they'd only been trapped for a couple of days at most."

"Oh, I quite understand," said Twilight, playing along, "You wouldn't believe how unreasonable my assistant Spike used get if I forgot to let him outside for a few days. Things became a lot simpler once I had taught him how open the door himself."

"What an interesting idea. I wish I had thought of that. I just fired everyone and hired a tribe of small, orange jungle-ponies to do the job instead. Brought the whole tribe to live and work in the factory – they didn't need to go outside at all. Communication was a bit of a problem, but we got along just fine once that was sorted. I called them 'Workers type two'"

Slightly lead Twilight through the factory doors and into the reception area. The meandering route that Slightly took finally lead into the factory proper. Where Twilight expected to see industrial equipment, she found a bucolic scene with what appeared to be a river of mud passing through a meadow full of flowers. Closer inspection showed that the field did not stretch far at all before it became an illusion and the river of mud was actually–

"Chocolate!"

"Quite so. The best way to mix chocolate smoothly is by way of a waterfall, but it can get a little aerated. A nice, slow moving stream turned out to be the best way to let the bubbles out. I mean who would wanted to eat chocolate with bubbles in it? The river stays a nice cool temperature - keeps the energy bills down. The river bed is magic – makes the chocolate flow. Only real problem is if someone falls in.”

“Oh?”

“Had that problem a lot with the type twos. They'd be dancing around the river and then fall in. They'd climb out, coated in chocolate, which would then solidify. Their friends would then free them by eating the chocolate. They liked it so much they made it a game. Wasteful. Had to let them go.”

"And so you developed the toffee golems?"

“Absolutely. Hygiene is much better now – if a worker falls in, they just melt and add a little flavour to the mix.”

Slightly had lead Twilight down to the flower meadow. They were surrounded by a profusion of strange flowers, coloured in all manner of bright and cheerful shades.

"Now these are a relatively new invention I'm rather proud of. They absorb chocolate from the stream – chocolate flowers. They taste absolutely delicious."

"May I try one?"

“Of course, my dear.” Slightly smiled delightedly and carefully selected a crimson bloom from the field and offered it to her. Twilight experimentally bit off a petal - it tasted like a carnation dipped in chocolate. She enthusiastically finished the treat in a few bites.

"Oh very nice,” Twilight said, licking her lips, “they must be very popular."

"Well, I'm sure they will be once I've sorted out the side effects and put them on sale."

"Side effects?" Twilight asked nervously.

"Nothing major, nothing major. The flower you just ate, for example, tends to, er, have a slight impact on a unicorn's spell casting. It's not permanent – it'll go in a day or two."

"What!" Twilight quickly tried to summon her magic, but it felt sluggish. She pulled harder and tendrils of purple light started to flow up her horn. She gave an involuntary moan as they moved – she could feel the magic trace a spiral groove around her horn like the most dexterous of tongues – a wave of pleasure pushed her to her knees, gasping. She released the magic and the tendrils fell back, leaving a fresh wave of pleasure in their wake.

Twilight unsteadily staggered to her hooves and turned angrily to Slightly, who raised a hoof defensively.

"Now, now, my dear. I am sorry I forgot to mention the side effect, but it will go soon enough, and I am given to understand that the effect is not entirely unpleasant. I'm sure you'll find it easy to manage without magic - earth ponies and pegasi do it every day."

Fighting her instincts, Twilight lowered her hackles in acceptance of the apology. "Of course, Mr Bonkers. Please forgive my anger, it was uncivil of me." Twilight smiled winsomely.

"Think nothing of it, my dear. Let us continue the tour, what?" With that, Slightly headed towards the banks of the river, where a small gondola awaited. He took position at the rear and gallantly assisted Twilight aboard with an outstretched hoof. He dismissed the clockwork ponies with a wave of his hoof and then pushed the craft into the middle of the river with a long pole.

Twilight watched the golems depart. “Your type threes are a magnificent creation. Do you have any problems with them?”

"Hmm. I do sometimes find them to be a little, how to put it, 'inflexible' at times. I think their intelligence is actually a burden for them. I actually have a project I'm working on at the moment to resolve the problem, but it is still in the early stages."

Slightly seemed to have no difficulty punting the gondola against the flow, guiding the boat to a dark, low tunnel upstream. The tunnel was lit with widely spaced candles that gave off just enough light to make out the route. Twilight found the candlelight, chocolate aroma and gentle rhythm of the gondola relaxing and she settled down at the head of the boat with a small contented sigh. She started with surprise when Slightly suddenly spoke.

"Now previous visitors have assured me that I should be singing to them at this point, but I'm afraid that the acoustics in this tunnel are ghastly and my repertoire is woefully limited. So unless you want to hear what a rousing rendition of my favourite drinking songs would sound like at the bottom of a well, I shall remain silent."

"Thank you for the kind offer," said Twilight, laughing, "but I shall decline."

After a while, the light at the end of the tunnel grew brighter and soon Twilight was dazzled as they left the tunnel and entered a huge, brightly lit room. The chocolate stream they had been navigating opened out to become a lake, fed by multiple waterfalls up ahead, each a different colour.

"As you can see, we have white, milk and dark chocolate waterfalls and other types too; the lake mixes the different ingredients and the streams flowing out carry the perfect blends out to the casting room where the bars are made. The toffee waterfall is closest - I'll bring us in so you can take a look."

As the gondola approached the toffee waterfall Twilight started to get worried – she realised that they were heading straight for it.

"Don't worry - it's not hot. Just don't touch it or it'll solidify. Now there's a lever on the bottom of the gondola the puts up a canopy. Be a good girl and see if you can find, would you?"

Twilight obediently lowered her head to peer where Slightly had vaguely waved a hoof. She noticed that he speeded up a little. There was no sign of a lever in the darkness.

"That's right, keep looking. It's down there somewhere."

Twilight looked up with alarm as she felt the toffee touch her back. It solidified instantly, anchoring her in place. The gondola drifted under the waterfall, thoroughly coating her in rock hard toffee. Slightly deftly turned the boat before the wall of toffee could touch him.

Twilight found that she could just open her mouth, thank Luna, but could not otherwise move a muscle. A brief attempt to use her magic to free herself from her sticky prison was aborted when the waves of pleasure hit, breaking her focus. She could just hear Slightly through her encased ears.

"No, no, no. The posture is all wrong. It just won't do. Blast. I shall have to try something else."

Twilight felt the boat move, and then stop against something solid. A shrill whistle sounded. Summoning the workers Twilight thought. A short while later, she felt herself being pried up from the gondola and being carried a short way. She was set down and nothing happened for a moment.

Just as she was starting to get worried – she was having difficulty seeing how the toffee could be removed without loosing some fur – she started to feel something on her back. Warm dampness broke through the toffee. A steady pressure moving up and down her back. Tongues she thought. The workers were licking off the toffee.

Soon multiple patches of toffee came away and the workers moved down from her back and started work on the rest of her body. Twilight wasn't stupid. She knew exactly what was coming, but was helpless to prevent it. Heat pooled in her nethers as she felt the tongues ever so slowly work their way eagerly across her back and neck. She felt them drift along her flanks, teasing her cutie mark, sending tingles up her spine. She felt her face getting cleaned, her ears being gently nibbled, increasing her arousal.

She tensed and trembled but they neither sped up nor slowed down until suddenly the toffee around her horn was gone and two hungry tongues just kept licking. Neck still encased, she could not move her head an iota against the onslaught. She moaned softly as the waves of pleasure washed over her. Both tongues soon found a rhythm, alternating their licks on either side.

Drawing on deep reserves of willpower, Twilight tried to hold out, but was unable suppress the noises they wrung out of her. Just need to hold on a little longer... she thought to herself. In her agitation, she hadn't realised that there were more than two workers here. She quickly noticed though, when the toffee coating her hindquarters finally gave way and tongues began to assault her pussy with equal energy.

Howling with pleasure, enflamed, Twilight came. Sensing this, the tongues relented as she caught her breath, for a moment. Then the licking started again. Twilight moaned with dismay as she was quickly brought up to the slopes of orgasm again.

In this way, the toffee was slowly removed. When her face was clear, one of the two workers on her horn dived in for a quick kiss that Twilight almost didn't notice and then joined her fellow workers as they licked up Twilight's barrel. This left one worker on her horn, but the respite was minimal – with the horn all to herself, the worker engulfed it with her mouth and started to suck. If anything, the delay between the helpless Twilight's climaxes only got shorter.

Likewise, once her flank was clean, only one tongue remained on her pussy, but it was now free to explore inside and out, to her loud vocal delight.

There came a point in time when Twilight had one hungry mouth licking her horn, one mouth sucking her clitoris and countless tongues teasing her teats. She was unable to escape as her hooves were still encased in a block of toffee. Her cries of pleasure became louder, each respite needed to become longer, each orgasm came more quickly, but eventually her hooves became free and Twilight collapsed on the grass besides the lake.

She barely noticed Slightly call for the workers to stand back. He was clearly affected by the show – whilst his coat was too dark to show arousal, Twilight could see from her lower vantage point another indicator of his interest.

After Twilight recovered some portion of her breath and her senses, she staggered to her feet in order to likewise recover a small portion of her dignity. Slightly coughed briefly.

"Well, now. This is awkward." said Slightly, "Bit of a navigational error on my part – I do apologise."

It took a moment for Twilight to remember the requisite naive gullibility of the character she was playing. Swallowing back a few more pointed replies, she meekly lowered her head and said, "Oh, it's quite all right, Mister Bonkers; accidents do happen. I was wondering, though, if there might be something to drink nearby; my throat is unaccountably dry."

There was a brief pause and then Slightly brightened immensely at the request. "Of course, my dear. Please do follow me."

He lead her up a well hidden stairway that took them to the top of the toffee waterfall. Twilight could see that just past the toffee was what looked to be a freshwater stream - there was a very narrow gap of land between the two. The toffee stream was not too wide and with Slightly's encouragement she easily jumped it. She squelched into a fair landing and quickly knelt down onto her forelegs to drink deeply from the stream, her rump high in the air. I was only when she attempted to rise that noticed she was stuck.

"Ah – now that posture is perfect. Sorry about that old girl - the toffee tends to spread a little from the banks. We had a devil of a time stopping it from mixing with the chocolate early, hence that water stream. Anyway, stay right there and we'll have you somewhere more comfortable in a jiffy."

Twilight found herself to be irritated. Having only just escaped from one toffee prison, she was now trapped in the stuff again. This time only her rear hooves and forelegs were encased, but it was more than enough to hold her. She was keenly aware that her rump was raised suggestively and her attempts at freeing herself were causing it to wave in the air in a most enticing manner. This didn't stop her from struggling though.

The toffee golems were clearly immune to the stickiness of the toffee and carefully prized her from the ground as a solid block. They carried her over to Slightly and then placed her on a small hoof-cart that another worker had brought. She found herself resting precariously over the edge, with a very close up view of a worker's backside. She was embarrassed to see where Slightly had put the golems' on-off switch.

"Mister Bonkers! What is the meaning of the ungentlestalliony behaviour?"

"So very sorry, Miss Twilight,” said Bonkers, “Let me explain. I'm bored with chocolate, you see, so I've decided to branch out into doughnuts.” He started to walk down the path, followed by the golem pulling the cart. Twilight noticed that one of the wheels squeaked as it moved.

“I've been developing new magically-tasty doughnut technology, and it's all going very well, but the magic energy dissipates within minutes and then they become merely tasty doughnuts. It's a big problem. I need a way to hold the doughnuts AND keep the magic fresh at the same time. I've spent years researching the problem, and now I have the perfect solution! A unicorn horn!"

"What?!"

"I know! My brilliance amazes even me sometimes. You shall have the honour of being my first prototype. Mass production may be a bit of an issue, but first things first."

Slightly was leading the entourage through a more traditional factory environment, until they reached a large stainless steel contraption that towered over their heads. Twilight was carefully positioned under the device, a lever was pulled, and three fresh doughnuts were neatly deposited on her head.

"You see? Your horn stops them from falling off your head and your magic will keep them fresh for HOURS! I'm a genius!"

Twilight was speechless.

Slightly puffed with pride as he admired Twilight's horn, “Let's do a taste test.”

The cart was wheeled to Slightly's office and positioned by his desk. Much to her dismay, she found that her posture was now ideal for the industrialist to easily grab a doughnut, which he did. Twilight burned with embarrassment and humiliation as he quickly ate all three doughnuts with a mug of hot chocolate and sighed with satisfaction. "Simply divine!"

Once he had finished his meal, he rang a bell by his desk which summoned a worker to take Twilight to a storage room. Slightly Bonkers lay down for a post-prandial snooze as Twilight was wheeled away on the squeaky cart.

Twilight was most unhappy, not least because the grinning worker who deposited her in her cramped cell took the liberty of licking the doughnut glazing from off her horn before closing the door and departing.

As soon as the hoof steps faded away, Twilight brought out her secret weapon – all the recent activity had left her starving. She quickly ate enough of her (surprisingly tasty) bonds to escape.

The storage room was nearly empty, but there was a mop and bucket in one corner. Using the elite training that having an older brother who liked playing guard ponies gave her, she instantly recognised a useful weapon. She briefly considered using the bucket as a helmet, but decided against it – it would be undignified.

Mop in mouth, she stalked the corridors as quiet as a ninja, an avatar of vengeance in search of a lone worker. Finding one, she crept behind it and carefully poked the golem's off switch with the mop handle, blushing. “Ooh!” the golem exclaimed, and it fell to the ground inert.

The golem was heavy and a little sticky, but Twilight managed to drag it into a well-lit room where she could study its workings. Thankfully Slightly was a meticulous designer – every control switch inside the golem was labelled. She briefly toyed with the idea of switching on the 'rampage' function, but decided to just press the 'reset loyalty' switch instead.

With mop in hoof in case of hostility, Twilight turned the golem back on and stood back. A soft whir emanated from the golem as it slowly warmed up. The whir turned into a hum as it rose to its hooves. The hum turned into a crashing noise reminiscent of a pane of glass being thrown down some stairs as it opened its eyes, but it quietened down after a bit and Twilight decided that everything was probably fine.

"Oh, hello! I know you - you're the mare the old master was showing around. You tasted very nice. Are you my new master?"

"Um, thank you. I'm Twilight Sparkle and I'll be your mistress. Do you have a name?"

"W-800, at your service, mistress, how may I serve you?"

"Wow - that's a high number - how many of you are there?"

"There are currently 37 worker type threes. Toffee gears barely last a month. When we wear out, we get dropped into the vats and are melted down to make a new worker."

"How horrible!"

"Its all right - we don't feel pain. We do get hungry though."

"You can eat toffee to repair yourselves?" Twilight guessed.

"We eat toffee to repair, but we need magic for fuel. Lots of toffee here. Not much magic. You have lots of magic. Very tasty. May I taste again?"

"What? You mean like when you, er, freed me from the toffee?" Twilight danced aside as W-800 tried to nuzzle Twilight's hindquarters.

"No taste?" The worker sounded sad.

"Um, maybe later," said Twilight with a blush.

"Aaaww. What are your orders, mistress?"

"Right. I need a rebellion. I order you to find another worker, reset its loyalty and make it loyal to you. Then give it the exact same orders as I am giving to you. All of you are to continue converting workers until none are loyal to Bonkers – the old master. At that point, you shall overthrow Bonkers and await further orders. Do you understand?"

"Yes mistress! Fun! I go!" With that the worker departed.

Twilight estimated that it would take about an hour to convert the workers to her command. That gave her plenty of time to find Bonkers and wait. Her confidence lasted most of a minute: she was headed towards the study when a klaxon sounded.

Bonkers' disembodied voice sounded out over the factory, silencing the alarm, "My dear Miss Twilight, please return to your storage room. Oh, and be a good sport and punish yourself for running off while you're at it, will you?"

Twilight chuckled and continued searching for his office. The labyrinthine corridors were making navigation difficult. A few minutes later, Bonkers' voice sounded out again, "I cannot help but notice that you haven't gone back to your storage room, Miss Twilight. This really is very poor form. I am disappointed in you."

Twilight finally found the study, but found it empty. She continued to explore. It wasn't long before another message from the factory proprietor came out over the public address system.

"Miss Twilight, I do apologise. I have just realised that you must be lost - that is why you haven't done as I have asked. Hold on – the worker type threes aren't responding to my orders for some reason, so I'll send a type four out to pick you up."

Twilight hadn't considered the possibility of a worker type four. She had no idea what it would be like, but she remember Bonkers' complaints about type three's inflexibility and intelligence. Maybe the type four would be stupid, but more dexterous? Various ideas crossed her mind.

If Bonkers wasn't in his office, Twilight decided that he might be in a control room of some kind, and that would mean the factory area. Leaving the office complex, she headed towards the factory. The great doughnut machine would make an excellent landmark and she could navigate from there.

Drawn by the distant sounds of machinery, she eventually found herself in front of a door that would not open. Peering through the window in the door she could see the doughnut machine – she just needed to work out how to open the door. She wasn't given much time to think.

A faint slurping, burbling noise was coming from behind her. She turned, and saw the worker type four. It was a white, roughly cubic blob, and it was oozing its way towards her. Her back to the door, she tried bucking it with a both hind legs, but the door wouldn't give. The blob was getting closer. Twilight peered at her adversary. It was a marshmallow.

With the door behind her not giving way and the marshmallow golem getting closer, Twilight came to a decision – she would have to run past it. Marshmallows weren't renowned for their strength or speed, so she gave herself good odds. Taking a deep breath, she lowered her head, snorted aggressively and started to charge.

Embedded neck-deep in a mindless marshmallow golem, Twilight watched the factory walls pass by with serene grace as it slurped and burbled its way back to the storage room. The golem had been surprisingly fast with its pseudopods. Twilight's struggles amply demonstrated its strength, but achieved nothing else. Attempts at conversation were met with uncomprehending silence. Twilight sighed.

"Oh, there you are, mistress!"

Twilight recognised the voice of W-800. Craning her neck, she watched it as it trotted up close, followed closely by what appeared to be every other worker in the factory.

"Sorry to interrupt, but we were having difficulty with one of your orders. We were hoping you could explain, if you have the time." The workers were having no difficulty keeping up the the marshmallow's stately pace, walking alongside.

"Not at all, girls,” she said sweetly, “How can I help?"

"It's this 'overthrow' word. We're not sure exactly what you mean. Can you explain?"

"Well, it's not too hard. Come close and listen carefully," The herd of workers huddled around Twilight, "Overthrowing someone is very simple – I'll go through it in stages. First you GET ME OUT OF THIS THING!"

The last words were delivered with a bellow and the workers leapt to her aid. Pulling her out was tricky – their hooves got stuck in the marshmallow. One tried to pull her out by sucking on her horn really hard, but it was ineffective and Twilight ordered them to stop doing it. After the fourth attempt. Reluctantly.

Once she had gotten her breath back, Twilight finally suggested that they eat her out. They quickly understood the order and consumed their way to Twilight's freedom. The marshmallow golem didn't show any distress at its fate and Twilight tolerated the worker's well-placed nips, nibbles and licks with as much dignity as she could muster through a couple of screaming orgasms.

Once she was free, and had regained her hooves, Twilight was feeling a lot better.

"Good job, girls. Now, lead me to Slightly Bonkers. And someone get me a mop."

Holding the mop in her tail and ready for trouble, Twilight was lead by her army to the vats. Slightly Bonkers was standing on a catwalk over one of the great bubbling vats, directing the manufacture of fresh worker type fours. He was surrounded by a dozen of the things.

Their eyes met across the backs of their armies. "Ah, Miss Twilight! It appears that you're the cause of this tedious industrial dispute. I commend your organisational skills – would you like a job as the company secretary once we're done with this fracas? My current one couldn't arrange a board meeting if his life depended on it, let alone a full rebellion."

Twilight waved the mop defiantly. "Never!", she shouted, "I'll teach you what a hot gentlestallion should do with a helpless mare – and it doesn't involve doughnuts! Charge!"

Taking mop once more in mouth, she reared and pawed the air in a challenge to Slightly Bonkers. He, for his part, had a long, thick, striped candy cane by his side. He clenched it in his teeth and leapt forward to lead his marshmallows in combat as the toffee golems surged forwards. With breathtaking grace, Slightly jumped over the melee to face Twilight directly. The mare and stallion fought hoof to hoof, mop to candy cane. Twilight's fury and longer reach worked in her favour and she started slowly forcing Slightly back.

The golems armies were fighting for dominance, but both groups were ineffective. The toffee golems were already full and didn't seem inclined to eat any more marshmallows, eliminating their only proven combat technique. The marshmallows, for their part, didn't seem to understand the concept of combat at all, and just tried to hug the type threes. The melee was devolving into a squirming sticky mess.

Twilight was so focussed on her fight with Slightly that she didn't notice the over-loaded catwalk start to twist and groan. It suddenly gave way under the weight of the combatants, tumbling them all into the waiting vat below.

Twilight landed on the edge of the vat, hanging over a precipitous drop into darkness. Slightly landed opposite Twilight, on the edge of the vat, hanging over the bubbling liquid. They both scrambled fruitlessly for a hoofhold, unable to hold their weight by their forelegs indefinitely. Their eyes met.

"My dear Miss Twilight, this concludes your tour of the Bonkers Chocolate Factory. I'm afraid that I shall be unable to show you to the exit as I shall be swimming through a long pipe of lukewarm chocolate. Please do see yourself out. I do hope you have enjoyed your visit."

With that, Slightly Bonkers fell back, into the vat with a splash. Twilight looked around at the devastation in the factory. Not one worker of either type appeared to have survived. She sighed and then took a deep breath.

"Help! Damsel in distress! Help!"

An alicorn mare with a midnight blue coat and a star-studded light blue mane almost immediately swooped into view, hovering in front of Twilght. She wore a small domino mask to hide her face. "Do not despair, fair damsel! For I, the mysterious Balanced Diet, shall save you!"

"Oh thank you, brave and mysterious heroine!"

Balanced Diet flew behind Twilight and grasped her gently in her forelegs. Gaining altitude with ease, she carried Twilight over the vats, past the confectionery rivers they fed, swooped over the chocolate mixing lake, through the long dark tunnel and brought her down gently in the growing room meadow, by the banks of a milk chocolate river.

Twilight hugged Balanced Diet and kissed her passionately. "You saved my life! However can I thank you, Balanced Diet?"

Thanking the alicorn started with kisses, tickles and nips on her neck and flank. Soon Twilight was caressing her cutie mark (a crescent moon on a dark background) as she did this, to the appreciative moans of the larger mare. Then Twilight grinned slyly and subtly guided the alicorn round until the river was on her other flank. A quick push was enough to deposit the startled mare into the delicious river. She squawked and quickly clambered out, coated in chocolate.

Twilight enthusiastically started giving Balanced Diet a taste of her own recent experiences as Twilight got a good taste of Balanced Diet. And the chocolate.

After a while, the two mares were lying side by side amongst the tall flowers of the meadow. Balanced Diet had a freshly preened wing draped over Twilight's back as she happily chewed on a pink flower. The other colours, she told Twilight, all had interesting side effects.

Twilight sighed happily, "Thanks for the dream, Luna. It was lovely."

Luna was startled, "How did you penetrate my brilliant disguise?" she asked, "Oh – my mask fell off when you were thanking me. How careless of me not to notice."

Twilight giggled.

Suddenly more serious, it was Luna's turn to sigh. "I know that this dream didn't quite go smoothly. Everything was going to plan until I realised we hadn't really talked about, well, stallions. I had to improvise whilst I constructed a different ending."

Twilight nickered. "You didn't see my waving my plot in the air as an invitation? I thought I made myself clear." She seemed disappointed.

"I couldn't be absolutely sure - I was terrified that I'd make a mistake."

"Well, for future reference, if you choose to take the form of a stallion underwear model again, you may indeed take advantage of any predicament you put me in, even if he is a buffoon."

"Thank you, Twilight Sparkle. I shall be sure to do so in future. Now I need to clean up this dream and you need to wake up. Have a good day and I'll see you soon."

Twilight and Luna kissed as Twilight faded back into the waking world.

Picnic

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Twilight awoke with a sigh. She felt extremely rested and in a state of near bliss as the room slowly brightened with the light of the dawn. She stretched luxuriously. An idle thought suggested that a more relaxed schedule would be suitable for the day. This traitorous thought was swiftly followed by another suggesting that a more relaxed schedule could well be suitable for all the other days too.

Twilight smiled and snuggled even deeper into her warm bedsheets, the damp patch not even fazing her. A nice morning doze sounded like just the thing to start the day. Maybe get Spike to deliver breakfast in bed later...

These peaceful thoughts of indolence were shattered when a little purple unicorn filly suddenly appeared a hoof above her bed and started bouncing up and down on her flank.

"Good morning!" Li'l Twi shouted happily. "It's breakfast time! Yay!"

Being illusionary, Li'l Twi was immune to mana bolts. Being real, Twilight's bedroom wall wasn't.

When the smoke had cleared, there was a new window in her bedroom. Thankfully it was pretty small and high up, but she'd still need to get a tree surgeon in to make sure that everything was fine. Twilight closed her eyes with a sigh and tried to relax before-

"Twilight, is everything okay?"

"Yes, Spike, everything's fine. I'm sorry I woke you. I've put the fire out and I'll start making breakfast soon."

"Do you want me to get Smarty Pants back from Big Mac?"

"Spike it wasn't a nightmare! I've stopped doing that! This was a perfectly deliberate accidental mana bolt! Go back to sleep!"

"Yeesh."

Twilight felt like a foal who had just had a 'little accident' as her mother would call them. It was always so embarrassing - she couldn't even go to any slumber parties as a filly just in case it happened again.

Spike never needed telling twice to go back to sleep and silence soon returned to the tree. Twilight was wide awake, but the bed was still warm. The room was still warm, for that matter. Maybe a few more minutes...

"Ooh - that was really cool! Do it again!"

Twilight whimpered.

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Breakfast wasn't great as Twilight was behind on her shopping. Waffles that didn't have much to say, some daisies that had seen better days and a glass of juice that seemed to lack energy for her, a glass of milk that was nearly on the turn and a quartz turnover that clearly never had for Spike.

Li'l Twi had soon decided that breakfast was boring, anyone who got up this early was crazy, and that it was a time to have a nap.

Once Spike had finished the washing up and Twilight had opened the library, they met as usual in Twilight's study.

"All right Spike, let's review the schedule for today. Number one - get up. Check. Number two, breakfast. Check. Number three, open library. Check. We're doing really well here! Number four-"

"Shopping - milk, autumnal flowers, eggs, amethysts, quills, bread, hay, paper and apples." The little filly was sitting on the study desk and reciting the list as if by rote, "Then ask Leafy Branches to look at the cool new hole in the tree. You have a picnic at mid-day with your friends. Then you want to read Smooth Flow's 'Wing Preening Guide for Lovers'. Then you want to read 'Mrs. Beastson's Book of Household Management' to find tips on waterproofing-"

"What! How did you know-"

"I'm you, remember? Wait, you don't need to remember - I'm here to remind you of stuff. Such as the fact that I'm here to remind you of stuff. And your appointments. And who people are. And stuff." Li'l Twi seemed very proud of all this.

"And my daily schedule?" asked Twilight, temporarily ignoring Spike's confusion.

"Well, I like helping you remember stuff. And you can't be very good at it, otherwise you wouldn't bother with all those lists. So why not?"

"Twilight, you're talking to the air again. Are you sure you're all right?"

Twilight took a moment to collect her thoughts, which caused Li'l Twi to giggle as if being tickled.

"Sorry Spike - the memory spell I told you about yesterday is still here and it, she, is reacting to me. It looks like I won't be needing a list today."

"If you don't need a list, does that mean I can go?"

"Sure, thanks-"

Spike was already gone in a blur. The parchment and quill hovered in the air for a moment, suspended in the turbulence of his departure, before falling to the ground. Twilight tidied them away with an understanding sigh.

"Right, Little Me, let's go shopping!"

"Yay!"

------------------------------

Twilight was careful to not give any hint that she could see illusionary creatures as she did her shopping. She was well aware that the townsfolk viewed her as an oddity, albeit often a welcome one, and didn't want to make her reputation even worse.

She noticed that she was starting to attract stares and whispers behind her back, despite her caution. Every time she turned to face the whisperers, they always found somewhere else to go or a chore to busy themselves with. A quick check confirmed that Spike hadn't hung a humorous note on her tail like last time. Or the time before that.

Twilight reviewed her options - she could confront one of the gossips who would know what was being said, but would probably not tell her, or she could ask a friend who would happily tell her, but probably not know what they were gossiping about. Remembering the 'frog' incident the last time she took the 'confrontation' route, she headed for Applejack's stall.

"This is Applejack! She's your friend. She has lots of stuff! Like a brother, a sister, a granny, an apple farm, a cool hat and a cute little doggy. Oh! And she's really honest almost all the time."

"Hi there sugarcube! Haven't seen you in a couple of days. Everything going okay?"

"Hello Applejack. I thought everything was fine, but I seem to be attracting some attention. Now last birthday Rarity did give me a bottle of perfume that she said would turn heads, but I thought I had to wear it first."

"Ponies do seem to be acting mighty rude around you, now that you mention it. No idea why - I can ask around if you like."

"Thanks, Applejack - I'd appreciate it.”

They chatted a little more before Applejack started getting more customers and Twilight could no longer ignore her schedule and the little filly tugging on her mane with her mouth.

They said their goodbyes and Twilight continued her shopping none the wiser. Ignoring the wide-eyed gazes and urgent whispers, she did her scheduled daily chores, surprisingly well aided by her invisible friend. She left Spike in charge of the library and a bowl of assorted gemstones when it was time to head out for the picnic. She was pretty sure one would survive.

Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash were already there, waiting for the rest of the group. They had laid out the usual blanket, laid out their provisions and were now talking animatedly amongst themselves. When Twilight approached, the conversation stopped and all three looked at her with expressions of disapproving concern, curiosity and pride, respectively. The silence was uncomfortable.

Li'l Twi seemed embarrassed by her proximity to Rainbow Dash, hiding behind Twilight's leg despite Rainbow not being able to see her. With a sudden burst of courage, she rushed forward, pointed at the pegasus with one hoof and said "Rainbow Dash! So cool! I mean zoooom! Whee! Wow!", this was accompanied by appropriate hoof movements and gymnastics that somehow ended with her on her back with all four of the filly's hooves in the air, twitching with excitement. She sighed. "So cool. Oh, and friend." With that, she regained her hooves and bolted back to hide behind Twilight, blushing.

Twilight would have had a harder time keeping a straight face if she wasn't so worried about the stares she was getting from her friends. Realising that they had been staring at each other for an uncomfortable period of time, she broke the spell and trotted up with a basket of sandwiches held forth in appeasement.

"Hello girls. It's a beautiful day - thanks Rainbow!", this was all said through a forced smile.

Rainbow grinned and said, "You're welcome, Twilight! Um, it seemed like a nice day for it, cause, you know, um..."

"Hello Twilight! We were just talking about you! And now we can talk with you! And Rarity and Fluttershy!"

Twilight turned and saw the two friends approaching together. The uncomfortable silence was contagious and each mare settled around the blanket with muffled greetings and awkward galnces. Twilight found she was starting to blush.

Eventually Applejack coughed, "I'm sorry, Twilight. Ah know we're all being a mite quiet right now. It's just that, well, I asked around the market about the rumours, just like you asked, and, well, the rumours are mighty worrying. I was kinda hoping we could, uh, talk about them."

Twilight had suspected that rumours would start about her liaison with Luna, but she thought she'd have more time than this. Bracing herself against Applejack's apparent disapproval, she raised her head "Of course, Applejack. What did you want to know?"

"Well, sugarcube, ah don't rightly know how to say this but, the rumours are about what you might have done in Canterlot."

"Oh"

"They're saying that you were seen sneaking into the palace like a fox..."

"That's true. I, I didn't want to talk to the guards..."

"They say that you were grinning like a cat who'd gotten into the dairy when you left.."

"I was rather happy, yes."

"And they were speculatin' about what you got up to while you were in there – rabbits were mentioned. Rubbish talk - but I'd like to hear the truth, from you."

"Well, I-"

"Did you have sex?" asked Pinkie Pie eagerly, "I felt a happy trembly feeling in my knees the day before yesterday," her knees all shook in demonstration, "whiiich woooorked uuuup my legsssss," her whole body was now vibrating with energy, her luminous smile leaving a broad afterimage, "and then I felt really really gooood." She sagged. "I don't know what that's Pinkie Pie sense for, but I want it to happen again!"

A furiously blushing Twilight replied, "Well, Pinkie it may be related because I felt something very similar," she turned to Applejack and said more seriously, "I did have sex."

Applejack was looking uncomfortable, but said, "Don't get me wrong, now. I think it's perfectly natural for a healthy young mare to 'scratch the itch' and I won't hear otherwise. The big question is, though, 'Who with'?"

"I wanna know too! 'cause I felt that Pinkie Pie sense again last night, and no one got off the train with you when you got back from Canterlot and if they didn't come back by train then how did you have sex with them last night unless they can, you know, teleport or fly really really fast or, oh, maybe you were cheating on them! Did you cheat on your Canterlot lover? Oh, Twilight, how could you?!" Pinkie Pie was pointing accusingly at Twilight, condemnation written on her face.

Rainbow Dash, Rarity and Fluttershy were all listening in attentively, alert to the tension, until Rainbow broke. "Aw come on! We know who it was! Everyone knows! The rest of the weather team won't shut up about Twi and Princess Celestia!"

Fluttershy gasped "Oh my!", Applejack's frown deepened and Rarity gasped, waved a hoof to fan her face and fell onto her fainting couch with a squelch.

Rainbow turned to a shocked Twilight with a broad grin, "Congratulations, Twilight! I mean, Princess Celestia! Wow-"

"Now wait a gosh-darn second, Rainbow Dash! This is serious! There are-"

"I DIDN'T HAVE SEX WITH PRINCESS CELESTIA! I HAD SEX WITH PRINCESS LUNA!" shouted Twilight, informing her friends and everyone else in the park what happened. She then said in a much smaller voice, shoulders hunched up "Luna and I met in my dreams last night, Pinkie."

"Oh, that makes a lot more sense!" Pinkie sat back down happily, "Now that's all cleared up, let's eat. Anyone want a toffee apple? They're really good."

Rarity noticed with interest that Twilight's blush somehow managed to deepen at the sight of the toffee apple, and smiled. Revenge would be sweet.

Applejack was also a lot more relaxed now that the truth was out, "I'm sorry, Twi. Every rumour was talking 'bout you an' Princess Celestia, and ah know that you two are close. Thing is, you're still her student and she's still your teacher and I just can't abide that sort of thing."

"It's okay, Applejack. I understand. At least you asked, unlike some ponies," she shot a glare at Rainbow Dash, who grinned and shrugged, "Princess Celestia is like a mother to me, as well as my teacher. We're very close, but not like that."

"So, you and Princess Luna, huh?" Rainbow was still impressed, "Not bad, not bad. We want all the juicy details! Come on!"

"Not here, Rainbow! Everyone is staring at us!"

"Argh! You can't drop that on us and then leave us hanging!"

"All right, one question and then we talk about something else."

Rarity coughed, interrupting Rainbow's inward breath, "One question?", she asked archly.

"I already told you and Fluttershy everything at the spa!"

"Oh, but I have a new question now."

Rainbow cast a glance at Rarity and her evil smile, "Okay, one question and you tell us everything else tonight in the library, after Spike's gone to bed. Rarity's question."

"All right! All right! What's the question?"

Rarity calmly reached for a toffee apple and gave it a long, slow lick, making shivers go down Twilight's spine, "My question is, 'What did you dream last night, Miss Twilight Sparkle?'"

After Twilight managed to recover her voice and had given a very abridged version of the second half of the dream, and after everyone except Fluttershy had finished making a show of licking and teasing the toffee apples, and after a certain amount of additional joking and laughter, they quickly let the matter drop.

Only for Applejack to inadvertently raise it again when she noticed Twilight watching Li'l Twi prance amongst some butterflies that were fluttering nearby.

"Everything all right, Twi? I hope we weren't too hard on you - it was all meant in good fun. It's just that you seem a bit distant all of a sudden. Thinking of Princess Luna?"

"Oh, it's not that, Applejack. I miscast a memory spell earlier. It was supposed to create an illusion only I could see, of somepony to remind me of stuff. The illusion has a bit more 'personality' than I had planned. I was really happy when it landed and now I being followed by a little version of me who seems to be just as happy as I was then. She currently chasing butterflies."

"Wait, you mean you had a little filly with you when you..."

"Oh no! This was after! And she wasn't in my dream at all! But, well, she does know everything I know. So, uh, I'm thinking she about as embarrassed about all this as I am and-" Twilight suddenly froze as a horrifying thought crossed her mind.

"What is it?"

"Well, when I made the spell, I wanted someone I would trust, so I went with me as a filly. While the thought of a filly knowing everything that I with Luna did is horrifying..."

"Yes?"

"I just remembered the other option I had seriously considered - my mother."

Rainbow Dash fell to the ground laughing, pounding the grass with her hooves.

------------------------------

Much to Twilight's relief, her friends finally dropped the topic and the conversation moved onto other things – Rarity's latest problem customer, the run on muffins at Sugar Cube Corner and the birds leaving it late in planning their winter holidays. Too soon, it was time for the picnic to break up and everyone to return to their normal jobs.

"Right," said Pinkie Pie, "see you guys at the sleepover in the Library tonight. I'll bring the marshmallows."

"Ah'll bring the cider - the good stuff."

Twilight groaned good-naturedly, reclaimed her now-empty basket and headed back towards the library. She had barely set hoof out of the bounds of the park when she was reminded that her earlier cry had caught a number of ponies' attention. She found herself surrounded by a mob of curious ponies asking questions or offering congratulations.

"Ooh, Twilight, can you ask Princess Luna to give me more flying dreams? I love those ones."

Twilight remained impassive as she headed to the library, ignoring the crowd.

"Are you going to go to move to Canterlot? Does that mean I don't need to return that library book I borrowed?"

Her smile, fixed to her face through willpower alone, did not falter.

"Are you going to get Princess Luna to send nightmares to anyone who's late returning books?"

No-one noticed her teeth clenching.

"Congratulations on banging Luna! What's she like in the sack?"

A very slight eye-twitch went un-noticed by the crowd.

"If you're dating Princess Luna, does that make you a demi-goddess, or a demi-princess?"

A single hair in her mane sprung out of place.

"No, silly! It doesn't work like that! She's just Princess Luna's concubine."

It was quickly joined by a few dozen more.

"I think you mean consort."

A bead of sweat ran down her face.

"Same thing, surely?"

One eye turned bloodshot.

"So does this mean you're two-timing Luna with Nightmare Moon?"

The other followed.

"Ooh - threesomes!"

Twilight screamed. A purple magical explosion erupted from her horn, knocking the ponies away from her and scattering them across the ground. Held aloft by a torrent of magic, she shouted in a decent approximation of the Royal Canterlot Voice, "I AM DATING PRINCESS LUNA! THAT DOES NOT MAKE ME A DEMI-PRINCESS-CONCUBINE OF NIGHTMARE MOON! ARRGH!"

There really hadn't been that many ponies the park that day. Most of them had been in the marketplace, and hadn't heard her earlier cry. They certainly heard this one. Twilight looked at a sea of pony faces staring at her, wide-eyed. She teleported into the library.

Slamming the library door closed and locking it, Twilight slumped against the wall. "It's okay. Everything is okay. They'll all forget about it by morning. Or, I'll make them forget about it! Yes! I can grab the water tower, teleport to Tartarus, fill it with water from the river Lethe and sprinkle it over the town! Perfect! We usually need a new water tower anyway."

"Uh, Twilight?"

Twilight looked up and saw Spike looking at her worriedly. So to were the half-dozen library patrons that she had locked inside with her.

Realising her mistake, Twilight quickly teleported herself out with all the patrons, leaving them standing bewildered in the street, and then teleported back in again. Only to teleport back out to grab the books that they were holding and hadn't been booked out, before disappearing again in a flash. A purple forcefield appeared around the library.

The startled patrons joined the rest of the small mob surrounding the forcefield but, like them, dispersed after it was clear that the show was over for the day. They certainly had a lot to gossip about though.

Twilight sagged to the floor in the darkened library, trying desperately to come up with a way to explain to Princess Luna that she had just loudly announced their relationship, which she had desperately wanted to keep quiet, to the entirety of Ponyville. At the rate that gossip travelled, Twilight estimated that all of Canterlot would know by tomorrow afternoon.

There was the click of a door opening above. Quick as a flash, Twilight raced up the stairs, but whilst the balcony doors were open, no one was there. She closed and locked the doors, to be certain, and then turned around to find herself face to face with one of Luna's personal guard. With a yelp, she leapt back and crashed into the doors she had just closed.

"Ssssorry, madam," it said with a rasping voice that was little more than a hiss, "The Goddessss of the Night requessssted that I deliver to you thisss note with the utmosssst disscretion. I entered unssseen and awaited your return. I ssshall now depart."

Trembling, Twilight took the note. The guard shimmered and became transparent, detectable only as a distortion in the air. It stood there a moment, and then reappeared.

"Sssorry to be a nuisssancce, madam, but would you mind?"

Twilight suddenly realised that she was leaning against the locked and bolted door through which the guard wished to depart. Blushing, she quickly opened it again and made a hole in the barrier she had erected around the library.

"Much obliged, madam." The guard turned invisible again and flew away. Twilight sealed the hole, closed the balcony doors, locked them and then read the missive from the princess.

My Dearest Twilight,

I am sorry for contacting you this way, but I cannot wait until we meet again in our dreams. Without you here, I feel lost. I cannot concentrate on my duties. I can barely eat. My every thought is of you.

I ramble.

I write to apologise - I have not told our secret to my sister yet. I worry what she will say - am I stealing away her favourite student? Will she see this as another betrayal? We must broach the topic with the utmost sensitivity. By dropping hints of our affection, she may come realise our feelings without having to be told. This may be the best approach. There is no need to hurry, after all, as our dalliances will be discrete.

I will join you in your dreams tonight. Place a spell of silence on your bedroom lest your cries of ecstasy wake the town.

Your secret lover,
Luna

Twilight realised three things:

One - Luna would be very disappointed when Princess Celestia found out about their relationship through common gossip.

Two - Scheduling a slumber party on the same night that her dream lover planned to drive her to multiple screaming orgasms was probably going to result in a very awkward breakfast.

Three - this had not been a very good day so far.

Spike had just finished reshelving the confiscated books when Twilight returned. "Hello, Twilight. Feeling better? Where did that letter come from?"

"Hi Spike. Sorry if I worried you earlier – I'm having a bad day. This letter is from Princess Luna," Twilight distractedly started tidying the library.

"What's it say?"

"Hmm," said Twilight absently, "Oh, she's asking me to keep my affair with her quiet. And warning me to put a silence spell on my room to quiet my 'cries of ecstasy.'"

"You're having an affair with Princess Luna?!" Twilight looked up, startled - there had been two voices. She hadn't really meant to tell all that to Spike and she had definitely not meant to tell Leafy Branches. The earth pony was coming down from her bedroom.

"So sorry, Miss Twilight. I was just looking at the hole you made in the tree as you requested. I heard your voice and was coming down to give you the news. I couldn't help but overhear your news, begging your pardon."

Twilight slumped against the wall in despair. Twilight wanted to try the day all over again. Twilight could try the day all over again.

Twilight reloaded.

------------------------------

Twilight found herself in her study, the book of the memory spell in front of her. With a sigh, she put it away and turned to the door.

"Ooh! That day was so much fun that you wanted to do it again? Cool!"

Twilight turned on Li'l Twi in anger, "I don't want to hear another word from you today! Is that clear?"

Li'l Twi eeped and made a zipping motion over her lips with a nod.

"Sorry, but that was not a good day."

Knowing that she would not be able to sleep in her current mood, she dug up some books and started reading. A few hours later, she trudged to her bed, cast a quick spell on it, fell in and asleep.

------------------------------

Twilight was in a strangely familiar room, looking at a strangely familiar wall with a strangely familiar poster that said "This is a dream," in a strangely familiar voice. Realising that she was about to experience last night's dream all over again, but with foreknowledge ruining all of Luna's painstakingly crafted surprises and games, Twilight felt a strangely familiar sense of despair.

"Oh fuck."

"That is the idea, madam," deadpanned the waiter behind her.

Luna's Plan

View Online

Twilight span around to face the dream waiter.

"Uh, hi," she said weakly, "could you please show me to a table while I wait for Princess Luna?"

"I shall be delighted to escort madam to her table, but happily madam's patience shall not be strained as the Night Goddess is already here, awaiting the pleasure of your company."

"Huh? Oh, I didn't go straight to bed this time. Okay, thank you. Please lead on - let's not keep the goddess waiting."

The walk to the table was much too short. She needed to explain to Luna what had happened, but she wasn't sure how. Various terrible approaches sprang to mind:

"Hi Luna, tonight was so awesome I decided to do it again."

"Hi Luna, fun fact: once we're done tonight, I'll have slept with you more often than you've slept with me."

"Hi Luna, don't want to spoil this dream for you, but I've seen it before and it is great, particularly the twist at the end when it turns out the Mysterious Balanced Diet was actually you all along."

In no time at all, she found herself approaching Luna's table, with no brilliant plan in mind. Luna looked up innocently from her hooves at Twilight's approach, clearly delighted to see her.

Twilight decided to forgo the stocks this time - she needed to come clean to Luna before any other sort of coming could take place.

"Hi Luna, so sorry to keep you waiting. You look lovely. Before we start, I have a really big confession to make."

"Hello Twilight, thank you," said Luna cheerfully, "What do you have to confess? Ooh let me guess... have you been having an affair with my sister all this time?"

"Uh, no. Why does everyone think that? I mean it's not as if I come running to her whenever she calls, or I'm overly affectionate around her, or obsessed with pleasing- you know what, forget I asked."

"Hehe. Okay, are you not Twilight, but Chrysalis returned again for revenge? Are you planning on feeding on my love for Twilight, to gain even greater power than at the wedding?", Luna leaned back in a dramatically wounded pose.

"Huh? Can changelings even change their shape in dreams? I mean the dream-self must be based on each pony's personality matrix, but a changeling only modifies their morphogenic field to mimic their prey - they leave their personality matrix untouched. That would mean that their natural form in dreams would default to their insectoid form and if they choose to shift, they are unlikely to have sufficient self-awareness to shift to the form of their most recent avatar. They may even have nightmares where they are unable to shift at all, or-"

"I'm going to call that a 'no' then."

"Um, no, I'm not a changeling. And you got me all distracted. What I'm trying to confess is that I created a time travel spell that allows me to undo mistakes made after a 'save'. I modified a spell I found in the Starswirl wing of the Canterlot library. I did it so that I couldn't fail to seduce you."

"Ah - that would have been my third guess. Well that, or you confessing a secret love for animated oranges."

"You don't seem to be taking this very seriously."

"Well," said Luna with a grin, "this isn't the first time this has happened to me, you know. Why do you think Starswirl was playing around with time magic all those years ago? I just seem to have that effect on mages." She struck a seductive pose that made Twilight's heart stop anew. She sat down with a whimper.

"Twilight, how many times did you need to cast that spell in order to break through my defences, identify my weaknesses and trick me into sleeping with you?"

"Uh, once."

One elegant eyebrow was raised in an enquiring arch.

"I accidentally gave myself a black eye before I went to your chambers, and I'd just made a save and it didn't really look very-"

"You unmade the universe in order to heal a bruise?"

"I, I reformed it again - it balances out! And, um, well, it seemed like a good idea at the time..."

Luna laughed. "Twilight, you didn't need a spell to seduce me. And coming to me injured could have been fun - nurse Luna would have taken extra special care of you."

Twilight shivered at the thought of Luna in a nurse's outfit. An extra line got added to her bucket list. She shook her head and recaptured her train of thought.

"Well, um, that was only part of what I'm confessing. You see, I had a really, really bad day tomorrow. And, um, I 'saved' just before bedtime, so, er..."

It took a moment for Luna to realise what Twilight was saying, and then her face dropped in disappointment. "You already know exactly what I have planned tonight? I was hoping to surprise you," Luna sounded sad, "I tried really hard to make something that would be fun for both of us..."

"It was a surprise! It was fun! It was great! But I forgot to resave in the morning and the day just kept getting worse...," Twilight miserably laid out the disaster of her day, from the moment she awoke until she cast the redo spell. "...and then some of them may have overheard my plan to soak the town with the waters of forgetfulness. And..."

Luna composed her face to regal aloofness as the story continued. She sighed when Twilight had finally finished.

"Let us see if We have understood you correctly. You have been planning to seduce us for two years?"

"Yes," said Twilight in a small voice, noticing Luna's lapse back into more formal speech.

"And to that end you created a spell of unheard of power, in order to overcome any obstacle to our seduction?"

"Yes."

"And after taking advantage of our innocence, you acted without discretion, giving the citizens of Canterlot and Ponyville the impression that you had just bedded our sister?"

"Yes."

"And you then corrected them of this misapprehension, at considerable volume, in several public spaces?"

"Yes."

Luna sighed. "And now you've used this spell to ruin all our plans for the night."

"Um, sorry."

Luna sat in silent disapproval for a moment, as still as Twilight's heart. Then her reserve failed her and she couldn't hold back any longer. She broke into giggles which soon became laughter. Twilight felt a little offended by the time the goddess of the night was rolling on the floor, hammering it with her hooves and howling with laughter at her misfortune.

Eventually, Luna rose to her hooves and took some deep breaths. After a couple of tries, she found her voice, "Thank you, Twilight. I haven't laughed like that in centuries."

Luna sighed and took a more serious tone as she continued, "Nevertheless, your actions were foolish and inconsiderate and should not be encouraged. For this you shall be punished."

Twilight felt a mixture of relief and fear - Luna may yet forgive her.

The club backdrop disappeared, leaving only the table. The tan waiter appeared from out of the darkness and gracefully served Luna a cup of tea before retreating. Twilight was turning her head around, back and forth, looking for some indication of her punishment, but Luna merely raised the tea cup to her muzzle and inhaled the aroma with every indicator of pleasure.

Confusion and uncertainty caused Twilight to unconsciously relax. She caught herself and span around, looking for anything suspicious. She was sure that a crop or baton or paddle was hovering behind her, waiting for a moment of weakness to strike, but there was no sign of it.

Luna daintily sipped her tea and sighed with pleasure, before letting the cup return to its saucer. Twilight tensed. Nothing happened. Luna wasn't even looking at her, but rather staring out into the distance, to all appearances lost in thought.

Thinking that Luna was waiting for her surrender, Twilight sighed. Eager to have her punishment done with, she turned her hindquarters to Luna, knelt on her forehooves and raised her tail, presenting herself at her most vulnerable. Humiliated, she closed her eyes and tensed, trying to ignore the heat gathering in her loins.

Nothing happened.

Casting a look over her shoulder, she saw Luna calmly drinking her tea, paying no attention whatsoever to the beautiful mare humiliating herself in front of her. The princess could have been sitting in any tea room in Canterlot, the embodiment of propriety. Twilight, for her part, could not.

"Er, Luna?", she said, waggling her bum a little for emphasis.

Luna didn't respond in any way. Twilight got up and waved a hoof in front of Luna's eyes - the princess waved the hoof away as one would a bothersome fly, but gave no other acknowledgement of her presence. With a cold shiver, Twilight realised she was being ignored. With a sound very much like a whine, she sat herself at Luna's feet, waiting as patiently as she could for Luna to finish her tea.

With every indicator of enjoyment, Luna slowly drank her tea, still staring into the distance. She started to hum a tune to herself, waving a hoof as if conducting a grand orchestra, a gentle smile on her lips. Absorbed in her music, her sips of tea became further and further spaced apart.

Twilight tried to sit still, fixated on the level of tea in the cup. She was desperate for the goddess to notice her distress; each passing moment she was feeling more and more alone in the circle of darkness. It seemed to take forever, every little sip lowering the tea an imperceptible amount. Twilight was almost sure that Luna was sneakily putting tea back into the cup at the same rate she was drinking it.

She started trying to calculate the volume of tea consumed in each sip, in relation to the volume of the cup. From there she could take the average number of sips per minute and calculate how long it would to empty the cup. Her calculations hit a snag when trying to work out the volume of Luna's mouth - her thoughts drifted into other things and became lost. These new thoughts didn't make the waiting any easier.

Finally, finally, Luna's personal symphony was finished and the dregs of the tea leaves were showing at the bottom of the cup. Twilight was sure that there was only one last sip left and her punishment would be over. She was so focussed on the cup of tea that she didn't notice the waiter appear on the other side of Luna until he spoke.

"Would you care for a refill, your highness?"

"Why, thank you, waiter. Another cup of tea would be lovely."

Twilight wailed in despair, and Luna finally deigned to turn and face her with an innocent smile. "Would you like a cup as well, Twilight?"

"Nooo..." Twilight wailed, tears welling in her eyes.

With a more serious look on her face, she gently caressed Twilight's face. "Twilight, you acted thoughtlessly throughout the day, not pausing to think. Taking some time to breathe, to take stock, can lessen your burdens and help you become aware of options that don't involve soaking Ponyville in mystical rivers from Tartarus."

Twilight sighed and hung her head in acquiescence. Luna waited a moment and then spoke again, "You had plenty of opportunity to think whilst I enjoyed my tea. What did you think about?"

"Um, I was trying to calculate how fast you were drinking, and then I remembered what you can fit in your mouth and got distracted."

Luna sighed, but couldn't hide her smile.

"Very well. You sat still patiently enough, so I shall give you two options - either I shall continue to enjoy my tea and you can spend the night developing a plan for your day tomorrow or, if you ask nicely, I shall punish you in a more 'traditional' manner and we can discuss how to handle the coming day together."

Twilight blushed, keenly aware of the heat that flooded to her loins at the thought of 'traditional' punishment. She hesitated.

"Well, Twilight, work or play?"

In a small voice, Twilight whispered, "Play."

"I'm sorry, Twilight, I didn't hear you."

In a louder, more confident voice, she said, "I am sorry, princess. Please punish me."

Luna smiled a warm and happy smile, before embracing Twilight in a hug. She then turned to the waiter and said, "No more tea for the moment, thank you, but please bring a paddle for my friend."

"Of course, ma'am."

Twilight didn't have long to contemplate the coming punishment, before the waiter returned with a large paddle, dotted with a scattering of studs. She shrank to her hooves at the sight, trying to make herself look small.

The waiter was accompanied by a couple of waitresses, carrying between them a strange device of metal poles decorated with straps and buckles. Twilight's attention was dragged from the paddle to the strange device as it was set down before her. Various topologies danced in her mind before she realised it was a restraint designed to hold her fast, with her rump in the air.

Twilight whimpered, but nevertheless stood forward and allowed herself to be strapped in. Facing away from Luna and the table, she could see only darkness. Trembling, she waited.

What shocked her about the slap was how gentle it was. Luna wasn't beating her with the paddle - she was giving her a far softer spanking with her hoof than her mother ever had when Twilight was a filly. Twilight felt a certain embarrassed relief - the paraphernalia had been there for intimidation only. She was barely feeling anything, frustratingly enough. She contemplated asking firmer treatment, but was still a little worried by the prospect of the paddle.

As if reading her mind, Luna's spanking gained in energy, raising yelps from each blow. A warm glow started to form around her bottom, almost pleasurable, in the wake of Luna's hoof. The yelps became moans.

The spanking continued and the warmth grew with Twilight's arousal, but there was a plateau - the stimulation could not be enough to push her over the edge. After a time, the spanking stopped, leaving her in a strange state, pleased but not truly satisfied.

"Well, Twilight," said Luna, not in the least out of breath, "you are punished and so forgiven. I really should release you from the frame, but, well, you do look delicious like that..."

Twilight, breathing harder than her mistress, could barely form a question in her mind before she felt a tongue run tickling across her glowing rump, cold against the warmth. The tongue traced a seemingly random path across her buttocks until it finally reached her dripping slit, making Twilight shout out.

Twilight's heightened sensitivity and inability to shy away from the intense feelings Luna was causing made Luna's job easy. Twilight tried to hold out, but it was futile - the tongue knew the depths it was exploring well, each contortion touching one bundle of nerves after another. Overwhelmed, Twilight came, a powerful orgasm rocketing through her body.

By the time Twilight returned to her senses, the frame was gone. By the time her breathing slowed enough for her to talk, she had forgotten that it had existed.

"Forgive me?"

"You're forgiven. Now lets talk. Over tea."

Twilight turned to see that the table now had two normal place settings, plush cushions at each - a lavender one for her, a cushion of the deepest blue for Luna. A full tea service was laid out on the table and Luna generously poured then both a cup.

Twilight tried sitting somewhat gingerly on the cloud-soft cushion, and then elected to stand. She gratefully took the cup offered to her and added a few lumps of sugar.

Luna waited until they both had sipped at the tea and Twilight had relaxed before starting.

"Twilight, despite appearances, all that went wrong tomorrow seems to be traceable to only one major problem - the rumours of you bedding my sister.

"Now, while you were calculating the volume of a tea cup, I was thinking of ways to handle that little problem. I have a plan I think you'll like - we can sort out the rumours and have some fun with your gossiping neighbours at the same time."

The two mares drank tea and discussed the situation. A quick break from the table allowed Luna to teach Twilight a shadow magic spell - a discipline Princess Celestia had never taught her. As ever, Twilight only needed to see the spell performed once to be able to master it, but she still barraged Luna with questions about this new magic. She only relented when Luna promised her lessons at a later date.

Two cups of tea later, Twilight was actually looking forward to the coming day.

"Thanks Luna - I was feeling a bit lost and off-balance, but I think things are looking much better now."

Luna smiled, "You are very welcome Twilight; it was good to exercise my rusty pranking skills."

"Now, *ahem*, 'How can I ever thank you?'"

"Hmm?"

"Luna, you haven't had much fun tonight. Let's do something that'll be fun for you before we wake."

"Did you have something in mind?"

"'Sweet Trouble' didn't quite go as you had planned last tonight. So, if you want to, you can call up the factory again, we can do a very abbreviated tour and then Slightly Bonkers can take advantage of my youthful innocence and fuck my brains out."

Luna barked out a staccato of surprised laughter before banishing tea and table with unseemly haste. She stole a quick and eager kiss from Twilight's lips before she too was gone.

Twilight trotted towards a distant light which rushed to meet her. She soon found herself on the Sweet Trouble road leading to the Bonkers' factory. She yanked the bell pull at the gate with vigour and waited for the proprietor to show.

The bell pull was still tolling up and down when the doors opened and the Bonkers trotted out to meet her - he was not accompanied by workers this time. Twilight was blushing as she drank in his athletic form, midnight blue coat and black mane. He made short work of opening the gates.

"Master Bonkers!" Twilight said, "It was so kind of you to invite me to tour your 'factory'. I hear your output is quite prodigious - I simply can't wait to have a taste!"

A slightly stunned Bonkers blinked at the double entendres before rushing to close the gates behind Twilight. He didn't bother with the locks and just kicked it vaguely closed; he was conscious of Twilight eyeing his lean, muscular form lustfully as he did so.

When he turned to lead the mare into his trap, he found her walking some way ahead of him, swaying her hips and flicking her tail shamelessly. Her obviously burning desires quickly ignited his own and he felt his body react naturally. Slightly Bonkers picked up his pace, but lagged behind a little to enjoy the view.

Twilight did not remember the full layout of the factory. She was briefly worried that she would have to fall back and let Bonkers lead her to the settling room, until she noticed brightly lit signs with cheerful arrows pointing out the way. They had not been there before - she was not the only eager player here, it seemed.

The sweet aroma of the chocolate, carrying with it the hint of summer flowers, wafted through the air, guiding her in and letting her know that she was close.

She trotted happily to the settling room, her marehood now dripping with arousal. She welcomed the sight of the chocolate river and flower-filled meadow with a grin and trotted down to greet them, throwing a quick seductive glance over her shoulder to ensure that her partner was still there and interested. From what she could see, he certainly was.

"So, Master Bonkers, I hear that these chocolate-infused flowers are absolutely delicious. Could you recommend any for me to try?"

"Oh! Of course, my dear. Here, let's start with one of these," with that he picked a familiar crimson carnation with his teeth. Before he could even offer it to Twilight, she leaned in and started eating it from his mouth, very sloppily. Licking and kissing his muzzle as much as the flower, she soon finished off the treat, but that didn't stop the kisses. Embarrassed, the stallion backed off reluctantly.

"Well, now. It seems as though you enjoyed that one. How about a pitcher plant to help it down? I should warn you that it has aphrodisiacal properties."

Twilight looked at him with wide, innocent eyes, "Afro-dizzy-ack-al? What on Equestria does that mean? Oh, don't tell me - let me drink it and we'll see if I can guess."

He very carefully snapped the stem of a pitcher plant growing in a nook near the stream bed and turn to the mare. Twilight rolled onto her back in front of the stallion, mouth open wide and begging with her eyes. Slightly swallowed and then obligingly poured the contents of the pitcher into Twilight's waiting mouth.

The fluid from the pitcher flowed like honey and tasted just as sweet; honeysuckle, thought Twilight as she gulped it down eagerly. Slightly's aim was not perfect and great loops of sticky fluid were deposited on Twilight's muzzle and neck. Once the plant was dry he tossed it to one side and started licking up the strands of sweet nectar that had missed their target.

Twilight giggled happily and wrapped a limb around his neck holding his head close. True to the warning, she found the growing heat in her loins was intensified by the honey. From her vantage point Twilight could see that it was also having an effect on her companion. She could just reach out with a rear hoof and touch his stallionhood and caress it. This was a mistake as the still skittish stallion pulled out of her grip and backed away. Twilight was hurt.

"I'm sorry, my dear. While I share your eagerness, I have a, 'condition'."

Twilight's mouth and eyes opened wide with distress.

"Oh no, nothing like that. It is just that *ahem* Slightly Bonkers cannot perform unless his partner is helpless. Childhood trauma, don't you know. Hmm. A most expedient solution is at hand - merely eat one of those large flowers on the banks - the ones the same delightful shade of purple as your eyes."

"Ooh, what does it do? Paralysis? Mind control?" Unable to resist the tidal wave of heat that was flowing from her stomach and all through her body, she leapt on one of the flowers before Bonkers could respond. It tasted as good as the others, but she could detect no side effect. She quickly ate another.

"Didn't work," was as eloquent as Twilight could manage in her state as she turned an accusatory glare at Bonkers.

"On the contrary, my dear, it worked perfectly. That flower is a security feature - it triggers the guard grasses. Try to turn to face me."

Twilight tried to turn to Slightly, but found that her hooves wouldn't budge. Looking down, she saw them wrapped in long grasses going up to her knees. A brief struggle showed that she could not pull free. An even briefer attempt to bring magic to bear reminded her that she had eaten an enchanted red carnation - she could not concentrate on the task over the intensity of the waves of pleasure threatening to overwhelm her as tendrils of magic caressed her horn.

She decided instead to moan and struggle some more in the hopes that the stallion would get the hint.

"Ha ha! You cannot escape now, filly! Slightly Bonkers wins again!"

Twilight would have rolled her eyes at his overly-dramatic nonsense if it didn't imply that her burning needs were soon to be quenched. Sure enough she heard the stallion positioning himself behind her, sniffing at her musk. She then felt an incredibly wonderful weight on her haunches. Twilight moaned with need.

Slightly thrust his hips forward with perfect accuracy bringing a cry of joy to both their lips. This was Twilight's first time with a stallion, but prior personal experimentation meant that the act brought no pain. Slightly's engorged member filled her in a way she hadn't experienced before and she delighted in the feeling.

Slightly's penis slid deep into Twilight's pussy, amply lubricated by her need. She gripped tightly, not wanting for it to leave, but he pulled back until it was nearly all the way out. Twilight whined.

With an earth stallion's strength, Bonkers thrust forward, driving his member even deeper into Twilight's welcoming body. He soon found a steady, hard, rhythm of back and forth, each thrust driving him deeper into Twilight until his thighs were banging into her rump. Twilight was groaning with pleasure. Normally she would have been driven forward by the thrusts, but the grasses were strong and held her tight.

Twilight felt the pressure rising, the building up beyond her control. "Faster!" she gasped, and Slightly obliged. Twilight shouted "Yes! Yes! Yes!" in time with the thrusts as Slightly pulled almost all the way and then drove in until their hips met.

Slightly then reached forward and bit down on the base of her neck. Twilight practically howled with joy as a powerful orgasm took her. The pleasure ramped again as she felt Slightly tense in orgasm and then pump is load into her, seeming to take a blissful eternity. Job done, his hips stopped trembling and he collapsed all his weight on her. They stood coupled for a time before Slightly pulled away.

The grasses, no longer desired, fell away from Twilight's legs. She turned to hug and nuzzle Slightly, still panting for breath.

"Thank you, sir. I needed that."

"Happy to be of service, madam."

Slightly shimmered and soon Princess Luna was standing where the stallion had been. She nuzzled Twilight's neck in reciprocation, enjoying the intimate contact and post-coital glow. Eventually, Luna spoke.

"So what happened the first time through? I certainly planned to do just this, although with a bit more of a build up."

"I ended up leading a toffee golem revolt against your marshmallow horde, in protest of your using my horn for keeping donuts fresh."

"Ha! That does sound like something I'd come up with on the fly. What went wrong?"

"You suddenly realised that you weren't sure if I would welcome a stallion's advances. That's why I dropped a few subtle hints this time around that I really was interested. Same thing happened back at the table just now - you got me where you wanted and then realised that we hadn't discussed preferences and backed off."

"How do you mean?"

"You just brought out that big, scary, paddle and then realised that we haven't discussed, uh, corporal punishment. So you switched to something gentler."

Luna sighed. "That's true - I got ahead of myself and then saw that you weren't enjoying it."

"Well, thank you. I understand that some people enjoy that stuff, but I've never tried it. It's not that I don't trust you, but, well, not yet please."

Luna kissed Twilight on the lips and draped a wing across her back. "Of course. I'm still going to try and keep you off-balance, though. It's been far too long since I last had a playmate and I want to make the most of it."

"I'm looking forward to it. Of course, next time is my turn!" Twilight laughed maniacally.

"I'm suddenly regretting my comments on animated oranges."

"Just the comments on oranges? Oh, you'll regret far more than that when you are at my mercy."

They laughed, and then in more serious tones set some sensible basic boundaries for play, and agreed on a few likes and dislikes. Eventually, Luna yawned.

"It's getting early - I need some true sleep and you need to wake up, make a save and try out our little plan. Have a good day."

Luna leaned forward and kissed Twilight's eyes closed. Everything faded away.

Pranking

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Pranking
Written by RandomString Proofread by Knight of Cerebus

Twilight awoke. She was feeling warm, contented and extremely relaxed. She stretched and sighed; she couldn't spend the day lying in bed, however tempting the concept was. With a yawn, she saved and then got up.

Li'l Twi was sitting beside the bed, looking at her with fearful eyes, brimming with tears. Twilight flinched internally at the sight but opened her arms to the filly. Li'l Twi rushed in and Twilight hugged her.

"I'm so sorry I shouted at you last night. It was a really bad day, but I shouldn't have taken it out on you."

Li’l Twi sniffled and blew her nose onto Twilight’s coat. “I’m sorry I annoyed you.”

By great exercise of willpower, Twilight ignored the spectral snot that had just been deposited on her back, “It’s okay. Today is going to be a much better day. Speaking of which, I need start on the plan."

Twilight went downstairs, Li'l Twi riding on her back, and prepared to cast the spell that Luna had taught her last night. She was actually familiar with some of it already – she would be casting a semi-autonomous illusion, similar to Li'l Twi, but this time it would be visible to everyone.

Twilight started weaving the spell, her face scrunched in concentration. This spell was more complex than powerful, but that offered its own challenges for Twilight, as her sheer power made delicate spellcasting difficult. Nevertheless, an indistinct illusion of a silver-coated pegasus soon took form before her. She then began to sculpt the illusion into the pony that Luna had shown her, aided by Li'l Twi, who happily filled in holes in her memory.

Despite Li'l Twi's suggestions, Twilight kept true to the original. This resulted in a cute silver-coated, blue maned pegasus mare with an open book cutie mark, rather than a black, bat-winged, fanged monster with a flaming mane and tail and a crossed-swords cutie mark. Li'l Twi didn't try to hide her disappointment.

By this the time the spell was done, Spike was awake and hungry (the two states were practically synonymous for him). He wandered into the stacks to find two mares waiting for him.

"Whuh?"

"Good morning Spike, I hope you slept well. This is Midnight Whispers, or rather an illusion of her. I'm going to need your help to convince everyone that she's real."

"Oh! Sure thing! I'll act natural around her," Spike casually reached out to pat the pegasus' leg, and his claw passed straight through, "Oops, I see what you mean."

Midnight turned to look at Spike with a grin, causing him to yelp and stagger backwards until his tail hit a bookshelf.

"Very natural, Spike. Good job," laughed Twilight, helping him back up, "She may be an illusion, but she will react to her surroundings. And, um, she will be very affectionate towards me. Just treat her like you do Great Aunt Star Twinkle - desperately embarrassed to be around her, but trying hard not to show it. Now, shall we go and see what’s for breakfast?”

“Runny waffles, brown daisies, old juice, smelly quartz turnovers and turning milk?” suggested Li'l Twi in a voice only Twilight could hear.

“Well that wasn’t a very good breakfast,” Twilight told her, “and it’s important to start the day well, so I think we’ll try something else this time. Let's eat out.”

-------------------

Midnight had a simple task: act affectionately towards Twilight, so she trotted next to her with one wing draped over Twilight's back. Li'l Twi happily rode standing on Twilight's head and shoulders, looking forward like a brave explorer of new lands standing on the prow of her ship. Spike found his favourite spot taken by a wing and grumpily walked beside Twilight on the other side.

Twilight ignored the stares and whispers as she lead her strange entourage to Sugar Cube Corner. Pinkie Pie was managing the counter whilst the Cakes baked the day's fare. She immediately brightened as Twilight came in, and ran out to greet her. She screeched to a halt when she saw the pegasus that accompanied her.

"Oh wow! You're new! I love meeting new ponies. My name's Pinkie Pie! What's yours?"

"Midnight Whispers," replied the pegasus in a voice well suited to the name.

"Hello, Midnight. I know that–" Pinkie then noticed where Midnight was resting her wing. "Ooh! Are you Twilight's extra special somepony? That's wonderful!"

Twilight had been watching the conversation nervously, and had fast reflexes, but not Pinkie Pie fast. Before she could warn her friend, Pinkie dived forward to hug Midnight. She fell right through the illusion, out through the door and into the street, tumbling head over hooves. Twilight rushed to help her friend up. Thankfully it was still early and the few ponies around were too sleepy to have seen anything other than Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie.

Twilight pulled Pinkie back inside and sat her down at an empty table.

"Sorry Pinkie. She's an illusion. You can't touch her."

“Twilight, I get that there aren't many bookworms in this town, but isn't that a little desperate?"

"No! I mean, yes. Urgh. It's complicated. Short form: I'm currently dating Princess Luna, but she wants to keep it quiet. There are rumours that I'm dating Princess Celestia, well more than dating, and we want to stop those rumours without bringing Princess Luna into it. We hatched a plan where I get seen around town with an affectionate pegasus, so that the rumours focus on that instead. Ponies will think that the signs they interpreted to mean that I was dating Princess Celestia actually meant I was dating Midnight.”

"Ohhhh. So you're pretending to date Midnight so that people don't spread gossip about you dating Princess Celestia, leaving you free to date Princess Luna in peace? Why didn't you say so?"

Twilight buried her head in her hooves with a moan.

"Well, it's complicated to me. Look, I'll explain more at the picnic today. For the moment, could you please get us some breakfast muffins and some tea?"

"Muffins!" shouted Li'l Twi happily, earning a mane-ruffle from Pinkie, which in turn confused Spike.

"Oh, Pinkie Pinkie," said Li'l Twi earnestly, "you need to bake more muffins! Lots of people will want them this morning!"

"Okie dokie lokie. I'll get right on it." Pinkie Pie pronked to the back of the shop to speak with the Cakes and fetch their order.

Twilight looked at Li'l Twi quizzically.

"Last today Pinkie Pinkie complained about a run on muffins, so I thought I'd warn her."

"That's very kind of you. Even though I'm still not sure how she can see and hear you."

"Because she's Pinkie!"

"Yes, that's where I usually run into difficulty." Twilight sighed.

Breakfast was pleasant, Midnight was highly affectionate and Twilight was attracting a lot of covert attention. Normally she shied away from the public eye, but this was necessary. She needed to put up with standing out in the crowd for the morning, to give the right gossip a chance to spread. Then she could get revenge in the afternoon.

After breakfast, Twilight paid and left. A contented Spike, his ravenous hunger subdued for a short while, was sent back to open the library while Twilight got started on the shopping, accompanied by Midnight. Li'l Twi had disappeared briefly, as she tended to do from time to time now, but was back again, riding her head.

"Good morning, Applejack. Please don't try and shake hooves with Midnight here, she's an illusion."

“Hello,” said Midnight, bowing gracefully.

"Good morning, Sugarcube, uh, Midnight. Ah was hearing a lot of gossip about you and a pegasus this morning when Ah was setting up, thought it was a lot of hooey. Ah see Ah was wrong. But why in tarnation are you dating this here illusion?"

"Sorry Applejack, there were some rumours going around that you didn't hear that I was doing a lot more than just dating with Princess Celestia. Midnight here should stop those rumours from getting out of hand."

"Yeah, this town is awful gossipy at times. At least you didn't try and conjure up some disaster to distract everypony. Nice solution, Twilight."

Twilight clopped her hooves together nervously, "Aheh, yes, no disaster coming from me. No siree. Not today."

"You all right, sugarcube?"

"I'm fine, just thinking on how much worse this could have gone. Oh, but I do have important news to share, at the picnic. I'll tell you everything then."

"Ah'm looking forward to it. Anywho, looks like Ah'm getting a bit of a queue here, so..."

Twilight quickly bought some apples and allowed herself to be dragged by an impatient Li'l Twi to the next stall she needed. It didn't take long for them to finish everything on the shopping list, but when Twilight started heading towards the Library, Li'l Twi impatiently lead her in a different direction.

"Uh, Li'l Twi," whispered Twilight out of the corner of her mouth, "why are you heading to the Carousel Boutique?"

"You need to tell Rarity about her problem customer! She mentioned him during the picnic last today. He wasted an hour getting measured up and discussion fashions before he mentioned that he was shopping for his wife. You need to tell her!"

This visit wasn't as quick as Twilight had hoped, as Rarity was instantly taken by the pegasus, attracted to Midnight's coloration and then distressed to find that she couldn't dress the mare up.

"Twilight, darling, I appreciate how keen you are to show that you're a fully grown independent mare, but one usually gets a marefriend before showing her off. Doing it the other way around lacks style."

"Rarity, you know who I'm dating. I can hardly parade Princess Luna around Ponyville. Half the town would run away in terror, and the other half would be bowing and scraping."

"True, I suppose. For someone who claims to detest attention, you certainly participate in a lot of parades. Doth the mare protest too much?”

Twilight spluttered at the accusation, before settling with just glaring daggers at Rarity.

“I do like your choice of illusionary partner,” Rarity continued, “but you really should accessorise your accessory. There's so much that can be done with jewellery these days. Maybe you could modify the illusion a tad?"

"I'll think about it, but I kinda like her just they way she is. Oh! I do want to place an order for myself though."

Rarity instantly sprang to attention, “Of course, darling! You’re dating now, and a princess, no less. You’ll need ball gowns, evening dresses and hats– Hats! Oh my! I’ve been dreaming of this day for so long. Where shall we start?”

“Uh, I was thinking of a naughty nurse’s outfit.”

Rarity glared her recently received daggers back at Twilight.

“Sorry, Rarity. You know that Princess Luna doesn’t want to go public yet, and I’ve already told you how much she loves to play. I want to visit in a couple of days time, and well, it’s either that or a maid’s outfit and–”

“Too much information!”, Rarity clutched her hooves to her ears and then sighed, “Very well. I will make a ugh naughty nurse’s outfit– only for you! But! In return you will promise me that when Princess Luna does go public, you will only be seen in court in my dresses.”

“Thanks Rarity,” said Twilight, hugging her, “I promise. I’d offer to show off your nurse’s outfit to Canterlot high society as well, but I’m worried that you’d actually accept.”

Rarity sighed in a motherly fashion and shooed both mares out of the boutique.

----------------------

Twilight managed to get back in time to help Spike with some of the chores. In return, Spike made the sandwiches for the picnic.

Twilight and Midnight left for the picnic early, taking a detour by way of the train station to pick up the latest timetable. That done, they headed to the park; unlike last time, Applejack, Pinkie and Rainbow happily welcomed them both when they arrived.

Pinkie had clearly explained Twilight's mysterious companion to Rainbow as she flew in close to inspect the illusion from all angles, before deciding that the mare was safe enough. Rainbow was disturbed how the Midnight tracked her with her eyes and had to wave a hand through her body to convince herself that she was an illusion. Midnight blew a raspberry at her when she did, causing Dash to fall back on her haunches with surprise, and Pinkie Pie to burst into laughter.

"Hello Twilight, I see that you decided to bring your imaginary friend," said Applejack with a grin.

"Hello Applejack,” said Twilight, pretending to try and stop Midnight from nuzzling her neck, “Sorry, yes. I need to be convincing about this if I'm to deflect those nasty rumours."

"Ah understand. What Ah don't know is how those darn rumours started in the first place."

"Aheh, I'll explain when everypony is here."

It didn't take long as Rarity and Fluttershy were following not far behind Twilight, chatting animatedly. Everypony settled down as Twilight made her announcement.

"Right, girls. I told Rarity and Fluttershy this yesterday, but you all should know: I am currently dating Princess Luna. I've had strong feelings for her for a very long time and I finally confessed to her two days ago. She accepted me and now we're an item."

Twilight's friends offered their heartfelt congratulations, but she motioned for silence.

"I, uh, have a bit more to confess. Um, well...," Twilight shifted in embarrassment, searching for the right words, "It turns out that when a mare spends a thousand years on the moon, she can get a little tense. I, uh, helped her relax. Several times. Including in my dreams last night. Pinkie, I think you have a Pinkie Pie sense when that happens."

"Oooh, was that what it was? Well, I hope you help Princess Luna relax a lot, that sense was fun."

"I certainly plan to, Pinkie."

"Are we talking about what I think we're talking about?" asked Applejack.

"Sex," said Midnight Whisper, with quiet amusement.

"Whoo!", exclaimed Dash, "Way to go, Twilight! Tell us EVERYTHING!"

"Tonight. Slumber party, my place. It's been a while, but from what I recall from my book, slumber parties are the right place for salacious gossip."

Her friends all eagerly agreed to attend.

"Right. Now that's all sorted, lets eat!" Rainbow was never one to lose sight of her priorities.

"Good idea," said Pinkie, "Let's see... I brought some tea–"

Twilight whipped her head around, "Uh, weren't you going to bring toffee apples, Pinkie?"

"Nope. I was going to bring a chocolate cake, actually, but then I changed my mind. Would you like a cup of tea, Twilight?"

Twilight, blushed but accepted a cup. A quick sip proved that it was good, but not as good as Luna's dream tea.

"Wait a minute, Pinkie, Ah was bringing the drinks this time: the last of the autumn cider. You were going to bring dessert."

"I'm sorry, Applejack. I just wanted some tea. Don't worry, I brought some super-duper scrumptious dessert too. They're a new experiment of mine: flowers dipped in chocolate!"

Twilight choked on her tea but Rarity was quick to assist with a pat on the back.

"Do you want to try some chocolate flowers, Twilight? I tried one when I was making them, they're very good."

"Uh, not yet, thanks, Pinkie. I'd love to try some for afters though. You have a lot of things in your basket."

"Sure thing. I'll save you a few. And I don't have that much in here, just the tea, the flowers, and these," Pinkie pulled out a couple of paddles and a ping-pong ball, "just in case anyone wanted to play."

Twilight stared at the paddles, blushing furiously. Rarity snickered at her reaction.

"What did you dream last night, darling?" asked Rarity archly.

Twilight suddenly noticed that Rainbow, Applejack and Pinkie were also laughing at her.

"What? What's so funny?"

"Ah'm sorry sugarcube. Pinkie just said that your reaction would be priceless, and it sure was."

"Pinkie?" Twilight asked sternly.

Pinkie just looked extremely innocent, "I know nothing. I mean really, when I think of everything I don't know, there's just so MUCH of it. I know so little in comparison that I might as well know nothing at all! I'm only a little pony, Twilight! Why do you ask me so many difficult questions?"

Twilight growled with frustration, but regained her temper, "It's okay, Pinkie. It was very funny and I'm sure that the flowers will be delicious," she turned to the others, "I'll explain, tonight."

The six friends settled down to eat, Midnight resting next to Twilight affectionately and Li'l Twi once again chasing butterflies. Inroads were made into Twilight's sandwiches and Rarity's scones before conversation started again.

"So Twilight,” said Rainbow, “I know that you're going to tell us everything tonight, but can you at least tell us how you got together with Princess Luna in the first place?"

"Oh, you know how it is. You get lost in Castle Canterlot, go through the wrong door and disturb somepony's sleep. You end up having sex as a punishment and it all spirals from there."

"What, really?” asked Pinkie Pie, “'cause that sounds super-cool and fun."

"No, silly, we're dating because I asked her out and she said yes."

The sandwiches were gone and the chocolate-coated flowers were clearly not destined to last much longer before the topic of conversation drifted to Li’l Twi.

"So, Twilight, how did Li'l Twi know about the run on muffins?" asked Pinkie.

"Who on earth is Li'l Twi when she's at home?" asked Applejack.

"Is this related to your foreknowledge of my gentlestallion customer?" asked Rarity.

"Well," answered Twilight, trying to field several questions at once, "I created a time travel spell to help... um, talk... to Luna. And I created a personal assistant called Li'l Twi that only I, and apparently Pinkie, can see, to help with my memory. Today went really badly last time, so I decided to try again. Li'l Twi remembered that both of you mentioned problems the last time I had this picnic, so we decided to help."

"Time travel, like the time you had us disaster proof Equestria for no good reason?" asked Rainbow Dash.

Applejack froze, a scone half-way to her mouth. Twilight caught this out of the corner of her eye, and curiosity stopped her in mid-reply to Rainbow. Applejack said nothing, just sitting frozen in place, eyes locked onto something from another time.

“Applejack, what is it? Applejack?”

Applejack broke free from her trance, but hung her head without saying anything. Twilight missed the tears that were gathering in her eyes.

“What’s wrong?”

“Ah’m sorry. Ah, Ah was remembering,” she ran a hoof across her eyes, wiping away the tears, and looked up with desperate hope in her eyes, "You can go back in time, Twilight? You can undo the past?"

Fluttershy was the first of the others to catch on. She gave a little gasp of sympathy and rushed to hug Applejack. The others realised what was happening one by one, losing smiles and deflating, “Oh!”

"Well, it's limited, but yes," said Twilight guardedly.

"Twilight, my, my parents... They died, Twilight. There was a fire, four years back,” the tears were flowing again, Fluttershy was hugging her tightly, and the others moved to join her, “My maw, she saved me, saved Granny, saved Applebloom,” Applejack was choking out the words, “She... She 'n Mac went back in, t'save my paw – he was trapped. They didn't come out. Ah went in– I was just a filly– oh, there was smoke everywhere, and the noise! The fire was just roaring, like some angry beast from the forest. Ah found Mac. Ah couldn't go in any further, Ah couldn't! Mac was on t'floor, he couldn't breath right, on account of the smoke. Ah dragged him out. Granny stopped me from going back in. I couldn't go back in. An' they didn't get out."

Tears were streaming down Twilight's cheeks.

“Ah, Ah didn’t have friends back then, not like Ah do now. When it was all over, me ‘n Mac just got our heads down and got to work. We don’t talk about it, Granny don’t talk about it and Applebloom don’t remember. Ah remember. Oh, Twilight! Ah’d give anything to have them back!” Applejack broke down into sobbing as her friends tried to comfort her.

Twilight realised with horror that this might be the first time she had spoken about the tragedy to anyone. She could feel her heart breaking in sympathy with Applejack’s pain.

"Applejack, I'm so sorry. I'm so so sorry. I can't, Applejack. I can't– the spell only goes back to when I make a save. I saved this morning. I'm sorry, Applejack, I'm sorry."

Twilight hesitantly went to Applejack, trying to convey her sorrow through her tears. Applejack opened her arms and Twilight rushed forward, joining into the hug. The mares cried into each other's manes until they collected themselves and calmed.

The joy was gone from the picnic, and it was finished quickly, with an uncomfortable silence. All six made muted promises to meet up in the library after the day was done and Spike had gone to bed.

They all hugged Applejack closely as they left.

In a sombre mood, Twilight and Midnight returned to the library, a wing draped comfortingly over Twilight's back.

Once there, Twilight reviewed her notes on the time spell, but the calculations were clear. Going back even a week was beyond the power of the spell, even if she could work out a way to move the temporal 'save' anchor. She sighed, and then read up on the next spell called for by Luna’s plan. Work was a welcome distraction from her troubled thoughts.

It was much as she remembered, and casting it was easy enough. She started by putting a mouthful of incense sticks into a small vase, which she put in the the centre of the basement floor. She then sketched out a basic summoner's circle around the vase in blue chalk. She triple-checked the runes and wards, but couldn't find any errors. As an extra precaution, she carefully placed a clay ward stone nearby. Breaking the ward stone with a blow from her hoof would be enough to dispel any creature not native to Equestria from the room, and give any creature that was native a splitting headache.

She lit the sticks with a spark from her horn, taking care to not step near the circle. The air inside the circle soon filled with twisting, pungent smoke. Satisfied that she was ready, Twilight broke out in an ululating chant that would have unnerved anypony unfamiliar with air spirit summoning rituals. The room was soon lit by the glow from her horn as the spell she was weaving was cast into the circle.

It didn't take long for a warp to form, and a few curious air spirits came through. Much like imps and fairies, they had a basic spell-casting ability and a delight in fooling others. Unlike imps they were not malicious, and unlike fairies they would not steal everything in sight.

Normally invisible, the air spirits could be seen by the disturbances they caused in the smoke. Once Twilight deemed that she had enough of the things, she closed the gate and they started talking. It didn't take long to strike a deal – their service for a couple of hours in return for some magical energy. Once the pact was made, Twilight broke the circle and extinguished the incense.

Her first order was that they remove the incense smoke from the basement. Without the smoke, Twilight could just see a faint shimmer in the air where they flew, if she knew where to look.

Before she left, she checked that the circle was gone, the ward stone was stored properly and no unwanted visitors had sneaked in. In truth, even the circle wasn't needed when dealing with the likes of the air spirits, but as pony sages were wont to say, there were three types of summoners: careful ones, dead ones and ones that wished they were dead. Twilight was very careful.

She and Midnight then left the library in Spike's capable claws and went for a tour of Ponyville. Twilight’s heart was still heavy from Applejack’s story, but the sunny day and happy ponies soon cheered her up. Midnight made a point of nuzzling Twilight and resting her head on Twilight’s shoulder as they strolled through the town.

As before, their passage was marked with gossiping, but this time Twilight was fighting back a grin. She angled past Lyra and Bon Bon standing in the shadow of a building, watching them watch her out of the corner of an eye. As one pony leaned in close to another, their tails quietly braided together as if by magic. Twilight paused to look in a shop window, to get a better view of the gossipers as they parted to go different ways. She managed to hold back her gloating as their tails halted Lyra in her tracks and and the much more powerful earth mare even dragged her friend back a couple of paces before she realised what was happening and stopped. It took some confusion and the help of a third mare to separate them.

One couple of gossips found themselves doused with water from a nearby rain-barrel. A circle of gossips found the colour of their manes switched between themselves randomly. A rubber-necking passer-by felt a mysterious pinch on his posterior when passing close by another witness who was staring more blatantly.

Twilight and Midnight walked on, followed by a trail of focussed chaos. Twilight wouldn't normally consider heavy duty pranking as an acceptable activity, but the memories of the problems of the last today broke through her reserves of politeness and Luna had insisted. The air spirits cast weak spells which wouldn’t last long, but they certainly made them count.

Twilight was an obvious culprit for all these pranks, but the mare was clearly escorting her companion, showing neither the focus necessary for spellcasting nor the tell-tale purple glow around her horn.

A delighted Twilight practically danced into the library a couple of hours later. Once safely ensconced in her study, she paid off the sprites and turned to a Li'l Twi who was grinning almost as much as she was.

"Okay, let's review: progress on Luna's plan. What's on the list?"

"Item 1. Save."

"Check", said Twilight.

"Item 2. Create illusionary beautiful-cute-sexy special somepony."

"Check," said Midnight.

"Item 3. Use 'PDA's' to generate counter-rumours"

"Check." said Twilight, happily.

"Item 4. Wait until the mid-day Ponyville train has left for Canterlot to allow the counter-rumours to spread there."

"Check. We even waved to the passengers as the train left, everyone on it saw us."

"Item 5. Revenge!" this last was said with great glee.

"Check! If they're not gossiping about Midnight and me, they should be gossiping about the trick we just pulled. I hereby declare Luna's plan implemented. Hopefully we'll find out if it worked tomorrow."

"Yay!"

"Now we just need to prepare for the girls coming over. Where's my copy of “Slumber 101”? I need to make sure we're properly prepared."

The book was found (Spike was able to retrieve it with surprising ease) and Twilight started reading. At one point, Li'l Twi seemed confused, reading over Twilight's shoulder, but smiled innocently when pressed, and assured her it was nothing. With a shrug, Twilight continued to read the book; there was a lot she had forgotten.

This was a much bigger slumber party than last time, but the book had a very helpful section on how to handle larger parties and Twilight intended to follow it to the letter. In preparation, she created a dunce's cap, complete with a large letter 'D', and put it on, secured with some elastic. She also dug out some embarrassing photos from her foalhood and laid them about the place.

Pacing back and forth, waiting for her friends, Twilight paused as she remembered Luna's lesson from last night and thought about what she had just done. She then found the book again and removed the illusion Rarity had put on it whilst Twilight had been out trolling the gossips. This revealed the real guidance on larger parties (bring more snacks).

Twilight hurriedly hid the embarrassing photos back where they had come from. She then started pacing again. After a moment more, she called out to Li'l Twi.

"Li'l Twi, why didn't you tell me that the book had changed?"

Li'l Twi sat down and looked up at Twilight with the largest, most innocent eyes she could manage, "Um, I thought it would be funny?"

"Hmm. You know, I was just thinking about how odd it was that Pinkie knew the most embarrassing things to bring to the picnic, both times."

"Oh yes. That was strange, wasn't it?" said Li'l Twi in a very nervous fashion.

"And then it occurred to me that only Luna and I knew what happened in my dreams, and I'm sure Luna didn't tell her."

"Well, you know Pinkie Pie, always knowing things before they happen..."

"Yes, I've studied her Pinkie Pie sense, but it is very vague; it doesn't give details. Another option was that Pinkie's personal reality field allowed her to enter our dream, but she would never do that unless it was funny at the time."

"Heh heh, Pinkie and her jokes," said Li'l Twi weakly.

"Then I remembered that Pinkie can see you. Pinkie can hear you. And you knew everything that happened in my dreams. You disappeared during breakfast today, didn't you? Where did you go?"

"Aheh, it's a funny thing really..."

"Betrayed! Betrayed by my own subconscious! Three times, no less! Why?"

"I'm sorry," said Li'l Twi in a small voice, "I just wanted to have some fun."

Twilight glared at her mini-counterpart, but could not sustain her anger in the face of the largest tear-filled puppy-dog eyes she had ever seen – they even put the Cutie Mark Crusaders' well practiced remorseful looks to shame.

"You shall be punished!"

Which is why, when her friends came into the library, they saw Twilight rolling on the library floor laughing, wearing a dunce's cap, while having a tickle fight with her imaginary friend. Rarity was delighted with the outcome and considered her divan's honour to be restored.

Dunce's cap disposed of, Twilight welcomed her friends into her cheery home, which was warmed by the heat of her blush (and a lit fireplace – the nights were getting colder).

In preparation for a filly's night in, Applejack had brought some hard cider, Rarity had brought some very nice wine, Rainbow brought a bottle of vodka and six shot glasses, Pinkie had brought popcorn and Fluttershy had brought her teddy bear.

"I'm going to want to hug somepony when I'm hearing this, so I bought Mr. Teddy," said said shyly, holding him so tight that stuffing and adorableness seemed to be bursting out of the seams in equal quantity.

"It's all right, Sugarcube, we're all friends here. Let's get settled down so that Twilight can get started. Ah've been looking forward to this all day."

“Likewise,” said Midnight with a grin, before settling on a spare cushion, close to Twilight.

The mares fixed their drinks, Pinkie passed out popcorn and everypony settled around the fireplace, letting Twilight describe what happened from the time when she entered Luna's bedchambers through to both of last night's dreams.

By the time she was done, Rarity was looking distinctly envious, Pinkie was still drooling at the thought of the sweet factory, both pegasi had their wings fully extended and Fluttershy's face was nearly the same colour as her mane. Applejack was silent, but there was a lot less cider in her jug than when Twilight started and her face had a healthy ruddy glow.

"Wow!" said Rainbow, summing up everyone's thoughts, "I thought that Luna would know a few tricks, but wow!"

Twilight blushed gracefully.

"Um, Twilight?" said Applejack, "Are you expecting any interesting dreams tonight? 'Cause I'm not sure how well we'll be sleeping with that going on."

"Oh! No no no, well, er, yes. Luna promised that she would stop by, she wanted to know how her plan went, but she promised to keep it clean."

"Twilight, Twilight,” said Pinkie, “Please please please get Luna to send me to the Sweet Factory! The thought of there being a river of chocolate out there and not being able to drink it is making me crazy!"

“So Twilight,” said Rainbow, “What do you have planned for your next meetup? Keeping up with Luna is going to be tough. I'm thinking that you should do something awesome, like jumping out of a cake, with sparklers.”

“Oh, I'm so happy for the both of you,” said Fluttershy, “It sounds like you're both so great for each other.”

Twilight found herself accepting comments and congratulations without actually hearing them; she was having difficulty focusing, as it had been a long day and Rarity's conciliatory wine had been very good. In the end, it was agreed that it was late and they would talk more in the morning.

The six ponies settled on cushions and blankets around the dying fire and one by one, fell asleep.

Dream Walking

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Dream Walking

Written by RandomString Proofread by Knight of Cerebus

Twilight was running through a dark forest. The moonlight gave enough light to see by, but no colour; all she could see was shadows and silhouettes. There was something behind Twilight, something terrible, and she had to get away. With no clear path to guide her, she navigated through the undergrowth as best she could; brambles whipped painfully at her legs as she passed.

The ground fell away beneath her as she came across a small creek in the darkness. She tumbled into the water, hooves flailing, and landed hard. The shockingly cold water made her gasp, cough, and splutter. Scrambling ever forward, Twilight pulled herself out of the stream and up the other side.

She was running up a hill now, dodging trees, her lungs burning. It was getting closer. A panicked look up showed a foreboding castle at the top of the hill. No lights were on, but Twilight was desperate and this could be a refuge. Stumbling on the incline, Twilight left the trees behind and broke out into a gallop, pushing herself as hard as she could.

The castle drawbridge was down, but the great gates were closed. Twilight hammered on the gates with her hooves, but no sound was made. She tried screaming for help but she had no voice. All she could hear was her gasping breaths and the frenzied beating of her heart.

Desperately pushing on the unmoving gates, Twilight knew that it was surely nearly upon her. Terror overcame her and she moaned silently with despair, but didn't turn around. She could not face the horror. The slow clop of hoof on wood sounded behind her. It was approaching and Twilight collapsed, her heart trying break free of her rib cage, slumping against the door, still unable to turn her head.

She felt a breath on her back, no no no no, she thought.

"So, how did it go?" asked Luna.

--------------------

"You said you liked to be afraid! You said fear would add some spice. And you have not answered my question."

Luna and Twilight were quietly bickering as she lead them into the now lit and warm castle.

"I said 'a little fear can be fun', not full-blown, mind-numbing terror! And I think it went well, thanks."

"You were laughing quite joyfully when you recovered. And I need more details. Did you enjoy it?"

The two entered the castle main hall. Halfway down was a blazing fireplace with cushions for sitting on and an opened bottle of red wine next to some crystal glasses. Luna steered Twilight towards the cushions.

"I was laughing from relief! And I shouldn't have enjoyed pranking all those ponies like that. It was mean spirited!"

"So you did have fun," said Luna, happily.

Twilight sighed, "Yes, I had fun. Both times. Thank you," she leaned over and kissed Luna.

"You are welcome. Wine?"

"Thanks."

They settled onto their cushions facing each other, bathed in the warmth from the fire. The wine had a delicate, fruity aroma that hinted of autumn flowers. It was dangerously drinkable.

Twilight described her day, going into details about her pranks, and those of Pinkie and Rarity. The bottle emptied as the story went on and soon Luna was laughing delightedly.

"Thank you, Twilight. It's been long since I had fun like that. Even before... before... you know. I had to teach Tia how to have fun. She used to hate my pranks. Each time I pulled a little trick on her, she'd threaten dire vengeance and not speak to me for days. I kept at it. She couldn't stay mad at me, and she would always calm down after a while. Eventually, I dyed her coat pink just before the Grand Galloping Gala."

"Pink? Wow. Was she angry?"

"Angry? She was furious. She tried everything, but she couldn't get the colour out before the start, so she marched out there, a beautiful pastel pink pony, and didn't say a word about it. The nobles and dignitaries were all queued up to shake her hoof and everypony noticed the pinkness and not one said a word about it. Not one had the courage to ask or point it out. Apparently the looks on the faces of all the nobles struggling to hide their curiosity was hilarious.

"When the thing was done, she tracked me down in my hiding place. I thought I would be banished, but she couldn't hold back her laughter and she just hugged me. We got on a lot better after that, or at least after I gave her a solvent for the dye."

"What happened between you two?" asked Twilight quietly, sipping her wine.

Luna sighed, "Another time, maybe. I don't want to remember those days. I'm back now, and I can see that Tia can still laugh, which is wonderful. She, she acts almost as if she wants to be pranked. She even pranked me, a couple of times, I think. But I didn't laugh – I just got angry, just like Tia used to. I, I thought I had forgotten how. Thank you for reminding me, Twilight."

Twilight deliberately ignored the tears welling in Luna's eyes as she hugged her.

"You certainly pull a few pranks during Nightmare Night. Maybe it's time to bring the old Luna back for good, not just one day a year."

"Maybe. No. Maybe. I'm not Old Luna during Nightmare Night. I just pretend. I act like her, act as she would. And I act like the other one too. I'm not either of them any more. I think they got rid of each other."

"Aww, there goes my chances for a foursome," said Twilight, trying to change the mood.

It worked well enough – Luna smirked, and then giggled, "It would not have gone well. Old Luna would be too busy trying to pull the other's tail, whilst the other would be trying desperately to smite her without losing her dignity."

"Well, maybe the other could make an appearance by herself, sometime. She was very scary and very sexy."

Luna stiffened, "No. No, no. You're mine, not hers. No–"

Twilight quickly grasped Luna's hoofs in hers, "Luna, she's gone. You said so yourself. We act and play – why not play as her?"

"No. We play with dreams, not Nightmares. Dreams can be so much more. Let me show you."

"You can't distract me that easily, Luna. I am not dropping this. Why are you afraid of her? Why can't you forgive yourself, as everyone else has long forgiven you? Talk to me."

"Twilight, I brought you here to teach you dream walking."

Twilight blinked. She was torn by two warring feelings inside her. One was her care and concern for Princess Luna, who seemed to be holding in something painful and the other was her constant, desperate need to learn. Oh well, she thought, We can talk about it later.

"I'm sorry, what were we talking about? Oh well, couldn't have been important. Tell me about dream magic."

Luna laughed, crisis averted.

"Let me tell you a story. It's a very old story, and it's told to every young dream walker by their mentor. We'll need a different backdrop."

Luna finished the last of her wine and then waved a hoof; the castle faded away. The ponies were transported high up in a fertile green valley, bathed in the rosy light of a setting sun. There was a crude mud road, barely more than a track, ahead of them, leading down into the valley. Near the river flowing through the centre of the valley was a large hut, surrounded by numerous smaller ones. It appeared to be a small village.

As Luna lead a deeply curious Twilight down the track, she spoke, "This is Ear – the first city, or it will be. These are the earth ponies that negotiated the first treaty of the three tribes: the pegasi ensure good weather, the unicorns keep the sun and moon under control, and the earth ponies share the bounty of the land. There's plenty for all and the tribes are growing as fast as the crops."

Twilight looked at the fields as she passed, and saw the beginnings of agriculture; seeds had been deliberately scattered here, and some of them had grown. An earth pony with a cutie mark depicting a sheaf of wheat lay dozing nearby, clearly having no great worries in the world.

"The corn and wheat grow high, the foals grow fat, and life is good. This is before the griffon wars, before the first return of Discord, before the wendigos. The village below knows no trouble, and the ponies sleep easy."

They soon reached the centre of the village, and saw more earth ponies lying around, chatting and grooming. The shadows were fairly long, and soon they were saying their ‘goodnight’s before heading back to their huts.

"The nights come early in the valley, but the chores have been done, the foals are fed and it's time to sleep."

The scene before them blurred, and suddenly it was deep in the night. Luna lead them into one of the huts. There was a small family sleeping together on a pile of rushes. The young colt appeared to be having a bad dream, twitching and making faint moans.

"When a pony falls asleep, they create a dream. When they wake up, the dream disappears. Except, now, there are enough dreamers that the Dreaming has appeared. It can sustain some dreams even while the ponies are awake. The dreams that survive are the ones that have common... architecture. Each pony keeps a little piece of it alive. Often, it is of shared places, like Ear."

Luna tenderly brushed the mane away from the colt's face, but did not wake him.

"But there are nightmares, too. And colts talk with other colts. They pass their dreams between themselves, sharing the fear and passing it on. It becomes a shared dream, sustained by the fear that it creates."

The scene shimmered again, and the hut changed. The shadows were darker now and the family was gone, leaving only the colt, alone and afraid. The sounds of peace in the valley were now replaced by a distant sobbing. This was the colt's nightmare.

"This dream must be created anew each time the story is told. You see, the dreams were sustained, and the denizens of the dreams were sustained too. Night after night, the monster survived. As it survived, the monster learned and remembered. Over time, the monster became alive. It became self-aware, the first Nightmare."

The colt, clearly fearful, crept out of the hut, oblivious to Twilight and Luna following him. He headed towards the sobbing, which was coming from the great central hut. The fire in the centre of the hut was burning low, but lying in front of it was the crying figure of an old mare, black as night with black billowing mane, the fire casting a long shadow that looked to be a part of her. The figure turned to the colt, who froze with fear. Blazing red eyes looked down on him as the Nightmare stalked closer.

Twilight could barely hear the colt whisper, "No no no no...".

Luna spoke quietly as the scene unfolded, "The colts had dreamed this nightmare so many times, the monster became aware. Aware that there was life beyond the dreaming, and it wanted to taste it. Watch."

Twilight wanted desperately to help, or else turn away, as the shadow cast by the Nightmare wrapped around the colt as he finally tried to run. It dragged him towards the horror and finally consumed him. Twilight shuddered at his screams.

The scene shifted again, this time to a featureless starfield.

"The Nightmare possessed the colt's body. You do not need to see the evil it did in the waking world while using it. They killed the colt to drive the Nightmare away, but such things are not so easily killed. It took a filly a few days later. Soon, everypony was dreaming the same dream, living in terror, never knowing who would be taken next."

The scene changed one more time. The nightmare village again, the mare, now larger than any pony, was sitting by the fire. Another colt, grey coated, white maned, so young that he did not sport a cutie mark. But this colt was not afraid. He was angry. He galloped into the hut and attacked the Nightmare, surprising her.

"Grey Thoughts. He had lost his sister to the Nightmare, and he burned for revenge."

The colt struggled with the Nightmare, their fight casting strange shadows in the dust. She bit him on the shoulder, drawing blood that was glossy black in the firelight, but he kicked her into the fire. As the Nightmare tried to escape, the colt held her down in the fire with grim determination, ignoring his own terrible burns. The fire embraced the Nightmare and she screamed as she died.

"That wound on his shoulder was the key. The burns were gone when he next slept, but the shoulder wound would not heal. Whenever he dreamed, Grey Thoughts would feel the bite. He would know then that he was in a dream. Over time, he learned to control his dreams, and then how to travel to the dreams of others."

Grey Thought's flank shimmered, and where once it was blank, there now was a crude round shield against the backdrop of a cloudy night sky. It looked somewhat similar to Luna's.

The scene faded away, back to the starfield.

"There were more lessons learned, over time, knowledge earned through suffering and loss. If a dream walker enters the dream of another and marks them, they too can walk in dreams. It could be dangerous, as ponies lost in dreams seldom return to the waking world. The 'gift' was passed on, and the dream walkers carry on even now, protecting the dreamers from the Nightmares."

Twilight was staring at Luna with awe. She then shook her head and asked, "But there are so many more ponies now. Why are we not over-run with Nightmares? There cannot possibly be that many dream walkers.”

"If enough ponies stay awake on one day a year, the Dreaming briefly shrinks. The weaker dreams that it sustains fade away. Dream walkers can guide the cull, driving nightmare dreams to the edge of the Dreaming so that they are the first to go. Nightmares fade away before they can surviving long enough to become aware."

"The Summer Sun celebration!" said Twilight, "All the ponies stay awake to party, and welcome the rising sun!"

"Precisely. It has a greater purpose than merely praising my sister's work, but the ponies don't need to know that, and it may be better that they don't. If they don't focus on their nightmares, they are less likely to be haunted by them. The other dreaming races do something similar.

"There are still Nightmares out there, Twilight. We cannot patrol the entire Dreaming and nightmares will always be born anew from ponies' fears. The first Nightmare was violent, but later ones learned subtlety.

"If you accept the gift and agree to become a dream walker, you must always maintain your guard and prevent the Nightmares from escaping into the waking world, destroying them if you can. It need not be violent, merely resolve the fears of the dreamer, so that they stop having the same dream, and the Nightmare will fade away."

"It's a lot to take in, but yes, I want to help."

"Thank you, Twilight Sparkle. There are few of us, and more ponies of courage and caring are always welcome."

"Luna..."

"Yes, Twilight?"

"What happened, a thousand years ago? I think I need to know."

Luna sighed, "The Nightmare was subtle, seductive. It appeared to be a normal dream, at first. It said it just wanted to talk.

"It wasn't even evil, in itself. It just wanted the Dreaming to expand, the sustained dreams to survive forever. If the night lasted forever, the ponies would always be dreaming and the Dreaming would grow. Nightmares are not intelligent. It could not see the consequences of its actions.

"I felt isolated, alone. Unloved. It didn't possess me against my will, how could it? I just offered myself freely to the only thing that said it loved me."

Luna looked away, and fell silent, but did not resist when Twilight hugged her.

---------------------

"So," said Twilight after a while, "you need to give me a 'mark'. That's a wound, right?"

"It need not be something so blatant as an open wound. Merely a lasting bruise will do. A wound created by a dream walker, made so that it will not heal in dreams. I have a bruise on my flank, near my cutie mark. It cannot be seen under my coat, but I always know it is there.

Twilight nodded, and stood still. Luna kissed her fully on the lips, and then pulled back. Twilight didn't even have time to flinch before one of Luna's hooves lashed out and stuck her rear thigh. It hurt, but not badly and it would not affect her walking.

They spent some time hugging each other.

----------------------

Luna was an inexperienced teacher, but Twilight was an expert student. Twilight carefully guided Luna through the teaching process, encouraging her to find a style that let her share her knowledge at a pace that suited them both.

It didn't take long for Luna to teach Twilight the basics of dream walking, or for Twilight to teach Luna the basics of teaching. They both promised to send the other books with more detailed information.

They were discussing the practical limits to the skills when Luna suddenly became distracted.

"Luna, what's wrong?"

"I believe one of your friends is having a nightmare – look over there."

Luna pointed down, through the ground and beyond the dream that they were in. From the outside, other dreams appeared as soap bubbles, each floating in free dreamspace. Luna had assured Twilight that they were connected, but the strands would not yet be visible to a beginner.

The dream that Luna was pointing at was not a smooth bubble – the sides rippled and bulged wildly.

"When the edges of a dream act like that, the dreamer is experiencing strong emotions. If it were pleasure, even a surprise, the bulges would not be as chaotic and turbulent. We may find a dream of ponies in pleasure later so that you can see the comparison, but for now, your friend needs our help."

Both ponies measured the distance between their dream and the nightmare, and leapt. Unable to guide their path much after launch, Twilight drifted towards her target. As they got closer, Twilight could start to see and hear through the dream's boundaries. Flickering impressions came at her in a blur: a great roaring noise, fire and darkness, and dead apple trees in winter snow. Twilight knew what she would be seeing before they arrived.

The burning house looked huge, with flames bright against blackened timbers. Applejack stood a little way off, screaming hoarsely. She was being blocked from entering the house by a terrified looking Granny Smith, who clutched a baby foal in her arms. Big MacIntosh was lying nearby, bleeding from his shoulder. He was coughing between short gasping breaths, his eyes weren't properly focused, and he looked confused. Smoke inhalation, thought Twilight clinically, as the distance between the nightmare and her shrunk and then disappeared.

She rushed to Applejack's side the moment they entered the dream. The panicking mare turned to her with tearful desperation, "Twilight! Twilight, thank Celestia! Save them! Twilight, save them!"

"Applejack! It's me, Twilight. Breathe, Applejack. This is a nightmare."

"Save them, Twilight! Magic away the fire! Why ain't you saving them?"

"Applejack, listen to me. This is a nightmare. This happened years ago. I can't stop the fire. It's too late."

It took time, but slowly Applejack recovered her wits. Twilight discretely faded the tragic scene away until they were standing on a grassy field on a bright sunny day. Applejack's breathing had calmed and she'd wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Thank you, Twilight. Ah thought those nightmares had stopped. Ah reckon talking about it at the picnic an' then goin' to sleep in front of a fire wasn't such a good idea, particularly at this time of year."

"I'm sorry I reawakened these memories, Applejack. I should have been more considerate about the fire. I just didn't think."

"'s okay, sugarcube. Ah hadn't noticed either. Ah reckon it's just one of those unconscious things that ya don't think about."

"Subconscious,” said Twilight, automatically correcting her, “I understand, Applejack. But if you really want the nightmare to go away, talking to your friends might help you heal."

"Ah'll think about it. Thank ya kindly for taking the nightmare away. Ah guess Ah should wake up now, right?"

Luna had been standing back at a discrete distance, but started walking forward when the mares pulled apart from the hug. She overheard Applejack's question, and answered, "If you wake now, Applejack, you will not be well rested for the coming day and you will have difficulty getting back to sleep. I suggest simply moving to a more pleasant dream."

"And how do Ah do that? Er, your highness."

"We shall aid you. What dream do you desire? Memories of happier times with your parents? A victorious occasion at a 'roh-dee-oh'?"

Applejack shook her head, "Thank ye kindly, your Highness, but waking up from good memories before the fire tends to be as bad as having the dream of the fire itself, if you take my meaning. Maybe waking up would be best..."

"Come on Applejack, you know that's not a good idea. There must be something you'd like. How about a flying dream? Or a sexy one?" Twilight batted her eyelids at her suggestively.

"Ah, c'mon Twi. We don't talk about that sort of thing."

"Why not? I just told you about Luna spanking me"

"Yeah, about that. Ah know it's good to share, but Ah reckon ya might have taken it a bit too far last night. Some things should stay private."

"Nonsense! How could I explain Pinkie's joke with the paddles if I didn't? Now, I know you got really interested when I talked about the stocks, I saw you blushing. Do you want something like that? It'd just be you by yourself with a dream partner. Private dream. Don't be shy, I'm your friend."

Applejack wanted to look anywhere but at her friend. Finally breaking down under Twilight's insistent, helpful smile, Applejack muttered, "Ah ain't dreamed it before."

"I'm sorry - didn't quite catch that."

"Ah said, Ah ain't dreamed it before. But, look. When Ah was a filly, my pa taught me how to handle a rope, tie a knot an' use a lasso. Useful skill on the farm. Ah found it really interesting, so Ah went down to the library to look up more stuff 'n he could teach."

Twilight nodded attentively.

"Now Ah don't know which pony put that book in the stacks – it just wasn't decent – but Ah couldn't stop reading. Not right that a filly could just stumble across such a thing. Ah think it was Neighponese. It said they didn't have much iron or anything much else over there. They couldn't just chain up prisoners, so they tied 'em up instead."

"Oh, I think I know the book you're talking about, Applejack. I was surprised to find it in the little Ponyville library. Keep going."

"Well, they didn't just tie 'em up on the ground, they strung them up with ropes from trees, tied to legs and hooves. Kept 'em there for a day or two. Mighty humiliating punishment, it was. An' then some mares took a liking to it.

"There were pictures in the book, of pretty young mares all tied up, hanging from their the ceiling like, like decorations. They looked so relaxed. Elegant, almost. Ah don't rightly know why, but Ah saw it an' thought Ah'd like that. Oh Celestia, this is so embarrassing. Ah swear, you tell anyone about this Twi-"

Twilight cut Applejack off with a hoof on her shoulder. Luna nodded at her out of the corner of her eye and started to shape the dream. The field turned hilly, a rough path lead up the hill towards a large, sprawling, oriental house. Applejack swallowed, and walked up the hill, leaving the other two mares behind.

As Luna and Twilight departed back to their original dream, Twilight suddenly remembered, "Oh! Pinkie Pie! She really wanted to visit the Chocolate Factory. Is that okay?"

Luna raised an enquiring eyebrow.

"Oh, not like that. She doesn't want the 'guided tour', she just wants to drink a river of chocolate."

Luna laughed. Soon she was able to show Twilight what two pleasant dreams looked like from the outside, one of joyful exuberance and one of quiet ecstasy. Twilight always did enjoy learning new things.

Celestial Summons

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Written by RandomString Proofread by Knight of Cerebus

Twilight woke up well before dawn. She saved and carefully rose from the cushions she was sleeping on, trying not wake those of her friends who were still slumbering. Midnight rose beside her, exhibiting unnecessary grace for an illusion. Twilight enjoyed seeing the dancelike actions of the pegasus mare, and Midnight seemed to enjoy showing off.

A quick survey of the cushions showed that most of her friends were already awake. Pinkie was slumped over several cushions, drooling; Twilight speculated that the baker was only still dreaming through sheer willpower. Rarity was snoring with polite quietness. Twilight and Luna had discussed the potential of dream pranks for revenge against Rarity's book vandalism, but they agreed that peace offerings such as Rarity's shared bottle of wine must absolutely be respected. For at least several hours. Dream walking was a sacred trust that should not be abused, of course, but it was mostly the wine that spared her.

Twilight found the others in her kitchen. Applejack was preparing a big breakfast, but noticed her arrival. She looked up at Twilight with no small embarrassment, nodded her head in thanks and continued her work. Nopony else seemed to notice. While Applejack was cooking breakfast, Fluttershy was laying out the table. Rainbow Dash was drinking coffee and offering unsolicited advice to both mares in the guise of 'helping'. Twilight was musing on what she could do to help when a loud, "Noooo!" could be heard from the other room, signalling that Pinkie had finally been ejected from the sweet factory.

Pinkie soon bounded into the kitchen to hug Twilight in gratitude for the dream. She was trailed by Li'l Twi, happily eating a huge donut. The phantasm had another donut hanging on her horn, chocolate caked around her muzzle, her mane and tail were thickly matted with toffee and she was leaving a trail of chocolate hoofprints in her wake.

"What?", Li'l Twi asked at Twilight's look, "Your dreams are always so boring. Pinkie's was much better." She finished her donut and licked sugar dusting off her muzzle before settling down on a kitchen counter, sporting the smug grin that comes from a life well lived. The illusion's smugness didn't last long – Rainbow soon finished her coffee and carelessly put the mug on the worktop, right through her body. Li'l Twi glared invisibly at Rainbow and then tried to find somewhere else in line of sight of Twilight to be smug.

Rarity, who had been woken by Pinkie's cry of despair, was the last to join them, looking distinctly grumpy and unamused. Midnight was standing in the doorway and Rarity wasted no time waving a leg through the illusion to shoo her out of the way. "What uncelestial hour is this? The sun isn't even up yet! Why are you lunatics even awake?"

"Hey, captain of the weather team here! I need to get started earlier than this, most days."

"Ah'm a farmer. Does that answer ya question?"

"I care for animals too. If I don't start getting food out before dawn, the poor squirrels will be really grumpy by the time they get fed."

"I'm a baker, silly."

"And you? What's your excuse for getting up at this indecent hour? Special library opening times for night owls? Need to prepare the crash barriers for the morning rush of customers frantic to borrow the latest Daring Do novel?"

"Good morning, Rarity,” Twilight laughed, “Have some coffee. And to answer your question, I just really like watching the sunrise."

Coffee did wonders for Rarity's mood. By the time Applejack had breakfast ready, she had apologised to everyone, done her (already perfect) hair and was chatting happily about the latest fashion trends to a captive audience of Rainbow Dash, who looked like she would even be willing to help properly in order to escape.

It was quickly clear to Twilight that her little kitchen wasn't big enough for six grown mares, one illusionary pegasus and a little unicorn hallucination to have breakfast, so she teleported mares, breakfast and table outside to the grass near the tree. They settled around the table, eating their breakfast and watching the majesty of the breaking dawn.

Twilight sighed happily at the beautiful sight and the sheer pleasure of the company of her friends. She was carefully ignoring the sounds coming from where Pinkie and Li'l Twi were sitting.

"Hey!” said Li'l Twi, “I was saving that for later! Give it back, or I'm telling Twilight!"

"Now where in tarnation did that donut come from, Pinkie? Ah know Ah didn't cook none. It must be from yesterday. Is it stale?"

"No, Applejack, it is scrumptious! Super fresh and oh-so tasty. I mean Donut Joe's donuts are good, but this one is gooood."

Nope, Twilight didn't hear a single thing. It was far too early for that kind of headache. She particularly didn't see Pinkie sneakily feeding Li'l Twi one of Applejack's apple fritters in compensation.

With Applejack and Pinkie busy on one side of the table and Rainbow and Fluttershy deep in conversation on the other (possibly still discussing last night if Fluttershy's blush was any indicator), Twilight naturally turned to Rarity.

"So, Twilight darling, how did it go with Luna last night?", asked Rarity, before Twilight could open her mouth.

"Oh, it was wonderful! She's teaching me dream walking. It's fascinating stuff."

"Oh! I thought she was just 'stopping by' to see how her plan went. It sounds like you spent the whole night together."

"We did and it was great. She showed me what Ear looked like before it even became a city! Ear! And the dream walking stuff is so interesting. She's opened up a whole new world for me."

"Darling, I think it's simply wonderful that you've hit it off so well. She sounds simply besotted with you, and you with her."

"Besotted?"

"Oh, absolutely! Think about it: she's spent the last three nights, her working time, attending to you. And she's putting in so much effort with the crafted dreamscapes, the private lessons-"

"Three nights in a row, when normally she'd be working? That is a lot," said Applejack, breaking free from her conversation with Pinkie.

"And she sounds so eager to keep you happy," said Fluttershy from the other side.

"What are you trying to say, girls?"

"I think what we're trying to say, darling, is that maybe you and Luna are moving a little too fast. Making love before your first date? Meeting up again every night? Putting you ahead of her normal duties?"

Twilight bit back an angry retort. Before she could find the words she wanted, Fluttershy flew over to hug her. Twilight calmed down and started to think about what Rarity was saying.

"I admit that things are... intense. But Luna is her own mare. It's flattering that she's decided to spend so much time with me. The pace feels natural: I work during the day and play at night. What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing, for you," said Applejack, "But it sounds like she might be playing with you at night and sleeping during the day, not doing her job. That ain't good."

"Look, girls, I think you're wrong, but I'll chat with her about it."

"That's all I ask, Dar-"

"I mean, if she were so, so obsessed with me, she'd talk to me right? She'd give me the answers I need right?"

"Well-"

"She wouldn't just dodge the question, if she really cared, right? She wouldn't ignore-"

Twilight was cut off by another Flutterhug and six uncomfortable stares. It took Twilight a few moments to calm herself while her friends waited sympathetically.

"Sorry," she said, "I'm sorry. I... I'm just scared. I mean everything is going so wonderfully, but... but I want to talk to her. About the nightmare. About what happened. And she keeps dodging the question. And I don't know. Does she care? Does she really care? Or am I a little project to keep her amused?"

"No!" said Fluttershy, "Of course not! How can you even think like that?"

“Twilight, darling,” said Rarity, joining Fluttershy in the hug, “Everything is going to be okay. I know it’s scary when you feel that you’re not being understood, but remember that it must be scary for her too. ”

“It takes time to let people in, Twilight. Don’t try and force her hoof and Ah’m sure everything will work out fine. But if you need to talk we’re here for you, Sugarcube, anytime,” said Applejack

"Thanks girls," sniffed Twilight, "I know she cares for me and I just need to be patient. It's just hard sometimes."

"Just remember that we're here for you, whatever happens," there was a chorus of agreement across the table.

The meal was continuing at a relaxed pace when-

"Twilight! Quick! We've been burgled!"

Twilight teleported Spike out to share breakfast and happily joined the small feast that Applejack had prepared. By the time the sun was well clear of the horizon, the diners were full. Twilight teleported the table and dishes back inside. Spike looked fairly miffed when he realised who would be doing all the washing up; Twilight was as oblivious as ever. Rarity lingered behind as everyone said their goodbyes, wanting to speak with Twilight in private.

"Darling, I hope you enjoyed the wine last night."

"It was wonderful, Rarity, thank you."

"It was nothing. I just wanted to say that I'm forgiving you for my poor wet divan, and hope you forgive me for modifying your book. I'd like to consider things even between us. Peace?"

"Of course. I'm sorry I played that joke on you, it was just too tempting to resist. Peace."

They hugged, and Rarity sighed, "I have forgiven you dear, but I do hope it dries out soon; I'm worried about the upholstery."

"It's still wet? I'm so sorry, I thought you'd use magic to dry it out. Wait here a moment, I recently researched a spell for drying out bedsheets and-" Twilights ears turned bright red as she heard what she had just said.

Ignoring Rarity's delighted leer, she rushed into the library to escape and brought out the copy of 'Mrs. Beastson's' with a bookmark in the correct page after her blush had faded. She grumpily handed it over to Rarity, despite the latter's knowing grin.

"My, my, you have been sleeping well if you need this. Thank you, dear. I shall return it this afternoon."

Rarity would have said more, but Spike rushed out, carrying a scroll adorned with Princess Celestia's royal seal and soap suds.

"Twilight, I just received a letter from Princess Celestia. She's summoning you to Canterlot immediately!"

----------------------

The next half-hour was a rush of activity as Twilight tried to get ready. Li'l Twi gleefully galloped behind Twilight, shouting reminders. Spike hurriedly took down a list of things to do while Twilight was gone. Midnight calmly watched the action with restrained amusement.

"You promised to give Luna a book-thingy to teach Luna how to teach you stuff. You need to take more ink - the ink in your room in the castle has gotten all mouldy. The train will be at the station in eighteen minutes, according to the timetable. Shampoo! Hey, that's a really cool word. Shampooooo. Oh! Naughty nurse outfit, or go with Plan B and use all those bandages you bought yesterday to dress up as a sexy mummy?"

Twilight, who was grabbing things with her magic and stuffing them into her saddlebags as Li'l Twi called them out, screeched to a halt. She rushed for the door, calling out a hasty 'Goodbye' to Spike as she galloped after Rarity, Midnight flying close behind. A hurried conversation in the middle of the street later, the mares galloped to Rarity's boutique.

"Darling, you are so lucky that I decided to get your order over and done with. If I hadn't been so worried about Sweetie Belle finding this thing I wouldn't have even started it by now. Now, I had your measurements, so this'll only need a slight adjustment-""

"No time! The train leaves in-"

"Thirteen minutes," provided Li'l Twi.

"-Thirteen minutes! I'm sure it will be perfect, let me just pay you and I'll be gone."

"I won't hear of it! No-one leaves my boutique with sub-standard work. If you want this outfit, put it on now. The station is only a few minutes away, if you hurry, so there's plenty of time."

Twilight hurriedly donned the outfit, blushing furiously at Midnight's appreciative wolf-whistle. Midnight sauntered up to the blushing mare and said in a low voice and knowing grin, "Hello, nurse!"

Rarity didn't have time for this and waved her hooves through Midnight's body to make her retreat. Twilight spent a moment in thought and then temporarily dismissed the illusion. Taking her to Canterlot would just cause confusion.

Twilight spent an agonising time modelling the outfit, waiting impatiently as Rarity adjusted the fit. Shifting from hoof to hoof, she ground her teeth in frustration. Li'l Twi helpfully counted down the minutes and seconds in a sing-song voice between gnawing chocolate off of her fetlocks.

When Rarity finally declared herself satisfied, Twilight reacted almost instantly. She teleported a bag of bits to Rarity, teleported herself out of the outfit and stuffed it hurriedly into her bags before it could hit the ground and then rushed to the door as-

"Wait!" called out Rarity

Twilight turned to look back at Rarity as Li'l Twi said "Five minutes."

"You forgot the cap."

Twilight seized the cap with her magic and made a bee-line for the door, calling out "Thanks!" over her shoulder. She galloped down the street, towards the station. By her calculations, she would have half a minute to spare. Li'l Twi was standing excitedly on Twilight's head and shoulders as usual, delighting in the rush of air in her face. The tiny hooves didn't seem to press down as much as before and Twilight felt that she was finally getting used to having her joyful companion.

"Oh, you do realise that you left the bandages back at the library, right?"

Twilight made another abrupt halt, surprising her rider, who kept moving forward at the same speed. Twilight watched with her heart in her mouth as the little filly sailed through the air in a graceful trajectory that was destined to land her on the cobbles, hard. The gleeful 'Wheeeee!' coming from Li'l Twi did not calm Twilight down at all. An instance before she would have impacted on the path, Li'l Twi blinked out of existence and appeared back on Twilight's back.

"That was fun! Do it again!"

Twilight heaved a sigh of relief, and then a second one of annoyance. Passers-by had noticed Twilight's strange antics, but were all studiously looking elsewhere and assiduously minding their own business. Two mares who had been standing close to each other leapt apart the moment they saw her. Twilight was briefly torn by their fear, but had to admit to herself that it was useful in this instance as there were no curious questions to delay her as she rushed to the library to get the bandages and other supplies.

"One minute, thirty seconds," said Li'l Twi helpfully as they left the library a second time.

Throwing caution to the wind, Twilight moved. As a pony, she could run fast; as a unicorn of considerable skill, she could teleport short distances with speed and precision; as a fanatically dedicated student of Princess Celestia, she was willing to disregard pony laws and laws of physics alike to do her duty. Twilight broke several civic ordinances in order to get to the station with ten seconds to spare, in a hair-raising run that left a trail of chaos and confusion in her wake. Li'l Twi stood by her, cheering, as Twilight stood on the platform, chest heaving.

The train pulled into the station eighteen minutes later.

--------------------

"Aaaaw! The chocolate and toffee must have gone away when I blinked back to you! I was going to eat that!"

---------------------

Princess Celestia of Equestria was taking tea in the Rosewood Room, chatting happily with one of her ladies-in-waiting, when Twilight was ushered in and asked to wait while the major-domo discretely announced her presence to the princess. Li'l Twi rushed forward to do her duty as Twilight waited.

"This is Princess Celestia of Equestria! She's got lots of other titles, but since you're not a civil servant, a priestess, a soldier or a fish, I don't think you need to remember them. She's really really nice and kind and old. She's kept you in a library in Canterlot, given you an air balloon and posted you to Ponyville. I'm sure that she isn't trying to hint that you should keep your distance, really.

"And this," here Li'l Twi pointed an accusatory hoof at the elegant unicorn sitting next to her, "Is one of her ladies-in-waiting. Big meanies. They don't like that Princess Celestia likes you more than them," Li'l Twi blew a defiant raspberry at her, and then paused for thought and added, "This one did give you a very tasty cookie for your sixth birthday, though, so she isn't all bad."

The major-domo whispered quietly in the Princess' ear, and the Princess cast an apologetic glance in Twilight's direction and waved her over.

"Twilight!" said Princess Celestia, "I'm delighted to see you. I didn't expect you to be able to get here until tomorrow at the earliest. I'm terribly sorry for the summons but a distinctly unfortunate rumour was circulating around Canterlot the last two days that needed to be addressed."

"Of course, Princess. I am so very sorry about this."

"Don't be," Celestia said with a broad smile, "You're a healthy young mare at the age when you start looking for love. I know that you tried to be discrete, but I'm sorry to say that it wasn't enough. Ponies saw you leaving the palace in a good mood and drew completely the wrong conclusion. Unfortunately, the Equestrian Sentinel Newspaper caught wind of the rumours and investigated."

"What!?"

"Calm yourself, Twilight Sparkle. They sent a reporter on the night train to Ponyville and she managed to take several photographs of you and Midnight Whispers in close embrace. I'm very sorry that the story has gotten out this way."

The princess called out to a servant and Twilight was soon presented with a newspaper whose front page clearly depicted Twilight kissing Midnight. "Bookworms Together: Celestia's Student Caught Canoodling with Luna's Researcher" read the headline. Eventually Twilight looked up from the paper with a red face, ready to confess all.

"Princess, I need to tell you-"

Princess Celestia cut her off with a wave of her hoof, "No need, Twilight. I've spoken with the editor of the Equestrian Sentinel News and she has promised to never breach your privacy again. I've also spoken with Luna and while she was as surprised by the paper as I was, she agreed that you lovebirds should not be held apart. She has given Midnight a week off to spend with you. Go to her. I truly hope that she is the one, Twilight. Best of luck."

Twilight stood there, speechless, until Celestia warmly commanded her to go. She turned and bolted.

----------------------

Finding Midnight wasn’t easy. She wasn’t in the library and the lunar guards didn’t know where she was. Eventually Twilight found her lying on the grass in a park, reading. Judging from the headphones and the way she was holding a book to shield her face, she was irritated by the unwanted attention, but felt unable to escape it without making things worse.

The combined effect of the book and headphones made it childishly easy to sneak up on her, which Twilight naturally did. She stalked her prey with an exaggerated pose, holding her body low, hooves lifted high for each step and placed with care. Li'l Twi bounced up and down with excitement. Once in range, Twilight playfully nipped at Midnight's pert posterior, more tongue than teeth, truth be told.

The surprised yelp would have drawn Midnight a lot of stares, if she hadn't already been the focus of attention already. The younger passers-by grinned at her and the older ones sighed at the state of youth today, perhaps a little enviously. She dropped her book and threw off her headphones to glare at her assailant. Shocked to see Twilight, she yelped again.

Twilight took the opportunity to lean in and say with a smouldering voice, "Hello Midnight - how would you like me to take you away from here and have my way with you?"

"I'd like that," said Midnight Whispers.

---------------------

Deciding that heading straight to Luna's bedchambers would attract far too much attention, the couple headed out for an early lunch before looking around Canterlot together. Twilight lead Midnight to a pleasant cafe, where they chatted over hay fries and salad and ignored the attention they were getting.

"So even Princess Celestia doesn't know about your alter ego?"

"I always use a different form when she and I go out on the town as ponies - a unicorn called 'Silver Stream'. Too many ponies know that Celestia has the form called 'Sunny Skies' and I worry that they would recognise that Silver Stream was me. To all observers, Midnight Whispers is a pegasus researcher I had join my retinue when I was re-ensconced in the palace. She spends most of her time exploring Equestria or researching in the library so no one notices if she is around or if she is not."

"I have a hard time believing that anyone doesn't notice that face, that body when she's nearby."

Luna blushed happily but said, "Well, I have been approached few times by amorous suitors, but I've always turned them away. None had been confident enough to approach Princess Luna until you did, and certainly none of them had the confidence to bite my rump."

Twilight grinned toothily.

"Now, I have a question," said Luna.

"Mmmm?" said Twilight, mouth full of salad.

"Who is this little filly that looks remarkably like you who is following us around?" she indicated with a hoof at Li'l Twi, who was busy trying to chase her own tail, giggling, "Judging from the lack of stares and slight transparency, I presume most ponies cannot see or hear her."

Li'l Twi bounded up to Princess Luna and said, "Hello! My name is Li'l Twi, and I'm here to help her remember stuff. Twilight created me 'cos she was worried that seducing you would take decades and she would need me to remember her boring life. And... and... oh, there's just so much embarrassing stuff to say, I don't know where to start! Like the time when she was a filly and got a tube of toothpaste-"

Twilight gave out a strangled shout and leapt on the figment, holding her hoof over the filly’s mouth while grinning nervously at Luna. "Heh, heh... constructs of the subconscious say the funniest things, don't they?"

Luna laughed and patted Li'l Twi on the head, "Don't worry, little one. We shall talk more when she's asleep."

Twilight was blushing hard as she returned to her seat.

Once they had finished eating, they fled to the Equestrian National Museum of Art, History and Magic. An imposing collection of buildings, holding the treasures salvaged from a dozen pre-reunification nations, it had the singular benefit of forbidding cameras on site.

---------------

"So, how many nations did you two actually conquer during the reunification? The history books tend to be a bit vague on the topic."

"Quite a few. Tia wasn't always kind, patient and scholarly, you know. She's really embarrassed about it now, but if you want to see her blush, just ask her about the time she lost her temper whilst negotiating the surrender of Manehattan and shouted so loudly that she knocked over the city gates."

----------------

"Oh dear, it looks like we're about to be kicked out."

"Is it really that late? It feels like we only just got here."

"Yes, it has been wonderful, but we need to make plans for dinner. I believe you're going to have to feed me at a very fine restaurant, to make up for all the naughty things I'm sure you plan to do to me tonight. Unless you want to eat at the palace?"

"If I'd known you were such high maintenance, I wouldn't have become a librarian," joked Twilight, "But don't worry, I've been saving up and I'll treat you to the best donuts in town."

----------------

Twilight made a big show of relenting, and took Luna to 'The Fat Asparagus'. A delicious three-course meal and a very nice bottle of wine later they left, Luna's wing draped over Twilight's back.

Rather than navigate the palace guard, Luna simply grabbed Twilight in a close embrace with all four hooves and flew them directly to her balcony. The view of Canterlot's lights falling away beneath her took Twilight's breath away. Luna opened the balcony doors with her magic and ushered Twilight into her bedroom. Twilight went inside to wait while Luna went to chat with her sister and raise the moon. Twilight quickly changed into the nurse's outfit and set her supplies in easy reach, before settling down to wait for her lover's return.

Twilight's Turn

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Written by RandomString Proofread by Knight of Cerebus

It didn't take long for Luna to come back in through the open balcony doors, grinning like a naughty schoolfilly, "She doesn't suspect-" she said, before stopping dead in her tracks at the sight of Twilight.

Rarity was a master craftspony, with an eye for detail and dedicated to perfection. She had made Twilight a ‘Naughty Nurse’ outfit to accentuate Twilight's natural beauty, and made it very well. The pristine white coat curved scandalously over her flank while the sleeves gave her long, slim legs that would complement any model. The neat collar contrasted beautifully with Twilight's long and graceful neck. Rarity's dresses didn't need to tell lies in this case, but they accentuated the truth wonderfully in Luna's eyes.

It wasn't the outfit that made Luna stop in her tracks, though, but rather Twilight’s innocently mischievous smile emphasised by a slight blush. She looked adorable and sexy.

"Excelsior!" said Luna, "I mean, *ahem* 'Hello Nurse Twilight! Are you here to take care-'"

Luna stopped suddenly, and then in response to Twilight's slightly panicked look, pointed behind her. Li'l Twi was sitting on the bed, looking attentive and curious.

Twilight facehoofed.

"Allow me," said Princess Luna, who summoned a rectangular black doorway into being, hovering in the air like a featureless monolith. She then trotted over to Li'l Twi and lifted the unresisting filly by the scruff of her neck with a carefully gentle bite.

“Wheee!”

“Luna, how can you do that? I thought I was the only pony who could interact with her. Well, Pinkie Pie and me, anyway.”

Luna swung her head around and carefully threw the filly through the dimensional portal.

"Oh my! Luna, it's full of toys!"

"She'll have fun in a dream playpen, I hope," said Luna as she dismissed the darkness, "I'll bring her back in the morning. As for your question, she is an animated illusion and a creature of the subconscious, so she falls into my domain. Anyway, enough questions for now. It’s time to have a little fun."

Luna moved to Twilight with a pegasus' grace and lowered her head to sniff at Twilight's hindquarters. Twilight playfully swatted Luna's head with her tail as she retreated.

"Ah! Ah! Ah! That is no way to treat a nurse."

"But nurse! I have a fever and you are my only cure!" Luna pressed forward, running her hooves along Twilight's flank and nuzzling her neck with urgency. Twilight was having none of it, and laughingly pushed her away.

"Twilight, please. Can we just have a little fun before we start? You look irresistible, I can't wait..."

"No! Bad goddess! Naughty goddess. Do you want me?" asked Twilight, striking a pose showing off her flank to good effect.

"Yes!" said Luna, almost drooling.

"Do you need me?" asked Twilight as she leaned forward, staring into Luna's eyes with barely restrained lust.

"Yes!"

"Would you do anything for me?" she asked, rubbing along Luna's side, making the princess shiver.

"Yes!"

"Good," said Twilight briskly, "Then you're going to be a good little patient and follow Nurse Twilight's orders."

Luna groaned with desire, but hung her head in acquiescence.

"Don't worry, Nurse Twilight will take good care of you," said Twilight, kissing her pet goddess on the forehead, "Now, you said that you had a fever. Let me consult my books."

Twilight turned away from Luna and buried her head in a book she laid out on the floor, deliberately turning her haunch to Luna. As the princess stared, Twilight coyly flicked her tail, briefly exposing her marehood. Luna groaned again.

"Ah ha!" said Twilight, "It says here that a fever can be a symptom for many maladies, including-" here she gasped for effect, "-poor hoof care!" She turned back to her patient, looking serious, "This is an emergency! We must act at once!"

"Um, are you sure? That sounds a little strange, maybe you should consult-"

"Are you impugning my medical training? I could have been a doctor, I'll have you know! Nurses just get sexier uniforms. Now, we must get the weight off your hooves immediately."

Twilight grasped the feebly complaining alicorn in her magical aura and easily lifted her off her hooves. Luna was disconcerted to find that the aura was putting just a little more pressure on certain parts of her body than others. It was very distracting.

"Now, it says here, 'a winged pony who spends insufficient time groundside may get sore hooves when walking. Immobilising the wings will encourage the pony to trot more, toughening up their hooves.' That should be easy: I brought bandages."

Luna found herself suddenly flipped upside down, bringing her barrel and wings within Twilight's reach. Luna's wings were already flaring out with arousal, but Twilight had done her homework. Tickling Luna under the wings caused her to laugh and squirm helplessly, reflexively bringing her wings back to her sides. Leaping at the opportunity, Twilight began to wrap Luna’s middle up in bandages.

After the first couple of turns were done with lightning fast magic, Twilight continued to bandage the goddess with her hooves. With each pass around Luna's body, Twilight caressed her lover, trailing hooves over the sensitive nerves on her wings and her ticklish belly. She also licked, kissed and nibbled at her neck, eliciting moans of pleasure. Luna reflexively tried to stretch her wings in arousal, but the bandages held them fast. It seemed to take forever for Twilight to completely cover her wings in gauze, tickling and teasing her all the while, but eventually a red faced Twilight decided that Luna wouldn't be flying again that night. After she tied off the bandages after the final pass she ran a trail of kisses up Luna's neck. Standing over the inverted mare's head, she leaned down and kissed her passionately. Breaking off the kiss and ignoring the unhappy noises this caused her patient to produce, she then deposited Luna on the bed.

"Phew. Right, where was I? Oh yes, your poor, poor hooves. Let's see, shall we? 'In the case of hooves already damaged by too much walking, it is important to protect them from further damage.' Isn't that nice and clear? Thankfully, I brought a LOT of bandages."

"Uh, nurse? I assure you that my hooves are fine. My fever has only gotten worse, though. Maybe you could help me..." Luna trailed off.

"Nonsense - the fever is just a symptom. Now please leave healthcare to the professionals. Shush, while I take care of you."

More rolls of bandages were brought out and magically unwound around each of Luna's hooves to the fetlocks with considerable speed, until it appeared that Luna had four white socks.

"Hmm, I need to get your poor hooves off the ground, to prevent further damage, but this isn't a proper hospital bed. Aha! I have it!"

Twilight climbed dexterously onto the bed and then onto Luna. Twilight then turned around and crouched over Luna's head. This put her marehood in easy licking distance for Luna, who was more than happy to oblige. As she squirmed and moaned with pleasure, Twilight doggedly bound all of Luna's hooves together with bandages. Each of Luna's long legs were now fully outstretched and touching at the hooves. Luna was far too busy eating out Twilight for her to be concerned about how helpless she was, so Twilight reluctantly dismounted Luna and the bed. Luna whined in disappointment.

"There!" said a slightly breathless Twilight, "That should keep your hooves nice and safe."

Taking advantage of Luna's helplessness, Twilight ran a hoof in a lazy circle over the goddess' inner thigh. Luna moaned. Twilight continued to rub, letting her hoof drift closer and closer to Luna's dripping marehood with each cycle. She brought her muzzle close, breathing on Luna’s swollen sex, causing her to gasp and arch her back. She stretched out her long, dexterous tongue and let it trail tantalisingly close to Luna's treasure.

Luna was twitching with need, "Please, please, please," she whispered.

"Diet!" exclaimed Twilight suddenly, pulling away her hoof and looking up.

"Aaaah! No! Please," howled a desperate Luna.

"Yes, diet is essential for healthy hooves. Let me see what I have in my bags," said Twilight, ignoring Luna's mounting frustration.

Twilight opened her saddlebags and leapt back with mock surprise as an orange rolled out, apparently of its own volition.

"Oh look," she said, "I think it likes you!" as the enchanted orange bounced onto the bed and then onto Luna. Its first point of contact was a part of Luna that was currently very sensitive, and Luna squawked in protest before it rolled up her body. She opened her mouth to protest, but before she could say a word, it bounced in, gagging her.

Luna tried to spit out the orange, but its enchantment held it in place. She tried squashing it with her jaws, but it simply deflected and then bounced back into shape when the pressure was gone. Thrashing her head side to side did nothing.

"Now who's intimate with animated oranges?" asked Twilight smugly. Luna glared in reply.

"Okay, quickly: one quick moan is a 'yes', two are a 'no' and three are 'red' or 'stop'. Okay?"

"Mmm"

"Good," said Twilight before kissing Luna on the cheek.

"Now, we've taken action to prevent further damage. We've got the diet sorted. Now we need to see if all this hard work has had any effect," Twilight completely ignored the expanding sodden area that was forming on the bed around Luna's haunches, "Hmm, I can't just look at your hooves because of all those bandages... I know! Keratin! I just need to inspect your horn. Very, very closely."

Luna's eyes widened and she gave a long moan of desire and need.

With an exaggerated leer Twilight approached Luna, eyes fixed on struggling Luna's horn. A purple magic aura sprung up, wrapping around Luna's head, holding it firmly in place. With a little giggle, she settled down at the head of the bed and began to lick. She started with a few flicking tongue licks, barely touching Luna's highly sensitive horn, and was rewarded with a few muffled yelps and twitches. Starting at the base of the horn, she slowly worked her way along its graceful length, teasing it with her tongue as Luna panted and struggled mightily in her bonds.

Once Twilight had finally reached the tip of Luna's horn, she gave it a little suck, causing her lover's breath to catch and body to freeze. Releasing the pressure, she worked her way back down, licking continuously. Luna was breathing fast now, and Twilight was keen to get to the main event. Quick kisses and powerful licks took her back to the tip of Luna's horn. She took as much of Luna's long horn in her mouth as she could, closed her lips around it and sucked hard. Luna came within seconds. Twilight greedily sucked at the torrent of magic that was released.

"Hah! Your horn appears to be in fine shape," Twilight told the gasping princess, releasing her, and then sighed theatrically, "Medicine is rewarding work, but now I'm feeling thirsty. Hmmm."

Luna was unable to recover her senses enough to respond before Twilight had strolled round to the foot of the bed and began lapping up the plentiful fluids she found there. Her questing tongue soon found the source of the liquid and pressed its way in. Luna was still highly sensitive from her horngasm, and was soon moaning and groaning loudly as Twilight explored Luna's marehood with her agile tongue, gently teasing Luna's nub with her hoof as she worked.

Twilight already knew some of what Luna liked, but was as-ever eager to find new things to try. Long, slow, circular licks seemed to be appreciated, but running her tongue in and out at speed was even better. She soon fell into a rhythm, switching between slow and fast motions as Luna's cries of pleasure escalated in volume. Twilight was happily experimenting when she found a new nerve cluster with her writhing tongue. It was enough to set Luna off again, back arched and high-pitched noises coming from around the gag orange.

She had a long evening planned and knew that Luna would need this initial release from above and below if she was to stand for the further teasing Twilight had in mind, but still Twilight was disappointed that Luna didn't last any longer. The finale, a double orgasm from both ends, was hours away in Twilight's plan and she didn't want to have to rush it.

"Now really, Miss Luna. That is most disappointing performance from an alicorn. You are clearly lacking in resolve and moral fibre. I shall have to punish you now, in order to help you build character."

Relying on alicorns sharing earth ponies' endurance, Twilight lowered her head again to force Luna into a couple more orgasms, in the hope that it would teach her a lesson.

As Luna thrashed around in the ecstasy of her third orgasm, Twilight still had her head buried between Luna's legs. As such, neither pony noticed Princess Celestia enter the room through the balcony windows until she exclaimed, "Oh!"

Both ponies on the bed froze, and then turned to look at Celestia, blushes starting to form on their cheeks. There was absolutely no way that Celestia could misinterpret the scene before her. Twilight's mind seized up and she began to quietly panic, "I... I... We... er..."

Luna wasn't doing much better, struggling to free herself from her bonds to speak with her sister, only to find that Twilight had enchanted the bandages to resist both Luna's deific strength and her divine magic. Her new struggles were having some effect, but it would take her minutes to break free.

Princess Celestia raised a hoof to quiet both mares, "I'm very sorry to have disturbed both of you. It was not my intention to interrupt anything; I merely observed that Luna's light was on and her balcony doors open, and thought that she wished to talk with me.

"Please forgive my intrusion. I am, however, very happy for the both of you and would like to congratulate you both over breakfast tomorrow morning, if you would care to join me."

With that, Celestia turned to leave. Seeing Luna's struggles, Twilight quickly grasped the bandages with her magic and started unwrapping Luna. Frustrated with the speed, Luna simply teleported off the bed, leaving the bandages and orange behind. The orange made a mad leap towards the princess of the night, but was captured by Twilight's magic before it could cause further problems. Luna called out to Celestia and made to follow her, leaving Twilight holding the orange, feeling embarrassed and alone. She didn't want to think that she had disappointed Princess Celestia, but despite her mentor's kind words, she thought that she had.

Morosely, she started tidying up after their games, putting away her toys and rolling back up the bandages. Luna was quick to return, but the mood was ruined and Twilight rejected Luna's half-hearted advances. Wordlessly, the two cleared up the last of the mess and settled down to sleep.

-------------

It was raining, the sky thick with clouds. Twilight's coat was sodden, her mane bedraggled and stuck to her neck. She was lying on the grass on the top of a hill, overlooking a summer meadow, blanketed with flowers and grasses, but the scene gave her no joy.

A dull ache in her side confused her, and she tried to remember where it had come from, until she remembered Luna and realised that she was dreaming. Still feeling apathetic, Twilight lay there, letting herself be rained upon. Her memories were distant and faint, but the rain suited her mood.

That was where Luna found her, after she finally fell asleep. Luna joined her on the hill, shielding most of her body from the rain with a great wing. She toyed with the idea of dismissing the rain, but decided against it. Experience taught her that dream weather could be a useful indicator of the dreamer's mood.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked softly.

"No thanks," whispered Twilight.

Luna snuggled to Twilight's side for a while, trying to keep her dry and warm, and feeling rather helpless. Immortals are nothing if not patient, however, so she waited. After a while Twilight shifted slightly closer to Luna. A little later she shifted a leg to bring it under Luna’s wing. Eventually, she sighed and turned her head to look at Luna.

"Luna, you mean a great deal to me. You're beautiful and elegant and powerful and mysterious and wonderful and wise and it makes me dizzy sometimes to think that you might be mine. But Princess Celestia, she practically raised me, taught me everything, was always there for me when I needed her: she means the world to me. I owe her everything and the most important thing to me for most of my life was to impress her, to make her happy, make her proud; to try to earn some small portion of everything she gave to me," Twilight’s voice was rising in volume, "And then she walked through those balcony doors and saw me with my head between your legs wearing a 'naughty nurse' costume!" the last few words were delivered in a shout and dripping with self-contempt.

Luna kissed Twilight’s tears gently, "Twilight, I've known my sister for far longer than you. She can be manipulative, she can let you deceive yourself, she can hide her feelings far better than I can, but one thing I have learned about her is that she will not, she cannot, lie. She said that she was happy for both of us.

"Dearest Twilight, my sister loves you. She understands what it is like to to have needs. She knows ponies like to have fun. She wants you to have a full life. You locking yourself into her library and never kissing another pony is what would disappoint her."

Twilight was silent, but the rain clouds above started to lighten.

"What else is bothering you, Twilight?"

Again, the answer was slow in coming and when it did it was in a whisper, "Feel so stupid..."

"Mmm?"

"I feel stupid. I had this whole night planned out. I spent ages enchanting the bandages, the oranges, making a humorously-sized thermometer... Then the night is over before it really started and I feel really let down. And it's so stupid that I'm reacting so strongly to being let down because you must have felt just this way when I messed up your plans with my reload spell."

"Uh, oranges? As in more than one?"

"I made some smaller ones as well. They, um, they vibrated."

"And a humorously-sized thermometer? I'm suddenly rather grateful to Tia for the rescue," laughed Luna. Her smile faded when she saw Twilight's face.

"You didn't enjoy it then?" asked Twilight, stricken.

"I enjoyed it, but I must admit that I thought that was almost it. Teasing, release, I would please you in thanks for your wonderful treatment and then we would sleep. I'm not sure I would enjoy hours of such treatment."

"I thought you would like it," said Twilight despondently.

Luna noted with alarm that the clouds were darkening again and the rain was getting colder, harder.

"Twilight, I like you. Not the toys, not the teasing. Being with you. Making you happy."

"But that's not everything. It can't be. What do you really- No, no. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm pushing again. Stupid Twilight."

"You are NOT stupid, Twilight. It is I who should be sorry. I... I do not wish to talk about this. It is, it is not appropriate."

"Okay," said Twilight in a small voice, with teary eyes.

After a pause Luna spoke as if to the wind, in a level voice, "The world doesn't feel real to me at times. There is very little that can hurt me, even less that can kill me. Ponies don't touch me. They don't talk back, they just obey. I have my sister, but we barely see each other as I am of the night as she is of the day.

"I became distant. Cold. Like my moon. I was desperate for some warmth and you gave it to me. You hold me close and I need that. I need something to balance the fear and the worship. You anchor me to Equestria, let me see ponies as beings rather than an array of multi-coloured toys."

The rain was letting up, the winds dying down.

"So you want me to disrespect you?"

Luna laughed tiredly, "I want to do whatever it takes to make you happy. But sometimes I think what I need is for somepony to make sure that I don't always get what I want, or at least not straight away. To treat me like any other pony.

"So, um, if you occasionally find yourself wanting a princess to kneel before you and kiss your hooves, ah, I may be able to accommodate you. You may, um, use me for your pleasure, every now and then."

"So the bandages, the orange..."

The clouds above were parting, allowing sun beams to fall upon the meadow.

"Made me feel slightly helpless, yes. They were commendably strong."

"And if Princess Celestia hadn't interrupted us and I had tormented you for hours..."

"Then if my willpower held out, and I did not break you bandages in a lust-fuelled frenzy, then yes..."

"So you did enjoy it!"

"Um, yes. Thank you."

Luna kissed Twilight. The clouds were gone now, and a brilliant rainbow had formed in the distance. Luna would have preferred kissing Twilight under moonlight, but she was willing to make concessions for her lover and a rainbow would do, for now.

They might have stayed joined in a kiss for some time if they weren't disturbed by a squawk and a thud behind them. They both turned in alarm to find a grey-coated, blonde-maned pegasus mare lifting herself up off of the ground.

"Uh, sorry about that," said the mare, "I can get between dreams just fine, but I kinda mess up the landings sometimes," her eyes seemed to be taking a while to focus on the couple, "Oh! Hello Twilight. Are you having a nightmare about Princess Luna kissing you? That's a strange nightmare, but maybe I can help."

Twilight was staring at the mare, trying to understand what she was doing in her dream, so Luna stepped forward.

"Hello Ditzy Doo. I am not a nightmare, I am real."

"Oh! Hello Princess Luna. I'm sorry. You are not having a nightmare about kissing Twilight Sparkle then? Because that would be a really strange nightmare. I don't know if I could help with that one if you were."

Twilight shook herself, "Hello Derpy. Yes, I'm real too. I was having a bad dream and Luna, uh, Princess Luna came to help me."

"Oh! You can help people with their nightmares by kissing them? Nopony's shown me that technique yet. Must be part of the advanced stuff."

"It was relevant to the dream," said Luna, "Since you mainly help foals, please don't try yourself."

"Oh! Okay," said Derpy.

There was a brief, uncomfortable silence.

"So Derpy, I didn't know you were a dream walker," said Twilight.

"Yup. Have been for ages and ages. Haven't you seen my cutie mark?"

Twilight stared for the umpteenth time at Derpy's cutie mark, and suddenly she recognised it for what it was - a series of dream bubbles in a rising plume.

"Anyway, I'd better go, I think the boss has this one under control. Bye Twilight, bye boss!"

Twilight watched Derpy fly away and into the dreamscape.

"Ditzy Doo is a credit to the dream walkers. As I said before, we welcome those with courage and kindness, and she has a great deal of both. She is also very good with foals."

Twilight sighed with mild frustration.

"Hmm?" queried Luna.

"Oh, it's nothing. I was just thinking that even here in dreams, we're still being interrupted."

Luna laughed.

"Since we're talking about our relationship," started Twilight, in an appallingly bad segue.

"Yes..."

"I am a little worried about the amount of time you're spending with me. It's very flattering, but I'm worried that I might be causing you to, um, neglect, your duties?"

Luna laughed.

"Never fear, dearest Twilight, all is under control. In truth, I do not yet hold equal burden to my sister. Night court is busy enough handling civil disputes, but it goes more smoothly if I am there but one day in a week. My ponies know their work well and the petitioners are still intimidated by my presence. My other duties consist of arranging the heavens, which I do not neglect, and the stewardship of the dreaming.

"The dreaming was overgrown with weeds when I returned to it, but after long and arduous labour my garden is again growing beautifully and we have dream walkers enough to protect the dreamers and maintain it without my constant intervention."

“That’s a relief, thank you.”

"And on the topic of one's duties, how does your library fare?"

"Aheh, I'm sure that Spike has it all under control. I'll owe him a big thank you for keeping it running whilst I'm here in Canterlot, but giving him a handful of gems and a day off is usually enough to keep him happy."

With the rain gone, the breeze was bringing the smell of summer flowers from the meadow wafting over the hill. Twilight took a deep breath and sighed.

“Mmm, that smells delicious. Shall we?”

Luna and Twilight trotted down to the meadow, Twilight’s cares forgotten.

Civilized Pleasures

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Written by RandomString Proofread by Knight of Cerebus

Twilight woke snuggled up under Luna's wing and with Luna curled protectively around her. She saved, but made no other movement, for fear of waking her lover.

She needn't have worried as Luna woke very soon after she did, and bid her a sleepy good morning. With a yawn, Luna stretched and carelessly discarded her silken bedsocks, a sight that would live forever in Twilight's heart and fantasies.

As Luna sleepily headed out to her balcony, Twilight got out of bed, albeit without the grace exhibited by Luna, and headed to the shower. By the time Luna had lowered the moon and returned to her chambers Twilight was fully presentable. It took a little longer for Luna to prepare, but soon enough they headed down, side by side, to the Ivy Veranda for breakfast with Princess Celestia. Twilight had to trot a little to keep up with Luna's long strides.

"Welcome, Luna, Twilight," said Celestia, "I apologise again for intruding upon you last night. I am very happy to see you two together.

Twilight rushed forward to nuzzle Celestia adoringly and Celestia hugged her in return. Luna stepped forward and joined in the hug, making Twilight almost dizzy with happiness.

Twilight adored Princess Celestia, and treasured these moments of honest affection. For her part, the princess had always cultivated an informal relationship with Twilight, relishing the experience of having a pony around who would not shy away from contact and would not hesitate to let Celestia know her feelings.

"Well," said Princess Celestia, "Shall we take our seats? It wouldn't do to let our breakfast get cold."

Thankfully Prince Blueblood was not an early riser, so there were just three places laid out. As the table was set at a height suitable for Princess Celestia's comfort, a booster seat was set aside for Twilight. Luna courteously held it for Twilight before seating herself on a cushion by her side.

Celestia sat down on a gold tasselled cushion of her own, which groaned in protest. Getting back up with some alarm, Celestia inspected the cushion and then glared at Princess Luna, who had been innocently loading her plate with waffles.

"Time for another diet, Tia?" Luna asked with a smirk.

"It seems as though somepony has enchanted this cushion. Anything you'd like to say, Luna?"

Luna was the very picture of confused innocence but nopony at the table was the least bit fooled. Seeing that she wouldn't be getting any response from her sister, Celestia cast a quick spell on the cushion and sat down again. This time the cushion made a happy sigh of contentment.

"Thank you for joining me for breakfast, my dears. Or at least it is breakfast for me. I presume this is supper for you, Luna?"

"Oh no, I've shifted my sleep cycle to more closely match Twilight's. This is breakfast for me as well," Luna said. When Celestia raised an eyebrow she continued, "We'll settle on a working schedule later, but I want to spend time with Twilight right now, so I'm taking a week off from my night court duties and keeping daylight hours."

Celestia nodded in understanding as she poured herself a cup of tea. Once the cup was full, she noted with alarm that the tea was churning alarmingly. No sooner had she made the observation then the tea leapt out of the cup in the form of a miniature tea elemental. Seeing that it was on a breakfast table, a naturally hostile environment for tea elementals, it sploshed over to the sugar cube tongs and hoisted them defensively as it backed away.

Celestia watched the elemental form of her beloved breakfast beverage back away from her, concern written on her face. When she reached out a calming hoof, the elemental threatened it with the tongs and she withdrew. Unfortunately for the elemental, it had not accounted for the tablecloth. It soaked up a portion of the elemental's being with every inch it backed away, until it lacked the substance to hold the tongs. With a psychic howl of defiance, its morphogenic field collapsed, the tongs dropped with a thud, the tea dispersed over the cloth and the elemental's spirit returned to the elemental plane of tea.

Celestia sighed, inspected her teacup and called over a servant, "I'm sorry, but somepony," here she shot a glare at her sister, "has carved some very small ancient summoning glyphs on the bottom of my teacup, admittedly with considerable skill. Could you please fetch me one that will not animate my Assam and pass this one on to Doctor Flash of the Academy? He may find it to be of interest."

"Of course, Your Highness."

Twilight snagged the cup in her aura before it could be handed over and peered inside.

"Ooh, nice work!" she said to Luna before passing the cup onto the servant with a stammered apology.

Luna hid her giggles behind her own teacup while Twilight suddenly became very interested in the tea trail on the tablecloth. She found to her delight that the waterproofing spell she had learned from Mrs. Beastson's Book of Household Management worked admirably on tea as well. There would not be a stain.

Princess Celestia soon had her cup of inanimate black tea and sipped happily.

"So, as I was going to say, congratulations! I was so happy to see you two together. Luna, Twilight is a wonderful pony and hopefully she will be a calming influence on you. Twilight, Luna can be infuriating sometimes, but I love her. Please forgive her, well, everything."

"Hey!" shouted an irate Luna, in between mouthfuls of syrup-soaked waffles.

Twilight cowered a little, caught in the middle of the sibling conflict, meekly eating her buttered toast. Catching on to her distress, the sisters locked eyes and nodded slightly, agreeing to a temporary truce.

"I'm sorry Luna, that was unkind of me."

"It is quite alright, Tia. I would prefer, however, if our status did not leave this table. The attention on Twilight should pass more quickly if she is seen to be having a stable relationship with Midnight, rather than me."

"Of course, Luna. I shall not make it public," said Celestia.

Twilight relaxed once the breakfast continued without incidence and conversation started to flow. She was smiling happily by the time that Princess Celestia gave in to her desires and asked for the number two cake trolley (sponge cakes and variants) to be brought by. Luna suddenly tensed.

"Oh, you don't need a slice of cake at this time of day, Tia," she said.

"No, no, I feel that this calls for a small celebration. Cake all round. I'm sure you two will find a way to work off the calories," she said with a knowing smile.

Luna had a slightly panicked look in her eye, and turned to Twilight. Before she could form the words, the trolley maid gave a little shriek as the slice of cake that Celestia had chosen sprouted wings and tried to fly away.

Celestia straightened and turned on Luna with a glint in her eye, ignoring for the moment the earth pony maid desperately leaping at the animated angel cake. She very discretely nudged the trolley a few inches with a hoof. Only the most sensitive of observers would have noticed the brief, faint glow on Princess Celestia's horn, or the ensuing slight change in the flying cake's trajectory.

"You're right, Luna, I really should cut back on the cake. Let's have some fruit instead. Would you like an orange?"

Luna froze and then blushed. There was a crashing noise as the maid mistimed a leap and crashed into the number two cake trolley. Normally the fast and lithe Luna would have been able to easily dodge the sponge cake that was catapulted towards her, but her mind was occupied for a brief, perfectly timed, moment.

"Oh dear," said Princess Celestia, with noticeably worse acting skills than Princess Luna.

Luna scraped the rich icing from her face with a hoof and said in a clear voice, "This means war!" There wasn't anywhere near enough icing left on her face to mask her happy grin.

"I'm looking forward to it," said Princess Celestia with a broad and honest smile.

Luna bowed, turned and left. Celestia calmed the servants and assured them that all was well. Twilight, who had escaped the carnage except for a small volley of cupcakes, nervously made to follow Luna, but was held back by Princess Celestia.

"Twilight, a moment alone, please."

They walked a little way down the veranda, giving the servants room to clear up the mess. Once they were clear of the wreckage, Princess Celestia turned to Twilight and hugged her tightly, tears in her eyes.

"Thank you, Twilight. Thank you."

Princess Celestia wiped her eyes.

"Oh, that was wonderful. I've been having breakfast with Luna for years now, after you returned her to me, but she was changed. Unhappy, uncertain. She barely smiled and said little. Oh, thank you Twilight for bringing her back to life. Oh Mother, I've got my little sister back."

Twilight was quick to understand, and hugged Celestia in return, feeling proud beyond words.

"She was a little late joining me in my dreams last night. I did wonder what she was up to," said Twilight in a shaky voice.

"Well, now you know what it was like between us before things went bad. This palace has no idea what it is in for," Celestia chuckled, "Luna is nothing if not thorough in her pranks, so the rest of my cake trolleys are likely enchanted as well. I had better go and deal with them. Meanwhile, hold out your hoof."

Twilight bemusedly held out her hoof. A brief spark launched itself from Celestia's horn and hit the slice of angel cake whose chaotic path had taken it above their heads. Disenchanted, it fell and landed square on Twilight's hoof.

"Enjoy your cake, Twilight, and thank you again."

Twilight munched on the cake as she headed back to Luna's quarters. It was delicious.

--------------

The lunar guards waved Twilight through to Luna's quarters without hesitation but with barely hidden smile.

Once inside, Twilight found Luna on her bed, grinning like Pinkie Pie.

"Where have you been? Oh, nevermind, that was glorious! Did you see the expression on her face when her tea ran away? Ha ha! I should have done that sooner."

"I was very impressed by the amount of effort it must have taken to get all that done so quickly."

"Oh," said Luna blithely, "it was mostly just simple animations. The real trick is knowing how to use them for greatest impact."

"You seem to have mastered the animation of objects, Luna. Do you know ancient secrets on the art?"

"Well, there's a limited number of options for passing ones time when banished to the moon. My arts aren't ancient, just the result of some dedicated practice and uninterrupted research. I can't create life, but I can make some very realistic simulacrums. I'll teach you sometime."

"I'd love that. Oh, you reminded me," said Twilight before rummaging around in her saddlebags, "I brought that book on teaching that you might find interesting. I was hoping I could lend it to you in return for the dream walking book you mentioned."

Luna happily swapped the neatly bound book in good condition for a thinner, tatty and stained book that was barely held together by its binding. Twilight couldn't help but feel that she got the better end of the deal as she reverentially opened the book.

"Wow. Thanks, Luna. I can't wait to start reading this. The hours on the train back to Ponyville will fly by. Unless you want to come with me? The next train leaves in an hour or so, we have plenty of time to catch it."

"No, thanks. In fact, you won't be going to Ponyville today. Spike can handle one more day without you. We shall both go there tomorrow."

"Um, why not?" asked Twilight, trying hard not to be annoyed.

"Because, my dear Twilight, tonight you are mine. And while Ponyville has much to offer, I have seen no indication that it has a dungeon that can compare to the one in Canterlot castle. Tonight, you will be a guest of the dungeon but do not worry: Gaoler Luna will give you her personal attention. Mmmm, I see the idea excites you."

Luna laughed at the expressions warring over Twilight's face.

Eventually Twilight responded, "You... um... er... okay."

"Good little pony. You see the advantages of dating a princess: we get all the best toys and we love to share. Now, I need to prepare for my holiday, and for tonight, so go ahead and read your book. There may be questions later."

Luna started to leave when Twilight suddenly said, "Little Twilight!"

"Oops. I am sorry, Twilight, I completely forgot about your little friend. I am sure she's fine, but I shall recall her."

Luna created again the black gate and reached her head through. Twilight heard a familiar overly dramatic voice calling out, "Noooo!"

After a pause Luna pulled her head back out, carrying Li'l Twi by the scruff of her neck. The little filly had a blue ball, almost as big as she was, clutched in a deathgrip with all four legs. When she was deposited on the bedroom floor, she hugged the ball possessively.

"There were balls EVERYWHERE! All gone! But this one is MINE, and I'm keeping it," she said defiantly to the alicorn goddess.

"See," Luna said to Twilight, "She's fine."

-----------------

Li'l Twi explained to Twilight that while being abandoned in Toyland was wonderful, she was deeply disappointed in Twilight for not bringing her to the prank-filled breakfast and would not hear of any excuses, least of all Twilight’s ignorance that fun was going to happen there. As revenge, she pointed out to Twilight that the newspapers would have told her parents firstly that she was in town and secondly that she had a marefriend, and they might appreciate a quick visit and a brief chat.

Twilight managed to cut the mortifying visit to her parents in the morning down to a few excruciating hours of explaining where she had been, what she had been up to and why her new marefriend wasn't joining them. She left after an excellent lunch, promising to bring Midnight by the next time she visited. It seemed as though Luna had plans to make her suffer that evening and Twilight was only too happy to reciprocate.

The rest of the time was spent devouring the book Luna had lent her. She suspected from Luna's parting comment that learning its contents would help make the night slightly less traumatic; thankfully it was fascinating reading: a compilation of the journals of various dream walkers, explaining their thoughts and findings.

Twilight had retreated to Luna's chambers for privacy and was settled on the great bed, re-reading the large section on dream crafting when Luna came in carrying a small feast and a small jar of hard cider.

They settled down to supper, chatting casually about their day and their studies. Luna had managed to read some of the teaching guide book that Twilight had lent her and had a number of questions on the topic. Twilight was happily expounding on the topic of usefulness of repetition when she carelessly tossed the last morsel from her plate into her mouth.

Whilst Twilight was chewing, Luna said, "Well, that was an enjoyable meal and thank you for the fascinating conversation. Now the servants will be in shortly to clean up, so we'd better make room for them and get the evening started."

Twilight yelped with surprise when she found herself enwrapped in a pale blue aura that experience told her she could not escape. Scrabbling with desperate futility, Twilight was helpless as she was hoisted in the air and turned to face away from the direction Luna was going as she trotted out her chamber doors.

"Hello, Umbral, Nocturnal," Luna said to the guards as she passed, "I'm just taking my pet down to the dungeons. Please disregard any screams you might hear."

"Of course, your highness. Have a pleasant evening."

Luna happily trotted down the corridor, Twilight held aloft behind her like a filly's prized balloon. Twilight watched the doors to Luna's chamber retreat behind her and tried to ignore the guards' knowing smirks. One even had the audacity to mockingly wave goodbye to her.

Once the doors were out of sight, Twilight tried to work out where they were going, but it was hard to orientate herself whilst she was moving backwards. Somewhere between Luna and Celestia's quarters, they stopped. Soon she heard the loud clunk of an old lock being released and the creak of a door being opened. She watched helplessly as they descended deep under the palace, the window of light through the door above getting smaller and then being cut off entirely.

In almost complete darkness, Twilight quickly lost track of the turns that Luna made, until they entered a well-lit larger chamber. Luna finally listened to Twilight's protestations and turned her around to see. It was laid out like a school room.

Twilight could instantly see her seat - only one of the chairs was festooned with straps and buckles and sitting in the middle of a small magic circle designed to cancel unicorn magic. She was gently placed there and strapped in, her arms and legs held wide apart. The analytical part of her mind noted that the circle cancelled her magic but had no impact on Luna's. She filed that observation away for later thought.

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<Author's Note> Some readers have commented that while the following section was consensual, it read as more 'hardcore' than the rest of this story and expressed a dislike for it. Please be aware that nothing of consequence in relation to the plot happens past this point and it may be safely skipped if you so desire.</Author's Note>
-------------------

"There, that should keep you from doing anything naughty. Now, I need to go and raise my moon, but I'll be right back afterwards. Why don't you get yourself acquainted with your classmates while you wait?" Luna grabbed Li'l Twi on her way out of the door. Alone, Twilight shivered in the cold air. A quick test of her bonds revealed that she would not be escaping without help. There had been nopony else in the room when they came in, so Twilight was left guessing who her classmates were until the door opened behind her and the chatter of several ponies could be heard.

"Hello," called out Twilight, twisting in her chair to try and see the new ponies. Considering the school environment, she strongly suspected that she would be at the mercy of some illusionary bullies until Luna decided to save her.

"Oh look, somepony new!” It was a mare’s voice, and sounded warm and friendly.

Twilight soon found herself surrounded by beautiful young mares of all tribes, body shapes and colours. None of them seemed the least surprised to find her strapped into a chair and in an anti-unicorn magic circle.

"Oh, I love your hair. Those bangs, those highlights. Are they natural?", asked a grey-coated earth pony with an athlete’s physique.

"Oh, look at her eyes, they're so pretty!", observed a honey-coloured unicorn to a pony that must have been her twin sister.

"I'm Sky Drifter, what's your name?", asked a sky-blue pegasus with big green eyes.

Twilight blushed at the compliments and stammered in her attempts to return them, but her analytical mind pointed out the hooves of the earth ponies and unicorns didn't quite touch the ground. Without access to her magic she had to guess their nature, and decided that they were most likely phantasmal servants hung with sophisticated illusions and-

That was as far as she got before one of the ponies stroked her neck, shattering her thoughts with a gentle touch. The ponies seemed to be delighted with Twilight and now wanted to touch her, caress her; Sky Drifter in particular seemed eager to kiss her, full on the lips.

So Luna has decided to torment me as I did her. Surrounding me with beautiful mares that I could have if only I wasn't tied up. They will tease me until Luna shows up at just the wrong moment... Twilight thought, this is going to be hard, I'm already very aroused and she won't go easy on me...

Sure enough, the ponies started taking greater liberties, seemingly trying to one-up one another to elicit the greatest response from her. The caress of her cutie mark earned a sharp intake of breath. A hoof trailing over her belly got a moan. A nibble on one ear drew congratulatory comments from the other mares when a damp patch started to form on the base of Twilight's seat.

One enterprising pegasus hovered directly over Twilight's head and teased Twilight's horn with her tail. Twilight groaned and thrashed her head side to side to no avail. Taking a different tack, she made an effort to refocus her mind. Twilight took deep breaths in an effort to calm herself, control her arousal and bring matters back in hand.

It was working until she felt a jet of air on her marehood.

Looking down she was horrified to see a cheerful Sky Drifter positioned neatly between her legs. Each breath Sky exhaled sent a jet of air onto her sensitive sex and a shiver up her spine.

"What are you doing there?" Twilight asked in a high-pitched voice.

Sky Drifter licked her swollen marehood in reply.

"Aaaah!"

Taking that as permission to continue, Sky Drifter began to slowly lick Twilight's sex, taking her time about it. Each time she breathed out, another gust of air tickled Twilight's sensitive nub, causing her to moan.

Whilst this was going on, the other ponies were continuing their game of stimulating Twilight to get a reaction. Her horn was still being massaged by the pegasus' tail, and now the unicorn twins were stroking her neck and mane from either side.

"Feel how silky her coat is, Amber," said one. She was answered by a giggle from her twin.

Sky Drifter began to push her tongue deeply into Twilight, still slowly licking but in a far more sensitive area.

Twilight was beginning to doubt her 'torment' theory as it was taking all her willpower to resist the waves of pleasure coming at her from all directions. Her attempts to shy away were thwarted by her bonds. She was far too aroused to articulate a defence.

A large mint green earth pony mare walked in front of her field of vision, and assessed her situation. She then strolled behind Twilight, grasped a mouthful of mane from the base of Twilight’s neck and pulled. This coincided with a particularly powerful blast of air from Sky Drifter's muzzle.

Twilight came, loudly. The circle she was in prevented a full horngasm, but the orgasm still left Twilight gasping and twitching in the chair. The mares surrounding her applauded, laughing. They complimented Twilight on her stamina and promised to get her to climax faster next time. They were joking, Twilight hoped.

Once she had gotten her breath back, most of the ponies returned to their seats, awaiting their teacher, but Sky Drifter seemed to like where she was just fine. Before Twilight could discretely hint that she should move, Sky began licking her again, an evil look in her eye.

Already sensitive, Twilight was having a harder time resisting the mare's advances this time. Unable to stop her mouth with a hoof, she was making quite a racket when Luna entered the school room, wearing black robes and a mortar board.

The rest of the class rose respectfully as Luna took position in front of the large blackboard.

"Good evening, class."

"Good evening, Miss Luna," they chorused in return.

"Ah... Ah... Ah... Ah...," cried Twilight.

"Miss Twilight Sparkle! You are forgiven for not rising, given the circumstances, but you shall still show respect to your teachers! Is that clear?"

"Aaaaah," wailed Twilight.

"Miss Twilight Sparkle, if you do not respond clearly by saying 'Yes, Miss Luna', you shall earn a demerit! If you earn three demerits during a semester, you shall be severely punished. Is that clear?"

Sky Drifter chose this point to suck gently on Twilight's highly sensitive nub. Twilight's orgasms were never quiet and this one was no exception, shouting her joy to the rest of the class.

She barely noticed a grinning Sky Drifter finally going to her seat, licking her lips, nor Miss Luna writing her name on the blackboard in a box labelled 'Demerits', with a strike next to it.

"You are on notice, Miss Sparkle," she said warningly.

When Twilight managed to focus on the board she was horrified to see her name sitting alone in the demerits box. This was her first black mark in her educational career. She just hoped now that no-one would ever ask her what she did to earn her first warning from a teacher, as the story would be rather embarrassing.

"Now then, class. I am happy to say that I have a little surprise for later. In order to encourage meretricious participation, I shall be handing out credits during this class. The first student to receive three credits shall get a very nice reward."

There was a murmur of eager approval from the students. Twilight's ears perked up at the thought of a reward for academic achievement. She wanted that reward.

"Let's begin by having a quiz. If you think you know the answer, raise your hoof. You may just bob up and down in your chair as much as you are able, Miss Sparkle.

"Firstly, what is the primary duty of all dream walkers?

"Yes, Miss Sparkle?"

"Keep the nightmares at bay, Miss Luna."

"Very good, Miss Sparkle."

Luna continued the quiz, throwing out questions related to the book that she had lent to Twilight. Despite the impressive reflexes and knowledge displayed by the rest of the class, Twilight's studying paid off and she won the most points in the quiz, earning her a credit. Twilight was beaming with pride as she was congratulated by the other students.

Next came a written test on the subject. With neither horn nor hooves, Twilight was forced to grab a pen in her mouth and crane her neck to fill in the form, but she started work with determination.

She had barely finished the first question when she felt something tickle her chest. She ignored it and kept on writing. A faint giggle to one side made her quickly glance in that direction. One of the unicorn twins was looking at her, wearing a cunning smile. Her horn was glowing.

"Eyes forward, Miss Sparkle! You are still on notice, remember."

Twilight returned back to the test in front of her. The tickling came back, and started drifting down her body. She pulled back and looked to see with horror that somepony was holding the feathered end of a quill in her magical aura and tracing it over her body. While it was moving in a random path, there was no denying it had a downward trend and soon enough-

"Oooh..."

"Twilight Sparkle! If I hear one more peep out of you, you shall receive another demerit!"

Twilight gasped and returned to work, blushing furiously. The quill returned to work as well, but Twilight's resolve was strong. It wasn't until she felt another feather-light touch join the first in teasing her highly-sensitive sex that she whimpered, quietly. Luna's head swung round to face her, but she obviously decided that it wasn't quite enough evidence to warrant another demerit.

The sensations from her nether regions intensified over the course of the test. Twilight could not sit still, but the straps prevented her from moving enough to get some relief. Her need for academic excellence was all that held her back from wailing aloud.

Twilight finished the exam, sweating badly and biting her lip to hold in the howls. When she dared to look down, she found four feathers, each held in a separate magical field, teasing her. She gasped, which seemed to be a cue for the assault to intensify. When a quill moved to her hooded nub and traced its contours, it was too much.

"Aaaaahh!" shouted Twilight as she came.

The quills were whisked away with speed as soon as she did, and the rest of the class was the very picture of innocence when Luna rounded on them. Twilight cowered in shame as she earned a second strike against her name in the demerit box.

When the time was up, Luna had the students exchange papers and mark each others' results. When it came to tabulating the scores, Twilight was found to have the worst hoofwriting but still managed to get top marks. She soon sat at two credits, two demerits.

Twilight had been on the defensive, but now Luna had started to lecture on dream building. While it was fascinating material, Twilight's elite powers of studying came to the fore. She could tease the key information from the lecture without having to focus on it, giving her precious time to work on getting back on the offensive against Luna.

Luna was some way into the lecture before she spotted that Twilight wasn't paying her full attention. Here she made a mistake.

"Twilight Sparkle, I can see that this material bores you. Why don't you come to the head of the class and explain dream forging to your fellow students?"

Luna had just handed Twilight the opening she needed. Admittedly Twilight was expecting to be released from the chair, or else be carried to the front of the class, chair and all, rather than for the chair to come to life and walk her there whilst she was still strapped in, but it would do.

As soon as she was out of the magic-deadening circle, she grasped a quill in her aura and shot it towards Sky Drifter.

"Whaa!" Sky squawked, "What are you-"

Miss Luna was standing at the front of the class and Twilight could see clearly her twitch and shimmer once the quill started to tickle a very sensitive part of Sky Drifter. Sky Drifter fell out of her chair, laughing, as the quill tickled the frog of her hooves. Miss Luna froze, motionless, like a puppet without its puppeteer.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Twilight teleported out of the chair and exclaimed in triumph, "Ha!"

The triumph was short lived when a pale blue aura wrapped around her, cutting her off from her magic and holding her still. The quill Twilight had been wielding fell to the ground. Miss Luna remained frozen as Sky Drifter climbed up off of the floor.

"How did you know I was the real me?" Sky Drifter asked.

"No illusion or phantasmal servant has a wet tongue. And I realised that you don't need to see the moon to raise it, because you can't see it at first anyway. And-"

"You make some very good points. I see I shall have to pick up my game with you. Nevertheless..."

"Disrupting my class?! Another demerit, Miss Twilight!" shouted Miss Luna.

"Oops, I forgot about that," said Twilight as the pale blue aura lifted her up and carried her out of the door, backwards, naturally.

Sky Drifter got up and followed her out, maintaining eye contact and a happy grin as she shifted into Luna's alicorn form. Twilight was getting very worried.

"Uh, can we talk about this?"

"Oh Twilight, you were doing so well. As you can see, there are lots of rooms down here. The one we were just in was a store room, I think. The one we're heading to now is a proper dungeon cell. It was made for questioning powerful and dangerous unicorn criminals. I think you'll like it."

"Um, I'm very sorry I tickled you?"

"Not yet, you aren't. Don't worry, you will be."

Luna didn't show her the darkened room she now found herself in. Twilight was instead positioned in the middle of a much larger anti-unicorn magic circle. Heavy iron manacles clicked in place on each leg. Each manacle had a chain that was anchored to the floor. A troll wouldn't be strong enough to break these bonds.

Luna summoned a ball of light, illuminating the table by which she stood. On the table were Twilight's saddlebags.

"Miss Twilight," said Luna, "Please forgive the invasion of privacy, but the school takes the well being of all its students very seriously. When we noticed you disrupting your class, we investigated your belongings."

"You fiend! You won't get away with this!"

"We shall see..."

Luna opened one of the saddlebags and two small oranges rolled out. Twilight struggled frantically, but could not stop the oranges from rolling towards her, rolling up her hind leg and inserting themselves into a very private part of her anatomy. Twilight froze.

"Um," she said carefully.

Luna ignored her as she opened up the other bag. A polished wooden rod, shaped and dyed to look like a humorously-large thermometer came out. After having a little lubricant applied, it flew serenely to Twilight and likewise made itself at home. Twilight's eyes, already wide, became much wider and she inhaled deeply.

"Ah!"

Luna clapped her hooves together. The oranges started to vibrate.

"Aaaah!"

Twilight's head swam and legs trembled as waves of pleasure washed over her.

Luna reached into the bag one more time and her hoof came out holding the gag orange.

"Now, Miss Sparkle, is there anything you would like to say before I leave you to become acquainted with the last of your toys?"

"You cheated!" Twilight blurted out between gasps.

Luna paused, and then put the gag orange down, but didn't stop the vibrators. "Continue," she said.

"The- the quills. Th- the twins- magic. It- it- shouldn't have workedinthecircle!" Twilight was already in dire straits from the two oranges.

Luna looked at her for an eternity before nodding. The vibrations stopped, Twilight's body lost its newest occupants and the chains fell away. Twilight sagged in relief.

"Good point. In fact, I am going to give you a credit for your insight. That brings you up to three, so you get the special reward. Let's head back to the classroom."

Twilight's relief was short-lived when she saw Luna's smile. A blue flash and they appeared back in the classroom. Luna's aura once more strapped Twilight into the animated chair.

Miss Luna sprang to life, ignoring the real Luna next to her.

"Well done, Twilight Sparkle! Three credits! Here is a certificate, proclaiming that you are a Novice Dreamwalker. Congratulations! I’ll give it to you when you leave."

Twilight’s chest swelled with pride.

"Now, Let's get you your reward.”

“Um, wasn’t the certificate my reward?"

Miss Luna ignored her, "Please clear away the desks, students. Twilight, head to the centre of the room."

The other mares quickly moved the desks and chairs to the sides of the room as Twilight's chair walked her into the centre of the room. The centre of the small anti-magic circle.

"Miss Luna, please tell me what my reward is," said Twilight nervously.

"Could you please open your legs a little wider, dear?"

The chair obliged, much to Twilight's embarrassment.

"Now students, our next lesson is on sexually satisfying your partners. As a little reward, Twilight shall be our model for the evening. Each and every one of you will be taking turns to satisfy Twilight. You need to bring her to climax to get a pass."

The crowd of mares delighted at the prospect.

"Any questions? Yes, Amber?"

"Miss, can my sister and I go together?", asked one of the twins.

"Yes, but you'll have to go twice."

Luna casually walked up to Twilight.

"So, Twilight, what made you think that the reward would be any different from the punishment?"

Twilight was already groaning as the first mare started caressing her and nibbling at her neck.

"You can stop this any time, by the way. All you need to do is say, 'Princess Luna is a better teacher than Princess Celestia.'"

"Never!"

Luna laughed.

"We’ll see how you do. By the way, once this is over and you fall asleep, we’ll focus on practical dream forging. No funny stuff, just me teaching you how to make dreams."

"You fiend!"

Twilight made it through three members of the class before she gave in to her curiosity and exhaustion.

Flight from Canterlot

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Written by RandomString Proofread by Knight of Cerebus

Twilight slowly woke up, taking a while to recognise her surroundings as Luna's bedroom. As Luna was now sleeping at nights and had company that couldn't see in the absolute darkness, she had taken to leaving the darkness off. The room looked less mysterious, now that Twilight had become familiar with it. In fact, it was starting to feel like home.

Sunlight was streaming through the balcony windows, telling Twilight that is was well past dawn. She stretched, yawned, saved and started to think about getting out of bed.

Twilight's musings were interrupted by Luna bursting through the door at great speed, her eyes wide with panic.

"Twilight, I'm glad you're up. Let's go to Ponyville! Right now."

Twilight watched with alarm as Luna frantically threw together saddlebags for Twilight and herself.

"Luna, what's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing, nothing," Luna lied, "I just think we should get a bright and early start to the day."

"The first train for Ponyville doesn't leave for another two hours, I think, so there’s no need to hurry. Time enough for breakfast, maybe?"

"Oh, who wants to be bored waiting in the train station for a train? Let's just fly there. I'll carry you. It'll be romantic."

The moment Twilight scrambled out of the delightfully soft bed, she had her saddlebags dropped on her and clinched tight. She coughed with surprise and then relaxed.

"Fly? You'll pull the chariot? Won't that attract a LOT of attention?"

"Don't worry, Midnight Whispers can fly. I'll pull it as her."

Twilight could hear a noise in the distance which almost sounded like Luna’s name bellowed in the Royal Canterlot Voice.

"Ahehe. I think we're ready. We can have breakfast in Ponyville. Let's go."

The voice sounded again, much closer this time. Twilight could now hear Princess Celestia shouting, "Where is she?" at considerable volume.

Luna seized the moment to teleport Twilight and herself to the chariot bays. Twilight was quickly placed in a chariot and Luna hitched herself in with speed. With barely a run-up, Luna launched herself into the sky and started flying away from Canterlot at terrific speed. Twilight was clutching onto the chariot guard rail with both hooves in a desperate bid to not fall off.

Once they were in the sky, Luna dropped an invisibility illusion on them, turned towards Ponyville and sped up, eating the distance at an incredible rate.

When they were closer to the town, Luna shifted into her Midnight Whispers form. With her smaller wings and less divine physique the chariot slowed, but was still making good time. They would be there in about half an hour, Twilight estimated.

"So, what did you do?" asked Twilight, now that the rush of the wind wasn't deafening.

"Oh, nothing, nothing," replied Luna, "I may have slightly misjudged a prank. It seems I am still a bit rusty."

"Go on..."

"Well, as you may recall, I had declared Prank War with my sister. It's an ancient custom that we use to keep each other on our toes. And to remind her that I'm better than she is.

"I thought it best to take the initiative, and open with a multi-faceted prank to demonstrate my abilities and intimidate Tia into surrendering early. It was a lot of work, and took up a fair amount of my time yesterday."

"Keep going, Luna."

"I knocked the pins from the hinges on the doors to her quarters and replaced them with spell-wrought constructs. They'd behave just like normal hinges, except they wouldn't last very long. I also enchanted one of the floor tiles in the corridor just outside of Tia's chambers. When we have a prank war going she can be very careful in rooms, but sometimes forgets to check corridors.

"So, this morning when Tia left her chambers, her guards closed her chamber doors behind her as usual. Then Tia trod on the enchanted tile, which was enspelled activate when trodden on by an alicorn. Firstly, it unwrought the replacement door hinge pins I had created. Then it sent a gust of wind behind Tia and triggered a multi-sensory illusion. Can I just say that it is really difficult to get a basic floor tile to do all these things on such specific conditions? Very interesting technical problem."

"It sounds it. Normally I would love to talk about it with you, but I think you be leaving out some key details. Princess Celestia wouldn’t be quite so annoyed if her bedroom doors just fell over. She was amazingly patient with me when I accidentally did more to some of the palace doors than just knock them over."

"Well, the illusion may have something to do with it. Visual illusions aren’t much good around Tia ‒ she has to focus in order to see them, which spoils the fun. ‘Hers is the light of truth’ and all that. But she notices sonic and odorous illusions."

"Sonic and odorous?" Twilight hesitated as her mind put the pieces together, "Luna, you didn’t!"

"I thought it would be a great coup. Show the other ponies that even the divine Princess Celestia is a pony."

"Luna! You can’t just make it seem to the royal guards that Princess Celestia farted down her bedchamber doors!"

"It was funny! It would have been funny. She IS a pony. She’s not that special."

"Not that special?! She’s Princess Celestia!"

"Sometimes she’s just a big, annoying, know-it-all unicorn with wings. And I think you love her more than you love me," this last sounded a little petulant.

"What! Luna! How can you say that? I love both of you, in different ways. You can’t compare what I feel for you with what I feel for Princess Celestia."

Luna was silent for a few wingbeats.

"I’m sorry, Twilight. I shouldn’t have said that. Forgive me?”

Twilight couldn’t climb out of the chariot in mid-air to hug Luna, so she settled for lightly embracing her with her aura. Luna nickered with approval.

"I am surprised," Twilight said after a while, "I can understand the princess being annoyed with your prank at first, but it was quite funny and she actually sounded angry. Were there other witnesses than just the guards?"

"Just one, Argent Shield, one of her ladies-in-waiting."

"That doesn’t sound too bad. They won’t gossip about Princess Celestia."

"She was a very close witness. Very close. As in ‘standing right behind her’. She looked rather dazed, afterwards."

All the tension in Twilight was released as she fell about with gales of laughter.

"She went to help Argent Shield and that gave me time to run. Can you see her behind us, by the way?"

Still laughing, Twilight looked behind her, looking for any hint of pursuit, magical or otherwise.

"No, no sign of anypony."

"Oh dear. That isn't good."

"You wanted to be pursued?"

"Well, I hate to admit it, but I was hoping that if she chased us down, she would have to moderate her response somewhat because of your presence. She couldn't, for example, banish me to the moon because it would cause you to fall to your death or get you banished with me, you see?"

"Wait a moment! I'm here as a pony shield? A hostage?"

"Twilight, you're here as a peacemaker! You'll stop her from killing me straight away."

"I can't believe you kidnapped me to be your pony shield..." said Twilight, suppressing a smile.

"Sorry."

"Well, I still can't see any sign of her behind us, and we're nearly there. Maybe she wasn't as annoyed as you think."

"Tia won’t sit idly by. She'll get revenge somehow. We need to maintain our guard."

"What can she do? If she was chasing us, she would have caught up by now. The palace guard can’t match the pace you set. Surely we’re safe until we reach Ponyville."

"Philomena."

"Princess Celestia’s pet phoenix? Really?"

"She can fly faster than me, faster than Tia. Tia can turn her invisible, so we wouldn’t see her coming. As for what she can do when she finds us, do you have any idea what it’s like to be dusted with itching powder when you’re flying at altitude, pulling a chariot? That beast is a menace!"

Despite Luna's worries, the rest of the flight to Ponyville was uneventful. Twilight attracted some attention, arriving as she did in the black, lunar chariot, but the town gossips were reluctant to comment on this for some reason.

The last portion of the flight for Twilight had been dominated with thoughts of Spike. She knew that if he ran into any problems her friends would be sure to help him out, but still she worried. As soon as they touched down in the centre of Ponyville, Twilight hurried to the library, leaving Midnight to park the chariot at the town hall. Spike was delighted when Twilight burst through the door and they rushed to hug each other in the doorway.

"Twilight! You’re back!", the little dragon exclaimed, and then "Eww! You smell!"

"Thanks, Spike," said Twilight, "it’s good to be back. I missed you. And sorry about the smell, we got up and left in a bit of a hurry this morning. I’ll take a shower as soon as I’ve had something to eat — we skipped breakfast too. Did anything happen while I was gone?"

"Um, no. No. No, nothing at all. Very quiet. Peaceful Ponyville, that’s what they should call this place."

Twilight looked at Spike oddly, but chose not to press the matter further. Food was now very high on her list of priorities. Luna landed by her side and they both made a beeline to the kitchen.

"Oh," said Spike, "a scroll from Princess Celestia arrived about half an hour ago. Marked 'private' and for your attention only. It's on your reading desk."

Both Luna and Twilight froze at the mention of Princess Celestia's name. Once in the study, Twilight and Luna inspected the outside of the scroll from all angles, viewed it through mirrors and crystals and debated several minutes before taking a sample of the parchment and putting it through a rigorous array of tests that failed to prove that it was anything other than paper.

"All right. We have inspected this scroll and have concluded that it is, in fact, a scroll."

"Probably a scroll. Tia knows all sorts of tricks. We have not tested to see if it is soaked in a hallucinogen yet, have we?"

"Seriously? Luna, Princess Celestia wouldn’t risk hurting Spike for a prank, would she?"

"Well, no, but she may know of a compound that would be harmless to dragons but potent to magic users. If she thinks that we worked in collusion with the tile prank, she may consider you a valid target."

"Luna, how serious do these prank wars get?"

"They don’t! They’re harmless fun to relieve the tension between us. I— I may be a little out of practice. Tia does not allow a prank to pulled on her without retribution and I am no longer certain what would count as a measured response."

“Luna, Princess Celestia will not have soaked this scroll with a hallucinogen. It might not even be related to your prank. Maybe we forgot something in Canterlot and she’s letting us know. I will read my scroll and then we can eat. I can’t think on an empty stomach anyway."

As a precaution, Luna stood well back as Twilight opened the scroll and started to read. Luna watched with trepidation as Twilight started grinning like a lunatic.

"What? What's on the scroll? Let me see," said Luna.

Twilight shook her head mutely and kept reading intently, grinning all the while. Luna kept trying to look at the contents of the scroll, forcing Twilight to twist and turn to keep it shielded.

Eventually, Twilight teasingly held the scroll behind her, luring Luna into a trap. As Luna reached behind her for the scroll, Twilight dropped the scroll and brought both her fore hooves to bear on tickling Luna just behind her foreleg, with a gentle rubbing motion.

The effect was immediate. Luna collapsed in gales of laughter and tried to push Twilight's hooves away. It was hopeless. As soon as Twilight was driven from one spot, she immediately moved to another where Luna seemed to be equally sensitive.

It took Twilight about twenty minutes to tire of the game and she finally relented. A breathless Luna scrambled up into a sitting position and grabbed the scroll.

"I'm starting to see how it is between you two. You prank her with sophisticated spells and illusions and she prefers to use others to get her revenge."

Luna opened the scroll and saw that it laid out, in detail, all the knowledge Princess Celestia had gathered over centuries of tickle fights with Princess Luna, detailing all her sensitive spots and how best to exploit them.

A laughing Twilight said, "I really must thank her for the information. This is going to be so much fun. You can destroy the scroll if you like, I've memorised the contents."

Luna brought her head to her hooves with a melodramatic sob, crumpling Celestia's revenge between them.

Library Work

View Online

Written by RandomString Proofread by Knight of Cerebus

The smells that wafted into the study instantly attracted the attention of both mares. They followed their noses to the kitchen, where Spike was cooking a late breakfast.

"Oh Spike, that smells delicious," said Twilight.

"Absolutely," agreed Luna.

"The sooner you eat, Twilight, the sooner you shower, and that would be a good thing."

"Ouch. I don't smell that bad, do I?"

"You smell weird, and I'll be happy when you smell less like weird and more like Twilight," said Spike, laying a steaming plate of food in front of Twilight.

"What about me?" asked Luna indignantly.

"Oh, sorry, Midnight. Here you go," said Spike as he put a couple of slices of bread on a plate and put it front of her.

Luna was taken aback by the parsimony of the little dragon. She speechlessly looked between her crusts of bread and Twilight's cooked feast before she managed to choke out a weak, "Thank you."

Twilight was focussing so much on her plate that she didn't notice anything wrong.

"No problem," said Spike, as he absentmindedly took one of the slices of bread from Luna's plate before she could reach for it and set about idly tearing it to pieces and tossing them onto the table. Twilight finally noticed Luna's outrage as her lover sharply raised a hoof.

"Spike! What are you doing?!"

"Don't worry Twilight, the bread is stale anyway. I'll leave the crumbs out for the birds."

"Spike," said Twilight, carefully, "This is Princess Luna, my marefriend. She is in the form of Midnight Whispers in order to avoid attention and help prevent newspaper articles about me dating princesses."

A wide-eyed Spike span to face the irate goddess and tried stammering out an apology, "Pr- Princess Luna?! I- I- I thought you were an illusion! I'm sorry! Please don't smite me!"

The dragon tried to back away and bow at the same time, tripping on his tail and falling onto his rump. He then tried to scoot on the kitchen floor, desperate to get away and yet afraid to turn his back to her.

There was a brief moment before Luna laughed, "Dear Spike, do not fret. No harm was done. Please get up."

"Here, Luna, we can share my breakfast," said Twilight, moving her plate to an equal distance between Luna and herself, "Spike, would you kindly make up another breakfast for us? This one is delicious, but Luna has just flown us both all the way from Canterlot and must be famished."

Spike hurried to obey as the two mares shared their meal. He worked with his back turned so he wouldn't have to watch the hooves touching, the noses playfully bumping into each other, the long gazes into the other pony's eyes. He just wished that he couldn't hear his normally grounded 'sister' giggling.

Eventually, and three courses later, it was over. Luna had a massive appetite after such a long and powerful flight, and the kitchen cupboards were practically bare once she had finished eating.

"Spike, you are a champion. That meal was delicious, thank you."

"You're welcome, Princess Luna. I am very sorry for earlier. Twilight, would you please go and take that shower now?"

"Okay, Spike. I'll go shower if you open the library. We'll be down to help soon."

Once they were upstairs and out of the range of Spike's acute hearing, Twilight turned to Luna.

"Luna, what's wrong? What happened? You were shaking, earlier. Was it something Spike said?"

Luna hesitated before answering.

"I was hungry, a little tired. Spike's actions irritated me, and then I heard a voice at the edge of my mind. It sounded like the Other. Food drove the voice away, but I had thought myself free of the nightmare. That there may be some echoes remaining is disturbing to me."

There was a lot Twilight wanted to say, but she settled on hugging her friend.

"Thank you, Twilight. I know you have a lot of questions, but not now, please. Let us go and shower, to relieve your dragon friend's suffering."

--------------------------

Twilight looked regretfully at her bath. It had a shower attachment. It had an ample supply of hot water. It had no shortage of bottles of soapy liquids that would create slipperiness and mountains of fun bubbles. It was even already soundproofed to spare the world the sound of Spike's bathtime singing. Unfortunately it was also only big enough for one pony at a time.

Twilight explained all this to Luna, who simply smiled understandingly and acknowledged that it was unfortunate that they had not taken proper advantage of Luna's far more generously proportioned shower whilst they were in Canterlot. She furthermore insisted that Twilight take the first shower, refusing point blank to accept guest-right of the first turn.

Reluctantly, Twilight got in the bath and began washing herself as Luna waited outside. She started humming to herself as she briskly scrubbed herself down, using her magic to make the best use of her loofa. With her eyes closed, she heard the change first. Her humming was rising in pitch without her control.

Surprised, she opened her eyes to find the stall getting bigger and bigger around her. No, I'm getting smaller she thought. She spun around in the stall (itself a feat that was far easier than it should have been) to find Luna looming above her in full alicorn form, horn aglow.

Once Twilight had been shrunk to the size of an irate house cat, Luna stepped into the stall and shrunk herself down to be just a little bit larger. Rather than standing in the cramped bath tub, they were now standing hoof deep in warm soapy water in a porcelain canyon. A steady warm rain fell down upon them as Luna playfully sent a wave splashing into Twilight.

Twilight yelped and kicked a wave back in response. They were soon laughingly splashing water at each other in sheets, Twilight trying to run circles around Luna as she dodged the other's watery attacks.

Most foals know not to run in hoof-deep soapy water, even when shrunk to a quarter of their normal size. Twilight hadn't learned this basic life lesson, but she learned it now. Trying to turn too quickly, her hooves slipped out from under her and she fell. Thanks to her small size and the cushioning of the water, she wasn't the least bit hurt by the fall.

In fact, it turned out to be a sound strategic move, her body sending a great wave of water to overwhelm Princess Luna, leaving her drenched. Twilight watched Luna try to shake the water off as Twilight slid out of control into the sides of the shower stall.

Laughing, she scrambled unsteadily to her hooves.

"Wretched unicorn, laughing at my misfortune! I shall have my revenge!"

With that, Luna's horn glowed with power. Twilight looked around wildly, but could see nothing under its influence. Like most non-pegasi, she didn't often look up. She didn't notice the lid coming off the big bottle of bubble bath, or the bottle tipping over. She only noticed when the thick stream of cold fluid landed on her back.

"Eeek!", she shouted, and swiftly ran from the stream as Luna guided the falling fluid onto her. Twilight countered this by charging Luna, and throwing two hooves around her on contact. Luna struggled free from the slippery embrace, but not before getting thoroughly covered in suds.

The bottle was soon empty and both mares slick with soap. Twilight took good advantage of the slipperiness to wrestle a protesting Luna to ground, where their legs and tails became entwined in a game to see who could stay on top. Slipping and sliding across the bottom of the stall, their playful struggles and thrashing around quickly surrounded them in a mountain of bubbles.

Luna had Twilight on her back, panting heavily, as Luna caressed her. Luna's hooves traced out Twilight's cutie marks, slid along her flank and across her belly. Twilight had stopped struggling at this point and was gasping from the sensations.

Luna leant forward and kissed Twilight full on the lips, and Twilight closed her eyes. Luna tried trailing nibbling kisses down Twilight's neck, but stopped after the first one.

"Ugh. Your bath liquids taste foul."

Twilight giggled and began caressing Luna again. As Luna relaxed, Twilight pushed her to the ground and slid on top of her with a grin.

"Ha! Criticising my choice of soaps? Some guest you are!", said Twilight before kissing Luna. Doing so was a mistake, however, and she pulled back, "You are, however, correct."

"Well, did you learn nothing from your lessons last night?", asked Luna with a grin, "Your classmates had no problems bringing you pleasure without the advantage of a tongue. Consider this a test."

A gleam lit up in Twilight's eyes at the word 'test'. She set to proving her abilities to her teacher with a will. Slipping and sliding over each other, the entwined ponies rolled in the bubbles. Twilight twisted around mid-roll and ended up on top of Luna, face to tail.

She started caressing Luna's cutie mark with a circling motion and then drifted her hoof to Luna's inner thigh. She felt a tingle of pleasure as Luna mirrored the motion. Soon Luna was copying every motion that Twilight performed, until it felt almost as though it was her own body she was caressing.

With a moan, Twilight finally brought her hoof to Luna's sex and began by tracing a path around her flower. Already fully aroused and seeing that Luna was likewise the same, she started pressing harder, building up speed and pressure until she was rubbing furiously. Breathing in short, sharp gasps, she brought her other hoof to Luna's nub and teased it as delicately as she was able. After a few more seconds work, they climaxed together.

Twilight slumped onto Luna, breathing hard, and then twisted over the slippery mare until they were again muzzle to muzzle. Twilight lay her head on Luna's shoulder until their breathing slowed.

Luna shifted a little under Twilight and Twilight was now no longer straddling her barrel but rather just straddling one of her legs. Twilight sighed as Luna' prehensile tail gently trailed up her back. Normally Luna's tail was practically ethereal in nature, but now waterlogged it could be felt as it firmly stroked Twilight's behind.

Twilight shifted again and slid down Luna's body a little until her marehood was pressing against Luna's thigh. Her tail wrapped itself around Luna's. Twilight began nibbling on her lover's neck as her hips began to gyrate. Luna giggled and ground her own hips in reciprocation, her own sex pressing against Twilight's leg.

Moving to a more upright position, the two mares embraced tightly as they drove each other towards another climax, trying to make the physical distance between each other disappear. Already sensitive from their previous actions, they were soon writhing against each other with gasping breaths. This time Twilight orgasmed first, throwing her head back with a cry, but Luna was close enough behind.

They fell apart onto the floor of the bath and slowly rose to their hooves, covered in bubbles. Twilight's aura reached out and concentrated the shower water into a narrow torrent and used it to hose herself down. Luna nodded and Twilight turned the flow to her as well.

Once both mares were very clean, Luna took the flow of warm water from Twilight and pulled from it five tentacles which waved in the air directionlessly. She turned to Twilight and cocked her head askance.

Twilight hesitated, swallowed and then regretfully shook her head, "Um, that looks, um, intriguing, but we really need to head down and help Spike."

Luna nodded and let the aqueous fingers collapse with a splash. She tried to fly out of the bathtub, but her wings were as drenched as her fur, so in the end she simply teleported to the other side. There was the briefest of pauses and then Twilight saw the tub and stall shrink around her as she returned to her normal size, squeaky clean. She turned off the shower to save what little was left of the hot water.

She could barely follow the complex mechanics of the spell that Luna cast to dry them both due to the speed of casting, but it seemed to be an advanced variant of the spell Twilight had dug up from the Mrs. Beastson book. She was amazed what use could be made of that old housewife's spell and made a mental note to read the book more thoroughly when time allowed.

"We’ve discussed this before, but you will have to teach me your magic. I haven’t seen that shrink spell before and that drying spell looks more complex than any I’ve seen up until now. Maybe this evening?"

"Gladly. It will be interesting to compare spells."

Twilight deposited the bubble bath bottle to the bin. As she was heading downstairs into the library proper, she mentally added the magic study session to her plan for the day. There was a lot to remember, so she was grateful-

"Li'l Twi!"

Luna face-hoofed, "I am sorry, Twilight. I had completely forgotten. One moment."

Li'l Twi was angry when she was extracted from Toyland.

"You did it again! You went out and did pranks without me! And you didn't invite me to your air-chariot escape from Canterlot! That would have been really fun!"

Li'l Twi threw her blue ball at Twilight, which bounced off the apologetic mare's head harmlessly.

"And you dumped me in Toyland and forgot about me! Which admittedly isn't surprising because you created me to help you stop forgetting stuff. And then you yanked me out of Toyland just when I was having fun!"

"I'm sorry, Li'l Twi. Things just got rather busy this morning," apologised Twilight.

"Grrr. Just for that, I'm not going to remind you of something you've forgotten. Something big."

"Oh dear. What have I forgotten now? Is it- Ha! We have our pony pet play date this afternoon. You didn't need to remind me, Owlowiscsious wouldn’t have let me forget that."

"Nuh uh. Not that. This is something you've already messed up. She's going to be sooo mad at you."

"What? Who?"

"Nope. Not telling. Maybe next time you'll invite me to the fun. Come on Bally, let's go play outside," Li'l Twi marched through the door, nose held high in the air, her blue ball obediently bouncing behind her.

Twilight turned to Luna with tears in her eyes, "She's fading, isn't she?" she whispered.

Luna spread a wing over Twilight's back in a wordless hug.

--------------------

"Is everything okay, Luna?"

Luna looked up from her preening and sighed, "While our liaison in the shower was delightful, my use of the soap liquid was ill-advised. I shall have to spend most of the day preening to restore the oils to my wings."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear it. Don't worry though. You'll be stuck in the library all day today anyway. We probably won't have too many patrons, so you'll have time to preen between chores."

"Would you care to explain why you think I shall be stuck here?"

"Gladly. As a reward for managing so well in my absence, I shall be giving Spike today and tomorrow off. As it is your fault that I was not able to relieve him yesterday, I've decided that you will serve in his place. Today, you are my number three assistant."

"Number three?! I am a Princess of Equestria."

"Yesterday, you were a Princess of Equestria. Tomorrow, you will be Princess of Equestria. Today, you are my slave," Luna face became flushed at Twilight's expression, "and number three because Spike is number one and Owlowiscious is number two and seniority matters."

"I am being outranked by a bird?!"

"Yes. Don't worry, he probably won't give you too much of a hard time. At the end of the day I'll give you a performance review and we'll see if you are to be rewarded or punished."

"Hmm. I see. I, *ahem*, I agree to your terms."

"Excellent. Now as you have a researcher secret identity you should know how libraries work, so I don't need to tell you all that. Grab a quill and parchment and I'll give you some extra chores to do to keep you occupied."

Twilight gave Luna a list of truly demeaning chores to do around the library (moving every book, by hoof, so that all their spines were flush was one of the more practical ones) and then went to break the good news to Spike.

Once the cloud of dust had settled from Spike's enthusiastic departure, Twilight went shopping. Li'l Twi gladly helped with the shopping list, but still refused to divulge who Twilight had wronged.

With Li'l Twi's help the shopping didn't take long. Once done, they headed to the Sugar Cube Corner bakery for a takeaway lunch. As soon as Twilight stepped through the door, she found out who was upset with her.

"Twilight!", shouted an uncharacteristically irate Pinkie, "I get that you've got a new marefriend and want to help her relax as often as possible, but could you please help her relax outside business hours?"

"Oh dear. Your Pinkie sense went off."

"There I was, minding my own business. Well, minding Mr and Mrs Cake's business, well minding the counter of Mr and Mrs Cake's business, when suddenly I felt it coming on. I thought, 'No! Twilight wouldn't be so inconsiderate as to help her marefriend relax in the middle of the day! Not Twilight!' but I was WRONG! There were cupcakes everywhere! Think of the cupcakes, Twilight. Think of the cupcakes!"

"I'm so sorry, Pinkie. I completely forgot about your new sense. How can I make it up to you?"

"Sweet Factory dream, tonight," she said said without hesitation.

"Um, okay, I'll have a chat with Princess Luna. Can I get something for lunch, to go?"

"Sure thing, Twilight. Ooh, we have a special on dented cupcakes today. Would you like to buy some dented cupcakes?"

Twilight brought the cupcakes back to the library to share with Luna, along with Pinkie's request.

"So," said Twilight, munching on a cupcake that had clearly not had an easy life, "if you let Pinkie back into the Sweet Trouble factory, she'll forgive us."

"That sounds like reasonable recompense for our indiscretion," said Luna, nodding.

"Now, I finally have time to plan my day and it's already half-over. This is terrible! If I knew that falling in love would cause this much havoc to my schedule, I'd... I'd... I'd plan it better! What?"

Luna shook her head, laughing at her.

"Hmph. All right, Li'l Twi, let's plan my day!"

"Yay!"

"One, get kidnapped from Canterlot and used as a pony shield in brutal sibling prank warfare, becoming an accomplice in embarrassing my beloved mentor."

"Check."

"Two, publicly humiliate one of my friends whilst she's at work and damage a couple of trays of cupcakes."

"Check."

"Three, completely lose track of time and fail to schedule day until it is half over.

"Check. You're not doing well today, you know. You could try again."

"We're doing fine. Those were just slight hiccups. Four, study Li'l Twi."

"Check. Wait, what?"

"I need to reread my notes on the spell that made you, that's all."

"Okay. Just keep the funny hat with all the electrodes away from me."

"It'd pass straight through you, Li'l Twi. Five, Pony-Pet Play Date with my friends."

"Aww, now I want to wear that funny hat," Li'l Twi sighed, "Pet play date, Check. That's going to be fun, Bally's been looking forward to it all day."

"Do you want to come too, Luna? It's a little chilly outside, but still pretty nice."

"Twilight, I'm happy that you will share your lunch with your 'slave', but back in the years around the griffon wars, which were the only times slavery actually existed in Equestria, slaves were not as a rule invited to pony pet play dates. In addition, I do not have, nor have I ever had, a pet."

"Never? That's terrible! I mean Princess Celestia has Philomena to keep her company. I thought you'd have something too..."

Luna sighed, "Most immortal creatures that have a nocturnal lifecycle do not make good pets."

"Hmm, good point. Item six, consider options of a pet for Luna in time for the next play date. Consult with Fluttershy about options."

"Thank you Twilight, but I do not want a pet. It would be a constant nuisance to feed and care for it and I don't have time for one."

"Pet for Luna, got it," said Li'l Twi, "Item seven, punish Luna?"

"Watch yourself, little mnemonic! I have yet many hours to prove myself worthy of my lady's reward."

"Wow, you're really taking this seriously," said Twilight.

"I saw your expression in the schoolroom, Twilight. There are some things that should be done properly, even in play."

"In that case, slave, you've been idling over lunch for too long. Get back to work!"

Luna grinned as she rose to comply. It was probably pure coincidence that when she turned, her rump wiggled delightfully close to Twilight's head. Twilight was tempted to give it a slap, but felt it would be too daring and the moment of opportunity passed. She didn't see Luna's slight pout.

Twilight headed to her study followed by Li'l Twi who was in turn followed by Bally. Twilight had studied the notes on the spell that had created Li'l Twi several times and practically knew them by heart, but she read them again, hoping for a revelation.

This new review had one advantage: she was looking up how to extend the spell now, rather than cancel it. After interrogating her notes, she questioned Li'l Twi.

With some prodding, Li'l Twi reluctantly admitted that her access to Twilight's memories was slowly fading, but insisted that this was just because they were too boring.

She also mentioned that originally she had been tightly tethered to Twilight and could not move far away from her. Over time, the distance she could move had increased, to the point where she could enter others' dreams and appear in Sugar Cube Corner whilst Twilight remained in her library. She declared that this was a very good thing.

"It seems as though our psyches are diverging," said Twilight, "Previously your personality matrix was a subset of mine and you were easily sustained by a natural power bleed from me to you. As the differences between us increase, the bleed becomes less efficient, causing the fading bonds between us.

"The divergence can't be stopped easily, but if I tweak the spell a little, I think can put a bit more of my power into the bleed. That should keep you going for a while."

Twilight's horn glowed as she made some delicate adjustments to the spell. Fine tuned work like this was always hard for her, and she overshot a little, but Li'l Twi's fading was now gone completely.

"Aww. You've made yourself all 'sticky' again," said Li'l Twi as she tried and failed to leave the room, held back by an invisible tether.

"I'm sorry, but I needed to stop the fading. It's for your own good."

"But I want to go visit Pinkie Pie! And play outside with Bally. I don't want to be stuck in this boring old library."

"Little Twilight! Libraries are not boring! There's lots to do in here. Just look at all these books, each one a world waiting for you to explore."

"Booooring! And I can't touch the books. And you've already read all the good ones anyway, so I already know them. I want to go and play with Bally!"

"Now, behave. This is just temporary until I can come up with a more permanent solution. You can play outside and run around during the pet play date."

"That's not for hours!"

The argument between Twilight and Li'l Twi ended when the name-calling started. Li'l Twi ended up sulking on the windowsill, looking longingly outside, while Twilight reread sections of a book on illusions.

No revelation came from Twilight's studies, and despite Li'l Twi's moaning, it was soon time for the pony-pet play date. There was little danger of Twilight forgetting as Li'l Twi reminded her several times, Owlowiscious flew in at the right time and even Bally was bouncing enthusiastically. Luna was helping a customer when Twilight left, so they simply waved to each other as Twilight's strange entourage passed by.

----------------

The play date went well. Twilight had enchanted a ball to fly around, leaving a colourful contrail, to be chased by Owlowiscious, while she discussed immortal, nocturnal pet options with Fluttershy. Owlowiscious was happy chasing the ball until it got too close to Tank, who decided to join in. This soon caught the attention of the other pets, and soon the ball was flying at a breakneck pace through the park being chased by an owl, a flying tortoise, a dog, a rabbit and a phantasmal ball.

The owners were chasing after the ball too, shouting encouragement to the pets. Gummy and Opal watched all this with amusement and then agreed to have a sun-bathing competition instead.

The race ended with laughter and jokes and, like the sunbathing standoff, it was impossible to decide on the winner, although this didn't prevent Li'l Twi loudly proclaiming to Twilight that Bally had clearly won by a mile.

The light had begun to fade by the time Twilight had led her retinue back to the Golden Oaks Library. She did stop off at the pet shop, just before it closed, to make a quick purchase on the way.

When she got back, Twilight found that the library had closed early. Muttering about the poor work ethic of alicorn slaves, Twilight looked through the library before finding Luna in the kitchen, clutching a mug of coffee.

"Luna? Why did you close early? If you just wanted to be punished, you only- wait, why are you trembling? What's wrong?"

"I have failed at your task, Twilight, but I would like to suspend our game for now. I am feeling out of sorts."

"What happened?"

"I was helping an elderly patron who was very polite but very slow on the uptake. I was trying to explain to her that she could not borrow a dictionary, but she didn't understand. A queue was forming behind her and I was running out of time to do my chores. I did not want to disappoint you and was getting increasingly frustrated at the delay.

"I- I felt the other returning. I got angry. I wanted to shout at her. I wanted- Eventually, she left. I quickly dealt with the other patrons and then ejected everypony from the library and closed up. I am afraid, Twilight. I could hear the other's voice..."

Twilight was hugging Luna tightly now, but remained silent and allowed her to talk.

"I thought she was gone, Twilight. I thought I was free. Silent for two years and now, and now that I'm starting to live again, she's back."

Twilight was silent for a long while, holding Luna and thinking. Finally, carefully, she began to speak.

"When you were helping the old mare, what did the other want?"

"She wanted to hurt her, to make her go away," choked out Luna.

"How did you feel?"

"I was angry."

"Luna, the nightmare is gone. We banished it. The other, as you describe her, sounds like anger."

"No no no no. I wasn't like this before. I wasn't..."

"Did you keep your anger bottled up before? Were you afraid of getting angry before?"

"No, I... What are you saying?"

"Luna, I don't think it's the other that's returning. It's your bottled up anger breaking free."

Luna was silent for a while, and finally sighed, "Maybe you are right. I worry so much about the nightmare's return that I may be overlooking more obvious, and humbling, alternatives."

"Well, it's a hypothesis. Let's test it; maybe you're worrying over nothing. There's a book in the library that offers advice on anger management, let's go and get it and see if those techniques help the other at bay."

"That sounds like a good idea. Thank you, Twilight."

"What else is a marefriend for?"

Luna laughed.

"I will show you later. Give me the book, though. It will set my mind at ease."

"Certainly. As it happens, I need to do some studying too. Oh goodie! Study date!"

Twilight bounced delightedly to the library, followed by Luna.

Li'l Twi gave out a long-suffering sigh and followed after.

---------------

Spike came back to the library after nightfall, tired and covered in tree sap. He went to bed after dinner, but the mares stayed up reading. Li'l Twi had fallen asleep long ago, curled up on a chair.

Eventually, Luna stretched and sighed, catching Twilight's attention and causing a sleepy Li'l Twi to stir.

"Have you learned anything, Luna?"

"Some things, thank you. I have some ideas to try the next time I feel angry. How about you?"

"Well, I was looking up possible pets for you, to be honest. It's slim pickings, I'm afraid."

"As I said, I would find caring for a pet to be a nuisance and a burden, Twilight. I appreciate the thought though."

"I took that into consideration, Luna. Fluttershy didn't have anything appropriate, so I was just looking for low maintenance pets in the library. Now I did find one: a barghest. They’re dogs native to Trottingham. They're nocturnal, and as they're undead they don't need much care and they won't be dying of old age. Again."

"A pet dog? Hmm. I'm not sure..."

"Mmm, a barghest pet would be cool. They've got big red glowing eyes," mumbled Li'l Twi before slumping back into a doze.

"Aheh, there is one tiny disadvantage though. They're harbingers of death, so a pet one might not be too welcome in Canterlot."

Luna laughed, "No thank you then. I would never hear the end of it from Tia."

"All right then. Next option is the firebird; it can be found around Horsecow. The books aren't clear, but it seems to be immortal and nocturnal-"

"And a breed of phoenix. I love my sister, but the teasing would be unbearable."

"Possible sisterly bonding over similar pets? No? Okay. We’ll discount the olm straight away. While it is immortal and nocturnal and possibly affectionate, they are amphibious and you don’t really have much cool, dark water in Canterlot, so they probably wouldn’t really feel at home."

"Well, some of the cooler pools in the Royal baths might do the job, but I think the other ponies might dislike finding one while bathing. Slimy?"

"Very slimy. Moving on, how about a strix? Basically vampiric owls. I can testify from my experiences with Owlowiscious that owls are loyal and very intelligent."

"They sound wonderful. But Twilight, vampiric?"

"Um, yes. They would need feeding."

"Twilight, contrary to the rumours that I know abound, neither my guards nor I are vampires, nor do I have a ‘fountain of blood’ hidden away on castle grounds."

"Okay, no strix. Got it."

"And whilst we’re on the topic, if there were any ‘midnight orgies of the flesh’, I assure you that you would have been invited. About the most exciting that happens around midnight, most nights, is finding out what will be for lunch. At present I am encouraging the kitchens to experiment with sandwiches, a wonderful invention. Daisy and dill work very well together."

"Right, no midnight orgies. Touchy topic?"

Luna sighed, "Sorry, yes. This world is still very futuristic to me. Trains and sandwiches are good. I am less sure about tabloid journalism. Forgive me. Please continue."

"I was pretty much done, I’m afraid. The last option I was chasing was a shadow phoenix. A dark counterpoint to Philomena. Immortal, nocturnal, intelligent, elegant," Luna was looking up hopefully, "unfortunately it has one big disadvantage: I'm pretty sure it doesn't exist."

Luna's head slumped back down.

"I haven't given up, but it doesn't look good."

"Thank you for trying, Twilight. Now, I am tired and eager to put today behind me. I shall retire for the night."

There was a weariness to Luna's step that showed that she was still rattled from earlier.

Twilight laid down her book and gently picked up Li'l Twi and Bally before retiring to bed with Luna. Twilight was concerned about her marefriend, and coaxed her into a tender cuddle that soon slipped into sleep. Li'l Twi formed an adorable lump at the foot of the bed, curved protectively around her pet ball.

Twilight's Seraglio

View Online

"Now Twilight, you seemed to enjoy my little history lesson earlier, so I thought you might enjoy a closer view at another point in history. A more interactive look, if you will."

Twilight and Luna were standing on a high cloud bank, overlooking what seemed to be the forested mountains of eastern Equestria. The sun was high, and Twilight could make out some sort of city below her.

"Sounds lovely. What period were you thinking of?"

The cloud began to descend.

"The griffon wars had astonishingly far-reaching impacts on Equestria that are hard to see from history books. While the border nations took the brunt of the fighting, the wars twisted society in the other Equestrian nations as well. Today, we are going to take a look at the social structure that was in place well behind the front lines."

"Hmm. From what I recall, the eastern nations that were not focused on the wars were mostly magiocracies. One archmage who was the supreme ruler, served by a few dozen noble unicorns, and they in turn ordered about the pegasi who enslaved the earth ponies."

A few pegasi flew over to the cloud, but when they saw Twilight and Luna, they saluted sharply and turned away quickly.

"Things were a little more complex than that, but you have the essence of it. The magiocracies started out as benign institutions, the powerful unicorns protecting the other ponies with great shields or golems and such like. Over time, they seized more and more political power and started to think themselves superior."

"They were overthrown eventually, weren't they? I think every magiocracy was brought down either by griffons or internal rebellion."

"Eventually they fell, yes. Some survived, severely weakened, until my sister and I began the reunification, but by then the unicorn princes and princesses were merely figureheads. Our setting is the Hoofington Magiocracy, at the zenith of its power. Hundreds of thousands of ponies living under the rule of the Hoofington archmage Iron Rod."

"Iron Rod? History books paint him as, well, evil. Were they wrong?"

"Oh no, they were absolutely right. He was cruel, cunning and powerful. No pony dared gainsay his word. His power waned in his old age and he was finally overthrown, but in our scene any sane pony would sooner chew off their own hoof than raise it against him, for what he could do to his enemies was far worse."

The city was getting closer, and Twilight could make out the great shield surrounding it, similar to but weaker than the one her brother could conjure.

"Sounds horrible. So in this setting, you are the evil Iron Rod and I am the plucky heroine who attempts to overthrow you?"

Luna laughed, "Oh no, Twilight. Iron Rod shall not be overthrown today, I promise you that."

"Then what did you have in mind? Am I a slave in his harem? He did have a harem, right?"

"Oh yes. Dozens of mares, representatives of every tribe, each competing desperately for his attention. Each one selected from his kingdom for her grace and beauty."

Inside the bubble, Twilight could make out a castle. Clearly built for defence against aerial attackers, it was protected with ballistae, catapults and archers. The walls encircled the city, and the city was in the castle's shadow. The cloud passed through the shield and made a heading for the great tower.

"So I will be competing with other mares for your affections and my reward for victory will be being used for an evil pony's pleasure? It sounds a challenging role."

Luna laughed. Her horn flashed and Twilight was briefly paralysed as Luna's magic played over her body with incredible power. Twilight's head swum as everything changed. She felt herself twisting and growing, and a tremendous burning joy in her loins made her want to buck her hips. The dizziness passed and Twilight felt different. Free to move once more she sat down and stared at her belly. His belly. Twilight was now a steel-grey coated stallion.

"No, Twilight, today you shall not be the plucky heroine, nor shall you be the submissive slave. Today you shall be playing the evil overlord. Were you born in these times I assure you that you would have risen to these heights, so it seems only fair that you get a taste of what could have been."

"What?! You want me to be Iron Rod?"

"You haven't played as a stallion before. I thought it would be a nice change. You shall be Iron Rod, ruler of absolute power, with a harem that was the envy of the world. My challenge shall be to switch between roles to ensure that you are served as befitting a stallion of your stature."

"You want me to be evil?"

"Twilight, you have asked repeatedly that I play with you as the Other. If you wish me to play with evil, show me that you are willing to do the same. You need not attempt to replicate Iron Rod's atrocities, just give in a little to your darker side," Luna suddenly grinned, "I'll show you mine if you show me yours."

"Uh, I'll try. 'Evil overlord'. Should be easy enough, after all lots of ponies have managed to do it by accident."

"That is an excellent attitude. I suggest that on arrival you order that you be led to your harem, so that the high courtesan can show you how to use your new equipment. After you've had some fun, feel free to explore the castle and city. There shall be many opportunities to demonstrate your power."

With that, Luna leapt off the cloud and gracefully glided out of sight. The cloud docked at the highest tower moments later.

"Whelp, better get started," said Twilight as he raised his head high, affected an appropriate sneer and stepped off the cloud towards the respectfully waiting guards.

This was the first time that Twilight tried walking with his new, larger, body and it didn't go well. Tripping on the edge of the battlements, he fell forward. He tried to catch his fall with flailing hooves, but only managed to land on his knees before the forward motion of his body propelled him further forward. Twisting in place, Twilight ended up on his back, his hind legs hanging over the battlements and all remaining shards of his dignity shattered by the fall.

With an awkward grin at the guards, Twilight struggled to rise to his hooves. The guards rushed forward to help him back upright, but seemed very reluctant to actually touch him, offering instead limbs for him to cling to.

It took a couple of tries, but Twilight managed to climb to his hooves. Now that he wasn't looking at the fearsome guards upside-down, he now noticed that they were terrified. They way that they fell to their knees before him was the first hint.

"My lord! We saw nothing!" the pony who said this, a pegasi that looked to be a full head taller than Twilight, seemed to be their captain, but he seemed to be no less afraid of his master.

"Oh no, it's quite alright. I'm just not used to these legs. Thank you kind sirs for your concern," Twilight looked down at his bloody knees and his horn flashed, "See? I remembered to use a healing spell this time! No harm done!"

The scene before her froze. The winds stopped blowing, the banners stopped mid-flutter, and amongst the guards, only the captain showed signs of animation. Twilight was disturbed to hear the captain speak with Luna's voice, "Excellent start, Twilight. I can see that you understand the true heart of evil."

Luna always did have a strong grasp of sarcasm.

"Oops, sorry Luna. The fall caught me off-guard. Let me try that again."

The flags on the tower started fluttering again in the wind. Twilight straightened and stared down at the captain of the guard.

"Miserable creature! Of course you saw nothing. Now lead me to the harem and I shall permit you to keep your skin. Cretin!"

The captain blinked and then unsteadily rose to his hooves. With a deep bow and unseemly haste he flew to the tower door and opened it for the overlord.

Twilight strode through imperiously and then coldly waited for the guard to take the lead. As the captain lead Twilight through the corridors of the castle, he spoke again, in Luna's voice.

"Uh, Twilight, I promise I'll stop breaking character, but you do know the difference between 'evil' and 'stupid', right? Threatening and insulting the captain of your guard in front of his men isn't a great way to keep him loyal, you know."

"Sorry, sorry. I'm just... It's just that I haven't met that many evil people and the ones I have met have tended to be rather stupid. Um, yourself excepted, of course. You were really smart."

"Twilight, when I was possessed by the Nightmare I tried to bring about eternal night in order to encourage ponies to sleep more. 'Stupid' would be a generous term to describe the Other. Which rather supports your point. Never mind."

Luna fell silent and the captain soon brought Twilight to a gilded door flanked by a couple of unicorn guards, who snapped to attention. Twilight considered apologising to the captain but decided that it would further diminish his evil demeanour.

"Good job. Dismissed," he sniffed.

The guard bolted as fast as his wings could take him. One of the two guards opened the door for him, and Twilight stepped through, enticed by a strange new smell. It awoke strange feelings inside him; a need that had hitherto been dormant. It seemed vaguely familiar, but he was sure that it had never had an impact on him like this.

He ignored the door closing behind him, the opulence of the anteroom he walked through, the sounds of laughter ahead. He only knew that he was going in the right direction because the smell was getting stronger.

The great room he entered was supported by many pillars. Great - barred - skylights let in bright sunlight that illuminated cushions, curtains, wall hangings and plants all strategically arranged to make the room look warm, comfortable and intimate.

Many beautiful mares were lounging around on cushions or standing chatting in alcoves; it seemed that there was a chess match going on in one corner and a hoofball game at the far end. Twilight drank the sight in with his eyes, his heart pounding.

He was still staring into the room when one of the mares saw him and gasped, "Master!"

The mares turned as one and a number of them rushed forward to fawn at Twilight. Others bowed in obeisance or hovered nervously at a respectful distance. Twilight was now the centre of attention amongst a herd of attractive mares and the smell was getting stronger.

An athletic unicorn mare hurriedly pushed her way through the adoring herd. Her coat was golden, her silver mane streaked with with black. She was breathing hard from recent exercise, sweat forming beads on her coat. The way the other ponies gave way around her told Twilight that she held high status in the seraglio.

Prostrating herself before Twilight, the unicorn spoke, "My lord! I beg your mercy for not being at the entrance to welcome you. You were not expected until later, and I was playing hoofball in an attempt to escape my heat..."

Looking down on the mare, Twilight finally placed the smell: the unicorn was in heat. This familiar smell was now a delightful symphony of odours, driving rational thought away from him. Stirrings between his hind legs and a feeling of expansion told him that his equipment, as Luna put it, was ready.

She was facing the wrong way. Frustration. Words were fighting their way through the thickening funk that was overwhelming him. "Turn!" was the best he could bark out, but thankfully the mare obeyed, turning her rear towards him, tail held away to fully expose her marehood.

Leaning in, he breathed deep of the wonderful smell coming from her marehood. The mare was ready. There were no other stallions around. Guided by ancient instinct, Twilight reared up and mounted the mare, whose hooves skittered on the stone floor until she found purchase.

With a triumphal roar he thrust his hips forward, and missed his target completely. The tip of Twilight's rod bounced off the mare's flower and slipped along her stomach. He howled with frustration, she groaned with pain and need.

He pulled back, and this time he felt an aura guide his sword into its intended sheaf as he thrust forward again. Twilight had never felt anything like this before. It was almost an inversion of her usual experience, where previously the experience was a slowly building crescendo, here the intensity of the feeling took his breath away.

The thrusts of his hips quickened and the mare slip forward under the powerful force of his need. She gripped hold of his rod with her body and grunted with satisfaction in time with his thrusts as she tried to brace her hoofing. His grunts matched hers and he was gasping for breath each time he drew back. Neither pony paid any attention to their audience.

The intensity of the new experience was overwhelming, and Twilight did not know how to hold back from the rapidly approaching brink. Some subconscious thought said hold on, and he tried, but it wasn't working, as each thrust drove him further from reason.

Unable to hold back any longer, Twilight's orgasm took hold of him, and he felt his lower body spasming as it pumped his load into the mare. For a breathless moment he was in ecstasy, and then he collapsed fully on the mare, exhausted.

Once he had taken a few gasping breaths to regain his strength, he dismounted and the mare sighed deeply. The delectable smell that had pulled him into the room had lost its hold on him for now, and as his senses returned he became aware of his surroundings. In particular he noticed the lustful stares of the small herd of ponies surrounding him.

"Eeep!" Twilight blushed furiously, and looked around for somewhere to hide. All he could see were admiring eyes.

The mare whom he had mounted turned to face him and approached. Her head was held high, her air of authority undeniable and all of it was wasted due to the grin that seemed to be plastered to her face. She bowed to Twilight and spoke.

"My lord, thank you for your mercy and your blessing. Would you care to share your blessing with any other of your chattels?", she waved her hoof at the eager throng.

"Phew, that was intense. And fun. Let's do it again!"

"Yesss!", "Yay!", "Whoo!" the mares exclaimed their delight.

Twilight cast his eye about and picked a graceful earth pony with chocolate brown coat, honey mane and azure eyes. As the other mares looked on enviously, he turned her around and mounted her. Thrusting his hips forward, he found that something wasn't quite right.

"Umm..."

"My lord, even your prodigious potency will need a while to recover, unless you bring you magic to bear."

"Oh yes! Use my magic to recover my potency. Of course, silly me. Um, could you maybe talk me through it? It's, um, been a while," Twilight laughed embarrassedly.

The chief courtesan hacehoofed and then started speaking with Luna's voice as the other mares froze.

"Twilight, are you telling me that you haven't read the Karmare Sutra? You?"

"Um, well, the Ponyville library is very small you see. Very rustic. It doesn't have a copy. Not that I've looked. Um, more than three times."

"And as you were growing up, with unrestricted access to the Canterlot Library? The largest library in Equestria? Surely it has a copy?"

"Um, well, it used to have a copy."

"Used to?" asked Luna in a resigned tone.

"I'm Princess Celestia's personal student. I must be beyond approach, a model of decorum. I can't be seen reading a book like that. So, uh, I kind of snuck into the library one night-"

"You stole it?"

"Of course not! I couldn't do a thing like that! I just took it down to read. And I was about half way through the section on mares when one of the custodians surprised me. I was rather engrossed, you see. I was, um, performing an experiment based on some of the concepts it presented t-to better understand the material."

"A custodian caught you masturbating to the Karmare Sutra?"

"Well, almost. I panicked. And teleported. And I hadn't really mastered teleportation at that point. And you know you shouldn't teleport when you're not calm, because you can get a little singed. I was very not calm. I got very singed. The book, the book didn't get off quite so lightly. But I wasn't caught.

"I couldn't just tell the librarians what happened. And I couldn't off-hoofedly mention that their copy of the Karmare Sutra was missing from the restricted reading section. So I, um, didn't tell anyone that it was, um, gone."

Luna sighed, "All right. I'll get you a copy. Now isn't a good time to 'talk you through' the spell as it would take a while. Get off that poor mare and we'll get you a nice warm bath."

"Thank you. Sorry..."

"Evil Overlord, remember?"

"Oh yes, sorry. I- I mean, I'm not sorry. Arrgh!"

Luna giggled.

The mares came back to life. Twilight dismounted, and his chosen mate whined in disappointment. He allowed himself to be guided to a marble-lined shallow pool of hot water, where he gingerly lowered himself in with a sigh. He soon got comfortable reclining on his back.

The chief courtesan joined him in the water, kneeling submissively in front of him. A pale pink pegasus handed him a large, cool drink that smelled fruity and was clearly alcoholic. Twilight sighed with pleasure as the courtesan began massaging his hooves and legs.

"So, how long does recovery take for a stallion, without magical assistance?"

Luna decided to continue speaking out of character in her voice as she tenderly kneaded his muscles. "For an earth pony teenage colt? Not long. For an adult unicorn stallion who has just had a very satisfying encounter, half an hour is not unlikely."

"Half an hour?! How do the other races put up with it?"

"It's not as if they have much choice, Twilight. They just try to make the most of the fun while it's happening. I should also point out that we tend to mate rather more often than the average couple."

"Well, we've both been holding it in for a while and you are the goddess of that sort of thing, so..."

Luna laughed, "'Goddess of that sort of thing'? I shall have to add that to my list of titles. I do not say that we do it too much, just that most couples take their time and enjoy the ride.

"Stallions are encouraged to hold off for as long as possible, so that the mare has a chance of satisfaction. If I weren't playing a mare in heat, our encounter would not have been very fulfilling."

"Ouch. Sorry. Arggh! Not sorry. Not sorry."

Luna giggled, "The 'evil overlord' persona does not come naturally to you, it seems."

"No, it doesn't. Still, are you telling me that this is a close replica of an actual evil overlord's seraglio?" Twilight waved a hoof at the beautiful simpering mares, the luxurious surroundings and the garden beyond.

Luna sighed, and her eyes took on a distant look as she shook her head, "No, it isn't. You wouldn't like the real thing. I liberated a few seraglios during the reunification and they made me very angry. This is the ideal, the little fantasy for colts. I wanted your first time as a stallion to be fun."

"Thank you, then, for this," said Twilight, leaning forward and kissing Luna's nose.

"You're welcome," smiled Luna. Her massaging hooves had worked their way up Twilight's legs and were now reaching interesting territory.

"Mmmm, that's nice."

"Thank you, my lord."

"Do you like serving an evil creature who has no consideration for you?"

"I have my fantasies, just like- ahhh," Luna was interrupted as Twilight playfully rubbed a hoof between Luna's legs under the water. Impressed by the result, Twilight kept gently pressing his hoof against her as Luna reflexively moved her hips, rubbing herself against him.

"Oh, don't stop what you're doing with your hooves, courtesan. Do not forget your place."

It was Luna's turn to hum with pleasure, hips and hooves moving in synchrony. Soon her hooves were wrapped tight around Twilight's hardening member, the massage oils allowing them to move up and down his rod. Twilight put down his half-finished drink for fear of spilling it.

Twilight was as unfamiliar with this feeling as he had been with his first time as a stallion, but found the waves of building pleasure to be to his liking. He leaned back and closed his eyes, relishing in the sounds of pleasure coming from Luna and the feeling of her hooves on his shaft.

Luna's pace was increasing, the twisting motions of her hooves driving him wild, when suddenly she let go. Twilight was about to bark an order for her to continue when he found out why. Luna's head descended to engulf the length of his rod and she began to suck hard.

Twilight quickly concluded that Luna was as skilled at giving blow jobs as she was at giving horn jobs. Gasping, he pressed harder with his hoof into Luna's marehood as her wildly gyrating hips lost rhythm. Unfamiliar with his new body, he was desperately trying to find out how to resist his rapidly approaching orgasm.

"Luna!" he gasped in warning, but it was too late. As once again he felt his release flow energetically, this time into Luna's mouth. Luna seemed unsurprised by this, and started swallowing Twilight's gift. She pressed fiercely against his hoof, bringing her to the edge of her orgasm. She threw her head back when she came, releasing Twilight's stallionhood. She collapsed, trembling, into the pool, laying her head onto the marble lip.

Twilight might have stayed in the pool for the rest of the dream, drinking and being served by the mares, but Luna reminded him that she wanted to see his evil side, not his lazy one. Stung into action, Twilight imperiously marched out of the seraglio to explore the rest of his castle.

-------------------------

He was met outside the doors by a thin looking unicorn stallion with a quill and paper cutie mark.

"Welcome back, my lord. I am Arbitage. I was Twisted Quill's apprentice before his untimely death. If your lordship permits, I would be honoured to serve as your seneschal in his place."

"Thank you, Arbitage. I will permit you to attempt to take on his duties. As I have been gone a little while, I would like to tour the castle and check that it has been maintained properly in my absence. Show me that you know the layout of this place."

"Thank you, my liege. It shall be an honour. As you can see, the main atrium is in good condition and through here... the side garden is in good repair. Testimony to the diligence of your pegasi overseers, my lord. The mud ponies would not do a jot of decent work without constant supervision. Not their fault of course: all mud ponies are born half-wit and all-lazy, as my sainted mother would say."

Twilight's ear twitched as he repressed her urge to throw the unicorn over the castle walls. He could not bring himself to reply in character and so stayed silent.

"The statues that line the walk are a new addition, a humble gift from myself in tribute to your greatness. My dearly departed brother-in-law and his late wife had them on their estate in the south side of the city, but they were wasted there. They are a far better here, as reflections of your glory."

"Hmm, they do look good. Thank you."

"As you can see, the library roof took a little storm- My lord?"

Arbitage hurried to keep up with his lordship who was making a bee-line for the library.

"My lord! The tour is not yet finished. There will be time to examine your books later-" his voice suddenly switched from Arbitage's reedy drone to Luna's exasperated shout, "Twilight! Now is not the time to be lusting over books!"

Twilight turn to Luna with wide eyes, "Luna, this is an authentic archmage's library from the griffon wars period. Do you have any idea how much knowledge has been lost since that time? Just a few hours, pleeease?"

"Twilight, those puppy dog eyes may serve you well when you're an adorable mare, but on the face of one of the most evil ponies in Equestrian history they don't quite work. No books. The library has sent all its books to another city. For rebinding, or something."

"Awww..."

"Twilight, you really don't seem to be getting the hang of playing an evil-"

"No, I am not," said Twilight, suddenly annoyed, "I get that you want me to show you my darker side, but it isn't here. I'm not a handful of morals away from trying to overthrow Princess Celestia and yourself. I don't secretly dream of armies at my beck and call, I don't fantasise about harems and seraglios. This isn't me.

"We agreed to take turns, the first night. We did. You said you didn't want me to be a pet. Luna, I appreciate that today was not a good day and you need to unwind, and I want to help with that, but this isn't working. You sprang this on me without any time to mentally prepare and I'm feeling really uncomfortable."

Luna, in the guise of Arbitage, looked desolate and remorseful. Twilight trotted up to him and hugged him close. Despite his proximity, he could barely hear Arbitage whisper, "I'm sorry."

Twilight kissed Luna.

"Don't be sorry. We'll do this again. Give me a little warning beforehand and I'll be ready, ruthless and, uh, revolting?"

Luna gave a little laugh, as intended, and relaxed a little.

"Let's give it one more try right now. You had something planned for court, right?"

"Yes, there are some petitioners..."

"Excellent. I'll have one more try today to be an evil overlord. Then we'll do this again another time and I'll ace it. I promise.

"Lead me to my court, my probably-murderous assistant!"

"Right this way, my lord. And all the judges agreed that the deaths were all unfortunate coincidences. Apart from Judge Tones, and after his unfortunate accident Judge Palms overturned his ruling on appeal."

"Well, it sounds like my new assistant is either very unlucky or very competent. This should be interesting either way. No, no, please take the lead. I shall follow behind."

--------

The Hoofington court was drably functional, in comparison to the seraglio. The sunlight coming through the great windows illuminated a short queue of bored ponies. Most business was obviously conducted elsewhere, behind closed doors.

"My lord, you have three petitioners today. High Merchant Dirty Money, Force Commander Sneak Attack and," here Arbitage's tone turned to disgust, "a charity case. Name of 'Bleeding Heart' or some such."

"Very well, I will hear their petitions."

The first petitioner was the merchant, sweating and bowing. He was a very nervous, fat unicorn, with a white coat and yellow mane. He had a set of scales laden with bits as his cutie mark, but Twilight noted that the scales were not in balance.

"A thousand thanks for hearing my petition, my lord. I would not normally trouble an august personage like yourself, but I have become aware of an opportunity that could enrich both our coffers. I beg that you allow your humble servant to explain."

"Continue, merchant, and be fast about it. Do not waste my time."

"Yes, of course. Well. As you know, the Manehattenites are slowly getting an upper hoof in their interminable war with the griffons. I fear that they may turn their gaze west if they win that war, and bring trouble to our doorstep.

"My family is extensive, and we have managed to make contact with representatives of the great griffon nation. They realise their predicament and are willing to purchase Hoofington forged magical weapons at an excellent rate.

"Our only problem is getting the weapons through Manehattan territories, and here I beg your aid. Your forces could escort the shipments, protecting them from the Manehattanites and ensuring that the griffons deal with us fairly. You would, of course, receive a portion of the profits."

"Hmm, this sounds interesting, but risky. I shall have to think about it..."

"I would be overwhelmed with gratitude, my lord, if you would accept a small advance of one hundred thousand bits were you to accept this proposal. By curious chance, I have just this amount of money with me, on this slave," he waved a hoof at a heavily burdened earth pony behind him.

"I shall get back to you momentarily, good merchant. Bide a while."

"At your command, my lord."

The next petitioner was the Flight Commander, an ageing pegasus with a proud military bearing, grey coat and mane, and a bloody spear on his flank. He saluted sharply to Twilight and spoke in crisp tones.

"Thank you for seeing me, my lord. I wish to bring to your attention two problems that your military forces have. Neither are urgent, my lord, but without forward planning, they could be disastrous."

"Of course, Flight Commander. Hoofington was built on military excellence and foresight, and I would not wish to see that tradition lost."

"Firstly, our troops have been at peace for too long. We perform military exercises, of course, but without real fighting, their skills will decay and we will lose our edge. Up until now we have had our campaign against the earth pony terrorists, but with your inspired tactics they are defeated. We need a war soon or we will lose the next one.

"Secondly, we have seen a downturn in recruits. Our tactics against the terrorist bases have been tremendously effective, but not without their cost. With the massive loss of life involved, we need more troops. It will take years to train them, but we need to start now.

"My lord, these issues do not require an immediate response, but as ever, we rely on your foresight and brilliance to see us through the difficult times we find ourselves in."

"Thank you, Flight Commander. I shall think on your words. Please stay a while longer, I may have need of your stallions for a project that has recently been proposed to me."

"Yes Sir!"

The third petitioner was a small unicorn, young, timid and uncertain, with a smiling face cutie mark. He bowed low, and spoke fast, as if afraid that he might otherwise be unable to finish his statements.

"My lord, thank you for seeing me."

"Of course, Bleeding Heart, is it?"

"Uh, Blessed Heart, my lord. I work for the orphanage. The Hoofington Orphanage. We're really busy. Um, my lord, we have a lot of war orphans. More than we can feed. They're starving. My lord, could you please spare more resources so that we can tend for our charges properly? If you could see their suffering-"

"Enough!"

"Yes, my lord, thank you, my lord" said the unicorn, backing away from Twilight's throne.

Twilight thought for a moment, surveyed his petitioners, and smiled.

"Gentlecolts, I am happy to say that we can work together to resolve our different problems!"

Twilight ignored Arbitage's grimace.

"Dirty Money, I have a plan. If you sell the weapons to Manehattan, I shall send them with a sizeable fully armed escort to one of the border forts. My ponies shall then betray the Manehattenites, let the griffons into their fort and help with the slaughter. Once done, we get paid, my troops sneak back here to Hoofington and I shall blame their apparent loss on the griffons.

"We get paid twice for the weapons and extra by the griffons for turning the fort over to them and the Manehattan ponies will cease to be a nuisance for a long time, all the while thinking us friends!"

The merchant clapped his hooves with joy, "Bravo, my lord! Bravo!"

"Flight commander, this shall be the exercise that your stallions desperately need. We shall assist the griffon forces against Manehattan in a covert war. I'm sure we can rely on the griffons to betray us at some point as well, to keep things interesting."

"A war away from home, sir? Excellent. We shall draw up plans. It may be worthwhile to ensure that plenty of our earth pony blade fodder are included in the weapon shipment convoy. We will need a credible loss of life for your brilliant ruse to be truly accepted and the earth ponies are expendable."

"I'm glad to see you're already working on the details, Flight Commander. You are a credit to your uniform. Now, as to your other problem, Bleeding Heart here-"

"Uh, Blessed Heart, my lord."

"-Bleeding Heart is telling me that he has many feckless youths who would be only too willing to learn the discipline of military life. If we want killers, we need to start training them young. You may 'recruit' from his orphanage and similar institutions as you please."

"What! No, my lord! You cannot-"

"And take Bleeding Heart too. See if you can beat some stallionhood into him."

"With pleasure, my lord!" The Flight Commander was grinning evilly at the small unicorn. He gestured, and the bewildered unicorn was flanked by a couple of burly soldiers.

"Now, I understand you have half my advance for our venture here?"

Dirty Money blinked, but recovered admirably, "Half? Oh yes, of course. Half," he turned on the earth pony in anger, "Well, what are you waiting for, you idiot? Give his lordship his money so that we can go back and get the rest!"

Twilight turned to Arbitage, unable to hold back a grin at the look on his face., "Better?"

Arbitage shifted into Princess Luna, who looked very happy, "Much better. You can be despicable. Mmm..."

"Good," he turned back to the petitioners, "I've changed my mind. Flight Commander, your troops will join with the Manehattenites, fighting the griffons. Fight cleanly and do not throw away any lives. Even earth ponies'.

"Your new troops will come from the merchant classes, you may start with Dirty Money and his family. Blessed Heart, you are needed here in Hoofington. Take that chest of money on the earth pony over there and start feeding the orphans. In fact take the earth pony too and work with him to improve matters."

The petitioners were dumbstruck as Twilight trotted out, followed by Luna.

"Sorry Luna, I know it's just a dream, and I will do it properly next time, but this isn't easy for me."

"It's okay, Twilight. You still stole all that money from the merchant, enslaved him and started an expensive war, so you still did some evil."

"Ugh, thank you for making me feel better."

Luna laughed, "Well, if you want to feel better, why don't we head back to the seraglio and you can have your way with that earth pony you had your eye on earlier?" She shifted until the chocolate coated mare was trotting alongside him.

"Good idea, slave."

"Thank you, master," said Luna happily.

Domesticity

View Online

Written by RandomString, Proofread by Knight of Cerebus

Twilight awoke with a yawn. The sun would be rising soon, so she slipped out of bed without waking Li'l Twi and trotted out to her balcony.

Settling down to face the sun, the chill autumn air slowly robbing her of the heat she had stolen from the bed, Twilight waited for the dawn.

She was rewarded by the early rosy glow of the rising sun reaching into the sky, setting the underside of the nocturnal clouds ablaze with light. The clouds, which Rainbow's team had put out yesterday evening to keep Ponyville tolerably warm, were going to be burned off by the sun soon enough. The pegasi would clear any stragglers away in a few hours, but until then Twilight could enjoy the glorious sight.

She was so lost in wonder at the beauty of the dawn that she didn't see Midnight settle down beside her. She only became aware of her presence when the aroma of a mug of fresh ground coffee wafted by her nose and she turned her head.

Accepting her mug with surprised thanks, Twilight watched as Midnight sipped from her own. She didn't notice the magic aura that told any who cared that Midnight was no ordinary pegasus, all Twilight noticed was the beautiful face, the elegant neck, the relaxed grace of the mare beside her.

The slight ruffle of a wing caught Twilight's eye, and she watched with adoring silence as it stretched out to protect Twilight from the cool breeze coming in from the north. Twilight sighed and shifted in close to her lover, who nickered with approval.

If Twilight spent more time admiring the figure beside her than the dawn, neither pony seemed to mind.

-------------

"It's different. The day is it its most beautiful at dawn and dusk. That's when the light is at its most majestic, the colours strongest. Nighttime is completely different; moon rise is breathtaking, but the glory of the night is when the moon is full and the land is coated in silver and shadows. Just because I love the dawn doesn't mean I don't appreciate the night."

"Hmph."

"Aww, don't be like that Luna. I'll tell you what, after this week is over and Ponyville shuts down for winter, I'll shift my sleep cycle to match yours and you can show me all the ways I'm wrong. How does that sound?"

"Do you truly believe I will be mollified by you stroking my wings? Do you really think I am that easy to manipulate?"

"Yes. Didn't you read all the contents of that letter Princess Celestia sent me yesterday?"

"Aaah. Curse my sister for telling you all my secrets. I shall have my revenge. Mmmm, that is good. Do not stop what you are doing and I shall forgive you your love of the dawn. Keep it up and I shall even forgive you that smirk you are wearing now."

"Be careful what you say, Luna, or I'll break out the belly rubs."

"Mmmmmm. Tia torments me from afar by teaching my lover how to please me. There is no end to my sister's cunning. I am defeated."

"Very poetic. Now, would you like your torment to include scratches behind your ears?"

"Mmmmmmmm"

--------------------

Luna escaped from her blissful repose when needs of the flesh took away her hoofmaiden. Stretching luxuriously, wings spread at their full expanse, she held a perfect pose for a breath and then relaxed. Turning her back on her sister's work, she set about finding breakfast.

Twilight returned to the bedroom to find Luna gone. Twilight headed for the stairs in search of her but stopped when a squawking sound of disapproval came from Li'l Twi. The now tightly-tethered filly had found herself dragged from both sleep and the bed by Twilight's movement down the hall, and she was glaring at Twilight for her betrayal. Bally was rolling in small, agitated circles around her.

Twilight scratched behind Li'l Twi's ears in apology, the begrudging acceptance of which was slow in coming, and then headed downstairs to find Luna.

Twilight found her downstairs, sharing breakfast with Spike. Luna was teaching him how to make breakfast waffles without pre-made batter, and they were enjoying eating the mistakes slathered in honey.

"Good morning, Twilight. Luna- I mean Midnight is teaching me how to cook fresh waffles! You sit there and you can have the good ones. Midnight and I will eat all the ones that don't come out right."

Luna and Spike were stuffed by the time that Twilight considered herself properly fed. Luna held cooking to be an art and insisted that Spike work to a very high standard. If she ended up with far more waffles this way, it was surely a coincidence.

Once properly prepared for the day, Spike left for his second day off with Twilight's blessing. Said blessing included bodily lifting him and depositing him outside the library front door when he dithered about leaving Twilight to fend for herself all day for two days in a row.

Twilight came back to the kitchen to start the washing up only to find Luna already doing it, with her hooves.

"Luna, you don't need to do that. You cooked, so I should wash. And we're alone, so you can use magic, you know."

"This is fine, thank you, Twilight Sparkle. It has been a long time since I have done these chores. They bring back good memories."

"Oh?" asked Twilight as she moved alongside Luna to dry the plates with a dishcloth.

"Oh yes. I mentioned my relationship with Starswirl previously, did I not? When court life grew too much for us, we would escape for a while to a hut in the woods. We shared the chores as well as the bed. It was a good time."

"Starswirl. Wow. You did mention him before, but I didn't think about it. Did he- I mean, was he- Um. Am I any good?"

Luna laughed, "It is good to see that I am not the only one struggling with jealousy, Twilight. Rest your fears. You are Twilight Sparkle. He was Starswirl. I will not belittle my relationships by comparing them. You are a most wonderful lover."

Both mares were lost in each other's eyes, but only briefly, as they were soon distracted by the retching noise coming from Li'l Twi.

"What? I'm tethered too tightly to leave the room when you two go all lovey-dovey. Only thing Bally and I can do is give some helpful commentary."

"'Helpful'?"

"Yup, I'm helpfully reminding you what you would have felt about all this when you were four. I can't leave your presence now, so all I can do is be as helpful as possible. Alongside helpfully letting you know what I think, I shall helpfully remind you of other things.

"Like, um, this kitchen. Do you remember how many cups, plates and saucers you've broken in here? Do you remember how each of the chips in that mug you're drying were formed? I'll remind you. I cannot escape you, but tether me and I shall become more helpful than you can possibly imagine!"

"It's for your own good, Li'l Twi! I don't want you fading away!"

"Better to fade away than be stuck here with you all the time!"

"Take that back!"

"PEACE!" shouted Luna, and there was peace.

Both Twilights were nose to nose and practically snorting at each other. As one they turned their heads to the goddess in the room.

"Please explain the nature of your argument, Twilight. No, I mean the other Twilight."

Twilight explained to Luna about the alterations she made to Li'l Twi's spell to stop the fading. Li'l Twi explained to Luna that Twilight was an over-protective doodyhead and that being tethered to Twilight all the time was no fun. Twilight explained to Luna that fun could be found anywhere, but life was precious. Luna explained to both ponies that they would both be quiet or she would banish them both to the moon.

"Twilight, you can't keep a little filly trapped in a library. They need to be free. In particular they need to be free to be elsewhere when your marefriend decides that she wants to be 'lovey-dovey'."

"I know that, Luna. This is just temporary, until I can work out a permanent solution."

"Let me see if I understand the problem. Li'l Twi is gaining independence and in doing so, she is no longer able to survive on your natural magical bleed."

"Yes."

"And your solution to this is to curtail her independence and growth?"

"Temporarily-"

"Twilight, this is a simple equation. Her life expectancy is inversely proportional to her growth and freedom. How do you envisage overcoming that problem?"

"I DON'T KNOW!" wailed Twilight, "But I don't want her to fade away!"

"May I offer another option?"

Twilight looked up hopefully.

"Ask for help. Consider her nature: a phantasmal construct of your subconscious. Can you think of any pony who would know much about such things?" Luna was smiling comfortingly at Twilight.

"You? You're saying that she's a dream?"

"She is not a dream, but I believe she could be. I would have to make arrangements, but the dreaming is large enough to support another permanent resident."

"I'm not leaving Bally! He can't survive on his own! He's just a little ball!", said Li'l Twi, rushing to Bally's side and clutching it protectively. Twilight refrained from pointing out the Bally was nearly the size of Li'l Twi.

"Your ball was already a denizen of the dreaming until you kidnapped it, Little Twilight. It will be welcome back home."

"Oh, that's right," said Li'l Twi, now hiding behind Bally in embarrassment.

"Hold on, if Li'l Twi moves to the dreaming, does that mean I'll only see her when I dream?"

"We may be able arrange occasional visits. While your own personality is divergent from hers, can you think of somepony whose personality is a closer match and who would be willing to support her?"

Twilight buried her head in her hooves and mumbled, "I'm an idiot."

Li'l Twi was less restrained, gleefully shouting "Rainbow Dash!" at the top of her small but effective lungs.

Li'l Twi grinned at the mares staring at her. The grin faltered. "What? Rainbow is awesome! Wait, did you mean Rarity? That would make more sense," Li'l Twi admitted with a hoof raised musingly to her chin, "she's all magically sparkly and is all generous and stuff."

"Now I know you're messing with us," said Twilight with a grin.

"I will need to consult your notes, Twilight, and make arrangements so that the other dreamwalkers will recognise her. We will also need to check that Miss Pie will be willing to support the filly when she visits Ponyville. All this is assuming that you are amenable, Little Twilight?"

"Are you kidding? I get to be a nightmare! Raaargh!," Li'l Twi reared onto two hooves and struck a pose that would not have struck fear in the most timid of Fluttershy's animal friends.

"Thank you Luna," said Twilight, embracing her lover, "let me get you my notes."

"You are welcome, Twilight Sparkle. Now it will take a few days to arrange, but at the rate of Little Twilight's fading, you should be able to allow her her freedom without worries."

"Yay!"

Twilight nodded and once again tried to adjust the fine details of the spell maintaining Li'l Twi. With a delicate touch that was difficult for her, she reduced the tether that was holding the filly back. She looked up to see if the change had the desired impact and recoiled with alarm.

Li'l Twi was fading rapidly before her eyes, her mouth open in a soundless shout. Twilight dived forward to the phantom, but her hooves caught only air. Li'l Twi was gone.

"No!" shouted a shocked Twilight. She desperately checked the spell, but everything seemed to be correct-

She was distracted by a ball bouncing off the back of her head. Whipping her head around, she saw Li'l Twi sitting on top of the horsehead statue. Everything about her was only slightly faded, as intended, except her grin.

"You deserved that for tethering me, you meanie."

Relief gave a sharp edge to Twilight's laughter, but she nevertheless welcomed Li'l Twi into a nuzzling hug as Luna looked on fondly.

------------

Never one to over-extend a sharing moment, Li'l Twi soon bolted for the door, Bally in tow, leaving a hasty "Out to play, 'bye!" in her wake.

Twilight gave an exasperated sigh and turned to hug Luna.

"Thank you Luna, I don't know what you would do without you."

"Read books and boss Spike around?" offered Luna.

Twilight laughed and shrugged, "Probably. Ooh. Talking about bossing ponies around, I believe it is your turn today and we have an hour before the library opens. Give me a moment."

Twilight rushed off before Luna could say a word. A few minutes later she trotted back into the room, grinning delightedly and wearing a pet collar. She was carrying a leash in her mouth and dropped it at Luna's hooves.

"Twilight, what is this?"

Twilight tried to purr and rub herself against Luna's leg. Luna stopped her with a hoof raised in a commanding fashion and a stern look.

"Mew?"

"Speak, Twilight."

Twilight sighed, "I'm sorry, I thought it was obvious. You don't have a pet and we couldn't find you one earlier, so I will be your pet for the day. See?"

Twilight leaned her head back to proudly display the tag on the pet collar which said, "I belong to Luna". The last word had clearly been scratched onto the tag by Twilight.

"Twilight-" sighed Luna, only to be interrupted by the mare in question.

"Now, I need to open and run the library today, because Spike has the day off, but I was hoping we could play a little now and more later when the library closes. You can teach me tricks, make me beg and if I'm obedient you can give me treats! There are some mini-cupcakes in the larder. If I'm bad, I'll need to be punished, of course. And at the end of the day, there are things that you can do to me that you're not allowed to do to pets," this last was said with a blush.

"Twilight, stop. It's not that I'm not interested, but I had something else in mind today."

Twilight cocked her head quizzically at Luna.

"Twilight, I am keenly aware that I have not been keeping up my end of our bargain."

"Oh?"

"We agreed that we would take turns, did we not? Since then, you have played with my horn. All our other encounters were either dominated by me, interrupted, or summarily cancelled. I set the tone for last night's dream and tried to put you in a position that you clearly did not enjoy.

"I must make amends and while I am not so foalish as to keep score, I think that if I act as your slave for the remainder of my holiday here, to be punished and rewarded at your whim, we may bring the account to balance."

Twilight stood frozen for a while, and then started smiling an evil smile that would have been perfect for the dream last night. Luna felt a delightful shiver run down her spine.

"So the first step would be to have me run the library, as yesterday."

"Are you sure? Yesterday didn't go so well, if you recall..."

"I am sure, thank you, Twilight. I need to come to terms with my anger and serving the general public anonymously seems ideal."

"In at the deep end?" laughed Twilight, "Alright, Luna. You will be my slave for the rest of the week. But! If you are having problems then you must ask me to take over or help. I don't want you to be overwhelmed."

"Thank you, Twilight. I shall obey your command. I suggest you remove the collar for now. Um, don't lose it though."

Twilight grinned at the rare disfluency that Luna displayed, and trotted away to hide the collar and fetch her notes.

------------

"So what kind of pet were you trying to be anyway?"

"Well, I was going to start with something feline and then take my cues from your reaction and words."

"Twilight, no cat in history has taken a leash to its master to ask for a walk."

"I know, but that the leash was on special offer. Anyway, what pet would you prefer me to be?"

"I like the idea of a dog: Honest, loyal, playful. I can never have one because they need love and attention that I can't always give. But you can be my faithful hound."

"'Woof!' Well, ‘woof’ in an indeterminate time in the future, not today. Today you are mine. Seeing as you closed early yesterday, you're going to have to work extra hard today if you want a reward."

"Mmm, then I had better get work, mistress."

Twilight withdrew to her study, and mentally started laying out her day, which was enough to summon her little genie. Together they started to plan.

------------

First was Twilight talking to Pinkie. This went as well as Twilight had expected.

"Li'l Twi! Where were you? I was going to explore up the toffee river to the fudge foothills, but I didn't have my loyal assistant!"

"Pinkie! I was grounded! Twilight wouldn't let me come out to play, the big meanie. I didn't even do anything wronger than usual, either. I was all, "I wanna go out an' play with my friends" and she was all, 'No! Friendship is not important! You-'"

"What?! I didn't say that-"

Li'l Twi raised her voice and talked over Twilight’s objection, "'Friendship is not important! You must stay next to me and be bored!' and I was like this," here Li'l Twi fell to her knees, clutching her fore-hooves together in supplication, tears welling in her eyes, "and she was like," Li'l Twi leapt to her hooves and struck a haughty and imperious pose, dismissing the little imaginary filly's imaginary pleas with a contemptuous wave of her hoof.

Pinkie was horrified and turned on Twilight, "Twilight! How could you?!"

"No! She's got it all wrong. I was trying to save her-"

"Save her from adventuring up a river of toffee? Oh Twilight, after all we've been through together and you still have no faith in my skills in wilderness exploration. I'm a baker, dammit! I can do this!"

Twilight facehoofed, "Pinkie, Li'l Twi was fading away. I needed to keep her close to reverse the fading."

Pinkie peered at the distinctly faded Li'l Twi and then looked worriedly at Twilight, "Uh, Twilight, I don't think it worked."

"Argh!"

"Don't worry, Pinkie! I'm going to turn into a nightmare! And a vampire! It's going to be awesome!"

"Does that mean that you and Twilight are going to be enemies, fighting a climactic battle that will ultimately tumble all Equestria into warfare and chaos? A cataclysmic fight that will eventually claim both your lives?"

"No! I wouldn't do that! She's, she's kinda, maybe, sorta, sometimes, um, alright,” Li’l Twi’s eyes opened with realisation, “I DIDN'T SAY THAT!"

"Awww!" said Pinkie as she watched Twilight grab Li'l Twi into a hug and the little filly try to twist free. Eventually the filly blinked away from the disappointed Twilight.

Seeing that any further attempt to hug the filly would be unwelcome, Twilight turned to Pinkie.

"Pinkie, Luna and I hope that Li'l Twi can become a dream, so she can join us when we sleep, but I'd like her to be able to manifest in Ponyville every now and then When she does so, she'll need to take just a little energy from someone whose personality matrix is concordant with hers, and we were hoping that you might be willing."

"Oh! Okay. Why didn't you just say that?"

Twilight managed to escape Sugar Cube Corner with most of her sanity intact. She hoped.

-------------

Next stop was a quick stop at the hardware shop. Twilight knew she wasn’t blushing, but she practically galloped out the shop in embarrassment the moment she had paid for her purchases.

Rather than lug the building materials around, she had arranged for everything to be delivered to the library. Hopefully Luna would be able to guess what some of the items were for and be mystified by other items, fuelling her anticipation.

-------------

“Hello, and welcome to the Carousel Boutique. Forgive me for not coming out, I just need to finish this seem and I shall be at your disposal, as it were.”

“Hello Rarity, no need to hurry on my account.”

“Twilight, darling- Oh bother! Oh well, I shall redo that seem later. Welcome back! Well, how did it go? Oh, I know I shouldn’t ask, but really, it’s all I could think about yesterday. Did- did she like it?”

“She loved it, thank you. We had a great time-”

“Oh, that’s wonderful!”

“Until Princess Celestia walked in through the door that Luna had left open.”

“What! Oooh!”

Twilight was glad to see that the drying spell in the book she had lent to Rarity had done wonders to Rarity’s divan: there was no sign of water damage whatsoever.

“Thankfully Princess Celestia approved of our relationship, which was a great relief. We had a lovely day in the city, before Luna pulled a prank on the Princess which caused us to flee.”

“Oh, how romantic! And now you’re a felon on the run, meeting up with your friends one last time before you disappear into the night with your forbidden love!”

Twilight noticed how much Rarity seemed to relish the prospect, and shivered.

“She made it seem as though the Princess, uh, flatuated on Argent Shield, one of her ladies-in-waiting. Luna’s spending a few days in Ponyville while the air clears. Um, I mean, while things calm down.”

“That’s- that’s not quite so romantic.”

“Um, sorry. I’ll be shifting my sleep cycle to match hers after tomorrow. Does that count?“

Rarity sighed, “Well, it’s better than nothing. Thank you. So, what brings you here? Come to trade inside royal Canterlot gossip for the news in Ponyville? You can give me a first-hoof account of Princess Celestia’s breakfast and I can tell you about Carrot Top’s new manestyle. An even trade, I’m sure.”

“Heh. I actually came to order a few things...”

“If this is a request for another indecent garment, well, um. I can put you to the front of the queue.”

“There’s a queue for naughty costumes now?”

“It turns out that your ‘naughty nurse’ outfit was spotted by another customer. Who told other people. Don’t worry! No-one knows it was yours. But I had a few enquiries after that, and they were offering scandalous amounts of money for scandalous outfits and I just couldn’t resist,” Rarity sighed, “It’s so hard being a responsible business mare,” she grinned, “and so much fun!”

“And not being able to gossip about who’s buying what?”

“It’s driving me crazy!”

“Well, while I may take you up on your offer later, today I just want to purchase a roll of royal blue silk; a large, flawless diamond; and place an order for a plush spider. Rubies for eyes, please. It’s for Luna.”

“Well, the diamond is easy enough, here you go, take your pick. No, no, it’s free. I’ve got simply scads of the things lying around. No-one wants plain old diamonds when they can have more colourful gemstones.”

Twilight and Rarity negotiated a price for the plush toy and the bolt of silk. Somewhat disconcertingly, Rarity tried to talk down the price of the silk as Twilight extolled its virtues and tried to push the price up. Between them, they managed to reach something close to a fair price, before Twilight headed home with her purchases and her returned book. The spider would take a couple of days due to Rarity’s rush of orders.

On the way back she was accosted by a couple of ponies she had never met before. The stallion was young, slim and bespectacled and had an open book cutie mark. His companion was heavier than most ponies and she looked to be very happy about it. As one of Luna's bat-ponies, she stood out in rustic Ponyville.

"Hello there! You simply must be Miss Twilight Sparkle," said the stallion in a Canterlot accent, "It's an absolute honour to meet you. Here, this is for you. Think of it as an early Hearth's Warming Eve present. And a 'thank you', for, well, everything. No, no, don't open it here. Wait until you're alone. Have fun!"

Both ponies appeared to be delighted when Twilight uncertainly took the heavy, clinking, black velvet bag from their hooves.

Sharing a shrug with Li'l Twi, she continued to make her way back to the library, adding the bag to the load being carried by her aura. She hadn't gotten much further before a lone earth pony with a telescope cutie mark gave her smaller, lighter bag with similar instructions and a wink.

By the time she reached the library, she was heavily laden with mysterious gifts from strangely friendly strangers. She did recognise a couple of them as Canterlot academics who had moved to serve Princess Luna upon her return, whilst others were clearly some of Luna's fanatically loyal bat-ponies.

--------------------------

She found Midnight sitting, eyes closed, in a circle scattered with chunks of destroyed magazines. She was taking deep, slow breaths and looking very relaxed.

The library still had a few patrons, but they seemed to be eyeing Midnight nervously. Twilight sighed, which caught Midnight's attention. She looked up guiltily and started trying to clean up the mess she had made, picking up the chunks in her mouth to take to the bin.

Twilight would have none of it and used her magic to grab every piece, including the one in Midnight's mouth, and binned the lot of them. Midnight sat back down, looking sheepish. Twilight teleported the gifts and her purchases to the bedroom.

A hasty whispered conversation followed.

"Midnight, are you okay?"

"I just had some very annoying news. The book suggested venting anger on inanimate objects and your old magazines were the best things available. That calmed me down enough to use the breathing exercises."

"And so the reason the rest of my patrons are staring at you is that they saw you tear several magazines to shreds and are worried that you will do the same to them?"

"It is possible that they are slightly intimidated, despite my assurances that all is well. I was hoping that my meditative calm would cause them to relax."

"It doesn’t seem to be working, Luna. Let me drop off these things and I'll come out to help."

When she returned, Twilight sent Midnight to get food. The patrons were relaxed by the time Midnight returned and all was well again. The two mares worked side by side for the rest of the day, sorting shelves and dealing with customers as Twilight slowly teased out the reason for Midnight’s upset.

“Let me see if I understand. Princess Celestia has given your ponies the day, sorry, the night off?”

“Yes.”

“And told them that the traditional Ponyville Snowfall festival would be tomorrow. And hinted to them that if they happened to visit Ponyville, Midnight would be in the Ponyville library and could be ordered around for their amusement?”

Luna’s eyes flared with indignation, “I have been forced to find what passes for pornography in this town for no less than four different sniggering ponies. Ponies who work for me.”

“I was wondering why the ‘romance’ section was looking a little bare.”

“If this library had had a copy of the Karmare Sutra, it would have a long queue to check it out today. I, I made the mistake of telling the first of my subjects to broach the topic that there was not a copy in the building, without making a search for it. They interpreted my knowledge as proof that I had already looked for it.”

“Oh dear. I hope you won’t be too hard on them when you’re back to being Princess in Canterlot.”

“Once they had laughed at my embarrassment, they apologised and offered me congratulations on finding you and wished us both success. I was not aware of this, but it seems as though Midnight is relatively well liked. I- I will not hold their actions against them.”

“Good. Please keep that in mind when I tell you that several ponies that appeared to be associated with night court activities gave me mysterious gifts this morning. I strongly suspect the gifts to be sex toys, including restraints.”

Luna sighed, “That would explain some of the more obtuse comments I received today. I cannot claim either surprise or upset; I believe that they were merely jocular gifts.”

“I’m glad that you’re taking it so well. What aren’t you telling me?”

“I am sorry, could you please explain your question?”

“You are holding something back, Luna. Why are you so annoyed with Princess Celestia’s prank?”

“Why? She is deliberately provoking me! She is sending my own ponies to embarrass me! She is interfering with my- with our holiday!”

“Keep going, Luna.”

“She told my ponies that she had banished me to my room!”

“Ah. Ouch.”

“She told them that as punishment for the breakfast prank and destroying her bedchamber doors, she has banished me to my room! I am not a little filly! The Night shall not be slighted!”

“Uh, Midnight, the customers are staring. Maybe you could stop your eyes from glowing like that and they’ll pretend it never happened? Oh, nevermind, we only had two patrons left and they’ve both run away.”

“Ah. I am sorry Twilight.”

“‘I am sorry, Mistress.’ Do get it right, slave.”

Luna hung her head and blushed with embarrassment.

“Please forgive me, mistress.”

Twilight sighed, and closed the library for the day.

“I take it, slave, that you saw my purchases from the hardware shop earlier?”

“Yes mistress. I had the delivery ponies put them in the root cellar.”

“Very good, slave. As I’m sure you guessed, I purchased those items for you. I was hoping to have the opportunity to reward you tonight. I am sure you can imagine my disappointment.”

“I am very sorry, mistress.”

“Well, slave. Let’s see. Yesterday, you closed the library early. Today you tore some of my magazines to shreds and intimidated my patrons. Do you want to guess on my review of your performance?”

“Poor, mistress?”

“Poor would be a considerable improvement on what you managed, slave. You very clearly need to be punished. You will go to the root cellar and you will sit quietly, in the dark, thinking about all you’ve done wrong and how sorry you are, until I find the time to punish you properly.”

“Yes, mistress.”

When the Golden Oak Library had been made, a great living tree had been hollowed out. The wood that had been moved to make the rooms had been sunk into the ground and used to create several large, wood-lined chambers. Twilight had turned one into her laboratory, dedicated one to book repair and storage and left the root cellar untouched.

The root cellar was mostly empty, with Twilight’s purchases neatly stacked in one corner. Neither Twilight nor Spike were in the habit of storing food as they grew up as guests in a castle and didn’t need to worry about such things.

Midnight settled down in the middle of the room without complaint. Twilight closed the door on her, plunging the room into complete darkness as she went to open her new gifts.

----------------------------

Dear Miss Sparkle,
Please forgive our naughty little prank. We were so delighted that Midnight had finally found a special somepony that we thought a little joke would would be fun. You can threaten her with these if she ever gets too boisterous. Ha ha! I wish we could see her face when she sees them, her blush would surely light up the room.
Yours affectionately,
Soft Almanac and Midnight Feast

The letter with the hoof restraints was fairly typical. There seemed to be a level of innocence exhibited by Luna’s subjects that Twilight didn’t expect and found quite charming. She looked forward to getting to know the rest of Luna’s personal subjects better.

Well aware that she had an alicorn waiting for her downstairs, an alicorn who had had a bad day and would be wanting some attention to take her mind off things at that, Twilight surveyed the gifts and selected a couple that looked to be suitable before hurrying back downstairs.

<Author’s note: just clop from here on in. There will be no plot, so you can stop reading at any time if you feel uncomfortable. Warnings: domination, mild verbal abuse, restricted movement, spanking>

Midnight was just where she had left her, facing away from the door. Twilight had a box of candles, which she lit and distributed around the outside edge of the room. Satisfied, Twilight shut the door and locked it with a loud click.

“Now we won’t be disturbed.”

She started walking around Luna, noting a slight fluttering in her wings, the first signs of arousal. When she reached Luna’s head, she noticed Luna following her with her eyes. Twilight gently grasped Luna’s head with her aura and held it to the floor.

“Slaves do not get look at their mistresses without permission.”

“I am sorry, mistress.”

“Hmph”

Twilight used her magic to cut a section of the blue silk from the bolt that Twilight had purchased. She wrapped the silk around Luna’s head as a blindfold and then released her.

“There. Wait, what’s this. Your wings are spreading out. Slave, are you enjoying this? You are. You, uh, are a filthy creature,” Twilight grinned as Luna’s wings spread further open, but kept the same tone of voice, “You enjoy being punished.”

“I am sorry, mistress, I cannot help it.”

“Hmpf. Present yourself.”

Luna obediently kept her forelegs on the ground, but raised her behind, lifting her tail out of the way. Twilight sniffed dismissively and slapped Luna’s buttock with her tail as she circled. The sound of the slap was satisfying, and Luna gave a little *huff*, which was promising.

Twilight fished out four of the eyebolts from the hardware store purchase. Too thick to just drive into the wood, Twilight had to magically meld the wood around the bolts until just the large eyelet protruded from the floor. Two were positioned in front of Luna, the other two at her hindquarters.

Another, very long stretch of silk was cut from the bolt, and formed into a couple of long, thin, ropes. Hearing only rustles of silk, Luna’s ears twitched nervously. Twilight wrapped a rope around one of Luna’s legs with her aura and secured the other end to an eyebolt, then did the same for the other leg, holding them slightly apart.

She stepped back to admire her work and noticed a slight problem: she was a lot shorter than Luna. Toying briefly with getting a box to stand on (she didn’t have a box of the right size and strength to hoof), fetching a ladder (unstable, unsafe, undignified) and making a small stand out of books (now she was just getting desperate), Twilight sighed. She then used her aura to pull at both ropes, spreading Luna’s legs much further apart, lowering her treasure to within easy reach.

Luna squawked in objection to the treatment, and Twilight decided that her legs looked a little unsteady. Thankfully the ceiling was wooden too, and Twilight had purchased quite a few eyebolts and a lot of silk. Once an eyebolt was in place and Luna’s tail was tied to a rope tied to the ceiling, bearing a portion of her weight, Twilight decided that the structure was sound enough.

She circled around to Luna’s front, trailing her tail along Luna’s side, and secured both forelegs in a similar fashion. Luna was breathing deeply and her wings were stretching out, making her excitement plain. Noting the arousal that Luna was displaying with her wings, Twilight moved on to the next stage of her plan.

Biting back an excited, nervous giggle, Twilight used another length from the bolt of silk to gently wrap up Luna’s wings. She twined the long stretch of cloth around both wings, crossing Luna’s back at the middle and leaving a reasonable length free at both ends. Luna stiffened, but made no objection.

Once Luna’s wings were wrapped in blue silk, Twilight took the bag of nails she had purchased earlier, and nailed the silk to the wooden floor. Each nail was driven into the floor by Twilight’s aura, one at a time, with a *thunk*. The silk was now taut, and Luna’s wings were held at their fullest stretch. Luna was fully restrained, to Twilight’s satisfaction.

“I hope that feels okay, Luna. I’m sure that having your wings pressed against your barrel when we’re having fun must be frustrating to you. As long as you don’t try to fold them, or fly, this should be fairly comfortable. If you don’t like it, shout out and I’ll pull out the nails. Or you can-”

“Mistress?”

“Oops, sorry. Uh, sorry, not sorry, argh!” Twilight caught herself, cleared her throat, and began again, “Slave. You are my property. I remind you that you are to make me aware should any of my property be in danger of becoming damaged. Even you.”

“Yes, mistress.”

“Good slave. Now let’s stop wasting time.”

Twilight walked to Luna’s head, the clop of her hooves the only noise in the room. With Luna’s blindfold, she had no way of seeing the aura that Twilight used to lift up the paddle she had brought in with her and the slap on her rump came as a complete surprise.

“Oh!”

“Just wanted to make sure you hadn’t fallen asleep on me, slave.”

“Never, mistress.”

Twilight grinned and slapped her rump again with the paddle, a touch harder.

“Ah!”

“You may not answer back. Do you understand?”

Luna was silent, but tried to nod her head. Twilight brought the paddle down again.

“Ah!”

“Do. You. Understand?” each word was punctuated by another slap from the paddle.

“Ah! Yes, mistress. I am sorry, mistress.”

“Good. So, let’s assess your workplace performance,” said Twilight, pacing in front of Luna as her paddle floated behind Luna, ignoring the bead of sweat that was forming on her back.

“I shall generously ignore a number of minor infractions and we shall focus on the most grievous offences. One, you closed the library early yesterday. That’s ten debits. Two, you tore up the library magazines. That’s another ten. Three, you intimidated the library patrons. That’s another ten. So that adds up to fifty debits.”

Luna made a strangled noise, which Twilight cheerfully pounced on, “What’s that slave? Do you think that you’re better at mathematics than your mistress?”

“No mistress! Never, mistress!”

“So how many debits have you earned?”

“Fifty, mistress.”

“Good slave.”

“Now, I don’t want to ignore the good work you did do. You managed to stay conscious for the entire time you were managing the library, and I know how hard that can be some days. That’s worth a bonus. And you didn’t banish anyone to the moon. That’s another bonus right there. Oh, and you looked really sexy at the front desk. That’s worth three. So in total, you earned two bonuses.”

Luna twitched, but said nothing.

“Say: ‘Thank you mistress’.”

“Thank you, mistress.”

“Very good,” said Twilight as she patted Luna’s head, “Let’s get started. Don’t lose count now, or we shall have to start over.”

Twilight delivered three quick strikes against Luna’s well-proportioned rump and and was rewarded with a short grunt with each one.

“I don’t hear any counting. We’re going to start over.”

Luna groaned.

Starting again, with Luna counting this time, Twilight worked to take Luna’s troubles away. Or at least those troubles that didn’t concern being tied up and thoroughly spanked.

About half way through Luna’s punishment, as Luna’s moans were turning insistent and her counting seemed to be getting eager, Twilight stopped. Luna whined in disappointment, but Twilight generously let that pass.

“Well, I think it’s time for one of those bonuses. Enjoy!”

Twilight giggled and trotted up to Luna’s glowing behind. She started by running a hoof in light, gentle circles around Luna’s inner thigh. The hoof drifted across her blazingly sensitive rump and down the other leg. Luna’s breathing was calming down now that the spanking had stopped, but Twilight was getting good at teasing her arousal.

As Luna’s already-damp marehood started to noticeably swell under Twilight’s ministrations, Twilight pulled her hoof away and started to lick. Long, slow, licks that drew groans of need and passion from Luna’s lips. Twilight explored the contours of Luna’s treasure with increasing pace and intensity, slipping between Luna’s lower lips and eliciting gasps and groans.

Establishing a rhythm that seemed to drive Luna wild, Twilight was relentless. Her own arousal was growing, her needs increasing at the sounds of pleasure coming from Luna, but she was dedicated to her role and didn’t let up to tend to her own needs. Once Luna seemed fully aroused and on the cusp of orgasm, Twilight pulled back.

“Well, I hope you enjoyed that.”

Luna practically howled in frustration.

“Good. Now’s let’s get back to the counting. Can you remember where we were at, or shall we have to start again at the beginning?”

Much to Twilight’s disappointment, Luna had miraculously managed to remember the count, but Twilight stayed good to her word and carried on from where they had left off. Seeing Luna’s arousal and hearing the need in her words, Twilight increased the force of each blow, most grateful that her magic meant that she was not exhausted by the work.

By the time that the count was done, Luna was panting in ecstasy. Twilight noted the drool around her muzzle and gave her a moment before speaking again.

“Well, slave, you managed to count very well. Very good work. Let’s give you that other bonus you earned.”

“Mistress, mercy,” murmured Luna.

“Hmm? Oh no! Luna! Did I go too far!? Did I hit you too hard?! You should have said! Or did you say and I was too caught up to notice? Argh!”

Twilight panicked, ripping the silken ropes to shreds in an attempt to release Luna from her bonds. Luna was forced to stir herself from her zone to calm Twilight down, pulling off her blindfold to find and hug Twilight in the dwindling candlelight.

“Twilight! No, it was wonderful! I would have told you if anything was wrong. It’s okay! It’s okay.”

“Really? Really okay?”

“Yes, Twilight. Really okay. And I loved it. But you love teasing me and I hate being teased. Until you stop teasing and make everything you’ve done up until then worth it all. So I asked for mercy, but wasn’t expecting any. Our safeword is ‘red’, remember?”

“Oh. Um. Sorry,” Twilight was feeling deeply embarrassed as she calmed down.

“It’s okay. For your first time playing this game, you were very good at it. Thank you.”

“And then I ruined the mood...”

Luna sighed.

“It happens. You’ll know better next time. Let’s tidy up here and go to bed. We can wind down nicely there.”

Twilight blinked as Luna’s magic surged, the room suddenly lit up blue with the light from her aura, even without a horn to centre on. The surviving shreds of the silk ropes untied themselves from the eyebolts and merged with the lengths that untied themselves from Luna’s hooves. Twilight watched in awe as the silk reassembled into a sheet and rejoined seamlessly with the original bolt. The nails and candles scattered across the floor were gathered, the candles extinguished, and neatly deposited next to the rest of the supplies. The eyebolts unscrewed themselves from the wood and joined the other items, the holes in the wood healing behind them. The paddle flew to hide itself underneath the other items.

Soon the only signs of their activities was the pool of fluid from under where Luna was standing, a smaller trail from Twilight and a funky smell, and then those signs too were gone. Twilight stood open mouthed, staring at Luna, who blushed.

“Wow.”

“Thank you. I have had a lot of time to practice my little tricks. Let’s go to bed.”

“Okay. And when we’re dreaming, you are teaching me magic. I know I will never be as adroit as you, but there’s so much more for me to learn.”

Luna laughed, and guided Twilight to the door. They were both smiling as they stepped into the main library room, where Spike was cleaning up a few bits of paper that Twilight had missed.

“Hi Twilight, Midnight. Have you been working on a project in the root cellar?”

“Hi Spike. Something like that,” said Twilight, furiously fighting her tendency to blush, desperately trying to keep the conversation casual, “Did you have a good day?”

“Oh yes, thank you. I was just tidying up here and then I’ll go to bed.”

“Thank you, Spike. Sleep well.”

Twilight felt relief wash over her as it became clear that Spike hadn’t spotted anything wrong and allowed Midnight to shepherd her to the stairs.

“Sleep well, Twilight, Midnight.”

They were halfway up the stairs before Spike called out curiously, “Uh, Twilight, why is there a blue silk rope tied to Midnight’s tail?”

Flight

View Online

Written by RandomString Proofread by Knight of Cerebus
-------------------
<Author’s note: if you want to skip the clop, just head to the first break. Otherwise F/F, movement restriction. This is a direct continuation of the previous chapter.>

"You planned that!"

Luna just giggled and trotted up the stairs, chased by Twilight. As soon as they were out of sight of Spike, Twilight grabbed the blue rope in her mouth and tugged, pulling Luna short with a delighted yelp.

Twilight walked past Luna, still holding the rope in her mouth with her head held high. Playing along, Luna turned in place and allowed herself to be dragged into the bedroom by her tail.

"Noooo! I'm going to be defiled!"

Twilight spat out the rope once they reached the bedroom. She picked up Luna with her aura and deposited her onto the bed.

"Slaves need to learn their place. You shall be punished until you realise that your only purpose in life is to worship me."

Luna stuck out her tongue at Twilight, "Make me!"

A spare blanket was wrapped around Luna's barrel, holding her wings tight against her body.

"Ergh."

"I see that my earlier generosity in allowing your wings to spread was interpreted as a weakness. I shan't make the same mistake again."

"My mistress is so cruel."

"Oh, I haven't even started yet. I think somepony needs some serious teasing."

"No, mistress! Have mercy!"

"Ha ha ha! The time for mercy has passed! Let's put our lovely new gifts to use, shall we?"

The restraints were simple enough, and it only took Twilight a couple of tries to get one of Luna's hindlegs bound and tied to the bedframe. She examined the restraint from several angles, to make sure it was secure. Luna shifted restlessly.

"Oh, you'll regret disrespecting me, slave," said Twilight, trailing a hoof slowly up Luna's bound leg. She shifted direction before reaching Luna's treasure, and began caressing and massaging Luna's rump.

"A less subservient slave would have escaped by now. Have you forgotten how to do this, mistress?"

"Ha ha! I think somepony is getting impatient. I think somepony is worried that I'm going to take my time," Twilight stopped caressing Luna's buttocks and started deliberately crawling over Luna's body, "I have something to say to somepony," she said, dropping her weight onto Luna's body and lowering her head to whisper into Luna's ear, "I am going to take hours."

Twilight heard Luna's little whimper, but it wasn't as satisfying as Luna's delightful shiver that she felt through the blanket.

Taking advantage of her position, she started nuzzling and nipping at Luna's neck as she used her aura to bind the first of Luna's forehooves to the bedpost at a leisurely pace.

She bit Luna's ear before returning to the foot of the bed.

Luna was clearly aroused and tugging half-heartedly at her bonds, so Twilight took pity on her and tied the remaining two limbs to their respective posts with a little more speed, but a lot more teasing. Soon Luna was desperately rubbing herself with her prehensile tail, trying to steal a climax before Twilight was willing to give one.

Twilight would have none of it. She grabbed the rope still attached to Luna's tail with her aura and tied the other end to Luna's mane, close to the nape of her neck. Luna now lay on the bed, fully exposed and helpless. A quick lift and a pillow was shoved under Luna's hips, lifting them for easier access.

Breathing deeply of the captivating musk, Twilight grinned as she set to work. Luna was already wet and close to dripping, so Twilight took her time, starting off with just a single hoof trailing its way around Luna's body. She breathed on Luna's opening. She gently touched the outer edges of her flower.

All the while she did this, she ignored the moans and complaints from her lover, refusing to go any faster or to give her 'just a quick one'. Twilight was tempted to gag Luna - the goddess was surely capable of freeing herself should she become distressed - but decided that it was nice to have useful feedback.

When a mischievous mood took her, Twilight snagged a small dildo (one of the recent gifts) and rubbed it in the fluids that were now dripping freely from Luna's loins for lubrication. She increased the pace and intensity of her caresses and slipped the dildo into Luna's opening, pulling it in and out to Luna's enthusiastic cries. Well familiar with Luna's body by now, Twilight was able to bring her to the brink of climax before suddenly stopping and pulling out entirely.

Luna's curses were music to her ears.

Passing the time while Luna cooled down and her thrusting hips, which were hitting nothing but air, slowed, Twilight massaged Luna's shoulders and whispered encouragement in her ear.

Once Luna's arousal had dropped a little, Twilight started again, using her tongue this time rather than her hoof. As careful as ever, Twilight took her time and slowly licked Luna's loins, starting with the least sensitive areas.

Using Luna's moans and groans as a guide, Twilight methodically worked her way around the territory she was beginning to learn quite well. She luxuriated in the feeling of power as Luna writhed at her whim and begged for release, and almost lost her focus until she noticed that Luna's cries had lost coherence and her wildly thrusting hips had lost the remnants of rhythm. Twilight pulled back just before Luna could climax.

Twilight brought Luna to the brink three times, each one earning her mock-threats and promises in attempts to cajole her into letting Luna orgasm. In the end it was a practical consideration that brought Twilight's highly enjoyable game to a close: her tongue was getting tired and it would be difficult to bring Luna to a truly satisfying climax without it, considering the paucity of other tools available.

"Hmm, so if I show mercy, will you be properly obedient from now on?"

"Yes, mistress!"

"And will you swear to serve me and only me?"

"Yes, mistress. Please hurry, mistress."

"Are you just saying anything you think I want to hear?"

"Yes, mistress. Anything, mistress."

"Hmpf. It's past my bedtime. I should just go to sleep about now..."

"Nooooo..."

"Well, you have been a fun little toy. I suppose I could be generous. Just this once."

Twilight resumed stimulating Luna in her steady fashion, but this time she increased the pace and intensity as Luna approached her climax. Flicking her nub with her tongue, driving the small dildo with ever stronger thrusts, Twilight kept it up until-

A bright blue light flooded the room as Luna came. The blanket was torn asunder as Luna shifted into her larger alicorn form, wings spread wide and horn blazing. The restraints broke and fell off her legs and the rope holding back her tail fizzed into nothingness.

Now unrestrained, Luna's aethereal starfield tail flowed around Twilight until all Twilight could see was stars. Twilight yelped with surprise and reluctantly extracted herself from the wondrous sight.

"Haaah. I am sorry Twilight, I briefly lost control. You certainly know how to push me to my limits."

Twilight spat a few not so aethereal hairs out of her mouth before kissing Luna in forgiveness.

"It's okay, Luna. Those restraints were probably pretty cheap. Shame about the blanket though, it was a gift from my mother and I know that she's going to ask what happened to it next time she visits."

"Oops. Let me see if I can repair it... There, good as new."

"Thanks."

"I live to serve, mistress."

"You're still horny?"

Luna laughed.

"Mistress, it isn't right that you put the needs of your slave above your own. I beg you, please let me serve you."

"Well, okay. Because you asked nicely. You may lick my hoof."

"Oh, thank you, mistress."

"Mmm. That's nice. Uh, that's not my hoof. My hoof is in the other direction. Um, don't stop though."

Luna made no response and kept doing what she was doing.

Twilight, for her part, saw that continued orders were unnecessary and lay back on the bed, moaning occasionally. Luna wasted little time in taking the already excited mare to a terrific climax. Being Luna, she made a point of following up the first orgasm with a second while Twilight was still sensitive.

Satisfied, Twilight fell back onto the bed and was soon asleep. Luna curled up protectively around the little unicorn and spread a wing over her sleeping form in lieu of a blanket as she too fell asleep.

----------------------

Twilight woke up well before dawn. This was a special day - Snowfall. Just as the changing of the seasons were done the earth pony way in Ponyville, so the first day of winter was ushered in with a tradition of its own. The day would be solemn as winter wasn't welcomed with a fanfare, it was embraced with dignity. The midday feast would be quiet and the music and dancing in the evening would be slow.

It wasn’t just Snowfall that made today special. There was another event going on, just outside of town, that Twilight had been looking forward to for a very long time. Twilight couldn't wait, and so slipped quietly out of bed. Luna was still sleeping and Li'l Twi had yet to manifest for the day. Twilight conscientiously crept downstairs to grab a quick, cold breakfast before heading out into the dark.

There was a clearing near Fluttershy's cottage where those pegasi with an affinity towards animals and a desire to help would be gathering. Twilight was eager to witness the event, and so arrived there well before it was due to start. She was early, but Fluttershy was already there, wrapped up in a thick scarf and looking to the skies nervously.

"Oh, hello Twilight, it's good to see you. Are you here for the migration?" asked Fluttershy.

"Hello Fluttershy," whispered Twilight, conscious of the great quiet of the dark, "I'd like to follow the relay, if that’s okay. I’ve wanted to see it ever since I first heard about it, but something’s always come up, until now.”

"Oh that's just fine, but I'm not sure that there'll be much to see, to be honest. Just lots of birds. But you're welcome to stay of course! Uh, if it really interests you..."

"Thanks. I thought I'd be the first one here. Don't we have at least an hour before they get here?"

"Oh yes. I'm just up because there are always a few nocturnal stragglers. Most of the birds of the night moved through here last night, but some were delayed and they need a place to roost overday, poor things. They'll carry on tonight. There really haven’t been many stragglers this time; Luna's bat-ponies have really made a difference these last couple of years - it was always really hard to find a volunteer to lead the night flights before they showed up."

"I'm glad they're fitting in. I was worried that they'd be ostracised because of their wings."

"Me too, but they're lovely ponies when you get to know them. Anyway, I need to get on. Please let me know if you need anything."

"Will do, thank you."

Twilight settled down under a tree, yawning into the thermos flask of hot soup she had prepared the night before. Long years of stargazing had made her a veteran of the night, and her warm scarf and saddle were enough to keep the chill at bay. That didn't stop her from taking the opportunity to drink hot delicious soup, though.

Slowly pegasi arrived, forming small huddles where they spoke with hushed voices, careful not to disturb the quiet. Fluttershy moved from huddle to huddle, coordinating the plans, but it was clear that everypony knew what was expected. Soon about a dozen pegasi were standing in the field, waiting with various levels of patience.

Dawn came soon enough, and with it came a deafening chorus from the throngs of birds that had been sleeping in the trees around the clearing.

Fluttershy and the other ponies were distributing birdseed to the feeders up in the trees. As Twilight looked up to watch them, she found out why the pegasi had been standing in the field and not under the trees. She also found out what happened to food after the birds were done with it, but she already knew that.

When Luna-as-Midnight landed in the middle of the clearing with quiet grace she didn't attract much attention, but Twilight spotted her and trotted out to meet her.

"Good morning Twilight. I see you were standing under the birds."

"Oh dear, did it leave a stain? Good morning, by the way."

"You have quite a collection on your saddle and scarf. I have no magic, of course, otherwise I would help you..."

"Don't worry, now I know that they're there I can clean them up easily enough. How did you know where I was?"

"I have a spy."

"Who- Oh, Li'l Twi."

"She was very happy to explain what was going on."

"Yup!" shouted Li'l Twi as she bounced out from behind Luna, "I told Luna all about your silly affair with Fluttershy and how you were two-timing on her and being really naughty."

"What?! Luna, I've never even looked at Fluttershy that way! I-", realisation dawned slowly, "I am far too easy to tease." sighed Twilight.

"Don't worry, dear Twilight. I find it very endearing."

"Yes, Twilight. It's one of your better features!"

"Grr - just wait until I get my hooves on you."

Li'l Twi ran off, laughing, to look at the pretty birds. Twilight didn't bother to give chase.

"Sorry for running off without telling you - I didn't want to wake you."

"That's all right, we live our own lives, Twilight. It wouldn't be right for us to be overly dependant on one another. So, tell me why you're so interested in this rather noisy field."

"Well, Ponyville is positioned so that the great migration often passes through on the same day as Snowfall. This field is the staging point where the local birds will wait for the great flock. As the Snowfall festival proper starts in the afternoon, there should in theory be plenty of time to watch the migration, but something has always turned up before that stopped me from seeing it. I snuck out really early today to make sure I was here on time.

"Apparently it's a majestic sight: hundreds of thousands of birds all flying overhead, to be joined by our local birds. They say it takes hours for the flock to pass over. The pegasi fly with them in relays to make sure that they go in the right direction and avoid the dangerous places like the Everfree Forest."

"Oh... the great migration must have grown since before I- Since I left. I can understand how Fluttershy got so many volunteers to help, being inside such a flock must be an incredible experience."

“Oh yes, I’m really looking forward to it."

“Um, Twilight, you do realise that lifting oneself with psychokinesis is very tiring, even for the most powerful of practitioners?"

"Yup. That’s why I’ve been practicing a spell that gives me wings. It was really hard at first, but now I’ve got the hang of it I can’t really see why..."

"You can cast a spell that will give you wings? I’m impressed. When did you learn it?"

Twilight blushed at the compliment and started telling the story about the time she went to Cloudsdale with her friends.

------------

Twilight watched with awe as the sky flooded with iridescent colour as the great flight swung into view. The most eager of the Ponyville birds surged up to join the head of the flock, others following behind and more and more and more until the air was full of feathers and birdsong.

Unable to hold back any longer, Twilight flung herself into the sky.

Luna kept up with her with easy grace as they flew amongst the throng. Some cheeky birds actually landed on Twilight's head for a breather, but she didn't pay them any mind as she delightedly followed the migration. Li'l Twi had decided that flying was for birds and beasts of burden, and so was sitting comfortably on Twilight's back, enjoying the view.

It was a long time before Twilight spoke.

"Thank you for joining me, Midnight. This is magnificent! Oh, just look at them all!"

"You are welcome, Twilight. It has been a long time since I followed the great migration. Once, in my younger days, I followed the flock from the Crystal Empire down to San Palomino. It was a great experience. The year after that I tried to follow fish, but that didn't work out quite so well."

"If you've done this before, I hope you're not going to be bored. We're only doing a small part of the relay after all."

"Everything is fine, Twilight. I must scheme against my sister and plan my revenge for her latest insult, and this is as good a place to think as any," Luna said, blithely ignoring the constant kaleidoscope of colours flashing around her and the cacophony of birdsong.

"Oh yes. How long do your prank wars last?" asked Twilight.

"A long time. Once one of us surrenders, we must pay a forfeit. It could be as much as a month long diplomatic mission to the Griffonstani Empire or attendance to a dozen formal banquets. We must truly be desperate for the thought of a month of canapés to seem a more attractive option than continuing the fight."

"Well, have fun scheming. I'm going to fall back and chat with Fluttershy."

"See you later."

Twilight slowed her pace and soon drew abreast of Fluttershy, who was following behind the flock to help any birds that were struggling. Of course, being a weak flier, Fluttershy was struggling herself. A small contingent of exhausted birds were resting on her back as she urged them on, but she was falling ever behind due to their weight.

"Hello Fluttershy, do you need another back?"

"Oh! Hi Twilight. I like you wings. And thank you," she turned her head towards her riders and spoke to the birds, "Go on, Twilight can carry you a little further."

With Fluttershy's encouragement, the birds hopped over to Twilight's back, and soon both mares sped up and rejoined the migration. Li'l Twi complained about her spot being taken and blinked away, presumably to find a better perch to be lazy from.

----------------

An hour or so before midday the great arm of the migration merged with the slightly smaller flock from Fillydelphia and met up with the next relay of pegasi. Twilight was more than happy to have been a part of the migration, but was eager to return for the festivities in Ponyville and so she and Luna joined the Ponyville pegasi in their return flight back home.

Twilight watched the pegasi fly, now unhampered by the birds, and was surprised to see them take up the same rough 'v' formation that the birds had used.

"Twilight, get in formation, um, if you want to. It'll make the flight a lot easier."

Twilight took a position at the end of one of the arms of the 'v', and suddenly the wind was working in her favour. A tunnel of air seemed to be coming from the pony in front of her, helping her maintain speed and altitude.

It was an eye-opening experience to actually feel the impact of all the pegasi working together. The military history of the pegasi had always been of close discipline, cooperation and the strong leading the weak. Twilight now saw that this would come naturally to them; it was a lesson they learned every day.

Thunderlane was at the head of the 'v', and was a strong enough flier to make the distance without aid. His passage created the vortices that helped the ponies directly behind him keep going. They in turn strengthened the currents for the ponies coming behind so that even Fluttershy, thoroughly exhausted and never a strong flier at the best of times, could keep up with the wing. If Thunderlane got tired or bored, he could fall back and let a fresher pony take the lead.

Midnight was a very strong flier, and had positioned herself near the head of the wing, but once they were most of the way there, she fell back so that she could chat with Twilight.

"This is amazing, Midnight. I never realised being in a flight would be like this. The stronger ponies ahead helping the weaker fliers behind. I knew the theory, but this feeling of belonging is great."

"This is one of the oldest tricks of the pegasi, Twilight. We can cover a greater distance as a group than any one pony can manage alone."

Twilight flew on, relishing the feeling of unity.

----------------------------

Twilight was tired by the time they got back to Ponyville. She sat quietly watching the mayor announce the start of winter, and cheered softly as Rainbow Dash flew in from Canterlot, proudly carrying the snowflake that would seed the Ponyville clouds for making snow.

The seed was ceremonially put in a dark cloud carried down by Cloud Kicker and Blossomforth. Rainbow ceremoniously bounced on the cloud a few times, then gave the cloud a distinctly non-ceremonious kick and snowflakes poured out. Pegasi swooped in and grabbed the snowflakes and fed them into the mass of dark clouds that had been assembled for the occasion.

Soon a torrent of snowflakes was falling from the sky. Foals laughed and galloped as they played in the blizzard. The more sensible adults went to the town hall, which was warm and had food and music.

The party couldn't get properly started until the pegasi were happy that Ponyville would have a thick blanket of snow by morning and the shivering foals had all been herded inside and accounted for.

Luna took the opportunity presented by the wait to talk with the Cakes, who were helping with the catering. Money changed hooves and Luna walked away with a satisfied smirk.

"What was that about?"

"Merely a small step in my eternal campaign against my sister. Do not worry, Twilight. I hear music; would you care to dance?"

Luna solemnly lead Twilight to the dance floor.

The first hint that something was wrong was when Luna noticed the smirk that Rainbow Dash was trying unsuccessfully to hide. Then Fluttershy, sitting next to Rainbow, clutched her hooves to her mouth in fear. Luna was perturbed, but Twilight seemed oblivious, happy and confident and Luna couldn't back down now, even if she wanted to.

Luna was raised and trained in the obligations of courtly conduct. Amongst the many rules deeply ingrained in her soul was the need to not show up others. She was an excellent dancer, but fully intended to moderate her skill to match her partner, as politeness dictated. When Twilight started moving to the music, it dawned on Luna what a challenge this would be. Right after she realised that Twilight wasn't having a fit.

Luna quickly discounted the option of merely mimicking Twilight's own movements, as with her larger frame and longer legs she would surely cause somepony an injury, possibly herself. Instead she tried to copy Twilight's unquestionable enthusiasm while moving to a musical beat that would be viewed as undignified in Canterlot. It was hard on her.

The jostling, enthusiastic mob of dancers that formed around them made Luna uncomfortable. The music was skilfully played, but was of a western style she didn't care for. She was neither given room nor respect by the other dancers, and she found that she wasn't having a good time. As such she had difficulty hiding her relief when Twilight finally declared that she was too hot and would like to take a break.

They weaved their way through the crowd of ponies and out the town hall to see Ponyville transformed by the snow.

"Phew, thanks for that, Midnight. I love dancing, but there really aren't enough opportunities to do so. Let me get my breath back and cool down a bit and we can head back in."

"Cool down? Oh, here's another secret of the pegasi I can share with you. You'll like this one."

"Secret? Are you sure it's okay to tell me this?"

"Do not worry, little Twilight. This will require a breeze, but I can generate one with my wings. One moment."

"I can make a breeze, Midnight. Good old number sixteen!"

"Number sixteen?"

"Uh, nevermind."

Twilight concentrated and a cool breeze blew over the ponies, carrying with it a flurry of errant snowflakes.

"Nice spell. Now open your wings and face the wind, like this."

Twilight did as she was told, and moaned aloud as the large surface area of her wings allowed the wind to take away her excess heat in a moment. The immediate relief from the heat was wonderful.

"Heh heh. I usually have work much harder than that to get that kind of noise out of you," said Luna with a smirk.

"That felt wonderful. Thank you, Midnight. To think that the pegasi have been hiding such a thing from us ground-bound ponies all this time," said Twilight with a grin.

"I think we just didn't want the other races to be jealous."

The two ponies leant on the balustrade, admiring the beauty of Ponyville in snow and enjoying a companionable silence only slightly marred by the music coming from the town hall.

The moment was interrupted when they were joined by Rarity.

"Twilight, darling. Those wings look absolutely fabulous on you. Almost as good as they looked on me. Am I to take it that your spellcasting skills have increased and you are now more comfortable with the spell?"

"Thanks, Rarity, I love your dress. I'm, um, getting there. Do you want a pair of wings tonight?"

"Oh, not right now, thank you darling. This dress simply wouldn’t work with wings. I was just thinking that it would be lovely to take a day flying sometime. Cloudsdale was simply beautiful and I'd love to visit there again, with a bit more time to explore."

"Ah yes. You were just passing through, last time, were you not?" said Midnight, struggling to hide her irritation at the intrusion.

Rarity reacted with immediate indignation, "Twilight," she said, waving a hoof at Midnight, "I simply insist that you get rid of this-"

Rarity's waving hoof struck Midnight on the shoulder, stopping Rarity dead. Midnight rose to her full height and glared at Rarity with open anger. She opened her mouth to speak, but Rarity was quicker.

"Oh my! I- I thought you were an illusion. But- but Twilight is dating- that means you- Oh dear! Oh-"

Luna broke into laughter, interrupting her. It wasn't cruel laughter, but it may as well have been from the way Rarity shrunk away from Midnight. Blushing bright with embarrassment, Rarity fled.

Twilight shot a furious glare at Midnight, hesitated and then galloped after Rarity. Midnight's laughter stopped at the glare, and her heart tore when Twilight chased after her friend.

-----------------

It took a full pot of tea and a lot of talk to comfort Rarity and restore her poise. Twilight apologised on Luna's behalf and assured her that everything would be fine. Once Rarity was herself again, Twilight went in search of Midnight Whispers. She didn't have to search long, as the mare was waiting for her outside the Boutique.

"I am sorry, Twilight. I shouldn't have laughed and I shouldn't have mocked your friend."

"But why did you do that if you knew it was wrong?"

"I- I am sorry. I made the joke because– You know court in Canterlot. You know how it can be, with every pony trying to put themselves forward and other ponies down. I've been there so long it seems normal. How a pony should react.

"This has not been a good week- No! It has been a wonderful week, with you. But I have been having difficulty adjusting. To pretending to be some pony I am not. I am more acclimatised to Canterlot than I thought. I am irritated by many little things. I am sorry.

"I was not laughing at your friend. I was laughing at me. I had set up a wonderful prank where all your friends thought me an illusion and then I walked into the consequences. I pranked myself and so I laughed.”

Luna was starting to get nervous at Twilight’s silence, "Say something, please?"

"Luna, you are apologising to me. I forgive you. But you should be apologising to Rarity."

Luna hung her head, "You are right. I am sorry. Please, wait here."

Luna walked nervously to the Boutique, then knocked and entered. It was some time before she came out.

---------------

Much to Luna's well hidden delight, they did not head back to the festivities and instead took a tour of Ponyville, chatting and slowly regaining the ground that they had lost.

By the time that Celestia was ready to set the sun, they found themselves in a clearing on a hill in Whitetail Woods. This was a perfect opportunity for Luna to raise the moon and dust the sky with stars without attracting any unwanted attention.

Luna did, however, delight in the wanted attention. Twilight looked on admiringly as Luna did her job.

Luna was feeling frisky by the time the night sky met with her satisfaction and through nips and gentle teasing she coaxed Twilight into a game of kiss chase that quickly took to the air.

While Twilight's butterfly wings were not as powerful or acrobatic as Midnight's pegasi wings, Luna kept the game fair by allowing magic. Once Twilight got the hang of teleporting mid-flight and throwing unexpected winds at Luna, she soon managed to hold her own.

Doing so took her full attention, and she barely noticed as Luna lured her higher and higher. Eventually both mares landed on a cirrocumulus cloud, gasping for breath from their exertions.

During their play they had managed to lose track of who was 'it', and so both mares took to chasing each other, which seemed to work out quite nicely.

Luna eventually broke free from a passionate kiss to fly to the underside of their cloud. It didn't take long.

"What was that about? I was having fun..."

"I was just putting a mark on our cloud. It tells other pegasi that this cloud is currently occupied and we don't want to be disturbed."

"Wow. I never knew that pegasi did that, but it's obvious in retrospect," said Twilight, "you'll have to show me the marks, so I can see them in future."

Luna grinned, "Gladly, but right now I have something else in mind," and leapt towards Twilight.

"Eeek!"

Twilight and Luna played a game of hide and seek on their cloud, Luna cheating massively by tunnelling through the cloud and appearing under Twilight's hooves. If Twilight couldn’t teleport, the game would have been over very quickly.

Once the evasive Twilight was properly captured and informed as much, she was kissed into submission and pushed gently onto the luxuriously soft cloud, so that Luna could properly have her way with her prize.

----------------

"That was wonderful, Luna. Thank you."

"Mmmmmm thank you, Twilight. That was a lot of fun."

"I shall have to keep practicing this wings spell; clouds are wonderful places to make love."

"Oh yes. We shall do this again sometime. It's even more fun when one pony can't fly."

"Oh?"

"Oh yes. Think of it. We fly up to a discrete cloud, when suddenly I treacherously dismiss your wings, trapping you there," Twilight gasped in mock horror, "Then, as you try to escape from my lewd advances, I slowly chip away at the cloud, leaving you nowhere to gallop to, nowhere to hide," Luna's hoof was trailing delightfully over Twilight's soft belly fur, "Eventually, you are left standing on a tiny platform barely large enough to support your weight, looking over a terrifyingly precipitous drop-"

"Mmmmm"

Luna's hoof was working its way down Twilight's belly to a patch that was already very damp.

"Unable to escape and unwilling to struggle for the risk of falling, you can only stand there, trembling, as I have my wicked way with you-"

"Ahhhh"

Twilight's back arched with pleasure.

"Nipping and kissing and stroking and licking, I drive you to your limits. You cry out for help, but there is no pony who can hear you-"

"Noooo"

"And then, just when you are at your limit, your terror at the drop before you barely able to hold you in place, I push you to your climax! You cry your joy to the heavens!"

"Ah!"

"And then I destroy the last bit of cloud you are standing on."

"Ah! Ah! Ah!"

"I have, of course, made myself invisible by then, and as you stare up to the sky while you fall tumbling down, you see nopony. No hope of rescue as orgasmic pleasure consumes your body."

"Aaaaaaaaah"

"Naturally, I catch you just before you reach the ground. Hmm. Probably catch you before you reach the ground. It wouldn't be fun if there wasn't a little doubt."

Twilight groaned.

Luna inspected her hoof appraisingly, "Mmmm. It looks as though you liked that one. I shall have to remember it."

After a while, Twilight spoke in gasping breaths, "But now I'll know what's going to happen..."

Luna laughed, "I assure you, dear Twilight, that I have no shortage of little tricks to play. I said I intended to keep you off-balance and I meant it."

-----------------------

Twilight and Luna were laying with their backs on the cloud, staring up at the starry sky, hoof in hoof.

"Well, it's not too late. I think it's about time that I started my counter-offensive against my sister."

"Oh dear. Do I need to gallop for cover?"

"Oh no, you'll be perfectly fine where you are. You even have an ideal vantage point. Observe."

It started with a magnificent meteor shower – a cascade of sparks brightening up the sky. The shower was more colourful than usual, with blues and purples and reds dotted amongst the bright white falling stars.

"This is just to get ponies' attention. No point putting on a show if no-pony is watching. Ponies usually stay up late to enjoy Snowfall, so we should have a good turnout."

"It's beautiful."

"Thank you."

The shower lasted for a few minutes. Enough time, Luna said, to get attention but not enough for ponies to get bored and wander off.

"Now I think I'm not the only pony that pranked themselves today. My sister gave my ponies the night off, but the work that they do won't have just gone away. When I first returned, night court had maybe two petitioners a week. I've been working hard and now we deal with a lot of problems that would have previously been ignored or allowed to escalate until it required my sister's attention.

"My sister can, at times, overlook the work I do. I understand that the day shall always outshine the night, but she probably had a nasty surprise when she found the extent of the job she took upon herself when sending off my ponies. So there she will be, in the night court with its clear glass roof, struggling with a mountain of paper and a mass of petitioners– and then she shall look up and see this.

"A brief moment of respite. Hehehehe."

It took a moment for Twilight to realise that some of the stars were pulsing in brightness, getting more luminescent with each cycle. The shower faded away, but the stars were now dancing. As she watched, the stars started moving back and forth, keeping to an unheard rhythm. The movements synchronised, and something clicked in Twilight's mind.

The stars were no longer discrete entities, but the outline of a giant pony taking up most of the night sky. The pony reared, displaying its wings and horn. It turned away and pulled back and a sun symbol flared on its flank. This was Celestia.

The magnificent astral pony seemed to bow with exquisite grace, causing Twilight to gasp in wonder, afraid to blink lest she miss a second of this moment.

That was when a constellation formed into a respectable image of a cake. 'Celestia's’ head turned and tracked the cake. She dived towards it as the cake flew away, desperately chasing after the cake, lead on like a stereotypical donkey after a carrot. Twilight chided herself about the racist mental image. Eventually the cake flew below the horizon, followed by the star alicorn and then the sky returned to normal.

Twilight turned to Luna and noticed that she was trembling with exhaustion.

"Luna! Are you all right?"

"Hah! Can- you- picture- her- face?" asked Luna between gasps, "Give me a moment."

It look a while for Luna to recover from her exertion.

"That was tiring. Worth it, but very tiring. We can talk later. Do you mind if we sleep up here?"

Twilight was happy enough to do just that. The suites of spells that kept her aloft gave her a pegasus' resistance to the weather and she wasn't cold. Plumping up a section of cloud to act as a pillow, she settled down to sleep next to Luna.

Hunting

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Written by RandomString Proofread by Knight of Cerebus

Clouds are remarkably comfortable places to sleep. Both Twilight and Luna were tired from their exertions of the previous day, and both were well protected from the elements.

Princess Celestia was well aware that the show Luna had put on the night before would have exhausted her. When the time came for the moon to be lowered and Luna did not do her duty, Celestia correctly guessed that Luna was sleeping in and discretely did the job herself.

She certainly didn't scry out her sister, out of respect for her privacy and out of a certain trepidation over what she might see. She was, after all, well aware of Luna's sexual preferences, and did not want the sight of that in her head the next time she saw her beloved student; 'Nurse Twilight' was bad enough. She certainly would have done something to wake the couple (probably involving Philomena and perfumed water bombs), were she aware of their situation.

As it was, the sun rose in its usual fashion. Luna unconsciously protected herself from the glare, a reflex built up over ages of pony civilisation. That same shadow she cast naturally protected the little unicorn she was curled protectively around. Neither pony woke until the sun burned through the cloud they were sleeping on.

It was a memorable start to the day.

-------------

Once Spike had been calmed, the search parties had been called back, the embarrassed apologies had been made for the dozenth time and the last innuendo-laden jibe had been delivered with minimal sniggering, Twilight and Luna were each finally able to perform their normal morning routine. Said routine was slightly different from usual, as neither pony particularly felt the need for coffee.

--------------

Twilight and Luna had discussed their plans to shift their sleep cycles into the night with Spike, and he had generously agreed to manage the library in the mornings and early afternoons in return for an increase in his allowance.

Li'l Twi had gotten bored of the snow fairly quickly, and Bally was apparently complaining of shrinkage, so they both stayed in the library to play. Twilight worked at the front desk and consoled herself that the phantasm had yet to learn how to break anything as she galloped around the library floor, chasing after the equally insubstantial Bally.

The highlight of the working day for Twilight was Rarity's visit, when she discreetly dropped off a velvet bag with Twilight. Twilight sat at the front desk for several minutes, casting anxious glances towards the bag and trying to keep a calm facade, before finally breaking and galloping to hide the bag in her laboratory. The patrons noticed none of this.

The highlight of the day for Spike was when Mr Cake dropped off the half-dozen mouth-watering cakes that Luna had ordered at the library. The lowlight followed swiftly after when he found out that none of the cakes were for him.

Twilight was also rather disappointed when she found that none were for her either. Eventually Twilight and Spike's puppy-dog eyes finally wore away Luna's resolve, aided admirably by Luna's own hunger. She put aside one cake for the three of them to share, but insisted that the other cakes be sent to her sister.

"Uh, Luna, are you sure you want to send them to the Princess right now? She will be holding court– This is another prank, isn't it?"

Luna sighed, "Yes, Twilight, it is a little prank. Do not worry, I have not enchanted any of the cakes. The prank is merely the interruption of her daily court for the delivery of a series of cakes, each timed to occur after the flow is expected to cease.

"I had intended for there to be six cakes, so 'Tia would be left waiting for the seventh, but five will work adequately. She will also feel obliged to examine each cake in turn to ensure that it is unenchanted and safe to eat. I am hoping that this will also draw observer ponies' minds to the display I put on yesterday."

"Wait, I don't want to prank Princess Celestia! She might get upset with me."

"Do not worry, dear Spike. My sister will understand: she enjoys a good joke. You will be rewarded for your service as well. See?"

"Oooh, Fire Rubies!"

Twilight decided that she didn't want to be party to the corruption of a minor, and so retreated to her laboratory to work, taking her slice of cake with her.

-----------------

Luna managed to manage the library without incident until it was time to close. Once that was done she went to find Twilight, who was still working hard in the laboratory. She had barely gotten a glimpse of the diamond that Twilight was working on, and a sizeable velvet bag, before she was unceremoniously shooed out.

"No alicorns! Not yet! It's going to be a surprise!"

Casually leaning against the door that had been slammed closed behind her, Luna reasoned with her marefriend.

"Twilight, I've closed the library and raised the moon. It's night time. And we need to prepare for Little Twilight's conversion into a dream entity."

The door swung open, causing Luna to fall through and land on her back. She looked up, startled, to see Twilight beaming down at her with shining eyes.

"Really?! We can do it?"

"Yes, Twilight,” said Luna as she returned to her hooves, “I have made arrangements for her position in the dreamscape and, having consulted your notes, I believe that her promotion will be without any issues. Considering the rate of fade, I believe that it should be done sooner rather than later. We can bind her to Miss Pie on another day, once Little Twilight's essence has acclimatised to the dreaming."

"That's wonderful-"

"YAY! I GET TO BE A NIGHTMARE!"

"I am glad you are excited, but you should know that you will not be a nightmare, Little Twilight."

"Awww. I was looking forward to running around and being scary."

"I hope then that your actual role will be some consolation to you. Whilst in the dreaming, you shall be a guide for foals. As you are already adept at guiding dreamers from one dream to another, you can help out by escorting foals from their bad dreams into Toyland."

"Uh, you spotted that, did you? Aheh heh heh. Um, sorry..."

"What's this?" asked Twilight.

"Um, well, last night I went to visit Pinkie while you were dreaming, 'cos her dreams are better. But we kinda got bored and, um, we sort of went looking for something fun to do..."

"Little Twilight expertly guided Miss Pie directly to Toyland, and from there to the Sweet Factory. All without any mishap, beyond the considerable volume of chocolate that Miss Pie manages to consume whenever she visits the place. Dreams heal over time, and with a little encouragement the Sweet Factory should be fully restored within days," here she turned a sharp look at Li'l Twi, "PROVIDED Miss Pie does not return there for snacks in the meantime."

The foal looked sheepish.

"Considering her skills as a psychopomp, Little Twilight can escort foals from bad dreams before the dreams can become nightmares. It shouldn't be arduous work and she will in effect become a citizen of Toyland."

"Ooh, I get to live with Bally! Yay!"

-----------------

Strictly speaking, the process did not require a mystic circle, robes or chanting, but Li'l Twi insisted. Her infectious enthusiasm even helped lighten Luna's somewhat grim mood, and soon both Luna and Twilight were happily chalking up a mock magic circle in the root cellar, complete with candles, incense and a spellbook on a lectern.

Li'l Twi decided that a large and thick book of carpentry schematics had a suitably eldritch look for the spellbook, which was obviously more important than the actual contents.

Once Luna and Twilight had finished with the chalk their design was so full of mystic symbols that it was more fractal than circle. Li'l Twi tried to argue that she should be on a sacrificial altar in the middle of the circle, but was talked out of it when Twilight pointed out that they didn't have space in the middle of the circle for anything other than a filly and there was no way she was going to redraw the whole thing 'just a little bit larger'.

Li'l Twi conceded the point with good grace, settling instead for three glowing orbs circling above her head as a suitably dramatic setting. The light cast by the globes was rather distracting, but Luna and Twilight were both well practiced at ignoring things.

Twilight was having great fun with the game and broke out her Stawswirl the Bearded robe for the occasion, before noticing the looks she got from her co conspirators.

"Twilight, you do not need to dress up as one of my other lovers in order to impress me. And while I learned to tolerate Starswirl's beard, I do not think that it looks good on you."

Twilight blushed furiously, and quickly shed the robes and beard. Thankfully she had recently purchased a large bolt of blue silk, and, having become somewhat familiar with the enchantments that Rarity practiced at work, was able to fashion some (very) simple robes. She was also able to paint them with silver and gold stars and yet more magical symbols, and soon both mares sported extremely arcane robes that would have been certain to impress any passing wizards.

The next problem was that there were only two spell casters, when every filly (or at least every phantasmal construct in the form of a filly) knew there should be three for this sort of thing. Spike gamely donned another new robe, and promised the air where Twilight assured him Li'l Twi was standing that he was actually an archmage and would have no trouble assisting in their venture.

Luna had walked Twilight through the actual modification of Li'l Twi's spell ahead of time, so all three adepts were able to focus most of their attention on the rather more difficult job of chanting a suitably portentous chant without giggling. Twilight dug up a draconic cookbook that had a recipe for a mixed-gem salad that sounded suitably foreboding to Li'l Twi's expert ear, so she made some copies and handed them round.

Once everything was set to Li'l Twi's satisfaction, they chanted the salad recipe, waved the carpentry book around and gesticulated dramatically as the filly sat in the middle, clapping her hooves with delight.

The actual modification of the spell that was Li'l Twi took about thirty seconds.

The long and dancing shadows from the three light globes were at one instant lighting up a filly beaming from ear to ear and the next found nothing: she was gone.

Luna quickly teleported to the bedroom in order to help Derpy, who was waiting for Li'l Twi in the dreaming, leaving Twilight to tidy up the root cellar with Spike's help. They got about halfway through before Twilight started crying.

"I'm going to miss her," Twilight sobbed as Spike awkwardly tried to comfort her.

-----------------

Twilight had wanted to join Luna and Li'l Twi in the dreaming, but stayed behind for poorly expressed reasons.

Luna returned about an hour later to find Twilight waited nervously in the library main room.

"Well, she's set up in the Dreaming. The fading is completely reversed. She has taken up residence a full-sized playhouse, with plenty of room for her 'Bally' pet. She is showing her usual resilience and seems to be taking to things very well. I left her as she was exploring her new home. She did seem disappointed that you didn't come, though."

"I didn't want to get in the way. I'll meet her soon enough, anyway. I'm glad that everything is resolved. Thank you so much for your help, Luna. I don't know what I would have done without you."

"You are most welcome, Twilight. I like her too."

-------------

It was late, but Twilight needed to adjust her sleep cycle to the hours of daylight and so needed to stay awake. Luna found herself absorbed in a book, reading being something she seldom found time for in Canterlot, and was in the process of catching up with a thousand years of literature. Twilight retreated to her laboratory and continued her work. It was a useful distraction from her thoughts, but she did find herself missing having a lab assistant around who could read her mind and had perfect recall.

----------------

Luna was struggling to give Chorser the attention he deserved. Twilight was working on a private project – 'a surprise'. The diamond could be used for a number of magical applications, as they were useful for holding enchantments and storing power. The bag she had barely seen had definitely been in Rarity's Boutique when she had visited to apologise and purchase Spike's bribe the day before.

Rarity had discretely hidden the bag when Luna had come in. Hmmm.

Luna knew that Rarity had made the naughty nurse's outfit that had been so alluring, and now another transaction involving the seamstress had taken place – a transaction that she was not allowed to know about.

Possibilities swam through her mind as she mentally dressed up Twilight. Policemare Twilight swirled her truncheon suggestively. Scientist Twilight grinned over a smoking-hot beaker as her figure-hugging lab coat showed off her smoking-hot body. Wonderbolt Twilight, complete with butterfly wings, looked up with tearful eyes and begged for loving care. Sergeant Twilight, with her gleaming breastplate, glared at Luna, threatening all sorts of punishments for lackadaisical behaviour. Luna shivered, losing focus on the world around her as ever more enticing dreams of Twilight paraded before her mind's eye.

Twilight soon came back out of the lab and headed into the root cellar. Luna broke from her reverie, curiosity taking hold. Maybe Twilight was expecting her to follow after her and capture her? A little slave 'uprising' could be fun for both of them until Commandant Twilight restored order, and it wasn't as if Miss Pie was working today...

Twilight came back from the cellar before Luna finished making up her mind, carrying several long bamboo sticks. Luna had already worked out what the bamboo was for when it had been delivered with the rest of the hardware purchase, and her rump was practically aching in anticipation. She would have to be very naughty to be punished with those, and she was already trying to plan out appropriate mischief to earn said punishment. Twilight glanced guiltily at Luna as she headed back into her lab. The door was closed pointedly behind her.

Neighponese Prison Warden Twilight? Thought Luna, thematic revenge for our last night in Canterlot? No, it would be Schoolteacher Twilight. Flexing her cane, punishing the naughty filly who was disrupting class. Luna shivered. With Twilight's passion for learning and order, and her burning need to drive a filly to higher learning, it would be intense.

If she lowered her natural resistance to damage enough to keep it 'real' then her coat might not be enough to cover the healing welts. She could cover them with an illusion good enough to fool anypony other than her sister, but it might be more elegant to purchase a dress from Miss Rarity. Good way to reinforce her apology, too...

It would help keep Twilight interested, and the thought of why she was wearing that dress might excite Twilight, remind her of what it hid. Something modest, for when she permitted Twilight to be in control. It would be easy enough with a few accessories to make the same modest dress intimidating when the tables were turned, and the little minx did love to be intimidated.

Such a dress would be well within the capabilities of her master dressmaker friend. Now, should she purchase it in advance, or allow herself to be caned first and suffer the embarrassment of dress measurement afterwards? Let her friend see what Twilight had done? Give her the thrill of dressing the naughty princess? Twilight would be mortified, of course, but it wouldn't be such a secret between such close friends anyway...

Luna would purchase the dress after her lesson. She was already looking forward to it. She was, in fact, already looking forward to a lot of things, and was even getting a little excited.

It is a good thing, Luna thought, that she didn't fetch the twine as well. Twilight is well read, and probably knows those really rather painful things that can be done with bamboo and twine.

Luna's mind cast back to one of her crueller lovers. The relationship hadn't lasted long, but moments from it lived strong in her memories. Time had softened the sharpness of her thoughts on the topic, and she had, at times, almost thought wistfully of what the stallion could do to her with simple sticks and string.

Admittedly, those times had been whilst she was exiled to the moon and he and his gardening tools were far away in time and space. At the time when she had been with him she had lost her temper, and he had been grateful enough to escape with his life and most of his body.

Her thoughts were brought crashing down as Twilight hurried back to the root cellar, grabbed the ball of twine and retreated back to her lair, without even glancing in her direction. This may get painful thought Luna, and she shivered. Still, it would be good to replace old memories of him with nice new memories of her.

Luna ignored the dampness that was forming on the rug where she was sitting.

Twilight might be thinking of exploring the advantages of a lover who can take incredible amounts of damage, ran Luna's thoughts, I must not forget the magic at her disposal as well. These could just be the physical toys. Think of all the things she can do to the bamboo, the twine, the diamond. The oranges might only be the beginning...

Luna was tending to her excitement with a stray hoof, and Twilight was working in her lab. Luna could not concentrate on the book in front of her, but refused to bring herself to a climax without Twilight's permission. Twilight loved to tease Luna, and satisfying her urges ahead of time would lessen Twilight's opportunity to do that.

Luna spent hours on tenterhooks before Twilight finally opened the laboratory door and peeked her head out.

"Luna, could I have you for a moment, please?"

Luna stood, her stomach fluttering in anticipation and a hind leg threatening to tremble. She relished the feelings coursing through her as she bravely entered Twilight's domain.

Down the steps and inside the laboratory, she found the place well lit and without any obvious scene setting. There was an indistinct pitch black shape on one work desk, with a hint of red within its depths, but it seemed inert. A surprise ambush? thought Luna, Will she launch an attack from behind as I inspect the darkness? Maybe she’ll knock me out... Will I wake up in chains? Mmmm

Stepping into the chamber, steeling herself for anything, she was still unprepared for the black shape to rise up. One leg at a time, the black spider rose to its impressive height. Eight glowing red eyes looked at her from a body that was twice the size of Luna's head.

I have never been cocooned in spider web as a sexual activity before... mused Luna before her mind finally acknowledged that Twilight probably didn't have anything sexual in mind. Well, not right now, at least. The night was still young, after all.

Luna found herself irritated, both with her assumptions and with her bottled up frustration and disappointment. She walked forward to look at the mysterious black object, feeling unreasoningly angry towards it.

The object made an indistinct hissing noise as it swayed, seemingly not in full control of its body. She watched as the spider gained its balance and focused on her. The hissing noise dove up and down octaves until it found a register it liked and then gained coherence. The hiss turned to a chittering which then became a word.

"Huuuugs!"

The spider leapt at Luna.

-------------

"Okay, that didn't go quite the way I had intended. Sorry. Um, you can stop stomping on it now. Luna?"

Luna, breathing hard, finally relented and ceased pounding the remains of the plush spider golem into the wooden floor. The diamond core had escaped unscathed, but the cloth body was little more than shreds, the stuffing was pounded flat, the bamboo leg reinforcements were splinters, the twine that acted as joints was gone, and even the wooden floor beneath had seen better days. Twilight's self-esteem wasn't looking too good either.

"I am sorry, Twilight. I appreciate the thought, but I was not in the best of moods for jocular gifts, it seems. I will essay to repair the damage. Please give me a moment."

"Um, uh, don't worry, Luna. About the repairing, I mean. If I've made it properly..."

Luna turned to look at the wreckage on the floor and noticed with surprise the flickering green magic surrounding it. The splinters and shreds crept together and the spider slowly reformed in front of her eyes.

"You see? It repairs itself from even massive damage. Uh. I wanted to give you something that would last. Longer than I will, anyway,” Luna winced at this, “So, um, I made you a golem. A self-repairing golem. Sort of a toy – or almost a pet. It would learn from experience too, in theory. So, um, it won't jump at you again, I think. I'm really sorry you don't like it. I thought you would like a plush spider."

"Oh Twilight, I am so sorry. I overreacted terribly. It is such a thoughtful gift. I love it. Or, I will if it will let me. It may have only learned that I am something to fear..."

The spider was now fully repaired again, and the green magic plasma subsided. It rose to it's legs and turned to Luna hesitantly. It spread its forelegs wide and chittered, "Hugs?" tremulously.

Luna smiled and brought the spider into a close hug, at which point it chittered happily, embracing Luna with an eight-legged octohug.

"Oh, you do like it. Phew."

"I love it. Thank you. I am very impressed by the self-repair mechanism. How long will it last? How does it work?"

"Well, it should last for a very long time; the central diamond will be hard to damage, and I've given it some extra protective magics. It works by- Well, I imbued the plush superstructure with an alteration enchantment, giving it a pseudo-morphogenic field, similar to standard golem construction techniques, and then imprinted a meta-image of that field onto the diamond spell-matrix.

"When it is damaged, the image is projected onto the structure, and it reforms using locally available material. You could throw the diamond by itself into a fabric store and the spider should walk out, in an hour or so. Probably followed by an irate shopkeeper, of course."

"That is an interesting technique. Where did you get that idea from?"

"Ponyville occasionally gets attacks from timberwolves, so I've been studying them. I've basically modified their self-repair mechanism for this golem. I'm still trying to find the time to write up the paper..."

"What are timberwolves? I have never heard of them."

"Really? That must mean that they post-date, uh, you know. Fascinating. I mean, they're natural animated constructs formed out of vegetable matter, primarily wood, that shapes itself into a lupine form. They exhibit pack behaviour, but 'lone wolves' are not unknown. They are aggressive, with strong territorial instincts, and will attack ponies without provocation. Thankfully their preferred habitat is the Everfree Forest. They are notable for self-reconstructing when damaged."

"How long do they live?"

"My researches have not answered that question to my satisfaction. Eyewitness reports state that multiple wolves can fuse together into a single larger entity, and my own research suggests that separate viable entities can be produced by forcibly dividing them. As they have a non-discrete identity, tracking lifespan is difficult."

"Hmm. Are they nocturnal? Diurnal?"

"Generally crepuscular, but activity has been observed during all periods of day and night. Why so curious?"

"Well, a golem would make a lovely toy, but it isn't really a pet..."

"The spider will learn over time! It should already understand several words: hugs, yes, no, dance..."

The spider stopped hugging Luna and dropped to the floor. It quivered in confusion for a moment before bobbing up and down to a steady rhythm, occasionally kicking out a leg. Luna giggled.

"I'm sorry, Twilight. I love the spider, but sometimes I want to earn something's love and trust."

"Well, we could give timberwolves a try. They smell foul at times; the vegetable matter rots quickly. The aggression may be manageable if we can find or make a cub."

"I'm sure I can mask the smell with a illusion if need be, or just occasionally replace the rotting timber with fresh wood. And when you say 'make', you mean recreating the original spell that created the timberwolves in the first place?"

"Uh, that's a bit beyond me, I'm afraid. I was thinking of capturing a large timberwolf, sedating it somehow and then removing enough branches to form a smaller one. The smaller wolves act in a puppyish manner."

"Let's go hunting!"

------------

Twilight liked to think things through. She liked to plan in advance. Unfortunately, sometimes her enthusiasm got the better of her and she found herself fetlock deep in snow, in the middle of the night, hunting an aggressive apex predator in the Everfree forest. This happened worryingly often.

Twilight would have very much liked to grab her enthusiasm by its ear and point at her current situation and shout, "This is what happens when you win!", but all she could do was sigh.

Luna misinterpreted the sigh and whispered back, "Yes, romantic, isn't it?"

They were in one of the rare forest clearings, examining the stump of a massive fallen tree for the spoor of a timberwolf. The first response that sprang into Twilight's mind was that sniffing a rotting log for the rancid odour of the urine of a cross between a zombie, a wolf and a compost heap wasn't particularly romantic, but when she turned her head to say as much, she stopped.

Luna was practically glowing in the moonlight. She had dropped the Midnight illusion when they entered the forest, and her ethereal mane and tail glittered with a thousand stars. Her dark fur stood in stark contrast to the brilliantly moonlit snow. Her natural and innocent smile, one that was only there for Twilight, warmed her heart.

The duplicitousness Luna had to employ while in Ponyville had been taking a toll on her, Twilight saw. Now that she was back in the night and back in her true form, a weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

"Yes. Its beautiful" whispered Twilight, before turning back to the log, to look for the particularly rotten and slimy twigs that constituted the majority of timberwolf droppings.

The fallen tree had looked like a good candidate for a timberwolf set, but it was a bust. Leading Luna on to another likely option, Twilight re-entered the overgrowth.

They hadn't gotten far when a distant roar sounded, followed by a brief silence as the usual quiet forest noises ceased entirely.

"Not a timberwolf. Too loud. Maybe something stumbled on a sleeping hydra..."

"Twilight, I do not like to sound like a worry-wart, but do you often wander alone into a monster infested forest?"

"Oh yes. Well, not ‘wander’ as such. My friend Zecora lives out here, and she brews absolutely delicious tea. And there's so much to research!"

Looking back at Luna's alarmed expression, Twilight quickly moved to calm her down.

"Oh, don't worry – it's pretty safe. I usually travel with an invisibility spell and an air-shroud that stops my scent from spreading. Of course, there was that one time I was petrified by a cockatrice, but that was just a one-off."

"A cockatrice! And you were petrified!?"

"I got better," Twilight said defensively.

"Twilight, I am not happy that you risk your life for research and tea. What would happen if you were attacked?"

"Well, normally I'd teleport away, but it's hard to do that when you're being turned to stone, as I found out. Anyway, it's very good tea."

Luna sighed in exasperation, but chose not to push the issue.

----------------

The two mares managed to search the forest for well over an hour before they were attacked. Luna was poking a fallen branch with a stick in the hope that one or the other would animate when a shrieking howl sounded nearby.

She turned her head to see a furry creature that looked like a wolverine crossed with an armadillo launch itself at Twilight's throat. Twilight eeped, and grabbed it with her aura.

"Step to one side, please, Twilight, so that I have a clear shot."

Seeing Luna's lethal intent, Twilight positioned herself directly between the monster and her lover. Luna noted with alarm that the creature's oversized claws seemed to be able to penetrate Twilight's aura, even if the rest of it was held fast. It took a few swipes at Twilight's behind, but couldn't quite stretch far enough to make contact.

"Please don't hurt it, Luna. Fluttershy has taught me to be kind and considerate towards all animals," said Twilight, as the creature struggled to break free and eat her.

"Twilight, you are being unreasonable."

"Pleeeasee..."

Luna sighed with resigned exasperation.

"Very well, I shall attempt to shoo it away. Put it down."

Twilight put down the now slathering beast, which gamely made a lunge for her leg, bouncing off the shield she had erected.

Luna took a deep breath and shouted, "Shoo!" in the full Royal Canterlot Voice. The creature decided that it wasn't that hungry after all, and turned tail and fled as the sound of Luna's shout echoed through the forest.

By the time that they finally found a timberwolf set, it was so late that it was early. They had been attacked by magical beasts three more times. Most attacks had been quickly turned away by a Royal Canterlot 'Shoo!', which worked wonders on almost every poor creature that faced it; the only exception was the land-shark, which required a firm rap to its snout with one of Luna's hooves after repeated shoos had failed to drive it off. If Twilight didn’t know better, she would have sworn that Luna was enjoying herself.

Twilight was trying to work out a method of replicating the effect of Luna's 'shoo' when she noticed that the eyes in the darkness were glowing green this time.

Finally, thought Twilight, the one time I want to be attacked by timberwolves and they take forever to show up.

Luna caught sight of the eyes and tensed with excitement.

The stench of rotting wood wafted out from the darkness as three timberwolves with salivating maws and glowing green eyes stalked out, approaching the two mares.

The timberwolves growled menacingly. Luna let loose a Royal Canterlot Squeal of delight.

The wolves ran away.

---------------

During the ultimately futile chase after the fleeing wolves, a portion of Twilight's mind clinically noted that the 'squee' was probably more effective than the 'shoo'. She was halfway through working out how to record the effects of showing pictures of puppies and kittens to the cutimark crusaders before sanity returned.

---------------

Twilight trudged through the Golden Oaks Library door with a particularly disgruntled hunch to her shoulders. There were burrs on her coat, tangles in her mane and mud caking her fetlocks.

"Stupid timberwolves!"

"I really am sorry, Twilight. They looked adorable and I reacted instinctively," said Luna for the dozenth time.

"Don't worry, Luna. Zecora said that she'd look out for orphan wolf cubs for us. We'll get you a pet."

"It really was very kind of your friend to promise to look out for cubs. Particularly since I, er, was keeping her from sleeping with my efforts to not hurt the local wildlife."

"The Royal Canterlot Voice does carry, doesn't it? It must be useful for summoning servants and the like."

"You would think that, but I have noticed that it has a similar effect on servants as it does on Everfree beasts. Most inconvenient."

-----------

There were a few hours to go until dawn, and Twilight planned on spending that time untangling her mane and deburring her coat. Luna had left enough hot water that her shower had warmed and relaxed her immensely, and her mood was much improved when she was done. Leaving a light trail of water behind her, she left the shower to find Luna waiting for her in the hallway.

Luna wordlessly guided Twilight to the lounge and had her lay down on a thick rug in front of the newly lit fire. Luna tenderly removed the towels that Twilight was using to dry her mane and tail and knelt down beside her. The heat of the fire soon dried Twilight out, and the crackle and flickering of the flames calmed her down as she stared into their depths.

Slowly Luna began brushing Twilight's mane, carefully teasing out the tangles as she went. Twilight sighed at the steady calming motion and closed her eyes, drifting to the halfway land between sleep and wakefulness. Once Luna could brush Twilight's mane freely, without obstructions, she set work currying and then brushing her coat.

"Mmmmm, that feels good..."

"You looked tired, so I decided to help. It is close enough to dawn, so you may sleep if you wish. Little Twilight is probably waiting impatiently."

"You don't mind?"

"It is fine. This won't take long and then I shall join you. Sleep, Twilight."

"Thank you... Hmmm... Luna?"

"Yes?"

"You asked me before to show you my 'evil' side?"

"Don't worry about that now," said Luna soothingly.

"Nah, it's okay. If you want... We can do it tomorrow. If you still want me to, that is..."

"Not in dreams?"

"Nope. 'can be evil. Sort of. Show you tomorrow. Not now. 'going to see Li'l Twi..."

"Sleep, my little pony..."

Luna kissed Twilight's forehead and continued her ministrations as Twilight dozed off. Her salacious thoughts from earlier were distant from her mind.

Talk

View Online

"Yay! You're finally here! Let me show you around!"

Twilight was still a novice dreamwalker, and was slow to acclimatise from an extremely relaxed doze to being escorted around a brightly painted toy house by an excitable filly who was desperately avoiding a topic of conversation.

Li'l Twi tried speaking louder and faster to encourage her to keep up. It didn't help.

"This is my living room, this is the kitchen, here is Bally's basket – I asked him if he wanted a pit or something but apparently baskets are just right for him. Oh! He's just like Spike, only cooler 'cos he's mine! I didn't think of that.

"Here are the stairs– mind your horn! Aaah! I've only just moved in! I hope I don't lose my deposit before I find out what a deposit is. That would be embarrassing."

"Oops. Sorry."

"Nevermind. Um, here is my bedroom, uh, sorry about the mess. Oh, look at the view out that window – cool, huh?"

Twilight was struggling to keep up, but did concede that the view out the toyhouse window into Toytown was actually pretty interesting. She had a clear view down what appeared to be the Main Street, where a few straggling Toylanders appeared to be heading home. A teddy bear waved.

"Uh, Li'l Twi..."

"Oh! You haven't seen the garden yet! Um, because there isn't one. But, um, the kitchen! I can show you the kitchen! This way!"

"Li'l Twi."

"See? See? Kitchen. Food too. Uh, sort of. Um, um, um-" Li'l Twi cast around desperately for a topic of conversation.

"Twilight! Please! Stop running around and talk to me. Please."

"Okay," said Li'l Twi in a little voice.

"I'm really sorry that I didn't come right over, but I knew Luna and Derpy would have everything in hand. I, uh, didn't want to get in the way."

Little Twilight looked up at Big Twilight with something close to defiance.

"You're almost as bad at lying as Applejack."

Twilight flinched and fell silent. The silence stretched out for several uncomfortable beats.

"I'm sorry," whispered Twilight.

"I know," said Li'l Twi.

More silence.

"I... I didn't... I didn't know if I would be welcome. And I really didn't want to find out that I wasn't."

"WHAT?!"

"You run away from me. All the time. You spend all your time with Pinkie Pie. You say I'm boring. You–"

"I don't mean it!"

"–you say you'd– You say you'd rather– you'd rather die than live with me!"

"I didn't mean it! I didn't mean it!"

Twilight was crying now.

"Sometimes you're so mean to me. You make fun of me in front of Luna–"

"I was joking!"

"Why? Why?"

"Because that's why you made me."

"What?"

"Do you remember? You made me to remind you what your life was about. So I remind you of your appointments and your theories and your friends, but you know that stuff. I needed to remind you of something. So I remind you of who you were. Who you are. Do you remember?

"It was the Summer Sun celebration. You were a little filly and you watched Princess Celestia raise the sun and it was awesome. You decided to study magic. From then on your focus was magic, and only magic. A mage was born that day, but a little filly died, too.

"You've studied so hard, and so long, you've forgotten the little filly that tried to ambush her brother with a tube of toothpaste and instead squirted her father when he surprised her. You fell rolling on the floor, laughing, and got toothpaste all in your coat.

"You don't need to study magic all the time, not any more. Your lessons now are about friendship and love and I really want to help. I think that I can help you remember all about that better than I can about your next spa date. Plus, of course, you need all the help you can get to keep together with Luna. Without me you wouldn't stand a chance.”

Twilight blinked through her tears, “I had forgotten. I had forgotten. But you’re me. Why are you, why am I so hard on myself?”

“I was you. Your memory. I changed. I’m me now. I’m not Twilight Sparkle’s memories. I’m Twilight Sparkle’s friend.

“Sometimes you need a little kick to push you in the right direction, Twilight, so why can’t I have a little fun while doing it?”

There was a pause, and then Li’l Twi continued in a quieter voice, “I’m sorry I hurt you.”

“I know.” said Twilight, bringing the little filly close into a teary hug.

----------------

When Luna arrived she graciously asked permission to join them in the playhouse, which Li'l Twi gave with exaggerated courtliness and a broad grin.

Luna started to squeeze herself into the playhouse before changing her mind and shrinking herself down to Li'l Twi's size and entering normally. Twilight was struck both by the thought that she felt like a clumsy giant and also that ‘Woona’ looked absolutely adorable.

Woona’s squawks of protest were very similar to Li'l Twi's, but Twilight hugged her anyway. Woona bore it with ill grace, but when presented with a mirror was forced to admit that she was indeed too cute for anypony to resist hugging her.

Once settled, nerves were calmed and tea was served. The conversation flowed naturally enough, with Li'l Twi enthusing about her job. She was delighted that she got to travel all across the dreamscape and make lots of new friends, but seemed to be a little disappointed that she wouldn't be allowed to play as much with Pinkie and wouldn’t be able to see her new friends every night.

Eventually Li'l Twi claimed tiredness, requested that her guest throw themselves out, and went to bed.

-----------------

"Li'l Twi looked really happy. Thank you, Luna."

"As I have said before, I like her too, and you are most welcome. You are dear to me and I love making you happy."

Twilight embraced Luna in a tight hug. Embracing Woona was good, but embracing Luna was wonderful. Eventually she let go, conscious of the attention they were getting from the Toylanders.

"So, uh, is there much to do in Toyland? Any interesting sights in Toytown that I should see?"

"The typical response is no. At least not for a pony above the age of twelve. This is a place for foals, a refuge offering respite for them from the world. Hmm. Did you have many toys as a filly?"

"Oh yes, but I outgrew most of them very quickly. I replaced them all with books, apart from Miss Smartypants. I always had her. I even took her to Ponyville with me."

"Miss Smartypants? I do not think I have seen her in the library. Have you locked her away? What does she look like?"

"Here, let me see if I can..." Twilight tried to picture Miss Smartypants in her mind. Slowly an out-of-focus image of her favourite doll appeared at her hooves, becoming more real until she fully resolved in front of her.

"This is Miss Smartypants. She's very studious and takes meticulous notes on any experiments she does." Twilight tenderly picked up Miss Smartypants and gave her a big hug, "She was my companion and study-buddy for a long time, but eventually I got too busy and left her behind," Twilight looked sad and hugged Smartypants harder, "The reason you haven't seen her around is that Big MacIntosh has her now."

"Ah. I'm sure there's a story there."

"Yes, but it's a really embarrassing one for me, so, um... Another topic! If the typical response is that there is nothing for adults to see here, is there another, atypical, response?"

Luna laughed, "I shall let you change the topic, for now. Be aware that we will discuss this more, when you are in less of a position to object."

"Oh dear."

"As a different response, your question wasn't quite right. Toys are not to be observed, they are to be played with. While we could search out some foalhood toys and have a tea party, it sounds as though there might only be the three of us. Let us instead go to the see the sea."

"There's a sea in Toyland?"

Luna merely smiled cryptically and turned to head out of town. Twilight quickly mounted dream Smartypants on her back and followed. Thanks in part to Luna's masterful manipulation of dreams, they soon found the horizon dropping away and an endless expanse of small multi-coloured playpen balls stretching away in front of them.

"Wow! Luna, this is amazing. How far does it go?"

"Forever, Twilight. It goes on forever," said Luna distantly.

"Oh, no." objected Twilight, "It can't do that, the waves would be infinitely high, the wind would strip away the land and the gravitational-"

Twilight's lecture was interrupted with a shriek as Luna picking her up with her aura and flung her into the vast expanse of balls. Once Twilight surfaced, glaring daggers at her lover, Luna made a point of primly sitting Miss Smartypants on a knoll on the beach so that the doll could watch the fun. The alicorn then made an exquisitely executed wing-assisted bellyflop into the sea, sending a wave of balls crashing into Twilight.

Swimming in the sea of balls was a wonderful experience for Twilight. Her weight was supported, but she had no fear of drowning. The balls were not still; ripples played along the surface and even the occasional, non-alicorn-generated, wave washed over her.

She dived deep until she could touch the rocky bottom of the sea. Frustrated by the lack of visibility and constant rattle of the balls all around her, she then swiftly rose to the surface, sending a colourful flume of balls into the air.

Noticing Luna swimming as serenely as a swan a short way off, Twilight grinned wickedly. She stealthily swam under Luna's path, and, when Luna was directly above, pulled her under.

The ensuing tickle fight quickly degenerated into a makeout session. It wasn't long until Twilight's horn started to glow, lips still locked with Luna. Miss Smartypants was picked up with a purple aura and turned to face away, so that she would not have to see what her life-long colleague was about to do.

Their passion rising in waves, the two ponies gyrated against each other, hooves running roughly over smooth fur. The heat of their bodies rose and the urgency of their caresses increased. Both ponies began gasping with their need, their loins slick with lust.

Unfortunately, Twilight had a condition: even in the throes of passion she couldn't stop thinking. She suddenly broke away from the kiss in alarm and said to an agitated Luna, "Pinkie Pie!"

Neither pony dared even look at each other as the heat of their bodies challenged their willpower.

------------------

Luna and Twilight spent the rest of the day exploring glaciers from the dreams of Crystal ponies. Ice tunnels riddled one dream glacier, channelling howling winds that tore the heat from a body in seconds. It was just what they wanted.

--------------------

While exploring deep in the tunnels they encountered the huge ice-rhimed form of an ancient nightmare, senescent during the daytime quiet. Hiding from attention in those inhospitable tunnels, it had been slowly feeding on ponies' fear of the cold for centuries, careful to never attract attention.

Both nightmare and ponies were startled when they encountered one another, but the nightmare was swift to recover, and took a towering form sculpted from glacial cold and winter's darkness. It lunged forward in a fearful attack.

Both ponies were delighted to find something to vent their frustrations on. It was just a shame that the monster didn't survive for very long.

-------------------

Luna and Twilight woke a little before nightfall. Twilight headed to the kitchen to make coffee. Luna went to the balcony to raise the moon. By the time the sun had set and the coffee was ready, both ponies were awake and ready to face the night.

Seeing that his guardians were awake, Spike started making breakfast and served it before going to bed. A quick check with Spike before he left revealed that the day had been uneventful. The library was in good order.

"So, um. What do you want to do?" asked Twilight after they had eaten.

"Well, I have not yet had an opportunity to explore Ponyville at night and I am quite looking forward to it. What establishments will be open?"

"At this hour? Not much. There are a few pubs, a nightclub with very loud music–"

"I have little liking for those clubs; the music of the night has never been so blaring."

"–okay. Um, there might be a music recital at the town hall."

"Excellent! Let us go there."

There was no music recital at the town hall. Luna took this with good grace.

"Nevermind, what other attractions does dear Ponyville offer?"

"Not much, I'm afraid."

"What?! What about gallery openings?"

"There's one gallery in Ponyville. It's run by Speckled Canvas, who considers anything that happened during the last one hundred and fifty years to be 'modern rubbish'. She'll be asleep by now anyway."

"Poetry readings?"

"Midnight, you've managed my library. You know what books we have and what ones are popular. Do you really think that we have enough poets for a regular poetry reading? Miss Cherilee tries, but-"

"Political debate at a bohemian cafe?"

"Mayor Mare has run unopposed for the last two decades."

"Any good plays at the playhouse? Any play at all?"

"No playhouse. Midnight, Ponyville is a farming community. We are not a cultural hub like Canterlot."

Midnight sighed in resignation.

"Come on, lets get back to the library where it's warm."

-----------------------

Luna settled back down with Chorser and Twilight returned to her laboratory, taking with her the annotated notes on Li'l Twi.

Luna did not find quiet domesticity to be to her liking, and she had to struggle to appreciate her book, until at last she put it aside in self-disgust.

The hours drifted by at a glacial pace. In her boredom, Luna conjured scheme after scheme, only to discard them one after another due to disinterest.

She had decided to temporarily hold fire in her prank war with her sister in order to keep Celestia in constant worry over the next salvo, and to give her a chance to respond, for fair-play's sake. Celestia's failure to retaliate immediately was disturbing, but history had long shown her that Celestia was a master strategist and Luna could not anticipate her. That Celestia struggled to anticipate Luna was some small consolation.

Hostilities on hold and finding the books unable to hold her attention, Luna went to the laboratory for company, only to be thrown out by her lover. Twilight was apparently working on the spider golem and wanted the results to be a surprise. Luna would have preferred company to a surprise, but felt that it would be churlish to press the point.

In the end, Luna chose to sleep in front of the fireplace, allowing her to catch up with the comings and goings of Canterlot and check the welfare of those of her people who worked during the daylight hours and slept during the night.

----------------

Hours later, Luna returned to consciousness, satisfied that her very capable team had everything under control. Yawning and stretching, she opened her eyes to find Twilight sitting absolutely still, disturbingly close to her. She was wearing a white labcoat and a fixed grin that sent a shiver down her spine. Twilight was staring at Luna.

Luna shuffled back a little on the rug and coughed uncomfortably.

"Hello, Twilight. Are you well?"

"Oh yes, thank you Luna. Everything is fine." Twilight's grin didn't falter one iota. Twilight continued to stare. Twilight was silent. Twilight was making Luna very uneasy.

"I–" Luna started, before falling silent again, at a loss for words as Twilight's sweet and innocent eyes bored deep into her skull.

The silence was broken this time by a giggle. From behind Luna. She whipped her head around, but there was no pony there. She looked back. Twilight hadn't moved. Neither had her grin.

Luna cautiously reached out a hoof and touched Twilight, to assure herself that she was there.

The hoof had barely made contact when Twilight spoke again, "Can I help you, Luna?"

Luna pulled back her hoof as if burned. The haze of sleep was receding fast and she started to listen to her senses. Twilight was indeed sitting in front of her. Luna's acute senses could discern her breathing, her heartbeat, her scent. She could see her quite well, too. There was nopony else in the room, but a very young dragon was snoring in a basket upstairs.

The giggle sounded from behind her again. Luna swung around, but could not see the source of the sound, only library shelves and books. Luna looked back down to the still grinning Twilight. She met Twilight's stare with an even gaze.

"Twilight, what is–"

Luna screeched with alarm as something heavy, something moving, launched itself onto her back. Luna pranced forward, instinctively trying to put her back in a corner, only to be thwarted by the round library walls. She turned with lightning speed in an attempt to see her assailant.

On the floor where she had been lying was a black pool of darkness with waving tendrils that her mind slowly recognised as the plush spider golem that Twilight had given her yesterday, waving its legs.

The spider was laughing. Twilight was still grinning, but now it was a natural smile, rather than an insane rictus.

Breathing hard from the adrenaline rush, Luna approached the golem. Falling silent, it righted itself onto all eight long legs and turned to face Luna. As Luna leaned in with cautious curiosity, the spider's ruby eyes suddenly lit up with a bright red glow, causing Luna to jerk her head backwards and the spider to giggle again.

Luna blinked as the golem suddenly started to speak.

"I'm super scary now! Yay!"

----------------

"I'm sorry, Luna, but it was too good an opportunity to pass up. I realised that most of the power requirement for Li’l Twi to manifest comes from the illusion. Since Li'l Twi can control the PSG, that is the 'Plush Spider Golem'-"

"That is an awful name!" interjected Li'l Twi, "I'm not a 'PSG'. I'm a scary spider golem. SSG? Spilem? Goder? Twider! I'm a scary Twider! Rawr!"

Twilight hung her head in mock remorse, "I am sorry, Luna. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but now I've unleashed the Twider into the world."

"Oh no! Whatever shall we do?" Luna cowered in pretend fear of the spider.

Li'l Twi stalked towards her prey, waving her forelegs menacingly. The effect was rather weakened when she upended and fell forward, bonking her head on the ground.

"Oops. I ran out of hooves."

Luna carefully aided the golem to its feet.

"Thanks, Luna. Now be afraid again!"

Luna laughed, backing away from the spider. The golem had eight eyes, but Li'l Twi still couldn't see directly behind her and so she didn't notice the little black thundercloud that Luna conjured. She did notice the miniature thunderclap though.

"Eeep!"

The Twider quickly scurried to hide in Luna's tail, peering out from the starfield like a jungle explorer peering at a tiger from a bush. She seemed a little miffed at the adults laughing at her, and when she realised that the danger had passed, she tried to walk away with great dignity, only to trip again.

"It looks as though you need more practice walking, little spider. I suggest that you keep trying. When you are not supposed to be at work!"

"Ooops. Sorry."

The spider suddenly deflated, the eyes dimmed and, lacking Lil’l Twi’s more forceful animus, it span around in confusion before scurrying back to the laboratory.

"Maybe I should make another golem like that. It would be very handy helping Spike with the high dusting..."

“I am impressed you can get a mass that heavy to jump so well.”

“Thank you. It was the closest I could get it to flying. If I had thought things through properly then we would now be ducking and dodging a hyperactive plush bat golem. Which in retrospect may be considered a close escape.”

“Indeed. Good job too on the disturbing grin. Very unsettling.”

“Thank you! I wanted to start things off on the right hoof. I’ll be needing that grin a lot tonight.”

“Tonight?”

“You know, the ‘evil’ thing? Who did you think I was going to be evil to?”

“Ah. What, exactly did you have in mind?”

Twilight flashed a seductive smile that promised many things, “Come on down to the lab and I’ll show you.”

Luna followed Twilight with some trepidation. As Twilight descended the stairs to her laboratory she looked behind her, catching Luna’s eyes with hers, and smiled mysteriously. Her tail swished enticingly.

Luna was very distracted while descending the stairs, but it may not have made much difference if she was fully alert, as the magical trigger that Twilight had laid on one of the stairs was very subtle.

Twilight had been worried about Luna’s resistance to sleep spells. As an alicorn princess, Luna was undoubtedly tougher than a pony from the other races, so Twilight decided to go all-out. Powerful spells from a dozen different directions shot out towards Luna the moment she stood on the trigger. The surge was sufficient to make Twilight’s hair stand on end, her horn ache and the lights dim.

Luna was caught off-guard by the tide of magic arrayed against her, and didn’t have time to drop her natural defences. Even so, the trap was almost enough. Luna’s vision briefly wavered as a series of sleep and stun spells hit her, making her fur itch and horn tingle, but none were enough to actually knock her out. The Guardian of Dreams would not so easily be subdued.

The haze of magic was insufficient to hide Luna’s embarrassed blush and the sparks that were harmlessly discharging through her mane and coats and quickly dissipating didn't help either.

Twilight sighed with exasperation.

“Luna! You’re supposed to be knocked unconscious! Now how am I supposed to laugh mockingly at you for falling into my diabolical trap? How am I supposed to menace you when you wake from the magically enforced slumber if you don’t fall asleep in the first place?”

“I am sorry, Twilight. Your spells caught me by surprise. If you could warn me in advance that you’re going to launch a surprise ambush then I could prepare accordingly and be caught appropriately off-guard. I could collapse due to a delayed reaction to the spells, if that would help? Or here, I will lower my defences and you can catch me unawares with an unexpected sleep spell.”

“Well, I suppose that will have to do. Hold still, I’ll throw a sleep spell at you. Just try to fall for it this time.”

The rapidly dispersing haze of magic was just enough to throw Twilight’s bolt slightly off-course, but Luna was quick on her feet and managed to throw herself into its path. Everything went black.

––––––––––––––––––––-

<Author's note: this next section contains some clop. It doesn't really start until some way in. If you wish to skip any of the next section, please head to the next line break>

Luna awoke to find herself chained to a sawhorse crudely constructed from rough lumber, with only her wings free to move. There was enough padding on the horse and the chains to make the whole affair rather comfortable. As the millenia had given her plenty of unpleasant awakenings, she felt qualified to say that this one didn’t come close. She mentally deducted points on Twilight’s ‘evil’ performance.

Luna reviewed her situation. The padlock on the chains was suitably large and impressive. There was a contraption on Luna’s horn; it was too close, making it very difficult discern the details of the device, but she had a good idea what it did. Twilight’s delightful rump wasn’t quite so close and Luna had a wonderful view of it, so she decided to focus on that.

Twilight's lab coat didn’t stretch down so far as to hide Twilight’s beautifully sculpted behind, and her tail was swishing to and fro excitedly. The unicorn was clearly spending a long time bending down to inspect something on the floor, almost certainly for her benefit, and Luna wasn’t going to ignore the gift.

It took an embarrassingly long time to realise that Twilight wasn’t tormenting her with luscious treasures held too far away to touch (or lick, or nip), but was rather posing with the heavy key to the padlock poking out of her coat pocket, teasingly out of reach.

Ignoring the quiet grumbles from her captor about alicorns and their powers of observation, Luna lit up her horn to attempt to fish out the key and engineer her escape.

As soon as her horn lit up, the ring on her horn hummed and the two clappers attached to the ring tried to clap. As Luna’s horn was in the way, they both just hit it with some force, just as Luna expected.

“Ow!”

Twilight straightened and turned to face her captive, manic grin comfortably in place.

“Aha! Trying to escape my diabolical trap, are you? Your superior powers are no match for my little bits of wood! You shall come to realise that you are mine! All mine!”

“Release me, wretch! Don’t you know who I am?!”

“Oh yes, Your Highness. I know who you are. I also know you are not expected back at Canterlot for several days. Nopony knows you’re my captive. Nopony is coming to save you now. You cannot escape.”

“No! What are you going to do with me?”

Twilight tried the ‘evil maniacal laugh’ that Queen Chrysalis had used so convincingly in Canterlot, but it sounded forced to Luna’s expert ear.

“Surely you recognise me? Twilight Sparkle, one of– no, the greatest scientist in Equestria? The alicorn race has jealously guarded its secrets for millennia. No more! I shall reveal to the world the true nature of the alicorn. Years of painstaking planning has finally come into fruition! Finally I have an alicorn specimen on which to experiment! Nothing can stop me now!”

“No! We are a kind and noble race. We have no secrets!”

“Bah! It is said that an alicorn has greater strength and endurance than an earth pony, greater flying ability than a pegasus and greater magic than a unicorn. Today, that shall be put to the test!”

Twilight couldn’t manage the maniacal laugh, but the excited giggle that escaped her lips was enough to send a shiver down Luna’s spine.

“Please, release me. I am harmless.”

“Struggle all you want, alicorn. I shall not be denied! … No, really, struggle. There are strain gauges on those chains and I want to see how strong you are.”

Luna tugged at the chains, admittedly withholding a portion of her strength out of concern that she might accidentally break them.

“No, no. That just won’t do. Where’s your passion for scientific discovery? Nevermind, I believe I can encourage you.”

Luna’s eyes went wide with anticipation as Twilight approached her side. Twilight’s body blocked her view of what Twilight had in mind, and she tensed in anticipation. This only made it worse when her lover started tickling her.

Howling with laughter, Luna tried to jerk free as Twilight tickled her relentlessly, but the chains were much stronger than Luna had originally thought and were in no danger of breaking. Eventually Twilight relented and went to inspect one of her consoles, making a pleased sound as she did so.

“Ooh, even stronger than I thought. It’s a good thing I put in a huge safety factor when strengthening those chains. I must record these readings.”

Twilight made a little show of bringing out a tired and broken quill and attempting to write with it. Pretending to be frustrated by the quill’s demise, she turned to her captive with an authentic evil grin.

“Drat. I need a new quill. Thankfully, I have all the makings of one on hoof.”

Twilight’s aura carefully grasped a primary feather from one of Luna’s wings and plucked it out. Luna yelped, and tried to ignore her rising excitement. Twilight inspected the midnight blue feather critically.

“Excellent. This will do wonderfully.”

A brief spell later and Twilight had turned the feather into a magnificent quill, and started writing down her results. Luna recovered her breath and started to regain her composure.

“Right, now let’s test your endurance.”

“That wasn’t the endurance test?”

“Of course not, silly. I couldn’t hope to keep tickling an alicorn long enough to properly test her endurance. Anyway, my hooves aren’t properly calibrated. No, automated machinery is the pinnacle of modern science, and I for one shall not turn my back on it. Now, on to the endurance test!”

A metal hat shaped like a spaghetti strainer with many coloured wires coming from it was plonked onto Luna’s head and strapped in place. The wires lead to one of the consoles and a device that put coloured lines onto reams of paper.

Luna was honestly curious to know what an automated tickling machine would look like, but Twilight was busying herself on a workbench, hiding her equipment from sight. When done with her mysterious task, Twilight trotted happily behind Luna. Luna found out what type of endurance would be tested for when the lubricated and pre-warmed dildo was slipped home. Luna moaned and tensed.

“Right. The encephalograph should monitor your excitement. When you are close to climax, the vibrator will cut off, only to start again when you’ve recovered a little. You will endure this until you say ‘Princess Celestia is better than me.’”

“Never!”

“That’s the spirit!” Twilight really had a strong grasp on the evil grin and maniacal giggle, and demonstrated both very effectively as she threw the switch.

Luna moaned as the vibrations started and steady waves of pleasure assaulted her. Her chains were strong and allowed little movement, and she struggled weakly as she gyrated her hips. Twilight had settled down to enjoy the show and was idly running a concurrent experiment with one of her hooves.

The vibrating dildo had a clitoral massage function, and the irresistible tingling from that made Luna draw gasping breaths as she writhed. Bucking hips and straining muscles availed her no aid, and one of her last rational thoughts was that Twilight had no need for the tickle test earlier. The mare probably just loved to make her squirm.

Despite her endurance, Luna could only resist the stimulation coming from the vibrator for so long. The sounds of passion coming from Twilight and the thrill of the scenario playing out added to her excitement, and soon she was on the threshold of an orgasm, at which point the vibrator cut out. Luna shouted with frustration, but the laboratory had good sonic dampening spells laid on it.

After a short while, Luna’s breathing steadied and the vibrator started up again. Twilight failed to demonstrate the level of control exhibited by her equipment and failed to remove her hoof from her own marehood in time. Her orgasm was loud and served only to increase Luna’s excitement and frustration as she neared her climax for the second time.

Luna’s pride was great as was her endurance. It felt as though hours passed. Twilight managed to coax out another orgasm for herself while she waited.

“Nnnngg. Princess! Celestia! No!”

“Nearly! Keep going, Luna.”

“No! Release me!”

“Come on Luna. You know what you want.”

“Arrgh! PrincessCelestiaisbetterthanme!” shouted Luna.

Good to her word, Twilight threw the switch that disengaged the vibrator from the helmet, but not before she conscientiously made a note of the time.

Having been denied for so long, the rapturous orgasm that overtook Luna rendered her briefly insensate.

When Luna recovered, Twilight was hovering a glass of water nearby. Luna drank thirstily.

“That was very good. I don’t have comparison timings from an earth pony, but I’m sure that you did better than any one of them could be expected to do. Well done.”

Luna growled.

“Right, next up is magical power and spell resistance. I’m really looking forward to finding out what your limits are there. Are you ready to get started?”

Without waiting for a response, Twilight’s horn lit up and the clapper on Luna’s horn was pulled free. Before Luna could react, Twilight dropped what appeared to be a black, wooden ring to the base of Luna’s horn and started the power test.

The unicorn response to a horn-job was subject to any number of bawdy jokes, but there was a well known truth underlying them: the power ‘ejaculate’ from a unicorn was roughly proportional to the flow of magic that the unicorn in question could control.

It was notoriously difficult for a pony to cast magic spells whilst their horn was under assault, and Twilight’s tongue was more than sufficient to keep Luna from escaping her bonds. Admittedly, escaping was far from Luna’s mind at that moment in time.

With the experience gained from their first night together, Twilight knew that Luna responded well to horn licks, more than simple sucking or polishing. With enthusiastic care, Twilight trailed her tongue along Luna's long horn, tracing out one of the spiral grooves.

“Nnngg. More!”

Encouraged by the noises that Luna was making, Twilight kept up a steady rhythm, switching occasionally between long and short licks, but never relenting for a second. Soon Luna was gasping and moaning and trying thrash her head around, even though Twilight's aura held it fast.

Luna came with a horngasm that sent a torrent of magic into Twilight's expectant mouth. While her mouth was no more calibrated than her hooves, Twilight was confident that Luna’s output was significant. The ring that Twilight had placed on Luna’s horn had changed to a pale blue, testimony to the power that had flowed through it. Twilight took the wooden ring off Luna’s horn and made a note of the colour.

------------------

Twilight slipped the magical clappers back on Luna's now sticky horn as an afterthought.

"Right. That was fun, but we need to move on. Time to test your magical defences. Please be ready."

Luna had barely recovered from her recent excursions, but nodded her head. Satisfied, Twilight fired a spark from her horn, which bounced harmlessly from Luna's coat.

"Hmm. Interesting..."

As Luna lay on the sawhorse, Twilight paced around the room in thought, occasionally shooting a spark at Luna which would dissipate without causing any harm. Sometimes Twilight would study Luna's coat, or watch the spark intently as it stuck. Elemental magics of various types were tried, to no avail.

"Your magical defences are impressive. Really very impressive. Hmm."

It took half an hour of ideas and tests before Twilight tried out the next in her steady stream of ideas, only to rewarded by an-

"Ouch!"

"Aha! I have it! Your coat is partially astral, just like your tail and mane! If any spell is to affect you, it must be made astral as well. Like so–"

Another spark flew from Twilight's horn.

"Ouch! Stop it!"

Twilight delightedly wrote up some notes, having finally worked out how to penetrate Luna's magical defences. She ignored Luna's grumbles and didn't notice the very slight wideness of Luna's eyes that showed a new degree of concern over her situation.

"Excellent! Now we just need to test wing– Wait a moment. Your magic bypasses magic dampening circles. Is it because of the astral component? Hmm..."

Twilight grabbed some chalk and started drawing a magic circle around the sawhorse, raising Luna's curiosity. A few books were summoned from the library, and arrayed themselves in front of Twilight as she worked.

The magic circle that she was drawing wasn't quite right, so Twilight kept tweaking it. She made small adjustments here and there, changing runes and inspecting it from all angles.

"Hmm, aleph, nu, thorn... Oh, be a good specimen and stop twitching, would you? It's very distracting. Aha! I need to invert the widdershins linkages to direct the flow–"

Twilight quickly rubbed out half the circle she had painstakingly drawn and redrew it. Luna stiffened in alarm as she suddenly felt her power drain away.

Twilight stood back with a triumphant grin. The circle was clearly working, as Luna's mane and tail had lost their starfield effect. Now she just needed to goad Luna into trying to cast-

"RED!" shouted Luna, eyes wide, as she desperately pulled at the chains in a panic.

Twilight blinked. A thousand calculations and options flickered across her mind, no defences, breaking the chains could hurt her. Use key on padlock? Too slow. Break the circle. By Celestia's grace, why did I use chains? Argh! Forget subtlety!

Twilight's horn blazed into life and a brilliant glow touched the floor and the chains.

The magic circle stopped working when the wooden floor it was drawn on cracked and splintered. The chains had been magically strengthened. They shattered anyway, the fragments blasting outward from the centre. Luna was completely unharmed, but a fragment did strike Twilight hard on her shoulder. She fell to the ground in pain as Luna surged upright, hovering, practically glowing as her power surged back to comfort her.

----------------------

Twilight was lying in bed, her leg encased in magically reinforced bandages that made a crude cast. A simple spell prevented the pain from bothering her. She had refused suggestions that she should see a doctor, her vehemence born from her embarrassment over her situation.

Luna, no mean healer herself, had repaired the broken bones, but the torn ligaments, swelling and bruising would respond better to bed rest than magic.

"What were you thinking? Shattering the chain like that?"

"You were panicking. I needed to set you free-"

"Once the circle was broken I was fine-"

"You couldn't have broken those chains and the clapper-"

"Could do nothing if I did not actively permit it. My defences would prevent it from causing me pain unless I suppressed them."

"Oh."

"Why, Twilight? Why the whole 'Mad Scientist' scenario anyway? Is that your idea of evil? A little kinky sex, something that we do anyway?"

Twilight paused a moment, gathering her thoughts.

"You wanted to see my evil side. Evil is selfishness. It is putting one's own desires far beyond the welfare of others. I want to know things. About the world, about you. I can't know them because experimentation like that is immoral. You are Princess Luna, not an alicorn specimen. You wanted to see where I come closest to evil, the temptation that I fight."

"Twilight, I– You wanted me to play a game with you as the Nightmare that almost destroyed Equestria. I do not want to do that. I worry that you will... not react well to it. I asked you to show me that you understood, at least in part, what it means. The Nightmare is not– was not selfish. It wanted the dreaming to expand, it didn't want the ponies to die. It had a blinding obsession."

"Obsession? You're worried that I wouldn't understand an obsession?! Here! I'll show you an obsession!"

Twilight's aura ripped the panel off a secret compartment in the bedroom wall. Inside the compartment was a long roll of paper. A very long roll of paper. The list titled 'Seduction (Princess Luna)' was thrust into its subject's hooves.

"Read that and you'll know all about obsession."

Luna read the title of the scroll. She started reading through the list. She sped up, speed reading key words as the scroll unrolled under her power at great speed. She paused in places to read the fine detail of random sections. Her face expressionless, she scrolled to the end, read the final section and then passed the scroll back to the trembling Twilight.

"You told me that you had spent two years planning my seduction. I must admit that I did not realise the level of detail you brought to your plans. I– I accept that you understand what it is to be obsessed."

"Luna, I am not going to ask you to play with me as the Nightmare. It is part of my obsession, but that isn't important. You are. I needed to show you my evil so that you could see more of me. Another side."

"You succeeded. Please do not take this the wrong way, but I need to think. Rest, Twilight. Sleep. Heal. I will repair the damage that has been done to your laboratory. We will talk tomorrow."

Twilight started to object, but Luna expertly cast a subtle sleep spell on her and she fell almost instantly into dreams.

Nurse Luna

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Twilight was furious. She was dreaming and couldn't wake up. She had started out in what appeared to have all the hallmarks of a bad dream, but had swiftly left, abandoning the dreamlet to be reabsorbed by the dreaming.

She had no place she wanted to go except the land of the waking, and that seemed to be barred to her. Lacking any other option, she headed towards Toyland, in the hope that she might find Li'l Twi. She had no intention of venting on a filly, but she hoped that a tea party would calm her nerves.

Li'l Twi wasn't in her house, but a friendly toy soldier pointed Twilight to a nearby playground where Twilight found Li'l Twi playing with a small gaggle of foals of various ages. The little filly was doing a decent job of keeping the foals under control, with the able aid of Bally. Twilight settled down to wait for her friend, her anger slowly subsiding.

As Twilight watched, from a discrete distance, the foals faded away back to the waking world one by one, until Li'l Twi was left with her loyal pet. Twilight trotted out to meet her.

"Twilight! Did you forget where you put your spare quills already?"

"Nope," replied Twilight gaily, "I just forgot how much mockery I should expect from you."

"Oh goodie! It'll be fun reminding you,” Li'l Twi paused and then nuzzled up to Twilight. "I do love you, you know."

"I love you too, Li'l Twi," said Twilight, hugging her back. They sat in companionable silence for a moment, watching Bally play on the carousel.

Twilight sighed.

"What's wrong?"

"Just had an argument with Luna. Rather than talk about things she cast a sleep spell on me, so I can't wake up."

Li'l Twi's face fell fast, "Oh no! Do you want to borrow the spider?"

"What? Wait. You can control the spider from the dreaming. I didn't think of that. I can go and shout at Luna using the spider."

"Um, I don’t think Luna would take arguments from a plush spider very seriously. Maybe you could prank her instead? She likes pranks. Glue her tail to the floor or something."

Twilight's eyes lit up. "Revenge!"

-------------

The spider had made a little nest for itself in the corner of the laboratory behind a bank of esoteric aetheric machinery. Twilight took control of the spider and slowly crept up the sides of the equipment, placing each hoof with care.

Walking up the sides of a wall with eight legs was a new experience for Twilight, but she felt that as long as she focused on putting one hoof in front of the other then everything was under control.

When she reached the top of the scanner, she peered over the edge and surveyed the scene. True to her word, Luna had undone the damage from the night's adventures. Twilight was impressed by her thoroughness - she had thought the sawhorse and the chains in particular would be scrap, but everything was repaired and as good as new.

Luna herself was lying on the ground, facing towards the horse and away from Twilight, head resting in her hooves and tail still. It didn't look like a comfortable posture, but Twilight didn't question her luck and kept on sneaking across the laboratory floor.

With no spell-casting ability, the golem was not the ideal tool for pranking, but Twilight had a plan. Towards the back of the laboratory there was her store of summoning supplies, including the clay wardstones. She knew that they wouldn't hurt Luna, but the bright flash of light and loud noise would make for a very rude awakening. She would be banished back to the dreaming by the wards, but the spider should automatically hide from strong magic, so Luna should not notice the culprit escape.

Twilight crept across the laboratory floor, darting behind the various pieces of machinery for cover. There was a short stretch of exposed ground between her and the cupboard, but with Luna apparently asleep Twilight was sure that with care she would make it. Twilight tiphooved to the cupboard, as quiet as only a plush golem could be.

Once at the cupboard, she carefully hooked a couple of her forelegs through a draw handle and pulled. It took several tries to get the various involved limbs coordinated, but she eventually managed to lever the draw open a little. If she had had eyelids, she would have winced at every squeak and shriek the draw made as it opened. It seemed to take forever to get the draw open.

Freeing her limbs from the handle took a lot longer.

Crawling into the draw, she found the neat little stack of three wardstones; now she just needed to get one out. Taking the top one, she manoeuvred it until it was sitting precariously on the edge of the draw front panel.

If were to fall from the draw it would break, but the distance from Luna wasn't ideal. Twilight wanted full effectiveness, which would require dragging the clay talisman up the walls, across the ceiling and dropping it next to Luna's head. This would be a gargantuan effort for a plush spider golem, but Twilight was feeling very motivated.

Twilight climbed carefully up alongside the wardstone, perching precariously on the drawer front panel. The draw shifted a little due to the weight. Twilight notice that the stone slid a little, and froze. With exquisite care, she lowered herself to the ground.

As soon as her spider hooves left the draw, it righted itself up a touch. This was enough to cause the wardstone to teeter and fall. Alarmed, Twilight desperately threw her body under the stone, and chittered with relief when the stone landed harmlessly on the plush and then fell a very short distance to the floor.

Twilight carefully pulled the wardstone onto its edge and rolled it to the nearest wall. Before she started to climb the wall, she turned her body and looked back at Luna.

Twilight could see her face now.

Twilight stopped.

Twilight rolled the wardstone back to the cupboard. She couldn't get it back in the draw without risking breaking it, so she left it in the shadows and headed back towards the corner where the spider golem lived.

All the while she did this, she tried to ignore the small puddle that had formed around Luna's tear-streaked muzzle. Her reserves of anger and indignation were draining fast.

It was no good. Twilight's resolve went, and the spider turned back to Luna. She got her legs tangled in her hurry, but soon enough Twilight reached Luna.

The golem really wasn't very good at pranking. It was very good at hugging. Luna hugged it back with a crushing embrace as the plush soaked up her tears.

---------------

"How did it go?"

Twilight shook her head with remorse, "I'll talk to her in the morning. I don't think pranking her would be a good idea right now."

"Awwww," said Li'l Twi, disappointedly.

Twilight kissed Li'l Twi on the forehead and sent her off to bed. She herself went to the beach, staring into the distance and occasionally flicking pebbles out into the sea of playpen balls.

--------------

Twilight was normally quick to wake, but her new injury, her recent change in sleep cycle, and the sleep spell all conspired to making her feel groggy. She didn't open her eyes until a cheerful voice said, "Wake up, sleepyhead. It is time for breakfast!"

Luna looked happy, composed and sexy beyond words in Twilight's naughty nurse outfit, which appeared to have been enlarged for the occasion. Twilight mentally prayed that Spike hadn't seen her like that. Despite her concern, she couldn't bring herself to be upset with Luna's choice of attire; she just blushed at all the thoughts and ideas that danced through her mind.

Twilight started to speak, but the words died in her mouth at Luna's happy smile. She looked into Luna's light blue eyes, as fathomless as the sky, and became afraid that she might break the happy mask Luna wore.

"You had better eat your breakfast, Twilight. You have a lot of healing to do," said Luna, floating a tray laden with a bowl of honeyed apple porridge dusted with cinnamon and a large glass of milk in front of Twilight. Twilight’s stomach rumbled tellingly and she started to eat. Twilight barely noticed Luna discretely slipping out of her bedroom.

Almost the instant Twilight put down the spoon, Luna reappeared and busily put aside the tray.

"That was delicious, Luna. Thank you."

"I'm glad you liked it, Twilight," said Luna with a happy smile, nuzzling Twilight's neck. Twilight, for her part, was holding back a storm of emotion, but could not bring herself to remove the smile from Luna's face. She turned her head to nuzzle Luna back.

Nuzzles turned to kisses and Twilight was quickly reminded just how attractive Luna was, particularly whilst wearing such a scandalous outfit. With a little sigh, Twilight started returning the kisses with increasing passion.

Luna's cute little cap got knocked off her head. Neither pony noticed. Luna pulled back the duvet from Twilight's bed and ran a trail of kisses down her neck, chest, belly and further.

"Ah! Luna, what are you– Oh!"

"Stop squirming, please, Twilight. I just need to take your temperature."

"I'm not sure that that technique is fully approved by the Royal Canterlot College of Nursing!"

Luna looked up and smirked, "I have it on good authority that the nurses of that august institution use it all the time."

"Whose good authority?"

"Well, the graffiti in the college toilets, but it can probably be relied upon in this instance."

Luna licked her wet muzzle and then continued the job at hoof. Twilight stopped arguing, as she needed her breath for other activities.

Once Twilight had, rather noisily, but without any words, informed Luna that her procedure had been successfully completed, Luna pulled back.

"I am very happy to report that your temperature is just right," said Luna.

Twilight sighed.

-----------------

Twilight steeled her resolve as Luna cheerfully trotted away with the tray.

"Luna!" called Twilight, "Could you come back after you've put that away? We need to talk."

Luna hesitated for a moment, then nodded and continued on her way.

When Luna came back, she was wearing a serious expression and not the naughty nurse costume. She was carrying a full tea service in her aura, which she settled on bedside table between them.

"You wanted to talk?" Luna asked as she busied herself in making tea for both of them.

"Er, yes," said Twilight, who was feeling at a bit at a loss for words.

Luna poured a measure of tea into both cups, saying nothing.

"About last night..."

"Ah yes. Your list. I have– I consider that to be in the past, much like some of my own history. I have made mistakes of my own and cannot hold the list against you."

Luna calmly poured some milk into her cup. Twilight shook her head at Luna's asking glance, so Luna handed Twilight her cup without.

"What? No. Not the list. Luna, you cast a sleep spell on me–"

"You needed to heal–"

"No! You cast a sleep spell on me rather than talk–"

"I did not feel that a conversation at that time would go well. As I said, I needed to think and you needed to heal–"

"I needed to talk more! Luna, we clearly don't understand one another–"

"I am aware that I am 'behind the times', but I am trying–"

"NO you are not!"

Silence. Luna stiffly brought the tea cup to her lips and took the smallest of sips. Her eyes remained fixed on Twilight.

"You aren't," said Twilight in a weaker voice, "You interrupt everything I say. You are being defensive. You aren't listening..."

"Very well, speak," snapped Luna.

Twilight closed her eyes and breathed deeply. The rich aroma of the tea calmed her nerves a little; a thousand little memories of peace in a single breath.

"I'm scared, Luna. You're everything to me, you know that. I did the 'mad scientist' thing for you. I wanted to bring us closer together. Sometimes I feel that the only thing we have in common is the sex. I wanted to show you more of me.

"The magic circle didn't go well, and I had plenty of time while I was sleeping to work out why," Luna looked down into her cup, but said nothing, "That was the first time we've been together when you've been helpless, isn't it?"

Luna said nothing.

"All the other times you could have stopped me in a moment, but not then. I've been helpless in your hooves many times. I was okay with that: I trust you," Twilight looked up from her untasted cup, trying to meet Luna's hidden eyes, "Do you trust me?"

Luna looked up, meeting Twilight's searching gaze.

"It is not that. I trust you," Luna looked back down at her tea, "Twilight, that was the first time in millennia that I have been helpless, without my power. It came as a shock."

Twilight sipped her tea as Luna spoke. There was a silence between them for a moment, Twilight judging her options, Luna lost in thought.

"I don't think that that's right either," said Twilight, "Or at least I don't think that's why you reacted so strongly. Do you remember our first night? I asked you what we were. I asked you what you wanted. I– You said we would be equals. We would share. You said you didn't want a pet–"

"I know what I said."

Twilight flinched, but pressed on.

"Luna, you haven't been treating this relationship– me– as an equal. You've humorously indulged my fantasies and played along with me, but you've always held me a hoof-length away. The first time you saw me as an equal, you panicked."

Luna looked up, briefly.

"Twilight, I–" Luna sighed, "Twilight, I... like you. I have sacrificed a great deal to try and make this relationship work. I want it to work. But I– You are a wonderful and talented pony. A powerful and knowledgeable mage. But you are not my equal. I can not pretend–"

Twilight's anger brought fire to her eyes, but Luna wouldn't meet them.

"YOU-" Twilight caught herself mid-shout, started her breathing exercises.

"Twilight, are you alright?"

Twilight spoke more calmly, but with eyes closed at the effort, "I'm fine. I get angry sometimes. There's a reason I have anger management pamphlets downstairs. Give me a moment."

Luna quietly sipped her tea, Twilight breathed slowly, until she felt calm enough to speak.

"Luna, when you agreed that we could be equals, I didn't think you were ly–" Twilight stopped herself again, fighting against the words coming from her mouth as Luna's hackles rose, "No, no. I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."

Luna snorted in irritation. Twilight massaged her forehead with her non-bandaged hoof.

"Luna, I offered to be your pet, back then. I meant it. Then. Now, I'm not sure it's what I want. I know you're an alicorn. I know you're a princess. I know you're immortal. I know that. But in my heart I see you as an equal, and my heart won't let me lie any more than yours will."

"Twilight. I am a goddess. I fought Discord at my sister's side. I watched Equestria grow and nurtured it for millenia." Luna stood. "The moon that is shining through your bedroom window? I place that moon in the sky every night. The element of harmony that you bear? I bore it once, and two others besides. I have survived for a thousand years on the moon. You would die in an INSTANT." Luna was nearly shouting now, but while Twilight was making herself small, her eyes still met Luna's defiantly, "Twilight Sparkle. You. Are. Not. My. Equal."

Luna stormed out.

Twilight threw her best tea service against the wall and turned away from the door, to cry.

-------------

Luna reappeared a couple of hours later. Twilight was still staring at the wall. Luna coughed uncomfortably, and noted Twilight's ear twitch in response.

"I shall return to Canterlot. Our ponies need guidance. We– I will contact you anon."

Twilight was silent.

Luna left.

------------------

Twilight was prone to panic. When Luna walked out, terror gripped at Twilight. She could see ahead of her with perfect clarity: a long and empty life without Luna. Princess Celestia would permanently banish her from Canterlot, from Equestria, to prevent the sight of her from causing her sister any distress. Her friends would leave her in disgust. Spike would abandon her and go back to Princess Celestia. Twilight would die alone, a hermit tending a shrine to the lunar goddess who would never again deign to turn her gaze onto Twilight's unworthy form.

Twilight was terrified. Black visions swam through mind. She couldn't see a way out. Twilight cast the 'reload' spell.

Twilight was even more terrified when the spell didn't work. She tried casting it again and still nothing happened. Twilight calmed herself. She thought back, and realised that she had last saved back in Canterlot. It had been far too long.

It was over. It was all over.

------------------

After an hour or so of moping, Twilight hauled herself out of bed, deciding to make herself busy rather than go crazy replaying recriminations in her mind. She could at least make the library presentable for the next librarian. Her shoulder was sore, but her fur hid the bruise well enough. She would be limping for a day or two, no more than she deserved.

Repairing the tea service was simple enough, even for the state she was in, and the damage it had done to the walls was even easier to sort out.

Exploring the library for chores that needed doing was proving to be a chore in itself. She found her naughty nurse costume shrunk back to its original size, washed, dried and pressed. It smelt slightly of lavender. The kitchen looked pristine. There wasn't a book out of place in the library.

Luna had clearly beaten Twilight to the makework about the place. Twilight did take a mote of comfort in finding that Luna appeared to have taken the plush golem back to Canterlot with her.

Twilight retreated to her study to find a job that Luna wouldn't have touched. Spike had been doing a good job, but Twilight needed to do some of the basic background tasks for the library so that he could continue to do the easy bits, such as issuing books.

She started drawing up a list of new books to order but her heart wasn't in it and she had trouble concentrating. She struggled through the list and finally saw it complete, but it took twice as long as it should have done.

Twilight tossed her quill aside in frustration as soon as the list was dry. She wanted to eat her weight in ice cream. Taunting thoughts reminded her that she even had a complete list of a dozen ice cream parlours itemising every flavour they served, listing their opening hours and rating the friendliness of the servers. Unfortunately, every parlour on the list was in Canterlot, not Ponyville.

With the succour of ice cream denied her, Twilight needed somepony to talk to, and everypony was asleep. She needed... Twilight paused to think of her friends. She hated to impose, but sometimes being a good friend was about asking for help and not struggling alone.

Rarity lived close by, of course, and she was always generous with her time, but Twilight didn't want to risk waking Sweetie Belle. The Cake twins weren't sound sleepers, so Pinkie Pie was out. Applejack hardly lived alone. That left Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, possibly.

Twilight pictured going to Rainbow Dash for sympathy and advice related to matters of the heart. After her subconscious had stopped laughing at her, Twilight got up. It was a long way to Fluttershy's cottage, and it wouldn't be getting any closer if she just sat at her desk. Maybe the walk would do her good.

-----------

Twilight hadn't spent much time wandering through Ponyville alone at night. In the darkest hours the town was silent and still. The street lighting, which Twilight cursed regularly when stargazing, lit her way, the blanket of snow glowing with reflected light. Ponyville at night was a different world.

Movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. A fox was trotting down a side street as though it owned it. A cat, sitting proud on a fence, watched it as it passed.

It had been snowing overnight so that the foals would have enough snow for snowball fights. Sledging was probably going to be an option soon too, if Discord wouldn't keep using almost all of the snow to make fortresses for the foals (and him) to play in.

It had taken a while for Discord to really become accepted in Ponyville, but the assurances of the bearers of the Elements of Harmony carried great weight. Discord was not malicious now. He loved getting a reaction from ponies, and simple pranks and jokes were more easily tolerated coming from a friend. The foals loved him. He was very surprised to find the feeling was sometimes mutual.

Twilight's steady pace had taken her out of Ponyville proper and onto the winding lane leading to Fluttershy's cottage. A silent shadow of one of Owlowiscious' friends crossed the moon and caused Twilight to look up. Away from town, the sky was huge.

There were no distractions, no scaly assistants complaining about the cold, no friends laughing and joking, no great quest weighing on her mind. Looking up at the cloudy-heavy sky, Twilight felt alone, cold and small. She shivered, a cold breeze coming from the Everfree forest.

The clouds above were moving, a spooky effect caused by the wild nature of the weather around the Everfree forest. Watching the clouds move without a pegasus to guide them, Twilight stood transfixed. Then the clouds opened.

Free from the glare of the streetlights, Twilight saw the stars. The waning moon was not bright enough to drown out the sparkling dots of Luna's stars scattered across the sky.

Twilight had seen it all, many, many times before, but whenever she went stargazing, she had a goal in mind. Observe a nebula, calculate the trajectory of a comet, count the stars in a cluster, find something new. Now, without distraction, without a telescope to hide most of them from view, Twilight saw the stars again as she had as a foal. It took her breath away.

With a scholar's eye, she could see the stars and nebulas. The foal’s eye that Li'l Twi had recently reopened saw the constellations and the stories they held. Distant memories came back to her.

The quiet and lonely path to Fluttershy's cottage became a joy for Twilight, lost in awe at the glory of the night. The glory of the night also caused her to stumble more than a few times on hidden stones and the splendour of the snow tricked her into walking into a ditch, but it was still wonderful.

Without a full moon to guide her steps, Twilight lit her way with her horn, the path through a copse of trees looking particularly scary in the purple light. It brought back memories of the first night she had met Luna, the night she had bonded with her friends. Twilight enjoyed a little shiver, but soon broke into giggles at the monsters her mind conjured from the shadows. She was almost sorry when the trees gave way and Twilight could finally see Fluttershy's cottage up ahead.

As she approached, Twilight realised that there were lights on in Fluttershy's cottage and Angel Bunny was in the rabbit hutch and looking even more aggrieved than usual.

Concerned, Twilight trotted to the front door. Appearing equally concerned, the rabbit ran to block Twilight's path.

"Angel Bunny! What are you doing outside?"

A few gestures eloquently explained Angel Bunny's situation.

"Fluttershy threw you out?! What did you do this time?"

Angel was quick to stop Twilight's train of thought.

"What? You want to be outside?"

With some impressive miming, Angle Bunny elaborated.

"She has a friend over? Who?"

This required some running and arm flapping.

"Oh, she must be worried about Tank. Winter is difficult for tortoises... Wait. It's really late. What were they doing at this hour?"

Angel Bunny smiled with relief. The gesture required to answer that question was very simple.

"Angle Bunny!"

Angel Bunny shrugged.

"Oh, you're right. I certainly shouldn't disturb them. Come on, get on my back. We'll go back to the library, where at least it's warm."

The walk back was quicker than the one going out, and colder after Angel stole her scarf. When they got back the rabbit quickly fell asleep next to Spike in his warm basket.

"Well, that was a bust," said Twilight to herself, heading towards her study to think. She really didn't want to wake her friend's wards and companions. She was halfway to the study before she stopped dead in her tracks and facehoofed.

---------------

"Cannonball!" shouted Pinkie Pie, plunging into the pool of the freshly depopulated seraglio of Iron Rod the Despicable. The wave she created threatened to swamp Rarity, who was taking the opportunity to recline languidly on a divan and feed herself grapes from a nearby cornucopia. The fashionista used her gift for telekineticism to deflect the wave, but that didn't prevent her from glaring at her friend.

Applejack was examining the sporting equipment at the far end of the main chamber with disdain, distractedly curling the heaviest barbell without apparent effort, but soon got bored and joined Twilight, Rarity and Pinkie Pie around the pool. There were no apples in the cornucopias, but Twilight caught on before Applejack could ask and conjured up a few for her to munch on.

"Thanks, Twi'", said Applejack, "This place looks kinda fancy, but it seems nice enough, I suppose."

"This dream is indeed quite fabulously decorated. Kudos. It just needs some serving ponies, you know. I'm having to feed myself these grapes and it's a lot of work," pouted Rarity.

"I got rid of the servants, but if you want me to bring some back, I suppose I could..." Twilight did a decent job of hiding her grin.

"Yes please, darling. Why get rid of them in the first place?"

Twilight concentrated briefly and brought back a few members of the harem.

"Oh," said Rarity.

"Golly," said Applejack.

"Cute!" said Pinkie Pie.

With breathtaking poise, a sensual golden yellow earth pony mare trotted to a nearby cornucopia, selected a grape with enough languidity to shame Rarity and gracefully peeled off the skin with her teeth. She tried to feed the naked grape to Rarity with a smouldering gaze that screamed of barely repressed passion.

"Er, thank you," said Rarity, trying to take the grape from the mare without actually touching it, or her, and not entirely sure what to do with thing once she had it. When the earth pony looked away to get another grape, Rarity swiftly flung the one that she had been given into a corner and tried to look innocent.

Rarity was looking very uncomfortable and blushing fiercely, so she clearly needed cooling down. Two unicorn mares, if anything more beautiful than Rarity's other attendant, positioned themselves behind her and began to generate a cool breeze with fans made from peacock feathers. Rarity's blush deepened. The unicorns fanned harder.

When a sultry pegasus athlete stalked towards Applejack with hungry eyes, Applejack glared at her threateningly. The athlete quickly decided to instead lounge around the pool on the opposite side to Applejack, and tried very hard to appear to be a very small and contrite decoration.

"I think that's enough of this nonsense," said Applejack, blushing, "Is somepony going to get Rainbow and Fluttershy so we can start this here meeting?"

"Um, I don't think they're asleep at the moment. So, um, it'll be just us girls."

"Not asleep yet? It must be past midnight. What are those two up to?"

"Oh, I have no idea, no idea at all," said Twilight, suddenly conscious that Pinkie was suddenly grinning like a cat, "Probably nothing. I don't think we should worry about it," Pinkie's legs were starting to vibrate in the water, generating little waves, "Or ask them. Or mention it when we see them next," Pinkie rose about a hoof above the water, her whole body vibrating like mad, her grin practically luminescent, "Aheh heh heh. Um–"

"Whooo!" Pinkie slumped back in the pool, looking a little dazed, but her grin didn't fade in the slightest.

"Ahem," said Twilight awkwardly.

"Alllright then. Let's, uh, let's talk about whatever it is you called us here to talk about. Yes siree, let's talk."

Twilight found herself a recliner near the pool and settled down. Rarity immediately focused on the group, looking up from discreetly hiding a small pile of peeled grapes under the divan. Pinkie Pie surfaced from the pool and swam closer. Applejack eschewed the luxuries and leaned against a pillar, munching on an apple the exact same shade as her blush.

"Right," said Twilight, taking a deep breath, "Um, thank you for coming. I called you all here to tell you that, um, Luna and I might have broken up. M-maybe. I'm not sure. I don't know. Anything. And– And–"

Twilight stopped choking out words and gratefully accepted the group hug.

---------------

"...she was so angry. I felt so small. I had had the– the temerity to think that we could be equals..."

Twilight's friends had been letting Twilight talk. They had listened with sympathy as she told them what had happened and gave a (slightly bowdlerised) update on their relationship. Now, though, even Pinkie was showing signs of anger over Luna's harsh words to their friend.

Twilight didn't see the anger through her tears, and kept talking.

"...that first night, I offered to be anything she wanted. To be her pet. I meant it. Now– It's my stupid pride, but I want more. She's hurting so much. I think I could really help her..."

---------------

"...What do I do? What can I do?"

Twilight was staring morosely at the pool, talking to herself, having almost forgotten that the others were there.

"What can you do?", said Applejack, interrupting Twilight's thoughts, "You can do anything, Ah reckon. Ah've seen you face down Nightmare Moon, the Queen of the Changelings and Discord himself. You can do anything you want, if you set your mind to it."

"Whuh?"

"Darling," said Rarity, "All is not lost. This is a break, not an end. Do you want her back?"

"Yes."

"Then win her back. Come up with a plan or draw up a list or whatever it is that you do and win her back. On your own terms, of course. Don't sit around and mope, DO something."

"I– I'm not sure I can. I don't know how–"

"You've got to be yourself, Twilight," said Pinkie Pie, "That's all. Princess Luna loves you, I just know it. She's just proud and scared and needs a big hug. She'll come back and you can be all 'Twilight Sparkle' and she can be all 'Luna' and everything will be fine and there'll be a big wedding and there won't be any changelings unless they promise to behave and you can help her relax all the time!"

Pinkie blinked encouragingly at Twilight.

"Thanks girls," said Twilight with rising confidence, "You're right. We can make this work. I just need to show Luna that I AM worthy and we CAN be together. I am going to make things right."

"I know you will, Sugarcube. You're Twilight Sparkle, that's what you do."

---------------

Twilight stretched.

"Well, thank you so much girls for your help. I'm sorry to disturb your dreams."

"Think nothing of it, darling."

"You're welcome, Sugarcube."

"Anytime, Twilight."

"I need to talk to Li'l Twi, so I'd better get going."

"Ooh! Can I come too?" asked Pinkie Pie.

"Sure. Um, Rarity, Applejack, the dreams that you were in will have faded by now, so, um, I'll try and make this one more interesting. Just a moment."

Twilight closed her eyes and focussed. The beautiful harem mares flickered and were replaced with stallion counterparts. The sultry mare that had been relentlessly feeding Rarity with peeled grapes transformed into a handsome stallion with refined bearing and a chiselled jaw. The passion and the grapes remained the same, and Rarity was suddenly a lot more interested in both.

One large unicorn stallion, standing directly behind a very distracted Rarity, had a coil of rope held in his aura. With a commanding stare and authoritative hoof, he silently ordered Applejack into one of the side rooms, some way away from the pool. Applejack swallowed and nodded, heading to the room unnoticed by Rarity.

"Have fun, girls!" called out Twilight as she faded away.

-------------

Twilight and Pinkie went in search of Li’l Twi in Toytown, interrupted by occasional bouts of Pinkie’s favourite Pinky Sense. They found her in the main square, looking after a colt. This didn't seem to be a particularly demanding task, as the colt seemed to be delighted by just being there. He was currently playing hide and seek with some stuffed toys. The teddy bears were fairly good at hiding, but the plush snake didn't seem to realise how long its tail was, much to the colt's delight.

"Pinkie! Twilight!" shouted Li'l Twi as she bounded over from her hiding spot behind a tree. She and Pinkie fell to the ground in a tickle fight by way of greeting one another. Twilight smiled fondly at the both of them.

"Oh, uh, was there something you wanted, Twilight?"

"I did want to speak with you about the whole 'Luna' thing, if you had the time..."

"Oh, sure. I want to help. Pinkie, um, do you want-"

"Sweet Factory?" asked Pinkie Pie.

"Sorry, Pinkie, my boss says you're barred for a few days."

"Awwww."

"You could explore Toytown, if you like. I'm sure Fast Lines over there," Li’l Twi pointed to the colt, "would love the company. There's a huge sea of playpen balls, a gingerbread house you could eat if you're really hungry and lots of toys to meet."

"Neat-o!" Pinkie bounded off to play with the colt.

-------------

"Thanks, Li'l Twi, I know you want to play with Pinkie."

"It's okay, Twilight. We can play properly in the Sweet Factory when Luna lets us back in."

"Still, I hate imposing on my friends like this. Particularly when it's entirely my fault that there is a problem at all."

Li'l Twi giggled, "Oh, Twilight, it's so much fun watching you beat yourself up. Almost as much fun as doing it myself."

"You're always so hard on me."

"Of course I am: I'm you."

"So why am I so hard on myself?"

"Because you're Twilight Sparkle. It's what you do."

Innocent eyes looked up into Twilight's level glare.

Twilight sighed and got down to the business of plotting Luna's seduction, again. She hoped it wouldn't take another two years.

Luna's Nightmare

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Princess Luna flew furiously through the night. Princess Luna was thinking furiously too. Twilight Sparkle was unworthy. Certainly, she had saved Luna's life. Possibly twice. Maybe three times, if you counted Discord. Luna felt that that point was debatable. And yes, she had been brave enough to enter her royal chambers and break down the lonely walls that Luna had built around herself. And, well, yes, she had given Luna a plush spider golem that would have astounded the academics of Canterlot with its magnificent design. And Luna was forced to admit that the beautiful unicorn was incredible in bed and out of it. And she had been really understanding of Luna's own problems. And she gave fantastic wing massages. But still. She was clearly unworthy of the love and attention of a goddess.

Luna couldn't convince herself that she was right for one second, but that wouldn't stop her from trying. The next century or so would be miserable if she didn't succeed.

Mr Huggles hugged Luna's neck, strong plush spidery legs allowing it to cling on despite the pace Luna was setting. Twilight had really outdone herself with Mr Huggles. Twilight-

Luna had done the right thing. No question. A clean break might hurt (it did hurt), but it would heal for both of them soon enough and they could move on. Twilight to the multitude of suitors who would be queueing outside her library door, Luna to– to her own suitors!

Far better to end it now than let the relationship continue. Would she have had the strength to end it even in a week's time? If it had been kept going for much longer than those few, ecstatic, days, then who knows where they may have ended up? Even if went well? Stargazing dates? Being presented as marefriends to the court? Living together? Raising a family together? Watching her d-

No. Luna had done the right thing. It couldn't have worked and it was a foalish risk to try. Enough. No question. No doubt.

It had been so long since somepony had massaged her wings like that.

No. Project. She needed a project. When she got back to Canterlot. Back to her sister. Yes! Prank war! Perfect. She would prank her sister. Fill her bathtub with jello, maybe. Or cake. The expression on her face would be priceless. (The expression on Twilight's face when she came). No. (The expression on Twilight's face when Luna was shouting at her). No. No. No more thoughts about Twilight Sparkle. That was in the past. No More.

Project. Prank sister. Then leave before reprisals. A tour! A grand tour! It had been so long. Everything had changed. She could meet her new subjects. The ones who weren't Twilight Sparkle. Which was most of them. A tour. Manehattan. Vanhoover. Cloudsdale. Baltimare. Las Pegasus. Not Ponyville.

She would be majestic, flying in her chariot, pulled by her loyal Nocturnes. Yes, she would take her chariot. Which was still in Ponyville. No matter. She would send a Nocturne to go pick it up. They couldn't fly as well as her, but it would be in the castle by the morning after tomorrow. That would give her time to prank Celestia and be gone.

How long would it take to fill a bathtub with cake mixture? There would be plenty of it in the kitchens. So, fifteen minutes to sneak into the chambers. Five minutes to fill the bath with cake mixture. A few hours to bake it in an oven. Maybe a few days to build said oven around the bath. Twilight would help. No.

She could just leave the bath full of uncooked cake mixture. Not her most elegant prank ever, but it did have simplicity on its side. Yes, raw cake mixture it would be. She didn't need Twilight Sparkle.

The night was one of Luna's best. She had put a lot of effort into getting the constellations just right, full of promise and mystery. Nopony would see it. She had just wanted to please Twilight– No. Prank. Tour. Bathtub full of cake mix. Chariot.

Canterlot mountain was getting close.

She could get the whole prank done and be gone in an hour, and that would include the obligatory dancing in her room afterwards. 'Tia would have forgotten everything by the time she got back from the tour. She could do it tonight. She needed the chariot tonight. The chariot was in Ponyville. Her Nocturnes couldn't get it back to Canterlot tonight. Only an alicorn could get there and back with the chariot before sunrise. 'Tia would probably not be willing to fly out to Ponyville at breakneck pace to get Luna's getaway vehicle just so that Luna could prank her with impunity (although that would be an excellent division of labour). Luna turned around. She really didn't want to go back to Ponyville, maybe see Twilight's face again. It would be a mistake. She shouldn't go. She had no choice. Really.

------------------------

The chariot was still in the Town Hall stables where Luna had parked it several days before. She put Mr Huggles on it as the passenger; while she was starting to adore the spider golem, having it hug her neck while she was flying did cause a certain amount of drag. Even if it was really comforting.

"Huugs?" it asked plaintively, waving its forelegs eagerly.

Luna shushed it with a kiss and looked around for some rope to strap it in place. That done, she hitched herself in and took off.

Flying overhead, Princess Luna noticed Twilight Sparkle walking from her library to the outskirts of town. She looked sad.

Princess Luna flew away fast and unseen, wishing that Mr Huggles was still hugging her. And that the pain in her chest was caused by the exertion.

------------------------

Princess Luna was weary by the time she got back to Canterlot. She was just in time to lower the moon, which tired her out even more. The cold and lonely flight, combined with a deep fatigue, had confused her mind somewhat and she was now trying to remember how her grand tour of Equestria in a bathtub full of cake-mixture was going to impress Twilight Sparkle. She decided to sleep on it, and carried Mr Huggles to her bed chambers.

------------------------

Princess Luna had left her rooms unoccupied for several days whilst in the middle of a prank war with her sister. Historically this had proven to be a tactical blunder on par with defending against a rampaging dragon with a week-old halibut.

Princess Celestia had broken into Princess Luna's chambers. Celestia had redecorated them all with light, airy, pastel pinks and yellows. Her bed, her carpet, her wallpaper, her decorations, all of it was pink. And yellow. And horrible.

A portion of Princess Luna's tired mind admired the amount of effort that her sister had put into the prank. Another portion of her mind mentally swapped cake mixture with red ants. A more practical portion of her mind pointed out that, unless Equestria had, in her absence, been contacted by a hitherto unknown colony of sentient anteaters, there would not be a bathtub-sized container of red ants in the kitchens and, furthermore, it was unlikely that sleeping in a bed with yellow sheets and a floral pink duvet would prove to be fatal for a goddess of her power. This sentiment won the debate and Princess Luna and Mr Huggles went to bed.

Revenge could wait. Twilight–

------------------------

Luna wasn't refreshed when she woke up.

It was still day. If she were to open the blinds and dismiss the enchanted darkness, brilliant sunshine could flood into the pink and yellow rooms.

They would still look grey.

Twilight would have laughed. Twilight would have done something unspeakably naughty to her with the yellow towels, delighting at Luna's divine affront.

Twilight Sparkle was probably enjoying the sunshine. With her friends.

Princess Luna didn't need her. Princess Luna needed several hundred kilograms of red ants. That's what Princess Luna needed. Well, several hundred kilograms of red ants and breakfast.

Princess Luna got up.

------------------------

The shower stall was large enough to fit Luna with ease. The shower head was powerful and invigorating. The water was the perfect temperature. Somepony had left a bar of lavender-smelling soap in the soap tray.

It was the worst shower Luna had ever taken in her long life.

------------------------

Princess Luna didn't know how many red ants she would need to fill Princess Celestia's bathtub. She obsessively tried to work out the answer as she headed to breakfast. Unfortunately, the only answer she could come up with was 'Twilight could work it out for me'. After some effort, she was able to distract her thoughts enough to say ''Tia could work it out for me', but asking her sister to calculate how many red ants it would take to fill 'Tia's bathtub would probably require more fast-talking than Luna was willing to do that early in the evening.

------------------------

Breakfast was tasteless. Celestia didn't know that Luna was back. Breakfast was alone.

------------------------

Luna didn't have anything to do after breakfast, so she went back to bed.

------------------------

Luna didn't need to see her moon to raise it. The pink was warm and comfy and Mr Huggles loved her even if nopony else did.

She was starting to like the pink.

------------------------

"Luna?"

...

"I've got your ugly blue bedsheets here if you want them... Unless you like the pink, that is..."

"Go away!"

"Luna? Is everything okay?"

"Go away!"

"Luna, did something happen? Did Twilight-"

"I SAID 'GO AWAY'!"

------------------------

Luna decided to simplify her life. She would get back to the basics. She would spend her time on only the most essential things. Like revenge.

She reluctantly dismissed the 'red ant' idea as impractical. Ant farms took forever to get enough livestock and ants were impossible to herd. That was okay. She had a friend. She and Mr Huggles would take on the world!

The next plan Luna came up with would require intensive training. Mr Huggles learned fast, but there was a lot to take in. Li'l Twi had shyly animated the golem during one training session and offered to help, but she retreated when Luna couldn't stop crying at the sound of her voice.

It was okay. Li'l Twi was a friend too. They would work together on other projects. Just not yet.

------------------------

It took several days to train Mr Huggles to drop onto Princess Celestia's head while she was taking a bath.

The shriek summoned nearly every guard in Canterlot and broke several nearby glass bottles. The mana blast threw Mr Huggles through the Canterlot Castle walls, over the Canterlot waterfall and several thousand feet into the deep forest below.

Princess Luna publicly declared the prank a grand success. She then spent the rest of the night frantically searching for him in the thick forest, aided by as many Nocturne pegasi as she could muster. Eventually, in desperation, she turned to Li'l Twi, who was only too willing to help, guiding the spider to the base of the waterfall so that he could be reunited with his mistress.

The little filly had a lot of inconvenient questions, but was easily persuaded that all was well between Luna and Twilight and duty had recalled Luna to Canterlot.

------------------------

"Are you feeling better?"

"Huugs."

"Good. I'm sorry my mean, nasty sister hurt you. Forgive me?"

"Hugs."

Luna hugged Mr Huggles back with delight.

"Thank you. That means a lot to me."

------------------------

Luna didn't feel like dancing. She didn't feel like going on a grand tour either. She didn't particularly feel like lying in bed and staring at the pink and yellow striped wallpaper and ignoring her sister's knocking either, but she had to do something.

------------------------

The doors to Princess Luna's chambers didn't have a lock. They did have a couple of fanatically loyal Nocturne guards, which would normally be more than adequate to keep out unwanted guests, but when Princess Celestia wanted to speak to her sister they weren't foolish enough to get in her way.

"Luna, I'm coming in."

Celestia could see through the enchanted darkness in Luna's room. Light cannot see the dark. She was troubled to see her sister hadn't returned her rooms to their normal style, but that was just one amongst a multitude of concerns she had for Luna.

Walking calmly to Luna's bed, she found Luna staring at the wallpaper and tightly hugging a suspiciously familiar looking plush spider. Luna didn't acknowledge Celestia's presence.

"Hello, Luna. I've been very patient but enough is enough. I'm worried about you."

The only hint that Luna gave that she heard her sister was a flicker of her ear. Celestia sighed and put a cushion from a nearby chair next to the bed for her to sit on. She ran a hoof through Luna's aetheral mane, pulling it away from her eyes.

"So what happened?"

...

"I received a letter from Twilight, the day after you got back," said Celestia when it was obvious that Luna wouldn’t reply, "She seemed very upset," Luna's ear flickered again, "I flew out to talk to her, but she wouldn't tell me anything other than that there had been an argument. She asked me not to talk to you about it. Normally I'd respect her wishes, but I'm worried about you."

"How is she?" whispered Luna.

"She's– she is unhappy. Her friends are helping her cope, I think. What were you two arguing about?"

"Nothing."

"You're both very upset over nothing?"

"Yes."

"Luna," said Celestia with a touch of frustration, "Is there a reason why a millennia-old battle-proven alicorn is behaving like a moping teenaged filly?"

"Go away."

"No. Grow up."

"Grow up? Grow up?!" Luna sat up in bed in her agitation, "Why should I 'grow up'? Growing up won't solve anything. Growing up will not stop the Nightmare from coming back. Growing up will not make Twilight immortal!"

"What?!" exclaimed Celestia.

Luna looked wary and clammed up.

"Luna, what was your argument with Twilight about?"

Luna hesitated, and then started talking.

"We– I– When she first came to me, she wanted to know what we were. What we could be. She was a wave of joy washing away a mountain of moon dust. She was young and happy and fascinating and I said we could be together as equals."

Celestia arched a interrogative eyebrow.

"I meant it. I– I could not bear to be alone again. If I had treated her like my lovers of old... I would be alone, with a pet. Something to keep me happy. I needed more. I was also unsure what your reaction would have been, seeing your favourite with a collar around her neck..."

Celestia paused at the thought. "You may have been right to be concerned. I do not think I would have reacted well to the sight."

"So we were lovers. I was happy. She was happy. We agreed to 'take turns' when–"

"I don't think I need to know that," interjected Celestia quickly.

"I am sorry. Everything was wonderful, but I didn't notice that I had fallen into my old habits," said a glumly introspective Luna, "I was taking control. I think she liked it. Then she hinted that she wanted to have the 'Nightmare' play with her."

"Why would she want–" Celestia caught herself, "Please disregard that question. Are you going to tell me what happened or are you just trying to rub my nose in your relationship with my favourite student?"

Despite it all, Luna threw a weak smirk at her sister but the smile didn't last and she returned to her narrative.

"I was terrified. I remember– I remember how it thought. How it controlled ponies. How it seduced them. I wouldn't give her to it. I set her an impossible challenge and hoped that she would give up and forget about it– What?"

Celestia brought her laughter under control to reply to her sister, "Luna, Twilight Sparkle does not fail 'impossible' challenges. She always finds a way. And expecting her to 'give up and forget'..."

"Yes, well, I know that now. I realised it the night before our argument. I realised that she wouldn't give up unless I outright told her no, and I couldn't keep saying 'no' forever. She just needed to look into my eyes and I would do anything for her. Almost anything..."

"You were afraid the Nightmare would come back? Take control? Of you and her?"

"She was just so eager. The Nightmare would have taken her in an instant."

"Carry on," said Celestia, a touch of cold in her voice.

"She was already unhappy, she could see I was getting controlling. I saw an opportunity and ended it."

"Luna," said Princess with some anger, "You know you can't lie to me..."

Luna looked up defiantly, but hung her head in shame a moment later.

"I intended to end it. Calmly. A star-lit walk, a long conversation. I would try to remain friends with her. But she kept interrupting me. She called me a liar. I got angry. She said she thought of me as an equal. I snapped. I threw my status in her face. I told her that she was below me–"

"Luna!"

"I did not mean it! It was an easy way out! I was fed up. If she was going to be–"

"Luna, Twilight Sparkle saved your life. And mine. She defeated Discord and King Sombra and you. Twilight Sparkle has mastered more magics in her scant years than you even know. What had you achieved when you were her age? What more do you want?"

"IT WOULD NOT WORK!" shouted Luna, "It could not work. Even if the Nightmare didn't take me, take her, it would still fail. What do I want? A lover who will not grow old and die before my eyes. I want a lover who will not grow a garden in my heart and then rip it out when old age or senility takes her. I want a lover who will not make me feel blessed and loved every day I spend with her when I know that she will one day die and leave me."

"Everypony dies, Luna. Everypony. What will you do? Hide your heart on your moon, filling it with dust, until your time comes? Or give it to another to fill with love, and trust that years of joy are worth the pain?"

"Go away."

Princess Celestia sighed.

"Or maybe you are right. Maybe you aren't equals of the heart. After all, Twilight Sparkle doesn’t behave like a filly."

Princess Celestia left.

------------------------

The dreaming had becomes vast in her absence. At nights, dreamers would swarm in, populating the darkness with iridescent bubbles which would shrink and grow and jostle against one another in a living foam. Surrounding it all was the darkness beyond dreams, absorbing the light of the dreaming like a great hall lit by a single candle.

Luna had a excellent view of the whole affair from a high vantage point above it all, cloaked in the darkness. It reminded her of the time she spent on the moon. At least then things were simple. You can get used to anything with enough time, and this cold and lonely noplace felt like home. She could brood here.

Luna was not conscious of time passing, only the slow contortions of the ever-changing dreaming. She barely noticed when one of the dreamwalkers started flying in her direction. As the figure got closer, she saw that it was not one dreamwalker, but two.

Derpy was not a graceful flier in the waking world, but her sleeping form was a little more agile. She managed to only overshoot Luna's position by a little, accidentally flip upside-down, fly backwards and overshoot again and then bring herself abreast. All this with the 'assistance' of a small filly, standing proud on her head and shoulders, giving helpful instructions like: "Faster! Faster!" and "Wheee! Do a barrel roll!"

Luna could have escaped the pair with ridiculous ease, but it would have been undignified. Crying in front of them would have been undignified too, so she settled on a calm smile.

"Miss Doo, Miss Sparkle. To what do I owe the pleasure of your company?"

"Hi boss. My assistant wanted to speak to you. So I flew her up here. So that she could speak to you."

Li'l Twi, for her part, battled the absence of gravity to launch herself at Luna. Just before impact she pulled back a leg and delivered a kick to Luna's shin with all her might.

"You meanie!" was her battle cry.

The primary effect of the fell blow was to cause the filly to bounce off Luna and tumble backwards into the void until Derpy caught her tail in her mouth and pulled her back to her.

"Oops. Thanks, Derpy. You're the best."

If Li'l Twi noticed that her boss kept her tail clenched in her teeth, preventing the filly from attacking her boss's boss again, she was smart enough to not mention it. She was probably too busy fuming at Luna for it to register anyway.

"You meanie! I spoke with Twilight! How could you say that?! You meanie!"

"Little Twilight… Little Twilight!"

Luna's voice finally penetrated the filly's grief-fuelled battle rage and Li'l Twi calmed, a little.

"Little Twilight, I am sorry. My relationship with Twilight would not have worked. You will understand when you are older. You–"

"Booger head!"

"Little Twilight!" said Luna, shocked and offended.

"You think you're better than Twilight, but you're not! You were just hiding in you room when she found you. She's better than you–"

"I know!"

...

"Uh, then why did you–?"

Luna looked sorrowful. "I was afraid, Little Twilight. I was afraid that I would hurt her. I was afraid that the Nightmare would take me, and then her."

"What?! Twilight beat the Nightmare two years ago! She can handle that stupid old windbag! And so can you!"

"Little Twilight–"

"Do you want to be with her?"

"Yes, but–"

"Then apologise! To her."

"It is hardly that simple, child–"

"Apologise! Or I'll never speak to you again. Ever! And I'll take Mr Huggles away and hide him somewhere where you'll never find him."

"What? I do not–" started Luna, somewhat concerned.

"Apologise!" shouted Li'l Twi for emphasis, and then in a quieter voice to her colleague, "Um, thanks for the help, Derpy, but I kinda need to storm off right now, but I can't really fly, so could you..."

Derpy carefully positioned the filly back onto her back and turned back to the princess.

"Uh, I think we need to go away now, unless you need anything, boss?"

Luna fought several conflicting emotions, and settled for gently shaking her head.

"Right. 'bye boss."

Derpy turned and started the long descent back to the dreaming. Luna couldn't decide if the loop-the-loop half-way down was deliberate or not, but she could hear Li'l Twi's shrieks of enjoyment from a long way away.

------------------------

"You love, me do you not? You are not going to shout at me or kick me or tell me that I am wrong."

"Hugs?"

"You must see: it was the right thing to do-"

"Hugs?"

"No, you will understand with time. It would not have worked out."

"Hugs..."

"Now do not take that tone with me, young spider! I know what is best here. Us being together could have been a disaster. We are both happier like this."

"Huuuugs."

Luna sighed, defeated.

Unfreezing

View Online

Written by RandomString Proofread by Knight of Cerebus

"Girls, I would like to call the second Elements of Harmony and Friends Afternoon Tea and Committee for the Wooing of Princess Luna meeting to order."

This did not quite have the desired effect, as almost every other pony present was currently distracted by one of the members of the committee.

Li'l Twi's bonding with Pinkie Pie had gone ahead without a hitch, despite Pinkie hearing about Li'l Twi's dreaming ascension magic ritual and insisting in turn on a 'Li'l Twi / Pinkie Pie Bonding Party'. Twilight declared that casting delicate soul-bonding spells while participating in a conga line was impractical, but agreed on a compromise with Pinkie.

Twilight did surprisingly well at the game of 'pin the filly dream construct onto the pony', partially because Li'l Twi gave helpful hints ('Warmer... warmer...'), partially because Pinkie moved a little to help and partially because Twilight cheated and put some holes in the blindfold.

Now supported by Pinkie's manic energy and with her general upkeep supported by the dreaming, Li'l Twi could now occasionally visually manifest in front of ponies who were not archmagi, goddesses or Pinkie Pie. She insisted on joining in on the committee meeting despite it being extremely early for her and was now lying sleepily in front of the Golden Oaks Library fire, being fawned over by her new friends whenever she yawned.

Twilight cleared her throat, slightly louder than required, and managed to get the attention back onto the real Twilight. She was showing some signs of the strain that she was under, with bags under her eyes and slightly unkempt mane, but she was still strikingly similar to the cute little filly resting by the fire.

If pressed, Twilight might have confessed to being annoyed at losing a popularity contest with her younger self, but she could console herself that she, at least, could pour buckets of cold water over the heads of her friends. Twilight wasn't above making use of gentle reminders of this fact to get their attention. As Arbitage the Backstabber said, 'It is better to be feared than loved...'

"Thank you. Right. Our topic for today’s meeting: Impressing Luna. As mentioned previously, Luna explicitly cited several feats that demonstrated that I was not her equal, and I've done some work to see how I can match these achievements."

Twilight flipped over the page on the presentation beside her. On it was a short, numbered list:

1. Goddess

2. Fought Discord

3. Nurtures Equestria

4. Raises the moon

5. Wielded multiple elements of Harmony

6. Can survive on the moon

"Now, things do look bleak, but I think I can work on this. Let's start with number one. I am not an alicorn, and no-pony has become one in decades, so I decided the next best thing would be to borrow the Alicorn Amulet from Zecora.

"This has the added benefit of possibly corrupting my soul a teensy little bit and turning me into a megalomaniacal evil overlord, requiring my friends to cast me down and redeem my soul through the power of friendship. Luna did want me to have more empathy with her evil past, and what better way to do that than to have one of my own? On top of that, it would make for a great friendship report to send to Princess Celestia."

Twilight beamed triumphantly at her friends, delighted at her brilliant solution to the problem. One of her eyes twitched a couple of times.

"Uh, Twilight, I don't think that that would be a good idea..."

Twilight surveyed the horrified faces in front of her. She sighed.

"You may be right. I spoke to Zecora about my idea, and she wasn't very encouraging either. Incidentally, it's amazing how many words can rhyme with 'nincompoop'," Twilight pouted, "Okay, let's skip number one. Number two. Fight Discord."

Rainbow Dash perked up at this point and helpfully chimed in, "I spoke to Discord this morning while he was out playing with the foals. He said that he'd be happy to fight you again. He suggested a 'cage fight' with 'bat'leths', whatever they are. He's a big softie these days, so I'm sure you can take him."

"Thanks, Rainbow Dash! That's bound to impress Luna. I just need to find out what these 'bat'leths' are and what a 'cage fight' is. Maybe it's a race to see who can capture some dangerous beast in a cage?" Twilight made a happy little note in her research schedule.

"Right, number three. Nurture Equestria..."

Applejack spoke up, "You've already done that. Ah'm sure that we can get Bloomberg to tell the Princess how nurturing you are."

"Thanks, Applejack! One down!"

A bright and cheerful tick appeared against line three of the chart.

"Number four. Raise the moon. Okay, I have a very elegant plan for this..."

Twilight flipped over the page. The next page showed a moon being levered upwards by a very long plank, with a mountain being used as a fulcrum and an elegantly-drawn stick-figure unicorn with a stripy mane jumping up and down on the other end of the plank.

"It's going to take a lot of effort to make a spell-wrought plank long enough for the job, but I'm sure I can do it with a bit of practice.” Twilight beamed at her wide-eyed audience.

"Okay, number five. Wielding multiple elements of Harmony. I tried to wear both my Element of Magic and Pinkie's Element of Laughter as a starter. As you know, it, uh, didn't go well. Although, on the positive side, we're now well equipped to handle any spork-based emergencies, and I got to test the efficacy of seventeen different headache remedies, so it isn't all bad. I'll keep trying.

"That brings us to number six: survive on the moon. This one was easy. I've now cast a contingency spell on myself, and if I ever get stuck on the moon, I should be able to survive indefinitely. The only real problem is getting there to test it. I will discuss options for very short-term lunar banishment with Princess Celestia in my next letter. I'm sure she'll be sympathetic."

Princess Celestia had indeed been very sympathetic on the day after Luna left. Twilight had sent a calm, collected and hopeful letter to Princess Celestia explaining the situation. There really hadn't been that many tear-stains, and while the prose may have drifted into melodrama in places, it was all ironic, to show that Twilight was viewing the experience with a sense of humour. At least, that's what Twilight told herself. Twilight was therefore a little startled when Princess Celestia immediately dropped everything and rushed over to comfort her.

"Now, as you can see, unless I can persuade Zecora to let me become evil, I'm going to be one major achievement short. Any ideas?"

"Well, it is very romantic to go to Tartarus and back for one's true love..."

"Thanks, Rarity, but I've already done that. Well, I did it to lead Cerberus back to his home. Hmm. I know, I'll do it again for Luna, just to make sure. I think I can free up some time next weekend. Any other ideas?"

"Oooh, how about you summon a big, huge, ginormous, fiery demon and fight it on the top of Mount Canterlot? It’s gotta be fiery, ‘cos it needs to look all awesome at night. Luna would love that."

"Luna might like it, but I don’t think Princess Celestia would be very impressed if I endangered her home city and all the Canterlot ponies, Li’l Twi."

"But that’s the awesomest thing about it! You get banished to the moon, Luna comes out and joins you there and then you and she can spend lots and lots of time making kissy faces to each other. No interruptions!"

"Let’s call that ‘Plan Z’."

"Awww."

"Oh! Why don’t you rummage through the Canterlot Archives and find the last unfinished spell written by some long-dead pony that will let you ascend into goddess-hood, and complete it?"

"Uh, thanks, Pinkie. I’ll, um, check out the archive, the next time I’m in Canterlot."

"Talk to her?" offered Applejack.

"Oh, no no no no no. I can't do that. Not until I'm ready. Even if I can resolve the spork problem, I'm still an evil amulet, a very long plank and a lunar banishment short of being up to scratch–" Twilight paused, mid-speech, as realisation struck, "I’m being stupid!" Every head turned to Twilight expectantly, "I can use the power of the amulet to conjure the plank and then I can walk along the plank to the moon after I’ve raised it! I don’t need to get banished at all!"

Twilight smiled happily at her friend’s disappointed faces.

"Girls, this plan will work," she said confidently, "With the help of everypony here, I can create a portfolio of accomplishments that are sure to impress Luna. I just don't want to waste any second chance she might give me. I'm not going to move until I'm positive that I'm ready."

Twilight's friends really were being very supportive of the whole situation. The duration and frequency of her crying spells was going down at a significant rate, driven away by their love and care. Twilight had started writing a report on the impact of friendship on emotional trauma to Princess Celestia, but had been waiting for the symptoms to be entirely alleviated before publishing.

"You should go to Luna, Twilight," said Fluttershy, "Kisses will make everything better. Just you see." Fluttershy gazed lovingly at a deeply embarrassed Rainbow Dash. Rainbow may have been deeply embarrassed, but she wasn’t showing any signs of letting of Fluttershy off her lap, either.

Twilight had been horrified by her temptation to deliberately sabotage Rainbow Dash's and Fluttershy's relationship. Doing so would have gotten her two more datapoints for her study, but that hadn’t been the reason for the thought; seeing the two ponies together brought painful memories of her own lost joy. The ideas that came to her in her darker moments were not thoughts that she wanted to have. She tried to be happy for them, and not think of Luna.

"I will do, Fluttershy, when everything is ready. I promise. All right, if anypony has any other ideas, please let me know," said Twilight.

The meeting continued pretty much according to schedule. There was a slight delay when the tea brought Twilight memories of Luna; the ensuing cry and subsequent recording of the same did slow things down a touch, but Twilight was able to get the time back by cutting short some of the time reserved for discussing the weather.

---------------

When the tea party was done, Twilight said goodbye to her guests and wandered amongst the library bookshelves, looking for a book titled ‘Cage Fighting for Dummies’. ‘Cage Fighting for Eggheads’ would be too much to ask for. It was a quiet time for patrons, and with Spike out playing with the crusaders, Owlowiscious asleep, and Luna gone, Twilight felt the quiet more than she usually did.

This explained her panicked leap and yelp when a Nocturne mare dropped her invisibility cloak and appeared right in front of her. The mare looked up at Twilight as she teetered precariously on the horsehead bust in the middle of the room, her grin revealing her fangs.

With an embarrassed cough, Twilight teleported down to ground level, facing the mare.

"Sorry," said the Nocturne matron, looking far more amused than remorseful, "I have a message from my mistress." She held out a scroll, bound with a black ribbon, which Twilight took cautiously. She watched impassively as Twilight looked at the scroll, almost afraid to open it.

"A message? From Luna? Really? What does it say?"

The nocturne mare raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, right." Twilight steeled her nerve, removed the ribbon and read the scroll. She read it again. She was having a hard time parsing the words, so she read it again, taking it slow, one paragraph at a time.

"Luna's apologising and wants to get back together with me?"

Twilight didn’t notice her hyperventilation. She just tried to read the scroll again, to make absolutely sure that she hadn’t made any mistakes, missed any words or misunderstood what it said. It was harder to read it this time, due to the tears in her eyes.

"Luna wants to get back together with me! She wants to meet with me tonight in my dreams! Luna wants to get back together with me!"

Twilight darted forward and hugged the surprised messenger, but released her before she could object.

Twilight started bouncing around the room.

"Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!"

Twilight’s eyes opened wide with alarmed realisation, and she froze in mid-bounce.

"Oh no! This is terrible!"

Silence.

"Problem?"

"My study on the impact of friendship on emotional trauma is ruined!"

---------------

The dream Crystal Kingdom ice caverns were as cold as before. Their beauty was likewise unchanged, soft and diffuse blues and whites sparkling in the depths beneath the ice. Not everything was the same: the howling cold wind passing through the tunnels now sounded almost cheerful.

Twilight felt the nervous butterflies in her stomach as she approached the entrance to the caves. She had thought about bringing flowers, but wasn’t sure if Luna would be taking care of the dining arrangements. Worrying about the flowers, what to say, and what Luna was trying to tell her by arranging the meeting in this cold place kept her from falling asleep for some time. This in turn added the worry of being late to her woes. In the end she managed to relax and drop off using Cadance’s breathing exercises and one of Zecora’s meditation techniques.

Twilight was met at the entrance by a figure in a formal suit. Closer inspection showed it to be a distinctly uncomfortable gibbering ice monkey. Twilight was fascinated by the beast, which she had only previously read about. Unfortunately, the creature did not like close attention, and sped up in an attempt to escape, causing Twilight to press closer in order to examine its strange gait. This in turn caused the nervous monkey to lope faster, requiring more sped from Twilight, and so on until they were both practically galloping when they burst into the ice cavern-cum-banquet room where Luna was waiting.

Princess Luna had long found food and drink to be excellent distractions, allowing her to hide her nervousness behind cups and glasses and muffle awkward conversation with knife and fork. There was a lot to be nervous about with this meeting and wine had its own way of fortifying courage, so she had a generous glass of the stuff held close to her lips when the gibbering ice monkey waiter rocketed past as if chased by the hounds of Tartarus. Thousands of years’ experience ensured that Luna didn’t lose a drop.

With simian grace, the monkey used the table as a springboard to launch itself onto the ice shelf high on the cavern walls where its tribe made their home. Twilight did not have ancestors who climbed trees. The table did not have much food left on it after the collision.

"Twilight! Are you alright?" asked Luna as she rushed to the mare's aid, off-hoofedly righting the table and restoring its burden with her magic as she did so.

"I'm fine, thanks, Luna. The monkey got away, though."

"Do you want one? I can get you one if you want."

"No, no, thank you. I just wanted a closer look. It couldn’t seem to make up its mind whether to run on four legs or two. Very strange form of locomotion."

"It's probably for the best: I don't think Spike would react well to having even more competition for your attention."

Both ponies laughed, and Luna relaxed a little. The gibbering monkey had broken the ice, as intended. Luna put aside the now empty wine glass, turned to face Twilight and knelt on her forelegs.

"Twilight, I am so very sorry for slighting you the way I did. You freed me from the Nightmare, you freed me from my loneliness and your achievements outshine my own at your age. While I do not hold myself worthy of your love, I want nothing more than to dedicate the next century to making you happy, by your side. Can you forgive me?"

"Oh, get up, Luna. Of course I forgive you."

Twilight grabbed Luna in a tight embrace, tears in her eyes. Luna tried to get up so that she could hug Twilight back, but broke free of Twilight's grip whilst doing so due to the difference in their heights. The embrace she returned was somewhat one-sided.

"I think we need to sort out the mechanics of our relationship," said Twilight dryly from somewhere inside Luna's arms.

"We can make this work. Bide a moment."

Luna gently lifted Twilight onto the fruit-laden table. Now Twilight was above her, but not too much, and now they could embrace properly, as equals.

The tears of happiness welling in Twilight's eyes were nothing to the stream coming from Luna's.

-----------------

"So, what were your greatest achievements at my age?" asked Twilight, munching on a pear as an ice monkey waiter refilled her wine glass.

"Hmm, well, I had yet to achieve true mastery of the night – that was some years away yet. I believe my greatest achievement was winning the area around where Vanhoover now stands from a tribe of minotaurs."

"A warrior princess, hm? I'm sure it was an awesome battle."

Luna blushed and looked a little awkward, loathe to banish the admiration in Twilight's eyes. She gave a little cough.

"As it happens, I won the tribe's lands through beating the chieftain in a drinking contest. It was a sore fight, and I was incapacitated for days afterwards."

Luna smiled indulgently as Twilight laughed.

-----------------

Luna was looking relaxed, happy and satisfied, nibbling on a small bouquet of flowers as a dessert after a full meal and pleasant conversation. Twilight was feeling full and toying with whether or not to order a bouquet from one of the monkeys for herself, when a much better idea occurred to her. She got off her chair and started circling the table towards Luna, a wicked grin on her face.

"So, Luna, what are your plans, now that you’ve wined and dined me?"

"I had intended for us to tour the ice plains. The night sky is quite magnificent on a dark, open plain. We could discuss the future as we look upon the heavens," said Luna.

"That sounds lovely," said Twilight, stalking her prey.

"Twilight?" asked Luna, suddenly a little nervous at Twilight’s expression as she approached.

"Yesss?" said Twilight, crouching low and sniffing the air as Luna backed away a step.

"While I appreciate your attention, Ifeelthat–" Luna danced away as Twilight leapt at her, "We need to talk!"

"So talk," said Twilight, turning again to face Luna, seemingly unperturbed by missing her target.

"I regret to say that I cannot live in Ponyville. The Night Court is in Canterlot, and the lack of ‘nightlife’ is difficult for me," Luna was backing away as Twilight made another approach.

"Uhuh. And I can’t move to Canterlot. We may have to have a long-distance relationship. Dreams. Weekends. Tonight."

"Twilight, if we continue as we did before, our relationship may likewise end the same way," Luna had backed some distance away from Twilight, who was crouching low but not moving any closer.

Twilight sighed and straightened.

"Okay."

"Okay?"

"Yup," said Twilight, walking normally to Luna, "we can take it slow. Dream dates. Astronomy. Talking."

"Thank you, Twilight. I really want our relationship to blossom."

"No problem, Luna," said Twilight, now standing next to her smiling marefriend, "I want just the same thing. We can go topside and look at the ice plain, just as soon as I punishyouforbreakingmyheart."

Luna was nearly caught off guard by Twilight’s attack, but successfully evaded her yet again. Luna raced for the ice tunnels, followed by Twilight in hot pursuit.

"Get back here, Moon butt! I need to tickle you into submission!"

Luna almost made it to the exit before Twilight tackled and tickled her. The ice tunnels echoed with the sound of her laughter as the gibbering ice monkeys feasted on the remains of the banquet.

This time it was going to work.

In The Woods

View Online

Written by RandomString Proofread by Knight of Cerebus

Twilight woke up, stretched and saved. Now that her relationship with Luna was stable, and the pressure from the fire-keg intensity that their relationship had had when they shared the same roof was gone, Twilight was finding herself far more relaxed and much happier besides.

Her love was only a dream away, even if their dreams together had been chaste so far. They were working to build intimacy based on trust and common interests. Astronomy, history and magic theory weren’t as exciting as sex, but they were a lot more practical as building blocks to making a lifetime together.

This last dream, a tour of a griffon eyrie from the time just before Luna was banished, had been fascinating, with Luna showing scenes that Twilight had only read about in books and Twilight telling Luna the history of the griffons after Luna’s departure. Despite her interest in the topic, and the cool breezes in the eyrie, Twilight had found herself getting distracted by the heat of her desires. Luna had admitted to the same needs, and hinted that she intended to make up for lost time with her soon.

Something was different this morning, and Twilight soon spotted what: a roll of paper on her bedside table had caught her eye; it had not been there when she turned in. The scroll paper was black, it was sealed with red wax and had Twilight's name written on the outside in silver ink.

To: Twilight Sparkle, Bearer of the Element of Magic, Lackey of Celestia

Impudent foal,

Your profit from luck and the work of others ends now. I have a book that you are missing from your library. If you wish to claim it, present yourself at the clearing on top of the waterfall in Whitetail Wood an hour after sunfall tonight.

The Nightmare Lives!

P.S. This is a trap.

P.P.S. Be prepared to be ravished many times.

P.P.P.S Come alone.

Twilight gulped.

--------------

Twilight knew what to do in situations like this. She made a list.

The first item on the list was breakfast with Spike, which he gobbled down as fast as he could, eager to get outside and play with the crusaders. Twilight managed to slow him down enough to dress him up warmly, give him some bits to buy the group lunch and explain that she would be out late that night and would possibly be sleeping in. Spike took the clothing with great reluctance, the information with equanimity, and the money with alacrity.

Second, she tried to identify the missing book. She didn't have time to do a full inventory, and her giddy excitement didn’t help her concentrate, but considering the source and nature of the note, she felt she could restrict her search to the more interesting tomes. As most of the 'erotic' section had been borrowed by bat ponies and hadn't been returned yet (she'd have a word with Luna about that later), that left the books on magic. A search turned up nothing: all her books on magic were accounted for.

Unless Luna had stolen a tome on the ancient art of knitting or the like, Twilight had no idea what was missing. She would have to turn up, if only to find out what had been taken.

Next Twilight started preparation for the evening, and ran into a classic problem. What would she wear?

Twilight had two options that she could think of off-hoof. If Luna wanted Twilight in a trap, then Luna would want to be in control. Twilight could play along and wear her pet collar, or she could go dressed as Mysterious Mare Do Well and challenge Luna.

If she was to be Luna's pet, which was fine with her, then the collar would be appropriate. Maybe change the tag from 'I belong to Luna' to 'I belong to Celestia' if she wanted to be in character for something a little rougher than usual, or 'I belong to the Nightmare' if she wanted something slightly more tender.

If she wanted Luna to see her as an equal, which she did, then she should let Luna know that she intended to challenge her. In that case, the Mysterious Mare Do Well costume would be ideal, with a few slight adjustments (the hat wasn't really combat-suitable and, win or lose, Twilight would want certain parts of her anatomy more easily accessible than the current costume allowed).

How did Twilight want this night to go?

Twilight was torn, staring at her two options and unable to make up her mind.

-------------------

Today was spa day, and Twilight's dilemma was interrupted by Rarity, Fluttershy and Applejack, who had come by to pick her up.

"Applejack! Are you joining us?"

"Yup. What with it being winter and all, there's a lot less work on the farm right now. Ah can take the time to relax a little."

"What she means to say," said Rarity, "is that Big MacIntosh bet her that she couldn't go a whole day without doing some sort of work."

"Oh dear. How are you holding up, Applejack?"

"Ah'm fine. Ah'm fine. Ah can do this."

"She's already got the shivers. I caught her asking Derpy if she wanted any help delivering letters earlier, and let us just say that I'm glad no foals saw the way she was watching Time Turner shovel snow from his front path."

Applejack hung her head in shame as Twilight and Fluttershy laughed and hugged her.

"Ah just hope that some time with good company will help take my mind off all the chores that need doing."

----------------

It seemed to take forever before their hooves were pedicured, their muscles massaged and their fur muddified and then unmuddified. Finally, they were left alone to soak in the pool.

Twilight delicately broached her dilemma.

"So, girls, I've got a date with Luna tonight," she said, surprising and delighting her friends, "but I don't know what to wear–"

"Oh, darling! I have the perfect dress for you! I can make a few adjustments and it'll be ready in time for your date. It'll be just perfect, I promise."

"Um, it's not that kind of date, Rarity. Thank you, though."

"Well, what kind of date is it? Stargazing? Monster hunting? Oh... It's one of those dates, isn't it?"

"Aheh, yes."

"Pardon, what kinda date we talking about now?"

A red-faced Twilight conjured the scroll she had found that morning and wordlessly handed it over. Rarity and Fluttershy craned their heads over to read. All three mares were blushing furiously when the scroll was handed back.

"Uh, you've got a strange taste in relationships, Sugarcube."

"I know," said Twilight, blushing, "but this is what I've always dreamed of for a lover. Somepony mysterious, powerful and exciting."

"Darling, if this is what you want, what's the problem? It seems as though clothes would only get in the way with what Luna has planned."

"I don't know. I want this, but I want Luna more. I want to be her marefriend, not just her plaything. If I just turn up and roll over, I'll just be her pet again. She might love me, but she might not respect me."

"What else can you do, sugarcube? From that there note, there's no way that Luna'll be in the mood for a night of 'just talking and holding hooves'."

"I can fight. Sort of. Play fight. If I go dressed as the Mysterious Miss Mare Do Well, I can make the challenge a game. If I do well, impress her, we can talk. You know, after..."

"But you're worried that you might offend her? Think she might not want to 'play' with you like that?"

Twilight nodded, nervously.

"Um, Twilight," whispered Fluttershy, "I don't know much about this sort of thing, but I think you are putting too much emphasis on getting everything right the first time you try. Luna loves you. She isn’t going to run away if things go wrong or if things change over time. Just go how you want to go. It will all work out in the end."

----------------

Twilight was feeling refreshed after the spa treatments and a quick sandwich. Fortified, Twilight set off into the Everfree Forest at a brisk trot. She knew the way to the Zecora's hut well by now. She carefully avoided the usual hazards, although she did file away the thought of exposing Luna to some Poison Joke for later consideration.

"Hello, Twilight. Welcome again, my very good friend. Can you say what pulls you my way?"

"Hello, Zecora. Normally it’s the scent of your tea that pulls me to your door, but this time I’d like to purchase some potions."

"You don’t want tea? How could this be?"

Twilight laughed with Zecora.

"I’m sorry, Zecora, I’m just in a bit of a hurry and it’s getting late. I need, hmm, an endurance potion, something to keep me warm for a night and, let's play safe, a couple of healing potions, please. Oh, and I’ll pick up our little friend, too, if that’s all right."

"These are things that I can brew, but how I worry now for you. If you must go in danger’s way, I bid you now do not delay. Healing potions can be strong, but they do not last for long."

"Don't worry, Zecora. If I need them, it will be tonight. I'm not planning on hurting anypony, or getting hurt, but it's good to have a backup plan."

Satisfied, Zecora started brewing the three different potions, assisted by Twilight. Twilight was fascinated by alchemy, but could not find enough time to learn much, despite Zecora's willing tutelage.

The sun was getting low on the horizon by the time Twilight trotted back into Ponyville, a basket held in her teeth.

-------------

Only a fool tried to hurry a summoning ritual, but that didn't stop Twilight from dearly wishing that she could. As it was, Twilight had only just finished packing her saddlebags when there was absolutely no more time and she had to go.

Downing the warmth potion to offset the chill, and the endurance potion for other sensible reasons that made her warm to think about, Twilight set out towards the clearing at the top of the waterfall in the Whitetail woods. Her ascending path was lit by the glow of her horn and the waxing moon high above her.

Just before she reached the clearing, she took off her saddlebags. The air spirits, as agreed, would hide the bags from curious animals with an invisibility spell. They would fly them back to the library if Twilight were to leave the area without collecting them. Before she gave them over, she took out the Mysterious Mare Do Well outfit and the pet collar. Twilight looked at both in contemplation.

Twilight made up her mind.

-------------

Twilight trotted into the clearing, feeling hot, excited and very nervous. She was a few minutes early, she guessed, but the note that called her here wasn’t particularly precise.

The only signs that this was the place were several pale red hovering orbs lighting the scene, and a rectangular shape resting on a stone block that had been brushed clear of snow. There were no hoofprints in the snow around the makeshift table. Twilight's bibliophile's senses told her that the mysterious object was a book.

Unable to resist, she trotted towards the block and then stopped a short way off. There was only one path she was likely to take to get to the clearing. The ground was covered in snow. Somepony had taken the time to make the snow look undisturbed.

With a blast of air (good old number 18), she cleared the path of snow, exposing the large unicorn magic cancellation circle that had been hidden beneath.

Delighted at her cleverness, Twilight walked around the circle and approached the book. The wrapping paper around the book had the pattern of Twilight’s cutie mark, the ribbon the colour of her fur. Tucked under the ribbon was a small folded card with a pink ‘Hearth’s Warming Eve’ heart. Twilight curiously pulled out the card and read it. On the inside was a symbol of stunning.

Twilight was stunned.

---------------

<Author's note>: The next section contains clop. F/F, F/M, consensual, movement restriction, a little spanking, and mild use of a riding crop. If you want to skip to the next non-icky bit, please head to the next section break </Author's note>

Twilight hadn't noticed the night-shrouded alicorn mare patiently watching the clearing. Stunned, she didn't now notice the mare snigger as she calmly trotted into the clearing, holding various toys in her aura. Symbols of stunning didn't last long, particularly for fast-thinking ponies, so Twilight was quickly lifted into the magic cancellation circle.

With speed and skill, a rectangular framework of blackened iron telescoping tubes was assembled under Twilight. Black silken cords attached to each corner were tied around each hoof, spreading each leg some way apart. A very large, thick warm blue blanket was put on Twilight's back and then another silken cord was woven into her tail and mane, keeping her tail lifted and her head held high.

Whilst speedily weaving the cord into Twilight's mane, the mare noticed the pet collar she was wearing, and the writing on the tag earned Twilight a tender kiss on her cheek. Twilight smiled, but her eyes remained unfocused and her body still.

Satisfied with her work, the alicorn sat down facing Twilight, using the stone block as a throne. No sooner had she sat down than Twilight shook her head. When she opened her eyes, they focused on the mare sitting before her and widened. She tried to turn to run, and found her legs restrained. She tried to look downward to see the restraints, and found the cord in her mane preventing the movement.

She looked back up with a little fear and a lot of defiance.

"Nightmare Moon! I should have known! Release me and return the book you have stolen!"

Nightmare Moon smirked. She stood, tall, regal, resplendent in her battle armour and towering over her captive. Her laughter send chills down Twilight’s spine.

"Little foal. 'Stolen'? We assure you, We have not stolen anything from you. You, on the other hoof, have taken so much from us. Our victory, our land, our future," the Nightmare leaned in, glaring into Twilight's eyes, her draconic irises blazing.

Twilight tried to shrink away, struggling in her bonds, but could not hold back a little moan. The moan didn't sound particularly fearful, but Nightmare Moon chose not to pick up on it. Instead, she wheeled away and returned to her seat.

"No, little pony, We have not stolen from you and nor shall We let you go. Our dream for Equestria is shattered. That traitor Celestia is too entrenched on her throne for us to overthrow her. We cannot have Equestria. We cannot have Eternal Night. But We can have revenge against you."

The Nightmare smiled, showing her sharp teeth. Twilight trembled.

"You won't get away with this! Princess Celestia–"

"Celestia cannot help you now. If she ever hears of this, it will be far too late. Now settle down. We have long looked forward to this, having you in our power with no 'friends' to save you. Mmmm." The Nightmare closed her eyes with pleasure. Twilight said nothing, but struggled harder, to no avail.

"Little pony, do you know what book this is?" The book was held aloft in a blue magic aura.

"No," said Twilight in a little voice.

"Well then, let us unwrap it and find out."

With deliberate slowness, Nightmare Moon slowly started unwrapping the book, putting the ribbon and paper neatly aside as she did so; she knew that curiosity would be driving Twilight crazy.

The book had a black cover. Twilight stared, fixated on the book. The cover was edged with silver and had complex scrollwork. Twilight silently urged the Nightmare to speed up, desperate to identify it. The demon toyed with the half-unwrapped book, turning it this way and that as Twilight strained against her restraints to get a closer look. Nightmare Moon turned the book so that Twilight could see the luxurious marbling on the fore-edge of the book. Twilight was rapt. The paper was slowly, slowly, teased away from the front cover. This book had definitely never been in the Golden Oak library. Nightmare Moon finally turned the front cover to Twilight so that she could read it. It was a very ornate copy of The Karmare Sutra. Twilight moaned with joy and desire.

"Mmm, look at this lovely book. So full of secrets and delights. You want this book, don't you?"

Twilight swallowed back her saliva. She did indeed want the book.

"Well, if you want the book, you must earn the book. Tormenting Celestia's favourite would be one thing, but having her torment herself at my command? So much more delightful." The Nightmare laughed her diabolical laugh and another delicious shiver went down Twilight's spine.

"No! Have mercy!" said Twilight, her lust diminishing both her acting skills and her grasp of dramatic dialogue.

Nightmare Moon laughed. She stood once more and approached Twilight, who could only try to shy away helplessly as the nightmare slowly and deliberately licked her neck. Stalking with exaggerated poise around the captured mare, Nightmare Moon trailed her tail along Twilight's body. She noted with satisfaction the clear signs of Twilight's arousal. Twilight moaned.

Nightmare Moon stood behind Twilight and waited. Twilight couldn't turn or lower her head to look behind her, and without her magic she could only struggle in her bonds while she was forced to wait to see what the Nightmare would do. The wait grew longer and Twilight's imagination grew wild, offering up terrible scenarios that drove the delicious thrill of fear to greater and greater heights, until finally Nightmare Moon slapped Twilight's rump.

Twilight’s little shriek was resonant with harmonics of surprise and joy, music to her captor's ears. Nightmare Moon spanked her again in the hope of more. Twilight yelped each time, and tensed in preparation for the next blow. Each time, the Nightmare waited patiently for the unicorn to relax, and then quickly struck again, never hitting the same place twice.

Twilight was helpless, and could only wait for the sting of the next slap. Soon both of her buttocks felt searingly hot, as though they were radiating waves of pleasure through her. This didn't stop her from yelping when the Nightmare struck again. Nightmare Moon laughed as Twilight squirmed.

Eventually, once Twilight stopped yelping and just started moaning, Nightmare Moon declared herself temporarily satisfied. With another peal of her dominating laughter, the Nightmare returned to stand once more in front of Twilight.

"You enjoyed that, didn't you, little pet?"

"Never!"

"Ah, ah, ah!" said the Nightmare, shaking her head, "If you want the book you must be honest with us. Did you enjoy our spanking you?"

Twilight whimpered.

"Well?"

"Yes." said Twilight in a small voice.

"Yes, what?"

"Yes, mistress."

"Very good, little pet. So here is how you will earn our book. You will be obedient. You will do absolutely anything we require of you. And maybe, just maybe, We will generously give you our book. Do you understand?"

"Yes, mistress."

"Very well then, pet. You may demonstrate your gratitude to us for magnanimously spanking you. Do a good job, now, or you will be punished."

"Oh, thank you, mistress."

Nightmare Moon turned to face away from Twilight and took a backward step until her rear was nearly touching Twilight's muzzle, tail held high.

Twilight eagerly leaned forward as much as she could and tasted her dark goddess, who whinnied with pleasure.

The Nightmare was clearly aroused, giving off a beautiful pungent scent that filled Twilight’s nostrils and made her heart pound even harder. Twilight started by nuzzling the dark goddess' inside legs, shying away from directly touching the Nightmare's most private area with anything stronger than her breath.

Nightmare Moon shifted herself closer and more forcefully to Twilight’s muzzle. Twilight realised that she didn’t really want to tease the Nightmare. Twilight’s own needs hadn’t abated in the slightest, and the sooner and better she got the Nightmare off, the sooner she could have a little more attention herself.

Seeing that her mistress was more than ready, Twilight started licking the Nightmare’s lower lips in earnest, fast, light flicks of her tongue along the full length of the demon’s marehood. Her lover shivered with every lick, and soon Twilight became bolder, tasting her and breathing in the musky odour of her excitement.

"More..." whispered Nightmare Moon, and Twilight pushed harder still, briefly penetrating the Nightmare. The demon gasped in a breath and held it briefly before it was released in a low moan.

"Again..."

Twilight smiled, an inner warmth and confidence spreading through her body as she obliged. Despite the situation, it was Twilight who was in control here, and she always enjoyed the experience. All the petty inconveniences of the moment, from the sweat forming under the blanket on her back to the flicking tail that was rubbing against her horn and the slight ache from the uncomfortable position her legs were held in, faded away as she focused on her happy task.

The Nightmare’s breathing sped up as Twilight communicated her rising excitement without words.

Twilight was having difficulty maintaining the intensity of her actions. Her partner was starting to move more insistently, pressing hard against her muzzle and grinding her hips, and her own arousal interfered with her concentration. Reluctantly, she withdrew a little, and the Nightmare whimpered and stilled.

Twilight resumed her assault, curling and twisting her tongue, exploring the wet caverns held in front of her. Even deprived of her magic, Twilight’s training was useful to her here. While her horn couldn’t help her, her experience with summoning chants and practice of languages not meant to be spoken by any pony had given her great breath control and lingual dexterity. She used it well, drawing quivering shrieks of joy from her trembling charge.

The erratic twitches and movements of the Nightmare’s hips told Twilight that she was on the brink. Reaching forward as far as she could, she enveloped Nightmare Moon’s nub in her lips and sucked.

The Nightmare shouted with delight as she came, fiery bolts of pleasure shooting up her spine. When her heaving breaths came back under her control, she stepped forward and dropped her magnificent tail.

"Mmmm... very good job... my little pet... I think it's time for a little reward," said the Nightmare with a grin, and then took a lungful of air to call out, "Lieutenant Cudgel!"

Twilight turned quickly to see a large Nocturne stallion wearing the armour of Luna's guard fly into the clearing. Twilight suddenly felt very exposed.

"Uh, amber."

Cudgel froze, absolutely motionless, a few hoofs above the ground. The Nightmare was quick to reassure Twilight.

"Lieutenant Cudgel is a phantasmal shadow construct. He would feel normal and is moderately well endowed, but the only sentient creatures here are you and me."

"Phew! Sorry. I'm not saying 'no' to threesomes, but I'd need to get to know, like and trust the other pony first. Sorry."

"Of course, Twilight," the tender words sounded strange in Nightmare Moon's voice, "I wouldn't expect otherwise. I just thought you might enjoy something different. Are you okay with Cudgel?"

"I'm fine with him, thank you. I just hope he doesn’t act in keeping with his name–"

"He will be gentle, I promise. You ready to go?"

"Oh, just one more thing. Could you please take the blanket off? I drank a potion of warmth earlier, and I’m pretty sure I'm going to get a lot hotter..."

The Nightmare laughed and set aside the blanket.

"I see we both thought ahead. Did you take any other potions?"

"Just an endurance one. I wasn't sure what you had in mind."

"That's a shame. I was looking forward to rutting you into exhaustion, casting a revitalisation spell and doing it again. Oh well, something for next time."

"Ooops. Sorry. Um, next time," the prospect of 'next time' warmed Twilight more than the blanket had. It also made the actual prospect of Nightmare Moon's promise pass by without registering. She blinked, nodded as much as she could and then said, "Green."

Lieutenant Cudgel sprang back into life and landed gracefully in front of Twilight. Nightmare Moon cleared her throat and continued her speech.

"Lieutenant Cudgel came second in the most recent 'This Week’s Shiniest Armour' competition, so you're his reward," said the Nightmare mockingly, "You didn't think the reward was for you, did you?"

"Second?!" shouted Twilight indignantly.

"Oh yes. First prize was a fruit basket. Lieutenant Cudgel was so very disappointed. Please do try to make it up to him."

Twilight didn't have an answer to that.

Cudgel approached Twilight and stood for a moment, illuminated by the orbs. Twilight was happy to see that he ably met the criteria that she had previously discussed with Luna: a theatre star's face on an athlete's body, tall and handsome. With him standing close and in reasonable light, she could also see that there was something missing in his eyes and something awkward in his posture. He was not a true pony.

Her mounting excitement as he circled her quickly dismissed the thought as irrelevant. It wasn't his mind she was interested in at that moment. She had a lot of pent up tension, her body was flooded with energy and it had been several days since Twilight had had any release. She waited impatiently as he sniffed her now well lubricated loins.

Twilight loved sex with mares; the taste, the excitement, the deeper understanding of each other's bodies. That being said, there was something incredibly satisfying about the weight of the stallion pressing against her hind quarters as he mounted her. Twilight hummed with pleasure. Nightmare Moon watched with hungry intensity. Twilight proudly met her gaze.

Having been in a stallion’s shoes, however briefly, Twilight could see in her mind's eye his posture as he drew back. She could feel the tip of his stallionhood pressing against her entrance and she braced her legs as best she could in her bonds.

"Yessss!" she shouted as he drove himself home.

He pulled back, dragging a moan from the bound mare, and held still a moment before driving forward again. Twilight arched her back, leaning back into the stallion whose fore hooves clutched her sides and whose hot breath ran along her neck.

Twilight closed her eyes and moaned. Almost in response, Cudgel huffed, pulled back, and thrust forward harder than before. Twilight growled with satisfaction. She became aware once more of her bonds as she futilely tried to press herself closer to the warm body on top of her.

Cudgel soon set up a rhythm to his thrust which he kept up with mechanical exactitude. With such little freedom available to her, Twilight could not move with the forceful thrusts of Cudgel and instead could merely brace herself for each withdraw and impact.

Opening her eyes, Twilight found the Nightmare's face a hoof-length from her own, staring at her with hungry intensity. She pushed her head forward to breach the gap, but was pulled up short by the ties that bound her mane to her tail. She grunted with frustration. Reading her intent, the Nightmare leaned forward for a fiery kiss as Lieutenant Cudgel pounded Twilight.

Her mouth was full with the Nightmare's tongue and all she could see were the Nightmare's glowing eyes. When she had been pleasing Nightmare Moon, she had been in charge. Now, she was as helpless as she had ever been, no more able to resist the powerful thrusts from behind than the demanding tongue that commanded her mouth.

Twilight's senses swam.

Drawing panting breaths through her nostrils, her body shuddering at every thrust, Twilight moaned through her kiss, surrendering to the experience. The Nightmare caressed her neck, caressed her chest, and then grabbed her mane, pressing harder and deeper into Twilight. Cudgel’s thrusts, as powerful and regular as a golem at work, pushed Twilight closer and closer to a limit she could feel inside.

Nightmare Moon pulled away, leaving Twilight’s mouth open and empty. A bridge of saliva briefly kept them connected, before breaking. With feigned arrogance, the majestic alicorn turned her back and walked away, wings spread wide, leaving Twilight lost in confusion. She stood at the brink, where nothing made sense except the reality of the stallion on her back.

Twilight felt a stab of betrayal at the sight of the star-sparkling tail pulling away, lost, until Nightmare Moon turned and flashed her an evil smile. Cudgel pulled all the way out. Twilight gasped. Tensed. And then he thrust forward, suddenly larger than he had been before, with a rapid series of harder, faster strokes that threw Twilight past her limit and made her she scream her joy to the heavens as she came. Her voice was soon matched by a wordless yell coming from Cudgel. The Nightmare watched, hungry.

Twilight was panting hard as Lieutenant Cudgel awkwardly dismounted. She felt the gust of air as he flew away, but the Nightmare was quick to step up and regain her attention and shatter any half-formed thoughts of abandonment with a kiss.

"Well done, toy. He may even have preferred that to the first prize."

The Nightmare brought out a wineskin and offered the sloshing contents to Twilight, who drank thirstily. It was water – bitterly cold but extremely refreshing.

"Drink up, little toy. You'll have to work a lot more if you want to earn that book. Hmm, what shall we do next? Oh, I know. Let's have a little fun."

Twilight looked at her quizzically before she remembered her role and tried to look more afraid. The Nightmare noticed the lack of fear and smiled. Twilight's look became a lot more authentic when a riding crop appeared, held aloft by Nightmare Moon's aura.

"Let's get a little exercise done, shall we? You've been standing still for a long time, and a quick gallop will warm you up. I will make things interesting. If you manage to run all the way back to Ponyville, I shall reward you with the book without any further 'entertainment'. To keep you motivated, I have put some friends on the route. If they catch you, you shall be honour-bound to satisfy them before you can move on." The Nightmare smiled.

"So, let's get started." The Nightmare slapped Twilight's rump with the riding crop. Twilight yelped with surprise. Seeing that Twilight didn’t move, Nightmare Moon slapped her a couple more times. Twilight's already sensitive buttocks stung with each gentle blow, but when the stinging faded, it left behind a pleasant warmth that contrasted with the chill air.

"Well? Get running, or I shall have to- Oh, I am sorry. Did I forget to release you from your bonds? How remiss of me."

Contrary to their roles, the Look that Twilight gave the Nightmare was pure evil, and her answering laugh was happy and joyful. Almost as an afterthought, the Nightmare scuffed out a portion of the magic circle, and Twilight felt her magic coming back to her.

-------------

Twilight briefly thought of fighting back, but quickly struck the thought down. Instead, she teleported out of the circle, her bonds, and the way of the descending crop, which passed harmlessly through the air.

The silken cord that had bound her mane to her tail drifted to the ground in the middle of the circle as Twilight lowered her head and galloped for the path to Ponyville.

She was almost there when a pack of shadowy creatures, all claws and fangs, raced up the path towards her. Barely breaking stride, Twilight turned aside and raced through the pitch black undergrowth. There was a crash as she struck a branch. Her thigh throbbed from the impact. She paid the pain no heed as she crashed through the dark and into the dim moonlight. She could see ahead the downward path to Ponyville.

Howls from behind her echoed through the woods. The slight throbbing where she had struck the branch did not slow Twilight down as she galloped as fast as she dared down the trail.

The glowing orbs from the clearing soared through the wood, passing unimpeded by the trees and bushes, following her and lighting her way. They were a mixed blessing, as while they helped her avoid injury on the road, they also attracted attention...

Dark shadows rose around her, twisting and writhing, the dark in stark contrast with the light of the orbs. Twilight leapt to avoid reaching tendrils of darkness, leery of what would need to be done to satisfy their desires. Landing a little awkwardly, she scrambled forward, aided by her momentum. She kept galloping, leaving the silent shadows behind.

Twilight hadn't memorised the path, and a sudden branching ahead of her gave her pause. She didn't recognise the area, and wasn't sure she was on the fastest way back to Ponyville. Her hesitation cost her. The riding crop, carried aloft in a blue aura, silently snuck up behind her and landed another blow on her well-punished rump. With a yelp, she dived down a path, picked at random, not daring to look behind her to see how closely the crop followed. Laughter echoed in her ears.

Twilight didn't recognise the path she had chosen, but she could now hear thudding hoofbeats behind her. A sharp turn in the track let her look briefly behind her. She regretted doing so, as she was being chased by a demon pony stallion with glowing red eyes, black fur, and a wickedly curved horn. The demon pony was clearly better endowed than even Lieutenant Cudgel, and ready to use his equipment. Hungry tendrils of shadow sprouted from around his mouth, seemingly drawn towards Twilight.

Twilight lowered her head and galloped as fast as she could. Her mind’s eye could see the demon stallion behind her, reaching for her, getting closer and closer. The stallion was gaining ground. Lacking the breath to even whimper, Twilight desperately pressed on until she could feel the hot breath of the demon pony on her back, the tendrils on his mouth pulling at her tail.

In desperation, Twilight teleported. Backwards. The stallion suddenly found himself ahead of his quarry, and tried to turn too fast. He fell over and crashed into a tree, stunned. Twilight hadn't waited to see what happened, and turned and headed through the bushes to what appeared to be another path, hoping to leave the stallion behind while he recovered his hooves.

The new path took Twilight out of the woods and onto a broad plain of rough ground, the snow brilliant white in the light of the full moon.

Twilight ran alongside the edge of the wood, afraid of being out and exposed in the open. Her fears appeared well founded when a great shadow passed over the moon.

Twilight looked up and saw Nightmare Moon gliding silently in the air, seemingly oblivious to Twilight's presence. Then the Nightmare turned her head, the green fire in her eyes sending a chill of fear stabbing through Twilight's heart.

Nightmare Moon turned and started flying towards Twilight, maniacal laughter filling the air. Twilight wheeled around and dived back into the forest, glad beyond words for the shelter of the trees.

The wood didn't stay friendly for long. The ancient, towering oaks seemed to get taller and darker the further down the trail Twilight went. Their branches seemed to threaten, as if frozen in the act of swiping at the path with sharp claws. Whispers on the wind spoke of evil intent and hazards unseen. Despite the warmth of her labours and the potion she had imbibed, Twilight felt herself shiver as she ran.

She could hear the demon pony thundering towards her with his relentless stride. She could hear the fell laughter of Nightmare Moon as she swooped over the tree tops. She could hear a filly's voice, crying out for help.

Against all reason, Twilight galloped towards the weak filly's voice. There was a path ahead, darkly lit by the orbs and what moonlight came through the trees. Twilight was forced to slow down, weaving between trees and leaping over fallen branches. She seemed to be leaving the demon stallion behind, but could not shake the feeling that she was running towards danger, not away from it.

There was a large clearing ahead with a tree in the centre. The voice seemed to be coming from a cave at the far side of the clearing. As Twilight rushed towards the cave, she suddenly noticed that some of the vines hanging from the tree were remarkably smooth and round. That realisation gave her a moment's warning before the nearest 'vine' whipped towards her.

She dodged aside and it wrapped around her hind leg. With instinctive motion, Twilight managed to kick her leg free before the tree could get a better grip. She scrambled backwards. From the edge of the clearing, she looked at the tree and the vines. A brief idea of playing along crossed her mind. It was certainly unusual, and she knew that the tree wouldn't hurt her. Her throat tightened at the delicious prospect… The filly's voice made up her mind. There would be other chances. The Nightmare had promised.

Skirting the edge of the clearing, Twilight entered the cave. The glowing orbs behind her didn’t follow her in. There was, however, a faint green glow up ahead to guide her way. Turning around a bend in the cave, Twilight found the source of the light: a pool of glowing green slime. Two sleek and slimy seaponies were swimming in the pool, their heads poking above the surface. As Twilight got closer, she could see that they looked like twins, the only difference between them was that one had an iridescent green mane and the other’s was dark blue.

"Ooh, surface pony, come play with us!" said the green-maned pony, "Be our slave! We'll let you go eventually, I promise!"

The blue-maned pony was cheerfully waving a thick iron neck collar above her head, presumably to tempt Twilight to come closer. Twilight swallowed. The pool was easily big enough for three, and the seaponies were beautiful...

The voice called out again, closer now. Regretfully, Twilight pressed deeper into the cave, leaving behind the disappointed slime-coated ponies.

With the glowing green pool behind her, Twilight lit her way with the light from her horn. The sound of her hoof-falls reflected by the walls of the tunnel suddenly changed, and she could no longer make out the walls on either side. She had entered a large chamber.

"Help," said the foal's voice, "won't somepony please help me?"

"I'll help you," said Twilight, loudly, "but where are you?" She conjured a light orb of her own and cast it out into the rock-strewn cave. Her eyes adjusted to the light from the orb, making the light from her horn insignificant. As the orb moved away from her, Twilight was shrouded in darkness.

"Oh, thank you, thank you. I'm over here."

The orb got closer and lit up a pony's head resting on the ground. The head was surrounded by long coils of scales. Twilight shuddered at the sight, but bravely moved forward to help the trapped mare. The head was too large for the foal's voice coming from it. The mare's eyes were open. The eyes were serpentine. The head moved. The coils moved. The head rose on a thick serpent's body until it was towering over Twilight.

This wasn't a pony. It was a nag-naga.

"Oh, thank you, little pony. I'm so horny–"

A coil of the nag-naga's body touched Twilight, trying to wrap around her barrel. Twilight panicked. The blast from Twilight's horn took the naga's head off. Twilight kept blasting. There's wasn't much left when Twilight's wits returned to her.

"LUUNNNAAA!" screamed Twilight, "RED RED RED! LUNA!"

Nightmare Moon teleported in front of Twilight, looking almost as distressed as Twilight. Before she could speak, Twilight started shouting at her.

"NO SNAKES! I TOLD YOU. NO SNAKES. That means no darn nagas. No snakes. No snakes!" There were tears in Twilight's eyes.

"Twilight! I didn't know. I swear to you I didn't know."

"I can't. Not snakes. Please. I can't–" Twilight was barely coherent in her upset. Nightmare Moon quickly rushed forward to embrace her with a tight hug, holding her close and wrapping her wings around her.

The cave was silent except for Twilight's sobs for a while.

"I'm sorry I shouted at you, Luna. I'm sorry. I– I can't. There was a filly. I came to help. It was a really big snake. It wanted–" Twilight was mumbling into Nightmare Moon's chest armour at this point, "–I killed it. It's dead. She's dead. I killed her. I–"

"Twilight, calm down. There was no-one, pony or otherwise. You have not killed anypony. Everything is fine."

Twilight's laboured breathing calmed and her tears were drying. The trembles took longer to subside, but they did. Twilight could be very rational at times.

"Not a person?"

"No, Twilight. In all your excitement, did you notice a bruise on your leg?"

"What? I bruised my leg on a branch as I galloped through some bushes–"

Despite everything, the Nightmare's grin was positively smug.

"Did you really think I would let you gallop at full speed down steep mountain paths covered in ice and snow in the middle of the night? You are very precious to me, Twilight Sparkle. You know, I think it is time that you woke up."

Showdown

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Written by RandomString Proofread by Knight of Cerebus

Twilight was lying on the big blue blanket in the middle of the clearing at the top of the waterfall when she awoke. Nightmare Moon was lying on the blanket beside her.

"Silly filly, you did not even make it out of the clearing."

Twilight blinked a few times. The phantom bruise that was telling her that she was in a dream the entire time she was running downhill was gone.

"I didn’t notice that the moon was full in the dream, when it’s still just waxing in reality?" asked Twilight, with some self-disgust. The Nightmare laughed.

"Do not feel too bad. I kept that crop close behind you to stop you from being able to pause for thought. I might have put a little block on your mind, too. Just this once."

"Urgh."

"I really am sorry about the nag-naga. I swear you did not give me any warnings about snakes."

"But I did," said Twilight earnestly, "I told you that if you put me in a field of snakes we were through," she said in a voice of diminishing authority, "right before we played in the Sweet Factory," she was now speaking with remorse, "the first time, after which I reloaded, so I remember and you do not." Twilight sighed.

Nightmare Moon gave Twilight a forgiving little peck on her forehead.

"Well, I know now. It will not happen again."

Twilight snuggled up as close as Nightmare Moon's ice-cold armour allowed. The armor was very impressive and intimidating, and Twilight liked the little thrill it gave her every time she saw it, but it lacked the huggability of the mare underneath.

The nightmare draped a large black wing over Twilight’s back, who hummed happily as a response.

"So," asked Nightmare Moon, "How long have you been immune to stun symbols?"

"I’m not immune," objected Twilight, "I just saw so many of them when I was practicing symbology that they don’t really affect me much anymore."

"Oh well, I still have many ways of getting you where I want you, and if they ever run out then I could always just overpower you. That would be lacking in subtlety and imagination, but it would work."

"Hah!"

"Hmm?"

"Luna, I know your weaknesses now. I’ve also been practicing, a lot. I’m not the naive young mare you faced a few years ago. If you try to overpower me then you might be in for a surprise."

"That’s nice, Twilight," said the Nightmare, gently patting Twilight on the head with her wing.

"I’m serious! I know your weaknesses now, Nightmare Moon. You should be afraid of me."

Nightmare Moon snorted. "I have faced down armies. I bested my sister in one-on-one combat, before she cheated. I am not afraid of a librarian!"

"Oooh, I'll get you for that one."

"You truly believe that you are as powerful as I?"

Twilight hesitated, but answered, "Yes."

Nightmare Moon grinned, showing her pointed teeth.

"Prove it."

"Alright, I will! I’m going to overpower you and make you my slave. And I’m not going to let you go until… until you promise to come with me to Canterlot and meet my parents as my perfect marefriend! You will promise to be the most wonderful marefriend ever!"

"Hah! I will overpower you and make you my pet! Well, my number two pet."

"What?!”

“Well, as you have said before, seniority matters, and Mr. Huggles was clearly first."

"You're saying that I'd be outranked by a plush golem that I made?"

"Do not fret, I am sure Mr Huggles will not be too hard on you, and with some careful training you will get on admirably with the other pets during our next pony-pet-play-date. And do not worry, I will take you for walks. Through the dungeons, I admit, but there will be walking involved."

"Argh! Right. I am going to get dressed into something more appropriate. Wait here and I'll be back to trounce you."

"I shall enjoy teaching you your place," said Luna with a sincere smile.

Nightmare Moon laughed as Twilight stalked off, her tail swishing angrily, to get her saddlebags. Nightmare Moon really did have a lot in common with Twilight. Astronomy, history and magic theory were all well and good, but they shared a fondness for complex planning as well. Well, the Nightmare favoured schemes over plans, but it was largely the same thing.

Twilight returned to her saddlebags and quickly pulled on the Mysterious Mare Do Well costume. Her agitation didn't help her coordination. After she nearly tore a hole in it with her horn when trying to poke her head through a leg-hole, she paused a moment.

Cadance's breathing exercises came to Twilight and she drew some calming breaths.

Peace.

Why was Luna deliberately provoking me? Thought Twilight as she saved.

She scried the snow-blanketed clearing. The Nightmare was waiting patiently for her return, a faint smile on her lips. The dazzling constellations and star-bursts in her mane and tail betrayed her excitement. Nightmare Moon's serene smile seemed entirely too knowing. The elegantly laid traps that had been waiting for her crossed Twilight's mind.

The telescoping metal frame that had held her still lay in the large anti-unicorn magic circle, but the cords had been loosened and the circle repaired. The magic cancellation circle was huge...

The smile on the Nightmare slipped into a concerned frown at the delay. Twilight would need to get moving, and soon. Twilight took a steadying breath. Everything was going to be fine.

Twilight donned the Mysterious Mare Do Well outfit and immediately felt better. The hero suit gave her greater confidence; the mask hid her slightly mad grin. She was going to do this.

Twilight whispered "Plan B" to the air spirits that had been waiting impatiently by her bags and, shoulders squared, marched back into the clearing.

Her head was held high, her mane was streaming behind her and her heart was in her throat. She ignored the excited giggles behind her as the spirits carefully deposited one of her saddlebags at the edge of the trees.

Nightmare Moon perked up immensely when Twilight returned to view, and rose to her hooves to meet the approaching superheroine with a sweeping bow.

"Greetings, oh mysterious stranger. We regret that We cannot welcome thee as We would like, as We await an impudent mare who must be taught her place."

"Foul creature! I am Do Well, the Mysterious Mare! It is you who will be humbled! It is time that you pay for your crimes. If you want Twilight Sparkle, you must go through me!."

Twilight reared impressively onto her hindlegs against the backdrop of the waxing moon, her magic calling a gentle breeze to give her cloak a suitably heroic billow.

"Fool! Thou shalt suffer for thine arrogance!" The Nightmare likewise reared dramatically, wings flared wide and wreathed in shadow, as lightning crashed behind her. Bright moonlight glinted off her sharp silver warshoes.

Twilight decided that Nightmare Moon had her beat at dramatic posturing.

The Nightmare was still indulging in her delightful maniacal laughter when Twilight conjured vines twisting from the soil, them coiling around the alicorn's hind legs. Nightmare Moon swiftly took to the air, leaving the tendrils below to twist fruitlessly around themselves.

Nightmare Moon glared at Twilight and threw a lazy thunderbolt at her, which Twilight barely dodged. The energy from the near miss staggered Twilight and made her fur stand on end. Taking advantage of Twilight's discombobulation, the Nightmare dived at her, fangs flashing and legs pulled back to strike.

The magnificent sight of the swooping demon was enough to captivate Twilight for the barest second; long enough to deny her the time to dodge.

Thankfully, teleportation was quicker anyway.

The devastating kick ploughed through air. Twilight threw a plasma bolt at the Nightmare's back. The attack was anticipated and, with astonishing speed and grace, the Nightmare landed flat and low on the ground, the bolt passing harmlessly overhead. Nightmare Moon then launched herself into the air, pushing off with all four hooves. She gained altitude fast enough to suck a whirlwind of snow in her wake, and avoid Twilight's second bolt as well.

Twilight was craning her neck, desperately searching the skies for her well-camouflaged nemesis, when she realised that she had been standing still for far too long. She teleported to the edge of the clearing, ignoring the crash behind her that told her that she had moved not a moment too soon. She darted amongst the trees, seeking shelter from the baleful eyes above.

"You teleport too much, little rabbit," called out the Nightmare, "Let us see how fast you move when you are relying on your legs..."

Warding an area against teleportation generally took a team of unicorns half an hour. It took Nightmare Moon less than a minute. Twilight shivered as she felt the wave of power roll through the forest.

Twilight tried to think how to fight the monstrous power that was chasing her. She toyed with the idea of dropping something really heavy on her opponent, but discarded the idea as fanciful. She decided on a trap, and quickly started casting, her magic subtly wreathing around the nearby trees.

"Come out, little rabbit. Come out! Or shall We have to get you out?" called the Nightmare as Twilight sneaked through the undergrowth, trying not to focus on how much she was enjoying herself. She grabbed a twig behind her trap with her magic and snapped it.

Burning down Whitetail Woods would be excessive, and uprooting all the trees would be rather time consuming, so Nightmare Moon decided instead to chase after her prey. She headed towards the noise, and made it about a bodylength into the trees before the animation trap that Twilight had left behind activated.

Nightmare Moon found herself in the unwelcome embrace of thick tree branches surrounding her, holding her tight. Roots squirmed around her hooves, binding them. The teleportation ward that she had just raised worked just as well on her as it did on her prey. She hissed in frustration as she struggled.

"Are you stuck, Black Snooty?" called out Twilight, watching the dark goddess's struggles from behind a tree, "Would you like to surrender while you still have your dignity?"

"We will escape! We will destroy you!" shouted Nightmare Moon, struggling mightily against the magically strengthened branches.

Twilight grinned and left the trees, carefully circling behind the Nightmare. She took the time to admire her captive's beautifully toned rear end.

"What was that, Queen Meanie?" asked Twilight, stepping into the clearing with growing confidence, "I couldn't hear you over the sound of your futile struggles..."

"We said..." Twilight was close now, "'WE WILL DESTROY YOU!'" with that, the Nightmare turned to a black mist and slipped out of the tree's clutches like a breeze.

"Oops," said Twilight as Nightmare Moon reappeared in mid-air above her, wings flared. Twilight had been lured far from the safety of the trees.

The paralysis bolt that the Nightmare threw barely bounced off Twilight's hastily erected shield as Twilight turned and ran. The power of the bolt was staggering. Nightmare Moon followed that attack with a hail of powerful bolts as she chased Twilight.

Twilight darted left and right, dodging a few bolts while her rapidly weakening shield took the brunt of the attack. The sound of the bolts that missed gouging out chunks of earth as they crashed into the ground lent speed to her legs, but it wasn't going to be enough. The tips of her hooves were feeling numb from the paralysing attacks that only nearly missed.

She wasn't going to make it as far as the trees.

"Plan B, NOW!" shouted Twilight.

The air spirits she had summoned earlier had refused to attack a goddess, point blank. It had taken a lot of persuading for them to see it rather as a once-in-a-spirit's-lifetime opportunity to prank a goddess. Attacking a goddess was suicide. Pranking one was epic.

Nightmare Moon was gliding fast after Twilight when the spirits pulled the air out from under her wings. The majestic armoured alicorn squawked in dismay, flapping her wings desperately as she nose-dived into the ground and tumbled across the snowy clearing, her passage ploughing a groove in the snow.

The triumphant air spirits quickly returned to their home plane to avoid divine retribution.

Nightmare Moon shook her head to clear the ringing in her ears and struggled to her hooves. She had barely gotten upright when all the snow in the clearing was piled onto her. Twilight pulled yet more snow from the trees and poured it onto the goddess in a deluge, packing it down tight.

Pulling snow from wherever she could find it, Twilight pressed in with great force, encasing the goddess in ice. Eventually the flurry subsided. The air cleared to reveal a thick iceball four times Twilight's height standing where the Nightmare had been.

Twilight saw that there had been more than just the magic circle buried under the snow. There were some new toys near the rock that had been previously hidden: a paddle, blinkers and a small riding whip…

Twilight desperately wrapped the frost in her aura, packing down the snow ever tighter, forcing it into ice. Her horn blazed with power until the snowball had been compressed into a clear block of ice with an enraged Nightmare centre. Shadows writhed around Nightmare Moon. Twilight was panting hard when she approached the ice, searching it for weaknesses.

She leapt back, startled, when a thundering voice boomed in her mind, "I AM A GODDESS!"

Her reflexive leap and startled shield protected her when the ice prison shattered into thousands of pieces with a deafening roar. The Nightmare walked over the steaming chunks of ice, wreathed in black flames.

Falling chunks of ice bounced off Twilight's shield and clanged against Nightmare Moon's armour for a short while.

"YOU LIKE SUMMONS, LITTLE NUISANCE?" thundered Nightmare Moon, "LET US SEE HOW YOU LIKE THESE!"

Nightmare Moon's horn blazed with light and black chains appeared around Twilight. Taken by surprise, she was unable to dodge, and soon found herself anchored to the ground by many chains, each one far far stronger than she could hope to break. She tried to uproot them or dismiss them with her magic, but they absorbed everything she threw at them.

"Struggle, little rabbit," said a slightly calmer Nightmare Moon, "thou shalt learn thy place..."

Twilight's horn lit up again, but there was no visible aura around the chains. The Nightmare peered at her, puzzled, but nothing appeared to be happening. Twilight was barely channelling any more magic than could be expected from a foal, anyway. With a shrug, the Nightmare continued.

"Thou wert foolish to challenge us, rabbit. We are a mistress of ancient arts, and thou art but a foal. Accept thy punishment with good grace, and we might yet prove merciful–"

The faint glow on Twilight's horn winked out, and the little unicorn closed her eyes.

"Good–" was as far as the Nightmare got before the clay wardstone that Twilight had carefully fished out of her pack dropped onto the Nightmare's helmeted head.

The wardstone shattered and released the energy bound in it, true to its purpose. The bright light would have blinded Twilight if she hadn't closed her eyes; it was just a shame that she couldn't block her ears from the thunderclap. The dismissal spell blasted away the chains binding her and oh-so-briefly stunned her enemy. It also gave Twilight a splitting headache, but that was a small price to pay.

Twilight galloped to her pack, which she was pulling to herself with her telekinesis as fast as she dared.

The Nightmare spun around, eyes blazing with fury, another deadly spell gathering on her horn.

Twilight leapt to grab her pack.

The Nightmare reared onto her hindlegs, wings flared for balance, and took aim.

Twilight cast a spell.

The Nightmare looked puzzled as she collapsed, as if she were a puppet whose strings had been cut, and sprawled to the ground amongst the chunks of ice. The spell that had been brewing on her horn dissipated harmlessly.

"We have fallen and cannot get up," said the bewildered goddess, unable to even lift her head.

Twilight gasped for breath, her heart hammering in her chest, before grabbing a healing potion from her bag and chugging it down. Her headache was gone and her ears stopped ringing. Twilight could finally relax a little.

"What have you done?!"

"Sorry about that, Black Snooty," sad Twilight, walking to the helpless mare, "Just a little foal's trick."

"What magic–"

"You may be a mistress of the ancient arts, Queen Meanie, but I am a mistress of the modern ones. Magic has changed since your banishment, you big nuisance. We foals may have forgotten some tricks, but we have learned some new ones to take their place. Tell me, have you ever heard of 'voodoo'? It's all the rage in the new world."

Twilight smirked as she pulled a black alicorn doll from her saddlebags, complete with a single black feather for a tail. Nightmare Moon's eyes widened.

"A biolink is required to bind the spell, of course, but by chance I happened across one of your feathers... You really must be more careful with such things, your Nightmareship."

Nightmare Moon's eyes narrowed as she saw that the feather that adorned the doll was the same one that Twilight had plucked from her wing and turned into a quill the last time that they had played. She tried again to struggle, but she could only observe as Twilight tenderly lifted her head and fed her a healing potion that she barely needed.

Twilight then slowly and carefully removed Nightmare Moon's armour, revealing Princess Luna underneath. She listened to her lover's threats and complaints, and she did so with a happy smile. Helm, peytral, barding and warshoes were arranged in a neat pile, off to one side.

Satisfied, Twilight walked to the huge unicorn magic cancellation circle and made the necessary minor modifications to turn it into an alicorn magic cancellation circle. The circle had been far larger than necessary for Twilight, but it was just the right size for Princess Luna.

Once that was done, Twilight took the doll and turned back to Luna. The princess found her body responding to commands that were not her own as it jerkily pushed itself to its hooves and clumsily marched into the cancellation circle.

Luna gave a little involuntary shiver as the aegis of her power fell away and her mane and tail lost their luminescence, but she didn’t make a sound.

The telescoping black rods easily lengthened to suit the alicorn, and Twilight swiftly bound Luna's hooves. The silken rope was woven neatly into Luna's tail and mane, then unwoven to allow the big blue blanket to be wrapped around her barrel, trapping her wings and keeping her warm, and then tail, rope and mane were woven back together again.

Twilight took a step back to review her work, and, satisfied, dismissed the spell on the voodoo doll. Luna sagged a little and struggled a little and swore revenge a little, but Twilight just smiled a little.

Twilight's pounding heart had calmed, and the tension inside her had been swapped for a giddy gladness. She took a few calming breaths and looked around for the small whip.

"So, tell me," said Twilight, hoisting the whip where Luna could see it, "when were you planning on throwing the fight?"

Luna laughed.

"I knew I would not need to 'throw the fight', Twilight. I knew that you would win, one way or another. One thing I realised when we were apart was that not only did I have to accept that you are my equal, but that you have to accept it, too. In your head as well as your heart."

"Awwww" Twilight kissed Luna full on the lips. It was a long kiss.

*Ahem* went Twilight when they finally broke off, "Nightmare Moon! I have you now! You shall learn the displeasure of the Mysterious Mare Do Well and pay for your crimes!"

"Do your worst, you foal! We shall break free from this pitiful trap and wreak vengeance upon thee for this indignity! He he he."

"Your bluff and bluster will not save you now!" Twilight tried to crack the whip on the air for emphasis.

*Whoosh*

"Erm..."

*Whoosh*

"Grrr. Daring Do makes this look so easy. Hmm, maybe if I..."

*Crack!*

"Aha! Got it!" *Ahem* "Your bluff, bluster and sniggering will not save you now!" *Whoosh* "–um–" *Crack* "Ha! You shall be punished until you– until you confess to having been overpowered by a librarian!"

"No! The Nefarious League of Evil Doers would never respect me if I do that!"

"You should have thought of that before you challenged Twilight Sparkle!"

"What?! The Mysterious Mare Do Well is actually Twilight Sparkle?!"

"Oops. I’ve revealed my secret identity! I must drive the memory from your mind. Thankfully, I know a ritual that will do just that. Nightmare! Prepare yourself!"

"Nooooo!"

<Author’s note> The following section contains clop - movement restriction, light use of whip, paddle and a voodoo doll. As usual, please skip to the next section break if you want to give it a miss</Author’s note>

Twilight cracked the whip, firmly on Luna’s behind this time, and cackled in a decidedly non-heroic fashion. To be fair, Luna’s groan was more aroused than villainous.

The blinders were sized to fit neatly over Luna’s head. Twilight was feeling generous, and set them to deny her lover any side-vision, rather than blinding her entirely. For now.

"Curse you! I shall have my–"

Twilight interrupted her tirade with a feather-light kiss to a very delicate part of her anatomy. Nightmare Moon exhaled all the air in her lungs in one sigh.

Twilight pulled back to review her options. Luna could only stare at the rock in front of her and speculate on the silence around her. Her tightly bound mane prevented her from even turning her head. There was a crunching noise as Twilight moved about the clearing over the scattered ice chunks. Eventually the hoofsteps came closer.

Luna shifted uneasily until Twilight trotted primly into view and perched herself on the rock. The Nightmare Moon doll was perched on the rock beside her. Twilight’s horn was glowing, but Luna couldn’t see what was being manipulated.

"So, ‘Nightmare Moon’, if that’s your real name, let’s discuss your actions today."

"Uh, were you not going to do something about my memory–" *crack* "–Ow!"

"You will speak when given permission, criminal," said Twilight with a smile. Luna glowered.

"That’s better. As I was saying, let us discuss your actions today. One, you led me to believe that a book had been taken from my library, causing me great distress."

*Thwack*

"Ah!"

Luna had been expecting the whip, but got the paddle. The glow on Twilight’s horn had remained constant, giving no hint or warning as to when the blow would land. She hadn’t recovered from her startlement when the next landed.

Luna was reacting more strongly than she had before to their games, but despite being powerless, she seemed content to take her punishment. The continuous tensing and relaxing of muscles betrayed her nervousness, the musk that Twilight could smell clearly betrayed her excitement.

Twilight didn’t want to over-do things with Luna – she was unfamiliar with the whip and Luna was unfamiliar with vulnerability – so she kept things light and steady, leaving her plaything begging for more. Well, moaning for more, but Twilight knew what Luna meant.

"Well, are you ready to apologise yet, criminal?"

"Ha! Is that all you have, heroine? You come across as very green. Do your worst."

"Very well. Number Two: you compared me unfavorably to a fruit basket!"

*Crack*

"Ah!"

Twilight took a little while to get the hang of the small whip; it took a certain amount of mental dexterity to crack it when it was being held facing her, but Twilight was a fast study and a practiced mage. She soon had Luna tensing with anticipation before each delicate touch and sting that could land anywhere on her legs or backside. Luna’s moans were getting closer together now as her excitement rose.

Once Twilight was reasonably comfortable wielding the whip, she covertly grabbed a few items from her other saddlebag. One had been loaded in preparation for the fight, the other for afterwards. She was just cursing herself for not bringing the oranges this time, as they would have gone wonderfully as a counter to the ‘fruit basket’ insult.

The first hint that Luna had of Twilight’s plans was the change to her smile. The second was when she felt the warmed, lubricated dildo slide into her.

"Ooh!"

"Number three: you presented me with a dream full of temptations and fooled me into thinking I didn’t have time for them!" Twilight paused a moment, and then added, "You will be making that up to me, by the way."

The dildo started sliding in and out, very slowly. The whip didn’t let up at all. Luna’s moans and groans rose in pitch.

There was no interruption as Twilight carried on, "Number Four: you insulted my profession!"

Twilight hovered a chunk of melting ice between Luna and herself. Luna was distracted by what was going on behind her. Her distraction was quickly dispelled when the chunk of ice touched to the voodoo doll’s back.

"Aaaaah! That’s cold!"

Twilight laughed wickedly, toying with her marefriend with a combination of whip, paddle and ice, each element coming at Luna in an unpredictable fashion all over her body. The thick blanket had been protecting her back from the whip, but it was not able to protect her from the freezing touch of the ice chunk against the doll. All the while, the dildo slid in and out with steadily increasing speed.

"Number five: you threw a nag-naga at me. Ignorance of my feelings about snakes is no excuse."

Happy to keep Luna completely off-balance with the assault on her senses, Twilight decided to simplify things for her. With another touch of her magic, she closed the blinkers completely, effectively blinding Luna.

Luna had planned this night with some trepidation. She had deliberately picked out toys for Twilight to use on her that were softer than she would have normally chosen, knowing that the helplessness of the anti-alicorn circle would amplify the experience. What she hadn’t accounted for was Twilight’s creative use of modern magic.

The voodoo doll made her very uncomfortable, and kept a touch of fear in the back of her mind. Being able to see the doll had helped a lot: she could see where the next icy touch would land, even if she was unable to do anything about it. Losing sight of the doll was enough to turn that seed of fear into the first stages of panic. She fought the feeling, but could not help the touch of urgency bleeding into her voice.

"Nngh!"

Twilight was keenly aware of the delicacy of Luna’s position, and remembered the problems of the last time they had tried this. Noticing the first worrying hints in Luna’s voice, she decided to finish things, fast. There was one thing she had always wanted to do for Luna, ever since their first night together. A physical limitation that she couldn’t overcome. Until now.

"Number six: you challenged me to a fight! Which was actually really fun. So take THIS!"

The whip and the paddle stopped their torment, but the ice kept trailing across Luna’s body and the dildo sped up further. Luna was trembling with anticipation, excitement, fear, need, lust… She was on the cusp of orgasm, fighting the feelings that threatened to overwhelm her, when Twilight brought the alicorn doll to her lips.

Luna’s long, delicate horn was too long to fit in any pony’s mouth. As it had grown in her youth, she had resigned herself to never again having a proper horn-job. Twilight had tried on their first night, and she loved her for it, but all the tricks that Twilight had tried were not the same as the real thing. She was completely unprepared to experience one now.

Twilight easily encompassed the doll’s horn with her lips, and licked and teased and tickled it with her tongue as she sucked and the dildo thrusted in and out in double time, Twilight trying to stimulate Luna as much as possible before–

Luna’s horngasm exploded in fireworks across the midnight sky, her howl of joy silencing the night.

---------------

Luna sagged, deeply satisfied. Twilight erased the anti-magic circle, snatched away the blinkers and set about untying Luna’s hooves, mane and tail. Luna was still a little out of it by the time Twilight was done, so they settled down, wrapped together in the blanket, and hugged for a while.

After a while Luna kissed Twilight and stopped hugging quite so tightly.

"Thank you, Twilight. That was wonderful."

"Thank you, Luna. You are wonderful."

They exchanged cheesy grins and warm silence.

"Um," said Twilight, "I don't want to sound really shallow, but about that book..."

Luna laughed.

"Yes, you may have the book, my love. Here–" Luna extricated herself from the blanket and brought the book over to Twilight, "I look forward to studying it with you."

Twilight blushed as she gratefully accepted the book.

"Oh, I brought something for you, too. Let me go get it."

Twilight rushed back to where she had originally put down her bags. While she waited, Luna started tidying up the clearing, removing the signs of their play.

Twilight came back with a large silken bag that clearly contained something with lots of points poking into the sides at all angles. She gently laid it on the ground and shushed Luna before teasing it open and stepping back.

Luna held her breath as a faint green light appeared in the darkness of the bag. A small leafy snout peeked out of the bag and sniffed. It was soon followed by a wooden canine head with glowing green eyes, leafy ears and a puzzled expression. The timber puppy looked around curiously as Luna tried to hold back her excitement.

The puppy came all the way out and sat on its haunches, apparently unaware of the divine attention. Twilight offered it a liquorice twig to munch on. The puppy sniffed the twig. Its muzzle wrinkled up, its eyes closed, and it took several quick breaths. Luna bit down on a hoof. The puppy gave a cute little sneeze. Luna couldn't hold back any longer and release a small, high pitched noise from around her hoof. The puppy darted back into the silken bag.

After a moment when there were no more strange noises, the muzzle poked outside the bag just far enough to grab the twig and pull back in. There was the sound of gnawing.

"Oh thank you, thank you!" whispered Luna, "It is perfect! Where did you– I mean, how did–"

"This little monster was quite a bit larger when it had an encounter with a hydra. I think the hydra just sat on it by accident. Zecora found it while looking for bog-nettles and has been looking after it ever since. She traded it in return for a jug of Applejack’s best apple cider."

"Oh, thank you. I shall take very good care of it."

Twilight started clearing up the trap she had laid earlier as Luna carefully lifted the silken bag onto her back.

"You're welcome. I’ll give you a copy of my notes on timber wolves; they might come in handy when caring for it. Just don't send it against your sister as a recruit in your little prank war. I don't think it would survive as well as Mr. Huggles did."

"How did you– Little Twilight."

"It's not my fault she likes me more than you," said Twilight, sticking out her tongue at Luna.

Luna laughed.

The clearing was now clear of traps, battle debris, armour and sex toys, so the two mares wandered to the path towards Ponyville.

"You need not worry for the pup's safety. I have sued my sister for peace and have negotiated a surrender."

Twilight pulled up to a halt, "What?! You surrendered?"

Luna sighed, "I am afraid so. I could not fight a war on two fronts, so I surrendered to my sister that I might focus my attention on pleasing you."

"Wow. Thank you. Um, what were the terms?"

Luna sighed.

"I must sing to the assembly of the next Grand Galloping Gala, and I am constrained against further pranking for six months."

"Wow. I think I could even persuade Spike to attend the next Gala now. I must remember to ask Princess Celestia for tickets. My friends are not going to want to miss that either… Aww, don't worry Luna, six months gives us plenty of time to plan our retaliation."

"–our retaliation? You will join me in this endeavour?"

"Well, this time. I may have to help Princess Celestia sometimes, too. Nothing personal, you understand," Twilight's smile was smug.

"Ha ha! My sister is doomed! I am doomed! We shall have to join forces against this new threat!" Luna's grin was smugger.

"Eep!"

---------------

They enjoyed a companionable silence as they made their way down the side of the hill, accompanied by the occasional clang as various parts of Nightmare Moon's armour collided with each other. Ponyville was in sight when Twilight spoke again.

"Thank you for tonight, Luna. I know that this wasn't something you wanted to do."

"You are very welcome. I actually found it to be fun, once I got into the spirit of things," Luna’s blush was barely visible in the moonlight, but nevertheless captured Twilight’s heart, "It is good to test oneself, from time to time. Did you enjoy being at the mercy of the dark one?"

Twilight gave a happy shiver, "Oh yes, thank you. It's just a shame that I didn't get to play with all your friends during the downhill run..."

"Do not worry about that, at least, Twilight. I will make sure that you have plenty of opportunity to make all of their acquaintances, and that of the ‘friends’ you did not meet. Give me permission to block your mind in dreams if you want a more authentic experience. Despite your... recent growth, I believe I am still capable of that."

"Um... That sounds, umm... Okay. Moondays. Well, Moonights."

"Thank you, Twilight. I believe that we will both have fun. Be sure to soundproof your bedroom."

Six Months Later

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Written by RandomString, Proofread by Knight of Cerebus

Twilight was brooding over a map of Ponyville laid out over a table when Li’l Twi trotted through the door. Ponies tended to be startled when small purple unicorns appeared in front of them, and Li’l Twi was moderating her entrances to make allowances for other ponies’ boringness.

This new approach only seemed to have two disadvantages: firstly, ponies were still pretty surprised by a filly walking through a solid oak door anyway, and secondly, ponies didn’t always notice her when she entered the room. Li’l Twi was far more concerned by the second issue.

As a case in point, Twilight was staring far too intently at her map to see Li’l Twi’s entrance. Li’l Twi resolved this problem by teleporting onto Twilight’s map.

“Aah!”, said Twilight, leaping backwards in surprise.

“Hello, big me! What’cha doin’?”

“You startled me!”

“Yup!”, Li’l Twi said with a grin.

Twilight ran a dozen responses through her head. None of them would have the outcome she desired, so she just sighed.

“To answer your question, I’m making a plan. Princess Luna’s ceasefire will expire in a couple of days, and I offered to help.”

“Cool! So is it going to go as well as the last time you made plans concerning Princess Luna?”

“I doubt any plan will ever go that well again. I got Princess Luna, you, and a really cool book out of that one.”

“Awww,” said Li’l Twi, briefly making herself substantial enough to affectionately nuzzle Twilight.

“Don’t worry, though, I’ve learned my lesson. I’m keeping my contingency planning to a minimum. And Princess Luna will be here tomorrow to help keep me sane.”

“Oh goodie! I get to play with Mr. Huggles and Mr. Sticky again.”

The conversation was cut off by Applejack sticking her head around the door.

“Ya’ll ready for us, sugarcube?”

“Come on in, girls. Thank you for coming. This is going to be difficult to pull off, but I know we can do it. I have a plan!”

-------------

Twilight had had a plan. The plan had been a good one, too. She had made sure that they had plenty of time and a relaxed schedule.

Then Ponyville had been attacked by corrupted flutterponies.

The appointed start time for the plan had been missed.

And then the recently de-corrupted flutterponies had insisted in celebrating their de-corruption with a party, and Pinkie had approved of the suggestion. Vocally. And Twilight had had to go to the party because she was one of the saviours of the flutterponies, and of course it had been wonderful, with streamers and glitter and flowers and honey and sweet cakes, and naturally Li'l Twi had insisted on staying on so that she could chase giggling gaggles of flutterponies and sing and dance and–

The contingency time for unexpected events that Twilight had put into the plan had been washed away with a tide of joyful celebration.

De-corrupting the flutterponies had been pretty tiring, and then the dizzying dances and running and helping and talking and joking and laughing had exhausted Twilight. And then Twilight had found out the big difference between honey and mead the hard way.

The absolute, final, ultimate, unquestionably latest time when the plan could possibly have started had passed by at some point while Twilight lay in her soft bed, sleeping the sleep of the just. And the exhausted. And the drunk.

Princess Luna had found her there, in dreams soaked through with honey and nectar, and reminded her of her plan. Of their plan. And of a Deadline that could in no way move.

Twilight had woken up, gotten up, almost thrown up, and cleaned up. She had looked up at the tatters of her perfect plan, and had almost given up, but her promise and her pride held her. That, and the look of disappointment on Luna's face would be a terrible thing to see with a hangover.

With a clarion call to action, she had roused friends, allies and citizens of Ponyville to the cause. She dispelled hangovers, summoned spirits, and sent all the forces at her disposal out to claw back the needed time. When the flutterponies found out what the commotion was all about, they joined in with wilful glee.

Stalls were set up, refreshment tents erected, and signs were painted and hung. All manner of cakes and delights were prepared: tarts and meringues, gateaux and eclairs, pies and sponges and cupcakes and all things sweet and sticky. Then even more were made. Particularly custard tarts.

The makings of an ocean of tea was assembled. Leaves from across the world were neatly prepared and labelled, urns were cleaned, and cups placed in saucers with finicky precision. Sugar and milk and lemon and ice and hot sauce were laid out in preparation for the coming day.

Twilight was a tornado of activity, rushing from project to project and exhorting friends to greater speed, her magic seemingly conjuring progress from nowhere. She didn’t even notice when they pulled ahead of schedule. Princess Luna had arrived in the early afternoon, calming the now frantic mare with a kiss.

The calming took but a moment, but the kiss took considerably longer. No-pony seemed to mind.

The day passed in a colourful blur, until at last Twilight stood tall, proud and sober in front of her troops. The flutterponies had had to return to the summer glades, and the summoned spirits were long gone, but the ponies of Ponyville had been united under a common cause.

Twilight had gathered the ponies of Ponyville at Lookout Hill. They were her friends, and now, through Twilight's steady and constant guidance over the last few months, they were Princess Luna's friends too. Thanks in turn to Princess Luna’s guidance, Twilight spoke to the crowd with a confidence that would have been alien to her six months previously.

"Fillies and Gentlecolts, a grave injustice has lain unaddressed for six months. A freedom that is enjoyed by all ponies, from the lowliest pony to the highest alicorn, has been denied to a dear friend of mine. A dear friend of all Ponyville. For six long months, Princess Luna has been denied– denied!– the right to communicate her love, her care, her feelings, through the gentle art of pranking!"

Twilight ignored the excited giggles.

"Six long months. Think of it, friends. This is not just an injustice for Princess Luna, but an injustice for us all. We have been denied the excitement and joy of experiencing one of Luna's pranks. Nightmare Night lost its moon. New Year's Embrace lost its thrill."

Twilight ignored Applejack's comments, too.

"Princess Luna has been strong. She has kept to the terms of the ceasefire. We too were strong. We persevered. We endured. We waited. We prepared. Well, I did. I couldn’t have done all this without your help, though. Um, where was I? Oh yes…

“Six long months. Well, Fillies and Gentlecolts, those six months are almost over. Today marks the six-month anniversary of our Princess of the Night's noble sacrifice, a sacrifice she made for me. Tomorrow, Princess Celestia visits Ponyville to celebrate the new 'Ponyville Tea and Cake Bonanza!!'. Tomorrow, we will be ready. Tomorrow, SIX LONG MONTHS WILL BE OVER!"

Ponies cheered and stomped their hooves. Princess Luna stood forward to address the cheering crowd.

"Friends–" was as far as she got before a water balloon arced gracefully over the top of the hill and hit the back of her head, soaking her mane.

The brief moment of shocked silence was interrupted by the sound of many rapid hoofbeats from around the hill.

Twilight and Luna, at the top of the hill, saw them coming first. Twilight quickly raised a shield and ran down to the troops; she was accompanied by Princess Luna, shouting "To arms! To arms!"

Some of the surprised ponies scrambled to defensive positions behind the cake stalls and craft stands, while others rushed to form a defensive phalanx around the refreshments tent. There was a nervous moment of trepidation which was broken by Princess Celestia cresting the top of the hill, leading a contingent of the Royal Day Guard armed with water balloons and flour bombs.

"Perfidy! Betrayal! 'Tia, you have broken the ceasefire!"

"Ha ha! You need a better clock, Woona. The ceasefire expired five minutes ago!"

Princess Celestia herself carried a formidable quantity of both water and flour, flinging both with deadly aim and speed at her retreating sister's starry tail. Luna displayed divine dexterity, reflexes that bordered on precognition and tail-control that would be the envy of any earth pony in dodging, blocking or knocking aside the attacks. She galloped from stand to stall, as she sought a structure that could protect her from the fusillade of flour and water.

Princess Luna finally found cover behind a candyfloss stand, and turned to face her foe. Unfortunately, Princess Celestia knew her sister of old, and was wise to her tricks; she had been using long-range lobs, and hadn't been lured away from the protective cordon of her Royal Guards.

Luna took a different tack, and started throwing her sister's own missiles back at her, seizing them from out the air and returning them with spin and twist until the two alicorns had dozens of bombs and balloons flying in a flurry between them.

As was often the case, the two were evenly matched. Not even Princess Luna could match Princess Celestia for magical power and deftness, but her superior dexterity and hoof-work (and slightly smaller size) were sufficient to make up the difference.

Princess Celestia knew this, and had planned for it. If her Royal Guard could advance enough to surround Luna, Luna's advantage in manoeuvrability would be nullified and she could be overwhelmed. However, if the 'Ponyvillains' could disrupt the Guard by breaking through their disciplined defences with creampies, then Celestia would be left to stand alone, with no other option than to fall under a barrage of confectionary.

This battle, like so many others, would be decided by the hoof-soldiers.

Twilight had made it to the nearest cache of ammunition: a crate of meringues. Not her weapon of choice, but she managed to use it with devastating effect against the first wave of guards, driving them back with a sugary blizzard. Her initial advantage was soon lost, however, when her attacks started being blocked by a unicorn of some skill, flicking bursts of aura knocking her meringues from the air almost before they were launched. The colour of the aura was a dead giveaway.

"Shining Armour!" Twilight whispered to herself, "I should have known– Wait, if Shining Armour is here, then–"

Twilight's revelation came too late. Princess Cadance had taken advantage of the distraction set up by Princess Celestia and her guard to sneak behind enemy lines. Twilight never got to finish her sentence, the words being driven away by a powerful tackle from the Princess of Love.

It is said that 'All is fair in matters of Love and War', but bringing an ex-foalsitter to a ticklefight was pushing it. Twilight didn't stand a chance.

Boldened by the sight of the great unicorn threat rendered helpless, and with Shining Armour's dynamic leadership, the Guard pressed forward into the fray. While they were outnumbered by the Ponyvillains, they had training and discipline on their side. For all their passion, the likes of Bon Bon, Lyra and Carrot Top could not match the Guard's skill and accuracy, and even the Cutiemark Crusaders couldn't out manoeuvre their coordinated defences.

The capture of the Apple Family Pie Cart gave the Guard a much needed re-supply of ammunition, but it was a step too far. Princess Celestia was too busy countering her sister to warn them that they had been pulled out of position. While the Ponyvillains were outmatched, the Elements of Harmony were not so easily overcome.

Rainbow Dash was ably aided by Fluttershy's avian friends in protecting the skies, as Applejack and Rarity gave good accounting of themselves on the ground, even if Rarity's incredible telekinesis was offset by her need to make sure that her mane escaped the battle untouched. The Guard's approach ground to a halt in a war of attrition.

No mere mortal pony, no matter how skilled, could hope to beat Pinkie Pie in a food-fight. Which is why Princess Celestia sent Philomena. The graceful phoenix distracted both Pinkie Pie and Li'l Twi in a game of tag that the gravity-bound duo could not hope to win. The chase took them all over Ponyville, and eventually out of the battle.

Princess Celestia’s advance against her sister ground to a halt, her way blocked by an array of tea stands. Flying over would make her the target of every enemy pie and tart, and walking through the stands would make a mess and spill a lot of delicious-smelling tea, an unconscionable act, so instead she stood firm and focused on aerial bombardments against her sister.

Both sides remained evenly matched.

It seemed as though Princess Celestia had perfectly countered all the forces that were arrayed against her. Maybe, if given time, the stamina of the guard would have won the day and given victory to Princess Celestia, but it wasn't to be.

Princess Celestia, Solaris Invictus, had overlooked one opponent. An old foe who had bested her before sneaked out from his hiding place, closely followed by his new friend.

Princess Cadance ruthlessly tickled Twilight Sparkle, ignoring the fallen mare's pleadings for mercy and easily deflecting all of her feeble counter attacks. Having feathered wings offered a significant advantage in a ticklefight, and the young princess used them to the fullest.

She was so dedicated to the task that she did not notice the shadow creep up behind her. Twilight's laughter drowned out the shadow's battlecry:

"Huuugs!"

----------------

The Princess of Love shrieked as she ran, trying to escape both the Spider of Hugs and the timber puppy who was chewing her tail. She incautiously fled towards her husband, only to be downed by the crossfire of waffles and water bombs flying between him and Rarity.

Free at last, Twilight staggered to her hooves and surveyed the ruin of the battlefield. The melee had passed her by, and she was was free to act without interference.

It was time to end this.

Philomena was ducking and diving around the branches of the Ponyville Golden Oaks library, always keeping just out of reach of Pinkie Pie and Li'l Twi. She was having immense fun taunting them with her proximity, but her game stopped when she was brought down by a cheesecake teleported directly in front of her flight path.

Pinkie screeched to a halt in front of the fallen phoenix and bopped her on the beak, "Tag, you're 'it'."

The cake-sodden bird did not give chase to the escaping bouncy party pony, and instead dejectedly began cleaning her feathers.

The Guard, who had been holding their own against four bearers of Harmony, stood no chance against the coordinated assault from all six. They lost ground, hoof-length by hard-fought hoof-length, but refused to surrender. They might have held out longer, but Li’l Twi suddenly manifested in front of Shining Armour.

"Hey, sorta big brother!"

"Wha–?!"

Pinkie Pie took advantage of his startled reaction to bravely plant a custard tart in his face. In the chaos that followed Twilight managed to snatch all the Guard's ammunition in an unassailable aura.

The Guard, pushed back from around Princess Celestia, could only watch in dismay as Twilight dropped all of the flour and water and cakes and pies that she held onto their goddess' head.

The silence that fell over the battlefield was only interrupted by the soft 'pfuft' 'pfuft' 'pfuft' sound of the candyfloss missiles that Princess Luna had already hurled at Celestia colliding with the oozing pile of sludge that entombed her sister in a confectioner's nightmare.

With a loud squelch, Princess Celestia's head broke free from the mess. She forced her eyes open to see a massive ball of candyfloss held suspended over her head, held in her sister's aura.

Princess Celestia surveyed the battlefield. Her forces were in disarray. Princess Cadance was being ruthlessly hugged by a plush spider, her mane streaked with goo and her tail dragged to the ground by a small pile of animated branches. Her guard were overwhelmed and lacked ammunition. Her air force was so gorged with cheesecake that a diet would be required before it could again take flight.

With a sigh, Princess Celestia acknowledged the Damarecles sword of candyfloss over her head, and surrendered.

The ambush on Lookout Hill was over.

-------------

After the cheers had died down, after Princess Luna's victory dance, after the pegasi drenched the combatants with rainwater to clear up the mess, and after Twilight's much-heckled victory speech, the Cakes wheeled out an extra-large Marzipan Mascarpone Meringue Madness that they had been zealously guarding throughout the battle. The non-combatants served the tea.

-------------

It was getting close to nightfall when Twilight left the celebrations in search of Luna. She found her sitting on a bridge over the river, staring out at the water. Twilight sat down next to her.

After a brief shared silence, Twilight reached out to Luna and tentatively touched her wing.

"Luna, what's wrong?"

"I am– I'm sorry, Twilight. I was just lost in one of my moods. Today was wonderful. You were wonderful. Our friends were wonderful. Thank you."

"Then why are you so sad?"

"As I say, it is just a mood. There are times that I remember that these happy times will not last, and eventually everypony will leave me again, whether they will so or not."

"Luna..." said Twilight with sorrowful eyes.

"I am sorry Twilight, I did not wish to dampen your joy, which is why I departed you company."

"Luna– Luna, please listen to me. I have something I want to say, but bear with me, as it might not come out right.

"Luna, I am a student of friendship, and I have learned a lot about it over the last few years. I have tried very hard to help you make friends with my friends, to make you stop from hiding behind your horn and wings and title. Did you ever wonder why?"

Luna bemusedly shook her head.

"Luna, friendships are not something you preserve in amber. You do not make a handful of friends and keep them close for all your life, forsaking all others in favour of them. Friends who will break your heart when they must finally go, until you are left empty and alone.

"Friendships are like a constellation of stars, dancing around your moon in the midnight sky. Some will stay close and some will keep a distance. Yes, some will fade away, but you must always keep adding new ones. New, brilliant friends to fill up your sky.

"Eventually you and I will drift apart, or I will be taken from you, but you will still have friends. And– and as long as you can continue to make new friends, then the pain of parting with old ones won't be so bad. Keep making friends, Luna. That's what I've learned. Keep making friends and you will never be alone."

Luna leaned down and kissed the little unicorn on her forehead.

"Thank you, Twilight."

--------------

Two figures sat on a bridge arching over a river made dark by the fading of the light. Overhead, the sky filled with colours, yellows and oranges gradually shifting to reds and purples as the sun slowly set over the horizon.

There was a brief moment of darkness before the stark light of the moon arose behind them, highlighting the river with silver sparkles. The sky above them was dark and empty, swallowing all light.

Then Luna started filling it with stars. A cascade of light spread out above them, beautiful and majestic, full of mystery and wonder. A promise of an always-illustrious future.

Twilight leaned close to her companion, who stretched out a wing to embrace her.

"I used to love the dawn, Luna, but now I love sunsets, too. Thank you, Luna."

"Thank you, Twilight Sparkle. For everything. I love you."

"I love you too."

The End