//------------------------------// // Chapter Twenty: Of Parties, Snuggling Essences, and New Joy // Story: Princess of Shadows, Darkness, and Light // by jwizard //------------------------------// Equestria, Canterlot Castle, 06-15-05 A.N.M., 7:30 PM (After Nightmare Moon) Night Light and Twilight Velvet followed the servant to where the other ponies could be found. Thanks to some strong anti-sound enchantments, they didn’t hear the party until they had passed the doors. Both ponies looked shocked. They hadn’t had much exposure to any of Twilight’s friends over the years, so they hadn’t been exposed to the organized chaos that was one of Pinkie Pie’s parties. As was usual, there was something for everypony. Pinkie was leading a group consisting of Applejack, Apple Bloom, Prismia, and Rarity in Blind Pony’s Bluff. Another group consisting of Sweetie Belle, Fluttershy, Rainbow Blitz, and Starlight Glimmer were occupied with a Song-and-Dance machine. Another group of ponies were playing Pin the Tail on the Pony. Velvet blinked to clear her sight; however, nothing changed. Her daughter-in-law and son were playing that game, along with Scootaloo, Aria Dash, Clever Marigold, and yet another alicorn that neither pony had ever seen before. Off to the side, Spike was ponying the refreshments table. Next to him, Rainbow Dash was making inroads into the various snacks that were there. Night Light shook his head; he was certain that both Princess Celestia and her sister were already on their way to Neighico, but it looked like Princess Luna was sitting next to Rainbow Dash. Another group also consisted of alicorns. Sunset Shimmer, Princess Hope, their daughter Twilight, and a third very large alicorn were all talking to each other quietly. Velvet and Night Light both blinked as they recognized Princess Angela. Night Light moved to where the drinks were; not only was he thirsty, but he wanted to find out why Luna had apparently stayed behind. Velvet went to see her daughter. Twilight smiled as her mother approached. Velvet already knew that her daughter had forgiven her, and that smile was as warm as it ever was. The two hugged before Velvet greeted Angela. “Princess Angela, I’m surprised that you’re here without any fanfare,” she said. “The last time you visited, it was all over the place.” Angela waved a hoof in Rainbow Dash’s direction. “I have her to thank; now that there’s a Path of Light to the palace, getting from Sanctuary to here is easier than it used to be. Plus, the Council of Eight is pro-Guardian right now, so that’s a plus.” Velvet nodded at that. She frowned as she really got a look at the other new alicorn. “Wait, that’s Bright Knowledge. I wasn’t aware that she was a pegacorn, let alone an alicorn. How long has she been hiding it?” Twilight frowned at that. “I’m not sure; I know that she’s over one thousand years old, but I don’t know how ascension works for Unbound Alicorns.” She looked sullenly at Angela. “This one here wouldn’t tell me the last time I asked.” Angela sighed. “I wasn’t able to tell you because of a geasa,” Angela said in a rueful manner. “It was personal of course, but until certain conditions were meant, there were things that had to be figured out without my aid.” Angela smiled. “Now that those conditions have been met, I can finally stop acting so cryptic.” “While it is true that most pegacorns that have reached one thousand years have become alicorns, the actual time period is different each and every time. For most of us, circumstances have forced us to make the change. Other factors can affect things as well.” “Bright Knowledge has been actively hiding her nature for so long that it became suppressed. She did so to hide from her father; not because she feared him, but because she feared for others.” Angela smiled a grim smile. “When that stallion made the mistake of going after a pegacorn Chosen by Serenity, it forced her to access all of that suppressed potential at once. You’ll notice that she’s already almost as big as Cadenza. In another five years, she’ll likely match Celestia in height.” The other ponies looked interested as Angela continued. “When we say one thousand years, we’re speaking in generalizations. Apotheosis is different for every nascent, though there’s only ever been two cases where the pony in question hadn’t made the transition before becoming an alicorn.” Twilight nodded at that in satisfaction. Angela sighed; this next part was always hard for her to deal with. “Then there’s those that have either died or gone feral. Happily, both are rare these days. That wasn’t the case in the past though.” Velvet frowned thoughtfully. “So what you’re actually saying is that you haven’t a clue.” She smirked at a now-blushing alicorn. “I’m a novelist Princess; I know how to read between the lines quite easily.” Angela sighed. “It’s not that I don’t have a clue; it has more to do with the fact that pegacorns seldom stay in Equestria for longer than a few centuries. Most claim Sanctuary after only a few decades at most. In fact, Bright Knowledge is one of only three that have been here for any real length of time. Most of the others are only into their first century; that's about as long a pegacorn can take before either moving away from Equestria, or declaring Sanctuary.” “Rainbow and I met one in Mareago, and Rainbow’s father met her another one that looked just like her in Las Pegasus.” Angela wrinkled her nose at that. “Yes, the twins; Sweet Breeze and Swift Breeze. Both were students of mine for a time, but opted out of staying in Sanctuary. I can’t force it Twilight,” Angela said when Twilight acted if she was going to say something. “All I can do is offer, just like I did with Rainbow Dash.” She smiled impishly. “I was surprised and pleased that she refused my offer; she more than proved herself worthy of her role by doing so.” Velvet decided to interject; there was something she wanted to clear up. “So, can anypony tell me just what your journey was about, Twilight?” Instead of answering, Twilight summoned a familiar tome. “If you want details, this tome has all of them. If you want the reason why, well, that’s far simpler.” Twilight’s muzzle wore a deep scowl as she summarized. “A wanna-be mage seals an evil he was unwilling to destroy, then creates a bunch of paths designed to keep said seal intact. It never occurred to the mage that said seal could be hijacked by the one he sealed, nor did it occur to him as to how unfair it was that he ended up Sealing away two Realms and a kingdom. And all of this was for the sake of a fallen kingdom that was a thrall of Evil from its conception.” Angela frowned. “Not that it isn’t true, but I was under the impression that you were impressed by his accomplishments Twilight.” Twilight nodded. “His theories were sound, and I’ve often used his methods in my own spellwork. I was never impressed by him though; I always knew he was reported to be a hard stallion to know and work with. Clover made that plain in her memoirs.” Sunset snorted at that. “Hard to work with? Sound theories? Twilight, Star Swirl was a hack, plain and simple.” Sunset waived her wing at the floating tome. “That tome is a prime example; it positively reeks of twisted Unicorn runic. The only reason why it’s still here after what Celestia did earlier today was because Star Swirl wrote over top what Astrolia had already woven into the tome.” Angela nodded. “I knew Star Swirl quite well actually. When he first Sealed the Dark One away, I almost violated my Oath to the Three by turning him into crystal.” Her muzzle darkened. “The only thing that stopped me was Astrolia actually; she said that ‘he will one day show his worth.’ I can’t see how, honestly.” Velvet took the tome in her levitation aura and teleported it back to her and Night Light’s quarters. “I’ll read it later.” She smirked at her daughter. “In any case, at least some good came from all of that. Not only do we have a new Princess, but somepony finally has a Special Somepony.” All the other ponies chuckled at the blush that rose on Twilight’s cheeks. After that, the conversation divulged to other topics. Velvet decided that she was going to hold off embarrassing her daughter for now; rather, she wanted to do so when her and Rainbow were both in the same place. Night Light gazed at the lunar alicorn sitting next to his daughter’s mate. Luna met his gaze levelly. “You named the pony next to me as your Regent so that you could go on your sabbatical. Care to tell me why you never left?” he asked her. Luna rolled her eyes. “It is because she is my Regent that I am here, Sir Night Light,” Luna said matter-of-factly. She smirked. “Besides, for an alicorn of my skill, being in two places at once is a small thing. For a stallion that has knowledge of how Dreams work, you should be aware of that.” Night Light nodded. “So that’s how it is then. I am surprised that you would be willing to do such a thing with so many ponies around; this isn’t the sort of thing I’d want out.” Both Luna and Rainbow Dash smirked at that. “It’s not like she’s ever hid it,” Rainbow said. “In fact, she uses this ability all the time to pull pranks.” She grinned at the blush that rose on Luna’s cheeks. “Besides, anypony that knows what she’s truly Princess of knows she’s able to do this. Doesn’t take a Twilight Sparkle to figure it out.” Night Light frowned. “That expression irritates me; since when has my daughter’s name become synonymous with being a genius?” Rainbow snorted. “Since she was in school probably. I think it flatters her, and that’s exactly the way I use it. It’s only those self-important ponies that see such intelligence as an insult.” Rainbow Dash paused to take a bite of a doughnut. She chewed briefly before continuing. “That’s nothing compared to the pet names she has for me.” “What bothers me is the term ‘egghead’,” Luna said, a frown on her muzzle. “That term seems derogatory.” Rainbow flushed with embarrassment, scratching the back of her head. “Yeah, I call her that a lot. I don’t mean it in a bad way; it was mostly habit. I think she views it in the same manner as being called a nerd.” Rainbow looked down. “It never occurred to me that she might have gotten called that while in school.” Night Light nodded at that. “Yes actually, though I don’t think that ever bothered her. Actually, she always had her snout in a book, so I’m not certain that name-calling would have phased her all that much.” Night Light scowled. “Unfortunately, those brats didn’t stop there.” “What’s worse is the entrenched corruption that kept the Dean in charge,” Luna said, a scowl on her muzzle. “Even more worse is that because of his connections, nothing my sister was able to do could stick. I actually had to step on her hooves to fix it.” She smiled. Night Light blinked as Luna’s  irises briefly morphed into a slitted shape. “Sister wasn’t pleased that I did so, but I had up to my horn with that sort of thing years ago. After I did, I had a group of very thankful foals dogging my hooves for the next two days.” Rainbow Dash frowned. “Something about all of that make you mad, LuLu? Your irises wen kinda draconic there.” Luna blinked. “Hmm, my eyes changed again? That’s been happening of late; I wonder why.” “”The eyes are a window into the soul,’” Rainbow said in lofty tone. That set them all laughing. “Seriously though, it might simply be mood. One of Angela’s Sanctuary Guardians told me that pegacorns often display that characteristic whenever they feel something deeply. Either great fear, or great anger will trigger it.” Night Light rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “I don’t think it’s limited to just pegacorns or alicorns. My lovely wife’s eyes turn red whenever she gets real steamed about something, and there’s been a few times where her irises would turn feline.” Luna hummed contemplatively. “Hmm, must be the meridians of her eyes. Some of the older Unicorn families have the ability.” Night Light saw that his wife was approaching. “Hello dear. Hungry?” he asked her. She nodded and took a marshmallow rice cake. “Thank you dear,” Velvet said. She gave him a kiss before settling her gaze on Rainbow Dash. The cyan alicorn in question bore up under her gaze with aplomb, causing her smile to grow. “Well, my daughter certainly knows how to pick a partner. I thought for years that it would be Lyra, or maybe even Moondancer, but she’s far surpassed either of those two.” Rainbow preened at the praise. Velvet and Night Light chuckled at the display; Luna just rolled her eyes. “I have to agree, though I wonder why she waited until you went on that trip to say anything.” Night Light took a bite of a cookie as he waited for Rainbow’s answer. Rainbow’s eyes grew distant as she recalled a moment in time that would forever be etched in her mind. “Actually, the question never really came up. After I confessed how I truly felt for her, things sort of went from there.” Velvet nodded. Noticing the frown Rainbow wore, she grew concerned. “Is there something about that you’re not telling us?” she asked. Rainbow nodded, frowning. “We weren’t exactly in the best of circumstances when I finally confessed to Twi how I felt. Hay, it wasn’t until she was in very real danger that I finally realized how I truly feel for her. It’s more than just a soul bond, though that certainly helps.” “I wasn’t ever one for deep thought, so I never stopped to examine the deep bonds I share with the other Bearers.” Rainbow paused to take a drink of punch before continuing. “When I first met Twilight, she was just another cute unicorn. A bit- well, more than a bit- bookish, but that only added to her charm.” “Things really didn’t start for me until after she ascended though. Adding wings into the mix suddenly brought her to my level. Even then, she was always just Twi.” Rainbow paused; this next bit was much harder for her. “After I started changing, she was there for me in a way that no pony has ever been.” Rainbow’s eyes raised; there was a deep-seated anger in her now-slitted irises. “Then we get sent on a journey. Actually, it was more like ordered to go on a journey. At least Celly had enough tact to couch it as a request. Had she forced us, Twi would have told her to shove ‘Star Swirl’s Tome of Paths’ up her plot, along with the Crown of Harmony.” “What’s even worse is that we find at the end that the whole journey was nothing more than a protracted demon-hunt, and a fairly useless one. Even then, if it weren’t for Serenity, I--” here, Rainbow suddenly broke off. Her expression was one of surprise. “Huh. Are you sure? Okay, I’ll ask them.” Rainbow gazed at her erstwhile conversation partners. “I wasn’t expecting this, but there’s Somepony Special that wants to meet with you. It’s your choice, but we can’t do it here.” Night Light blinked. “Who?” he asked, echoing his wife’s thought. Rainbow shrugged. “No clue; just that Serenity said to pass the message along. You can come too, LuLu.” Luna nodded. There was a brief flare of mana as her astral form switched places with her physical one. “I can spare a bit of time for this; something tells me that it’s important.” Rainbow shrugged again, then led the three off. A few minutes later, the four ponies were standing before a guarded conference room. Unlike other entrances, the Guards here were members of her new Aurora Guard. The mares bowed before Rainbow Dash as she and her companions passed through the open door. Once the door was closed, Rainbow turned around and opened it yet again. This time however, there was a shimmering veil of light on the other side. She turned to Twilight Velvet and Night Light. “I have to tell you something; what I’m about to show you hasn’t had the trod of anyone from Equus that wasn’t an alicorn since Star Swirl was still around. So you have to swear that you will keep it to yourselves.” The two looked at Rainbow Dash before nodding. The mare’s countenance took on a solemn cast. “Do you, Twilight Velvet Sparkle and Night Light Armor, Swear by Serenity’s Radiance and Gaia’s Love that you will mention nothing of this unless I give the word?” “We do so Swear,” the two unicorns said in unison. A bright glow suffused the two ponies briefly as the Oath burned the connection that the Greater Demon of Pride had set years ago. Rainbow Dash smiled. “Then let’s go, shall we?” They all followed her into the arch of Light, the door closing behind them. Twilight Velvet and Night Light stared in open amazement at what lay on the other side. “Welcome to my Realm,” Rainbow Dash said. “I know it doesn’t look like much; I have that sawed-off unicorn sage Star Swirl to thank for that.” Rainbow gazed at the two unicorns. “I didn’t realize it at the time, but more is involved than just a pair of Essences wanting to meet you. Both of you have been exposed to the Clan method; what ponies don’t realize is that that conditioning sets them up for possession. That Oath has severed the tie that the Greater Demon of Pride had laid in the pair of you. If it weren’t for that, I wouldn’t have bothered.” Rainbow looked up as a chime rang out. “Ah, they’re not gonna make us wait.” The ponies all followed Rainbow as she led them to a small dais. Once they were all settled, a pair of nimbus floated from out of the Light Archway on Rainbow’s left. The orbs swiftly manifested as a pair of unicorn fillies. Night Light and Twilight Velvet both bowed very formally at the presence of two of the Essences. Serenity sighed. “Please don’t bow; you two have no need to stand on gravitas with any of us Essences.” Both unicorns raised their heads, still slightly in awe. Dusk approached the pair. “I would like to thank you on behalf of my own Realm, and Our Sister Gaia for all that you have done. It is thanks to you both that two Guardians turned out as well as they did, in spite of all that Star Swirl placed in their way.” “We wished to thank you, but outside places that have our Blessing, that is impossible. So we asked Princess Rainbow Dash to bring you here.” Serenity gave Rainbow a fond look. Her gaze turned neutral as she looked at Velvet. “I also wanted to get the measure of you Lady Sparkle; Harmony speaks very highly of you, but I needed to be sure.” Dusk trotted forward until she was just in front of Velvet. She gazed up at the unicorn with a hopeful expression. Velvet had seen that gaze before; her daughter would often look like that when she was sad or frightened. Taking a risk, Velvet sat on her haunches and spread her front hooves. Dusk smiled happily as she went into Velvet’s embrace. While she was there, the Essence placed her horn against Velvet’s tummy. “Little ones, here’s my Blessing; may the Power of my Realm always shield you from that which would do you harm.” Night Light gazed at the scene in slight shock, only to have a small hoof tap his front hoof. He looked down and saw that Serenity was gazing at him in an expectant manner. He swallowed his apprehension and moved to give her a hug as well. Luna didn’t know what to think; here she was seeing two of the most powerful Beings in existence hugging ponies as if they were simply the foals they looked like. “I know that mine own relationship with Selene was often informal, but I would expect it to be different for a normal pony.” Rainbow Dash smirked. “They actually prefer this sort of thing. They just wanted to offer Blessings, thanks, and a little caring. Besides, Serenity is a very cuddly Essence; she’s not had a lot of opportunities to indulge, and I’ve been too busy lately.” Luna would have said more had not another nimbus appeared. It soon resolved itself into the shape of Selene. The Essence of Lune glomped her Guardian. Luna responded by tickling her, causing Selent to let out peal upon peal of laughter. She soon had the tables turned on Luna, gaining the upper hoof in their tickle fight. The others giggled; the two looked just like a mother and her foal having a tickle contest. After a few minutes, the hugs and fights ended. The ponies and Essences all sat in a small circle. Selene was still giggling. “Oh, that brings back memories,” she said. Velvet looked at her. “I take it that that’s something you used to do in the past?” Selene nodded. “I helped guide LuLu to becoming Princess of Dreams, as Lune is part of that. In those days, the unicorns of Equestria still moved Sol and Lune, so we had time to be just friends. It wasn’t until after Discord attacked Equestria that mys sister and I guided her and her sister to where they are now.” Rainbow gave Serenity a wing hug. “I prefer to see the Essences as friends before anything else. When it’s all said and done, they’re just like us.” “More than you know Rainbow,” Dusk said quietly. “I just wish my own Guardian was more aware of me. Something seems to be blocking her though.” Night Light frowned, stroking his chin in thought. “I’m confused. You’re the Essence of Shadow; why would you have any connection to my daughter?” “Because she’s the Alicorn of Magic. The Lands of Shadow are the source of Magic itself, as they lie between this Realm, the Umbral Realm, and the Realm of Chaos. Even her being the Princess of Friendship is part of that, as Friendship is the strongest expression of Harmony.” Night Light looked at Dusk. “Then you’re saying that her role of Princess of Friendship wasn’t just made up by Celestia to give her something to do?” Dusk smiled. “Yes, and by Angela’s suggestion as well. When Celestia first got the idea to see if Twilight could do what Star Swirl failed to do, she knew that there would have to be some sort of role for her to play. Angela suggested the Princess of Friendship; wonder of wonders, Celestia actually agreed.” Serenity giggled. “It was Our suggestion to Angela that she would mention that; we were certain that Celestia would agree, as she was having Princess Twilight study the Magic of Friendship. It would have been harder for her to push her role if that hadn’t been done.” The others all nodded, laughing at the mischievous look Serenity was wearing. Rainbow’s time sense triggered. “Well, we’ve been here long enough; we should be getting back.” She hugged Serenity again, then led the other ponies present back through the Arch. A few minutes later, the four ponies rejoined the party. They found Twilight waiting for them. “Where did you all go off to?” she asked her marefriend. “Shiny and Cadance have been looking for my parents.” “Eh, just took them for a tour around my Realm,” Rainbow Dash said off-hoofedly. Twilight blinked. “I know there’s more than that, but it can wait. Let’s go meet up with Cady and Shiny.” Luna took this moment to interject. “Well, I should return to where I was before coming here; I will soon have to do my duties in the Dream Realm.” She teleported away in a dark azure flash. Twilight shook her head, then led her parents and Rainbow Dash to where her brother and sister-in-law was waiting. Velvet hugged the pink alicorn. “We weren’t expecting to see you until Nightmare Night at least,” she said as they broke off the hug. “I was here for a session of the Alicorn Council, but decided to stay for a little bit. While the Summit of the Crystal Tribes goes on, I’m forbidden by Crystal Empire law to hold Court. Oh, it’s nothing serious really; just my confirmation as Crystal Empress. I’m told that, as much as they might argue, they’ll get around to confirming me in the end. I gather that they don’t really have much choice; as the Alicorn of Love, I’m entitled to my seat. They’re just waffling because of what happened with Sombra.” Cadance caught the look that Shining sent her way. She sighed internally. “Um, Mom, Dad, Shiny and I have some news. It’s nothing real bad or anything, but there’s going to be two additions to our family in the next eleven months or so.” Night Light blinked, then started to grin. “You mean babies?” His grin grew at her nod. “Well, by Harmony, it’s about time! You two have been going at it like rabbits since before Twilight was done with school!” The others- all save Velvet, giggled at Shining and Cadance’s embarrassed blush. “You hear that dear? We’re soon going to be grandparents! Velvet?” He turned to see that his wife had a stunned look on her muzzle. “Babies? Cadance is going to have two babies?” All the other ponies were shocked to see Velvet start crying. “B-but I’m too young to be a grandmother!” she wailed. Night Light hugged his crying wife while a confused Shining and Cadance looked on. Twilight and Rainbow Dash shared a look. Shining walked over to his mother. “Mom, it’s okay. I thought you’d be happy; we’ve been trying for awhile now. You’re not really that old Mom.” This only served to make her cry all the harder. Shining looked helplessly at his wife. Cadance frowned. This was more than she was expecting; she, like her husband, thought that her family would be happy. She frowned as she used her magic and scanned her mother-in-law. She sat back, stunned, as the scan came back positive. “It’s babes all around,” she said in disbelief. “Shining, you’re gonna have a new baby brother and sister in about a year as well.” Shining’s response to that was to fall down in a dead faint. A few minutes later, a now calm Velvet was discussing diapers and baby booties with a giddy Cadance, while the expecting fathers were fortifying themselves with glasses of brandy. “Both of them,” Shining said in disbelief. “Both my mother and my wife are carrying. At the same time.” He ran a hoof through his mane. “Why do I get the feeling that this is like a comedy movie plot?” Night Light snorted in laughter. “Oh, I feel the same way; your mother has used this same scenario in some of her books. And I seem to recall a movie or two that did the same thing.” Night Light put his hoof on his son’s shoulders. “Buck up my boy; the mysteries of parenthood aren’t as bad as they’re made out to be.” Shining groaned. “Ugh, diapers and early morning wake up calls. And Cady’s carrying two, so that means double the problems.” Shining looked at his father. “That’s on top of whatever else decides to happen to us between now and then.” Night Light chuckled. “We’re certainly living in interesting times m’boy,” he said. Shining looked concerned. “I’m just starting to wonder if what we were told is at all accurate.” Seeing the confused look on his father’s muzzle, Shining decided to clarify. “Well, part of the problems we were having was because it’s next to impossible for an alicorn to get pregnant by an ordinary unicorn. I’ve been having a lot of flares lately, and there are those in the Empire that think I may be getting a set of wings to go along with this horn of mine.” He tapped his horn for emphasis. “Now I’m not so sure. Given that we know that Sunset is Hope’s daughter, maybe we erred.” Twilight chose that moment to walk over, having heard a part of the conversation. “No brother; what I said before was true. An ordinary mortal pony has no chance to impregnate an alicorn; all of Hope’s mates were nascent pegacorns, pegacorns, alicorns, or were on the Path of Ascension.” She took a moment to examine her brother with her magic, nodding as she confirmed her suspicions. “Yep, your wellspring is already four times larger than it was the last time I checked.’ She tilted her head as she ran some quick calculations. “With how being around the Crystal Heart seemed to accelerate Cadance’s development as Alicorn of Love, I’m surprised you haven’t started changing already.” Shining sighed. “I don’t know if I want to change Twily; I was happy just being a unicorn.” His expression became thoughtful. “I mean, having wings would be nice, not to mention the boost that earth pony magic would give me.” His voice firmed. “Plus, there’s the fact that I will be able to stay right by Cadance’s side; she won’t ever have to worry about old age taking me away.” As soon as he finished speaking, an outpouring of energy from the Plane of Ascension enveloped Shining, encasing him in a bubble of pure light before he flashed away. Night Light looked over to see that his daughter was wearing a self-satisfied expression. “Well, I figured as much; he was reluctant.” She looked at the burn mark on the floor; it was shaped like her brother’s Cutie Mark. Velvet and Cadance took that moment to walk over. “Twilight, have you seen Rainbow Dash? She just teleported away as if in a hurry.” Twilight smirked. “Oh, Rainbow’s fine; just has to help the newbie along, that’s all.” Twilight looked at the clock on the wall. “In fact, it shouldn’t be that much longer.” Just as she finished, a flash of blue heralded the arrival of her brother. He was crouched with his eyes closed. Cadance watched with teary eyes as Shining flared a pair of large white wings. Rainbow teleported next to Twilight and looked on as Cadance hugged her husband, crying in joy. “How many does that make now Twi?” Twilight sighed. “I lost count a long time ago, Rainbow Dash. Let’s just enjoy what little peace we have left.”