//------------------------------// // Epilogue // Story: How to Friendship a Comet // by Fylifa //------------------------------// It was still nighttime when Twilight appeared in her crystal observatory. The first few steps had her stumbling at the fresh pull of Equestrian gravity. She marveled at how it felt like she was gone for months when in reality it was only a couple of hours. Strangely enough she didn’t feel tired at all. If anything, she never felt more awake in her life. She would get used to it, the princesses had said and sleep will return to her once she adapted to the aether surges every time her comet orbited overhead. “Even if you do not dream for a while that does not forbade you from visiting me in the waking world instead.” Luna had pointedly clarified and Twilight kissed her for it. Twilight floated the blue and purple marble onto her study’s table. With a bit of inventive spellwork she created a stand for the shimmering blue memento and smiled at her hoofcraft. “I think I deserve some leftover wafflecake after what I did,” she said to nopony in particular and took the stairs down instead of teleporting. She had so much energy, she needed to burn it off in any little way she could. Twilight only got a few hoofsteps into the map-room proper when there was an explosion of light and her vision filled with confetti “SURPRISE!” It wasn’t Pinkie’s canon that surprised her the most, but the sight of all six girls there to see her, “W-What? What is everyp— everyone doing here?” She corrected after seeing Spike too was there with a noisemaker. They were crowding around her then. Dash was tugging on her wing and Rarity was fussing on her mane and the others were talking so quick and excited that she couldn’t make a single one out. Until finally Twilight lit her horn and teleported out from under the friendship pile to appear a few hoof paces away. She cried, “Please! One at a time!” They looked at each other and Applejack tipped her hat back. “First ya better be tellin’ us should we be happy or worried for yeh?” Rainbow was bubbling over with excitement. “It’s something awesome right? I mean just look at those wings! I wish I had wings like those!” Rarity waggled a hoof and cut in with her own observation. “How could you all be ignoring her mane?! Gracious. I'm good, but not that good in styling!” A few more comments of fawning before Spike was thoughtful enough to bring her a mirror. Twilight didn’t even bother to gasp this time. Her mane had kept its enhanced colors but now the edge if it had become indistinct and ethereal. It was not yet at the level of Luna or Celestia, but there is no way she’d ever pass for anypony other than who she was now. When she angled the mirror she saw her wings had gotten the same kind of gradient effect Cadance’s own wingfeathers had as well as a size boost. “Well. I uh... I moved the comet and this happened. It’s a good thing... I think.” At least I hope. “I can give you the long version of it later, but… just why is everyone here past midnight?” Twilight added after a small flinch at the silent thought. That question prompted a bunch of shared looks. Surprisingly enough it was Fluttershy who first spoke. “Umm. I'm usually in bed before nine... but I got woken up when I felt something.” She reached and rubbed her own neck with a hoof. “For some reason, it made me think about what you said about the comet. Dizzy was still sleeping so I went to put on some tea and then went outside to go see it. The night was real clear so it was easy to watch when I saw it moving all of a sudden. So I... I went to see Dash, but she... umm… already knew about it.” Fluttershy’s voice began to dwindle and she flushed. Twilight thanked her for getting that much out. Though her eye twitched at that ‘Dizzy’ part. Celestia help her if that was a pet name for who she thought it was. Rainbow hovered over to pick up the conversational thread. “Yeah I was up. I totally couldn’t sleep in the slightest so I spent a few minutes cloudbusting away then I saw the comet and thought about you Twi! Reminded me about doing my wingups. Managed to hit ninety before Flutters poked her head in my window.” Rainbow nodded and waited a half moment before realizing no-one was going to compliment her on her score. “Sigh, so me and Flutters headed over to Rarity since she read that book of yours and we thought she might know what was up.” Rarity gracefully stepped into the conversation, waiting like a stage actress for her cue. “I told them the obvious, dearie. That you took my excellent help from that textbook and figured out this princess business. Though this beast of a mare took it to mean that we had to hurry and lifted me right up! You didn’t even let me out of my nightgown, Rainbow!” Rainbow frowned at that, squinting at Rarity. “You weren’t even in bed though. Why were you working on a dress in your nightgown, anyway?” Rarity scoffed and gestured with a hoof. “I bolted right out of bed with the idea of a truly splendid dress for Twilight and I didn’t have time to stop.” “You didn’t even take off your sleeping mask!” Applejack interrupted the arguing pair for the sake of brevity. “Anyway. Ah was already up on account of that same funny feeling everypony else was talkin’ about. Ah couldn’t plow the field at night and the animals were sleepin’ so ah took to brewing some cider fer a nightcap. Ah thought about sharing a drink with ya, Twi and was making a little extra to take over when ah saw these two. Plenty strange to see Rarity and Rainbow of all ponies sailing in the air together, though ah’d never thought she’d lift us both right after tellin’ me what all the hooplah was about!” Rainbow looked smug under the fire of both Applejack and Rarity’s combined glares. “I was super pumped, okay? Besides I’ve been getting plenty of practice in carrying ponies lately.” Twilight giggled at the banter, but inwardly started to feel a spring of worry. Did every pony she have a connection with feel her fiddling with Bond? How many across Equestria got woken up by her nighttime moon antics? “So you went to Pinkie’s next I figure?” Rainbow, Rarity, Fluttershy and Applejack shared a glance. “Well... we did. But she was already at the castle setting up decorations,” said Rarity. Pinkie broke in with a merry bounce onto the nearby table. “Yep! I was right out of bed when my Twilight sense started making my mane and tail go craaaaazey!” Twilight mouthed the words Twilight sense? As she thought on it, it made an odd kind of sense. If anypony was a natural Bond user it would be Pinkie. A thought that soon had Twilight trembling slightly at the mental image of Pinkie as an alicorn. “So I zipped over right away to your castle. You weren’t back yet so that was great! Starlight and Spike were up already arguing about making you a wafflecake and I told them I could make the bestest one ever if they started working their flanks off in getting the rest of the decorations over from sugarcube.” Twilight noticed what she took at first to be a wooden countertop on one of the tables was in fact a giant wafflecake. Her belly betrayed an eager rumble. Rainbow rounded on Twilight with a glint in her eye. “If you plan on eating that whole you know I'm gonna add a zero to your wingups, maaaybe two. You got the wings for it now.” “Ah brought some of the cider I was makin’ ya can wash it down with,” Applejack helpfully offered. “I won’t let you face this alone! We’ve been in the trenches before you and I,” declared Rarity valiantly before adding, “Even if they are square shaped.” Somewhere in the back a soft set of squeaking noises told Twilight that Fluttershy was adding her encouragement too. Twilight made a theatrical sigh, but she couldn’t hide her smile. The mention of Starlight had her looking to her student. “Helped with the decorations, huh?” Twilight asked wryly. Starlight eyedarted as she put her hooves together. “Sorry, teach. Pinkie said we owed her a party, and that I made a Pinkie promise. Spike said I really shouldn’t break one. Is it really worse than Tartarus if I did?” Twilight nodded soberly. “Even Celestia gives parole occasionally. I don’t think Pinkie ever has.” Pinkie beamed her sunny smile with a voice as chipper as always confirmed. “FOReeeeever! Means FOREVER!” Twilight dipped her head in a small bow to her friends. “I'm thankful you all came on such short notice, but really we can do all the celebrations tomo—” She was interrupted by a sudden hiccup by Spike who spat out a scroll tied with a pink and blue ribbon. Twilight blinked and floated it over. At the top was Crystal Kingdom stationary with elegant curly strokes that could only be Cadance. Hey sister! We can see the comet all the way up here in the crystal kingdom! I knew you had it in you! Flurry Heart knows it too. She’s been up all night going ‘Tweh’ ‘Tweh’ which means you and you know Flurry, once she’s on something I don’t think we are going to get her to bed. I hope you're not too tired! All of us sort of felt like we really had to see you. We should be over there as fast as the crystal express can take us. Neither of us are getting any sleep tonight anyway. Below that the handwriting change to her brother’s familiar, if rougher quillwork. Twily! It’s not just Flurry! I had the strangest feeling that I needed to see you too. Weird huh? Cadance said that it might be a good idea to get mom and dad on the way. Sorry for the short notice, but it looks like we're having a family gathering at your place this weekend. Twilight groaned, there was no escaping it now. “On second thought, let’s keep the party going. We are going to get some guests soon.” That had them all start talking amongst themselves and begin devising strategies on how to cut the wafflecake. Twilight lingered on the edge, simply watching her friends and how they interacted. They really all came this way for her. Twilight was touched and had no doubts to their feelings, but curiosity gnawed on her as she heard the echo of Luna’s words. Maybe just this once, one peek to see. Twilight lit her horn and cast the Bond-Sense spell and even at the lowest possible setting she was blinded by the intensity of the connections between her, her friends and between each other. So much friendship...no... not just friendship! With a flex of that newfound magical might she impulsively snatched everyone in the room to her and used those hooves and larger wings to get as many in an embrace as she could. “I love all of you!” Her voice cracked, a few happy tears gathering in her eyes from the overwhelming emotions. “Aw…well shucks!” “Darling you... don’t... have to hug so tight...!” “Eep!” “Gah! You're like a super-sized easter-colored egghead now!" Pinkie Pie giggled, “Love you too, Twilight!” ~Fin~