Luna the Matchmaker
Chapter 8 "Fear, Love, and Loathing in Equestria."
By Steven Little
My Little Pony is © Hasbro
It was early morning in Ponyville and Princess Luna had just finished lowering the moon. Stepping back inside from the upstairs balcony, she trotted over to the cradle against the far wall. The cradle itself was old and made of apple wood. Applejack had given it to her and Twilight at her baby shower, mentioning that Apple Bloom, herself, and even Big Macintosh had used it. Inside the crib slept the two miracles that Twilight had given birth to three day before. Leaning in, Luna gave each of her foals a soft kiss before turning back to the bed that held the love of her life. Walking toward the bed, Luna realized that the sun had not yet begun to rise.
'Celestia had never taken this long to raise the sun before.' She thought to herself.
Concentrating hard, she focused her thoughts on her sister in the Canterlot Palace. Luna's image was projected across the astral plane to her sister's bedchamber. Celestia was still asleep. In her hooves she held a very old, yellowed and crinkled photograph. Luna tried to make out the image in the photograph when Celestia woke up, shocked at her sisters presence. "Tia, are you okay?" Luna asked her.
Celestia looked up at her sister. Her eyes were red from crying and Luna could see tear stains coursing down her cheeks. "I'm fine sister." She said, hiding the photograph quickly, hoping Luna hadn't seen it.
"Are you sure everything is alright?" Luna asked again. "I know things have been hard for you recently Tia. Nopony expected that monster to come back.”
“He’s wasn’t always a monster Luna. He used to be sweet and innocent, It wasn’t his fault.” Celestia said, tears starting to form in her eyes once again.
“I know, I know.” Luna said comfortingly. “I’m sorry this has been so difficult for you but he’s gone now and he won’t return for two centuries. When he does come back, I’ll be here for you, so will Twilight and all our friends. If you ever want to just sit and talk about it, you know I'll always be here for you."
"Thank you Luna, I'm fine now.” Luna gave her a suspicious look. “Really, I’m fine, why don't you run along back to Twilight and the children. I'll raise the sun and thank you for waking me before the morning became too late.”
"All right, but would it be okay if Twilight and I came to see you later?"
"Yes, of course I always enjoy a visit from you. Oh and if you can, bring the twins as well; I'd love to see their adorable little faces again."
"Okay sis. You have a good morning." Luna said, smiling.
"You as well Luna."
Luna blinked her eyes several times and found herself back inside the master bedroom of the library. She felt there was something her sister wasn't telling her but couldn't quite figure out what it was. Luna tried to shake of the feeling when she noticed that the foals were beginning to cry out softly for their mother. Luna quietly rushed to the crib and stroked the mane of each of her foals with a hoof. They seemed to settle down a bit but were still a little fussy. Leaning in, she nuzzled each of them and began to sing softly. As she finished the song, she could tell both of the foals were sleeping soundly. Walking back to the bed, she curled up behind her mate and wrapped her hooves and wings around Twilight. "Good morning dear." She whispered.
"Good morning Lulu." Twilight returned equally as soft. Luna had always hated it when Celestia called her that but for some reason Luna found it cute when it came from the lavender mare wrapped in her wings. “That lullaby sounds more and more beautiful every time I hear you sing it.”
“Thank you my love.” She said, gently nuzzling the back of Twilight's left tear.
Something was nagging at Twilight. Rolling over so that she faced her lover she asked, "Luna do you still think I'm pretty?"
"Of course I do Twilight. You’re beautiful, why would you ask such a question?"
"I don't know. I just feel fat and bloated and ugly. My body has been stretched all out of shape and nothing really feels right."
"Oh Twilight, you're not ugly and I'm sure that with exercise your belly will be back to its normal shape in no time at all." Luna began to nibble on Twilight's left ear, eliciting a moan of pleasure from her lover. Releasing her ear, Luna looked deeply into Twilight's eyes. "I love you Twilight Sparkle and I'm going to show you how much I want, need, and desire you."
An hour had passed when the two lovers collapsed back down onto the bed breathing hard, a light steam rising from their coats in the cool morning air. Luna nuzzled the spot where Twilight's left wing attached to her body making her release a satisfied sigh. A morning of lust and soft gentle pleasure was just what Twilight needed to feel better about herself. They lay there a while, enjoying each others company when they were disturbed by a commotion from downstairs. "Stay here, I'll be right back.” Luna said.
Walking downstairs, Luna could hear shouting from the main portion of the library. "What the heck do you two think you're doin'? You're supposed to be guarding Twilight and the Princess not screwing around!"
"Chillax Apple Bloom. Nothing's going to happen. You take this whole guard thing way to seriously."
"And you do not take it seriously enough Scootaloo." Luna said as she entered the room. The three girls tried to explain everything at the same time. "Silence!" Luna yelled, regretting it as soon as she said it. She listened closely and was rewarded by silence. "Captain. Wait for me in the bedchamber. I'll be with you in a moment and please, try to be quiet; I don’t want to wake the foals."
"Yes Princess." She said as she quietly walked through the door behind Luna. When the door had closed Luna addressed the other two sitting next to each other in front of the fireplace. "Well? I'm waiting. What happened?"
"It's all my fault Princess Luna." Sweetie Belle admitted. "I was having a hard time last night and Scooty was helping me through it, and then one thing led to another."
Luna detected a familiar scent in the air. "No need to explain, I think I know what Apple Bloom walked in on. What happened last night to cause the incident?"
Sweetie Belle rubbed her head against Scootaloo's neck. "It was awful Princess. Rarity and Spike were yelling and shouting and crying all night. I couldn't hear everything but Spike was talking about moving back into the library." Sweetie Belle had begun to cry. "I fell like my parents are splitting up. Rarity raised me and the last few years, Spike has been more of a father to me than anything I've ever known. I can't bear the thought of them splitting up."
Luna put a comforting wing around the young couple. "I'm sorry Belle, I know how much Spike and Rarity mean to you. They are very special to Twilight and myself as well. I promise that later today we'll go over and talk to them, find out what's really going on." Luna smiled at Scootaloo hugging Sweetie Belle with her wings. "So, how long have you two been together?"
"Um, a little over eleven months." Scootaloo responded.
“The day of our announcement, when Rarity and Spike went to Philydelphia?” Luna asked.
“Yeah.” Sweetie Belle confirmed. “I took your advice and tried to wait for her to come around but I guess I couldn’t wait anymore and confronted her about it.”
“And I’m glad you did.” Scootaloo said, nuzzling her unicorn friend.
"Guard training must have been especially difficult for you two but I'm glad that you seemed to come out alright. I think you two are very cute together and I wish you both all the luck I can, just promise me you'll be a little more discreet in the future and keep this sort of behavior for when you're off duty. I can't have two of my guards distracted."
"We promise your majesty." Scootaloo said saluting sharply.
Luna chuckled and walked back into the bedchamber. Apple Bloom was waiting at the foot of the stairs. "Up." Luna commanded, the smile vanishing from her face. She followed her captain up the stairs until they were in the sleeping area. "Stay right there." She ordered. Apple Bloom stood at attention until Luna walked around the bed and laid herself down behind Twilight. Both ponies watched the uneasy young mare. With a nod, she sat down next to the bed.
Twilight spoke first. "Do you care to explain yourself Captain? Luna and I could hear you all the way up here."
Apple Bloom was shocked at Twilight's regal demeanor and wasn't sure what to say. "You were asked a question. I suggest you answer it." Luna said. Secretly she was both happy and surprised by Twilight's initiative.
"I was comin' to relieve Scoot on guard when I caught her and Belle foolin' around in front of the fire place."
"Fooling around?" Twilight asked.
"Apparently Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo are a couple. Have been for some time now." Luna informed her. "It appears that, Rarity and Spike are having domestic problems. There was talk of Spike moving out and back into the library. Belle came here for comfort from Scootaloo and things got a little out of hoof."
"I didn't know." Apple Bloom said shocked.
"Of course you didn't. You were too busy shouting at them to ask what was going on." Luna said. "Apple Bloom, dear. It takes more than a commanding authority and an ability to give orders, to make a good officer. A good Captain needs understanding and compassion also. You can't expect those under you to never make a mistake. When they mess up, and they will mess up, you need to be understanding and have the presence of mind not fly off the handle at them."
"I understand. I shouldn't have gotten mad at them before gettin' all the information." The young captain said.
"Good. Now why don't you tell us what's really bothering you? I know you Apple Bloom. You wouldn't have gotten so mad just because you caught your two friends fooling around." Twilight inquired.
"I guess I was shocked is all. I thought the three of us were in the same boat together. Now I know it's just me."
"What boat is that dear?" Luna asked.
"Well, everypony has a special somepony of their own. You and Twilight have each other. My sister and brother have Caramel and Fluttershy, but I don't have anypony. On top of that, I'm told yesterday that I'm gonna’ live as long as you two and Princess Celestia. Am I gonna’ be alone the whole time?" Apple Bloom started to cry.
"Of course not dear." Luna told her. "There are always ponies around that may catch your eye. Or if you're looking for someone that will be as ageless as you, there are already two boys and three girls that will live as long as you."
Apple Bloom was trying to stop here tears. "I'm not into mares and the boys to choose from are babies or close to it." She argued.
"They won’t always be that way. They will grow up and then what?" Luna asked.
"But even if they look the same age as me, they'll still be a lot younger."
"Sweet heart. How old do you think I am?" Twilight asked.
"I don't know. Twenty seven?"
"Good guess. Now, can you tell me how old Princess Luna is?" Twilight asked her.
"Let me help you with that one. To be honest I've stopped counting but I'm over fifteen hundred years old. Do you think the age difference bothers us? We love each other regardless of how much distance there is, it'll be the same for you one day."
"While your thinking that over. Why don't you go back downstairs and apologize to your friends." Twilight suggested.
"Yes ma'am. I will." She said as she saluted and trotted off down the stairs.
Twilight rolled over and faced Luna. "So, Rarity and Spike are having problems?"
"That's what Sweetie Belle was saying. I have no reason to doubt her." She said.
"I wonder if this has anything to do with what happened with Discord yesterday?” Twilight speculated. “Having partial immortality dropped in your lap like that can be shocking and difficult to deal with. To be honest, I’m still having a problem with it."
“Why’s that? I’m an alicorn again, isn’t that what you wanted? On top of that, you are too and that means I never have worry about loosing you.” The Lunar Princess said.
“Luna, I’m overjoyed that you’ve been returned to normal. You have no idea how happy that makes me but you have to understand, four days ago we knew we were unicorns and now we know that in reality, four years ago you were changed back to normal and I was changed into an immortal alicorn. It’s a lot of responsibility. Do we to leave Ponyville and move to the castle now? Isn’t that where alicorns live?” Twilight asked, her voice full of concern.
"No dear, we can live wherever we want.” Luna told her. “I wish I could say that I understand what you’re going through but I've always been this way. Immortality is my natural state. Twilight, you helped me through a difficult time when I lost my wings and became mortal so I’m going to do whatever I can to help you discover everything there is to know about being an alicorn." Luna said.
Twilight kissed her mate. “I love you, you know that?”
“Yes, but I may need some convincing from time to time.” The midnight blue alicorn said with a smile. The two alicorns embraced each other again. Twilight rolled Luna on her back nibbling on her neck lightly. “Twilight, as much as love this, I don’t think I’m up for round two just yet.”
Twilight moved back to her side of the bed, pouting. “All right.”
Luna kissed her cheek. “Later my love, I don’t want you over exerting yourself.”
"Okay, later.” She said smiling.
Luna studied the reflective look on Twilight’s face. “Is everything okay dear?”
“There’s something still bothering me; Rarity and Spike were so happy together even though they knew that one day Rarity would pass on and maybe even Garnet too, leaving Spike alone.” The lavender alicorn said. “I thought they'd be overjoyed now, knowing that they would always be together."
"Immortality has its draw back as well dear. For some it means never having to leave behind the one you love." She said lightly kissing Twilight's cheek. "For others it can present certain problems."
"After what Apple Bloom said, I'm hesitant to think how the others are taking it." Twilight wondered.
"Well why don't we find out?" The Princess asked her.
"Now? But it's still early." Twilight argued. "Do you think any of them will be awake at this hour?"
"Oh, we won't be going in person. Ever since Discord said you were a true alicorn, I've wanted to teach you some new magic. This is a spell called astral projection." Luna explained. "You're physical form stays here but the spell allows your consciousness to go wherever you want."
"That sounds amazing. Lets try it!" Luna smiled at Twilight’s enthusiasm. “Oh, but what about the children?”
“They’ll be fine. Our minds may be traveling but we’re always tethered to our physical bodies. If they cryd out or if anypony came in the room, we would hear them and we can be back in an instant.”
Luna touched her horn to Twilight's. "I'll cast the spell first. Watch what I'm doing and be attentive of how the magic courses through our minds." Twilight watched as Luna’s magical energy swirled and formed, tracking through both their minds. "Now concentrate hard on a pony or place." The first thing to come to Twilight's mind was Pinky Pie. She felt a light tug on her mind and abruptly she found Luna and herself floating in Pinky's bedroom at Sugar Cube Corner.
Twilight was surprised by the change of environment. 'Oh no, they can see us. We're going to be in so much trouble.' She thought.
'It's okay Twilight. They can't see or hear us.' Luna told her.
'How did you know what I was thinking?' She asked the dark purple mare.
'On this plain, your thoughts are broadcast as loud as your voice. There are no secrets here.' Luna explained.
Below them, Pinky Pie and Braeburn were snuggled close in Pinky's bed. "Are you sure about this Braesy?" Pinky asked the amber colored stallion.
"Sure as shootin’ Pinks." He said, blowing some of his tussled blond mane out of his face. "I always wanted to find me a fun lovin’ mare to settle down with and I got tackled by just the right filly." Braeburn kissed her on the nose. "Whaddaya’ say Pinky? Will you be my mare forever and ever?
Pinky grabbed his Stetson hat from the bedpost and pulled it tight over her poofy pink mane. "Forever!" She said as she dived under the blankets slowly crawling towards Braeburn.
Luna looked at Twilight with a blush across her face. ‘Dear, I think we should be going. Unless you want to stick around and watch for a little while.'
Twilight's blush deepened. 'What? No, we really should be going.' Twilight concentrated hard. She felt another tug in her mind and found themselves in Rainbow Dash's bedroom. 'Are we always going to pop up in somepony's bedroom?'
'At this time of morning, most likely.' Luna thought with a smile on her face. Rainbow Dash and Soarin were snuggled in her cloud bed. Dash was sleeping soundly but Soarin was lying in bed watching her sleep.
Lightly kissing her ears he gently woke her. "Morning Apple Pie." He whispered.
Rainbow Dash smiled and snuggled closer, wrapping her wings around him. "It's too early. More sleep please."
"But Dash, if you don't wake this early all the time, you won’t be able to join the rest of us Wonderbolts."
The cyan blue pegasus came swiftly awake. "Wonderbolts?"
"That's right. I talked to Spitfire and the Commanding Officer. They said they'd be happy for you to join us." Soarin announced.
Rainbow Dash slowly slid out of bed and suddenly bolted to the bathroom. The sounds of vomiting came from the other room and after a while they heard the toilet flush. After composing herself, she walk back into the bedroom. “Oof, I hate throwing up.”
“Are you okay?” Soarin asked.
“Yeah, I’m fine, I guess dinner last night didn’t sit well with me.” She said. Rainbow Dash brushed her hair back with her left front hoof. "Soarin; babe, I wished you hadn't talked to Spitfire without talking to me about it first." She said, trying to control her frustration.
“Dashy?” He said with concern.
“You had not right to do that. I hate it when ponies make decisions for me, my parents used to do that and it ticked me off.”
"Why are you so upset, I thought this was what you always wanted Rainbow?" Soarin was baffled.
"Babe, how do I put this in plain words? To you and the others I may be a real member of the Wonderbolts but to me, I never would." She explained.
'I don't think I've ever heard Rainbow Dash talk so eloquently.' Twilight thought.
'Shh, I think it's about to get really good.' Luna returned.
"I don't understand." Soarin confessed.
"I've wanted to be a Wonderbolt for as long as I could remember. I've chased that dream my entire life. To have someone just hoof it to me cheapens that. If I don't earn it for myself, it won’t be worth anything." Rainbow Dash laughed. "Listen to me. I don't think I've been this serious, ever."
"Well,” he said smiling at her. "If you won’t accept that proposal, how about this one?" Soarin pointed out the bedroom window. Outside in the middle of the early blue sky, the rest of the Wonderbolts had spelled out in giant cloud letters "Will you marry me, Rainbow Dash?"
Rainbow Dash flew out the window so fast the airfoil she created pulled Soarin out of the bed and dropped him on the cloud floor of her bedroom. Outside the window, Dash took a sharp turn up into the sky then flipped around and rocketed toward the ground. Soarin stood at the window and watched Dash fly faster and faster until her speeding form broke the sound barrier creating a sonic rainboom. Soaring back into the sky with a long flowing rainbow streaking behind her, she dove beneath the giant cloud letters. Rainbow Dash flipped and twirled until she spelled out in beautiful rainbow script the simple response. “Yes!” Whirling around, she shot through the window and tackled Soarin back into the bed.
'I think that's our cue to leave. Who's next?' Luna asked. Twilight focused her magic again and the two alicorns appeared in Fluttershy's cottage.
'I decided to focus on a place more than a pony. Less embarrassing situations.' They were kept from any further thoughts by a soft crying they heard from upstairs. 'Oh no.' Twilight thought. 'I hope Fluttershy is okay.' They floated up through the floor into Fluttershy's bedroom and found that is what not Fluttershy crying, It was Big Macintosh.
'I must say; that's not something I would have expected.' Luna confessed.
Big Macintosh was curled up in Fluttershy's bed. The yellow pegasus was draped over his back, her wings wrapped around him. "I'm so sorry Macintosh. I never knew you felt that way." She said in her slow, metered way.
"No pony does. Everypony expects me to be the big strong pony. They take one look at me and they supposed that I was some cranky, stubborn, pigheaded stallion. I guess after a while I figured they were right." He said, trying to control his emotions. "Then you came along. Ever since that night when I was sick and you stood up to that bad attitude of mine, I've felt I can be myself around you. How can I ever thank you?"
"Marry me." She said plainly.
"What? I mean, are you sure?" He asked.
"Well." She blushed. "You asked what you could do to thank me. I can't think of anything I'd want more."
Big Macintosh rolled over and wrapped his hooves around her. "Of course, yes!" Fluttershy seemed to melt in the red stallion’s hooves. She looked like she was in heaven and her face was the picture of perfect bliss.
'That's so sweet.' Luna thought. Abruptly, Luna found herself in the barn next to the Apple Family homestead. She looked over at a smiling Twilight. 'That was unexpected. You could have warned me.'
'Yes, I could have warned you but I wanted to leave quickly. The last pony I'd want to spy on is Fluttershy.' Twilight thought.
'Another question is why are we in a barn? I figured if Applejack were our next stop we'd be in the house.' As if to answer Luna's question, the two mares heard a crash from the loft above them. They floated up through the floor and were extremely shocked at what they found.
"Is that all you got Caramel? You hit like a filly!"
Caramel was furious. His cheeks burned red as her charged across the loft, tackling Applejack into a stack of hay bales. "You're pinned! Give up!" He yelled at her.
"Never!" Applejack head butted him in the face.
Caramel staggered back a little and that gave Applejack the opportunity to buck him across the loft. The stallion landed hard against the floor and skidded to a stop. He slowly got to his hooves and faced the mare. Blood dripped from his nose as he charged her again. This time, just before he hit, he flipped around and bucked her hard into the stack of hay bales. Before Applejack could get up, Caramel tackled her and kept her shoulders pinned to the ground with his front hooves. "Stop struggling! You're pinned good and proper, now answer the darn question!"
"Of course I'll marry ya’." She said before reaching her head up and kissing her stallion.
Caramel was the first to break the kiss. "Applejack, why did you make me do that? I really didn't like it." He asked her.
"I'm sorry sugar but I had to know. It's stupid, I know, but I had to know you'd fight for me." She confessed.
"What?! That doesn't make any sense. Why would you want me to beat you up before you could agree to be my mare?"
"Sugar, I can be a might stubborn about a lot of things. If I'm gonna’ have you as my stallion than I need to know that you can stand up to me when I'm bein’ as dense as an anvil. Ask Rainbow Dash, she'll tell you about all sorts of arguments and wraslin’ matches we've had about one little disagreement or another. If you're gonna’ be with me I need to know you can hold your own."
"And what's the verdict?" He asked.
"Sweetie, you could give Rainbow Dash a run for her bits." Applejack tried to get to her hooves but found it a little difficult. Caramel helped to prop her us so she could stand. "I think you bruised a rib or somethin’."
"Sorry bout that. Here, let me help you back to the house. You should probably soak in a hot tub. I'll make breakfast for both us." Caramel smiled.
"You are definitely a keeper darlin’." Applejack said, kissing his cheek.
Luna and Twilight watched the couple make their way down from the loft. 'That was weird.' Twilight thought. 'Do you hear that Luna? It sounds like crying but I can't find where it's coming from.'
Luna listened for a second then smiled at Twilight. 'If I'm not mistaken, that crying would be two foals at the library wondering where their breakfast is.' The lavender alicorn concentrated hard and found herself back in her body at the library.
Twilight stretched on the bed after being in the same position for an hour. "Could you bring them over Luna? I'm feeling a little weak from all the projection."
Luna used her magic to pick up the twins from the cradle. "There there darlings, no need to cry." She floated the two foals down to the bed next to Twilight's abdomen. After searching around for a bit they found their mother's teats.
"Ooof. That's going to take some getting used to." Luna returned to the bed and laid herself down behind Twilight.
Luna watched their babies feeding. "Oh Twilight, aren't they just adorable? I’ll never forget the day they were born.”
“Trust me, neither will I.” Twilight said. Both ponies broke out into laughter. "Twilight. Uhm. There was something I wanted to ask you."
"What is it Luna? You know you can ask me anything."
"All of our friends we've visited this morning have proposed to one another. They're all getting married. I was wondering if you'd put any more thought into it?" Luna asked her nervously.
"Well, yes, I have thought about it." Twilight admitted. "I mean, I gave birth to our babies and while I never intend on leaving you, it would be nice to make it official. I didn't want to push the issue, I mean; I was the one who suggested we wait till after the birth. I figured we’d talk about it eventually."
"Twilight, I’m asking you now." Luna said nuzzling her lover's cheek. "Marry me. I want you to be the mare I spend my whole life with." Twilight’s eyes began to fill with tears of happiness. She had expected one day to marry the love of her life but she never expected it to affect her so powerfully. Luna kissed the tears on her lover’s cheeks. “Hey, don’t cry.” She said softly.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to cry. Yes,” she said, nodding her head. “Yes, I’ll marry you. You’re the only pony for me and I can’t think of anything I’d want more than to spend the rest of my life in you’re hooves.” Twilight wiped the tears from her face. “On one condition though, if we ever decide to have another foal, you carry it."
"Agreed." The two foals had finished feeding and were trying to stand. They flopped back down on top of each other and yawned. "Spike and Rarity should be up. I think we should go see what we can do for them. Also, I kind of promised my sister we'd stop by with the foals this afternoon. Sorry I didn't say anything earlier."
"That's okay dear. If you want to get them ready to travel, I'm going to take a shower." Twilight said as she headed for the bathroom. Without Luna to detain her in the hot water, Twilight's shower didn't take long. When she came out to the bedroom she could hardly keep herself from laughing. Luna had loaded a set of saddlebags with food, blankets, drinks and other sundries. In another pair she had placed the foals with a blanket in each of the two bags.
"What?" Luna asked. "We don't have a bassinet or anything. How else are we supposed to bring them?"
"No, it's fine." She giggled. "They look so cute in their bags. I'll carry the food if you want to carry the twins."
"Well, you carried them for eleven months. I suppose it's only fair." Luna and Twilight strapped on the saddlebags. Before they left the library, Luna looked to each side behind her to make sure the foals were secure and snug.
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Luna knocked on the door to the Carousel Boutique. After a short wait, Sweetie Belle opened the door. "Your majesties!" She said surprised. Sweetie Belle snapped smartly to attention.
"It's okay Belle, this is a social visit." Luna reassured her.
"Oh, well please come in." Sweetie Belle held the door open for them as they entered the store. "Where's Apple Bloom?"
"I've dismissed her for the afternoon, her sister was slightly injured this morning so I thought it best she help out around the farm, Twilight and I will be fine for a while."
"Okay." Belle led the two mares up the stairs and into the private apartment. "Is there something I can help you with?" She asked them.
"Is Garnet around?" Twilight asked.
"Yes, he's in his room. Do you want me to get him?"
"No, that's okay." Luna and Twilight walked to the little colt’s room and tapped on the door. Gently pushing the door open, they found the purple colt reading a book that Twilight had given him.
"Aunt Twilight, Aunt Luna. Why are you here?" He asked. "Is this because mommy and daddy are fighting?"
"Yes dear." Luna said. "But we're going to talk to them and sort it all out, I promise."
"While we're talking to your parents could you do us a favor and keep an eye on Dusk and Dawn for me?" Twilight asked him.
"Sure Aunt Twilight." The young unicorn colt said.
Luna floated the bags of her back and set them down beside Garnet. "You kids have fun. Belle let's go. I assume there in their bedroom?"
"Yeah." She said disheartened. "I'll go let them know you're here." Sweetie Belle walked back to Spike and Rarity's bedroom and gently tapped on the door. There was no answer. Sweetie Belle used her magic to quietly open the door and poke her head in. Rarity was sleeping alone in bed. Spike was curled up in a chair on the other side of the room. Sweetie Belle pulled her head out of the room and told Luna and Twilight what she saw.
"Okay, that's enough of this. Those two are too perfect for each other. I want to know what's going on." Twilight said as she walked into their bedroom. Walking over to the chair she nudged Spike until he woke up.
"Huh, wha...?" Spike rubbed his eyes. "Twilight, Princess, Sweetie Belle; what are you doing here?" He asked yawning.
"That's what I'd like to know." Rarity said after having been woken up by Sweetie Belle.
"We're here because we know you've been fighting and it's come to our attention that you're talking about splitting up. Is this true?" Twilight inquired.
"Your majesty, Twilight. We appreciate your concern but frankly dears I don't really see how it's any of your… Wait. How did you know what was happening?" Rarity asked.
Luna sat down next to a nervous Sweetie Belle. "Belle came crying to the library last night, very distraught. She told us you two had been fighting." Sweetie Belle had started to cry quietly.
"It's okay Sweetie Belle. We were uhm, just having a discussion last night that got a little heated. We're okay, I promise." Spike tried to reassure her.
"Spike's right dear, there's nothing to worry about." Rarity told her.
Sweetie Belle broke into uncontrolled weeping. She ran over and hugged Spike to her like a little doll. "I heard everything last night. I told the Princess I hadn't but I heard it all. I don't want you to break up. I don't want to lose you daddy!" Spike and Rarity were a little shocked at her statement. Sweetie Belle realized what she had said and ran crying from the room.
"I'll go after her. You three stay here and talk." Twilight said as she galloped after Sweetie Belle.
"Well, I'm waiting." Luna said.
"It's kind of personal and a little embarrassing to talk about." Spike informed her.
"Please Spike, there's nothing you could possibly say that would surprise me."
"We were arguing because I found out that I'll never be able to make love to Rarity." Spike said bluntly.
Rarity walked over and sat next to the little dragon. "I tried to explain that it didn't matter to me that I loved him anyway. But he wouldn't hear of it." She said, stroking his back with her hoof.
"Because it does matter. I mean waiting for a year or five is one thing but never? And by never I mean never, forever. I don't know if I can deal with that. I love you so much Rarity but the knowledge of never being able to share that kind of love with you ever again is hard to accept."
Rarity hugged her little dragon lover close to her. "Oh Spike. I love you too."
"How did you come by this knowledge Spike?" Luna asked him.
"I was in the library after Discord vanished and was checking on a few things when I ran across a book on dragon development. According to the book, one dragon year is three pony years. Discord said we'd age till we were thirty-six but while I'd be thirty-six in pony years as a dragon I'd only be the equivalent of a twelve year old. Dragons aren't capable of breeding until they're at least fourteen. In other words, I'll never be old enough to breed with means never being able to share that moment with Rarity ever again."
"There are other ways of physically expressing your love for one another. I'm sure Rarity's explained that." Luna said. "There's something else isn't there?"
"What am I going to tell Garnet?" He said, the tears starting to swell in his emerald eyes. Spike adopted a mocking tone. "Hey kid. Not only am I your dad but while you are an adult your dad is always going to be a child."
"You may look like a child but your mind is much older. I'm sure Garnet will be old enough to understand one day darling."
"That's rich coming from you Rarity. You still haven't told Sweetie Belle that you're her mother!"
Outside the boutique, Twilight was finally able to catch up with distraught filly as she started to cross the bridge into the town square. "Belle, wait!"
Sweetie Belle stopped halfway across the bridge. Looking down into the water, she couldn't help but start to cry again. "Oh Twilight, I'm afraid I've ruined everything." She said.
"Why would you even think that? Is it because you called Spike, daddy?"
"Because I said something I shouldn't have. Now Rarity is going to be mad at me."
"I don't understand Belle. You'd better start at the beginning."
"Okay. About a year ago, Rarity got a package in the mail from Canterlot while she and Spike were at a show in Philydelphia. The box was too small to be dress materials and I guess curiosity got the better of us so Scootaloo and I opened it. Inside was a letter and a bunch of random stuff, mostly pictures and medical files."
"What did the letter say?"
Sweetie Belle reached into her bandana and pulled a folded piece of paper and photograph out and hoofed it to Twilight. "I always keep these with me."
The photograph looked like Rarity but much younger holding a baby that looked surprisingly like Sweetie Belle. Twilight began to read the letter to herself. "That horrible mare!" Twilight shouted out. She took another look at the photograph. "But this means; Rarity is your mother. Why hasn't she told you? You shouldn't have had to find out like that."
"It's okay Twilight. I’ve had Scooty and Apple Bloom to help me deal with it over the last year. I’ve realized that it must have been hard for Rarity all these years but I figured she'd tell me when she was ready."
"Come on Belle. We should go back inside. I'm sure everything will be fine. Luna has a way of smoothing things over."
Back in Spike and Rarity's bedroom the conversation had taken an odd turn. "Wait, wait, wait. Back that hay wagon up a bit. Belle is your daughter?"
“Yes, yes she is.” The white unicorn confessed.
“I’m sorry Rarity, I didn’t mean to raise my voice.” Spike said, comforting his mate.
“It’s alright Spike, you’re right, I should have told her years ago.” Rarity said.
“Okay, what is going on?” Luna asked, confused about the recent turn of events. “Spike, how long have you known about this?”
“Pinkie told me, back when I was a pony.” He said. “I’ve been trying to get Rarity to tell her ever since but then Garnet came along and then the business with you and Twilight; I guess she got lost in the excitement of everything that was happening.”
“And the last three years?” The Princess asked.
“I didn’t know what to tell her. I don’t want her to hate me but I can’t see any way past it.” She said. “I’ve wanted to tell her; I wanted to hold her in my hooves and tell her I’m her mother and that I love her and that I’m sorry I lied to her for so long, but I just didn’t know how.”
"You could have tried that." Sweetie Belle said as she and Twilight returned to the room. “You could have just told me before I found out on my own. What did you hope to gain by hiding it from me?”
"I couldn’t. I was fifteen. If anypony knew they would have call FPS and taken you away from me.” Rarity cried. “I couldn’t let that happen so I lied, I lied to everypony.
“And the ponies that posed as my parents, who are they, really?” Sweetie Belle demanded.
“They’re my Aunt and Uncle. I told them that you were my sister as well. FPS showed up when you were two and they lied and claimed us as theirs. My uncle Carlton even called in a few favors at the hospital and had fake birth certificates made. No pony knew the truth except for Pinkie. I’m sorry Sweetie, I’m so, so sorry. I didn’t mean for this to happen. How did you find out?” She asked.
Belle dropped the letter she had been carrying for a year at Rarity's hooves. "Grandma told me but I'm sure she didn't mean to."
Rarity scanned the letter quickly; renewed tears of despair and disgust welled up inside her. She loathed her mother now more than ever before but she felt more disgust at herself. 'How could I do this to my own daughter?' Rarity looked at her daughter with unspoken regret on her face and tears pouring from her eyes.
Sweetie Belle ran across the room and hugged her mother tightly. Rarity broke down weeping again. "I'm so, so sorry my darling, I didn’t want them to take you away from me. I didn’t know what else to do. After so long I just wanted you to be happy, I didn't want to make things harder on you. I thought it would be easier this way. I'm so sorry I didn't tell you sooner. You should have heard it from me and not my ungrateful mother."
"Its okay, I forgave you months ago. I love you mom." The teenage unicorn said through tears of her own.
"I love you too my sweet, sweet angel."
Luna leaned down to Spike. "What are you doing over here? Go to them, your two girls need you right now. Don't worry, Twilight and I will do whatever we can to fix your problem." Luna nuzzled her little friend.
Spike ran over to Rarity and Sweetie Belle, doing his best to hug them both. "I love you both!"
"Can I still call you daddy?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Of course you can." Spike said giving her a fatherly kiss on the cheek.
Luna and Twilight sat there watching the happy family. "I hate to leave, but we should really be going. We have an appointment with Celestia and we don't want to be late." Twilight commented.
"If there's anything we can do for you, please ask.” Luna said. “Spike, please be patient. Twilight and I will do everything we can for you."
"You got it Princess Luna; and thank you. Thank you for everything."
"Do you need an escort?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"We'll be fine. When we arrive in Canterlot, I'm sure Celestia will insist that my old guard follow me everywhere. Until I return, you and the other crusaders are on vacation, make the most of it." Luna said with a wink.
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Twilight and the Princess had collected the foals and were on their way toward the edge of town. "Should we check in on Lyra and Bonbon?" Luna asked.
"I'd really like to but I don't want to be late for our appointment with Princess Celestia." Twilight said as they passed the northeast marker of the town's border.
"We can always peek in on them later." Luna giggled. "Hey, isn't that Ditzy's house up ahead, the one that looks like a big mailbox? I don't usually approach it from the ground."
"Yeah, it is. I guess we could stop and say hi since it's on our way." Twilight offered.
Luna and Twilight were rounding the corner leading to Ditzy's home when Twilight noticed something happening in the back yard. "What's that?" She asked indicating the blue rectangular object rising into the sky.
"That's the Doctors machine. I think he calls it the TARDIS." Luna explained. The two mares watched the TARDIS rise higher and higher into the sky until they were blown back a good four feet by the thunderous explosion of the machine. Twilight and Luna dropped to the ground and shielded the foals as they tried to come to grips with what had just happened.