//------------------------------//
// Chapter 10 - Three Months Later; Love 
// Story: Twilight Daylight 
// by thedarktome 
//------------------------------//

Out of pure paranoia, the Princesses had stuck to their word and increased the military presence around the city of Cloudsdale, while also making sure the Pegasi were living well without even knowing the possible threat that could be looming over their city. Keyword, could be. Although the princesses didn't want to admit it, Spike and Starlight had a point. Twilight was always one to get something done quickly, not wait around. So waiting for five months for an attack that was more than likely not going to happen were hindering them from doing other things.

It's been five months since Twilight put up her hat on Equestria, ran away with the Element of Magic, and making Equestria useless against the villains such as Discord, Tirek, Chrysalis—even though the Elements were never used on her—and more. Equestria has been silent and calm, peaceful as they could be. Although guilt was still being shared around the table. Such as at the apples where everyone who were friends with the Elements were currently situated. They were spaced out, making idle conversation to avoid the inevitable one.

From atop a bundle of hay with a bored Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy whimpered, "Where do you think she might be? I mean, there's nowhere else to go but Equestria, Zebrica, The Dragon Lands, and the Griffins."

"I don't know, sugarcube," Applejack answered. Her eyes were trained on Starlight tossing around an apple with Trixie. "But it sure isn't looking well right now. Equestria is kept under the radar and Hearth's Warming is coming up. And Twilight ain't gonna be here because... Of us."

"Because of you guys," Starlight clarified. "You guys made her run away. Me and Trixie weren't even around when she was... 'Crowned'."

"So we're not to blame," Trixie added. "And to be honest, I was really REALLY surprised when I came here and heard 'Princess Twilight' over and over again. I was like 'Who's Princess Twilight,' and they were all, 'Princess Twilight Sparkle, Celestia's protege.' I got really confused, but I rolled with it anyway."

Rainbow Dash sighed and asked obviously annoyed, "Why are you two even here?"

"Because Twilight's my mentor."

"And she's Trixie's friend."

"We couldn't push 'em away if we tried Rainbow," Applejack admitted.

Pinkie's head popped out of a bundle of hay and yelled, "Does Twilight not know how much of a rut we are in right now because she simply LEFT?!" She popped a balloon to emphasize her point. "There's uncertainty among the Equestrian royalty! The Elements are out of service! We stopped all trade!!!"

"Pinkie, what in Celestia's name are you goin' on about?" Applejack asked. Pinkie grabbed Applejack's face and pulled it into her own.

"We. Are. All. On. Edge. We. Need. TWILIGHT!!" She let her go and looked at everyone else. "Nopony wants to party! They're all too sad to even leave their homes! We're stuck here on our flanks helpless while a crazy mare stole a weapon and is doing who knows what with it!"

"Pinkie, calm down," Starlight said, taking a bite out of an apple and tossing a few bits to Applejack. "Twilight isn't that irresponsible, I'm sure that she's doing something amazing right now."

"YEAH, THAT COULD KILL US ALL!!"



Twilight was doing the exact opposite. Having completed the Early Detection System for Psera a month in advance, there was another thing on her mind that she thought needed some fair attention. It's something that every place needed that was full of ponies ready to kick back and relax after a long year of work.

"A fair," she muttered in her room. Pacing back and forth helped her come up with ideas. "A fair, a fair, a fair... Or at least a day to relax."

"What you goin' to fix now?"

"I'm trying to figure out what to do during the winter solstice here. I want to do a—wait, who's in here?!" She whipped around and spotted Merry sitting on her bed, staring accusingly at her crown sitting on her bedside dresser not too far away.

"What does this even do?" She asked. Lifting a hoof, she poked it a few times. "My brother said it's a weapon. Just looks like a bunch of fake jewelry."

"What?!" Arcadia trotted over to the crown and picked it up, presenting it to the sky like it was the best plate of food in the world. "This is not fake! This has defeated so many villains that—"

"Yeah yeah yeah, I already heard that from King Butt. It needs more jazz!" Arcadia stared at her blankly, completely not getting it. Merry groaned and rolled her eyes. "It needs to be more fashionable. It doesn't need to be on a crown, it needs to be on a shirt or something! Our riches and gold are embedded in our clothing! If you're gonna be a part of the royal family, you need to look the part!"

"Merry, I appreciate it, but it's... You really want us to get married, don't you?" Arcadia asked, finally catching onto what she said.

Merry flipped her orange mane. Then glanced both ways before nodding. "Yeah! You would be a great addition to our family! And not just because you're smart, brainy, and a nimrod—"

"Why do ponies keep calling me that?"

"—but because you managed to pull in King Butt. THAT alone is a huge accomplishment! Mom would definitely wanna meet you. She's heard about the Alicorn-Pseratep who's been running around restoring Psera, but she doesn't know that they've also made a miracle happen! Drawing in my brother!"

Arcadia sighed and flopped down next to Merry. "So... Does she want to meet me?"

"It's always polite to meet your spouse's parents, nimrod, come on!" Merry knocked Arcadia in the head, making her yelp. "I mean if I were dating you, I'd say, 'take me to your father!'"

"Would you really?" She replied with a smirk.

"Maybe, maybe not, we're not dating so I don't know. Point is you're in a very committed relationship and you gotta look the part. So I'm going to take this crown..." She snatched the crown out of Arcadia's hoof. "And I'm going to make it look so much better. You copy?"

"Merry, No! I don't know what will happen if the Element is separated from the crown!" She snatched the crown back out of her hooves and gave her a glare. "So I will not be taking this out! I don't even think it's possible, considering the gem was made with the crown... I think... I don't know, look! If you want to make me something, then just make a dress."

"A dress huh?" Merry muttered. Her expression held an untrustworthy smirk. Add that to her humming in thought, and we have an issue.  "Would you like a lot of gold on it?"

"Yeah, sure do whatever. Now, I'm thinking of giving the Pserateps a chance to relax and have fun in their restored land. Are there any events here?" 

Merry nodded her head eagerly. "The Solstice Parties. On the day of every solstice, we have a nationwide party where everyone dances, eats, talk, and host the Massive Firework."

"The... Massive Firework?" Arcadia repeated. "What's that?"

"It's exactly what it sounds like. It's a huge firework that can be seen from two hundred miles away! The soldiers fly up and throw it over two hundred thousand feet in the air, before it stops....and blows. Creating the most loudest of bangs you'll ever hear and the most fabulous of light shows!"

Arcadia just stared at her open mouthed. These ponies were becoming more and more unbelievable. They didn't know about Magic, and didn't even know they could walk on clouds, but could create a bomb that could be seen from two hundred miles away?!

"That's... Amazing!" Arcadia exclaimed.

"I know. Now, when are you gonna tie the knot?" Arcadia groaned and facehoofed. "I think my brother deserves a mare just like you to dress him up and make him look good. Mother would say so too."

Arcadia removed her hoof from her face and turned to her in interest. "Who's your mother?"

"Her Majesty Molten Ice. The past ruler of Psera for centuries. She barely comes out 'The Castle in The Castle,' the top floor here, ever since the Ursa Major attacked. I visit every now and then to check on her and make sure she's not dead or anything. If you want to meet her, go up to her floor, knock on the door, and say this." She cleared her throat before Arcadia's voice. "'I'm Arcadia! I'm dating your peanut brain of a son!' She'll open the doors wide open for ya'."

"You're joking."

Merry chuckled and shook her head. "Nope! She loves Madun, but he wasn't always so smart. Just a butt. So she calls him all types of names just to mess with him. But at the end of the day, she goes to his room, gives him a kiss, and says 'good job.'"

"Awww, so sweet—wait......how do you know about that?"

"Because he BRAGS to me about it!" Merry chuckled. "Now, I have more clothes to make." She sat up and hopped off the bed, making her way to the door in earnest.

"I didn't even know you could sew," Arcadia commented. She reached out to her nightstand and placed the crown back on the dresser before Merry peeked back in the room.

"Oh, I can do a lot of things. So can your boyfriend. Ask him about what he can do and you'll be really surprised. REALLY surprised. Now, I came up here for something. My brother wanted me to send you a message, but I can't remember what it was... Hmmmm." She put her hoof to her chin while she thought. "It had something to do with lunch."

Arcadia deadpanned, "Was it possibly a lunch date?"

Merry jabbed a hoof at Arcadia and confirmed loudly, "Yeah! Yeah, that's what it was! He said come down quickly! But we've been talking for like ten minutes now, so... Yeah."

"WHAT?!" Arcadia quickly ran in place before grabbing the crown she just set down and ran out the room.

"I'm gonna have to make you some dresses or something because that crown just ain't gonna work, girlfriend!" Merry yelled after her. 

Arcadia slipped and fell for a moment before jumping back up and yelling, "SURE!" Merry chuckled before closing Arcadia's door and continuing on her way. She had places to be.



King Madun popped another olive up into the air, preparing to catch it in his mouth when the dining hall doors slammed open. He jumped and the olive fell in his eye.

"Sorrysorrysorrysorrysorry!" Arcadia apologized quickly. She eagerly trotted across the long glossy floors around the table over to him and pecked his cheek. "Merry and I were having a conversation, and then she brought up some things, and we started going on and on and on and on and—"

"Twilight, it's fine," Madun chuckled, holding his eye. "I expected that, actually. Whenever Merry is sent to complete a task, she gets sidetracked in conversation that can take up to an hour of delay. It's perfectly normal... For her."

Arcadia pulled out a chair and sat down next to him, relief on her face. "Phew good. I thought you had left for your duties. This looks good."

"Yeah, just a fruit cocktail." He gestured to the bowl filled with cut fruits sitting in front of his girlfriend. "They smell good, but do they taste good?" He made a motion for her to try one.

Arcadia smirked before picking up her fork in her magic and eating a bit. After chewing, she smiled and nodded in approval. "It's really good! The juice is fantastic! Who made this, I need to thank them."

"He's sitting right here." Twilight stopped chewing and popped her eyes open in surprise. "I grew them, cleaned them, cut them up, and finally put them in a very righteous bowl that was only made for royalty to eat fruits out of."

Twilight chuckled before looking down at the bowl. "It's styrofoam, sweetheart."

"So what'd you and Merry talk about?" 

Arcadia rolled her eyes before answering his question. "Well, she wanted to put the Element of Magic in a shirt instead of my crown. I turned it down but I did say she could make a dress. She also mentioned that YOU have some hidden talents."

"I have a list. I can play the violin, cook, clean, aerobics, dance, and lead."

"IS THAT ALL?!" They both turned towards the door to see Merry walking briskly towards  them.

Madun dropped his head onto the table and pulled a jump out of Twilight. "Oh no," he groaned. Then ordered, "Merry, go somewhere. This is private time."

"There is so much more!... That I can't remember right now." Merry came to a stop beside Arcadia. "But there is one thing he's good at. Turning on the mares." Arcadia's eyes slowly got wider while she unfortunately continued. "He walks by a group of us gals and they all get a little frisky. So much so that they may start to leak and—"

"Merry, if you don't leave right now, so help me I will throw you out," Madun ordered.

"Ohhh, alright fine." Merry turned and made her way towards the door. "But hey! Watch other mares when he walks by, he's gonna make 'em—whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold on!"

Arcadia had gotten up and began pushing her out of the room. "You... Are trouble! Out out out!"

"Okay, okay! No need for this, jeez!" Arcadia pushed her past the doors, out into the hall, and closed them, once again leaving her and Madun alone.

"Okay... She's gone. Now we can—why are you making that face?" Madun was walking towards her with a half-lidded look and a small smile on his face. Definitely up to something. "What are you up to?"

"Ohhhhh nothing." He stopped in front of her and looked away while reaching underneath his wing.

"What is that? What are you—EEEP!" Madun had squirted a bunch of sauce on Arcadia's face. It dripped of her chin as she stared at him in disbelief.

He started laughing and pointed a hoof at her before she smirked and grabbed the bottle. "You wanna play like that, huh?" He stopped laughing and stared at his girlfriend's narrow eyed smile. "Well two can play that game."

"Oh no." She squeezed the bottle, spurting out the same sauce and hit his face. He doubled back and tried to run, making Arcadia give chase.

"Get back here Madun!" They chased each other all over the room until they faced off from opposite sides of the table. "Give it up, your majesty," she teased.

"A king never admits defeat!"

"Suit yourself." She teleported next to the king, making him gasp as she tackled him to the ground. "Give it up! I always—whoa!"

He flipped her over and looked down at her chuckling lightly. "Can I just say... You look beautiful with a messy mane."

Arcadia stopped resisting and smiled as he leaned down, catching her lips in his. She moaned into the kiss and wrapped her hooves around his neck, pulling them closer together as they made out for awhile.

Eventually, they broke for air, leaving Arcadia with a dreamy smile on her face. Along with some sauce all iver her body that got matted to their coats. He chuckled and walked over to his seat, grabbed something, and then walked back. "I should've given these to you earlier."

She glanced up and grinned, grabbing the bouquet of daffodils and bringing them to her nose, taking a big whiff. "They're beautiful. Thank you."

"You're welcome, Twi." He settled down next to her and nuzzled her sauce covered face. "Twilight... I... I love you."

She looked over to him and nuzzled his cheek. "And I love you too, Shimmering. I really do."



Later on Arcadia peacefully walked into her bedroom and softly shut the door behind her, completely missing the green mare grinning and watching her on her bed. She walked towards the window and created a vase of water, then placed the flowers inside. Sighing, she looked at them with a pleasant smile on her face, her head leaning on the windowsill in wonder.

"So I guess the lunch date went well... You know besides all the sauce on your face and... The rest of you."

"Yeaaaahhhh," she replied dreamily, still staring at the flowers. "You really need to stop bouncing in here whenever you want."

"Oh please!" Merry jumped off the bed and walked over to Twilight. "I walk into any room I want to around this castle."

"Your brother will definitely be putting you out." Arcadia turned around chuckling at the Merry's face. "You know it's true. Especially if you walk into his girlfriend's bedroom all the time. Now get out of here."

"Ugghhh, fine." She turned around and strode towards the door. "But I want details later on!"

"Yeah, sure. Just go so I can shower." Arcadia got up and headed for the bathroom. Once in the bathroom she took the crown off her head and placed in nearby to keep a close watch on it. She trusted the Pserateps, but Merry had strange motives.