25 years after Twilight’s coronation
That filly reminded Twilight so much of herself before she met her friends; before she went to Ponyville. She was also quite good at magic, definitely above the average unicorn. Those were one of the reasons Twilight had taken her as her student, just like Celestia did for her before. She hadn't known yet if she’d make her an alicorn, and thus a princess of Equestria. Although she still didn’t know if she should. She wasn’t Celestia’s first student, but she sure was the first to become an alicorn. That showed Celestia didn’t just make anyone a princess. No matter, Celestia left her in charge, and she had to make her own decisions. She would have loved to think about this more, but it was getting harder to ignore the annoying rambling in the background.
Twilight sighed after hearing yet another complaint from one of Equestria’s citizen. She loved helping her subjects, but sometimes their requests were simply ridiculous. She was sitting on her throne as a brown stallion, an earth pony, who looked like a farmer was telling his life story.
“So you see, my crops don’t grow without water, and I need that food before winter! It has been several weeks since it last rained, so… could you make it rain or something?” The farmer asked as Twilight deadpanned.
“Did you try watering them yourself? You know… with a watering can?” She asked as the farmer just stared at her in curiosity. Suddenly, he smiled and his eyes sparkled.
“I didn’t even think about it! Thank you, Princess! You’re great!” He rejoiced as he happily trotted away. The guards closed the door behind him, still looking as serious as ever.
“Did Princess Celestia really have to do this every day for over a thousand years? I’m already tired of it after two decades,” She mumbled as she looked at Spike. Without surprise, the dragon was sleeping while standing. That farmer talked over an hour for an issue so simple. She hoped her friends at least didn’t have any trouble dealing with boredom. Then again, she was the only one who had to sit on a big chair for days.
“Princess, you have another visitor,” One of the guard said, waiting for a response.
“Let them in,” She sighed, hoping it wasn’t her parents again. She liked seeing them, but they just wouldn’t stop asking when she would find a special somepony. Fortunately, it was someone else.
“Hello, Princess!” Luster Dawn greeted happily as the guards let her enter. Her voice immediately brought a smile to Twilight’s face as she flew off her throne and landed in front of Luster Dawn.
“My dear student, I am overjoyed to see you!” Twilight smiled as they hugged each other. “Did you come here to talk about the progress you made?”
“Yes, I wanted to see you, so I came here directly instead of writing a letter. I hope I’m not bothering you,” Luster Dawn fretted; however, Twilight laughed and put a leg around her neck.
“Of course, you aren’t! I’m always happy to receive my favorite student!”
“I’m your only student, Princess,” Luster Dawn giggled as Twilight smiled sheepishly.
“Come, let’s go to the terrace, I am sure you have a lot to say. I will have some tea prepared,” Twilight said as Luster nodded, ready to follow her. The Princess turned to look at her dragon friend, “Take care of things here for me, Spike,” She added before going to the doors behind her throne, towards one of the towers of the castle. Meanwhile, the dragon fell on the floor, snoring.
The Princess and her student walked through the long corridors of the Royal Castle, which the young unicorn had always liked. She had thought, since she was only a filly, that it was a magnificent architectural construction. She had never imagined she would be allowed to walk here one day; however, ever since she became the Princess’ student, it became a habit to be here. She felt like it was an honor. Of course, Princess Twilight always told her she deserved all of it. It was only the results of her hard work and her accomplishments as her pupil.
Finally, after a whole minute of walking, the Princess and the student arrived at their usual spot, where a table and two chairs awaited them. As always, the terrace was bathed in the bright usual sunlight. Before Luster Dawn could walk to her seat, Twilight shot a beam of magic at the table. A flashing light blinded the unicorn for a couple of seconds, and she was expecting to open her eyes to a sight of destruction; however, there were two cups of teas instead! She opened her mouth in awe as she ran to them and inspected what seemed to be a spell she didn’t know about.
“That’s incredible, Princess! How did you do that?” She inquired, climbing on her seat with shaking legs as Twilight sat on the second one.
“Magic,” Twilight replied with a sheepish smile. Luster Dawn just stared at her, before cracking a smile, which quickly turned into a laugh. Soon enough, the Princess joined in, too. It took several seconds until their laughter died down, and Twilight took a sip of her tea. “This reminds me of so many memories,” She whispered to herself as she swallowed the warm beverage. “Anyways, how are your friend-making skills evolving?”
“Well… I’d say it’s good. Your song certainly helped a lot! You were right, friends are fantastic…” She answered hesitantly, before looking down. Twilight raised an eyebrow, very well recognising that look.
“But…?” It seemed to be enough to encourage Luster Dawn to continue.
“Well… Sometimes, we argue and it’s annoying… Because it’s for something petty… Or we don’t have the same interests and they never want to do an activity I love!”
“Such as…”
“Playing chess. It’s fun! What’s wrong with it? I mean, you move pieces of wood across a flat piece of wood, with the goal to crush your enemy’s troops! It’s so exciting!” Luster explained as she levitated the cup of tea to her mouth.
“I understand your frustration, but having different interests and hobbies is normal among friends. I am pretty sure one of your friends would want to play a game they love, but can’t because none of you want to. Besides, have you tried doing what the others want? You may end up liking it,”
“No, I didn’t really try… I guess I will, but I’m pretty sure it won’t beat chess,” Luster replied.
“Did you learn anything new today?”
“Trying to plan a party with the help of a book is a bad idea,” Luster Dawn giggled embarrassingly.
“One of the most important lessons of all! And let me tell you now. It is the same for sleepovers,” Twilight laughed.
She loved these moments with her student. It was a time where she could relax and laugh, have a good time with someone she considered a good friend. She felt like she was having a relationship similar to the one she had with Princess Celestia. As time passed, she learned more and more how Princess Celestia felt when she was teaching her. Seeing her pupil learn new spells and explore the true meaning of friendship brought great pride in her, and even reassured her. She had always feared she would be bad as a teacher. That she would make a mistake which would ruin everything she had built with her.
Although Luster Dawn was very similar to her when she was younger, she did have more difficulties with learning the magic of friendship. It came off as something strange to her, and she didn’t spend as much time with her friends as Twilight did in her time. Then again, she didn’t have to fight multiple forces of evil, and the situations that put her in a position of leader were rare. All the requirements weren’t met yet for Twilight to make her a princess and gift her with alicornhood. However, she wasn’t worried; she believed in her prized pupil.
Time passed quickly, quicker than Twilight realised, maybe because of her immortality? At last, a decade after Luster Dawn started learning the magic of friendship, she finally did it. She finally showed all the qualities of a ruler, a princess. Twilight was so excited to gift her with what she deserved, and proud to witness the birth of another princess! Fortunately, Celestia had taught her how it had to be done. Due to the different circumstances, Twilight had to talk to Luster Dawn first, and announce her the good news. She was sure her student would be overjoyed!
“I refuse,”
“Y-You whaaa… you what?” Twilight asked, surprise and shock all over her face, not even knowing what to say or how to react. “I-I think I heard you wrong,” She stuttered.
“You didn’t Princess,” Luster Dawn replied as she placed her hoof on her chest. The unicorn had grown and became an adult mare, now letting her mane down. Not only this, but her horn and her legs had gotten slightly longer. “I am deeply honored that you would make such an offer. You’ve already done so much for me, and taught more than anypony ever did. I could never repay that debt,”
“You don’t need to repay any-”
“I know, but this feeling won’t go away that easily,” Luster Dawn snickered. “To think that now, you would give me something as great as alicornhood… I have no words. However, I’ve never wanted to be a princess or be a powerful unicorn. I really don’t care about these things,” She added as Twilight remained silent, waiting for her to finish. “But I don’t want to live for centuries. My wedding is next week; I’ve found somepony I love, and we’ll even have a family together. My life is complete, and I’m happy with it!” Luster smiled as Twilight sighed, before smiling, too.
“I see… I understand. If it’s your choice, then I’ll accept it. I’m proud of you.” Twilight replied as Luster ran to her as they hugged each other.
“I’m sorry… You will come to my wedding, right?”
“Of course, I will, my student. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
True it didn’t go as she planned, but at least her student had grown to be a responsible and respectful adult. She was a bit disappointed that Luster refused her offer, but she couldn’t really blame her. If Twilight had the choice at the time and was engaged… maybe she would have refused it, too. Not that it mattered now, a long time had passed since she ascended. She couldn't do anything about it.
The wedding went as planned, smoothly and with no issues. There was no evil changeling queen to interrupt it. Although Luster Dawn stopped being her student and followed a new path that life had to offer. Of course, just because she didn’t learn new spells or friendship lessons, didn’t mean she didn’t have anything else to learn from Twilight. The Princess had always been by her side when she needed her. She still had some useful advices, although she couldn’t give any concerning her marriage since Twilight herself had never been in a relationship before.
Years passed by and wrinkles added themselves on Luster Dawn’s face as time moved forward. No matter how strong her magic grew, her body became more and more fragile. Twilight wasn’t surprised of course. It was the natural course of life, and all would end like this at some point. However, knowing this didn’t make things any easier.
Finally, 63 years passed since Twilight took Luster as her student. Her end was closely approaching. The Princess softly landed in front of the large Canterlot Hospital and stepped in. Without any surprise, the ponies around stood mouth agape as they stared at their ruler. She couldn’t really blame them, even though these looks were unsettling; she was used to it. She already knew where she was going, and it didn’t take her more than several seconds to come in front of a door. Just as she was about to knock, a unicorn dressed as a doctor came out of the room.
“Oh, Princess! You’re here! Her family just came out a few minutes ago. I guess you want to see her, too,” He said as Twilight nodded. “Then please, come in. I will leave the two of you alone… I am afraid… she doesn’t have much time anymore,” He said before bowing his head, and walking away.
Twilight lit her horn and opened the door before entering the room. The very first thing she saw was Luster Dawn in her bed. The mare had changed so much since Twilight met her, she was barely recognisable; however, The Princess would never forget anyone. She walked to her bed, seeing her features up close. Her face was filled with wrinkles and her mane had become grey while her coat lost some of its color.
“P-Princess?” Luster asked as she looked into Twilight’s eyes. “I am happy to see you…”
“I had to come; I wouldn’t leave you alone in a time like this,”
“Too bad we aren’t taking any tea now. I miss those moments... when I look at you, it’s as if no time has passed,” Luster Dawn snickered as Twilight gave her a small smile. “How is your new student doing?” She inquired.
“He is learning fast, but he’s still not as good as you yet,” The Princess answered, keeping her lips curved upward.
“I certainly hope not, or else it would have meant I was a really bad student!” Luster Dawn laughed, before going into a coughing fit. Twilight’s smile dropped as the Princess looked away. Luster Dawn sighed. “I am sorry to make you live through this again, Princess. You’ve already lost so many friends,”
“It’s not your fault. Ponies don’t choose to end like this, and you can’t be blamed just because your life… comes to an end,” Twilight bit her lower lip, looking away before locking eyes with Luster’s again. “I can save y-”
“I know you want this for my own good. But the answer I gave you all those years ago was my final… I won’t change my mind. I can’t,” Luster Dawn interrupted, smiling sadly at the Princess. “You know… I told my family to go because I didn’t want them to see me leave, but I had to see you… one last time. I’ve known you for almost my whole life, and you’ve been by my side all this time, guiding me every step of the way. I’ve thought, since I was only a foal, that I would dedicate my whole life to magic and forget about other ponies. They just weren’t my concern… But thanks to you and your friends, I thought “what if I tried? Just once to make a friend, go outside or talk to somepony” and I did. Now… I have a family of my own… My foals became adults and expanded this family even more… Without you, I would have never known what it is like to be loved by so many ponies,” Luster’s voice cracked as tears rolled down her eyes.
“It was all you, I just encouraged you. Everything you’ve accomplished so far was because you persevered and never gave up,” Twilight said gently.
“Even now...“ Luster Dawn started, before going silent. She stared into Twilight’s eyes. “I want you to be here, Princess. The truth is… I am so scared of what might happen if I close my eyes. I-I don’t want to be alone,” She cried; however, a comforting hoof was placed upon hers. She looked towards the Princess, who was holding her caringly.
“It’s alright. I’ll stay here until it’s over.” Twilight whispered as Luster Dawn stopped crying.
She closed her eyes, and even if she could only see endless darkness; there was no cold. Only the warm feeling of the one that stayed by her side during all those years and which still did even now. Finally, her light died down in peace.