Chapter Two
When the two arrived in the dining room, they found it already occupied by several of their friends and family members.
“Good morning,” Celestia greeted the pair warmly as Maxilla went to sit by Swift-Pad’s side, moving some food on his plate away and onto hers. “I see you got my message, Twilight.”
Twilight rolled her eyes, earning a laugh, but she ignored it. “Pass the pancakes, please.”
Food and conversation followed, and at one point, Twilight found the time to ask, “How’s the library doing?”
“Pretty quiet, actually,” Applejack said. “Flutters an’ Rarity an’ Ah’ve been keepin’ your personal rooms up for ya, an’ Amethyst Star’s taken over doin’ the actual librarian work when it’s needed. She’s lookin’ forward to lettin’ you have it back though.”
“I’ll make sure to thank her then,” Twilight said. “And to be honest, I have been looking forward to reorganizing my library.”
“That’s why I made sure to misplace as many books as I could before I came over here Twilight!” Pinkie giggled with Twilight snorting in laughter.
“You know what I like, Pinkie,” she said with a smile.
Rainbow Dash chuckled. “The more things change, the more they stay the same,” she said. “Still the same egghead on the inside.”
Twilight gave her a look, but couldn’t help but chuckle again. “Yeah… it’ll be a booksortcation all over again,” she said.
“A what?” Maxilla asked, confused.
“It’s where I basically shut myself up in my home, go through my entire book collection, sort and reshelve them,” Twilight said. “I find it fun and relaxing.”
“She used to do it all the time when she was living in the castle, or in her tower near here,” Celestia said. “I loved to watch her do it.”
Twilight Velvet, who was in her own spot at the table, nodded. “You weren’t the only one,” she said. “Watching her do it when she was a foal, I used to think she’d grow up to be an editor or a full-time librarian, before she enrolled in your school.”
“To watch the young at what they enjoy is an experience to be treasured,” Swift-Pad said as he took another helping of breakfast with Maxilla making a light tsk sound. “I only wish I had more time to do so.”
“On that, we agree,” Velvet told him and gave the she-wolf a nod of her head which Swift-Pad seemed to miss. “Though I wouldn’t count on it being too far away for you, Swift-Pad.”
Further conversation was delayed when a yawning Moondancer entered the room, with Tempest and Grubber right behind her, the hedgehog taking a seat next to Spike so the two could catch up some more. A bit later, Cadance came in as well, a cheery Sonata and a groggy Aria floating through the air next to her.
Once the latter had drunk almost an entire pot of coffee and begun to perk up, Twilight looked to her. “You know, I never did get to really talk with you two yesterday,” she said. “How…”
“Did we meet your sister-in-law?” Aria asked. “Simple, really. Your teacher here-” and she gestured to Celestia - “Came to where we were living when your friend Sunset called her for help, and she and Discord figured out what our old partner was up to. We ended up with a bit of a power transfer, and now Adagio’s stuck in detention for forever and I’m back here with my sister, learning what it’s like being the opposite side of Cady’s coin, if you know what I mean.”
Twilight nodded. “I see.”
“What’d she do?” Spike asked.
“Spread hate magic all over an entire school,” Aria said.
Velvet looked startled. “And she only got detention?”
“She’s also stuck in a place with no magic and can’t boss us around anymore,” Aria said. “I’d call that a fair punishment.”
“Point.” Velvet said, looking concerned which meant Twilight might need to ask questions so she could tell her mom.
"Can I ask a dumb question?" Sonata suddenly asked.
"Better than anyone I know," Aria snarked. Then she laid a hoof on her sister’s. “I’m kidding, ask away.”
“Well… if ‘Dagi’s got detention for everything she did, does that mean they’re going to make her come back and keep doing it after she graduates?”
Aria looked at her. “A worthy enigma, sis.”
“I am sure that by that point, they’ll have figured something else out,” Celestia said. “What, I do not know though I do expect Sunset will be able to keep us informed.”
Tempest shook her head. “Most of this is going right over my horn,” she said. “But I can think of a lot worse fates than in-school detention for the rest of a person’s life. Your old partner’s lucky she’s getting off as light as she is.”
“That is one way of saying it, Fizzlepop,” Discord said, appearing above the table and buttering his plate with jam.
The orchid mare winced. “Please, call me Tempest,” she said, not even phased by his sudden appearance.
“Oh but Fizzy dear, your old name suits you so! What with all those sparks you still give off.” The draconequus preened, taking a bite of his plate.
Tempest sighed. “At any rate, she’s alive, and that’s better than my old boss got. Not that a lot of people are mourning him.”
“Ah yes, that annoying yeti goat thing; a very bad boss to promise things he couldn’t give,” Discord grumbled, though he had a grin on his face. “I mean, it’s a hard even for a normal being like you mortals to replace horns or wings, but for me, it’s just a snap.” Discord said, snapping his claws.
There was a gasp in the room as Tempest slowly raised her hooves upwards and felt something she hadn’t in a long time.
“My horn!” she gasped. “You... you fixed it!” she shouted as she leapt through the air and tackled the draconequus over in a tight hug, smiling from side to side.
“‘Twas the least I could do,” he said. “Anyway, that reminds me - Twilight, how’re things going with that staff of his?”
“It’s taken care of,” Twilight told him. “The gem on the top had its uses, as Tempest can attest, but for what he had planned with it, it was too dangerous to keep intact. I’m still working on how to deal with it for good, but at least I have it separated off.”
“Good.” With that, Discord vanished, leaving them to stare after him.
“You know, I was more talking about how he was trying to take over the world,” Tempest said faintly, still feeling at her horn with the same massive grin on her face. “But…” She shook her head, before turning to Princess Celestia. “Princess, I vastly appreciate the offer you made, but it looks like it won’t be necessary anymore. I do want to thank you though, for everything.”
Celestia smiled. “You’re very welcome, Tempest.”
Grubber, who’d been grinning just as big as Tempest had been from the moment he’d seen her horn restored, raised a paw. “Doeth thith mean the’th going to have to go back to magic thchool?”
“Not before I throw Tempsty a congratulation-to-regaining-your-horn party!” Pinkie said as she popped up, to the surprise of many there.
Tempest gave a resigned smile. “Sure, Pinkie.” She looked in Grubber’s direction. “And I don’t know about an actual school... but definitely remedial lessons at the least. Remember,” and her horn lit up a bit, a faint glow appearing around a fork as it lifted a bit before falling again. “I haven’t been able to use even the basics since I was a foal, and as you can see, I’m going to need a lot of practice before I can do it again.”
“Well Tempest, while I can no longer promise you the medical procedure for your horn, I was always going to give you the choice to learn at my school, or at my side, to rediscover your magic and your abilities, if you wish to,” Celestia said. “The choice is of course yours; you can stay here or find another place to practice.”
Tempest nodded. “If you’re willing to take on a student who’s so far behind…” She glanced in Moondancer’s direction. “Though I wouldn’t want to take your attention away from her.”
“I can always teach more than one at a time,” Celestia said. “I run an entire school, and I do take time for each of the students in my classes as they need me.”
“And if we both stay, it won’t bother me,” Moondancer said, speaking for the first time since she’d come in, though she was also looking in Twilight’s direction.
Luna, looking unusually awake for the hour, chuckled from her own seat. “Thank you for agreeing, Tempest,” she smiled at the mare. “She tends to brood and mope when she does not have a pony to teach. It helps her believe she is a thousand years younger than she really is.”
Celestia made a face in her sister’s direction, prompting further chuckles.
Rarity suddenly had a look of dread on her face. “If you haven’t been able to properly use magic in all these years,” she said carefully, “Does that mean you… don’t have a Cutie Mark yet?”
Tempest looked surprised. “Actually, I do,” she said. “I got it when I figured out my explosive spell. Why?”
Rarity looked relieved. “Thank goodness,” she said. “That means my little sister and her friends won’t be trying to recruit you into Crusading with them when they meet you.”
“I have already crossed paths with them, actually,” Tempest said with a chuckle. “They had the same thought as you did and I believe they had quite the plan to help me considering I have-” she paused before correcting herself. “Had a broken horn before I told them how I got my Cutie Mark.”
“I’m not going to ask,” Rarity said to herself. “I’m not going to ask. I will sleep good not knowing what it was.” She looked in Luna’s direction. “And not knowing means it’ll be one less set of nightmares for you to deal with,” she said.
“That’s quite all right,” Luna said with a smile. “I quite enjoy their dreams, to be honest. Helps me feel young, though that isn’t that hard to do, right my love?”
Pharynx just grinned. “Right, Lus.”
In her own seat, Twilight groaned. “No offense to Sweetie Belle and her friends, but I dread the day they meet Princess Skystar,” she said. “She’s our age, but she’s just as energetic as those three.” She looked in Pinkie’s direction. “Actually, she reminded me a lot of you,” she said. “But with fins.”
Pinkie grinned. “Then maybe I’ll have to go meet her someday!” she said happily.
“Speaking of, I was also thinking you’d enjoy Ornithia too, if or when I get the chance to go back there,” Twilight told her. “They spend so much of their time partying.”
“Woohoo!” Pinkie cheered.
“Yeah… and the sunbathing was great too,” Spike said as he finished his plate.
“What kind of parties did they do there, if I might ask?” Rarity asked.
“Oh, they surfed, they danced, they played volleyball… and the food was great too,” Twilight said, before looking in Swift-Pad’s direction. “Have you ever had swordfish steaks?”
“I am not certain I have, but they sound delicious,” the wolf said, licking his lips.
“Oh, they are, they are,” Sonata told him. “Sirens don’t only eat hate, you know. Aria and I got to try some swordfish the last time we were down in that part of the world, before we hooked up with ‘Dagi and got ourselves in trouble, and they were yummy!”
“We’ll keep that in mind then,” Maxilla said, a similar look on her face.
“You really have widened your tastes, haven’t you?” Velvet asked Twilight.
“Well… somewhat,” Twilight said. “I’m like the wolves, I don’t eat anything that’s been named. And I do prefer fish and other seafood over most other kinds of meat I… er… had the occasion to sample, when Spike and I were on our trip.”
“What other kinds of seafood?” Velvet asked, opting not to comment on the other aspect.
“I had preserved sea cucumber when I was in Seaquestria,” Twilight said.
“Oh, those are good,” Luna said. “One would hardly know they aren’t vegetables.”
“They aren’t?” Velvet asked. “They sound like it.”
Twilight shook her head. “They’re actually part of the same genetic family as starfish. A few branches away, but still related.”
“Oh.”
Twilight nodded. “They aren’t anything near sapient,” she said. “I checked.”
“And I double-checked for her,” Spike said with a few chuckles from those gathered.
“Spike, this just reminds me,” Velvet said, turning to the dragon in the room. “It was quite late and you were asleep at the time, but we didn’t give our gifts to you.”
“Gifts?” Spike perked up.
Twilight nodded. “Welcome-home presents,” she said. “I’ll show you mine later.”
“Cool!”
Twilight suddenly pulled out a scroll and quill. “That reminds me…” she mumbled to herself as she wrote. “Must add new structure by the library…”
“What for?” Celestia asked curiously.
“To park our airskimmer in, of course,” Twilight said. “I’m not about to make Spike leave it here all the time, and it would be a little awkward having to come up here every time we need to use it.”
Celestia nodded. “Of course.”
“I do hope you have a license for it Spike,” Night Light said.
“We both do,” Twilight assured him. “The minotaurs wouldn’t have let us have it if we hadn’t. But Spike’s claws are better for handling the controls, so he flies us when we need it.”
“And to be honest Twily, I feel a lot better with Spike at the helm than you,” Shining said. “Attention on things that aren’t book related isn’t, or wasn’t, high for you.”
Twilight made a face at him, getting a few laughs. “That’s another reason he’s better at it than I am,” she said. “But I assure you, there are drivers out there who are a lot worse than I could be. And most of them ferry passengers around for a living.”
“Oh?” Cadance asked.
Twilight nodded. “They say that in Manehatten, the passenger chariots drive on the right side of the road. In the Griffish Isles, they drive on the left. And on some of the Minos Islands, they drive on the shady side.”
“Oh dear,” Velvet said, though she was clearly chuckling.
“Fortunately, the place I did my practicing on wasn’t one of those, but still, I do feel better with Spike being the one to fly us,” Twilight said.
“Kid’s got great skills behind the wheel,” Tempest put in. “I speak from experience.”
“Well in any case, I got you something Spike,” Rainbow Dash said, sliding over a semi-thick package.
Accepting it, Spike opened it to find a stack of new comics, from several different series. “Awesome!” he said as he began looking through them. “I haven’t even heard of these guys.”
“Figured you’d like a variety, after what you said last year,” Rainbow Dash said. “I found some good ones that seemed what you’d like.”
“You did good, Rainbow Dash,” Spike said as he kept looking through the titles.
“I hope nothing too violent or mature,” Velvet said, raising an eyebrow.
“Nothing worse than what you’d see in a Power Ponies comic, and Twilight lets him read those all the time,” Rainbow Dash assured her.
“Ah made sure of that,” Applejack said. “Got ‘round asking about them comics Dashie got Spike after she did, just ta make double sure.”
“Thank you, Applejack,” Velvet told her. “I know Spike’s growing up, but a grandmare has to watch out for her only grandchild,” she said, giving Shining and Cadance a look, causing the pair to blush.
“Mah own granny would agree on the ‘watchin’ out for’ part,” Applejack said before sliding a package over towards him. “Here, Flutters and Ah got ya this.”
Setting his comics down, Spike opened it. “Um, okay?” he asked, staring at the contents of the package.
Fluttershy slid a second item over. “The girls asked us to give you this,” she said, and he opened it to find a Crusader cape inside, looking up at them questioningly.
“Ours was so you have something to help clean off the tree sap those three will be gettin’ you into,” Applejack said, gesturing to the scale-cleaning kit in her package.
After a moment, Spike chuckled. “Okay, I get it,” he said. “And I appreciate it.”
“Just how do your little sisters keep getting into tree sap?” Swift-Pad asked. “I have heard the stories of how they seek their Marks, but I have never quite been able to connect that with the tree sap.”
“Some of their more out-there ideas tend to result in colliding with trees,” Rarity said with a sigh. “Such as hang-gliding or zip lining.”
“Ah,” Swift-Pad said, nodding.
“If they were going to try things like that, it’s a shame I wasn’t there to give them advice,” Velvet said. “I love doing that kind of thing in my spare time.”
Several eyes turned to her, and she shrugged. “What? A writer can’t enjoy extreme sports as a hobby?”
Applejack shook her head. “The more Ah learn about yer family, the less surprised Ah am at how you turned out so capable,” she said to Twilight.
Twilight sighed while Cadance smiled as she leaned her head onto Shining. “Shall I tell some stories too, love?” she asked while batting her eyes playfully.
“Please, don’t,” he said. “Suffice to say, I did not take after Mom in that regard.”
Seeing Rainbow Dash looking interested, Cadance turned to her and mouthed “I’ll tell you later”, before her husband gave her a look.
“I think Spike still has a few things coming,” he said. “Let’s get back to that, okay?”
Rarity nodded. “Pinkie and I got you this,” she said as she hoofed a package over.
Opening it, Spike was surprised. "Mysteries At Two-Door Mansion?" he asked, looking at the book series.
Rarity nodded. "Based on the board game," she said. "These were actually written for a younger audience, in which the reader must put the clues together and identify the culprit, or competition winner, in each chapter. Pinkie helped me find some of them."
Spike smiled. "Thank you," he said. “Both of you.”
Twilight had something of a resigned look on her face, but turned to him. “May I borrow those when you’re done?” she asked. “They sound interesting.”
“Sure thing,” he said.
The rest of the meal (and one or two more presents from his grandparents and uncle) followed, before Twilight reluctantly announced that they should start packing to go back down to Ponyville. “It’s been great to see all of you again,” she told her non-Ponyville friends. “If you ever decide you want to come and visit, my door is always open. And not,” she said as Rainbow Dash started to open her mouth, “Because a certain prankster swiped it again!” She gave the prismatic pegasus a withering look, prompting a round of chuckles from the rest of the room.
“This I have to hear,” Velvet told the other mare.
“Later,” Rainbow Dash told her, mindful of the death glare Twilight was giving her.
Celestia smiled. “While I would like to have you here a little longer, I fully understand,” she said. “We’ll see you again soon.”
Twilight smiled.
Twilight had just finished packing when she sighed. She’d had a while to think about this, and had made up her mind. Levitating her suitcases, she left the room and headed for another, knocking on the door before opening it to see the mare she wanted to speak to, sitting on the bed.
"Hey, Moondancer."
Moondancer turned to face her. "Hey, Twilight."
Twilight walked across the room and sat down next to her. "Can we talk? About... last night?"
Moondancer nodded.
"Moondancer, I... I still don't know quite what to say," Twilight confessed. "I mean, I've only been interested in one guy that I even know of, but... well, things happened, and I had to go home after a little while. I think it must have just been a passing crush."
"Right," Moondancer said. "What about your other friends, the ones you made in Ponyville?"
Twilight shook her head. "They're my sisters, in all but blood," she said. "Nothing romantic there."
"That Tempest mare?"
"Straight as an arrow when it comes to romance," Twilight said. "We traveled together for a few weeks last year. She has no interest in mares that way."
"Trixie?"
"She grows on you, but..." Twilight shook her head. "If Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rarity and Rainbow Dash are my sisters, Trixie is the second cousin of a sibling's in-law that you get used to and end up better friends with than you expected after a while. Part of why I invited her to stay with me, for a while at least."
Moondancer raised an eyebrow. "Okay."
"Moondancer, I don't know how I feel, beyond wanting to be your friend and see you happy," Twilight said. "But I'm willing to give it a chance. Will you come with me to Ponyville, so we can spend more time getting to know one another again, see where this goes?"
"I think I'd like that," Moondancer said. Sticking out a hoof, she and Twilight shook.
"Now we just have to tell Princess Celestia that I'm moving out again soon," she said with a sigh. "I think if it's to move in with you though, she should be okay. She's spent time with me since I moved in, but she has other responsibilities too."
Twilight smiled. "She does tend to do that," she said. "But I don't doubt that you're important to her. We - her students - help ground her, keep her bonded to non-immortals."
"You mean it helps her keep things in perspective."
Twilight nodded. "Exactly." She then blinked and slowly nodded her head again. "And to me as well, in the future."
Moondancer smiled. "I can see why that would be important to all of you. Friendship is now a core concept of who you are Twilight, and even if that's all we ever are… I'll still love you, even if it doesn't work out romantically."
"And I'll always care for you." Twilight smiled. "Besides, Ponyville might be my home, and I do love being there, but there aren't a lot of ponies who can keep up with me when it comes to studying. You and I can do that together whenever we want!" She leaned in. "Oh, and did Princess Celestia mention that I live in a library?"
Moondancer grinned. "Now you're talking my language!"
The two mares laughed.
About an hour later, several mares and one baby dragon stood in the chariot hanger, Twilight loading her, Trixie’s (which had earned a few raised eyebrows), Moondancer’s and Spike’s luggage into their airskimmer. Pinkie had already volunteered to carry everything else, which had disappeared into her mane.
“Is there a particular reason she’s coming with us?” Rainbow Dash asked, gesturing to Trixie.
Twilight nodded, then nudged the other mare, who sighed and then faced them.
“Trixie is… sorry,” she admitted. “Trixie is a showmare at heart, and often loses herself in the part. Plus, Trixie tends to have a kneejerk negative reaction to hecklers after a number of bad experiences, and Ponyville left her with a bad taste in her mouth practically from the start. As for the Alicorn Amulet incident… Trixie has no excuse for that, other than again letting her stage persona and ego take over and influence her for the worse after her trailer was smashed in the Ursa incident.” She leaned down and sighed. “Will you accept Trixie’s… my apology for being so obnoxious and causing trouble?”
The five who’d been around during the two incidents exchanged glances, before turning back and nodding. “We accept,” Applejack said. “Just… try an’ keep it toned down, this time?”
“Trixie will do her best, but some old habits die hard,” Trixie said. “Trixie - gah! I have a hard time not speaking in the third person, as you may have noticed.”
“And we should apologize too,” Rarity said. “As you yourself said, you were an entertainer and this was all part of your act.”
“Eeyup,” Applejack said. “Ah shouldn’t have shot mah mouth off like Ah did.” She looked over at Rainbow Dash, who shrugged.
“Okay, so I may have gone a little overboard myself,” she said. “I kinda have the same issue with letting my ego get out of hoof as you did. Guess it’s only fair that I apologize for trying to show you up on your own stage.”
“I should apologize too,” Pinkie pointed out. “Not for what happened during your stage performance, ‘cause I missed it - I was home baking. But for the things I said before you shut me up with the Alicorn Amulet. If I’d known Mom and Dad and Limestone were the ones who hired you and helped you get back on your hooves, I’d have been nicer.”
Trixie nodded. “Trixie - I accept your apologies,” she said. She glanced in Fluttershy’s direction. “Except you, because you never did anything wrong, either time, and don’t need to apologize,” she said. “And from what Twilight has said, you helped identify the amulet I had and helped Twilight rid me of it before it corrupted me any worse, so I actually owe you thanks for that.”
Fluttershy ducked her head. “It… didn’t seem right, the last time we met,” she said. “You needed help, not heckling.”
Trixie smiled. “I appreciate that,” she said.
With that, everyone started boarding. Rarity and Fluttershy had opted to join Twilight in her airskimmer, while Pinkie and Applejack were accompanying the Cakes back down on their train, and Rainbow Dash had opted to stay up another day or so to chat with Twilight’s parents, among other things.
“Catch you all later!” she said.
Twilight waved at her, before stepping into the airskimmer.
“Come on, girls,” she said. “Let’s go home.”