//------------------------------// // Ch. 1 // Story: A Twilight Rose Love // by Mystic Sunrise //------------------------------// The moment Pearl stormed into her Council Chamber, Twilight knew something was wrong. The pair of guards stationed outside the doors also bore worried looks. Both of them had standing orders to let only certain individuals inside this room. And Pearl Rose wasn’t one to abuse the privilege. But right now, she couldn’t have cared less about the massive stack of papers on Twilight’s desk, or how late in the day it was. “Twilight. Can we talk?” She looked back toward the door and frowned. “Alone?” Twilight frowned. Pearl was never like this. Not without a good reason at least. Something told her, though, that this was meant for her ears only. “Of course, Pearl.” She closed the door to the room with a push of magic. “What’s wrong?” Pearl sniffed, her body shaking from unshed tears. ”Me and Lotus broke up.” Twilight’s ears dropped, as did her heart. “Oh, Pearl. I’m so sorry. Come here sweetie,” she said, opening her legs. That was all it took. Pearl let her tears flow freely now, as she ran over and buried her head in her mentor’s shoulders. Twilight wrapped her wings around the young Pegasus, rubbing her back in a comforting way as she cried. “Why? Where did we go wrong?” Pearl sobbed. “I loved her, and she loved me. I was good to her. We trusted each other with things we haven’t told anypony else. She treated me better than I deserved. I put her first all the time. So why?” Twilight shook her head sadly. “I don’t know, Pearl. Love is a strange thing to me, even to me. What happened? Did you two fight? Was she with someone else?” Pearl shook her head. “No. And we didn’t fight. It felt like the spark we had was dying before this, now that I think about it. Cloud Dancer told me that it seemed we were falling apart last week, and Lotus said that Red Light mentioned the same thing to her.” Twilight smiled a little. She had rarely seen a tighter group of best friends than these four. Red Light and Cloud Dancer had been quick to make friends with Pearl at the School of Friendship when she and her family had moved to Ponyville a decade earlier. Not long after her own coronation as Sole Ruler of Equestria in fact. Lotus had come along not long after, and while it wasn’t as quick, she was soon part of the group as well. Twilight had known of Pearl’s rough life before she had moved to Ponyville, and her friends’ comments from the classes she had with them only added to her worry. It was after Pearl had been sent to see Starlight after breaking up a fight, that Twilight had seen how much help Pearl had needed. Her announcement of her taking the young Pegasus as her Personal Student had caused an outcry from Canterlot. On top of Princess Twilight’s removal of her Seat and Throne to Ponyville, there had been not so subtle threats made against her. None of which had ever come to pass thankfully. She had been taken by surprise when Pearl and Lotus had started dating. She had known both of them preferred girls over boys, but it had never occurred to her that they might see something in each other. Of course, she was happy for both of them. Let it never be said that Princess Twilight Sparkle stood in the way of love. Twilight shook her head, pushing the memories away for the moment. “I’m sorry, Pearl. I wish there was a way that I could help the two of you. But I would never hear the end of it from Cadance if I did. Shipping is not my thing. Look at my own love life. Or lack thereof." Pearl snorted, grinning even though she really shouldn't have. “Probably just as well then. I remember the lecture she gave Professor Rarity when she tried to set up Applejack and Rainbow Dash and the miserable failure that turned out to be.” She paused. “Or was it the one she gave after Rarity tried to set up Discord and Professor Fluttershy, and the even bigger mess that turned out to be?” Twilight giggle snorted, even though she knew she shouldn’t have. But she couldn't help it. How her fashionista friend had ever thought those would work was beyond her. “I might have something that might make you feel better, Pearl,” she said, as she reached out with her magic to a nearby shelf. Pearl gave her a look as they pulled apart. “Unless you can get me a week or two with Dragon Lord Ember, or better yet, Tiamat, I doubt it’ll help much." Twilight chuckled. Pearl’s love of dragons was well known. It was her goal to be the world’s foremost Dragon Scholar. A plan that was well on its way to being a reality one day. “I can probably get you one with Lord Ember. Tiamat might be harder to do. But she does seem to like you.” She pulled an item off a nearby shelf. “But in the meantime. I know you’ve been reading up on the history of the Far East. Fluttershy found this in the Everfree Forest, and thought you might be interested.” Pearl took the skull in her hooves. At first, it looked like an ordinary fox skull, if much bigger than any she had ever seen. But no fox she knew of could get this big. Unless. “Is this a Kitsune skull?” Twilight nodded. “A male Kitsune to be exact. From the little I’ve been able to find out it, he would have been the same age as you, or slightly younger.” Pearl looked it over carefully. She was no expert on this kind of thing, so she would have to take her teacher’s word for it. Some of the bones had amber markings on them. For some strange reason though, she felt like she should know who this was. That the two of them should have been the best of friends even. Or even more. Weird. “How did he end up here though? Kitsunes died out entirely in the Dragon Wars. Unless those stories of some becoming nature spirits were true.” Twilight shook her head. “I’m not sure. I do know that whoever he was, he’s been dead for a very long time.” She too had the strangest feeling of deja vu. As if she should know who this had once been, and known him rather well too. Pearl sighed. “That’s too bad. Might’ve been cool to meet one. If he wasn’t a constant pain in my flank anyway.” Twilight giggled. “I don’t think Ponyville would survive two pranksters. We just barely put up with Discord.’ Pearl rolled her eyes, as she placed the skull on her mentor’s desk. Neither one of them noticed the slight glow in the eye sockets for a moment, before they winked out. Pearl sighed. “I just wish that I could do something about this. We were perfect. We still are.” Twilight shook her head. “Are you and Lotus still friends?” Pearl nodded. “I wish I could help, Pearl. But this is something that I can’t teach as the Princess of Friendship. It will be awkward for some time. But if your bond is as strong as I believe it is, then I believe you and Lotus can move past this.” Pearl smiled. It was times like this that she missed her time as the princess's student. While it had officially ended sometime before, she still held onto that bond. Twilight was like a second mother to her. It was a feeling that Twilight shared as well. Pearl was like the daughter she never had, and while she would never ever think of trying to take her away from her parents, she still missed having the Pegasus around the castle, even though she had a new Personal Student now in Luster Dawn. Pearl wasn’t sure how she felt about that. While she wasn’t insensitive enough to think that she should be the only student Twilight ever had, she and the unicorn did not get along all that well. It had nothing to do with Pearl being a Pegasus though. Far from it actually. It was Luster's views on friendship that made Pearl's blood boil. More than once, Pearl had called Luster out on her feelings about friendship. To no avail. The unicorn had her head firmly shoved up her flank about how friendship was a waste of time, and other nonsense Pearl didn’t bother to remember. Why Twilight hadn't done anything about it was beyond her. There was no way their teacher didn't know of how Luster viewed friendship. But that was beside the point, as she looked at the huge stack of papers awaiting Twilight’s signature. It never seemed to shrink. “Do you need to sign all of those now?” Twilight shook her head. “Well, no. But I would rather get ahead and get these done as soon as possible.” She gave her former student a look. “Why?” Pearl just smiled and pulled Twilight out of her chair and toward the doorway. “Good. Cause I could go for some “I Just Got Dumped” cupcakes from Sugarcube Corner. And I could use a friend or two right now." Twilight groaned. “That’s not a thing, Pearl.” Pearl stuck her tongue out at her. “Says you. Knowing Pinkie Pie, she’s already making some. I saw her rush off when I was coming over here. Red and Cloud are trying to help Lotus, and I think she and I need to stay apart for a while." Twilight wanted to ask more about that. But then remembered that it was Pinkie Pie she was thinking of, and she had long ago given up trying to figure out her party-loving friend. She sighed in defeat, but she was smiling all the same. “You’re lucky you’re cute, Pearl. Otherwise, I would have said no.” Pearl just smirked, as Twilight opened the door. “I know. And don't you forget it." The two shared a laugh, as the Door Guards fell in beside the two of them, as they headed for Sugarcube Corner, Twilight quietly closing the door behind them. Unseen, the eye sockets of the Kitsune skull glowed for a moment, before fading away. And if one listened hard enough, they could hear what sounded like the faint sounds of laughter coming from it. Pearl sighed in content as she munched on a cupcake. She had never thought that vanilla and strawberry could go together so well. Pinkie really did know her stuff if she could make this work. “Maybe I should get dumped more often. These are just so good." Twilight giggled as she took a bite of her own. “I know the feeling. After Flash and I stopped seeing each other, Pinkie knew exactly what I needed. It did me a lot of good then. Even if it was a different flavor for me. She always seems to know just what a pony needs when they're down. Always has." Pearl nodded. A part of her was still surprised the two of them had broken up. They had seemed so happy together. All of Ponyville had been happy for the two of them. And then it had seemingly ended out of the blue. And it had nothing to do with the Human World. That Pearl knew for a fact. A small part of the young Pegasus, a part of her she had been trying to suppress for years, had been glad when it had happened. It meant that Pearl now had a chance to sweep Twilight off her hooves herself. Pearl shook her head. No. She was not going there. That had been nothing but a schoolyard crush she’d had on the princess. Nothing more. One that she had long ago grown out of. She certainly hadn’t followed Twilight’s flanks as she walked, admiring how her coat shimmered in the sun and moon, how beautiful they were. And most definitely she didn’t admire the sparkles that now occasionally danced and shimmered in her mane and tail. Oh no. Pearl didn’t want to get closer to the goddess that Twilight was growing into, and be the rose at the center of her garden. She shook her head vigorously. “Shut up, brain,” she grumbled quietly to herself.  Twilight’s ears flicked as she caught what her former student said. She wasn’t sure what it was about, but she could take a guess from the blush that now colored Pearl’s cheeks. She knew of Pearl’s crush on her. It was a feeling that she knew well, for she too once had a crush on her teacher and mentor. One that she had come to terms with would never work out a long time ago, even though her ascension to alicornhood had reawakened those feelings for a time. It also didn’t help that Celestia didn’t even like mares like that. As Twilight took another cupcake, though, her thoughts went in a different direction. Maybe it was a lack of sleep, but she couldn’t help but notice how beautiful Pearl was. She stopped that train of thought before it could go any further. That wasn’t right of her. Pearl was her student. But more than that. She was like the daughter Twilight never had. She couldn’t count the number of times the Pegasus had stayed over at the castle while her parents were away on business, had tucked her in for the night, and read her a bedtime story. But, another part of her screamed back, Pearl was no longer her student. She had graduated the year before, and while nowhere near as much of an emotional rollercoaster as Starlight’s had been, plenty of tears had been shed by all. Besides, Pearl was more of an adult than some actual adults Twilight knew were. She was old enough now that age was no longer an issue. Yes, there was an age gap between them. But that would forever be the case for her past a certain point in the future. And if Twilight was being honest, she sighed, she was lonely. Spike was spending more and more time away from Ponyville. While it was mostly in his role as Friendship Ambassador for Equestria, she couldn’t help but notice he spent a lot of time in the Dragon Lands. She didn’t need to be the Princess of Friendship to see why that might be. And Starlight was spending more and more time with Sunset Shimmer in the Crystal Empire. So much so that Trixie was starting to complain of being left out. Not that Twilight really cared what Trixie thought. The show mare was even more insufferable now than she had been when she had returned to Ponyville after the Alicorn Amulet incident. Sunset, at least, hadn’t changed much in the years since. She and Twilight still kept in touch with their friends from Canterlot High through her Journal, now being kept by Twilight’s human counterpart. “Say!” You two look down in the dumps! And we can't have that now can we?” Pinkie said, hopping over with another batch of cupcakes. “Do you not like em?” Pearl giggled. “I love them, Pinkie. Just got too much on my mind.” Pinkie nodded. “Being dumped blues? Lotus was in here earlier. She said the same thing. They picked her right back up!”.  Pearl rolled her eyes. At least she wasn’t alone in this. “Did she say anything else?” Pinkie nodded. “Something about going out of town for a while to clear her head. She didn’t really say why. She had this weird look in her eyes, though.” Twilight frowned. “What kind of weird look, Pinkie?” Her friend shrugged. “Don’t know. It almost sounded like that idea was put in her. Or maybe I’m not getting enough sleep lately! Little Cheese has been keeping me up a lot.” Twilight could hear the newborn cooing in one of the back rooms. She was still surprised that Pinkie, out of all of them, had started a family first. But she couldn’t be happier for her friend. Pinkie tapped her chin as she seemed to remember something. “Now that I think about it, Lotus had some kind of strange flower on her. It looked like an orchid. But when I asked Rose, she said she had seen it too, and it was no orchid. Or any kind of flower she had ever seen.” Twilight thought of it. If one of the Flower Trio didn’t know, that severely limited who she could ask. She didn’t think there was anything to it. But Lotus did not have that flower this morning when Twilight had last seen her, and now she decided that she needed to get away from Ponyville for a while? Something was up. Discord chuckled as he watched the scene unfold. “Oh, I forgot how much fun this can be.” He looked over to what seemed like an empty space. “I still don’t know what you see in Pearl. She’s got spunk and a mouth on her, I’ll give you that.” He paused for a moment, almost like someone was talking back to him. “Oh, so that’s why, is it? Well, I have to agree, she does bear a striking resemblance to Kade. The two of you were always so close.” Discord listened closer and broke out laughing. “So you saw something special in her. A glimpse into another reality? I wouldn’t put that past you, your mother being who she is. But whatever you are there. Here. You're nothing but something lost to history to her.” Discord turned and gazed into the spectral amber eyes which sparkled. “Okay, so she’s hot for history. But you still haven’t said why you're doing this? Or why you had to drag me into it?” Discord folded his arms and leaned back on his cloud. “I see, you saw the relationships you had with her. And all the feelings that went with it. Mmhmm. Okay then. I believe I understand. You're not doing this for Pearl, you're doing this for Twilight!” The amber eyes blinked in acknowledgment. “For all she has ever done for you in every reality. AH, now it makes sense. A debt to be paid of course I’ll help you discharge it, old friend.”  Another pause. “Yes, of course, I’ll give her the flowers. But you're going to have to give them that push. Bookhorse over there wouldn’t know how to confess her feelings if the fate of the multiverse depended on it.” Discord watched as his old friend stood on the cloud. His ethereal vestige growing more as the sun moved closer to the horizon. “You certainly are your mother's child, playing with lives like this. You might as well be a god.” Discord saw the amber eyes shift in his direction and narrow, making him jump back for a moment. “So how do you intend to get things started? I’m sure Twilight getting a flower or two isn’t just going to spark her romantic feelings.” Nodding slowly he listened to the plan. “That book? Of course, I know where it is. And you're saying I just need to place it where Twilight will find it?” The amber eyes nodded slowly as the ghostly mouth moved with words only Discord heard.  “Oh, that’s just genius. A plan worthy of your mother indeed. Brilliant and frot with Chaos. Let's get started,” Discord grinned as he produced another Forestsong flower.