//------------------------------// // 07 - Sunset - Les Tres Amicis // Story: Tales of an Equestrian Battle Mage // by Babroniedad //------------------------------// It was good to be back, no more pirates, killer griffins, silly yaks, or despicable dragons, nothing but learning, training, and spending time with the only family she had. She threw herself happily into being one of the princesses' private pupils. A few weeks later Sunset and Twilight were getting ready in the morning preparing to join the princess for breakfast prior to the day's lessons when a knock rang out on their door. Sunet trotted over and opened it, finding an orderly standing at attention. “Mage Sunset Shimmer, Miss Twilight Sparkle. I regret to inform you the princess has left on urgent crown business and will not be able to meet with you today. She requests you do self study until she is able to return. That is all.” He held out a notice in his hoof, which Sunset took, thanking him. He saluted, then turned and trotted back down the stairway. “What was that all about?” asked Twilight, trotting over. Sunset opened and read the note. “I guess we’re on our own today. Self study. Want to join me in getting some breakfast first?” she asked. Twilight nodded. Sunset placed the notice into her saddle bag, then lifted Twilight onto her back, trotting out, shutting the door and heading down to the cafeteria. They picked out bowls of oatmeal porridge with fruit and honey, orange juice and coffee, then took a seat in the common dining room. Sunset led them in a brief prayer of thanks then they dug in. Sunset overheard a snippet of interesting conversation a few tables over. “A princess!?” gasped one of the guards. That caught her attention. “Shh! Idiot! That’s a state secret. And not confirmed yet anyway!” whispered another guard loudly. “They say the Princess left this morning to check it out.” “But, a princess? Who the heck did that even happen? I thought Princess Celestia was the only one?” continued the guard. “Just stop talking about it, okay?” said his table mate. “I swear, you can’t keep your muzzle shut for anything. How have you survived so long?” Looking around, Sunset noticed that many of the guards seemed to be agitated. She listened to the conversations around her for more information. Finishing up their breakfasts, she noticed Twilight glaring at her. “What?” she asked. “It’s like you weren’t even trying to listen to me,” she grumbled. “I’m sorry Twilight. I thought I overheard something while we were eating breakfast and it caught my attention,” answered Sunset, stacking their tray on the return belt on their way out. “What did you hear?” asked Twilight, struggling to keep up with her. Sunset scooped her up in her magic and set her on her shoulders. “Remember what we saw in the mirror that first night?” reminded Sunset. Twilight started. “You mean when we say ourselves as..” “Sshh! Don’t say it out loud,” whispered Sunset, placing a hoof over Twilight’s muzzle. “Yeah, that. Apparently somepony did it! They’re saying there’s another princess now and that’s where Princess Celestia went. At least, that’s what the guards were whispering.” “Realy?” Twilight’s eyes got big as saucers. “So we really could become princesses too?” “I guess so,” agreed Sunset. “Let’s go see if we can find something about it in the library. It’ll be our own secret research assignment.” “Yes,” said Twilight gleefully. They trotted down the hall until they were alone. Sunset teleported them into the restricted section of the library. “Okay,” she said, setting Twilight down. “We’re looking for anything related to alicorn ascension. I’ll start gathering books, and you start going through them.” Twilight hopped up into the seat at one of the research tables, nodding happily to Sunset. Sunset poured through the stacks. A few minutes later she brought out a pile of books in her magic setting them down next to Twilight. Twilight took the top book and started reading while Sunset returned to the stacks to find more books. A few trips later, Sunset sat down opposite Twilight, grabbed a book and went through it. “Find anything?” she asked. “Not yet,” answered Twilight, still reading. An hour later the two had made a sizable dent in the pile of books before them with nothing to show for it. “Found something!” called out Twilight. Sunset rose and trotted over to read over her shoulder. “Check this out! According to this, if you complete some kind of powerful magic related to your cutie mark destiny, you could possibly ascend.” Sunset bent down and read the passage. “Hmm. It doesn’t say ascend to what, but that’s the first time I’ve even heard it mentioned. What tome is this?” asked Sunset. “It’s one of Star Swirl's journals,” answered Twilight. “Figures,” replied Sunset. “He was probably writing for himself, so he knew what he meant. Good chance then he explains it more in an earlier entry or journal.” “I already read the earlier entries in this journal. This was the first mention of it. So it would be one of the others”, noted Twilight as she skimmed the rest of the journal. Nodding, Sunset started digging through their pile of unread books and scrolls looking for earlier journals and works by Star Swirl. She handed one to Twilight, taking the book she had just finished and setting it aside for later reference. Twilight started skimming it, noting the new stack Sunset had placed beside her of Star Swirl’s journals. Sunset went back to finding Star Swirl's earlier journals. After checking the rest of the books on the table, placing all the journals found in the new pile before Twilight, Sunset took the top book and started skimming through herself. The two mares kept at it, looking through all the books. Hitting the end of the pile with no results, they headed back to the stacks to look for more. “Okay Twilight. I’ll go high and you go low. I’ll get the top six shelves, and you can check the bottom two.” Twilight nodded as they moved up and down the stacks, looking for more of Star Swirl's journals and writings. Finding dozens more, they returned to the table and resumed their searches. By mid afternoon, they had found three other references to alicorn ascension, none of them more concrete than the first reference they had found. Sunset kept the books with a reference in a separate pile, bookmarks neatly holding the place of each reference. Eventually they exhausted the stacks, so the mares set the books with references aside. They returned the rest of the books to the shelves as best they could. Putting the books they found in her saddle bags, Sunset scooped up Twilight and teleported them out of the library and into one of the little used hallways near the cafeteria. “Let's get something to eat. We missed lunch, and who knows? Maybe we’ll hear something while we eat.” suggested Sunset. “Sounds good to me. I'm pretty hungry,” agreed Twilight. They trotted into the cafeteria. Selecting a soup and sandwich combo each, they sat at a table, listening to the conversations around them. Midway through their late lunch, a junior watch officer ran into the lunch room going from table to table alerting the officers. “She’s here!” they overheard her say as she passed by, heading to the next table. Sunset scooped Twilight up onto her back and cantered quickly out of the cafeteria. Heading down the hall, she waited until no pony was around then teleported to the roof over Princess Celestia’s balcony. Together she and Twilight looked out over Canterlot. They saw Celestia’s chariot land in the courtyard. She disembarked, a pink unicorn filly wearing a cloak followed behind her, struggling to keep up with her longer strides. Together they passed through the doors and into the castle. “Do you think she’s bringing her up here?” asked Twilight. “I can’t think of anywhere else they would go,” agreed Sunset. “We should just wait here and see what happens.” They sat quietly listening for any sound from the room below. A few minutes later, they heard the door open and someponies coming in. The door shut and they heard the princess speak. “Go ahead and clean up Cadence then come in here so we can chat.” They heard the antechamber door shut then Princess Celestia trotted out onto her balcony. She looked out over Canterlot while her two students watched her. “I know you’re up there,” said Celestia as she returned to her bedroom. “Come down and join us. There’s somepony I’d like you both to meet.” Sunset teleported them down to the balcony. They trotted in and sat down next to her. A minute later a pink pony opened the door to the bathroom, trotting out then turning to pull it closed. Both Sunset and Twilight gasped as they realized she was a pegasus filly with a cute little horn. “Oh my gosh! You really are a princess!” gasped Twilight. In shock, the little pink alicorn looked up, just now noticing the two of them. She ran to hide behind Princess Celestia, looking out from between her legs. Sunset spoke up. “Hi! We’re Twilight Sparkle and Sunset Shimmer, the princesses’ students. I’m Sunset. Who are you?” she smiled. “Um, I’m Cadence,” the filly answered guardedly. Placing a comforting foreleg around the filly, Princess Celestia pulled her under her wing, giving her a smile. “Sunset, Twilight, this is Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, Equestria’s newest princess. Her friends call her Cadance.” Turning to Cadance, she continued. “Cadance, these are my personal students, Sunset Shimmer and Twilight Sparkle. They’re as close to family around here as you can get,” she smiled. She turned to her students. “I’ve brought Cadence to the castle to learn magic and teach her how to be a princess. To keep things simple for the nobility, I’ve decided to adopt her as a niece. I’m hoping that will help them accept her without any undue grief,” Celestia smiled at Cadence. “So you’re learning magic? I thought princesses all knew magic,” asked Twilight, confused. “Uh, I never had to worry about it before yesterday,” said Cadence softly. “I was just a pegasus before then.” “That clinches it,” said Sunset. Twilight nodded. “Clinches what?” asked Celestia, confused. “We’re going to be princesses!” answered Twilight, bounding happily. ‘What?” asked Celestia, more confused than before. “She saw herself as an alicorn princess, just like I did,” clarified Sunset. “You took Twilight into the forbidden section of the library?” asked Celestia, angered and shocked. “Yeah, and she saw the same thing I did, but as her. And I saw it again, same as last time,” replied Sunset. “Sunset Shimmer. That library is restricted for a reason!” she growled. “We heard you might be coming back with another princess, so we decided to do our research for the day on Alicorn Ascension,” deflected Sunset. “We found several references to it and when it could occur in Star Swirl’s journals, but nothing spelling out how to make it happen or exactly why it occurs. We brought the references with us. I have them right here.” Sunset trotted over to the table and removed the books from her saddle bags, placing them on the table. “We bookmarked each of the references if you wanted to study them yourself,” she said as she trotted back. Princess Celestia facehooved. “Why am I not surprised,” she groaned. “Sunset, you know that section of the library is restricted for a reason.” “Yes, and this seemed to be clearly one of the reasons. Where else would this type of information be available?” answered Sunset reasonably. “Okay, good point, but we will be discussing this further,” Celestia warned her. “Mom, we're training to be your hooves for pity's sake,” sighed Sunset. “We’re not just some impressionable ponies you have to protect. We want to protect you! You can trust us.” “You’re her mom?” asked Cadance, confused. “Not exactly,” sighed Celestia. “I’m an orphan,” replied Sunset to Cadance. “Princess Celestia is the closest mare to a mom I have ever had.” “So you’re adopted too?” asked Cadance. “Not exactly,” signed Sunset. “Okay, not the time for this,” responded Celestia. “So Cadance will be living in the castle with us, officially as my niece, but she will be joining us for our private lessons.” “Awesome!” chirped Twilight. “You’re going to love it! The princess is an awesome teacher, and Sunset can show you all sorts of magic.” Overwhelmed, Cadance just nodded. Introductions made, Twilight happily showed Princess Celestia and Cadance what they had found on alicorn ascension while Cadance filled them in with what had happened to her, and how she had ended up ascending. “That kind of fits then,” agreed Sunset. “Star Swirl did mention in one passage that an act of great magic related to your cutie mark was part of the process.” Celestia nodded. “And that’s how we’re going to become princesses too!” smiled Twilight, looking up at Cadance. “We think. We hope,” corrected Sunset to Twilight. “We don’t know 100 percent what those visions mean. But probably.” Celestia just facehooved. “We’ll cross that bridge when it comes,” she said. Sunset nodded. There was a knock on the door. A maid entered, and announced. “Princess, your niece’s chambers are ready, as you requested.” “Thank you! We will be there in a moment,” answered Celestia. The maid nodded and left, shutting the door. “Come on fillies. Let’s go see Cadance’s new home.” Celestia led them out of her room and down the hall to one of the dignitaries' bedrooms. The maid was waiting by the door. She opened it for them, then followed them into the room. It was spacious, and neat. Nowhere near as fancy or large as the princesses room, but certainly larger than Sunset’s and doubly so for Twilight. Sunset nodded. “Nice! You should be able to get plenty of studying done in here!” Twilight nodded too. Cadance just looked around. “It’s so huge. What would I do with all this space?” she wondered out loud. She turned to Celestia. “Thank you Princess Celestia. I won’t let you down,” she offered. “I wasn’t worried that you would. You’ll do fine,” smiled Celestia, pulling her into a hug. “Do you want to get settled in?” “Sure,” said Cadance, trotting over to the nightstand by the bed. She hooved open the drawer, then opened her saddle bag, took out a pair of cute warm pajamas and put them into the drawer. Closing the drawer and latching her bag back shut, she trotted back over to the princess. “Done,” she stated. “Wow, you travel light,” teased Sunset. Cadance blushed, scooting closer to the princess.”That’s all I have,” she stated simply. Twilight smiled. “That’s okay! When I came here, I only had one thing with me. Mr. Smarty Pants!” Sunset grinned and rolled her eyes. “Mr. Smarty Pants? Who is that?” she asked confused. “Her doll,” laughed Sunset. “She never parts with it. I bet he’s in you bag right now. Amiright?” she grinned at Twilight. Twilight looked indignant. “I know he’s just a doll. Stop teasing me already.” “But he is in there, isn’t he?” grinned Sunset. “Whatever,” huffed Twilight, looking away. Sunset tugged on Twilight’s saddle bags with her magic. “Hey, stop it!” growled the filly, clamping down on her bags and pulling away. “Leave him alone! He’s sleeping!” Sunset smirked, releasing her magic from the bag. “I rest my case,” she giggled, reaching over to ruffle Twilight’s mane. Twilight pushed her hoof away. “Don’t touch me, meany pants!” Sunset pulled her into a hug. “I was just teasing you, Twilight. Mr. Smarty Pants is fine,” Sunset grinned at her. “You’re still a big meany pants!” huffed Twilight, settling into the hug. Sunset ruffled her mane and gave her a squeeze. “And you’re my favorite little sister,” she smiled. That calmed Twilight down. Cadance, still pushed up against the princess, gave them an odd look. “Welcome to the family!” laughed Sunset. Celestia looked down at Cadance, smiling. “So, do you need more time to get used to your room?” she asked. “No thank you, I’m good,” replied Cadance. “When do we start learning all this stuff you said I needed to learn?” “Later. First, I need to introduce you to our subjects, and get them used to seeing you. I’ve invited several nobles and their families over for lunch, and I intend to introduce you to them there,” stated Celestia. She turned to her two students. “And I expect you two to attend at my side as well. It’ll be a good chance for you to practice your tact with the nobility, Sunset. And for you Twilight, a chance to see how we operate at a State function. I expect you both to be on your best behavior.” “And as for you, my dear niece,” she stated, turning back to Cadance. “I just want you to relax. Just try to be yourself. Be honest but polite, and answer their questions as best as you can. If they start being too demanding or making you uncomfortable, I’ll step in. I just want them to get to know the wonderful mare you are.” Cadance smiled. Sunset grinned and shook her head. “Too bad the nobles are never on their best behavior,” she laughed. Cadance looked concerned again. “What does that mean?” she asked, looking up at Celestia. Celestia shot a glare at her student, then smiled down at Cadance. “Don’t worry. Some of the nobles can be a little rude. I won’t let them hurt you, you’ll be fine,” she comforted. Leading them from the room, Celestia left the royal wing and headed down to the large dining hall for State functions. Still nervous, Cadance trotted beside her, wings twitching and tail hung low, with an occasional gallup to catch up to the Princesses' longer stride. Sunset and Twilight followed. Twilight was having the same issue keeping up so Sunset scooped her up and planted her firmly on her back. “You look like you could use a pony ride,” smiled Sunset. “Thanks!” nodded Twilight, hanging on to her mane. Together they followed their mentor and her new niece into the State dining hall. Guards had already been posted outside the doors, opening them and bowing to the princess as she passed with her entourage. The hall was packed with the nobility and their families, conversations buzzing. The herald announced them as they entered. “All rise for Princess Celestia, Sol Invictus!” he shouted out over the voices. The mummering stopped, and all rose, facing the door as Celestia, Cadence, and her students trotted through them to the head table. Celestia took her seat, directing Cadence to sit on her right. Sunset sat to her left, helping Twilight into the chair next to her. Once Celestia was seated, everyone in the hall sat as well. “Greetings my dear nobles!” Called out Celestia. “We are gathered here today to celebrate a happy and momentous occasion! My niece, here beside me, has ascended, and is now a princess. Allow me to introduce to you, my niece, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza!” She whispered to Cadance, “Stand up, smile, wave, then take a bow and sit back down.” She smiled at her, ”You got this! Go ahead!” Smiling, Cadance stood, waved her right hoof at the room while looking around at all of them. She then bowed and sat back down. There was a smattering of polite applause. “It is my hope you will treat her with the same respect and kindness you have shown me! Thank you, my little ponies!” She picked up her fork in her magic, took a small bite of her salad. Taking that cue, the staff started passing out the garden salads to the gathered guests, who began eating and chatting among themselves again. “See, not so hard, was it?” smiled Celestia to her niece. Cadance nodded her head with a smile. “True that! The hard part is when you go down to mingle, and they all act like you should already know them and want to be their best friend,” Sunset laughed. “It’s not that bad,” smiled Celestia. “Sure mom, it’s not that bad. For you. Everypony else thinks we’re fair game. Just watch,” grinned Sunset. “Sunset, this is Cadance’s moment to shine. Don’t try to ruin it for her,“ admonished her mentor. “Sorry. Cadance, you’ll be fine. Just listen to your aunt and it will work out,” agreed Sunset with a grin. Cadance nodded, still clearly concerned. When they had finished eating, Celestia led them to the front of the table, where she stood, Cadance to her right, and her students two steps back and to her left. The nobles lined up, coming forward to greet the princess and meet her newest niece. Cadance was charming and open, smiling and greeting everyone. As promised, if a particular noble started getting too difficult or asking impertinent questions of her niece, she interjected and deflected, artfully moving their conversation back to her then kindly dismissing them, making room for the next noble to come forward. Over an hour later, Cadance had greeted every noble. They returned to the table for dessert and refreshments while the nobles mingled among themselves. Sunset turned to Cadance. “Okay, so spill, how many marriage proposals did you just shoot down?” she grinned. “Uh… I stopped counting after six. It was all starting to turn into a haze of nodding and smiling at that point,” acknowledged Cadance. “Well you got me beat. Six in one hour has to be some sort of record,” laughed Sunset. “Wait, what?” Celestia turned to her student. “You have marriage proposals? You received marriage proposals? When, and from whom? That’s highly inappropriate of them!” snipped the princess. “Yeah, I was doing like you said and trying to be friendly and make friends. Turned out they didn’t want a friend. They wanted a pawn, somepony they could use to get leverage over and into you. You asked me to be a friend, not someponies pawn, so I dismissed them,” Sunset answered. “And boy, you want to see entitled and mad? Dismiss a noble. Then duck,” she grinned. Cadance blanched. Celestia sighed. “I suppose that’s just the way they are. Unfortunate. I try so hard to show them a better way.” “It’s not you mom, that’s just the way some ponies are. They are so self-entitled they think the world and everpony in it should be doing their bidding, and they get rude and snippy when they’re disappointed. Too bad for them,” Sunset consoled the Princess. “I supposed,” sighed Celestia. They finished their desserts and drinks. Celestia turned to her niece. “Well, you survived your first State Luncheon. Well done,” she grinned. “Let's head back to my chambers where we can start all of your lessons for the day.” Nodding, Cadance, Sunset, and Twilight stood. Celestia stood as well, and the heralds played her royal fanfare. The crowd of nobles stood at the start of the fanfare, all conversation paused. Nodding and smiling, Celestia trotted through the standing crowd of nobles, Cadance again at her right, and her students behind her, Twilight once again riding on Sunset’s shoulders while holding onto her mane. Together they left the room, the fanfare ended, and the nobles sat again, finishing their conversations and repasts. They arrived at Celestia’s chambers, where the guards opened the door with their magic and bowed to the princess as she passed. Cadance and her students followed her into the room as the guards closed the doors. They gathered around the table. “Really, marriage?” groaned Celestia, facing Sunset. “It’s fine mom, don’t worry about it. I handled it. I was even very polite, just like you taught me. But I turned every last one of them down,” grinned Sunset. “Some ponies, I swear,” Celestia shook her head. Sunset grinned. “Yup, your little ponies can be a pain in the flank sometimes.” Celestia grinned. “Yes they can.” She turned to Cadance. “How have you been doing with your magic?” she asked. “Uh.. okay, I guess? I can at least hold a book now, for a few seconds. Why do you ask?” replied Cadance. “I noticed you are still using your hooves for everything, just like an earth pony would. So I was curious how you were doing,” noted the Princess. “Well, I am still having issues using it. And a lifetime of habits growing up in an earth pony family are hard to break overnight,” replied Cadance. Celestia nodded. “True that.” She turned to Sunset and Twilight. “Would you two mind doing self study now? It’s clear Cadance needs some help with her magic.” Twilight just nodded. “No problem, mom,” replied Sunset. She turned to Cadance. “Good luck, Cadance!” Picking up Twilight, Sunset teleported out directly to her room. “That mare,” laughed Celestia, turning back to Cadance. “What was that?” asked Cadance, confused. “She just disappeared. They both just disappeared.” “That was teleportation. It’s a unicorn magic, and one I will be eventually teaching you,” answered Celestia. “Though she’s not supposed to be able to do it in the castle,” she grinned. “She’s not? Why not?” asked Cadance. “There are powerful charms in place blocking it. But, she’s a resourceful mare. They both are, actually,” Celestia smiled. “As you will be in time. Baby steps, you’ll get there.” Cadance nodded. Back in her apartment, Sunset appeared with a pop, setting Twilight down. “So Twilight, what do you think of our new princess?” asked Sunset with a smile. “She’s pretty cool! And so friendly! She doesn't seem like a Princess at all!” answered Twilight. “She doesn’t, does she,” nodded Sunset. “I got to be honest. I was concerned when I first saw her. I thought maybe she wouldn't want the competition and might try to stop us once she found out we hoped to be princesses too. But she was actually really cool about it. And to be honest, the way she used love magic to overcome that witch, that was pretty sweet, I have to admit.” “She seemed really nice,” added Twilight. “Yeah, I think so too,” agreed Sunset. “Hey, want to see if she wants to join us for a sleepover tonight? That might help her feel more at home. And we can introduce her to our Mischievous Ways!” Twilight grinned happily. They sat down together, studying the lessons they were supposed to have covered today before everything changed when their mentor went to gather the newest Princess. Dinner time came so the fillies put their studies aside. Placing Twilight back up on her shoulders, they left the room and headed downstairs to Celestia’s personal dining hall. There was a guard at the door, who opened it for them as they approached. On entering, Sunset saw Cadance sitting in her usual spot to the right of the princess. She grinned. Smiling, she placed Twilight down in the seat next to Cadance then took the seat next to Twilight. “Hi mom! Hi Cadance! How did the magic lessons go?” she asked as she sat. Cadance smiled at them both. “It went well! I can lift a book and carry it now,” replied Cadance. “Progress! That’s awesome,” nodded Sunset. Twilight smiled and nodded too. “I don’t know what I would do if I couldn’t carry a book!” added Twilight. Sunset just grinned at her. “What?” asked Twilight. “I love books!” Sunset grinned and nodded. “Yes, you do.” Twilight rolled her eyes. Sunset turned to Cadance. “So, Cadance, what are you doing tonight?” she asked, grinning. “Uh, sleeping?” replied Cadance, confused. “Okay, trying again,” nodded Sunset. “Hey, Cadance. Want to have a sleepover in my apartment with Twilight and I?” asked Sunset. Twilight smiled and nodded. Cadance turned to Celestia. “Is it alright if I do that?” she asked. Celestia looked at Sunset. “And what will you be doing at your sleepover?” she asked with a grin. “Ah, mare stuff?” snarked Sunset. “Really mom, she has to ask your permission to have a sleepover? Really?” Celestia turned to Cadance. “I don’t see why not. Try to keep those two out of trouble,” she smiled. They enjoyed the rest of their meal. Thanking the Princess, they headed off for their sleepover. They stopped at Cadance’s new room on the way to pick up her pajamas, then they all trotted happily to Sunset’s room. Once there, Sunset led them into the bathroom where they washed up. Sunset and Twilight both pulled on their PJs and jumped into bed, snuggling up. Cadance changed as well then joined them getting into the bed on the other side of Twilight. “Come on princess, snuggle up!” teased Sunset, inviting her over. “We don’t bite. Much.” “Please don’t call me that,” said Cadance and she scooted closer, snuggling up next to Twilight. “I much prefer Cadance.” “I was just teasing,” Sunset grinned. “Don’t worry. No pony’s going to throw that in your muzzle here.” “So what are we doing first?” asked Cadance with a grin. “Sleeping!” said Twilight happily. “What? I thought sleepovers were supposed to be staying up all night having fun and being silly?” asked Cadance in surprise. “Oh, we will, don’t worry about that. But our fun starts when everyone else goes to sleep. So we’re going to get a little rest, then have fun the rest of the night,” smiled Sunset. Twilight nodded excitedly. “Oh-kay…” said Cadance. “I don’t know much about sleepovers, but I was pretty sure there was usually no sleep involved.” “Yeah, that’s true. But we still have to be up in the morning, so we need some rest. And too, if we didn’t get some rest now we would be too tired to really enjoy the fun later. So, it still counts,” replied Sunset. “Snuggle up, Cadance. Don’t worry, we’ll wake you when the fun is starting.” Sunset snuggled up to Twilight, reaching over and pulling Cadance into a hug, Twilight happily smooshed between them. Closing her eyes, she smiled and drifted off to sleep. Smiling Cadance closed her eyes and joined them. “Cadance, wake up,” she heard. She looked up to find Sunset rubbing her mane and smiling. “Time to wake up, sleepy head. Time for that fun we talked about.” She looked down and saw Twilight grinning up at her. “I’m awake,” she yawned, grinning. “So what are we doing first?” “Well, first we are going to change out of these PJs. Then, I think I’m feeling a bit peckish. How do you feel about a late night snack?” grinned Sunset. “Sure, sounds good. What do you have?” Cadance asked. “Cake,” replied Sunset with a grin. Twilight laughed. A few minutes later they were inside their mentor’s cake vault. “Oh my stars! It’s really cold in here,” commented Cadance. “You know it’s cold when a Pegasus says it’s cold,” grinned Sunset. Cadance grinned and gave her a playful swat. “So, which cake should we take?” asked Twilight, looking at the racks of delicious cakes waiting for their Princess. “Let's ask the mare of the hour. Cadance, any preference?” grinned Sunset. “Why are you asking me?” she asked. “I have no idea which ones are good.” “It’s a tradition,” stated Sunset. “When you’re on your first cake raid you get to pick. So, what will it be?” she grinned. Cadance looked around. There were so many cakes, and they all looked so decadently good she was hard pressed to choose. She finally pointed to a chocolate and caramel ripple cake with whipped cream frosting. “How about that one?” she suggested. “We have a winner,” nodded Sunset. She lifted the cake in her magic and they teleported to their patio. “So you know, our tradition is to eat the cake cavepony style. No forks, knives, plates, or napkins. Rip into it with your magic, or hooves if you’re more comfortable with that, and dig in. Just have fun with it and enjoy the moment,” Sunset explained. “As this is your first raid, you go first. Dig in!” Sunset grinned. Cadance tentatively reached over with her hoof, and scooped out a chunk of the cake. Sunset and Twilight watched her, smiling. She plopped the chunk in her muzzle and started chewing. Her eyes flew open. “Wow! This is really good!” “Right?” laughed Sunset, scooping out a chunk with her magic and plopping it into her waiting muzzle. “Hmm. Mom always does get the best cake,” she agreed. Twilight scooped a chuck out, some of which made it into her waiting mouth. She smiled happily. “So after we finish off this snack, we’ll clean up and show you the real fun,” Sunset promised. “No rush though. Cake like this is way too good to rush.” She swallowed another piece and moaned in happiness. Cadance laughed watching Sunset and Twilight. The little filly was covered with frosting, grinning madly while still shoveling the cake mostly into her waiting maw. Sunset was eating her piece and moaning like a madmare. She took another piece, enjoying it thoroughly. When the cake was mostly consumed and thoroughly destroyed, Sunset led them into the bathroom to clean up. She helped her little sister get clean, then the three of them gathered in the room. “Okay, so what should we do first?” asked Sunset. “Oh, let’s decorate your mom again!” said Twilight. “Decorate what?” asked Cadance, confused. “I dunno. Don’t you think she might kind of be expecting that now? I don’t want to get caught right out of the gate,” noted Sunset. “Ah, but that was so fun,” whined Twilight. “True. Cadance, what do you think? Want to decorate a Princess?” asked Sunset. “How mad will she be?” asked Cadance in concern. Both Twilight and Sunset grinned ear to ear. “Uh, you two are kind of scaring me right now.” “Okay, it’s settled then. Twilight, that’s it, you’re getting your wish, so sit down! Hold on, hang tight and keep your hooves and heads inside the ride at all times!” She placed a foreleg over them both and pulling them tight, teleported them all into Celestia’s bedroom. They quietly trotted over Celestia’s bed. She was laid out, head on the pillow, gently snoring. Sunset levitated over the makeup kit. “One sec,” she said. She jumped up onto the bed, leaned over, and whispered into Celestia’s ear. “I know you’re awake mom,” she teased. Celestia gave no response. Sunset grinned. She nibbled her ear, then tried again. “I know you’re awake mom. Stop pretending,” she laughed. Celestia grinned, but didn’t open her eyes. Sunset rolled her eyes, then nibbled her ear again. “Don’t make me slobber all over your ears mom,” she teased. “Fine,” Celestia laughed. “Hi girls, to what do I owe the privilege of this late night visit?” “We’re going to do makeovers on each other. And as Cadance is our guest of honor, she gets to make you over first. Then you pick who you want to makeover until everyone has been beautified!” grinned Sunset. “Ready for a little mare fun?” “I wouldn’t dream of missing it,” grinned Celestia. She rolled over, and moving to the edge of the bed placed her long muzzle down over her forelegs. “Go ahead Cadance, make me beautiful!” she laughed. Cadance grinned. “Okay! I don’t know much about this, but I’ll do my best.” Taking the cosmetic case, she opened it up and looked it over. “I think I am supposed to do this first,” she said, pulling out some foundation. “Don’t worry about supposed to,” laughed Sunset. “This is about having fun. Just go with what you want and be as creative as can.” Cadance looked to Princess Celestia, who just smiled. “It’s all in fun, go ahead Cadance! Have fun with it,” she encouraged. “Oh-kay,” Cadance replied, taking the foundation in her hooves and smearing it on. “I’ve never actually done this before,” she admitted. “We didn’t use makeup or anything on the farm. Seemed kind of pointless.” She smoothed it in until she thought it looked right. “Uhm. I think I need to do your eyes next.” Cadance applied mascara, then eyeliner, then some shadow stuff she had no idea what it was for, but Twilight had some suggestions so she went with those. She used some blush, putting color into the Princesses cheeks, then tried to blend it out. “I think that’s it,” said Cadance, finished with her work. Sunset held a hand mirror up in her magic so the Princess could see how beautiful she looked. “That’s actually not bad Cadance,” she commented. “Well done for a first attempt!” She gave Cadance a hug which she accepted gratefully. “So it's my turn. Hmmm, who should I pick on,” she grinned. Both Sunset and Twilight grinned madly. “I think I need to return the favor to my dear student for the wonderful job she did on me last time. Twilight, up you go! You’re next,” smiled the Princess. Twilight bounced up and down happily. Celestia moved over on the bed, then grabbed her in her magic and blopped her down in front of her. “Ready to look beautiful, Twilight?” grinned Celestia. Twilight nodded happily. Celestia levitated over the cosmetics, recreating the clown face Twilight had left her with last time while her subject squirmed and wiggled with happiness. Finishing up she smiled at Twilight. “Ready to see how beautiful you are, Twilight?” “Yes please!” the filly agreed. She held the mirror up so she could see, smiling. “I love it!” Twilight called out. She jumped up and hugged the princess, who hugged her back. “Okay Twilight, who’s next?” grinned Sunset. “You! I pick you!” she called out to Sunset. “Okay, runt! Do your best!” laughed Sunset, sitting in front of the bed so Twilight could reach. Just like last time, Twilight was adorably serious, tongue hanging out while she squinted and made the cutest faces as she worked intently on her big sister’s makeover. When she was done Sunset looked very much like a circus clown ready for her big top debut. “Awesome job Twilight!” congratulated Sunset as she looked at herself in the mirror. “I love it!” Twilight beamed happily. Sunset turned to Cadance. “Okay mare, you're it! Ready to look gorgeous?” she laughed. “Sure?” smiled Cadance nervously. She hopped up on the bed and laid down next to Princess Celestia, head on her forelegs. Sunset grinned. “Don’t worry. This won’t hurt. Much.” She laughed. Sunset went to work, using the glitter, mascara, eye shadow, eye liner, blush, lipstick and every brush in the case. When she was done, she grinned. “My finest masterpiece yet!” she cackled. “Okay, now I am really worried,” laughed Cadance. “What did you do to me?” “Mare, you look gorgeous!” laughed Sunset. “Behold!” She held the mirror in front of Cadance. Cadance burst out laughing. “Oh sweet harmony! You brat! You made me look like a Las Pegasus Showmare!” she grinned. “And you wear it well!” laughed Sunset. Twilight and Celestia grinned and nodded. “Fine!” laughed Cadance. “That was fun,” she agreed. “So where are you mares off to next?” asked Celestia with a grin. “Not going to steal any more cakes, are you?” “What do you mean, going to?” snarked Sunset. “Incorrigible! Please tell me you didn’t take my chocolate cake?” Celestia teased. Sunset just looked away and whistled. “You are such a brat!” laughed Celestia. Sunset laughed. “So no, no more cake. But we still have to give our newest princess the grand tour of the castle. Not the boring stuff she’ll see tomorrow, but the fun stuff nopony else will show her.” “Try to stay out of too much trouble, please?” teased Celestia. “You know, I think I may keep this look, see what every pony says tomorrow,” she grinned. Cadance facehooved. “Please no,” she begged. “Maybe we all should?” teased Sunset. “We can go through the day just like we are now, and see if anyone says anything!” Twilight nodded enthusiastically while Cadance shook her head emphatically. “No! No no no no! Please no!” she laughed. “Fine,” Sunset relented. “But we keep them on for the rest of the night. Deal?” “Deal! I can live with that,” agreed Cadance. Celestia bid her students and niece a good night, smiling as they popped out from her room. Still grinning, she hopped back into bed, falling asleep with a happy grin. Back in her room, Sunset gave Cadance the rundown on the rest of their night. This was the ninja pony portion of their festivities, sneaking around through the different passageways and parts of the castle, getting into as much mischief as possible without actually hurting anypony or getting caught. First though, tradition required Cadance be initiated into the sacred knowledge of the forbidden library. “Why would a library be forbidden?” asked Cadance, not understanding. “It’s where mom keeps all the tomes, scrolls, and books of knowledge that she doesn’t want anypony to know about,” answered Sunset. “So then, why do we need to know about it?” asked Cadance, still confused. “We don’t need to know the knowledge, at least not necessarily,” agreed Sunset. “But we do need to know it’s there, and where to find it if and when we need it. We’re her hooves after all. I wasn’t kidding earlier when I said mom needs to trust us with this. We really are an extension of her will and strength. The knowledge there is just a part of that. Anything in there we only use for her,” Sunset assured her. “But that’s not the most important part. For tonight, we have to initiate you into the mysteries of Star Swirl’s mirror,” stated Sunset. “I wonder what she’ll see?” asked Twilight. “She’s already a princess.” “Shh! Don’t spoil the surprise, Twilight,” grinned Sunset. Turning to Cadance, she smiled. “So, ready to take the first step into a larger world?” Cadance nodded. Sunset pulled them both close again and teleported away. They appeared in the middle of the forbidden library. “Wow!” commented Cadance. “This is huge!” “Shh!” Both Twilight and Sunset hushed her. “If the guards hear us, we’ll be in trouble,” said Sunset. “We have to be very quiet.” “But, doesn’t Celestia know we are in here?” asked Cadance. “Even if she knows, they don’t,” answered Sunset. “And frankly spending the rest of the night in lockup waiting for the Princess to wake in the morning would kill our fun. Better not to get caught.” Cadance nodded in understanding. “So, come here for a moment,” called Sunset, moving to stand before Star Swirl’s mirror. “Look into this enchanted mirror, and tell us what you see.” She stepped back so Cadance could step up and take a good look. Cadance stepped up to the mirror. She looked in then gasped and cried. “Cadance are you okay? What do you see? Is it sad?” asked Sunset in concern. Cadance shook her head. Still looking into the mirror, she smiled. “No, it’s not sad. These are happy tears! I see myself as a princess, but older. And I’m holding an adorable filly foal, and she’s a princess too!” “No way!” said Twilight happily. “Really? That’s awesome! Is she your foal?” “I think so, yes!” smiled Cadance, still looking into the mirror. “Sweet!” called out Sunset, placing a leg over Cadance and pulling her in for a hug. “When Twilight and I look into the mirror, we see ourselves as Princesses, which is why we weren’t really too surprised when you showed up. We already knew it was possible. We just didn’t know it was going to happen to anypony else.” “So the mirror shows you what is going to happen?” asked Cadance hopefully. “Yeah, we think so. Pretty sure that’s what it is,” agreed Sunset. Cadance cried again, smiling happily. “She’s so beautiful!” “I can’t wait to meet her,” agreed Sunset, giving her another hug. Twilight joined her on Cadance’s other side, hugging tightly to her leg. “Me too!” she added. Cadance hugged them both. “Thank you for showing me this!” “You bet!” smiled Sunset. “Okay, take all the time you need. But when you’re ready, we start the ninja pony tour,” grinned Sunset. Cadance just nodded, smiling. A few minutes later, Cadance stepped back from the mirror. “I don’t ever want to forget this,” she smiled. “I don’t think you ever will. I know what I saw is burned into my memory. I would bet this same is true for you,” smiled Sunset. “Ready for more fun?” Cadance nodded. “Okay! Ninja pony time!” laughed Sunset. They disappeared with a pop. They appeared in a tunnel, pitch black. Sunset cast a teal glow from her horn. Rough brickwork surrounded them, the tunnel extending off before them and behind them. “Where are we?” asked Cadance. “This is one of the secret passageways that run all through the castle. This one runs from the Princesses chamber to the armory. There’s hundreds of them. If you know their secrets, you can move all through the castle without getting caught,” explained Sunset. “Why would there be a passageway between Princess Celestia’s bedchambers and the armory?” wondered Cadance, looking around. ‘Think about it,” replied Sunset. “Back when the castle was built, things weren’t as peaceful as they are now. If the Princess was being attacked, she’d need a quick way to get from her room to her armor so she could bring the fight to whomever was attacking. She could just run down this passageway and get straight to the armory without having to worry about fighting her way through whomever was storming through the castle.” “Why wouldn’t she just teleport like you do?” asked Cadance. “Interdiction,” both Twilight and Sunset answered at the same time. “What? What’s that mean?” asked Cadance, confused. “It means you can’t. It’s not possible to teleport in the castle. It won’t work,” replied Sunset. “What do you mean it won’t work? You do it all the time,” asked Cadance, still confused. “Not really. Twilight and I are using a slightly different form of magic to do teleport. Teleportation doesn’t work. Nopony can teleport in the castle, not even the Princess,” assured Sunset. “Then what is that you’re doing? It sure looks like teleportation to me,” replied Cadance. “It’s a secret earth pony magic,” replied Twilight. “Wait, what? You can do earth pony magic? I thought only alicorns could do magic of all the tribes? And earth ponies can teleport? Since when?” asked Cadance, now thoroughly confused. “Yes, if they knew the secret, earth ponies could teleport. Maybe,” Sunset answered. “And actually no, all ponies can use the magic of all the tribes. Well, sort of. It Is kind of hard for me to use flight magic with no wings. But not impossible I don’t think. Just not easy. For alicorns, using the magic of all the pony tribes is easy, because they’re members of all the tribes. For a unicorn to use earth pony magic takes a lot of work, because we don’t have the same level of magical pathways as an earth pony would. We all have them, but not to the same level. So for Twilight and I, we can use earth pony magic, but it’s much harder than it would be for an actual earth pony.” “But an earth pony can teleport?” asked Cadance. “They could if they knew the spell, and could visualize the spell form. I’m not sure, but I don’t think that’s a normal way for earth ponies to think. But if they learned how I’d be willing to bet they could,” asserted Sunset. “Huh,” mused Cadance. “Of course, it also depends on how much mana you have. Teleportation takes some deep mana reserves. Not everypony can do it. But if they had deep enough mana reserves, I don’t see why they wouldn’t be able to,” Sunset clarified. “So you and Twilight use earth pony magic to teleport all around the castle even though nopony can teleport in the castle. And earth ponies can teleport, even though no earth pony has ever teleported. This is a tease, right? You two are pulling my leg, right?” asked Cadance. “No joke. We’re using earth pony magic to teleport,” agreed Twilight. Cadance looked at them both. “So I suppose next you’ll be telling me earth ponies can cast a luminesce spell too,” she asked skeptically. “Like this?” asked Twilight. She held up her foreleg. Her hoof started glowing. Cadance shook her head. “Okay, that’s just weird.” Twilight put her foot down and the glow faded. “So, want to see the armory?” asked Sunset, hoping to get them back on track. “Sure,” sighed Cadance. She and Twilight trotted behind Sunset as she let them down the tunnel. A very short trot later they were at a blank wall. “Dead end. Are you sure you know what you’re doing?” asked Cadance. “There are no dead ends here, only deceptions. If our enemies did get into these passageways, we wouldn’t want to make it easy for them to get back out. You have to know the trick,” answered Sunset. She touched her horn to the wall and it opened up. They trotted through and as promised were in the Princesses’ Armory. “Woah!” exclaimed Cadance, looking around. There was Celestia’s battle armor, including her Daybreaker armor, large sets of wing blades, pole-axes, long swords, short swords, and a large variety of petrals, helmets, and hoof guards. “This is all just for the Princess?” “Yup. The armory for the guard is much larger, and has many more types of weapons. I’d take you there too, but it’s guarded,” replied Sunset. “I wonder if I’ll be getting my own armor?” mused Cadance. “Of course you will. Can’t be a princess and not know how to protect your ponies,” agreed Sunset. “Of course, you need to learn how to use magic and fight first. But I’m sure eventually you’ll have a full set like mom.” “Cool,” thought Cadance. “What other weapons are there?” “Taking a look at those would mean a visit to the guards armory. Like I said, it’s always guarded. Sneaking in there just about guarantees you’ll get caught,” warned Sunset. “We could go to the castle library. It has a display showing the history of arms in Equestria on loan. Would that work?” suggested Twilight. “Ah, good thinking! Want to head to the library?” Sunset asked Cadance. “Sure!” Cadance smiled. “Okay, let's go,” said Sunset. She teleported them away. With a pop, they appeared deep in the stacks of the library. “Okay, here’s the deal. We have to be very quiet here. There’s guards that come through on regular rounds, but you can tell they’re coming because they always walk around with a light. So when you notice a light approaching, time to move out of the way. We don’t want to get caught,” explained Sunset. “The display is this way! Follow me,” whispered Twilight. She lit her horn and trotted off, heading out of the stacks to the study area in the back of the library. Cadance followed her, with Sunset trailing behind. Emerging from the stacks, Twilight trotted to the back wall of the library, where they could see a large collection of armaments in the glass cases along the wall. There were ancient and modern crossbows, lances, spears, darts of varying sized, all manor of swords, shields, daggers, axes, polearms of many assorted designs, and other armaments that Cadance had no idea what they were for or how they were used. “I didn’t realize there were so many different types of weapons,” mused Cadance, studying them through the glass. “They’re all so different.” “There are as many different types of weapons as there are styles of fighting, and then some,” agreed Sunset. “They do all have at least one thing in common though.” “What’s that,” asked Cadance, looking at her. “They’re all designed to take a life,” stated Sunset flatly. Cadance blanched. “Good point,” she noted, her enthusiasm for the display markedly dampened. “I wonder what type I’ll end up training with?” “Given your background, likely something like wing blades or shin blades. But you really won’t know that until you start training. Usually your primary weapon is selected to compliment your strongest fighting attribute,” Sunset answered. “Do you have a primary weapon?” asked Cadance. “I’m trained for combat as a battle mage, so yes. My primary strength is my battle magic, especially pyromancy and kinetics. So my primary weapon is this,” Sunset answered. A short glowing blade appeared before her, covered in runes and held in her magic. “Cool! You never showed me that before,” enthused Twilight. “It just never came up,” replied Sunset. “This is my enchanted blade. It is charmed to appear when I need or summon it, and disappear when I don’t. It has runic magic to make the blade harder than a diamond and to keep its edge eternally. It’s sharper than anything I have ever seen. It complements my battle style, which is close in hoof fighting.” Twilight and Cadance studied the blade, Sunset turning it in her magic so they could get a good look at all of its features. When they were done, she released the blade which disappeared with a pop. “Uh, Sunset, I think I see the guard coming. We need to hide,” suggested Twilight. She pointed over to the entrance to the main library. They could all see the light approaching them after Twilight pointed it out. “Good eyes, Twilight. Okay, where to hide,” Sunset looked around. “Crud, we’d need to head back into the main library to hide in the stacks, and we’ll never make it in time. Everypony duck, we’ll hide under the tables.” Twilight immediately ducked under the nearest table, easy for her with her smaller stature. “Come on Cadance, we’ll hide over here,” suggested Sunset, moving over a few rows and dragging a few chairs out of the way. She ducked down and wiggled under the table gesturing for Cadance to follow her. Cadance ducked and crawled in behind Sunset, wings twitching nervously. The guard entered the study area, light shining back and forth over the tables and displays. “Did you hear that? I swear I heard voices,” said the one guard. “I didn’t hear anything, but you pegasus have better hearing, so maybe?” Cadance looked out from under the chair she was hiding behind, and saw the two guards looking around. Her wings were twitching non-stop now. The guards started walking forward again, heading right for their hiding spot. Cadence backed up hard into the chair behind her which slid back, making a screech as it slid across the floor. Her eyes got as big as saucers. “Did you hear that? It came from over there!” called out the unicorn guard, shining the light directly at the table they were hiding under. Cadance’s wings were almost fluttering now with nervous energy. The two guards trotted quickly towards them. Seeing how nervous Cadance was, Sunset reached out a hoof to calm her. But as soon as her hoof touched Cadance, she bolted. Knocking the chair aside, she shot out from under the table and past the two guards, almost screaming “Nope nope nope nope!” as she raced by them. “Halt! Intruder halt!” called out the two guards, turning and giving chase. “Crab nuggets!” swore Sunset under her breath. She pushed out from under the table and called out quietly. “Twilight, are you still here?” “Yeah!” came the reply from two tables over. “Meet me in the pantry. I have to go rescue our little princess,” she growled, then disappeared with a pop. She reappeared in the rafters of the library. Looking down into the darkened main library below she spotted Cadance still at a dead run, bouncing off of stacks of books and she raced blindly away from the guards, who were catching up to her. Sunset disappeared with a pop again. And reappeared in the stacks below. She crouched, ready to pounce, then launched, tackling the pink blur that almost shot past her. Rolling in a bundle of limbs and feathers, they rolled through a hole in the shelves, disappearing in mid roll. To reappear in the pantry, still rolling and slamming into the shelf, Sunset still wrapped around the thrashing princess. “Nope nope nope nope!” she was still calling out, kicking and thrashing to get free. “Cadance! Cadance! It’s fine! You’re fine! I got you!” called out Sunset still holding her. Cadance stopped thrashing and calling out. She panted, eyes squeezed shut. Catching her breath, she opened her eyes. “Sunset? What happened? Where are we?” she asked. “We’re safe. You panicked and bolted, so I caught you and brought you here. We’re safe here. We’re in the pantry. No one can hear us. Are you okay?” asked Sunset. “Yeah, yeah, just give me a minute. Feeling better now,” answered Cadance. Sunset let her go, and rolled off of her, standing back up. Cadance got up too, and shaking her wings and mane, took a deep breath in, held it while pulling her foreleg up to her chest, then breathed it out slowly, moving her leg out in front of her. “Deep breath,” Cadance said. Then repeated the exercise a few more times until she was completely calmed. She turned to Sunset. “I’m so sorry about that,” she apologized. “Hey don’t worry Cadance,” Twilight comforted, hugging her. “I’ve gotten scared a few times too. It’s okay.” “Yeah, no worries Cadance,” agreed Sunset, rubbing her back and pulling her into a hug. “We’d never let you get hurt. We’re your friends. Heck, we’re family.” They held the hug for a while, letting everypony calm down. “So, who’s up for a bit of refreshment while we’re here?” suggested Sunset. She pulled down a bottle of cider from the shelves, cracking it open and sipping it. “I could use one of those,” agreed Cadance. “Oh, me too!” echoed Twilight. Sunset pulled two more down and opened them, passing them to her friends who took them gratefully. Sunset pulled down a bag of corn chips and opened them too. She levitated a few into her muzzle and chomped them happily, then passed the bag over to Cadance. Cadance shoveled several hoof fulls of chips into her maw, chomping busily. Twilight levitated a hoofful for herself between Cadance’s dips into the bag. When the bag was empty they finished up their ciders. Sunset folded the bag up, then took their empty cider bottles and placed them on the bag on one of the empty shelves. “Okay, anypony need a break for a bit?” Sunset asked. “Just a quick one!” answered Cadance. Nodding Sunset held her two friends and they popped away. And appeared back in her apartment. Cadance pulled away and ran into the bathroom. “Good idea,” agreed Sunset, following after her. Twilight followed her too. Pressure relieved and hooves washed the mares were ready for fun again. Sunset and Twilight took Cadance into the passageways again where Sunset showed her the spell to open and close the doors in the tunnels, then helped her practice it until she could get in and out on her own with no troubles. They then showed her all of the passageways and tunnel entries she would need to start, with the promise to show the rest during future sleepovers. Until Cadance’s magic progressed to the stage where she could handle and advanced spell like teleportation, the tunnels would provide her with a good way to get around in the castle without getting caught, in case she needed to bug out again in the future with neither of her friends nearby to help her teleport out of trouble. She also practiced casting the spells she knew through other parts of her body besides her horn. Oddly enough, or perhaps not so oddly considering she was still getting the hang of her unicorn magic, and was used to using weather magic as a pegasus, she took to this exercise fairly well. They all laughed when she cast luminescence through her wings, flapping them as they glowed brightly. As the hour to raise the sun approached they prepared for their last sortie of the night. “Okay, it’s a bit of a tradition that we end our sleepovers by watching mom raise the sun. Ready for a break from all these tunnels?” smiled Sunset. “Yes, please,” agreed Cadance with a smile of her own. “These tunnels are great, and I’m glad you’ve shown them to me, but I am feeling a bit claustrophobic. I’d love a chance to be outside for a bit.” Nodding, Sunset and Twilight held onto her, and together they teleported to the castle roof overlooking Celestia’s balcony. They appeared with a pop on the roof. Twilight started sliding down again, and immediately did as she was taught, crouching down low and holding her hooves flat against the roof. Her slide stopped, and she scrambled over into Sunset's lap. Cadance grinned at them both, then started sliding herself. Sunset reached out for her, but she just grinned as she slid away. As she fell over the edge she called out. “Woo hoo!” and spread her wings, gliding out from the roof and racing through the air around them. Sunset laughed. “Show off!” Twilight watched her flying with a huge grin. Cadance continued to race around the castle tower, doing barrel rolls, flips and darting past her friends, a huge smile on her face, tongue hanging out of her muzzle as she enjoyed the open air and not being trapped in a tunnel. Celestia opened her balcony doors and trotted out, noticing her niece flying joyfully around the castle. “Cadance?” she called out. “Hi Aunty Celestia!” Cadance called out as she raced past the balcony then back out into the open air over the castle. Celestia grinned, turning back to see her students sitting on her roof. They both smiled and waved. Laughing, Celestia turned to the moon. “Good morning dear sister. Not much longer now I think,” she smiled. She took the moon in her magic and moved it off to the west, over the horizon. Turning to the east, she looked over the horizon and summoned her sun, moving it up and into the morning sky with her magic. As the sun's warm rays bathed the city, her ponies awoke, rose, and started their day. “Come join me for breakfast please!” she called out to her niece and students. Sunset teleported them down to her balcony while Cadance came in for a landing beside them. “Now that was fun! Thank you!” she laughed happily, following her friends into the princesses’ bedroom. “So, did you have fun?” she asked Cadance and her students. “Oh yes!” enthused Cadance. “We went to the forbidden library, and got to look into Star Swirl’s mirror.” Celestia rolled her eyes. “And why am I not surprised,” she commented to her students. Turning back to Cadance, she smiled and asked. “So, what did you see?” “I saw myself as an older Princess,” answered Cadance. “And I had a baby. And my baby was an alicorn princess too!” “That’s new. So far everypony just saw themselves as an alicorn princess,” mused Celestia. “Maybe it had to change things up because she already did that,” commented Twilight. “That could be,” agreed Celestia. “So is it true? What you see in the mirror is in your future?” Cadance asked hopefully. “Yes. At least I think so,” answered Celestia truthfully. “It’s an oracle. Sometimes it’s very clear, and what you see is what is actually going to happen. And sometimes it’s more like a warning of something that may happen if you don’t change and do something else better. This sounds to me more like the first type of message.” “Well I sure hope mine is a vision, not a warning,” stated Sunset. “I want to become an alicorn and rule by your side forever, helping you for the rest of my life.” “My too!” agreed Twilight. “And I sure hope mine is a vision too!” agreed Cadance. “Because if that’s a warning, I plan on doing everything wrong if that beautiful little foal is the punishment!” That got a laugh from all of them. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure foals aren’t a punishment. Unless they're little spoiled brats like I was,” grinned Sunset. Celestia laughed. “Was?” she teased. “Just kidding! I always thought you were adorable,” she admitted. “Love you too, mom,” grinned Sunset. Celestia wrapped a wing over Sunset, giving her a light squeeze. “So, did anything else fun happen?” she asked. “Cadance raced the guards through the library,” noted Twilight. Sunset facehooved. “That was mostly my fault,” she admitted. “We were looking at the History of Armaments Display when the guards came in, so we hid under a table while they did their rounds. I saw Cadance was nervous, so I went to reach out to her, and I think I accidentally spooked her when I touched her.” “That wasn’t your fault,” comforted Cadance. “I was so frightened of getting caught and disappointing aunt Celestia, I was kind of freaking out. I became so focused on getting out of there, I kind of forgot you were even there. So when I felt something on my flank I panicked and bolted.” “You were pretty impressive. I had no idea you could run so fast,” grinned Sunset. “I’m just glad I was able to catch you before they did and get us out of there.” “And thank you for that,” agreed Cadance. “I needed that. And this. And in fact the entire night. I’ve been so overwhelmed by everything, and so intimidated, it was wonderful just to have a fun night like that with two friends who honestly had my back. So again, thank you!” Twilight hugged her. “Anytime, Cadance!” she grinned happily. Sunset reached over and pulled them both into a hug under Celestia’s wing. “Yeah, like Twilight said, anytime Cadance,” she agreed, snuggling them both. Celestia gave them all a loving squeeze too. “Thank you, my dear students. So, who’s ready for breakfast” They all nodded happily. Smiling, Celestia led them through the castle to the castle kitchen, where she comandered one of the stoves to make her students her own special pancakes, starting for them a new tradition, just like the one she used to do for her sister. Extending the same offer she had made to Twilight, Sunset offered Cadance the chance to move in with them for a while while she got used to living in the castle. Cadance gratefully accepted, happy to spend more time with her two new best friends. That night, after all the fun they had the night before, the absolute delight of watching their aunt and mentor make them all pancakes with her own hooves for breakfast, Princess style, then the fun day of lessons and studying together, they had all gotten ready for the night then piled together into Sunset’s bed. As they lay snuggled together under the sheet, Sunset thought back over the last two days. When Cadance first appeared, she thought she might be an obstacle to her goal of becoming an alicorn herself and serving by her mentor’s side. Why would she need her when she had an alicorn already? But once she got to know Cadance, she realized that wasn’t who Cadance was. She was kind, compassionate, clumsy, a little bit shy, loving, for Harmony’s sake that was what her cutie mark was about, it was a crystal heart after all. But she couldn’t find it in herself to stay jealous of Cadance. She was one of the most loving, open, and friendly mares she knew. And Twilight absolutely adored her. She loved showing off to her. Her cries of “Watch this! Cadence, watch this!” were absolutely adorable. Sunset reflected on their sisterly Mischief Made tour the night before. Poor Cadance, she could barely levitate a book up off the table, let alone teleport or keep up with her or Twilight. She was clumsy, unless she was flying, then she had a natural elegance. But she was a determined filly who threw herself into everything she did, including their fun. She had shaken like a leaf from worry, but smiled the entire time like a filly on hearth's warming eve. She almost got them caught in the library, so was freaked out about how much trouble she would be in. Yet she clearly had the time of her life. That thought made Sunset smile. Cadance clearly needed friends, and someponies to show her the ropes. She had that now. Her and Twilight decided she was one of them. Les Tres Amicis, as the castle staff had jokingly started calling them. Sunset laid there awake for a bit, holding Twilight as she fell asleep smiling with Cadance pushed up against Twilight’s back. Sunset watched her barrel rise and fall, her little wings twitching. She must have thought everypony was asleep as she began crying softly, her shoulders hitching. Sunset reached over and gently rubbed her shoulder. “Cadance, what’s wrong? Are you okay?” she whispered. Cadance carefully rolled over, turning to Sunset while trying not to wake Twilight. Sunset reached over to dry her tears and smooth back her mane. Cadance snuggled up closer to Twilight and put a hoof over Sunset’s shoulder. “Thank you,” she said softly, tears in her eyes. “You’re welcome, but for what?” Sunset smiled, gently rubbing her shoulder. ‘For treating me like a pony. Like a friend, and not some princess or something,” she said. “Thank you for including me.” Sunset smiled at her and gently rubbed her cheek. “You’re welcome, but that’s what friends do. And thank you for being our friend.” Cadance smiled, spooning Twilight and snuggling up to Sunset, laying her head under Sunset’s muzzle. Her eyes closed, and smiling, she fell asleep. Sunset knew right then she had made the right choice. She wasn’t her competition. She was their friend. A friend who needed them. And they loved her. Smiling, Sunset closed her eyes and fell asleep. The next morning, Sunset woke to her surprise with Princess Celestia leaning over them grinning happily, smirking at the three of them all cuddled up in the bed. “Take a picture, they last longer,” Sunset teased, one eye half open. “What brings you to my humble room, oh Princess mine?” “I came looking for my niece when I couldn’t find her, and thought, I bet I know exactly where she is,” grinned Celestia. “Caught again,” Sunset smiled. “We had a bit of fun last yesterday. Sorry if we overslept.” “So what, are you going to collect all my personal students? Starting your own collection?” teased Celestia. “Maybe?” Sunset grinned back. “You did say to make friends. I’m starting to see the appeal.” Cadance stirred. Sunset gently rubbed her shoulder and she fell back asleep. “You really do make a wonderful big sister,” smiled Celestia. “If you say so,” Sunset smiled. “Thanks mom.” Celestia ruffled her mane. ‘No rush. Come join me in my room when you all wake. We’ll get some breakfast together.’ Smiling, she trotted back out of Sunset’s room and shut the door. The days continued, Cadance becoming more comfortable in her new life as an alicorn princess while learning her new magic, Equestrian history, and Statecraft, her two new friends at her side most of the time, Les Tres Amicis.