The moment Pearl stormed into her Council Chamber, Twilight knew something was wrong. The guards stationed outside the doors also bore worried looks. Both 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 could not care 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 as she slumped. ”Me and Lotus broke up.”
Twilight’s ears dropped, as did her heart. “Oh, Pearl. I am 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, 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. 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 High Princess 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 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 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 am sorry, Pearl. I wish there was a way that I could help. 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 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.”
Pearl gave her a look as they pulled apart. “Unless you can get me a week or two with Dragon Lord Ember, or Tsunami Rose, I doubt it’ll help any.”
Twilight chuckled. Pearl’s love of dragons was well known in Ponyville. 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 in fact. “I can probably get you one with Lord Ember. But I have one better.”
Pearl eyed her teacher dubiously. “Yeah? Like what?”
Twilight lifted a scroll from her desk and unrolled it. “Lady Rose and Lord Everfree are asking to meet the two of us.”
Pearl blinked in shock, waiting for a punch line that never came. “Wait. The rulers of Equestria want to me meet me? Why? They don’t know me at all.”
Twilight rubbed her snout with a sigh. “I am not sure myself, Pearl. I’ve rarely interacted with either in all my years. It was rather unnerving that first time I must add. This arrived earlier.”
Pearl looked out towards the Everfree Forest. No matter how long it had been since she had moved to Ponyville, she still found the forest quite beautiful. So what if it acted differently from the rest of the country? So what if it was where Equestria’s true rulers lived? She loved the forest. “Are they as scary as ponies say they are?”
Twilight giggled, wrapping a wing around the younger mare. “No, Pearl. Yes, it can be quite unnerving when you first meet Lord Everfree and his Lady. Remember. Very few ponies outside of Ponyville had ever met a kitsune before. Let alone an ascended one. But once you get past that initial fear, they are very nice and quite courteous. I’ve rather enjoyed my meetings with them.”
Pearl found that hard to believe. But what did she know? She smiled after a moment. “Well. I could use a distraction right now. I just wish that I could do something about Lotus. 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. For Celestia's sake, she had been trying for years to be friends with Luster, and for a time, Pearl thought they were.
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? Is this something they’re asking as in right this moment?”
Twilight shook her head. “Well, no. But I would rather get ahead and get these done as soon as possible. And they did not say when.” 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, 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 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 doors behind them.
Pearl sighed in contentment 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 good. 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 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 very 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 did not 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 lost count of 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 about 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 I guess.”
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 sadly. “Only that she hopes you find someone better than her.”
Pearl winced, while Twilight looked on in confusion. “What did she mean by that?”
Pearl sighed. “There’s a bit more to what happened. We’ve been falling apart for a few years now. Lotus finally admitted that she had found someone else.” She sniffed. “We all met earlier. I could see they loved each other. At that point, I couldn’t say no, and we broke up. I just hope we can still be friends.”
Pinkie nodded. “She did seem like a nice mare, and you three weren’t yelling at each other. So hopefully?”
Twilight’s heart dropped right out of her. At the same time, though, her spirits soared. Here was her chance. She immediately punched that feeling in the face. That was wrong of her.
Pearl didn’t fail to notice her reaction, though. Could she even try? They were no longer teacher and student, and her former crush on the princess was well known. She couldn’t count the number of times her friends had teased her about it. All in good fun of course. Even after she and Lotus had gotten together, they still teased her about it. Pearl had just rolled her eyes and said nothing.
Pinkie, meanwhile, giggled, seeing both of their reactions. This was gonna be fun. “You two play nice now, you hear? Don’t make me ask Sasuke to help.”
Pearl groaned. Ponyville’s resident troublemaker was a constant pain in her flank and could be even worse than Discord some days. Gods help them when the two joined forces. She seemed to be his favorite target as well, though why was beyond her. “Please don’t bring him into this, Pinkie. I get enough from him as it is.”
Twilight giggled. Pearl did seem to be a favorite target of the young Tod, barely past his fifth tail. But she was overly thankful that he was deathly afraid of his twin Sakura, who was the more level-headed of the pair. That said, Sasuke never made his jokes or pranks harmful, and the most Pearl ever got out of them was being covered in hay or something else from Sweet Aple Acres.
His father, if what Sakura said was true, was even worse when it came to pranking or pulling a joke on ponies. Though Twilight found that hard to believe. Perhaps what Starswirl said was true though. He had known the family since long before Equestria was even a distant dream.
Pinkie only smiled as she patted Pearl’s head motherly. “Then don’t be a big dumb dumb, and I won’t have to. You’re going to see their parents soon, aren’t you? Maybe ask them to help.” Bringing out a well-wrapped package “Also, Lady Tsunami’s order is ready for her. Could you bring it to them?”
Twilight briefly wondered how her friend knew about this, but quickly decided it wasn’t worth the pain as she gently took the package. “I promise, Pinkie.”
And again, Pearl felt something tug on her soul. But why? It only ever happened if Lady Tsunami was ever mentioned to her or in front of her. Which was odd. She had often asked the young Sakura about it. But the vixen only smiled and vaguely told her that everything would be revealed in its own time. And that she shouldn’t worry about it.
Darn Seers, she snorted. You could never get a straight answer out of them. Not that Pearl would ever say that of course. While nowhere near as bad as her brother, Sakura could be just as mischievous and annoying when she put her mind to it.
Pearl actually liked spending time with the vixen. Putting aside her tendency to speak in riddles, and the occasional prank, Sakura was always pleasant to be around. Starswirl had once remarked she had inherited much of it from her mother and grandmother. Sasuke had inherited all the most annoying habits of his father and grandfather.
Maybe finally meeting the two in person would make it clear. Pearl was actually beginning to look forward to this trip, as she plopped another cupcake in her mouth.