//------------------------------//
// Chapter 25 - Laughter and surprises 
// Story: Dusk Shine in pursuit of Happiness II 
// by bigsnusnu 
//------------------------------//

Laughter and surprises

Dusk Shine dreamed that he was in a huge library. One of his most recurring dreams, since it was his favorite place. However, unlike other dreams, where he read books and talked with his favorite historical figures, this time Dusk was sitting at a desk with what seemed to be a test.

Just like at school, Dusk wrote quickly to finish his exam as soon as possible, but in this dream, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't finish it. Not because he didn't know the answers, but because with each answer he wrote down, two new questions appeared written on the scroll. The colt started to become stressed with the eternal exam.

"I can’t take this! The questions never end!" Dusk yelled with exhaustion and dropped his head on the desk with a sigh. "Will I ever get all the answers?"

While resting his head on the desk, Dusk narrowed his eyes thinking he saw something behind some shelves. An ethereal blue mane, which it quickly moved and hid when it noticed that Dusk looked there.

Curious, Dusk raised his head and prepared to get up from his seat. However, a sweet smell distracted him from another side.

Turning around, Dusk saw that the sweet smell came from a huge strawberry cupcake which was coming towards him. Dusk drooled with hunger and jumped up and took a huge bite of that sweet cupcake that smelled so good.

"Ouch!" The cupcake yelled. The sudden scream made Dusk wake up from his strange dream.

When he opened his eyes, the only thing Dusk could see was a huge pink cloud covering his face. And in his mouth, he was apparently biting into something soft and pink. Something that moved and quickly removed itself from Dusk's mouth.

"Dusk! You bite me." Pinkie Pie's voice said playfully, getting up from Dusk's side, rubbing her bitten hoof. Dusk realized that the pink cloud that had been covering his face had been his marefriend's mane.

"Pinkie Pie...?" Dusk asked, still half asleep with a confused look. Then, after a couple of seconds, Dusk's eyes widened like two large saucers and he blushed completely. "Pinkie Pie! You…! W-What are you doing sleeping next to me in my own room!?” 

"Well... I know it would be very daring to sleep with my coltfriend so soon, but I thought I could at least wake up next to him." Pinkie Pie said, slightly blushing with a huge smile. "So as soon as the sun came up, I snuck in here to wake up next to you, hehe."

"But... how did you get in?" Dusk asked.

Ever since they'd gotten back from the Canterlot wedding, Spike had been somewhat paranoid about the changeling invasion. So now, every night, he made sure to lock the doors and windows securely, so that no ' evil doppelganger', as Spike called them, would come in and trick him again.

"Hmm... I have my methods." Pinkie Pie replied with a thoughtful look. Looking sideways at a corner of the room. Where Dusk's pet, Owlowiscious, was eating a chocolate muffin. The proof of the secret bribe that Pinkie Pie gave him for entry into Dusk's room.

"What's all that noise?" Spike suddenly asked from his basket bed. The dragon raised his head, still sleepy after being woken up so abruptly.

"Sorry I woke you up, Spike. I'll make it up to you, I promise." Pinkie Pie jumped out of Dusk's bed and went down to the small living room that was left on the second floor. "I'll wait for you downstairs. Remember that today we have breakfast with the girls.” Pinkie Pie smiled. Then she approached the main stairs, but stopped dead in her tracks. "Oh! I almost forget it!"

Pinkie turned around, walked back to Dusk's bed, approached him and gave him a quick and tender kiss. One that made Dusk blush, and Pinkie Pie laugh tenderly. Then she turned around again and went down the stairs. Only this time, she went down happily, hopping until she reached the stairs and down to the first floor.

After Pinkie Pie disappeared, Dusk fell back on his bed and touched his lips, still surprised with how easily Pinkie Pie could catch him off guard.

"I wouldn't mind waking up like this every morning..." Dusk thought with a small smile, still savoring the warm, sweet taste that lingered on her lips.

It had only been two days since Pinkie Pie and Dusk had officially become a couple. In that short period of time, Dusk understood how different his new courtship would be compared to the previous one. Applejack had always been more shy when it came to kissing Dusk, it being quite a process until they reached the most intense and intimate kisses at the end of their relationship. Instead, Pinkie Pie didn't miss the opportunity to kiss and hug Dusk as soon as she saw him, expressing her affection much more openly. They both showed their love in their own way, but always made it clear how much they loved Dusk.

"Hey you! Get rid of that goofy grin of yours." Spike said suddenly, a little annoyed to see his brother's goofy smile.

“Sorry… hehe.” Dusk got out of bed and was unable to stop smiling.

After going to the bathroom and getting ready, Dusk and Spike went down to the first floor, and together with Pinkie Pie, went to the Ponyville Café. 

On the way, Pinkie Pie hugged Dusk at all times. While Dusk was more than happy to accept the hugs, he thought it would be uncomfortable for the girls to see them together like this when they got to have breakfast.

"Hehe! Don't worry, it’ll only be for today. I’ll be extremely loving to you at breakfast to see how much they can take." Pinkie Pie smiled happily and then putting on a more serious smile. "I'll find out what their limit is, so we can be more relaxed from here on out."

Faced with Pinkie's plan, Dusk simply gave an insecure look, but let his marefriend continue with her plan. After all, she had already shown how smart she was many times, especially knowing how she should act in front of her friends, so they wouldn't stop smiling.

Finally, the three of them arrived at the Café, where all their friends were already gathered. They were all already eating their respective breakfasts, so Dusk and Pinkie Pie quickly ordered, while Spike simply kept eating a surprise muffin that Pinkie Pie had given him. For several minutes, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash tried to divert their attention from Pinkie Pie. Who sat almost glued to Dusk's seat and cuddled the lavender colt openly.

For all of them, it was obvious that Pinkie Pie was now Dusk's official marefriend. In fact, it was something they had already heard from Applejack, but they still weren't one hundred percent sure. However, the constant dotting that the pink mare gave cleared all suspicion.

“Huff… I can't take it anymore! I have to say it. So Pinkie Pie is officially the second marefriend?" Rainbow Dash finally asked in exasperation.  Ever the sore loser, she couldn’t believe that Pinkie had beaten her to the metaphorical party punch.

"That's right!" Pinkie Pie said with a huge smile. Dusk couldn’t use his hooves to eat breakfast because Pinkie was tightly hugging them and had to use his magic for it.

“Hmm, I have to admit it's surprising. But I guess it's okay. I mean, it's what was supposed to happen… I guess.” Rarity said with a thoughtful look. She slowly diverted her gaze to another of her friends. “This is fine… right?” Rarity asked, looking at Applejack with a nervous look.

“Hmm? Oh! Yeah, it’s fine. I don't have a problem with it. It's overcome." Applejack said quietly. Who had been the only one who hadn't paid much attention to Pinkie Pie and Dusk and had simply focused on eating her breakfast since she was very hungry.

"But Applejack... are you really okay?" Fluttershy asked with worry.

At that moment, Applejack focused her gaze on Dusk and Pinkie Pie. Dusk had a nervous smile, since Pinkie Pie was being too clingy. He enjoyed the feeling of being loved by Pinkie Pie, but also wanted some personal space. Pinkie Pie knew that she was being too lovey-dovey to Dusk, but she was amused to see Dusk so nervous. Besides, that was part of her plan, so that all the tension that the girls could feel, they would feel only that day, and from there, they would get used to seeing both of them as the new couple. Seeing them so affectionate with each other, Applejack focused her eyes on Pinkie Pie's huge and loving smile and smiled too.

“I'm really fine, girls. I'm glad to see Pinkie Pie this happy." Applejack reassured them and turned her attention back to her breakfast and sipping on her apple juice.

“Girls, if we want this to work, you have to be just as mature as me. You can't let yourselves get carried away by feelings, and be childish...” Applejack thought calmly while she drank her juice.

When she stopped talking, the only thing Applejack could hear while she drank her juice was the playful giggles of Pinkie Pie and Dusk. Since it seemed that now Pinkie Pie was tickling Dusk as punishment for not accepting being fed in his mouth. Sounds of a couple very VERY much in love. Sounds that finally made a vein pop in Applejack's head.  Suddenly, the country mare was feeling a little less mature.  At that moment, Applejack lowered her glass hard, catching everyone’s attention.

"Besides, no matter how hard Pinkie tries... I'm still Dusk's number one marefriend. The number one and the best.” Applejack said, giving Pinkie Pie a sly, mischievous smile of revenge.

Pinkie Pie was startled, then she puffed out her cheeks in annoyance.

“That may be true. But I have a month to prove that now I can be Dusk's number one marefriend!" Pinkie Pie said, walking across the table to Applejack and giving her a challenging smile.

"Well, go ahead and try if you can." Applejack replied, giving Pinkie Pie the same challenging smile. Then both mares stared at each other for a couple of seconds with those looks full of pride and determination, until they both couldn't take it anymore and burst out laughing.

While both friends laughed, the others were confused, since for a second they believed that they would really start fighting. But it seemed that somehow, they had managed to accept each other as rivals and still maintained their friendship. Dusk always remained red with shame, still unable to be one hundred percent comfortable having his current marefriend and his ex-marefriend sitting next to each other. But just the same, he was relieved that Pinkie Pie's plan to take the awkwardness out of the new courtship would work.

"Can they really laugh like that, knowing that they both love and received love from the same stallion?"Rarity thought, not understanding what Applejack and Pinkie Pie had to go through to achieve that understanding.

"Will I also be able to continue laughing with my friends like this when Dusk is my coltfriend?"Fluttershy thought worriedly.

"And if Dusk leaves me, will I be able to see one of my friends with him and be happy for her?” Rainbow Dash thought nervously.

In that instant, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity all looked at each other, and made uncertain looks at all the doubts they continued to have about 'their deal'.

"I also thought it was strange that Dusk started dating Pinkie Pie, since it hadn't happened that long since his break with Applejack." Spike said suddenly. Who happily ate a muffin with sapphires, specially prepared by Pinkie Pie as another bribe.

Suddenly Spike made a strange face, as if he was stuck, and released a large green flame that melted all of his special gem muffin.

“Nooo…!!” Spike yelled theatrically, watching his delicious breakfast vanish. "I hate those surprise scrolls!"

Spike reluctantly took the scroll that came out after his magical flame belch, opened it, and read the beginning of the letter.

"It's a letter... from Princess Luna?" Spike said with a confused look and gave the scroll to Dusk.

While Dusk read the letter, all his friends gave curious looks, since they knew that it was usually Princess Celestia who wrote to Dusk. The only one who didn't look curious, but rather serious, was Pinkie Pie. A look full of insecurity, which went unnoticed by everyone.

“Strange….I think she wants me to go to the palace to… help her be more funny?” Dusk said after reading the letter twice to check that he had understood correctly. “She says that she has always seen me and my friends smiling and having fun, and that she needs my help to improve her good mood.”

"Oh! Does the Princess want to be funnier? That's my specialty!!” Pinkie Pie yelled, surprised and happy to hear that request. She pulled out a mini party cannon from her mane and fired it over Dusk's head, covering it with a few streamers.

“Hmm… You're right. If I understand correctly, and what she wants is to be funnier, I guess it's best if you go with me." Dusk smiled at Pinkie Pie.

"But it won't be enough with me alone!" Pinkie Pie said, hugging Dusk and pointing her hoof at the sky. "This will be a mission of the utmost importance, the fate of Equestria will depend on us!" Pinkie Pie said theatrically, like she was giving the introductory monologue to a spy movie.

Dusk raised an eyebrow at that. "Aren't you exaggerating a little?”

"All of Equestria depends on us!" Pinkie Pie repeated theatrically, pretending not to listen to Dusk. “And for that we’ll need the most party team in Equestria. The four funniest and craziest party stars in the world.” Pinkie Pie added, casually lowering her hoof to where her friends were, much to their confusion.





After a quick train ride, Pinkie Pie and Dusk arrived at Canterlot Castle together. The mare carried a huge backpack from which several streamers, rubber chickens, balloons and whoopee cushions were visible on its edges. Fully prepared with her entire arsenal of emergency pranks.

Once they both reached the castle gates, they were distracted by a strange noise coming from the nearby bushes.

"Psst! Dusk!" Sweet Caramel whispered from the bushes before emerging from them. “Princess Luna doesn't want her sister to find out about your arrival. Follow me.” The red-maned pony added. Sneaking out of the bush to go around the castle wall.

With a confused look, Dusk decided not to ask and simply follow the maid. Just like Pinkie Pie, who, like in a spy game, was advancing and hiding in every tree and bush that was in the way. Although with her huge backpack, her effort to go unnoticed was totally in vain.

Finally, Sweet Caramel led them both to a side secret entrance, which led to one of the palace gardens. Once they reached the garden, the three met up with Luna, who was pacing back and forth with a nervous look.

"Dusk! Finally…!" Luna said, widening her eyes with joy at the sight of the lavender stallion. However, that joy instantly vanished when she saw that Dusk didn’t come alone. “Y-You finally arrived…” Luna added after a pause, with an evident look of disappointment after seeing Pinkie Pie.

"Yes, we came as soon as we received your letter." Dusk greeted with a smile. "Although... We're not sure what you meant by needing help with your good mood." Dusk looked sideways at Pinkie Pie for support, but his girlfriend had been distracted by seeing a huge tray of blue crescent-shaped cupcakes, which were close to where Luna was.

"It's... It's just as it sounds." Luna said trying to remain serious, although she was embarrassed to have to explain to Dusk why she needed his help. “My sister has played many pranks on me since I returned to Equestria, and I always say that I'll take revenge.  But the truth is that I'm not as good at planning pranks as she is. Also, it seems that my sense of humor… is somewhat outdated…” Luna added, remembering a time when she tried to joke with one of the cooks, saying that he should have his throat cut for his bad cooking. But apparently, since the palace guards weren't used to her pulling pranks, the guards almost literally carry out the order against the poor cook.

“She play pranks on you too!?” Dusk asked, realizing that Luna had surely taken his place as the butt of Celestia's pranks after he left the castle and her sister arrived there. "Yeah... sometimes the Princess's pranks can be a pain in the ass." Dusk added with a small shudder.

"My sister is the queen of pranks, and not only to make them, but also to detect them." Luna huffed with a frustrated look. “I've tried to catch her off guard several times, but she seems to have a sixth sense that never goes off… That's why I need your help. I need to learn to be funnier, and thus play a good joke on my sister to finally see her surprised face and take revenge on her."

“Hehe… A joke against ‘Trollestia’. Well, luckily for you, I happen to be an expert.” Dusk said proudly, remembering some successful pranks he and Spike had pulled on Celestia in the past. “Also, I brought a secret weapon. The funniest pony in all of Equestria… Pinkie Pie!” Dusk pointed at his girlfriend.

Unfortunately for Dusk, after his great introduction, the first thing he and Luna saw was Pinkie Pie struggling to eat one of the crescent-shaped cupcakes while Sweet Caramel did everything possible to stop her.

“You can't eat them! They’re special for my Princess!” Sweet Caramel cried, holding the tray of 'moon cakes' in one hoof, while with her other hoof held Pinkie back so she wouldn't reach the tray.

“It's just cupcakes… I just want to eat one… or ten.” Pinkie Pie said, half of the maid's hoof in her mouth as she stretched out her hooves to try and grab the tray.

“I already told you, they’re special. It’s a recipe that has been passed down in my family for generations.” The maid said, struggling with Pinkie Pie. "Specials for my belov... F-For my dear Princess!" Sweet Caramel said quickly, blushing as she realized she almost said 'my beloved'.

Pinkie Pie calmed down when she saw that Dusk scolded her with his eyes. Then Dusk quickly explained to Pinkie Pie what Princess Luna had told him and how they needed her help.

“Oh… A prank for Princess Celestia, that sounds like fun! Now I can say that I have played pranks on two Princesses! Quite a record!” Pinkie Pie smiled, recalling how a while ago, she had painted fake mustaches on Luna when she fell asleep during pet play day in Ponyville. “Hmm… The Princess has a good point. Before you can do good pranks, you have to learn how to be funny. Hmm… I know! First, we'll test her to see how funny she is with my 'Funny-Meter'.” Pinkie Pie pulled out a huge ruler that marked from one to one hundred. Where the number one featured Pinkie Pie's sad face saying 'party pooper', and the one hundred featured Pinkie's happy face saying 'LOL'.

"How will you know how funny I am with that?" Luna asked curiously.

"Easy!" Pinkie Pie said, pointing her hoof at Luna. “What did the green grape say to the purple grape…? Breathe, you idiot! Haha!" Pinkie laughed gleefully. Something that didn’t impact Luna at all, who kept a confused face. “I tried to catch some fog earlier... I mist! Haha!" Pinkie joked while Luna remained confused. “You wanna hear a joke about pizza? Never mind, it was too cheesy!”

Pinkie Pie kept telling joke after joke. Most of them quite childish, but Pinkie Pie's way of counting them was so funny that Dusk couldn't help but laugh at several of them despite how simple they were. Even Sweet Caramel, who apparently was weak to childish jokes, laughing out loud at the silly jokes. The only one who didn't laugh at any time was Luna. Who made an effort to put on a nervous smile, despite the fact that at no time could she understand why those silly phrases should be funny.

“Huff… Huff… Wow, tough audience. We'll do something simpler." Pinkie Pie finally said in exhaustion. "Knock, Knock!" Pinkie Pie said, pretending to knock on a door and waiting for Luna to continue the joke to say the punch line.

"Uh... What's that supposed to mean?" Luna asked innocently, with a nervous giggle.

“You don’t know what 'knock-knock' jokes are!?” Pinkie Pie yelled with a terrified face. Then she took her 'Funny-Meter' and broke it in half. "I can't handle it …"

"Pinkie! Don’t give up!" Dusk said worried.

"I can't!" Pinkie Pie said scared. Turning around and putting a small visor on her eye, which was a little screen that looked like a scouter. “Her humor level is under nine thousand!!” Pinkie Pie said, faking an angry face and destroying her scouter with her hoof.

“Pfft! Bwahaha!” Sweet Caramel burst out laughing. She didn’t understand the reference, but she was so conditioned to laugh with Pinkie Pie, that everything the pink pony did was funny.

"I'm sorry, Princess." Pinkie Pie finally said, looking pained at Luna. "I could try to make you funnier, but in just one day, it's impossible."

"Please, Pinkie Pie!" Luna said, approaching Pinkie and pleading with her eyes. "I want to have that power!" She pointed to her maid, who was rolling on the floor laughing. "I'll do anything… I'll give you anything if you help me with this!" 

"Hmm... Anything?" Pinkie Pie repeated with a thoughtful look. Looking sideways at the tray with moon cakes that only Luna could eat. Suddenly, Pinkie Pie ran at full speed and disappeared from everyone's sight, leaving Dusk and Luna stunned.

“I understand… I'm a lost cause…” Luna turned around and starting to walk head down back to the castle.

Then Luna saw a strange shadow on the ground. Looking up, she saw against the light the silhouette of Pinkie Pie, who was now standing on a statue in the garden.

"Do you want to learn to be funny?" Pinkie Pie yelled seriously, standing on top of the statue.

“Y-Yes…!” Luna responded, with her eyes wide open at the emotion of the moment.

"Then, I-Am-Your-Master!" Pinkie Pie said pointing to herself theatrically, with the most serious look she had ever put on in her life.





"Yes, sensei!" Luna yelled almost on the verge of tears. Her eyes sparkled at being accepted as a worthy disciple by the funniest pony in Equestria.

While that whole movie scene was going on, Dusk Shine and Sweet Caramel watched everything from afar. Then looking at each other in disbelief, not sure if all of this was finally a good idea.

After accepting her disciple in humor, Pinkie Pie asked Dusk and Luna to go to the tower where Dusk's old room was, since they had to keep their training a secret. The mare quickly went ahead to prepare everything, while Luna and Dusk went there calmly. They hid from the guards, so that no one would inform Celestia about their 'special training'.  Upon reaching the tower, Pinkie Pie was already waiting for them at the door for her express course in humor.

“Here they are, the funniest and most partying team of all!” Pinkie Pie yelled with a big smile, opening the door and pointing inside.

Luna and Dusk went through the door and saw the room was full of balloons, signs with written jokes, whoopee cushions, cream pies, and countless other materials for pranks. In the middle of the room were four chairs. One chair with three rocks stacked on top of each other with a party hat on them; the other chair had a bucket full of turnips; the third chair had a sack of flour with a whistle around it; and the fourth chair had what appeared to be a clump of lint wearing some dark glasses.

"What are those things?" Luna asked about the objects in the room.

"I told you, it's my super party team!" Pinkie Pie said with a huge smile. Approaching the chairs to introduce her 'party team'. "This is Rocky, Mr. Turnip, Madame le Flour, and Sir Lintsalot." Pinkie Pie said, pointing to the rock, the bucket of turnips, the sack of flour, and the clump of lint.  The pink mare then quickly rushed behind the objects and started to do voices for them.

"It was about time you arrived." 'Rocky' spoke in a Northern Manehattan accent.

"Nice to meet you, young lady."  'Mr. Turnip', greeted in the voice of an old pony.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Princess." 'Madame le Flour' said in a French accent.

“We’ll have a lot of fun together!” 'Sir Lintsalot' cheered in a slightly sophisticated accent.

Luna stared at the pink mare with a very strange look, while an awkward silence filled the room. Dusk facehoofed himself due to the ridiculousness of the situation.

"When you said we'd meet your party team… I thought you were talking about your friends from Ponyville." Luna meekly admitted.

"Yeah... I had also thought the same thing..." Dusk concurred.

“My friends are the best, but these four were the ones who taught me to be funny.” Pinkie Pie said to her four 'friends' and putting on a more rueful smile. “On my family's rock farm, I didn't have many friends to practice my jokes on. So, I practiced on the sly with these four guys.” Pinkie Pie added, with a brighter smile. "If they could teach me to be funnier, I'm sure it’ll work for you too, Princess." 

"Wow! That’s kind of sweet, but also... kind of sad."Dusk thought with a look of compassion, thinking that there was still a lot of his marefriend's past that he didn't know about yet.

After a long look of doubt, Luna lowered her head and sighed in resignation. She supposed that if she wanted to be as funny as the party pony, she would have go along with her strange tactics.

"Okay, I guess I'll leave you two alone." Dusk said, once Luna agreed to stay with Pinkie Pie and her 'elite group of pranksters'. "I'll go chat with the Princess. That way I'll make sure she doesn't find out what you're planning.”

"Besides… I still have a pending conversation with her."Dusk thought as he left his old room.  His last conversation with Celestia was interrupted, and there was still something important about his family that he needed to find out.

As Dusk left, Luna stared at him with a sad look, dropping her head sadly after he closed the door behind him. She would have liked to ask the colt to stay with them during training, but perhaps her attempts to be funnier would be viewed with mockery by Dusk. So, the alicorn was simply sad, not knowing if it was good or not that Dusk wasn't there.

"Pinkie Pie... Do you think I-" Luna said, turning around with a wistful look. She shut up suddenly when PAFF!! a cream pie smacked into her face. "HUH!?" Luna said in shock, not knowing how to react. Then she blushed deeply and turned quickly to face the door to make sure Dusk didn’t see.

After verifying that Dusk wasn’t in the room, Luna turned back to Pinkie Pie. There, the pink pony laughed out loud while rolling on the floor, hugging 'Madame le Flour' while pointing at Luna's face and laughing even harder.

Seeing that Pinkie was making fun of her to her face, Luna's face reddened even more, only this time, it was red with anger.

"I am a princess! How dare you mock me like this!?” Luna yelled furiously in her royal Canterlot voice.

Pinkie Pie simply stared at her outburst with a blank, puzzled look. Then she moved her hoof to slowly pick up another cream pie, and very slowly squashed it against her own face, always keeping an expressionless face. That made Luna freeze, who immediately stopped screaming and stared at her with confusion.

Pinkie Pie finally smiled again, her face covered in cream, and raised her front hooves to strike a presenting pose.

"Ta-da!" Pinkie Pie cheered with her face so covered in cream, that only her eyes and her huge smile were visible. That made Luna cover her mouth with her hoof as she began to laugh at how silly Pinkie Pie looked. "See? Pie-faces are fun!” Pinkie Pie took a mirror and showed it to Luna so she could see her own reflection and see that her face was still covered in cream. "The first thing you gotta learn is that before you can laugh at others, you gotta learn to laugh at yourself." 

Understanding that this was Pinkie Pie's first lesson, Luna lowered her head in sorrow and embarrassment.

"I'm sorry. It's just… times have changed so much…” Luna mourned. “A thousand years ago, ponies looked at us in a completely different way. They idolized us as if we were almost goddesses. But now... my sister has fought a lot for the ponies to see us as just ponies like them."

“And did you like to be idolized as a goddess?” Pinkie Pie with curiosity.

"No..." Luna said with a sad look. She remembered the lonely nights she had in ancient times. Back then, very few ponies approached her for fear of being in her presence. Those feelings of loneliness paved her fears, jealousy and anger that led her to finally become Nightmare Moon. "I want to change. I want the ponies in the palace not to be afraid of me. I want… I want to have friends! I want to be able to laugh together with the pony I love! I want to be a new and better Luna for everyone!” Luna put on a firm look and her eyes shined with determination.

Those words, spoken so firmly, surprised Pinkie Pie. Especially the part where Luna said she wanted to laugh with the pony she loved. 

"That's the spirit!" Pinkie Pie said with a big smile, full of emotion.  Then sprinted behind 'Sir Lintsalot' and spoke behind it.

“Enough talk! There is a lot of work ahead!" Pinkie Pie said, giving the clump of lint a voice again.

"You are so wise, Sir Lintsalot." Luna laughed and followed Pinkie Pie's game. She gave a little bow to the clump of lint. "I am your humble apprentice."

At Luna's little performance, Pinkie Pie laughed from behind the chair. Maybe Luna could learn to be funnier, if she wanted to.





After leaving the old castle tower, Dusk headed towards Princess Celestia's room. There, he was surprised to find not his teacher, but Sweet Creme. The maid was at the center desk of the room, wearing Celestia's golden crown signing what seemed like an endless batch of documents with a face of utter exhaustion.

Sweet Creme explained to Dusk that the Princess had asked her to take her place signing documents, since she had a very important mission to accomplish that day. A mission so secret, she hadn't even told her faithful maid.

"Secret mission? Maybe she found out that Princess Luna is trying to play a prank on her!"Dusk thought. "Or even worse, she's preparing a surprise revenge prank!"

"My Princess thinks I don't know, but she has been going to the castle kitchen a lot lately." Sweet Creme said, looking at Dusk out of the corner of her eye and concentrating on signing the documents again. "Surely she's there now."

"The castle kitchen?"Dusk thought with fear, imagining her teacher cooking a giant cream pie, and throwing it at her poor little sister.

With that image in mind, Dusk hurried to go to the castle kitchen. Once there, the sweet aroma that was in the air, contrasted remarkably with the chaos that was on the part of the palace cooks.

Celestia was in the middle of the kitchen making one by one all the palace chefs present her with different huge cakes, with different shapes and flavors. Many of them having in common the blue colored bitumen. There, the alicorn inspected the cakes one by one, but after giving them a careful look, she discarded them and moved on to the next one.  The chefs would then throw away their culinary works in the trash and run stressed out back to their kitchens to bake another cake.

"Dusk! What a delight!  Why this surprise visit?" Celestia asked happily once she realized that her dear student was there.

"I just..." Dusk replied with a confused look.  He completely forgot the reason why he came and was curious about what his teacher was planning. "What's going on here?" Dusk asked, seeing how restless all the chefs were running back and forth throughout the kitchen.

"Oh! It's just that I'm preparing a surprise for Luna.” Celestia smiled and approached Dusk. "I'm going to celebrate Luna's birthday with a surprise cake." Celestia whispered in his ear.

"Princess Luna's birthday?" Dusk repeated with surprise. He sighed with relief in his mind, seeing that his teacher wasn't preparing a secret prank for her sister. "I didn't know it was her birthday."

"I believe so... she doesn't even remember it herself." Celestia said with a sad look. "And I don't blame her... She spent a thousand years locked up on the moon... I doubt she remembers celebrating a birthday for a long time." Celestia had a look filled with guilt, but quickly shook her head to put on a look filled with determination. "That's why I planned to make her a special birthday cake just for her. But... I'm still not convinced by any of the chefs' proposals. It must be a very special cake!" Celestia looked disappointingly at a huge pile of cakes that were piled up near the trash can. 

“All of those cakes are bad!?” Dusk asked. Normally, her teacher wasn't so picky when it came to food and even less so with sweets. 

"N-No, they are quite delicious.” Celestia replied with embarrassment. “It's just that the cake for Luna… I want it to be perfect! And none of them have given me that feeling yet.”

At his teacher's baseless response, Dusk scratched his head. For the first time, his teacher wanted something to be genuinely 'perfect', as she thought her sister deserved it after all the suffering she went through for years. However, meeting those expectations might be impossible, as whether something was 'perfect' was highly subjective. Even more so for Celestia, who was by far the greatest display of perfection in the world. The proof was just looking at the chefs, who without Celestia realizing it, were about to go crazy for not being able to meet the expectations of their perfect princess.

"Hmm... You may never find a cake that meets your expectations." Dusk said with a thoughtful look. "But if I had to guess, I think Luna would prefer anything that was baked by you."

"M-Me?" Celestia repeated somewhat shocked. Then she lowered her gaze, remaining silent for several seconds. “Of course… It's so obvious! How come I didn’t think of it before!?" Celestia yelled in great surprise.

The suggestion from Dusk was something that any other pony would have thought of. But Celestia hadn't baked in ages.

Celestia quickly thanked all the chefs in the kitchen, apologizing for exaggerating her order, and gave them the afternoon off so she could have the kitchen to herself. The only exception was Dusk, who offered to stay with her, since his experience baking with Applejack and Pinkie Pie could be useful to her. Also, the colt didn’t want his teacher to burn down the entire kitchen.

"It amazes me that Princess Luna celebrates her birthdays and you don't, Princess." Dusk said as he kneaded a huge ball of dough with his magic.

"In the old days we both celebrated our birthdays, but since Luna left, I stopped celebrating them." Celestia answered, curiously at the oven since she wasn't sure how to turn it on. “We didn't celebrate it every year, since we knew we were immortal. But when we were fillies, we both took turns every year to celebrate on 'Hearth's Warming Eve'.” Celestia pulled her head out of the oven in fright when she managed to turn it on and nearly burned her eyelashes. “We did that for many years, but after our subjects began to pay more attention to our birthdays than to the actual celebration of Hearth's Warming Eve, we decided to change the date of the celebration and began celebrating our birthdays a few days earlier.”

That answer that his teacher gave him so casually surprised Dusk a lot, since he had never heard that. In fact, he doubted that anyone else knew about his teacher's past.

For as long as Dusk could remember, he never knew that his teacher celebrated her birthday. And in the history books, there was never a record of the date Celestia was supposed to have been born. That, Dusk understood, helped the mysticism that surrounded Celestia. Making her look almost like a goddess, an immortal being come to earth to move the Sun and give light and life to the ponies. A belief that the most learned ponies knew was not true, but that the vast majority of ponies did accept, even if Celestia herself denied it. Since most of the ponies felt safer thinking that they were protected by an immortal goddess.

"Since you spent the Hearth's Warming Eve with your family, you always gave me a present a few days before you left the castle." Celestia smiled tenderly at Dusk. “Inadvertently, you gave me a birthday present every year.” A confession that made Dusk blush and also smile tenderly.

Hearth's Warming Eve was one of the most important celebrations in Equestria. A date when families gathered to give each other gifts and remember the Foundation of Equestria. When the three original tribes: the unicorns, the pegasus, and the earth ponies; they joined and drove away the spirits of the ice, called 'windigos', with the 'Fire of Friendship'.

"If the princesses celebrated their birthdays on that date, do they have any relationship with the foundation of Equestria?"Dusk thought as his curious mind filled with questions. "That is, there’s no record of them before that. But it’s also true that the records of the Pre-Equestria era are very scarce."

“Do you want to ask me about my past?” Celestia suddenly asked, amused to see the confused face of her dear student. "I doubt you'll find it in any books, as many of those books were banned to make me look more divine than I am. Starswirl believed that the ancient kings of the different tribes would more easily accept Luna and me if we said that our origin was divine. A belief that lasts to this day."

"But then... what are your origins?" Dusk asked shyly, since he was facing a question that thousands of ponies had wondered for hundreds of years. "W-Will you tell me?"

Celestia looked up and stayed for several seconds with a pensive look. Then she looked at Dusk and smiled.

"Hmm, how about I let you choose. I can tell you about my past… Or I can tell you about yours.” Celestia said with a slightly more serious look. “After all, that's what you came for, right? You want to know more about the Sparkle family.” From the first moment, she had guessed the reason why Dusk was there.

Dusk Shine was silent for what seemed like an eternity. He was having one of the deepest existential doubts of his life. On the one hoof, he could learn one of the biggest unknowns in history: the origins of Celestia. And on the other hoof, there was the answer that had tormented him since the wedding: who were the Sparkle family and why did the nobles hate them so much?

"I..." Dusk gulped and inhaled hard after taking the transcendental option. "I choose to know more about your past, princess."

“Hm, I see…” Celestia replied, looking thoughtfully up at the ceiling. “Unfortunately, you picked the more boring answer. After all, I don't even know myself." Celestia added with a big, amused smile. Dusk’s eyes went wide and all the tension of the moment broke.

“Don't you know your origins!?” Dusk yelled in frustration from the deception.

“Well, it's not like you know yourself how and where you were born either. Everything you know, you know because your parents told you." Celestia replied, puffing out her cheeks in a pout. "And that is the point. I don't have a mother."

Dusk opened his eyes in surprise and calmed down a little more.

“I don't remember much from my childhood, since it was a long time ago…” Celestia said, with a serious look, lost in thought. "My earliest memories are being in the care of Queen Amore in the Crystal Empire."

“The Crystal Empire… I think it’s one of the many missing kingdoms from the Ancient Equestria Era.” Dusk remembered having read about that kingdom. Although, compared to other ancient kingdoms, very little was known about the Crystal Empire.

“I think my oldest memory is seeing Starswirl holding Luna and showing her to me. She was just a baby…” Celestia smiled tenderly. “Queen Amore was not our mother, but I always felt a great connection to her, just like I felt for Luna… She called us her little princesses. That's why we continue to use those titles to this day. For me, she will always be the only Queen."  Celestia's eyes sparkled with excitement as she remembered something she hadn't remembered for so long.

“I don't know why, since Starswirl never told me. But one day, Queen Amore left us in charge of him, and our relationship was never the same." Celestia put on a sad and melancholic look. “We saw each other a few times after that, but she always kept her distance from us until… until the day she died.” 

At that moment, the oven alarm sounded to indicate that the first part of the cake they were preparing had finished baking. Then Celestia and Dusk focused again on continuing with the cake in silence. Dusk understood that his teacher had to take her time to tell her story. After all, Celestia had lived hundreds, maybe thousands of years, and there were many sad stories in that long life.

Despite everything, Dusk was fascinated by knowing that unknown part of his teacher. An answer that, as always, filled him with even more questions.

“If Queen Amore wasn’t their mother, where were Celestia and Luna born from? They can’t have been born from nothing.” Dusk thought with a restless look. “Also, why did the Queen turn away from the alicorn sisters? And everything happened in the Crystal Empire, how come that huge kingdom just vanished without a trace!?” Dusk was getting a little desperate as he had more questions without answers.

"Heh... That's why I wanted to avoid answering your questions." Celestia said suddenly with a small giggle, seeing how Dusk shook his head when he was filled with questions. “You have an overly curious mind, and you always want to know all the answers. But the truth is, sometimes you won't be able to find all the answers… That's why I wanted to avoid telling you about the Sparkle family.”

"Will... Will you tell me?" Dusk said, opening his eyes in surprise. Celestia simply smiled and looked up as she remembered her past again.

“The Sparkle family name is also something that caught my attention in my youth.” Celestia remembered. “Noble families have always feared and hated the Sparkle family. That's something I noticed at the time."

“You mean that this hatred of the nobles towards my family… It comes from even before you!?” Dusk asked.

“It’s a hatred that has been passed down from generation to generation among the high nobles of the kingdom. From before I even ruled Equestria.” Celestia continued speaking. “That is why, just like your family, your ancestors concealed their family name. Since they knew that many highborn ponies hated them for no reason… Ponies that became famous over the centuries, but always hid part of who they really were.”

At that moment, the alarm from another oven sounded, indicating that the biscuits baked there were also ready. Then Dusk shook his head to clear his head and return to concentrating on the Luna's cake. After all, his questions could wait a bit.

"I doubt there are famous ponies that have been part of my family." Dusk said, without being able to hold back to draw their first conclusions as he took the biscuits out of the oven. "I mean, if they changed their family name to 'Shine', I don't know many famous ponies with that name."

"Oh! Well, it’s that in the past they hid their name in another way.” Celestia said with a thoughtful look. Then looking at Dusk to see his reaction. "Tell me... do you really think Starswirl's full name was ‘The Bearded’?"

The tray and the cake clattered to the ground from how shellshocked Dusk was from what he heard from his mentor.  The implications of what she had said would forever echo in the lavender stallion’s mind.





In Dusk Shine's old room, Pinkie Pie continued to train Princess Luna to learn to be funnier so she could finally perform a prank as revenge on Celestia.

Pinkie Pie had taught Luna all the basics of pranks, from whoopee cushions to water squirt clown flower. It was rather hard and demanding training on Pinkie Pie’s part, who required Luna to improve her pranks, and mainly, her sense of humor. The only pause was when Luna's pet opossum, Tiberius, entered the room and ate Pinkie's poor and innocent friend, 'Mr. Turnip'.

After the tragedy, both mares held a small funeral for Mr. Turnip. Until Pinkie Pie simply refilled the bucket with turnips and they christened 'Mr. Turnip Junior' as a new member of the team.

After returning to Pinkie's lessons, the teacher put her student to the test with a great prank circuit that Pinkie Pie and her 'party crew' performed. The alicorn advanced through the circuit, throwing a pie at ‘the face’ of Madame Le Flour; making Mr. Turnip Junior slip on marbles on the floor; making Rocky 'blush' by making him sit on a whoopee cushion’ scaring Sir Lintsalot with a dragon mask, causing him to fly out of his chair in fear. And finally, much to Pinkie Pie's surprise, giving Pinkie an electrifying hoofshake by using an electric button that Luna hid in her hoof before greeting her.

After passing Pinkie Pie's crash course, both mares sneaked into the castle and began playing pranks on the palace guards and servants. Using the dragon masks, marbles and balloons to annoy everyone they came across. They were all a little scared to see that the one who had played a prank on them was the always serious Princess Luna. However, seeing her laugh like they had never seen before, made the guards and servants laugh as well, happy to discover that new facet of their princess.

For her part, seeing her beloved subjects finally laugh along with her made Luna also start to genuinely feel more joyful and grateful for all the help given by Pinkie Pie.

"I think it's about time...to play the prank on Princess Celestia!" Pinkie Pie finally declared after she and Luna dropped a bucket of water on the head of a clueless guard. "I think Dusk once made her sit on a whoopee cushion, but maybe we could combine several pranks into one to surprise her..." Pinkie Pie smiled mischievously as she imagined all the prank possibilities, to make it something truly spectacular.

"Actually... This time I'd like to be the one to come up with the prank for my sister." Luna said, with a small smile. She wanted it to be her, with no one else's help, to be the one to finally surprise her cunning sister.

"Okey-dokie-lokie!" Pinkie Pie answered happily.

With a smile on her face, Luna put on a thoughtful look and began going over the lessons learned with Pinkie Pie to think of the best prank for her sister. And so the seconds and minutes passed, and Luna remained silent. The only thing that changed in that time was that Luna's smile slowly disappeared as she began to look insecure.

Her sister Celestia always anticipated everything, and she... She was so perfect! Would she really be able to trick her sister? And if she didn't make it? What if all of that had been for nothing!? After all, her pranks would never measure up to Celestia's pranks... Even... She herself wasn't up to par with her sister...

Luna's nerves and low self-esteem began to take over her thoughts and making her start to lose faith in herself. That didn’t go unnoticed by Pinkie Pie, who watched with concern as Luna again seemed to have forgotten how to smile.

"Maybe you just need to give her a good pie in her face." Pinkie Pie said with a sheepish smile.

“That's too simple! Tia will be expecting that! " Luna huffed with annoyance.

"But Princess Celestia won't expect you to throw a pie at yourself." Pinkie Pie defended. "Just like we did in Dusk's room. That was really funny! And she definitely won't be expecting it!”

"That was a mistake! I am not going to humiliate myself in front of my perfect sister!” Luna yelled in frustration and took it out on Pinkie Pie.

Pinkie winced back a little. She knew that Luna still had a hard time learning the most basic lesson of pranks. The important thing is not who is being pranked, but that everyone can laugh together.

"Princess... There is nothing wrong with laughing at yourself." Pinkie Pie said with a cute little smile, bringing her hoof closer to touch Luna.

Seeing Pinkie Pie's hoof, Luna tried to catch Pinkie Pie's smile. However, the only thing her imagination allowed her to see was herself with her face covered in cream and her sister again making fun of her. All of the palace servants were also laughing at her as they whispered that she was not at Celestia's level. And finally, she imagined Dusk Shine mocking her and getting away from her forever.

“I… I am a Princess! I will never lower myself to be made fun of by anyone!” Luna yelled at the pink mare. “We are different, understand it! I am a Princess, and you are just a clown."

Those words shocked Pinkie Pie a lot. She sadly lowered her head, turned around and began to slowly withdraw from the room where they were. For her part, the moment she said those harsh words, Luna opened her eyes with horror when she realized how cruel she had been.

“P-Pinkie Pie! I… I'm sorry.” Luna apologized and reached out a hoof for Pinkie Pie to come closer. However, Pinkie Pie didn't even turn around. She just walked away with a very sad look.

"I'm just a clown..." Pinkie Pie thought sadly. Remembering her training to be funny with Luna. "I thought we were getting close, but to her… I was never more than just a-"

Pinkie Pie suddenly stopped her train of thought, when Luna teleported to appear right in front of her and blocked her way.

“I am the Princess of the Night! Don't you dare turn your back on me!" Luna yelled in the royal Canterlot voice.

That left Pinkie Pie very surprised, who looked up and fearfully saw how Luna was staring at her with a serious look. However, before she could say anything, Luna made a cream pie appear, and very slowly smashed it into her own face.

"Ta-da!" Luna said with a small, embarrassed smile while in the same funny pose that Pinkie Pie did in Dusk's room, when she threw a pie at herself.





“Pfft! Hahaha!" Pinkie Pie burst out laughing, surprised to see Luna so serious and then smile with her face full of cream. Meanwhile, Luna began to wipe the cream off her face, but she couldn't help but be infected by Pinkie Pie's laughter and they both began to laugh together.

"You're absolutely right, Pinkie Pie. What matters is the laughs, not who makes the joke." Luna recovered from her laughter. Finally accepting within herself Pinkie Pie's primordial lesson to learn how to be funnier. "I'm so sorry for insulting you and being so stubborn."

"No problem, hehe." Pinkie Pie smiled, quickly leaving her sadness aside when she saw that her student had surpassed the teacher, taking her by surprise like that. Then she gave a thoughtful look and then looked tenderly at Luna. "Princess... Would you like to be my friend?"

That question took Luna completely by surprise. That was something no one had asked her directly since… never! She had her dear sister, her loyal maid, her adorable opossum, and the stallion she loved. But… did she really have a friend?

Although Luna was ready to say yes immediately, she put on a thoughtful look for a second.

“Pinkie Pie… I would love to be your friend. If you can accept being friends with someone as unfunny as me." Luna finally answered with a small smile. “But before that…” Luna put on a more serious look. "I would like you to tell me... What is the deal that you and your friends made with Dusk Shine?"

This time it was Pinkie Pie's turn to put on a surprised look.





At sunset, Luna and Pinkie Pie were in the main hall of the castle. There, both of them waited patiently for Celestia's arrival after the sun went down. Then, it would be time to activate their trap.

Both mares had set up a simple but well-crafted trap in the middle of the main hall. One that would be activated by stepping on some marbles that were hidden under the main carpet in the center of the room. Then, when that someone fell to the floor, a little string holding half a dozen cream pies to the ceiling would be cut, and fall on whoever slipped on the marbles. And that someone... would be Luna.

Finally, the Princess of the Night had accepted that the only way to surprise her sister would be for herself to fall into her own trap in front of Celestia. Sacrificing herself so that those cream pies would dirty her own face. All in order to surprise her dear sister.

Once the sun went down, the doors of the great hall opened, and Celestia and Dusk Shine passed through them. Both with small spots of cream on their hooves and faces.

"Luna!  I was looking for you!" Celestia said with a huge smile.

"I was waiting for you, sister." Luna smiled back and approached the center of the room to activate her trap and fall into it herself.

“Wait there! I have something important to tell you!" Celestia with glee and ran to the center of the room quickly.

“C-Celestia! Wait!" Luna yelled, trying to stop Celestia. However, it was too late.

As soon as Celestia reached the center of the room, she stepped on the part of the carpet that was on the marbles, and then the chaos began. Celestia's eyes widened as she slipped, her hooves snapping in all directions trying to get on solid ground. Then she fell onto her butt and a little thread snapping noise was heard. At that moment, the alicorn heard something fall, and looked up with surprise that several cream pies fell right on her face.

As soon as the trap ended, the only sound that was heard in the room were the trays that had fallen next to the cream pies, still rolling on themselves after turning their contents over on the face of the Princess of the Sun. Pinkie Pie and Luna stared at Celestia in shock, as this was not what they had planned. While Dusk, like the maid twins and a few servants who had entered the hall behind Celestia, were left with frightened looks... Who had been the blasphemer who had dared to do that to his beloved and revered Princess of the Sun!?

“Pfft! Hahaha!" Celestia suddenly began to laugh. Being herself the one who broke all that awkward silence. “I know I have cream all over my face… But you should see your faces! Hahaha!" Celestia laughed, amused with the frightened face of her loyal servants.

“Sister…” Luna said, approaching Celestia. Relieved that her sister was laughing, but still somewhat disappointed, since she had already made up her mind that she would be the one receiving all those pies, not her older sister.

"It was you Luna, wasn't it?" Celestia laughed with a mischievous smile. “Come closer. As revenge, now it will be my turn to give you a pie." 

Luna smiled resignedly and got even closer to her sister. Full of happiness to see that she had managed to make her sister laugh, and also very satisfied to realize that she had finally managed to fool the queen of jokes. Then Luna closed her eyes with a smile while she expected the pie in the face that her sister would give her in revenge. After all, Pinkie Pie had taught her that it didn't matter if she received a pie in her face. She could put aside her pride as a princess, as long as she shared and laughed as equals with her sister.

The seconds passed and Luna continued patiently with her eyes closed. Then, not understanding why Celestia's pie was taking so long, she slightly opened one of her eyes to see what was causing the delay. Doing so, she saw that there was indeed a cake in front of her face, but Celestia hadn't pushed it against her face. Instead, her sister had lit a candle on top of the cake and was giving her a loving look despite being covered in cream.

"Happy birthday, Luna." Celestia declared. “I'm sorry it's not a great cake, but I hope you like it. I made your favorite flavor!”

That took Luna by complete surprise. She looked closely at the cake that Celestia was holding; a biscuit cake covered in blue frosting. However, the most distinguishable characteristic of that cake was that it was a little flattened on one side.

"You made this cake?" Luna asked, knowing that there was no way a palace chef would make such a misshapen cake.

"Yes. It wasn't in such bad shape, but SOMEONE dropped a piece of the cake and it got kind of squashed on one side.” Celestia replied, looking at Dusk out of the corner of her eye. Who, for his part, blushed with embarrassment when he remembered what happened in the kitchen. "Luckily, the cake-" Celestia managed to say before she trailed off suddenly as Luna jumped into her.

"Thank you, Sister!" Luna said on the verge of tears, not caring that her subjects saw her hugging her sister or that her face was stained with cream when she pressed her face against Celestia's. She only felt happy and loved to see that her sister had prepared that beautiful surprise for her.

While the two alicorn princesses hugged and laughed, the maid twins hurried to close the front door so that no curious pony would disturb their beloved princesses with their emotional moment as sisters, leaving inside the hall only them, the princesses, Dusk and Pinkie Pie.

"It seems like it was a day with many surprises." Dusk said to his marefriend as she approached him. "It seems that the classes you gave the Princess worked very well."

"Yeah, and better than that, I made a new friend!" Pinkie Pie replied with a big smile, glancing sideways at Luna. "And how was your afternoon with Princess Celestia?"

“Hmm… It was also very productive, hehe.” Dusk replied with a nervous smile….

' Flashback of Dusk Shine.'

After Celestia had told Dusk that Starswirl had belonged to the Sparkle family, Dusk had gone crazy. This was literally so unbelievable that his mind refused to believe it.

“Starswirl and I… We could… Be related!?” Dusk repeated aloud for the fifth time, still unable to believe that his great hero, probably one of the most powerful and famous unicorns in the history of Equestria, could be his great-great-great-grandfather.

"Starswirl had no offspring." Celestia said calmly so that Dusk wouldn't jump to conclusions. "But I suppose you could be related to some distant branch of the family."

"B-But how... how come that doesn't appear in any book!?" Dusk hyperventilated before slowly returning to normal after being almost in shock.

“As I told you, the ancient nobles of Canterlot made sure to erase most of the historical records in which the Sparkle family was mentioned.” Celestia answered. “When I assumed my responsibilities as a princess, I realized that the old nobles were hiding something. After much research, I found out that Starswirl used the nickname 'The Bearded' to hide his true origin.”

“This is crazy! I always thought that was a title used by the archmages of the kingdom.” Dusk said, still somewhat dazed. “'The Wise', 'The Wanderer', 'The One-Eyed'… Even the current Archmage's nickname is 'The Collector'!”

"After the disappearance of Starswirl, the wizards of the kingdom began the tradition of appointing the most skilled and powerful unicorn in the kingdom as Archmage, so that he would protect the kingdom along with the princesses." Celestia replied, narrowing her eyes slightly at the memory of the current Archmage. "They always thought that Staswirl's nickname was part of his name, and they started using those titles on archmages as a tribute."

“I-I don't get it. If you knew that, why doesn't anyone else know!?” Dusk asked. "D-Did the Canterlot nobles pressure you not to?

“It wasn't the nobles who asked me to silence… It was Starswirl himself.” Celestia replied with a somewhat sad look. “When I found out about his relationship with the Sparkle family, he asked me not to mention it to anyone and not to investigate further about it.”

“Starswirl The Bearded…asked you not to investigate something!?” Dusk asked, very incredulous since it was known that Starswirl was a great researcher. In fact, there were several famous phrases from him to encouraged to search for the truth and never give up.

“He said… that I might not like what I found out.” Celestia replied with a sad look. “Shortly after that, Starswirl disappeared, and I never saw him again…” The alicorn closed her eyes in anguish. “I always disobeyed him, and Starswirl… was more than a teacher to me. That's why, after he disappeared, I decided that I would at least fulfill his last wish."

"That's why you didn't tell anyone what you found out..." Dusk whispered, guessing that, just as it happened with him and his teacher, when Nightmare Moon made Celestia disappear; Celestia and her teacher probably had an argument before they last saw each other. Something that must have hurt her teacher until these days.

"Dusk, I hope you understand. But it’s for this very reason that I will not help you investigate your family, nor will I tell you what I was able to find out about it.” Celestia said, approaching Dusk and looking at him seriously. Then she softened her gaze and gently rest a hoof on his shoulder in an almost maternal manner. “However, I will also not stop you from trying to find out more on your own on the subject. It's your choice, but you should know, if Starswirl wanted to hide his origins, there must be a powerful reason for it."

'End of flashback.'

While Dusk watched Luna and Celestia laugh in the middle of the room with their faces smeared with cream, he gave a thoughtful and nervous look when he remembered all the secrets that his teacher had told him that afternoon.

"If unicorns started using titles for archmages only after Starswirl's disappearance… What about the ponies that were before Starswirl!?"Dusk thought, becoming anxious and nervous at the new theory he imagined. "Clover the Clever, Gusty the Great… Could those famous ponies be related to me too!?"

At that moment, Dusk shook his head to stop asking more questions and looked at his cutie mark.

"Just like in my dream, it seems that when I get an answer, ten more questions appear..." Dusk Shine thought with worry. “The worst thing is that I still haven't answered the initial question… Why do the nobles hate the Sparkle family? What terrible act did my family do that they were almost erased from history?”





“You knew about the prank all along!?” Luna yelled in surprise while she, along with Celestia, Dusk, Pinkie Pie, and some palace servants, enjoyed the cake.

"Well, the carpet looked a bit lumpy, and I could see the hidden cream pies in the ceiling." Celestia replied with a small embarrassed smile. "I thought it would be a nice birthday present to fall into it on purpose.  You worked really hard to improve your sense of humor, so I thought it was the least I could do."

"Hmph!" Luna huffed, looking away in annoyance with her puffed-out cheeks. She was frustrated to discover that her older sister fell into her trap on purpose and that it still didn't really surprise her.

After everyone had finished eating Luna's birthday cake, which was surprisingly delicious despite its flattened appearance, Dusk and Pinkie Pie said goodbye, since they had to catch the last train of the night back to Ponyville. Thus, Dusk went ahead to wait for Pinkie Pie at the castle gate, while the pink pony ran to pick up and pack her 'party team' before meeting with Dusk. For her part, Celestia got ready to retire to her room while Luna began her way to the watchman's balcony to begin her night vigil.

"Princess Luna!" Pinkie Pie yelled just as Luna was advancing through one of the castle corridors with Sweet Caramel.

"Pinkie Pie! I thought you had already gone with Dusk." Luna smiled at her new friend, who was holding Mr. Turnip Junior, Sir Lintsalot, Rocky and Madame le Flour.

Before she even spoke, Pinkie Pie's gaze was distracted by Sweet Caramel, who was once again holding the moon cupcakes that were exclusive to the Princess of the Night. Then the mare drooled slightly while the maid quickly hid the tray of cupcakes to protect her beloved princess's sweets with her life.

"I... came to say goodbye." Pinkie Pie said, shaking her head and wiping away her drool. She then surprised both the maid and the princess by giving Luna a great big hug. "Hehe, I like to say goodbye to my friends with hugs."

After the initial surprise, Luna looked at Pinkie Pie and smiled. Just as the pink pony had said, she had agreed to be her friend, and now she had to accept that level of trust, despite the fact that Luna hadn't quite gotten used to hugs. All that confidence had been shown by Pinkie Pie when she answered the question that Luna asked her about the deal she and her friends made with Dusk.

Luna had suspected that something strange was happening between Dusk and his friends when she found out about Dusk and Applejack's hasty marriage. Then, she was surprised to see the reaction of the rest of Dusk's friends, seeing how they seemed not to be too worried despite having lost the love of their life. Finally, the alicorn knew that there was a deal involved when she entered the nightmare that Applejack had a few days before the royal wedding. With that background info, Luna directly asked Pinkie Pie what all this 'deal' was about.

At first, Pinkie Pie seemed reluctant to tell Luna. However, she finally said 'I have to, if you're my friend now'. With that in mind, the pink mare ended up telling Luna all about the deal she and her friends made with Dusk Shine. Luna finally understood why Applejack and Dusk broke up after a month.

At first, Luna was very surprised by the kind of deal they had made, thinking that Dusk's friends shouldn't be seriously thinking about love when playing something like that. But Pinkie Pie was very serious when she said that this was not a game, and that now she, as Dusk's current marefriend, took it very seriously because they really were a couple, even though it had an expiration date. It was thus that Luna finally accepted that Dusk's friends were serious about their love for the colt and that it was not just a game.

"And now here I am… hugging my new friend, who is my rival in love."Luna thought after finishing hugging Pinkie Pie and remembering what happened that afternoon. "A hug is the least I can do to repay your trust in telling me your secret."

"By the way, I still owe you your reward for helping me be funnier." Luna smiled. “I said that if you helped me, I would give you whatever you wanted. And a princess never breaks her promises." Luna added, glancing sideways at Sweet Caramel. Who, for her part, gave an indignant look, and reluctantly stopped hiding the tray with moon cakes so that Pinkie Pie could take her reward.

"It's true! I almost forgot!" Pinkie Pie gasped. She put on a pensive look and then looked intently at the moon cupcakes. "Whatever I want...." Pinkie said, closing her eyes and swallowing to calm her craving for cupcakes. Then she put on a serious look and looked directly at Luna. "I want you to keep your distance from Dusk Shine."

An awkward silence filled the hallway. At the same time, Luna's smile slowly faded as she made a face of utter surprise, not sure if she heard correctly. However, Pinkie Pie's serious look finally dispelled all doubt, she had heard well.

“W… What do you mean?” Luna said awkwardly.

“I only have the courage to say it because now you’re my friend. And I don't want us to keep secrets from each other." Pinkie Pie said nervously. "You like Dusk Shine, right?"

Luna opened her mouth to deny such a claim. However, her mouth trembled and she was unable to say anything. Seeing Pinkie Pie's fearful look, Luna understood that the pink pony was indeed seeing her as a friend, and just like Pinkie said, she shouldn't lie to a friend.

“I… I…” Luna stammered, feeling embarrassed being so nervous in front of an ordinary pony instead of being an imposing alicorn princess.

"Princess, I know you like Dusk since you went to our pet playdate... You murmured it in your sleep." Pinkie Pie said, still looking nervously at Luna. “And today, I could confirm it. Every time you saw Dusk or I mentioned his name, your expression changed. Just like when it happens to Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash or Applejack... Just like it happens to me." At that moment, Pinkie Pie looked away for a moment, and then she looked at Luna with some fear. "You and Dusk... You've already had some romantic moments, right?"

Not knowing what to do or say, Luna averted her gaze in embarrassment. She looked at Sweet Caramel, who also seemed to be in shock upon hearing that conversation. It was then that Luna remembered the moments that she and Dusk had together. Primarily visiting him in his dreams as 'Lady Night', and later in the real world. How they slowly got closer, in fleeting but beautiful moments treasured by Luna, little by little shortening their distance... It was useless, she couldn't deny that she loved Dusk.

“Princess, it's messy enough that my friends are in love with my coltfriend. And I... I want to enjoy this month that I’ll have Dusk all to myself!" Pinkie Pie said, looking at Luna with a pleading look. “This day, I got to know you more, and I saw how funny, innocent, kind and strong you are… and it hit me. If you get closer to Dusk, he’ll end up falling in love with you."

An uncomfortable silence filled the corridor again. For Luna, it was as if a bucket of cold water had been thrown at her and now she couldn't move. Her body felt cold, but her heart was beating a thousand times a second from how nervous she was. Pinkie Pie knew that with just one more word she could deliver the final blow to Luna and make her never go near Dusk again. However, she didn't want that. Pinkie just wanted Luna to understand that Dusk was now her coltfriend and that she had to respect their courtship. They were friends now, and if Luna wanted to one day be part of the same group as Dusk and her friends, she had to understand that their friendship was much more complex than any other friendship. This was the first test Luna had to pass to become true friends, and Pinkie Pie was ready to strike first.

"I… I understand." Luna finally said, with a weak voice. She turned around and started to walk briskly out of the hallway, feeling her stomach ache from the whirlwind of emotions she felt.

As Luna left, Sweet Caramel quickly followed her, still stunned after that pink pony dared to face her princess like that. Meanwhile, Pinkie Pie gave a big sigh and stared sadly at the floor.

"Maybe in the future, you’ll earn a space in Dusk's heart too..." Pinkie Pie thought, turning to go out on the opposite side of the hall. "But for now, you must understand that Dusk is my coltfriend... I'm sorry, Lulu."Pinkie Pie thought, savoring the bitter taste that a new friendship must sometimes have, all to make it stronger.

After that corridor was empty, from a small side corridor, Celestia appeared. Who, together with her maid, Sweet Creme, had happened to walk by there minutes before and they stayed in the shadows listening to what had happened.

"Did you hear that…?" Celestia looked at Sweet Creme and her cheeks puffed out as if she was about to burst out laughing. "Can you believe it? Hahaha! Pinkie Pie thinks that Luna is in love with Dusk! Hahaha!" 

As Celestia laughed, Sweet Creme simply looked away and made a poker face. That made Celestia stop laughing slowly and stare at her maid confused.

"What's with that face?" Celestia asked. "You don’t really believe that..."

“Well…” Sweet Creme bit her lip. It was a question that had an obvious answer for everyone. For everyone except Celestia.

For several seconds, Celestia gave an incredulous look and thought about the conversation that she just overheard. And not only that, but all the expressions Luna had put on at every word Pinkie Pie said. For the first time since Luna's return, Celestia vividly remembered all the moments when Luna had shown a clear interest in Dusk Shine that she had overlooked. All the times that Luna blushed shyly averted her gaze, excited when she heard about Dusk, and finally... something clicked in Celestia's head. Something she had thought was impossible.

Finally Celestia realized how blind she was, and although Luna couldn't see it, her younger sister finally made it... Celestia made a face of genuine and utter surprise and shock.

End of chapter 25