//------------------------------// // Chapter Four - Unintended Consequences // Story: Gift of the Goddess // by Medievalman //------------------------------// No… Twilight took an unsteady step back from the bed with a still happily slumbering Celestia laying on top. No-no-no-no-no-no-no-no-no... NO! This! Can`t! Be! Happening! She looked down at her body, still painted with rivers of faintly pulsating magic. Her eyes darted rapidly around the room. A bedroom, Celestia’s bedroom. Sunlight beams poked through curtained windows. Afternoon? No, morning? The alchemy textbook laid lazily where she had slept, but the laboratory? Gone, without a trace. How did I get here?! What happened last night?! Another, more cautious glance around the room provided no answers for her, only succeeding in further hampering her breathing. Her mind raced, trying desperately to piece together the scene before her. The evidence was obvious, yet she refused to believe it. It was clear that she and Celestia... Her eyes widened. Her breathing grew short. Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! OhmygoshOhmygoshOhmygosh!! Twilight shut her eyes tight, cringing at the thoughts that flashed in her head. Horrifyingly plausible scenarios flashed before her mind, each one worse than the last. She tried to purge what little she could from her mind and took in a much needed breath. Ok! Calm down, Twilight! Deep breaths! Just take a deeeeep... breath. While it took a few shallow attempts, Twilight's breathing more or less normalized. She steadied herself and opened her eyes, holding her chin high. Ok, plan! Need a plan of action! I... Her eyes drifted back to the beautiful princess still asleep on the bed. I-I gotta get out of here! Twilight turned toward the bedroom’s exit and crept her way across the room. Each hoof-fall was a silent as a cat’s, careful not to disturb any obstacles on her way out. Her horn flared up as the door obeyed her telekinetic command to open as she stepped out into the— "Leaving so soon?" A quiet yelp escaped from Twilight as she spun around to meet the voice that was leaning against the wall. "Luna?!" "Ohhh my..." Luna said with a grin, eyeing Twilight's glowing body up and down. "Well, how was your evening?" Twilight’s eye twitched. "H-how was my evening?" She took an involuntary step forward, her back arched up. "How... was my... evening!?" "There is no need to thank me," Luna proclaimed, almost with a bow. "Thank you?!” Twilight practically yelled. “Luna! How could you do this to me?!" Luna merely kept smiling at her. "I was only giving you what you wanted." "What?! I never asked for this!" Twilight pointed a frantic hoof at the markings on her body. "I-I didn't want— this!" Luna rolled her eyes. "Oh Twilight, why must you continue to be in denial of your feelings? Tis plain for all to see, why do you choose to ignore it?" "No!" Twilight shut her eyes and whirled around, cuffing her ears with her hooves. "T-there are no feelings! None at all!" Twilight opened her eyes only to find a photograph dangled in front of her. It was her… and Celestia… from last night... right at the moment they... "Do not be so sure about that, Twilight," Luna giggled. "Judging from last night, those feelings are quite clear." "T-that’s—" The photograph flew out of view and was replaced with Luna’s smiling face. "Did you not enjoy the time you spent in my sister's company?" "I..." "Be honest," Luna demanded, pointing a hoof at her. Twilight’s eyes sank to the floor. "Y-you wanted this, not me..." "Stop lying to yourself, Twilight,” Luna scoffed. “There is nothing wrong with the way that you feel." "All I wanted was to know..." Twilight said, wrapping a hoof around her foreleg. "And now you do!" Luna said, nearly dancing her way in front of the purple unicorn. "B-but, I never wanted it to go... this far..." "Twilight,” Luna said, with a soft smile. “You should be proud of yourself! Not just anypony can truthfully say they have had the honor of courting the Sun Princess herself. Speaking of Tia..." Luna crept up to the doorway at stole a peek into the bedroom. She chuckled. "Oh, sister. So tired after such a long night, even her internal clock is overruled.” She looked over at Twilight with a wink. “You must have had quite the effect on her." A sad look was all that was given, Twilight’s eyes averting to the floor afterward. "Well, we cannot have poor Tia sleep through this glorious morning!" Twilight shot up from the floor. "W-wait! Luna—" The doors to Celestia’s bedroom flew open as Luna sauntered in. "Good morning, dear sister! Rise and shine!" On the bed at the other end of the room, Celestia gently stirred from her blissful sleep. She stretched out her sleep addled body and let the pure white sheets fall gracefully off her body. The morning sun glistened off the runes that swirled across her body, the brilliant shine outdone only by her soft, half-lidded gaze. "Good morning, Luna." She said softly. "And you as well, Twilight." Luna fluttered next to the bed. "Did you sleep well?" "Better than I have in a thousand years," Celestia replied with a satisfied moan. She then looked over at her student. "All thanks to you, my lovely little Twilight." "Huh?" Twilight said aloud. "Really?" Luna replied with starry eyes and a dreamy smile. "Oh, Luna," Celestia said with a soft smile. "Twilight and I, we both had such a wonderful time together last night." Twilight’s eyes grew wide. Luna’s expression vanished. "Last night?” Luna asked. “You... remember last night?" "Of course," Celestia said with a little laugh. "How could I forget even a single memory of my lovely little student? Moments in time I will cherish for eons to come?" She looked over at Twilight with dreamy eyes. "O-oh..." Luna said, slowly looking back to Twilight. "Oh Twilight,” Celestia said, rising from the bed and approaching an apprehensive Twilight. “Please, forgive me. All this time, I've been holding back this feeling, afraid of how you would react, afraid of what you might think of me." She reached out her wings and pulled Twilight into her embrace. "I wish I had known..." "P-princess..." Twilight’s eyes snapped to Luna, pleading for her aid. "But that is in the past now,” Celestia said, pulling away and looking right into Twilight’s eyes. “Today is a new beginning, for the both of us!" "W-what?" Twilight stammered. Celestia hugged her again. "I am so very blessed to have you as my own personal companion, my lovely little Twilight!" Luna raised an eyebrow. “Tia, are you... feeling well?” Celestia released her student and put a hoof to her chin. “Well, I do feel the need to freshen up a bit...” She snuggled her nose against Twilight’s. “I’ll be just a moment, my lovely little Twilight.” Celestia rose and walked over to her personal restroom at the other end of the bedroom, closing a pair of heavy doors behind her. Twilight and Luna merely sat in stunned silence, even after the doors secured themselves tightly closed. Twilight slowly turned back to Luna. "Luna," Twilight asked. "W-what's going on?" "I am... unsure..." Luna replied, still staring ahead. "No, no this cannot be right. She should not have remembered. Something is wrong, very wrong." "I thought you said the potion’s effects were temporary," Twilight stated. "T-they are…” Luna asserted. “Or, at least, supposed to..." Twilight’s eyes went wide. "What do you mean, 'supposed to'?!" Luna grit her teeth. "Well, the potion has not been exactly—" She hesitated, not wanting to finish. “Exactly... what?” Twilight pressed, worry plastered all over her face. "Tested, yet..." Luna said, biting her lip. "Luna!" "Twilight, calm down!" "Calm down?!” Twilight exclaimed in a hushed voice, looking back to the room Celestia had retreated to. “Do you realize what you've done? What were you thinking?!" Luna backed away from Twilight. "I-I realize this looks bad—" "Bad?!” Twilight could only barely contain a scream. “Luna, your potion was untested! Who knows what else will go wrong! For all we know, she could start loving anything she sees or start hating everything! O-or maybe the effects last—" She gulped down hard. "—f-forever..." "No!” Luna proclaimed. “No, it will not come to that, Twilight! I can fix this. I-I will fix this!” She turned toward the bed and caught sight of the alchemy textbook from the lab. Snatching it up in her magic, Luna frantically leafed through the pages until landing on the problem potion in question. She rapidly scanned the contents, searching for an answer. “I will simply reverse the potion’s effects, a-and everything will return back to normal. Y-yes, it will be as if none of this had ever happened.” “How?” Twilight asked. “Uhm...” Luna once again read the book, slower this time. “There must be something here, an antidote or perhaps a spell...” Twilight groaned. “I’ve already tried that! The potion was a custom brew. There aren’t any known antidotes for it!” “Then we shall have to develop one ourselves,” Luna stated, placing last night’s photo in place as a bookmark and slamming the book shut. She turned to the exit to the hallway. “Worry not, Twilight. I will gather up Cadance and—” “Cadance!?” Twilight exclaimed. “W-why? What does she have to do with any of this?” Luna slapped a hoof into her forehead and gritted her teeth. Cursing under her breath, she turned back to Twilight. “She... uh... has extensive knowledge and experience in this field, Twilight. Her assistance would prove more than invaluable.” Twilight bit her lip, but nodded her head. “O-ok, but let’s not tell Shining. I would prefer it if he didn’t know...” Luna nodded back. “Agreed. Nopony else must know of what has transpired here.” “Ok, let’s go,” Twilight said, approaching the doorway. “Twilight, wait!” Luna said, barring the purple unicorn from the exit. “I need you to stay with Tia.” “What?!” “Please, Twilight!" Twilight nervously looked over at the restroom, then to Luna. "But Luna, I can't—” "Twilight, listen!” Luna knelt down to Twilight’s level and looked her right in the eye. “It is like you have said, we have no idea what else has gone wrong with the potion. I need you to keep her safe, to ensure that nothing terrible happens to her before we devise a solution.” “But—” “You are the only one I can trust with this,” Luna begged. “Please, Twilight. Promise me you will watch over her. Promise me you will protect her. Please!” “I...” Twilight tried to finish her sentence, but only sighed. “I promise.” Luna breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Twilight.” She rose again and trotted out into the hallway. “Now, I must make haste.” Twilight watched her leave, but she shot up and chased after her into the hallway. “Wait! Luna!” Luna spun around to face her. “Yes?” “What if she, uhm...” Twilight shifted in place, rapidly averting her eyes. “...tries something?” Luna’s eyes widened. “W-well, uh...” She furrowed her brow in thought for a moment. After a moment, she fixed a stern face at her. “Twilight, Tia is a very... dominant mare. Should she attempt to make an advance, strive to—” She grit her teeth. “—limit... your resistance.” Twilight’s eyes looked to be on the verge of tears. Luna bowed her head and gave her a stern nod. “Stay strong, Twilight. Stay strong.” With that, Luna turned and galloped down the hallway. Hoof-falls faded away as Twilight only sank lower to the floor, covering her head with her hooves. She stared off into space, her mind churning with desperate thoughts. Her eyes welled up. No matter how hard she thought, no matter how hard she tried to conjure an escape plan, her mind would fail her. Every possible scenario would only result in disaster... and in only end with... Twilight slammed a hoof on the floor and hopped to her hooves, determination in her eye. You can do this, Twilight. Just remember what you were taught. Make your boundaries clear. Yes, clear boundaries… With a slight push, Twilight eased open the bedroom doors and cautiously walked inside. The room was eerily quiet, not a stir anywhere. Twilight stole a glance over at the restroom only to see the its doors wide open and unlocked. She bit her lip and darted her eyes all around the room. Not a thing in the room was disturbed. All was as it was before she had left. “P-princess? Princess Celestia? ” Twilight asked. She crept into the room, mindful to keep the door still open. She pushed herself to take each shaky step, constantly keeping the exit in her periphery vision, craning her ears in every direction to catch even the slightest disturbance. She advanced almost to the center of the room. Twilight's voice lowered to a whisper. "A-are you there?" A single white feather landed squarely on Twilight's snout. “Gotcha!” Twilight jumped straight up a clear few inches right into Celestia’s awaiting clutches. Twilight squirmed in her grasp and fell back down on her rump. She whirled around and scrambled back onto her hooves, awkwardly smiling and attempting to create some distance between them. “Princess! I-I was just looking for you...” Celestia floated down from the ceiling, giggled at her student, and fixated on her with sultry eyes. “Were you, now? Seeking me out all alone? For what purpose, might I ask?” Twilight's backpedaling grew more frantic. “I, uh...” “Well, you found me,” Celestia cooed, following her student step by step. “And here we are, all alone...” “Princess, I—” Celestia put a hoof on Twilight’s lips. “Words are not needed, Twilight. Simply relax...” She whisked the little unicorn in her magic and floated her onto the bed. “...and enjoy.” Twilight’s eyes grew wider and wider as Celestia towered over her, helplessly on her back with no hope of escape. Her mind screamed at her to take action, to do something, anything! Her body was paralyzed, frozen, shivering with fear... and anticipation. She screwed her eyes shut and cringed. Oh no. Oh no! Oh no! Oh princess, p-please... Be gentle... A burst of air hit Twilight’s belly. Her eyes shot open. Her mouth curled into a smile. “P-princes-eh-ess!” Another loud burst of air rippled its way across her belly. Twilight couldn’t suppress her laughter. “Celestia! Stop-p! S-stop! S-sto-p! T-that, that tickles!” Celestia ceased her assault for a moment, watching her giggling student squirm. “Is my lovely little companion ticklish? Oh, what fun!” Celestia unleashed another barrage of raspberries on Twilight’s stomach. Twilight tried in vain to halt the tickle attack, but couldn’t divert her strength away from her laughter. Her eyes teared and her legs tensed up. She curled up as tight as she could, but this too proved to do nothing to stem the tide of the tickle attack. Her futile struggle ran out of steam, and she ceased all resistance, letting her laughter overtake her. At long last, Celestia finally stopped, laughing and giggling along with Twilight. The two mares allowed their laughter to slowly die down. For the first time that day, Twilight held a genuine smile on her face. She locked eyes with Celestia, who also wore her own soft smile. Her bedroom eyes, however, did not change. Despite her mind commanding her not to, Twilight kept her smile regardless. A low growl escaped from Twilight’s belly. “Oh, uh...” Her cheeks went red. “Looks like I’m a bit hungry...” “Well then,” Celestia replied, playfully rubbing her snout against Twilight’s. “Let’s go get some breakfast!” ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ The light shafts of a new morning flooded into the royal guest chambers through the lazily closed drapes at the far side of the room. They rose sharply as the sun greeted the sky, pushing the light all the way to the bed where Cadance and Shining Armor were sleeping. Cadance stirred from her sleep as morning light bade her to wake up. She responded with a hoof over her eyes and rolling away from the assault, clutching at her husband who lay beside her. Shining Armor merely yawned and turn to meet her. Both sleepy eyes locked on one another. “Good morning...” Cadance said. Shining Armor rubbed his eyes with a stiff hoof. “Hmm? Oh...” He smiled when he caught sight of her. “Didn’t notice you there. Up late last night?” Cadance blushed. “Yeah, sorry. Luna and I kinda lost track of time.” “That’s why?" Shining Armor gave her a little pout. "I feel kinda left out.” “If it makes you feel any better, the matter was really important," Cadance said with a frown, twirling at the sheets with a timid hoof. "You understand, right?” Shining Armor laid on his back and shrugged. “I suppose...” Cadance looked back up at him with bedroom eyes. “Well, how about I make it up to you?” “Oh really?" Shining Armor asked with a cocked eyebrow. "What do you have in mind?” Cadance drew her head closer to his. “I’ll think of something...” Shining Armor gave her a smirk. “You sure you don’t want to go grab Luna at all?” “I much prefer stallions for this... particular idea,” Cadance replied, drawing closer and closer to her husband’s snout. Shining Armor mimicked her advance. “Aren’t I the lucky one...” The bedroom doors flew open in a thunderous crash. Luna skidded to a halt as she frantically looked all around the room, finally fixating on Cadance. “Cadance! Quickly! Something terrible has—” Cadance and Shining Armor stared back at her from the bed. Luna’s cheeks flushed red and she whipped around till her back was to them. “F-forgive me! I was unaware that the two of you were currently engaged in intimacy.” Shining Armor scratched the back of his neck with a nervous smile while Cadance brought a hoof to her forehead, rolling her eyes. “What is it, Luna?” Cadance asked through near gritted teeth. “An emergency has arisen that requires your immediate attention,” Luna hastily explained, her back still pointed at the two ponies. Cadance let out a sigh and turned to her husband. “Sorry.” “It’s alright," Shining Armor replied, waving a dismissive hoof in the air. "We’ll have plenty of time later.” Cadance nodded at him and got up from the bed. She circled around and gave Shining Armor a kiss, who returned it in kind. Cadance gave him a smile and turned to the door, where Luna was already exiting the room from. She followed the moon princess out the doorway and into the hallway beyond. “Luna, what—” A swift hoof jerked Cadance out of the doorway and Luna shut the door behind her with her magic. Cadance spun around with a cross look. “Luna! What's going on?” Luna shushed Cadance with the tip of her hoof and looked up and down the hallway, searching for signs of anypony else. Satisfied, she returned her attention to Cadance. “It is about Twilight and Celestia.” “What happened?” Luna bit her lip. “I am afraid there has been a slight... complication.” ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Inside the famed palace library, Luna's assistant Raven Inkwell worked diligently to organize the royal schedule. The renowned silence of the state-of-the-art sound proofed room really helped her stay productive throughout the day. It was so nice to work in such a clean library with very little distractions, something Raven was very proud of, since she herself had to keep it in order. She allowed herself the indulgence of humming a cheerful tune as she scribbled away on scroll after scroll. “Signed, Miss Raven Inkwell.” Raven scratched the last bit of her signature into the bottom of the page and placed her quill back into the inkwell on her desk. She retrieved a seal along with a ball of wax from inside her desk, careful not to disturb the large stack of sealed scrolls that were piled on top. “Well, that should do it.” With a slight flick, she reviewed her handiwork. The flow of the paragraphs was fine overall, but she wasn’t sure if the request was clear enough not to receive questions. She frowned and looked up at the stack of letters to be delivered. Another draft, but she should have it done before— The door to the library flew open. “But that’s impossible!” Cadance shouted. Luna stormed into library with a confused Cadance trailing behind her. “I had seen it with my own eyes, Cadance.” Cadance firmly shook her head. “No-no-no, no. It should have already worn off. There simply isn’t enough power left from that kind of—” Luna whirled around and nearly stuck her snout into Cadance’s face. “Then explain why she is still referring to Twilight as ‘lovely’.” “Well… uh, maybe…” Cadance bit her lip, her eyes darting back and forth searching for a thought. “But she slept didn’t she? The potion should have flushed out of her system by now. There is no way that potion is still in effect.” Luna gave her a deadpan look. “Twilight most certainly did not agree with that assessment.” “But…” Cadance plopped her rump onto the floor, her long stare lost in confusion. “The recipe was simple. The doses… there couldn’t have been… too little could it? No, too much? But it was so small… was I wrong?” “Pardon me, your majesties.” Both Luna and Cadance watched as Raven meekly passed with a bow, a wad of floating letters behind her. Luna rolled her eyes and turned back to Cadance. Her eyes went wide, however, and she whirled around. “Wait!” Luna called out to Raven. “What are all those scrolls?” Raven faced the moon princess and bowed down low, careful not to let her cargo or her glasses hit the floor. “The weekly duties, your majesty. I have everypony’s schedules planned out in—” “The palace staff!” Luna exclaimed. “If Celestia...” Raven gave her a confused look. “Er… yes…?” Luna tapped a hoof on her chin for a moment, but stood in regal grace afterward. “Ms. Inkwell, I have a new decree.” A parchment, quill and inkwell were swiftly readied. “Yes?” Raven asked. “All palace staff are to have a full week of leave and may not return until exactly 7 days of time has elapsed,” Luna commanded. Raven jotted down Luna’s instructions. “All non-essential staff, your majesty?” “No, everypony.” Raven nearly dropped her writing tools. “E-everypony?! Even the guards and the—?” “Everypony!” Luna practically yelled. “Oh uhh, r-right!” Raven quickly finished her note taking and set the mound of letters onto a nearby table. “I understand, no exceptions!” Luna smiled and nodded at her. “Good, now run along.” Raven bowed again and again as she retreated out of the library exit. Luna breathed a sigh of relief and wiped her brow. With another potential crisis averted, Luna turned to continue her conversation, only to find Cadance frowning at her. Luna raised an eyebrow. “What?” “Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Cadance asked, pointing to the huge stack of letters on the nearby table. Luna waved a dismissive hoof. “Just taking precautions is all. The last thing we need is for this situation to spiral out of control.” “Like it already isn’t…” Cadance quipped, rolling her eyes. A book flying straight into Cadance's face silenced her sarcastic response. She retrieved the open book from her face and read the title. Grave Concoctions and Snake Oils. She gave Luna a mean look. Luna merely kept pulling book after book from the shelves, tossing a few of them in Cadance’s direction. “Cease your condescending remarks and start searching for a solution.”