Cry for Eternity

by asylum1388


Chapter 16 (Final Version)

A/N: Aaaaand here we are; the conclusion of the first story arc.

Over the next few weeks, three things will be happening; first, I will be releasing a series of side-stories to fill in some of the blanks between the chapters. Some will be scenes that were rejected from the main story for the sake of improving the flow, others will be written solely as side-stories.

Second, my crew and I will be re-writing the Prologue and Chapter 1 to bring them up to par with the rest of the fic and fix their awful pacing.

Lastly, I will be drafting an outline for the second (and final) story arc of this fic. After that, we will resume as normal. I will likely be making a blog post sometime over the next month asking for opinions and ideas from the readers. I cannot promise that anything from it will be utilized, but at the very least it should help the through process.

Wrong version of the chapter was in place for the initial release. The current version is the correct one. Sorry!

Editor: Pissfer
Pre-readers: Piquo+Pie, and f0xhole.


Three months since the coronation of Princess Twilight Sparkle.

“Twilight, I must confess that I very much doubted that you would succeed in putting together such an ambitious project at such short notice, but never have I been more happy to be proven wrong,” Luna muttered, gaping at the sea of lights and sounds before her that was Canterlot. She slowly stepped forward, smiling at the massive banner that fluttered in the evening air and read aloud, “The First Annual Celestial Summer Carnival. Twilight, I cannot express how impressed I am.”

“Thanks,” Twilight smirked, sauntering to Luna’s side. “To be honest, I spent a lot of time just coming up with the name. I wanted to make sure that everypony knew that this was planned in remembrance of Celestia, but I didn’t want to accidentally turn it into a melancholy occasion.” She turned her gaze down the street and smiled broadly. “I’d like to think I pulled it off.”

“I am inclined to agree,” Luna said with an affirmative nod. “And I know for a fact that Tia would much rather see you honoring her memory by planning a joyous carnival than commissioning a boring statue of her. I know that I don’t really need to say this, but you have done her proud today.”

“Yeah, I thought so too. It’s still very nice to hear, though. Thank you, Luna,” Twilight sighed contently, before putting on a serious face and holding up her clipboard. “Okay, we took care of the sun and moon early, all the vendors are set up for the dinner rush, and I’ve ordered the Royal Guard to—”

“Twilight, you’ve gone over everything more times than I care to count, and there are dozens of other ponies working on this,” Luna giggled, gently pulling the clipboard from Twilight’s grasp. “Take the rest of the night off. You’ve earned a rest and I would feel awful if you didn’t get the chance to enjoy the fruits of your labor.”

“I-I guess I can...” Twilight replied uncertainly. “But what if something goes wrong? I want to make sure that everypony’s having a good time, and I can’t really do that if I’m gallivanting about.”

“Twilight, I’ve been wandering the streets since this morning when you declared the event open, and I have yet to come across anypony not enjoying themselves, aside from you. You’ve spent nearly every moment of your free time since the Gala making sure that this day would be perfect, and have done marvelously,” Luna cooed reassuringly. “That being said, I will be unable to rest easy tonight knowing that you were the only pony who didn’t have an enjoyable day.”

Twilight opened her mouth to reply, but only succeeded in giving Luna a guilty grin before the older pony cut her off again.

“And besides, your working constantly has severely reduced the amount of time we have been able to spend together over this past month and I am feeling quite neglected! Accompanying me for the rest of the night would be the least you could do,” Luna continued, turning her back to Twilight with a sarcastic ‘humph’.

Twilight tried to look indignant at Luna’s words, but was unable to hold back her laughter. “Okay, okay, you win.”

“So we will commence with the hanging out?” Luna replied, turning back to Twilight excitedly.

“Sure,” Twilight giggled. “And for what it’s worth, I’m sorry for ‘neglecting’ you.”

“Do not apologize; I was turning the tables and teasing you for a change,” Luna retorted aggressively. “Besides, you were just doing something you were passionate about, and that passion is one of the things I like most about you.”

“Oh. Well, thanks for being understanding,” Twilight smiled. “So, what do you want to do first?”

“Well, you mentioned the dinner rush earlier, which reminds me that it is almost suppertime. Perhaps we should get something to eat?” Luna replied with a coy wink.

Before Twilight could reply, her stomach growled loudly, as if agreeing with Luna’s words. “Yeah, that’s probably a good idea,” Twilight remarked sheepishly. “Donut Joe is having a special right now; why don’t we head over there?”

Luna nodded and motioned for Twilight to lead the way, and the pair fell in step aside one another. They made their way down the street and turned the corner, but stopped in their tracks as they saw the massive line in front of Donut Joe’s.

“Oh... I suppose everypony else had the same idea,” Luna grumbled.

“I guess so,” Twilight exclaimed, surprised by the number of ponies waiting. “Unless you want to wait in line for an hour, we should probably go somewhere else, though I don’t really know what else there is. I was more concerned with make sure there’d be enough vendors than I was with checking who—”

“Princess! Princess Twilight!”

Twilight stopped speaking and glanced around, searching for the source of the familiar voice, and she quickly spotting the pony skittering up to her. “Hey, Sunshower! How’s your day been so far?”

“Great! This is the best day ever,” the little filly squeaked. “I just came over here to— Hey! Where’d they go?”

“What? Where’d who go?” Twilight asked, trying to follow Sunshower’s gaze as the excitable pony started to look around in every direction.

“My friends! They’re— Oh! There they are!” she giggled, pointing back in the direction she had come from. Twilight glanced over to see a trio of fillies gawking at her and Luna.

“Are they okay, Sunshower? They look to be afraid,” Luna murmured, taking care to look as if she had not noticed the foals.

“I think they’re just nervous; I don’t think any of them ever met a Princess before!” Sunshower chirped. “They said they didn’t believe that I was friends with you, so I wanted you to meet them!” She beckoned her friends to come closer, but was only met with disbelieving stares. “So, do you want to play with us, Princesses?”

“You know, Sunshower, I’d love to, but I think your friends need some time to adjust,” Twilight snickered. “You should go play with them for tonight.”

“Oh, but I wanted to play with you too!” Sunshower pleaded. “And you don’t have anyone to play with tonight! What if you get lonely?”

“I’m spending time with Princess Luna tonight,” Twilight smiled. She glanced down at the filly thoughtfully and grinned as an idea formed in her head. She leaned down to Sunshower and said, just loud enough for the filly’s friends to hear, “I’ll tell you what. Go hang out with your friends for now, but come find me right before the fireworks start. I’ll buy the six of us some ice cream and we can all watch the fireworks together. Deal?”

Sunshower’s eyes lit with excitement and she gasped excitedly. “Really? You mean it? Deal!” She hugged Twilight’s leg, then bolted off towards her friends, shouting, “See? I told you she was really nice!”

“You have a way with foals,” Luna snickered, nudging Twilight teasingly, “but our bellies are still empty, and this mention of ice cream has done nothing to alleviate the problem.”

“I know! Sorry,” Twilight quickly glanced around at the surrounding stalls before locking her gaze on one that caught her eye. “Okay, this way.” She trotted over to a nearby display with Luna close behind and gestured a greeting to the stallion behind it. She wordlessly traded a hoofful of bits for two cylindrical parcels, and walked a short distance away before sitting on her haunches and passing one to Luna.

Confused, Luna unwrapped it, only to find herself even more bewildered at what lay within. “This is... food?”

“Yeah, it’s called a ‘wrap’,” Twilight grinned, biting a large chunk off of hers. “They’re a type of sandwich, but they use a single piece of flatbread instead of two pieces of normal bread. Try it! I promise you’ll like it.”

“Very well,” Luna murmured, taking a tiny bite from the end of hers. She chewed slowly and swallowed, pondering it for a moment. “I... I like it!” she said with a grin, looking up just in time to see Twilight swallow the last bite of hers. “And here I thought I was hungry. Did you even taste that?”

“Sorry, I was hungrier than I thought,” Twilight smirked. “That hit the spot though. We can wait here while you eat yours at your own pace though, there’s no rush.”

“Twilight, I am perfectly capable of eating while I walk,” Luna stated blandly.

“Oh, yeah,” Twilight giggled. “So where to first...? Ummm, how about we check out some of the games?”

“I will follow you, Twilight. I am still somewhat unfamiliar with this,” Luna muttered in between bites.

“You didn’t have carnivals before your banishment?”

“No, we did. However, it was seen as unbecoming to mingle with the commoners, so instead of having any fun, Celestia and I were forced to sit with the intolerable nobles and preside over the festivities. The only other engagement like this that I’ve been to was Nightmare Night in Ponyville, and that was far smaller,” Luna grumbled, allowing Twilight to lead her away. “The rules of social etiquette used to be so silly. I am glad that most have fallen out of use.”

“Well, in another thousand years, the things we do today will probably seem silly,” Twilight remarked. She spotted the booth she was looking for and pointed at it. “Ah, here we are! This one’s my favorite.”

She galloped over to the booth and smiled at the mare running it. “Hello! May I purchase two games?”

“Uh- err- Of-of course, Your Highness!” the carney stammered, seemingly in a trance as she accepted Twilight’s bits and placed six wooden balls of the counter. “Erm... You have fun, Pr- Your Highness.”

Twilight smiled at her reassuringly before turning to Luna. “Okay, see those cups stacked over there? The object is to knock them down by throwing these balls, and if you get them all down you win a prize.”

Luna slipped the last piece of her sandwich in her mouth and licked her lips as she glared skeptically at the stuffed animals lining the booth’s interior. “Seems trivial. And these ‘prizes’ look as if they could fall apart at any moment.” The carney smiled guiltily and stepped aside so the pair could get a better look.

“That’s not the idea though, it’s supposed to be fun!” Twilight snickered dismissively. “It’s no different than shooting pumpkins from catapults.”

“You make a fair point. Very well, let us play,” Luna said, picking up a ball in her hoof.

“Great. Now, the only rule is that you can’t use magic. My brother used to win at these every time, but I never could get the hang of it. I think I figured out the trick though,” Twilight explained, picking up a ball of her own and aiming. “...There! I got it!” The hurled the ball downrange, only for it to sail completely over the pile and bounce off the back wall. “Darn.”

“Allow me,” Luna chuckled. She swung her hoof a few times, testing the weight of the ball, before lobbing it towards the stacked cups, only for it to fall short. “Oh ponyfeathers. This is much more difficult than throwing plush spiders at webs.”

“So why don’t we make this interesting?” Twilight smirked smugly. “First one to win a prize gets treated to a funnel cake by the loser.”

“Betting over desserts? Twilight, you know me too well,” Luna cackled. “Very well. Prepare to taste defeat!”

The pair turned back to their game and began tossing for all they were worth, giggling the entire time. Ten games later, neither of them had succeeded in knocking down any more than three of the six cups.

“Twilight? I daresay that we are awful at this,” Luna snorted as Twilight’s final ball ricocheted off the back wall, causing the carney to dive for cover.

“No kidding. I guess it’s a tie,” Twilight laughed. “Since we both lost, should be buy each other cake?”

“I believe that would be acceptable under the terms of our wager. Perhaps we may visit the gardens when we have obtained our treats? I haven’t had the chance to see it, or your work within, as of yet,” Luna commented hopefully, following Twilight back towards the food vendors.

“A relaxing walk in the park would be nice,” Twilight sighed contently. She took a deep sniff at the air and turned back to Luna with a goofy grin on her face. “Over here!” The pair cantered over to one of the largest booths in the area, and the ponies waiting in line allowed them to pass to the front with sincere smiles.

The old mare who sat behind the counter grinned widely. “Evenin’, Your Highnesses! You here to try the wares?”

“Yes. Two funnel cakes, please!” Twilight chirped as she and Luna each placed a few bits on the counter.

The owner took the money and replaced it with a pair of large pastries. Twilight thanked her and snatched them up with her magic, passed one to Luna, and trotted away. She galloped to the park with Luna hot on her heels before stopping to admire her snack. Bringing it to her nose, she breathed deeply of its sweet scent before taking a large bite.

“...Hey, Twilight?”

“Hmmm?”

“This is not cake.”

Twilight swallowed her bite and snickered. “Yes it is. It’s deep fried cake batter. Try it!”

Luna looked at her skeptically, then nodded. “You were right about the sandwich...” She leaned forward and took a small bite off of the crunchy treat and chewed it tepidly. She swallowed and simply gaped at the cake.

“So, do you like it?” Twilight asked exuberantly.

“...I am quite unhappy with the Royal Chefs, Twilight.”

“What?”

“Ever since I returned from the moon, they assured me that but a few worthwhile dishes had been introduced since my removal from society; in my naivety, I believed them,” Luna grumbled. “Meanwhile, you have proved them incorrect twice in one night! I have a thousand years of culinary innovations I could be catching up on, and if even a fraction of them taste even a fraction as good as this, then I have truly — as you would say — been ‘missing out’ on something wonderful.”

“I’ll take that as a yes,” Twilight giggled. “What about the park, though?”

“Oh. Yes, that’s nice too,” Luna murmured, flicking her eyes to her surroundings before returning to the cake and chomping off a large piece.

“Well, thank you. I guess,” Twilight replied laughing inwardly at Luna's antics. "I’m hoping that next year we’ll be able to get an orchestra or a band to play here"

“Why din’t oo gut un ths yer?” Luna asked through another mouthful.

“I couldn’t get anything on such short notice. Actually, there were a lot of things I couldn’t get done,” Twilight muttered.

Luna licked the empty paper plate that had held her dessert and groaned. “Ugh... After finishing that, I feel as if I should skip dessert for the next month...”

“I’ll believe that when I see it.”

“Oh, very funny.” She stretched out and turned to Twilight. "And now without the food distracting me, I can honestly say that the park looks more than nice. I would go so far as to say it is awe-inspiring."

"That's overstating it a bit, don't you think?" Twilight replied, giving Luna a confused glance.

"Not at all! The silver banners in the trees reflect the moonlight gorgeously, replacing the normal lanterns with candles have done wonders for the ambiance, and the incense is simply divine!" Luna acclaimed excitedly. "It's actually rather roman— errr... lovely."

"I'm sorry, what was that?"

"It is lovely Twilight," Luna stated quickly, looking away.

"No, before that. You said something else," Twilight prodded.

"I did not. You are simply imagining things," Luna replied haughtily.

"I'm pretty sure that I'm not," Twilight giggled. "Oh, don't look at me like that! I was just teasing, you don't have to get so flustered. If you don't want to tell me, you don't have to."

"So we shall consider the matter dropped?"

"Sure, if you want to," Twilight chuckled, shaking her head. “Anyway, back on topic, next year’s carnival will be a lot bigger.”

“You don’t sound entirely excited about that,” Luna muttered, the concern showing in her voice.

“Well, I’m afraid that I won’t be able to keep this going,” she sighed, popping the last piece of her funnel cake into her mouth. “As is, I only inherited enough money to fund this for five years. If I add everything that I wanted to for this year, but wasn’t able to, then that five years gets cut down to three. A lot of things pay for themselves, like the vendors and such; but other things — like the decorations and hiring entertainers — have to come right out of my pocket.”

“I had actually been wondering about that. Do you have any ideas for ways to raise funds?” Luna asked.

“No good ones,” Twilight grumbled. “I thought of raising the price of Gala tickets, or increasing a tax or two, but there’s no way that’d go over well unless it’s very gradual. The problem is, that won’t raise the money fast enough. I could always charge an admission fee, but that would defeat the purpose of having this.”

“Actually, Twilight, I think I may—”

“THERE YOU ARE!” an angry voice called across the park.

“Oh no. Not her. Not now...” Twilight groaned, turned towards the source of the voice, desperately hoping she was wrong. “Hi, Trixie.”

“Twilight Sparkle! How dare you! Trixie is quite disappointed; she thought you were better than this,” the showmare snarled as she stomped up to Twilight.

“Pardon me?” Twilight recoiled.

“You did not think the Great and Powerful Trixie wouldn’t find out, did you? Trixie is insulted!” she screamed, getting nose-to-nose with the Princess.

“Trixie, I’d love to apologize, but I’m not really sure what you’re angry about,” Twilight murmured, giving a nervous smile.

“You don’t know?!” Trixie gasped. “When Trixie heard that the Wise and Beautiful Princess Celestia had passed away, she was devastated, but soon after news arrived so wonderful as to banish the sadness from her heart. Trixie was informed that her friend, the Skilled and Benevolent Twilight Sparkle, would be ascending to the throne to take Princess Celestia’s place!

“When Trixie heard this, she was delighted; she was sure that she’d be asked to attend Twilight Sparkle’s coronation, so she waited for her invitation. She waited and waited, but it never came! How could you be so cruel as to not invite Trixie?” she whined, pouting at Twilight.

“Oh. I’m sorry, Trixie,” Twilight murmured. “To be honest, I actually didn’t even have a hoof in who was invited to that. If I had known you wanted to come so badly, I would’ve told them to invite you.” She took a step towards Trixie and gently lay a hoof on the unicorn’s shoulder. “I’m really sorry.”

“Hmph. Trixie doesn’t know if she wants to accept your apology. Understand, Twilight Sparkle, that Trixie was certain that there was nothing in Equestria capable of wounding her, but somehow she was still hurt by your thoughtlessness,” Trixie grumbled, turning away.

Twilight heard Luna suppress a chuckle at Trixie’s antics, and a wonderful idea exploded into her head. “Why don’t I try to make it up to you, Trixie?”

Trixie didn’t turn around, but her ears swiveled towards Twilight. “...And how would you plan on doing that?”

“Well, I was planning on making this carnival even bigger next year. I want to add a main stage and need a headline act,” Twilight replied tantalizingly.

“T-the main stage? Y-you’d put me on the main stage?” Trixie stuttered as she spun around, before realizing what she said. “Err, I mean, you’d place Trixie on the main stage? Well, she does belong there anyway... Trixie deems your attempt to make amends acceptable. She accepts your apology.”

“I appreciate that, Trixie,” Twilight smiled. “There’s just one thing.”

Trixie frowned at her. “Trixie is listening, Twilight Sparkle.”

“I’d like you to keep practicing your act. If you do that, then I’ll try to put you on the main stage every year.”

“Improve?” Trixie squealed indignantly. “Trixie is the greatest magician in Equestria! Why should she need to ‘improve’?”

“Of course not, but if you perform the same show every year, then the audience might get bored,” Twilight responded coyly.

“Yes, audiences are fickle, aren’t they?” Trixie muttered, scratching her chin. “And if they were to get bored of Trixie, they might choose instead to give their attention to an amateur!” she gasped, staring at Twilight in horror. “We can not allow that, Twilight Sparkle! Trixie will return to Canterlot every year with an act more wonderful and awe-inspiring than the year before, and you will in turn put her on the main stage.”

“So, I’m forgiven?” Twilight asked with a giggle.

“Yes, Trixie forgives you. She has one final request, however. When she arrives in Canterlot to perform, she will require the most luxurious accommodations. She humbly requests to stay in the castle,” Trixie started with the air of a seasoned negotiator.

“Of course! I’ll make sure to have one of the suites reserved just for you,” Twilight smirked.

“And also whenever else Trixie arrives in Canterlot! She will require lodgings those times as well. Will she be allowed to stay in the castle?”

“If we have space, I’d love to have you. Try to send word beforehoof so I can have a room made up for you.”

“It seems that an accord has been reached,” Trixie stated smugly. “Trixie will leave you now. She has much that she would like to do tonight. She bids farewell to Princess Twilight and Princess Luna.”

“Okay. Bye, Trixie.”

The pair of Princesses recoiled as a cloud of smoke burst into the area, dissipating just in time for them to catch sight of the hem of Trixie’s cape disappearing around a corner.

“Twilight, when you first told me the story of her time in Ponyville, I had believed you to be exaggerating how strange she was. Now I see that you were understating it,” Luna sniggered. “She is truly one of the oddest ponies I have ever met.”

“Oh, she’s not that bad,” Twilight scolded playfully. “I think that deep down she just wants everypony to like her.”

“I will defer to your judgement,” Luna snickered.

“I believe I may have a solution to your funding problem.” Luna lifted one of her wings and a scroll floated out, suspended in her magic. “You see, when I first returned from my... you know... my banishment, one of the first things I did was take inventory. I checked to see what possessions I had left over; things that I had stored in places other than the old castle, or that Tia rescued from the rubble, and such. While browsing my old bank accounts, I noticed a rather startling anomaly.”

Luna paused and just stared at Twilight. The younger Princess took the hint and sighed with a roll of her eyes, “...And? What was this ‘anomaly?”

“Well, as expected, my money had accumulated a large amount of interest over the thousand years I was gone, but there was still more than there should have been. A lot more,” Luna replied cryptically. “It didn’t take long for me to realize that Celestia had somehow ensured that I would continue to receive my stipend, even while I was absent.”

“Luna, that’s... If that’s true, you’re the richest pony in Equestria!” Twilight stammered, jaw dropping open.

“Ten times wealthier than the next wealthiest,” Luna muttered distastefully. “The problem is, that I hated it. I did not deserve that money and I did not want it. I still don’t. Over the past two years I have been systematically giving away as much of it as I safely could without damaging the economy; donating most of it to charities.”

She turned to Twilight and offered the scroll. “A few days ago, Quill-Pen told me of your financial concerns and the idea struck me. I placed all of the money — every last bit — into a special account labeled ‘The Carnival Fund’ and named you the sole controller. I’d much rather see my undeserved wealth be applied to something positive than to see it sit and gather dust.”

Quivering, Twilight took the scroll, unfurled it, and began to read it over. “Luna, I- We- This’ll let us incorporate everything into the Carnival that I wanted to and still be able to fund it for the next... three hundred years!” Twilight gasped, ticking off the numbers in her head.

“Three hundred, forty-two, by my count. Assuming we don’t add any more funds from our own personal accounts,” Luna murmured, staring pensively off into the distance. “Plenty of time to come up with a more permanent solution for funding this extravaganza, no?”

“Y-yes; I should think so,” Twilight croaked. She took her eyes off the scroll and stepped up to Luna. “Why are you doing this? You’re trying to tell me that it’s about redemption, but there’s more to it than that. I know there is.”

“I... I like seeing you smile, Twilight. That’s all. That’s the only reason,” Luna murmured sheepishly.

“Luna, you’re an awful liar,” Twilight sighed. “Can you please just tell me the truth? ...Please?”

“I-I...” Luna stuttered, hanging her head. She took a deep, defeated breath and looked up again, staring Twilight in the eyes. “It is because I have fallen for you, Twilight Sparkle. I cannot say exactly when it happened, but I have.”

Twilight recoiled, eyes wide and stammering incomprehensibly. “You... What?”

“I have fallen for you,” Luna said, barely louder than a whisper, cautiously glancing around to make sure that they were still alone. “I am smitten; enamoured. You are all I find myself able to think about. Every hour of every day I wonder what you are feeling; every night you haunt my dreams.” She sat on her haunches and hung her head again, looking thoroughly miserable. “But I am not blind. You hold me close, but you do not feel the same way I do. You look at me and see a friend; nothing more.”

“Luna... Wh-why didn’t you tell me sooner?” Twilight asked tenderly, taking a cautious step closer.

“I lacked the courage. Of course, now it feels good to have it off my chest,” Luna sighed. “I am sorry.”

“Sorry for what?” Twilight giggled. “You’ve done nothing wrong!”

“I feel as if I have been deceiving you. I have felt this way for quite some time now, and everything I’ve done for you over these past few months? Inviting your friends to Canterlot and comforting you whenever I was able? Attempts to win your affection,” Luna simpered apologetically. “Seeing how happy they made you was on its own enough to make my efforts all worth my while, but I had always hoped for more. I apologize for attempting to manipulate your emotions.”

“Oh, Luna...” Twilight breathed. She stepped up to Luna and pulled her into a tight hug. “Don’t be so hard on yourself. I appreciate everything you’ve done, I really do!”

“B-but...”

“Luna, you did those things because you care about me!” Twilight laughed. “That’s all that matters.”

“T-then you are not angry with me? This does not make you feel awkward?”

“Love is what friendship is all about, Luna” Twilight murmured. “You’re my friend; the best friend I’ve ever had. How could I be mad at you for something like this?”

“Then- then you feel...?”

“Well, no. I’m not attracted to you like that, at least not physically, but you’ve still become my closest friend over the past few months, and I couldn’t ask for a better one,” Twilight replied, releasing Luna from the hug and sitting down next to the mare.

“I see...” Luna mumbled. “So where does this leave us?”

“I suppose this does change things,” Twilight sighed. She thought for a moment and put a gentle hoof on Luna’s shoulder. “Luna, I care about you. I care about you a lot. You matter to me and your feelings matter to me. I want us to be close.”

“That is nice to know,” Luna smiled.

“I... I’m going to need to think about this, but I usually try to stay open-minded about... umm, this stuff,” Twilight said hesitantly. “I-I don’t mind if you want to be affectionate though. I mean, we already hug each other often enough and things like that, so I don’t think that would be a big change.”

“R-really? You’d let me court you?”

“C-court me?!” Twilight choked, the weight of the situation crashing into her like a train. “I-I don’t know. That’s not really what I meant”

“Oh... But I... I thought...”

“Luna... No! Just hold on, let me think,” Twilight groaned, turning away.

“Twilight? I-I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have—”

“No, it’s o— gah! Why is this happening? Why now?” Twilight whined. “Luna, why are you dumping this on me so suddenly? We were having such a nice night and now I’m just stressed out!”

“I-I’m so sorry, Twilight. That was not my intent,” Luna breathed.

“...Then what was your intent?”

“I-I needed to confess. I have been holding onto that for quite some time, and it was getting harder to bear. I had hoped that it would make you happy,” Luna murmured, silently allowing her tears to flow.

Twilight remained silent and the expression on Luna’s face quickly went from a tepid hopefulness, to a hurt frown, and finally to a grimace of complete despair. She turned away. “I suppose that you would rather be alone right now. I will leave you be.”

“No, Luna, wait,” Twilight sighed. “I don’t want you to go and I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that. I’m just confused, you know?”

“Confused about how you feel towards me?” Luna asked worriedly.

“No, not really,” Twilight muttered. “I do love you, Luna, but as a sister. You’re like my BSBFF now,” Twilight heaved a sigh and raised her head, looking at Luna with a sad glimmer in her eyes. “I’m confused about what I want to do.”

“W-what do you mean?”

“I care about you. I want you to be happy. I want to be able to give you what makes you happy. But I don’t know if I can,” Twilight explained sadly. “I’d really like to, but I don’t know.”

“What if... what if we allow you some time?” Luna said slowly. “We are going to be living for several thousand more years. Perhaps my feelings will pass.” She nudged Twilight playfully with a hoof. “Or perhaps I will get lucky and you might one day return my feelings.”

“Yeah, maybe...” Twilight replied, smiling slightly in spite of herself. She bowed her head and though for a moment before looking up at Luna again. “How about this: we’ll continue on as normal, but you can be more affectionate than normal if you really want to. If you promise not to abuse the privilege, then I’ll promise not to get creeped out when you feel the need to be affectionate.”

“R-really? You’d allow that?”

“Well, yeah... I mean, you’ve done a lot for me, and I’ve always known that you really cared about me. I feel that you deserve a chance at the very least,” Twilight murmured. “But I’d like to take some time to establish some rules. Maybe tomorrow?”

“O-of course! Any restrictions you want!” Luna gasped excitedly.

“And you’ll be sleeping in your own bed.”

“Goes without saying!”

The pair sat for a moment, smiling sheepishly at each other before Luna leaned in and planted her lips firmly on Twilight’s.

Twilight went numb. Her senses were overwhelmed with Luna’s scent and the subtly sweet taste of the older mare’s lips against her own; but before she could process what was happening, Luna pulled away.

She sat staring at Luna, breathing heavily as her mind creaked back into motion. “...Luna!”

“I apologize, Twilight. I could no longer help myself,” Luna giggled, blushing lightly.

“No, it’s okay. I think. I just... Just warn me next time!” Twilight stammered, shaking her head.

“If you insist. However, I do not hear you actively complaining. Could it be that you enjoyed my kiss?” Luna teased with a mischievous grin.

“What? That’s... Oh, come on!” Twilight stuttered, rapidly turning beet-red, as Luna roared with laughter.

“...Hey, Luna? I’m sorry that I can’t give you exactly what you want. Rarity’s told me how hard it is to fall in love with a friend who doesn’t feel the same way. She said that it’s one of the worst feelings in the world.”

“You need not apologize. You cannot change your emotions any more than I can,” Luna smiled.

“I know, but I don’t want to lead you on,” Twilight murmured. “I know it may not be the perfect situation, but I... I really want to try.”

“Twilight, I can live with imperfect, as you have given me more than I dared hope for,” Luna said happily, standing up and stretching out. “I must say though, this is by leaps and bounds the best walk I have ever indulged in.”

“I’d imagine,” Twilight snickered, following Luna out of the park.

“You have a large grin on your face, Twilight. Is there something you’d care to add?” Luna asked coyly.

“No... I was just thinking,” Twilight mumbled.

“About...?”

“Just how things have gotten better,” Twilight said with a reassuring smile. “I still miss Celestia, but it’s not completely debilitating anymore; the nobles are still a pain, but I’ve learned how to work around them; I miss seeing my friends every day, but I know that they’re never more than a letter away. And now my best friend just told me that she loved me.”

“I see. You have matured in these three short months,” Luna said affirmatively.

“I suppose I have. And it looks like things are only going to get better,” Twilight snickered as happy giggles reached her ears. She turned down the street and grinned broadly at the group of fillies galloping towards her.


End of Part 1.