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// Like The Tide 
// Story: Synthesis of the Atheist 
// by BlackRoseRaven 
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Chapter Sixty One: Like The Tide
~BlackRoseRaven

Innocence and Antares sat on the floor of the living room, both simply staring at each other. Nearby, a six-month pregnant Scarlet Sage was sharing tea with Meadowlark, looking at her brother with entertainment before she said mildly: “You know it's really bad that you're scared of her, right?”
“I'm not scared of her.” Antares grumbled, almost glancing away for a moment, but thankfully managing to keep eye contact with Innocence before he sighed as Meadowlark giggled loudly. “Look, I don't know how to take care of babies. I thought that was pretty clear after all the times I've tried to take care of her and something's gone horribly wrong. She's... she's like... how old are you, Innocence?”
Innocence replied with a yelled, wild, senseless word, and Antares' features puckered sourly before Scarlet Sage said gently: “She's about eleven months, Antares. A very strong, pretty almost-year-old girl. Have you gotten her birthday present yet?”
“It's still a month away! It's not even summer yet.” Antares complained loudly, and Innocence burbled and glowered at him, almost as if she understood what they were talking about. “Anyway, my... my present to her is... not throwing her out the window. Did you see what she did to me this morning? She pretended to eat that nice banana mush while Mom and Dad were here, and then she spat the whole goddamn jar right out into my face like, the moment they left!”
“Gawdamn!” Innocence mimicked, flailing her hooves wildly, and then she flopped backwards and began to roll around on her back, Antares groaning as the filly flailed vehemently in all directions. “Gawdamn! Gawdamn!”
“No, dammit, Innocence will you stop-” Antares reached a hoof out... and in a pop of light and sound, Innocence vanished from the spot, and Antares groaned in frustration and dropped his face into the floor even as squealing giggles came from the kitchen. “How. How long is this going to last?”
“I'll go get her.” Meadowlark said kindly, smiling amusedly as she strode past Antares and into the kitchen area: every time Innocence got a little too excited these days, she had the tendency to 'blink:' a wild teleport in a random direction, although thankfully she only ever seemed to go a few feet away and her instincts stopped her from teleporting into anything solid or dangerous.
Meadowlark found Innocence sitting on the counter beside the sink and giggling loudly, and the Pegasus mare smiled and gently lifted her. Innocence clung immediately to Meadowlark's neck and buried her face into her mane, nuzzling into her as she declared: “Meadow, Meadow!”
“That's right. Now you try and be nice to your big brother, okay?” Meadowlark chastised gently, and Innocence drew her head back, looked seriously up at the Pegasus, and then loudly blew a raspberry, and the mare couldn't help but laugh despite her best efforts not to.
Innocence was precocious, and growing up fast. She was still in diapers, and to Twilight's horror had taken to tearing off her fruit-themed clothing and prancing around in just her padding. Her horn was already growing in well: it had a slight curve to it, and it glimmered on occasion with magic... not that she had any control over it whatsoever. She tended to blink when overjoyed, and when she got angry or upset often electrocuted herself and everyone around her.
She was curious about absolutely everything, and had developed a tendency to put most things she was curious about in her mouth, or at least attempt to chew on them, resulting in quite a few dents and mars here and there throughout the household. Luna found her adorable, Scrivener had found it amusing until Innocence ate one of his favorite quills, and Twilight thought her daughter could do no wrong but was somewhat horrified of what the filly was capable of. She didn't remember Antares acting like this, after all.
Meadowlark set Innocence down after a moment, and she scampered immediately out of the kitchen and ran straight at where Antares was still laying on his face and grudgingly listening to some advice from Scarlet Sage. Right up until Innocence rammed her head into his kidney, that was, which made him wheeze and flop over with a wince.
She leapt forwards and landed on his face, and Antares sighed tiredly as Innocence leaned down and began to chew on his horn, simply staring moodily off into the distance as the little filly growled and pawed at him. What made this situation all the worse was the way both Meadowlark and Scarlet Sage were gazing and cooing over the nightmare of a filly like she was being adorable.
He grumbled and sat up... and felt Innocence's strong little teeth bite hard enough into his horn that she dangled from it. Antares simply sat, sulking, as Innocence growled and flailed her four little legs through the air, before Scarlet chastised: “Be careful Antares, you don't want to hurt her now.”
“Scar, I know you're pregnant and all, but even you should know there's something very wrong with what you just said.” Antares said sourly, as he turned his head towards his big sister with Innocence still growling and dangling from his horn. “And you know what? I figured it out. This is Mom's kid. I mean, Luna. And I'm really Twilight's kid. They lied and... switched wombs or something, I don't know, because... like... seriously. Seriously.”
“Maybe... maybe Twilight used to be a really hyperactive child before she got into studying and learning and stuff?” Meadowlark suggested as she strode forwards to gently begin to pull Innocence off  of Antares. The baby clung gamely on with her jaws for a few moments, and then finally let go to turn around and hug Meadowlark tightly around the neck, burbling happily as Antares narrowed his eyes moodily at his little sister and wondered for the thousandth time if Innocence was out to get him.
He grumbled under his breath, then Meadowlark set Innocence down, and she scurried off towards her building blocks, trampling several dolls that she had very little interest in playing with. Scarlet Sage gazed warmly after her, but Antares only continued to look grumpy before the pregnant mare finally turned her amused eyes back towards the stallion, rubbing slowly at her stomach as she said pointedly: “Well, you know that you were all quiet like Dad growing up, and now you're pretty much turning into Mom. Maybe she'll be the other way around.”
Antares grumbled at this, reaching up and rubbing slowly at his saliva-covered horn before he glowered over at Innocence as the little foal picked up two blocks, yelled raucously, and then smashed them together. “Horses of Heaven she scares me.”
Innocence paused, then slowly looked over her shoulder, her big amethyst eyes blinking owlishly in her scaled, more-reptilian-than-pony features. And Antares sighed after a moment: the part he hated most was how he could never stay mad at the little girl. Not just because she was just a baby, or because she was his sibling, or because, yes, she could be cute when she wanted to be... but her half-Wyrm, half-pony body had already made it hard for her to make friends with other foals her age, and Antares knew from experience that in the future it would continue to make ponies wary of her.
A lot of ponies had been afraid of him, after all, or hated him when he'd had wings. Already he'd noticed a difference even in some ponies who had before ignored him, like losing his wings had made him a better pony, or more 'normal.' Outside of Ponyville – and maybe here and there in pockets of the town, since it had started growing a little more – ponies were quick to judge by what they saw, after all. When he'd had wings, they hated him and thought he was some evil pony who experimented with dark magic or demons. Now that he only had scars, they pitied him; he felt the pity was worse.
Then Innocence flung a block at him, and it whacked Antares squarely between the eyes, making him blink and glare at her before his little sister gave a sudden smile and said brightly: “Antares!”
Antares sighed after a moment, then smiled despite himself in return and said finally: “Yeah, Sin, nice to see you too. Just stop flinging stuff at me, okay? You know you're not supposed to do that.”
Innocence only huffed a little in response, then she pawed at her building blocks as Meadowlark gazed softly over at Antares and Scarlet Sage laughed quietly, murmuring: “See? She's not so bad. And you know that she cares about you.”
“I guess, yeah.” Antares said after a moment, and he smiled a little as he rubbed slowly at his features before watching as the filly trotted away from her blocks to turn her eyes to some coloring books, burbling happily as she picked one of these up and pawed it open. “Still, though. That doesn't change the fact she's a little terror.”
Innocence seemed to understand this, looking over her shoulder and blowing a raspberry at Antares, and the stallion rolled his eyes before taking a step towards her and ruffling her mane. Innocence immediately grumbled and flailed her little claws in all directions, then she blurted: “Gawdamn!”
“I'm telling Mom you taught her that word.” Scarlet said mildly, and when Antares only gave her a dry look, the pregnant mare corrected: “Twilight-Mom, I mean.”
Antares winced at this, but before he could respond, all eyes glanced up as the front door opened. Innocence brightened at the sound of conversation, and spun around to scramble forwards, then giggle happily as Ratatoskr and Abaddon scurried down the hall and both ran around her, squirrel chittering and pseudodragon chirping happily away.
The pets were followed by Luna, who pranced happily in and swept up Innocence, making the baby giggle loudly as she bumped nose-to-nose with her. “Well, look at thee, so sweet and happy, my darling little daughter! Antares, how has my little girl behaved?”
“Is she okay? Was she cold at all? Did she eat?” Twilight asked hurriedly as she strode quickly up beside Luna, the Lich quickly taking her daughter from the sapphire mare, and Innocence grumbled and flailed a little even as her mother hugged her close up against her body, smiling warmly. “There's my little girl. You've been a good filly for your big brother, right?”
Antares opened his mouth... then sighed and nodded after a moment, rubbing absently at his horn as Scarlet and Meadowlark both gave him an amused look. “Yeah, she's been just... just great, definitely. She's doing that teleporting thing again, though.”
“Well, that's okay, little magic accidents are to be expected now and then.” Twilight smiled warmly as she held the filly out so they could press nose-to-nose, gazing warmly into her eyes as Innocence pawed at her mother's features, then she blushed a little as Scrivener cleared his throat awkwardly at the two mares blocking the end of the hallway. “Oh, sorry, sorry.”
“That's fine, Twilight.” came Celestia's gentle voice as the two mares slipped out of the way, and Scrivener Blooms grumbled something in half-agreement as he strode through the room, weighted down by several satchels filled with groceries and a folded-up mattress tied to his back. Celestia followed after him, as Innocence giggled at the sight of her father and then smiled brightly up at her aunt. “Hello Innocence. It's very nice to see you.”
The filly burbled happily from Twilight's forelegs, reaching her little claws towards her, and the ivory mare reached out and gently swept up the foal, nuzzling into her softly and smiling down into her eyes. The filly giggled at this, pawing quietly at Celestia's face for a few moments, and Antares took the moment to turn and slip towards the kitchen, where Scrivener was awkwardly attempting to offload groceries with the mattress still on his back.
“Here, Dad. I'll get those.” the glossy-black unicorn offered, and Scrivener smiled and nodded his thanks to his son, the young stallion quickly loosening one of the satchels before he asked hesitantly: “What's uh... what's that for, though?”
“Oh, uh... upstairs bedroom.” Scrivener muttered, glancing over his shoulder at Twilight, who nodded in confirmation. “Don't look at me. I don't think we ever have guests. But Twilight insisted on it... something about... I dunno, helping Innocence adjust, too?”
“Well, the old bed in the guest room is all worn out. We need to replace the mattress. And yes, it'll be good for the future, too, when we're trying to get Innocence used to a bed.” Twilight said quickly, smiling, and then she frowned when Luna gave her an amused look. “What? What is it?”
“Nothing. Nothing at all, Twilight Sparkle. 'Tis just... very adorable, in its fashion, that is all.” Luna replied with a wry smile, looking pointedly at the violet mare, and Twilight blushed and grumbled a little. Antares smiled a bit himself as he walked around his father to get the other satchel, as Luna glanced over at Celestia. “So tell me, sister, because I am sick of all the gossip. Is it true that thou art going to step down from thy position as Baroness?”
“Luna, honestly: I don't know. Part of me wants to and part of me doesn't, it's very difficult.” Celestia said softly, and Luna grumbled at this response before the ivory mare smiled a little and shook her head slowly. “Think of it this way, little sister: it's like choosing whether I should stay back and use my mind to ensure victory, or step onto the battlefield myself and fight alongside my people, to protect them there. My blood calls for one, my mind for another.”
Twilight nodded slowly as Luna only grumbled, then leaned over towards Innocence and muttered loudly: “Does thou see that, Sin? Thy Aunt Tia is being silly. And lazy. And shall worry herself so much she shan't ever be free but shan't do her little job, either. How hard is it for thou to run a Barony, Celestia, thou ran all of Equestria before while smiling and preening!”
“A very different Equestria, Luna.” Celestia smiled despite herself, looking amused as she titled her head towards the mare, even as Innocence burbled happily in what almost sounded like agreement. “There's much, much more to manage in Looking Glass World than there was in old Equestria, and we have fewer allies we can call upon here... none of the different races are intelligent and we've had minimal contact with the griffins and their kingdom: they're extremely distrustful of us. And don't forget that-”
“I have forgotten everything!” Luna declared loudly, and Innocence giggled loudly and flung her hooves up before vanishing with a loud pop and a flash of light, only to reappear rocking and laughing on her back on the counter divider.
Twilight sighed at this and looked pointedly at Luna, but Luna only grinned in return as Scrivener Blooms gave an amused look towards the den room, then headed for the back door. “You have fun with her. I'm going to get this bed off my back.”
“I shall!” Luna said cheerfully, blatantly ignoring the fact that Scrivener had clearly not been referring to the filly Luna was gazing at. And, almost the moment that Twilight swept Innocence back into the safety of her forelegs, Luna pounced forwards and nuzzled and kissed all along her daughter, and Innocence gave several loud peals of laughter before blinking again and reappearing in front of the fireplace, rolling and flailing around on her back in merriment.
Twilight glared over at Luna, but Luna grinned widely in return and winked. “What? 'Tis all in good fun, Twilight Sparkle, our daughter adores it!”
“We're trying to train her out of blinking for one thing, Luna. For another, she could have another much-less-pleasant magic accident again, too.” Twilight said pointedly, and Luna huffed before looking down as Abaddon chirped at her cheerfully. She reached down and swept up the pet reptile, as Twilight continued mildly: “And I really wish you wouldn't refer to her as 'Sin.' I mean, the parenting books are very clear that a child's psyche can be fragile and learns through association, and these formed associations can have a direct impact on development and adult-”
Luna threw Abaddon into Twilight's face, and the Lich blinked several times as Abaddon simply clung to her features with a loud, cheerful chirp. She shook her head quickly, but the pseudodragon held on firmly and refused to let go. Innocence giggled happily at this as Luna looked mildly across the room at Scarlet Sage, saying: “Now, I want thou to study us, daughter. Recognize when Twilight's approach is best, for she is indeed a wonderful mother... but also recognize when my approach is best, for I am also a wonderful mother, am I not?”
Scarlet smiled after a moment, and Luna nodded firmly before looking pointedly over her shoulder at Antares. The stallion was in the middle of putting groceries away, and Luna huffed before her horn glowed, and a moment later Antares winced as a cupboard swung open and slapped him lightly in the face, staggering backwards as Luna asked loudly: “Am I not a wonderful mother?”
“The... the very best, Mom.” Antares said finally, and then he rubbed moodily at his features before returning to putting groceries away, mumbling: “I'm not saying that in the baby voice, though.”
Luna grunted and nodded a few times, looking appeased before she turned her eyes towards Twilight as the Lich carefully pulled Abaddon off her face and put him gently down so he could return to playing with Ratatoskr, the violet mare sighing as Innocence threw herself onto the bedding in front of the fireplace and began to roll around on it. “Okay, okay. Maybe I'm... overreacting just a little. Honestly, though, I... I worry. I worry a lot about things, and about you two, too, because Thesis is still out there... even if... it's been so quiet lately.”
“It's starting to worry me.” Celestia said softly, and Luna grimaced uneasily at this, glancing up as the mare shook her head slowly. “Even if we successfully intimidated him when he was injured by the White Matter... I expected a message by now, perhaps even another attack. But instead, he's still waiting... no move on us, no attempt to contact or retrieve Cheshire. This goes far beyond the time it would take him to heal, with what we know about him. My concern is becoming more and more that he's either gone back to harvesting other layers or he's massing an army.”
Scarlet Sage shifted uneasily at this, hugging herself quietly as Antares grimaced in the kitchen, turning away from the few groceries left on the counter to ask uneasily: “But it seems as if Thesis has always had access to infantry forces, and all kinds of Clockwork technology and... who knows what else? Why wouldn't he attack us with them before?”
“Because even though the other Replicants have been hostile, Thesis has been trying to get us to cooperate peacefully. Or well... at least, we've seen what he seems to think peaceful persuasion entails.” Celestia said quietly, shaking her head slowly. “His attacks on us have always been either because he's unable to control how violent his lieutenants are, or as a response to our refusal to work with him. Sometimes our insults.”
Celestia smiled a little over at Luna, but Luna only huffed a bit and rose her head, replying moodily: “The damned fool deserves no mercy, Celestia. And I am fearing for the other worlds... what Thesis is doing to them, what he may have done already. How many ponies he has made suffer...”
“We can't take responsibility for that, Luna. We can only protect the core world... but we can't go chasing blindly through the countless different realms looking for him.” Celestia said softly, even as Twilight Sparkle looked uneasily at the ivory mare, and then the rainbow-maned winged unicorn smiled faintly and closed her eyes. “I know it's hard. Believe me, it hurts me to imagine what Thesis could be doing right now, but there's simply nothing we can do right now. The best thing we can do ourselves is prepare, not let down our guard, and when the time comes for it... put a stop to Thesis, before he can hurt anyone else.”
Twilight nodded uncertainly as Scarlet Sage looked down at her stomach, then shook her head slowly and murmured: “I don't know if... I'm happy or upset. It's so complicated... I feel my babies moving around inside me and I think about how I'd do anything to protect them, but... on the other hoof... I think of all the other babies and families and ponies that Thesis might be making suffer right now... how do you deal with that?”
“By hurting Thesis as much as possible when he does attack, and stopping him from ever doing anything like this again.” Luna said grimly, and Scarlet Sage smiled faintly after a moment, looking up and nodding slowly, and then the sapphire mare shifted moodily and rubbed awkwardly at her foreleg as her horn gave a faint flicker. “Damnation. Excuse me.”
Celestia softened a little, and Twilight glanced quickly up, but Luna only shook her head firmly before striding back towards the master bedroom. She quieted a little as she pushed through the door, even with the warming sounds of Innocence's laughter echoing down the corridor, and then she closed the door gently behind her and leaned back against it, closing her eyes and feeling Scrivener's presence above, feeling like his gentle claws were caressing through her mind.
She liked that he had claws. Partly because he liked that he had claws, but she liked it for other reasons, too. She liked the way they felt, and how much more dexterous they were than hooves, and how tightly they could grasp into her and how easily they could hold things and... what they were a start towards. What they meant.
Luna looked down at her own hoof, then she quietly reached up and slowly rubbed at her crystalline horn: it created a musical singing sound that vibrated into her brain and made her shiver a little, and she arched her back as her starry mane twisted slowly upwards and sparked quietly around her. She breathed slowly, in and out, a faint smile on her face before she closed her eyes and sighed quietly, head thumping gently against the door before she murmured: “Damnation.”
She pushed herself away as that soft ringing continued for a moment through her mind, then moodily turned towards the shelves next to the stands that proudly held their armor. She picked up her kit and opened it, then glanced almost shamefully at the door for a moment as she extracted the needle. She felt like she was being watched through the wood and brick and insulation; she felt like everypony's eyes were on her, even though only cracks of light shone into this dark room through the drawn curtains and beneath the closed door.
She slipped the tube into the injection gun, then grimaced as she pushed the needle firmly into her other foreleg, cursing quietly and pulling the trigger. There was that momentary pulse of pleasure and heat and power that made her shiver... then longing, disappointment, a craving for more... and as came all too often afterwards these days, anger and bitterness.
She clenched her hoof around the handle of the gun, gritting her teeth and shivering once as her mane sparked, feeling the corruption race through her, but only intensify the want and the pain instead of soothing it for the moment. Here she was, being a good little girl taking her regular little doses: doses that weren't even enough to make that ever-lingering need go away for even a week now! Oh, sure, everyone told her it was best, it was fine, she'd learn to live with it and be stronger for it, but they weren't the ones who had their goddamn horn punched off their head, they weren't the ones who had to live through this, she was!
And she wasn't allowed to fight as hard as she wanted, because she might damage her precious synthetic horn. She wasn't even allowed to make love to her own husband, that of all things had to follow a goddamn schedule too, and how unfair was that? She had been warned even kissing him could slip a little more corruption into her...
Why did it matter so much? Why couldn't they stop staring at her, just leave her alone? Why was she trying so hard to follow their stupid advice when she could be living a world of pleasure, not shooting up like some... some junkie hiding out in her little dark room while her family all talked about her outside... she didn't need the needle, they forced it on her, had they forgotten that? She had been perfectly fine just taking her doses from Scrivener directly when it was needed, instead of this stupid scheduling that left her shivering and in pain and... and...
Luna's lip trembled as she dropped her face in her hooves, anger whiffing out into misery as she realized what she was thinking and cursed herself for it. But as she breathed roughly in and out, her emotions settled, and she was reminded that the fact she was upset was a good thing... it meant that the maelstrom of emotions was passing and her... her medication... was setting in.
She breathed slowly in and out, lowering her head and closing her eyes as she relaxed little-by-little. The pain was dying down, the sense of corruption in her veins was fading, her resolve was renewing little-by-little before she grumbled and glanced down at the needle, ejecting the empty vial and picking it up with telekinesis to study it silently.
She wasn't going to let this of all things break her... or lure her in, either, tempting as that was. She had heard both Valthrudnir and Nightmare Moon cajoling her towards... giving in, after all, and of course there was an allure, a longing, a... a desire for the power that would come with the permanent solution to her problem. But it would be a tragic step, she knew: better to live like this, until they found a way to fix her horn or... until another solution presented itself.
Luna sighed softly, then tossed the needle gun down and the glass vial into a nearby garbage bin with a flick of her horn. She shook her head moodily, then rubbed slowly at her features before murmuring: “I am allowing myself to get too wrapped up in other thoughts now. Smile, Luna, thou hast much to be happy for. Family, friends, and thou art already powerful...” She halted, then grumbled and added darkly to herself: “Perhaps, though, once we tear down Thesis, then I will feel better about this situation I find myself in.”
The mare halted, then glanced up moodily at the ceiling before narrowing her eyes and concentrating as she felt Scrivener's gentle reassurances beginning to float through her mind, as well his worries... and a moment later, in the guest room above, Scrivener winced as his blood boiled in his veins, staggering into the wall with the old mattress on his back and flopping down with a thump.
He felt the pain cease after a few moments, and sighed tiredly as it was replaced by a grumble in his mind from Luna, the stallion tapping a hoof slowly against the floor beneath the old mattress before he said moodily: “I'm glad to hear it, dear. Next time instead of being worried about you I promise to call you names and mock your tears, does that sound good?”
“I was not crying!” Luna retorted loudly as she shoved the downstairs door open, striding out into the hall and continuing flatly, apparently unaware that she was speaking out loud and the other ponies were all staring at her: “And I would much prefer that, aye, because thou art nothing but a great coddling dandy anyway, Scrivener Blooms, wretched and... and... oh, buttocks.”
Luna looked down and saw her children, Celestia, Meadowlark, and Twilight Sparkle all staring, and then she blushed a little before the Lich asked awkwardly: “So uh... Luna... you... feeling better?”
“Yes, I am.” Luna said staunchly, and then she stepped forwards, swept Twilight into her forelegs and bent her backwards, and kissed her firmly. Twilight stared stupidly before her eyes slid slowly closed as Celestia sighed and Meadow blushed, hurriedly turning her eyes away.
Then Luna dropped the Lich on her back and straightened, clearing her throat as she sat up and grinned widely over at the sour look Celestia was favoring her with. “What? What is it, Celestia? Would thou like a kiss as well?”
“The last time you kissed me, Discombobulation asked me whether I was Electra or Iphigenia. I have the feeling the story he was referring to wasn't a pleasant one.” Celestia paused thoughtfully, studying the sapphire mare as Meadow blushed deeper, Scarlet Sage looked lamely away, and Antares gave his mother an incredulous look. “I think he was just afraid of the promise you made to 'prove your strength in battle' to me.”
“And I would.” Luna grinned widely, then she huffed at the stares she was getting as Innocence only happily played with Abaddon and Ratatoskr, giggling quietly away as she bounced and rolled around with them on the bedding. “Oh, what? 'Tis only a kiss, there is nothing wrong with that. 'Tis not as if I have attempted to breach Celestia's gates.”
Celestia shook her head slowly as Twilight giggled a little on the ground, then cleared her throat hurriedly and covered her mouth with both hooves when Scarlet Sage looked down at her incredulously. Then Innocence perked up and seemed to notice her mother was in a vulnerable position, and the filly yelled loudly, making Luna blink before the sapphire mare laughed when Innocence charged over to Twilight and tackled her stomach, the Lich wincing and flailing a little as her daughter bounced happily onto her body.
Abaddon and Ratatoskr both followed the baby, jumping onto Twilight and making the violet mare laugh in spite of her best efforts not to, and Luna gazed down with warmth and love at the mare and her daughter. She readied herself to pounce, then looked up awkwardly as Celestia cleared her throat, and the sapphire mare huffed before nodding and following after the ivory equine as they strode through the kitchen and out the back door.
They stepped out onto the rear deck together, and Luna fell into place beside her sister, gazing over at her with a slight smile before she asked softly: “And pray tell, Celestia. Just what does thou wish for now? To lecture me, or worse, tell me that everything will be alright when I am very sure it shall not? It sounds as if no news is no longer good news after all, Celestia, and as if thou art... worried about something. I do not like it when thou worries.”
Celestia nodded a few times, then she paused for a moment before looking ahead and saying mildly: “I think rain is coming, sister.”
Luna frowned at this, looking up into the bright, clear blue sky as she opened her mouth, but a moment later she felt something heavy flop down on top of her, knocking her flat against the ground with a squawk and leaving her laying stunned beneath the heavy mattress as Scrivener leaned over the railing above, grinning despite himself as he said mildly: “Oh sorry, Luna. Didn't see you there.”
“Scrivener. Damned. Blooms.” Luna muttered moodily as her senses returned, and then she slowly looked up and glared out over their little backyard, grinding her teeth together as she said darkly: “If thou dares to jump down atop this mattress, beetle, I shall squish thee. I shall squish thy bug-guts right out of thy fat head. And then eat them. And spit them back into thine own face.”
The stallion cleared his throat loudly at this, looking awkwardly down at the mattress as Celestia couldn't help but smile despite herself, asking mildly as she turned her own gaze towards Luna: “What's wrong, little sister? I thought you were encouraging all these little pranks?”
“Aye, I think 'tis very good thou art actually trying to be fun instead of simply being a boring old mare, Celestia, but I can also be frustrated that thou art directing such prankery at me. I warn thee both, if there is to be a prank war I shall win it, and thou shall suffer worst at my hooves, Scrivener Blooms.” Luna threatened, before her horn glowed as she snapped it upwards, launching the mattress into the air before hopping forwards and landing in the yard. A moment later, the mattress landed with a loud thump on the patio, and then the sapphire mare flung herself backwards and landed on her back with a grumble on the cushioning, putting her forehooves behind her head and gazing moodily up into the clear blue sky. “Celestia, make it evening. Today is boring. Make today end.”
“Making the sun move doesn't automatically make time move forwards, Luna. Besides, the last time I moved the sun, the Strange Ones were very quick to make me move it back. If I interfere with the sun's movements, I interfere with their machinery.” Celestia replied, and then she softened a little as Scrivener came down the stairs, adding softly: “But good. I did want to talk to you both for a moment.”
Luna groaned at this as Scrivener tilted his head and gave a bit of a smile, the stallion gesturing towards the house as he asked softly: “Right now? With our family in there and everything, in the middle of visiting time?”
“Yes, because I don't think there's a better time for it.” Celestia responded, looking over at him softly, and Scrivener frowned slightly as Luna looked up in surprise, leaning up a little and tilting her head before Celestia smiled a bit. “Luna... you're hurting. You and Scrivener both, I think... even if both of you are trying to hide the pain from one another as well as the rest of your family. What I want to ask you to do, Luna, is to... trust us with it. Trust us with your feelings, and your emotions.”
The sapphire mare grumbled at this, sitting up and opening her mouth, and she blinked in surprise as she felt Celestia's hoof gently cup her cheek, looking up to see her big sister leaning over her as the ivory winged unicorn said quietly: “You're my little sister and I love you. I hate seeing you hurting, and I hate seeing my friend and brother hurting too. And you're not weak, and I'm not going to blame you for being angry and upset and needing to get the poison out of your system.”
The sapphire mare looked up silently for a few moments, then she swallowed a little before nodding once, opening and closing her mouth before she carefully stood up. Scrivener strode over to her, gazing at her softly, and then Luna looked up and said finally, in a quiet, almost-meek voice: “I... I think we would both like a hug, I think, Celestia.”
Celestia only nodded, and she stepped forwards and slid her forelegs around both Scrivener and Luna, and both ponies hugged the ivory mare tightly in return, resting their heads against her breast. There was silence for a few long moments as they rested together, and then Luna finally cleared her throat and pulled back, nodding embarrassedly a few times as Scrivener sat back a little at the same time, the two's movements and expressions mirroring as they looked down, fidgeted, and then faced each other.
Their heads rose, and their eyes met, and emotions and thoughts collided before swirling together: rage and sorrow, anxiety and pride, love and hate and frustration and recrimination and apology all bled out until they were one unified sensation. One togetherness, and the two ponies shared their own quick, tight hug, sharing a soft murmur before they pulled apart and smiled a little into each other's eyes.
The two looked awkwardly up at Celestia as she gazed down at them, and the ivory mare hesitated for a moment before she said finally: “Luna, I... I want to make it clear that I'm not who I was before. That I'm not going to cling to etiquette and social graces over doing something that will help make someone feel better, I'm not going to put on a false smile and dismiss your problems or calmly twist them to my advantage. I'm going to listen to you, honestly. I'm here for you... I'm here for you both, and so is the rest of your family.”
“Shut up, Celestia.” Luna mumbled, rubbing awkwardly at her features, and the ivory mare smiled a little despite herself before the sapphire winged unicorn grumbled: “'Tis... 'tis just something in my eye, that is all. Some... blood, or a piece of crystal, or... a demon. 'Tis a demon in mine eye.”
Scrivener gave the mare an amused look, then winced when she huffed and punched him in the foreleg. “Thou should shut up too. Damnable Scrivener Blooms. Damnable idiot Scrivener Blooms. Somehow, all of this is thy fault.”
“I know Luna. I know.” Scrivener said dryly, rubbing slowly at his injured limb before he paused and glanced up at Celestia. “Thank you, though. Honestly. It means a lot to us to hear that, and... well... we're going to do our best... not to be stupid.”
Celestia nodded a little, then turned her eyes back to Luna almost expectantly, and Luna grumbled and half-covered her face childishly. “Well I do not desire to speak about it right now. Thou cannot simply squeeze me like a fruit and make all my juices run out of me. My milk perhaps, but not my juices. I require foreplay.”
Scrivener cleared his throat awkwardly at this as Celestia shook her head slowly, but looked entertained more than she did irritated. There was quiet for a few moments, and then the ivory mare changed the subject with another question: “Do you still want Eventide to take care of Innocence once she's finished her training?”
“Aye, I do. I like that Nightmare and I do not entirely know why.” Luna said after a moment, looking up thoughtfully and nodding a little. “She has been training with the Yamato, and is earning her armor piece-by-piece?”
“She is. She's more...” Celestia looked down thoughtfully, searching for the right word before she said slowly: “Individualistic. Perhaps that's why you were attracted to her in the first place, Luna. She asks more questions, shows more of an independent streak than many of the others. She's more willing to make mistakes, and a better person for it.”
“Thou just referred to a Nightmare as a 'person.' I can barely believe mine own ears.” Luna paused, then made her ears flick childishly a few times as she gave a slight smile. “Still, 'tis certainly an improvement. And I will take the Celestia that enjoys the presence of demons over the Celestia that used to kill them out of hoof, for no reason apart from the fact that they did 'not belong here.'”
Celestia sighed a little, but she was smiling all the same as she said softly: “And I promise I'm not going to ever going back to being that. But come then, Luna. Let's go back inside, see your family. Remind you of everything that you have, and that you have to look forwards to... Innocence is almost a year old, Cheshire may not be... healing, per se, but he's finding a place where he can interact with others, and we can begin further preparations against possible invasion. All good things.”
“Aye. That they are and may be, as well as my daughter's pregnancy and many other things but... I fear that the more good we have, Celestia, the more that Thesis can take away from us, in his pursuit of... 'completion.'” Luna murmured, quieting a little as she looked down. “And sometimes, to be honest, I do not like the fact that... I have become important in the eyes of so many, or how Twilight Sparkle is so dedicated to us and tied to us, and so many look to her as friend, mentor, hero. For I know that if we are taken away... 'twill hurt many ponies. I have no problem with dying, Celestia, any more than Scrivener Blooms does. I do have a problem with leaving wounds behind.”
There was silence for a few moments, and then Celestia said softly: “That sounds almost like you want to die, Luna. Like you want to just give up.”
“I... I do not. 'Tis tempting sometimes, I will admit... and I blame the poet for that...” Luna shot a pointed look at Scrivener, who sighed and dropped his head forwards. “But I do not desire death, Celestia. I just... have my moments of weakness. I thought thou wert not going to lecture me, though?”
“I didn't say I wasn't going to lecture you, Luna. I said I was going to do whatever it took to help you, and I wasn't going to judge you. I'm afraid sometimes that means I still have to lecture you from time-to-time, though.” Celestia paused, then she smiled a little and added quietly: “Even when you were the Night Maiden, though, sometimes I had to lecture you. You were my most trusted, and yet the most frustrating Valkyrie under my command as well. Always going outside of what the mission said, always ignoring my commands to stay back with your sisters, always racing me to lead the charge.”
Luna grinned a little at this, looking up and murmuring: “Aye. The best of times, weren't they? And some things, I suppose, have never changed even now.”
“And I hope they never do. You and Sleipnir taught me that sometimes, the act of trying and failing to save a single life is a thousand times better than coldly and calculatingly achieving victory, but culling the innocent along with the guilty.” Celestia replied softly, and then she shook her head slowly and murmured: “You, Sleipnir, and myself... I miss those days.”
“We can have them back, Celestia. And we shall. Once thou finally steps down from thy barony duties... when thou art ready. When my family is grown, and Thesis is defeated, thou and I and our brother, Twilight Sparkle and Scrivener too... let us roam across Equestria. Nay, let us roam across all the realms, and leave this one safe in the care of my children, and the new generation...” Luna smiled after a moment, looking quietly up at Celestia as the ivory mare gazed tenderly back down at her sibling. “'Tis madness, I know. But... it is madness that sounds so...”
“So tempting.” Celestia finished, and then she hesitated before shaking her head and smiling a little. “We... we have a lot to do before that time can come, though, Luna. And it will be quite a few years before Innocence is grown up.”
“Aye, but 'tis a short space of time for thou and I, Celestia.” the sapphire mare replied softly, and then she smiled again. “And that is both blessing and curse. Already it feels like... time has passed so quickly with Innocence. Come, then, come, back inside, enough of this drudgery. I wish to spend time with my family.”
Celestia nodded in agreement after a moment, then began: “Just remember, Luna, that we're always here for you and-”
“Oh, enough, enough! Enough! I desired one hug, not to be smothered!” Luna flailed a bit at the air, glowering up at the mare, but Scrivener only smiled amusedly: he didn't need the connection he had with Luna to see how grateful she was for Celestia reaching out to her, and he was pretty sure that the ivory mare herself had no trouble picking up on it either. “Thou art trying to turn me into a giant infant of thine own. Well, if thou wants a baby so much, Celestia, thou may have a Tyrant Wyrm with Scrivener if thou continues to be unable to produce a child with Bob.”
“Thank you, Luna, I appreciate that.” Celestia said with only the faintest hint of exasperation, and Luna nodded firmly a few times before turning and striding towards the back door, Scrivener sighing and following with Celestia as the elder sibling remarked: “You know, I often wonder what we must look like to normal people.”
“Easy. 'Tis a mix of adoration and terror. I believe the proper term is 'awe.' We are awesome.” Luna replied comfortably as she strode into the kitchen, then she paused and poked at the coffeemaker with her horn, and Scrivener sighed tiredly when Luna gave him a pointed look.
“Use your words, dear.” Scrivener said dryly, and then he flinched when the mare smacked his forehead with a hoof. “Or fine, just beat me, I guess that works too.”
Luna nodded firmly, then turned and strode into the den room to find Scarlet Sage was reading to Innocence, the babe curled comfortably up against her pregnant belly and looking enthralled. Twilight glanced up from where she had been chatting with Antares and Meadowlark, then softened as she looked at Luna before striding quickly over and hugging her fiercely, and Luna closed her eyes as she hugged the mare tightly back for a few moments, mumbling a little before they parted.
The Lich reached up and gently took Luna's face in her hooves, studying her quietly as she gazed back and forth over her, and the sapphire mare grumbled a bit before Twilight Sparkle said softly: “Everything Celestia said is true, you know. We just want the best for you. And I'm here for you, in every possible way. You know how important you and Scrivener are to me, and... I want to say again, there's no other place I'd rather be.”
Luna blushed slightly, then nodded firmly once before clearing her throat and looking awkwardly at the ceiling. “I... well... thou hast my thanks then, Twilight, I... I... it means... much to... to Scrivener, of course. He clearly is the one who needs the reassurances and coddling, not I.”
Twilight sighed a little as Scrivener grumbled in the kitchen, then winced a bit when Luna shot a horrible look over her shoulder, the stallion dropping his head forwards and mumbling: “Fine, fine. Why not. Yes, Twilight, it was all me, all along.”
“Precisely. Thou art like... like my... mood ring, Scrivener Blooms. Except that all my emotions go through thee. I clearly never get upset nor lose my finely-disciplined temperament.” Luna replied comfortably, raising her head proudly, and then she paused and pranced over to Innocence with a smile, leaning down as Scarlet Sage closed the book and gazed warmly at her mother. “Now, how art thou feeling, Innocence? 'Tis nearly time for thy nap, is it not, but I am sure thou has enough time to play a little game with thy mother, does thou not?”
Innocence giggled and reached up to grab at Luna's muzzle, and the sapphire mare gazed warmly at the foal before sweeping her up and spinning around with her held high in her forelegs, Innocence laughing loudly before Luna brought her down and blew a raspberry on her stomach. The filly flailed and giggled again before Luna playfully leapt forwards, pinning the babe beneath her and leaning down to blow another raspberry against her chest.
Innocence laughed louder, then popped out of sight, and Luna grinned widely as Twilight gave her a flat look and Meadowlark did her best to hide her giggles. Antares, meanwhile, only smiled at his mother... that was until all eyes winced as a muffled yell came from the kitchen, and Scrivener flinched before he hurriedly ran over to the stove and opened it.
Innocence stared out at him, blinking rapidly from inside the thankfully-off oven, and then she huffed loudly before throwing herself off the metal rack and into Scrivener's chest, the stallion wincing and barely managing to catch the filly as he fell back on his rump. Then he sighed a little and looked pointedly over the countertop, asking dryly: “Can that please be the sign that you should stop making her blink, Luna? Until she can actually control where she's going, it's getting kind of dangerous.”
“Oh, 'tis not, the babe's instincts always bring her to safety, not sufferance.” Luna retorted, then she paused and looked thoughtfully at Scrivener. “Still, 'tis more like thee than I like to think, Scrivy. Here I am, giving the child kisses that 'tis clearly enjoying, and her first instinct is to run away from me. 'Tis almost hurtful.”
Twilight only reached up and lightly tapped her hoof against Luna's crystalline horn, and the sapphire mare winced as it reverberated. Scrivener, meanwhile, gazed meditatively down at Innocence, and she growled up at him, baring her little sharp teeth. It made the stallion smile despite his best efforts not to before he growled back and showed off his own fangs, and Innocence giggled and slapped at his face before hugging his muzzle suddenly, murmuring: “Dada.”
“That's right, kiddo.” Scrivener said softly, feeling a twist of warmth run through his body before he gently drew her back and away from his features, gazing into those big, beautiful eyes of hers. To him, she was the most adorable little filly he'd ever seen, from the tip of her horn to the end of her tail, claws and scales and all, and he studied her with that gentle awe that sometimes came over him: how he could be so afraid of himself, but find his little girl so gorgeous.
He set the filly down, and she scrambled quickly through the kitchen and back into the living room, happily pouncing onto the bedding with a bright smile at all the attention she was getting from the adults. And Scrivener smiled himself as he leaned over the counter, while Luna and Twilight both looked down with pride at their child, promising to protect the little filly. Promising to protect everypony here, amidst the silent love that filled the room... no matter what the cost.