“Oh, thank goodness!!”
Rarity's relieved exclamation suddenly broke the silence in the royal quarters. Applejack turned to find her friends watching the alabaster unicorn inspecting her tail and mane, which had grown back to it's usual length and style.
“I must say, using the Elements of Harmony does do wonders for a girl's coiffure don't you think?” Rarity flipped her sparkling mane and beamed. “Oooh! Perhaps I can persuade Princess Celestia to let me use them on occasion...or at the very least let me study the effects so I can create a spell to duplicate it. It would do wonders for my business! Of course...”
Applejack snorted and rolled her eyes at Rarity's fussing but couldn't help but smile, especially when Luna silently looked to the heavens at the prospect of an Elements of Harmony mane styling treatment. Rarity was Rarity, and Applejack had learned that she wouldn't want her any other way.
Ignoring the fashionista's continued gushing - and the Princess of the Night's attempts to politely dissuade any suggestion of the idea to use the Elements for anything other than the most dire of circumstances, Applejack led the way to where Princess Celestia and Twilight lay. Cadence and Shining Armour were still in attendance, along with Zecora who was packing the last of her ingredients away with her usual air of professional satisfaction. Celestia silently welcomed them all as they approached with a pleased smile, before lowering her neck and nuzzling gently at her charge.
----------------------------
“Twi?”
“Ooooh...”
Consciousness flooded into Twilight's befuddled brain, her senses insistently tugging at her awareness with some indecipherable message.
“Twi?”
The buzzing in her senses gradually resolved itself into a distant voice as her brain began to slowly wake up from it's slumber. Twilight opened her eyes, her blurry vision showing nothing but smears of colour against a dark background. Twilight closed her eyes and tried reopening them a few times until a little more of her woke up, and after a moment or two the cyan and orange blurs eventually focused themselves into a hazy image of Applejack and Rainbow Dash – who were standing over her with concerned looks on their faces.
“Twi? You OK sugar-cube?”Applejack's voice echoed distantly in Twilight's head. The lavender mare groaned groggily.
“Ohhhh....what a dream...Applejack? Rainbow? What's... going on?”
As her fuzzy vision cleared a little, Twilight slowly raised her head to look up at her friends - just as Princess Luna came into view beside them.
“Princess Luna?!...wait - I don't understand...Where...am I?” Twilight tensed suddenly.
“Canterlot!”
Pinkie Pie had cheerfully popped into Twilight's vision, her pink face and cotton candy mane momentarily blotting out the sight of her friends.
“Canterlot?...oh no...” Twilight recoiled in panic.
“Wha's wrong hon?”
Applejack's head lowered towards her as Twilight closed her eyes and hung her head, a tear escaping and running down her cheek.
“Princess Celestia is very angry with me...if she knows I'm here, she'll...she'll...”
Twilight froze suddenly, her eyes widening as a soft, feathery blanket of white swallowed her body up in a warm embrace. A familiar, regal voice from somewhere immediately behind Twilight softly finished her sentence.
“...be very pleased to see you again, Twilight Sparkle.”
Twilight's entire body locked up in fear with a petrified “squee!” as the awful realisation suddenly dawned as to exactly what - or rather who – the strangely warm object she was lying against was. The Element of Magic slowly turned her head to find Celestia's face hovering just above her, the Ruler of the Day looking back at her with a worried smile. There was a long pause as Twilight's tear filled eyes stared into Celestia's – and then Twilight was hurriedly bowing down and hiding her face from her mentor, whimpering her apologies as she waited for the metaphorical equivalent of Celestia's golden hooves to trample her into the ground.
“...sorry!...sorry!”
Celestia's wing scooped Twilight up as she hysterically spouted her apologies, pressing the smaller mare's body close against the princess's warm coat. Gentle hooves of gold and white curled round Twilight's neck, drawing her into the princess's heartfelt embrace as she whispered soft reassurances into her pupil's ear.
“Oh Twilight...hush now my little pony...Applejack has told me everything that happened.”
Twilight flinched, the pit of her stomach felt like it had dropped into the very depths of Tartarus.
“You...you know?” Twilight wailed. “I-I'm so sorry Princess! I don't know what I did wrong!”
Twilight's pleas were suddenly muffled as Celestia hugged her student tightly, lowering her head over Twilight's neck as her flowing mane and tail curled round them both. Twilight could feel the princess's powerful magic radiating from her coat and the cocoon of feathers surrounding her, and felt Celestia's horn suddenly touch the tip of her own. Her panic filled thoughts simply vanished, drowned in a golden fog of magical warmth that spread from Celestia and flowed like a current through her body. As the magical trance engulfed her, a distant part of Twilight's mind recalled a legendary spell of peace that it was believed Celestia possessed. It was said that it had been known to stop entire armies from fighting, and for a fleeting moment Twilight felt apprehension at the thought of being the focus of such power. But the thought was soon washed away by the soothing presence of her mentor, and Twilight's body eventually went limp in her teacher's hooves as her anxiety melted away.
“Hush now my faithful student...you are safe, and I am not angry with you my little pony. All your friends are here for you...there is nothing for you to fear.”
The other ponies watched speechlessly, as Celestia patiently comforted Twilight with nuzzles and soft whispers, a tear gleaming in each of the princess's magenta eyes as she leaned down to speak softly in Twilight's ear.
“...you have always been more to me than just my faithful student, Twilight...” Celestia paused and looked over to the royal couple watching nearby. “...Even before you became part of my family.”
“...Princess...” Twilight lifted her head to nose at Celestia's cheek, and found herself drawn into another emotional hug. Celestia's voice lowered to barely above a whisper.
“For a long time Twilight, I have wanted very much for us to become close friends. I watched you grow from the young filly I met that day at my school who wanted to learn everything about magic, into a talented and powerful mare with a heart of pure gold. But one day...I realised something terrible had happened...that the one who's friendship I desired the most feared me, because I was the one pony who you felt you could not afford to fail. It broke my heart Twilight...to know that I was the one who embodied your fear of failure.”
Twilight looked up into Celestia's eyes, unable to speak. Celestia lowered her head down and nosed under Twilight's chin in an appealing gesture.
“Twilight Sparkle...I ask you...not as a Princess or your teacher, but as Celestia... I ask you for another chance to become your friend...Will you accept my friendship?”
A tense silence filled the room, as several ponies held their breath, watching with open mouths to see if Twilight will accept. Twilight was staring at the princess as if Celestia's mane had suddenly turned pink, as if she was hardly daring to believe she wasn't still dreaming.
Several moments passed, the only sounds being the crackle of the fire and the inevitable crash and exclamation of surprise when Pinkie Pie overbalanced and ended up planting her nose in the carpet. Then Twilight rushed forward and buried her face in Celestia's chest.
“I will! I accept your friendship Princess Celestia!”
Both Princess and student embraced each other, Twilight crying tears of relief into Celestia's neck as the Princess emotionally cradled Twilight in her hooves, the weight of years of uncertainty and longing suddenly lifted from both ponies' hearts. Beside them, Rarity was sharing a handkerchief with Applejack and Fluttershy, while Pinkie Pie immediately burst into fountains of joyful tears. Cadence and her husband simply cuddled together, taking in the warm feelings that filled the room.
Hovering above her friends, Rainbow Dash self-consciously wiped away a tear, then hurriedly reasserted herself.
“Darn it! Now you've got ME acting all sappy!”
For what seemed like an eternity, Twilight's world was only the warm fur and loving embrace of her new-found friend. Nothing else seemed to matter to her except the feeling of Celestia's steady pulse beneath her cheek. After a while, she felt the Princess gently guide her back down to lie snuggled against Celestia's barrel between her hooves once more, tucked under the fold of her royal wing. As Twilight lifted her head from Celestia's shoulder she felt her friends drawing in closer, and turned to find Applejack at their head with her hat in her hoof.
“Twilight?...ah wanna apologise...'an behalf of all 'us...for wha' we said. 'Specially mahself...it' were dishonest an wrong of me to say wha' ah did...” Applejack's face flushed as she looked down at her hooves, a tear leaking from one eye.
“But most of 'all, we wanna 'pologise for losin' ah trust in y'all. We had no reason ta doubt y'all like tha', 'specially bein' ah true friend tha' you are.” Applejack hid her muzzle behind her hat, peeping over the brim with misty eyes.
“C-can y'all...ever forgive us?”
A purple hoof pressed against the farm pony's chest as Applejack bowed down, her shame getting the better of her composure. Applejack looked up to see Twilight's gentle smile directed at her and the six stricken faces of Spike and her friends behind her.
“I forgive you Applejack...” Twilight's magic drew Applejack into a hug. “...I forgive all of you.”
“Y'all...forgive us?...” Applejack faltered, but before any more could be said the six Friends of Harmony plus one dragon assistant were hugging together tightly in a big pile beside Celestia, who watched them with a soft smile. The Princess of the Sun raised her head and addressed all the ponies in her calm, regal voice.
“I believe that we have all learnt something about friendship...”
Celestia's gaze turned towards Spike. “Spike? Take a letter please.”
Spike fumbled about behind him for a moment, pulling out a quill and parchment and stood with his quill poised, ready to begin. Celestia waited for a moment, mentally composing the letter before beginning to recite it to the young scribe.
“My dearest Twilight Sparkle,
I have found that friendship is built on two things - faith and trust. But if we lose faith in our friends, we can also lose faith in ourselves. With faith comes trust, and as long as we have faith in our friendship, our true friends will trust us with theirs.
Always your affectionate teacher and friend,
Princess Celestia.”
“ Prin-cess...Cel-est-ia...Got it!” Spike finished the last word with a flourish.
“Spike?” The dragon looked up at Applejack, who had turned to face him. “would ya mind takin' another letter for us?”
Spike blinked in surprise. “Huh? Ok...sure thing. Hold on a sec...” Spike dug about behind his scales to fish out another piece of parchment. “Alright, fire away Applejack.”
“Dear Princess Celestia,
We want to to write to y'all about a lit 'le something we learned about friendship. As y'all know, friendship is built on faith, but just as import 'nt is trust. When we didn't trust Twilight to help solve our quarrelin' she lost her trust in our friendship, and losing all her trust meant she couldn't have faith in herself no more. But we found afterwards we also couldn't trust ourselves to be good friends either. It's import'nt to never break your trust in your friends, 'cause like Rainbow says - if your friends can't trust ya, ya'll lose all trust in yourselves too.
Humbly yours,
Your Loyal Subjects.”
“Spike?” The slightly weak voice of Twilight surprised everyone as Spike furiously scribbled down the last of Applejack's letter, the lavender mare's head emerging from under the shelter of the Princess's wing and looking out at her assistant. Spike furrowed his brow a little.
“Lemme guess...Another letter?”
Twilight silently nodded. Celestia inwardly smirked in amusement as the young dragon muttered irritably under his breath as he tried to retrieve yet another blank parchment from it's hiding place.
“...I just know I'll be getting writer's claw for this...and I'm gonna run out of paper if this keeps up ...”
Spike's mumbling ceased as he readied his quill, the feathered end dancing in mid-air rapidly as Twilight began to dictate her letter.
“Dear Princess Celestia.
I have learned an important lesson about friendship. It can sometimes be too easy to think a friendship is broken. But the truth is, a real friendship is easier to make and much harder to break than most ponies realise...”
Twilight broke off from her narrative briefly to look up at the Princess with a tired but happy smile.
“...Even friendships you don't even know you have. If you have faith and trust in yourself and in your friends, they'll always come through in the end.
Your faithful student and friend,
Twilight Sparkle.”
Celestia smiled back and nuzzled at Twilight as Spike put the finishing touches to all three letters. Holding up the three scrolls the dragon took a deep breath, but stopped himself suddenly as he noticed the slightly questioning looks from some of the assembled ponies.
“Oh...right...”
A slightly pink-faced Spike handed the scrolls over, each suddenly floating up out of his grasp and sailing smoothly to their recipients. Two of them headed past Celestia as she directed them towards a shelf piled with other scrolls, while the third piloted itself smoothly towards Twilight, who tucked it safely under a pillow. Spike shot a dirty look at the Mane Six as their giggles pervaded the embarrassing silence and began to sulk, silently berating himself for his habitual gaffe until Rarity gently nuzzled at him.
“Twilight...” Luna approached and knelt before Twilight, the dark Alicorn lowering her head.
“We...I mean, I... apologise for the misfortunes that befell you tonight. It was my corrupted spell which caused your fears to grow as powerful as they did, and cause the nightmare which so nearly consumed you...I was careless and my mistake caused you so much pain...The Night begs you for your forgiveness...”
“No Princess Luna...” The Princess of the Night winced, but Twilight's hoof lifted up her chin for their eyes to meet.
“Instead...I want to thank you Princess. You helped my friends find me again when I needed them the most... Whatever happened before, you've earned my forgiveness.”
Luna hesitated uncertainly for a moment. “ Twilight...When I came to Ponyville tonight to visit your dreams tonight, it was because I had realised that despite my...past...you had treated me as you would your own friends... And I have been remiss in not showing you more of the same...”
Luna craned her neck forward to nose at Twilight.
“Twilight Sparkle, I would be honoured if thou would accept my friendship too.”
Twilight smiled as she returned the gesture. “I would be honoured to have you as a friend Princess Luna.”
“...You will?” Luna's expression became as bright as her moon on a clear winter's night, a storm of cheers erupting as both Princess and pony embraced each other.
--------------------------
“Well, ah don' know bout' nopony else but ah'm plum-tuckered after all that...”
Applejack took off her hat for a moment as the cheers of her friends died down, mopping at her brow with a hoof. The farm pony then bowed politely to Celestia. “With y'all permission Princess, we'll let y'all an' Twilight get some rest. C'mon everypony, le's go find someplace to rest up for the night.”
Princess Celestia held up a hoof and shook her head with a smile. “That will not be necessary Applejack.”
“Huh?”
Celestia gazed fondly down at them. Even lying as she was beside Twilight, the Alicorn of the Sun seemed a head taller than the ponies before her - but her presence was warm and inviting rather than intimidating.
“While you and your friends may not be actual family Applejack, each and every one of you means as much to both me and Twilight, and I think also to Luna too...” Celestia looked over to her sister, who nodded in agreement. “All of you - and you also Zecora, are most welcome to stay here if you wish. I know myself and Twilight would very much enjoy your company.”
“A-all of us?...” stammered Rainbow Dash.
“Like...family?...” Applejack's mind was spinning, unable to take the Princess's words in.
Celestia nodded regally. “Yes Applejack, you are all a part of my family of friends - just like your five friends are to you - and both I and my family would be honoured if you will stay with us.”
“St...st-stay?...in the...royal...chambers...” Rarity's voice faded away as the fashionista swooned in transports of delight at the thought of a sleepover in the Princess's apartments.
“Oh my...” Fluttershy blushed heavily and tried to hide her face behind her long mane. Pinkie Pie held up a hoof suddenly.
“Hold on a second!”
Everypony looked round at the party pony, who's face had suddenly become dead serious. Reaching into somewhere out of their sight, Pinkie Pie solemnly produced a glass of water. Taking a swig, the pink earth pony proceeded to perform an impressive epic spit-take – which unexpectedly ended in a bout of hiccups. That got a laugh from most of the ponies.
“Yay! SLUM*hic*BER PARTY!” squealed Pinkie Pie, as soon as she got her breath back.
Celestia turned towards her niece. “Cadence? Would you mind seeing that the three little fillies are comfortable?”
Cadence smiled and nodded, rising to her hooves.
“Huh? Wha' three lit'le fillies them be Prin...cess...?
Applejack's voice trailed off suddenly as she turned and noticed the three Cutie Mark Crusaders for the first time, all of whom were already sound asleep in a huddle near Zecora. Rarity and Rainbow Dash looked round as the farm pony's mouth fell open.
“What in the HAY...are those three...doing...Grrrrraahhh!” Steam began venting from Applejack's nostrils as Rarity and Rainbow Dash came up beside her, staring at the little pile of sleeping fillies.
“Sweetie Bell?!” Rarity arched an eyebrow at her younger sister.
“Scootaloo???” ventured Rainbow Dash, staring at her adoptive sister.
“Nnrrrrghhh...!” Applejack's face crumpled up into a scowl and her two friends gave her a cautious look. The cowpony's temper was clearly getting ready to blow on a volcanic scale.
“..AP-!!”
Applejack's cheeks suddenly inflated, a golden hoof unexpectedly plugging her mouth before she could get the rest of her younger sibling's name out. Following the pink limb, Applejack's gaze drifted over to see Princess Cadence regally shaking her head. The farm pony's scowl deepened as she stared daggers at the Alicorn of Love but Cadence was not to be swayed, the Princess communicating her message simply by smiling at Applejack in an understanding way - her eyes pleading for at least a stay of execution.
Applejack wasn't happy, but eventually she relented - her cheeks deflating. As Cadence's hoof was removed the orange Earth pony sighed heavily.
“Alrigh' Princess...y'all win...”
Cadence said nothing, but nuzzled gently at Applejack's cheek as her magic gently levitated cushions and blankets towards the three intrepid adventurers, who remained sound asleep as they were lifted onto the cushions and tucked into the blankets.
Trotting over to where the Crusaders lay, Applejack smiled fondly down at her sister, shaking her head in disapproval.
“Those three lit'le varmits are gonna be in fer a whole heap 'a trouble come the mornin'...”
Applejack looked up as Rarity joined her, the unicorn regarding her sister with a similar expression. Rarity nodded her head.
“Absolutely”
Rainbow Dash appeared beside them, looking down at the snoring Scootaloo and nodding in agreement.
“Definitely.”
All three exchanged fond looks - then as one the three elder sisters lay down together, each snuggling their siblings close and making themselves comfortable on the cushions Cadence had provided for them.
Celestia giggled to herself as she watched the three sisters. Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were making themselves comfortable close by their friends, and Spike was opting to settle down on a cushion near Rarity – the fashionista discreetly pulling his cushion closer to her with her magic as Spike curled himself up, totally oblivious to his change of location. Zecora also prepared to rest, the Zebra finding a discreet corner to meditate while sitting upright in a strange posture. Only Luna remained standing, her gaze directed out of the window at the night sky.
“Sister...it is almost time.”
Celestia nodded. “I know my Sister...I'm coming.”
Celestia's horn flared with power once more, bathing Twilight in the glow of her magic. Twilight looked up at Celestia, her eyes full of nervous uncertainty even as her eyelids began to droop.
“Princess...?”
“It is a spell for a dreamless enchanted sleep Twilight, but don't be afraid - I will return soon and I promise I will be with you when you awake. Rest now my faithful student... “
Twilight smiled and murmured drowsily, dozing contentedly off in the Princess's hooves as the enchantment took hold. As Twilight's peaceful breathing slowed Celestia gently lay the mare down, leaning close to nuzzle at her sleeping pupil and whispering one more time to her new found friend.
“Between the triumph of day, and the glory of the night, there lies the harmony of the Twilight...”
Twilight barely stirred as Celestia recited her verse. It's meaning was only apparent to the Princess, but as she spoke Celestia's eyes were filled with joy. As soon as Twilight was asleep, Celestia carefully rose and passed by the sleeping ponies, following her sister out to the balcony. The moon hung low in the sky, it's face pure and unblemished while above Luna's stars twinkled like gemstones in firelight. Glancing over at her sister, the two rulers of Equestria exchanged a nod before the Ruler of the Dawn spread her wings and flew out into the night towards the clouds, followed by her sibling.