And then, it happened.
Twilight's mane, having been completely flat while she was out, stood on end, from top to bottom, and her tail flared straight out. They couldn't see it yet, but the magic had triggered her eyes to glow white with intensity. They could, however, see her mane begin to singe. Luna and Trixie, having never seen this from her before, started to get scared, but Trixie just pulled Twilight closer, disregarding the small burns on her hooves. Then, her fur changed from lavender to white as her mane combusted into raging fire, instantly scorching Trixie's hooves badly. Trixie still refused to break the contact of their horns, believing beyond any doubt that she was fueling her love's return.
Twilight's mind was in chaos. One second it was sure she was in her library, the next, she wasn't even in Equestria. The only comfort her mind could embrace was that the piece of Trixie's mind that had travelled to be with her was staying with her to return. Their minds met as one, and this Twilight finally realized something very important. "Trixie...?!" She looked up to the azure pony before her. Their eyes met with understanding, but Trixie still asked. "Yes, my little Sparkle?" Twilight blushed at this, and as they neared their destination, leaned close to whisper those words with the power to change worlds.
"I love you, Trixie."
At that moment, their minds crashed back into their bodies, Twilight's eyes still glowing as they flashed open. She looked up at Trixie, holding her with their horns touching, Trixie still channeling magic, eyes closed to bear what the embrace was costing her. She cried silently as the pain became greater and greater still, blistering her. However, that continued channel of magic made all the difference.
The moment her mind had separated from her body in the tunnel, all her memories were thrown to the galaxies. She would never again regain all of them. If she were lucky, some would bounce into her as time went on, but as of now, nothing existed in her head. Except for one thing. Her love for Trixie shined, acknowledged, all through her. All she knew was her time in that distant land of Ponyville, and that she loved Trixie, the mare holding her tightly to her chest, horns touching, even though she was on fire...on fire...
She screamed, as her memory loss meant she had no idea what was going on with her being on fire. She rolled out of Trixie's arms and tried to put the fire out by rolling on the ground. But instead of being put out, it grew stronger as she became more emotional. Trixie opened her eyes and immediately tried to go over to Twilight, but was stopped by Luna as Celestia walked over to her student, the only one that knew what was going on.
"Calm down, Twilight. You can put that out anytime you like, just calm down." She had leaned over the combusted filly and was whispering in her ear. However, this had an unintended effect. "Who the buck are you?!" Twilight screamed again and climbed out from under Celestia, running flat out of the room. Little wet droplets hit the floor as she broke into silent tears. Trixie pushed Luna's hoof down and dashed after her, worried, and Celestia, by her own name, was shocked to silence by what she had just witnessed. She found her voice after a minnute, but only to repeat what the terrified lavender pony had said. "Who...am I?"
Twilight ran all the way out the front doors of the castle, terrified of the terribly large, white pony that had stood over her. She finally came to a stop after having ran to the edge of Canterlot. The only reason she stopped was she had no other option. She was scared, no, terrified, of everypony and everything. Including her surroundings. She had no idea where she was. Luckily for the residents of Canterlot, she had, despite the shock of the strange pony, begun to calm down, so her mane was no longer on fire, and her fur had turned to normal. Her eyes, were they normal, would've been light brown, flecked with purple specks due to the lack of magic, but they were so bugged out, all you could see was the pupil. She heard a voice in the crowd. The one voice she knew, besides her own. And, for this, she was more happy than she could express.
"Twilight?! Where did you go??" Trixie had chased her all the way across Canterlot, and almost ran straight off the edge of Canterlot if she hadn't seen the lavender pony, thank Celestia for lavender, sitting at the edge. She skidded to a stop at the shockingly quick change of appearance. Her mane, despite the intense conflagration it had been mere minutes before, was unharmed, a full, black streak down her back, dotted with lighter purple. She stared over the landscape, the picture of far-away thinking. Trixie calmly pulled Twilight away from the edge and sat, pulling her close to her as she stroked her mane. "What happened back there, Twilight? I was so shocked..."
It was a very close thing. The intense feeling of fright she had felt when Twilight bolted out of the room had almost undone all her progress in releasing herself from the Great and Powerful mentality. Twilight shuddered, nuzzling Trixie's chest as they sat there. "I-I don't know...I don't know anything." The realization dawned on Twilight. "I don't know anything. I-I..." She looked up at this point, her fully blacked-out eyes staring into Trixie's. "I don't have any memories at all from before today. All I know is you." Strangely enough, Twilight, now that she knew about it, was strangely content with this. All she knew was love. Trixie realized this as well, and sighed. "Well, that could be a good thing. I promise...from this day forth, I, Trixie, will try to be there for you always, and be all you ever need. That way, you don't need anything else." She stroked Twilight's mane for a while, enjoying this embrace.
Twilight smiled, relieved now. "Everything is okay, then. Come on, Trixie, take me home...wherever that may be, please." She roughly knew her house due to that being where most of her time was spent in the other world, but she had not a clue how to get there. Trixie, however, was happy to do anything to please her marefriend. At least, she hoped their relationship had evolved to that stage. "Right this way, my little Sparkle..." She had put the little unicorn on her feet and was leading her through the crowd to the train station. She opted to pay for the train tickets, happily doing so for her Twilight.
Through the entire train ride, she thought of nothing but the beautiful pony in the seat next to her. She was absent-mindedly stroking her mane as she slept, worn out from the intense magic use over the last couple days. Between the Ursa Minor, which Twilight had forgotten, then the experimental spell that she had also forgotten, and the intense burst of magic that she emitted while she was transformed, Twilight was running on no magic, just like after the Ursa. From the reports that Trixie had received, it had been a very slow recovery. Well, she decided, until she was recovered, she wouldn't leave her side. Maybe she could even help, though she didn't see how.
She blushed happily like a filly having their first crush talking to them, thinking of all the happiness she would provide to Twilight, or atleast she hoped. The one thing she neglected to think about, besides everything else that wasn't important, were Twilight's friends. However, luckily for all involved, Twilight was still asleep when the train pulled into Ponyville Station. The loving mare declined to wake her up, and instead simply levitated her with magic as she walked off the train, hat, cape, and all.
She was immediately surrounded by five ponies. Two pegasi, one blue, one yellow, hovered over her. Two earth ponies, one pink, one orange, stared her down on each side. Directly in front stood a unicorn, pearlescent white. The blue pegasus spoke first, always headstrong. "What have you done to Twilight?!" she asked, pointing an accusing hoof at Trixie. She simply shook her head. "I saved her life. Or, rather, as much of it as I could." The orange one spoke up next. "What the hay is that sappos'ta mean? As much of it as you could?" Trixie was very calm about it as she lowered Twilight to the ground beside her. "I brought her back from whatever dimension her mind had been thrown to. It was mostly intact, except for one thing. Her memory was totally destroyed or lost in the cosmos as she was flung to her destination."
All five ponies gasped. "A-are you sure of this?" the yellow pegasus asked. "Yes, I'm positive. If she didn't recognize such a pony as Princess Celestia herself, and she didn't, then she doesn't know anypony." Trixie said solemnly, realizing this would be hard for any true friend anywhere to accept. All five ponies looked at Twilight for the briefest of instants, and Trixie moved ever so slightly, causing them to turn away sadly. Everypony realized how much effort Trixie was making to be a normal pony and not act all high and mighty, so they all presumed to believe her. "So...Twilight...doesn't remember...any of us?" the pink earth pony sobbed.
Everypony there was crying, except Trixie and Twilight, who was asleep. Trixie didn't cry because only she could see the bright side of things. That Twilight, even without her memories, was hers to love and cherish, was more than she could contain, were it not for the severity of the situation. Five somber ponies being brought to tears by her happiness was not what she had wanted. However, Trixie thought, they would've only gotten in the way of her time with Twilight, and thus, it was better they were removed in this manner.
She didn't understand how she could be so callous in reference to Twilight's best and most true friends, but her only thoughts were of the lavender filly herself, and she didn't want her to have to be away from her more than necessary. She sighed, staring each pony surrounding her dead-on, her eyes speaking more to them than she could express with words. They saw everything, her love, her protectiveness, her...humility? They blinked a few times and looked again, but there it was. She had left her haughtiness behind entirely, only wishing for one pony's happiness. She would do anything to keep Twilight happy.
Trixie grew weary of everything, and only wished to fulfill her promise to her beloved mare. "If you'd excuse me, please, Twilight's one request was to go home, with me at her side." With that, she walked past the five distraught ponies, lifting Twilight with magic again, and trotted with purpose through Ponyville all the way to the library Twilight called home. Trixie walked in, still towing Twilight, and went straight up to her room. Spike had gone to stay with Rarity while Twilight was gone, so there was nopony to bother them as Trixie, humbled by her love, laid on the floor beside Twilight's bed and fell asleep as well.
Her dreams were of the two of them, engaged to be married, sitting together in the park. She stroked Twilight's beautiful mane, causing her to shiver, as she read. She leaned over and whispered in her ear, "Read it aloud to me, my little Sparkle?" Of course, Twilight would comply with Trixie's wishes, and started reading the section aloud. She didn't care much for the particular reading material, simply wishing to hear her voice.
As the voice washed over her, she laid her head against Twilight's side, snuggling close with glee. She mumbled softly, almost inaudibly, "I love you, Twilight." And then she blushed as her own mane was stroked gently, then she was pulled closer as Twilight continued to read, the one thing from her old life she still knew. It brought both of them joy, Twilight because it was enjoyable, and Trixie...well, because Twilight was happy.