Chapter 5
"The Forgiveness of Friends"
When Twilight left Shining Armor's house the night after the invasion, she felt like the luckiest pony in Equestria having been not only reinstated as her brother's Best Mare, but also her former foal sitter and future sister in law's Mare of Honor. It was a big responsibility, but it was like Shining Armor had said, the wedding would not take place without Twilight there and that was the biggest mistake that they all had made. When Twilight returned to her former home, she could see her parents and her assistant, Spike standing right outside the door. They were all nervous over how Twilight's meeting with Shining Armor and Cadence went, but judging from the enormous smile they saw on Twilight's face, they could all see that it went well.
"So, how did it go, Twilight?" asked Night Light, hugging his daughter. "Is everything all right between you and Shining Armor?"
"More than all right, dad," replied Twilight hapily. "I'm not only his Best Mare again, but I am now Cadence's Mare of Honor. Isn't that exciting?"
Twilight let off an enormous squeal of delight to show her happiness to her parents. Her mother, Twilight Velvet, couldn't be more proud of her daughter's two appointments for her own son's wedding and with happy tears forming in her eyes, went over to hug her daughter.
"Twilight, we are so proud of you," she said. "We knew that your brother would come around eventually and look at what happened. You are back in the wedding where you belong."
Just then, Spike burped up a scroll from Princess Celestia and Twilight read it. After skimming through the note, she turned to her parents.
"It's my friends," she said to her parents. "They want to show me something up in the bridal suite."
"Well, we'd better get going," said Spike and she hugged her parents goodbye and soon followed her baby dragon assistant back to the bridal suite where Twilight's friends were waiting.
Meanwhile, Rarity was putting the finishing touches on what was to be the dress Twilight would wear in the wedding as both Best Mare and Mare of Honor. Looking out a window, Rainbow Dash could see that Twilight was coming at a rapid pace towards the suite.
"Twilight's coming and she looks excited," said Rainbow Dash excitedly. "Boy, is she going to be surprised for what we got for her."
"I can't wait to see the look on her face when we give her what we got here," exclaimed Pinkie Pie, trying to maintain her excitement. "She's going to love it!"
"Here she comes, y'all," said Applejack and stepped back from the door and it opened to reveal Spike and Twilight entering. "Time for the magic to begin!"
"I got your message, girls," said Twilight. "Now, what is it you want to-."
Twilight stopped dead in her tracks and gasped mid-sentence to see what looked to be a magenta dress with a star broach in the front on a dress form with a string of pearls and a cluster of flowers on its head. Looking at the dress, Twilight could not help but shed a few tears of happiness upon looking at it.
"We thought that a Best Mare and Mare of Honor needed to look the part," said Rarity, presenting the dress to Twilight. "So, we all worked together to make this for you, Twilight. What do you think of it?"
Twilight soon remembered that Fluttershy had a freaky knowledge of sewing because she also helped her and the others finish Rarity's Gala Dress as a way of apologizing to Rarity for them nearly ruining her fashion career when they wanted her to change their Gala dresses from elegant and beautiful to ugly and repulsive. Now, Twilight could see that her friends were returning the favor.
"I, I don't know what to say," stuttered Twilight, at a loss for words as she turned her attention from the dress and towards her friends. "This is amazing, I love it! Aw, you girls didn't have to do this."
"We had to Twi," said Applejack, taking off her stinson hat. "We knew better than to abandon you like that when you tried to warn us about the fake princess. We all feel really bad for what we did and we all wanted to make all up to you in any way we can."
"We're so super sorry," said Pinkie Pie remorsefully. "I wanted to throw an apologizing party for you when we returned to Ponyville, but I was talked out of it."
"Twilight," added Rainbow Dash, placing a hoof on her shoulder. "You are the best friend a pony could ever ask for. You were always there for us when we needed you and if it weren't for you, then maybe the wedding we have been so excited about would not have happened the way any of us would have wanted it to be."
"We could not imagine anypony else filling in your shoes," said Applejack, placing her hat back on her head. "Who else besides you Twilight could be both Best Mare and Mare of Honor at the same time at a wedding as big as this?"
Twilight could hardly believe what she was hearing as it seemed that while she knew that they were fooled by Chrysalis, she knew that her friends were deeply sorry for what they did to her at the rehearsal and that they would not let one little thing like that change how they felt about her.
"I'm so touched by all of you," said Twilight, wiping away a tear and overcome with emotion once again. "First you all make me a dress to wear in the wedding and now this? I thought I said to you all that you were all fooled."
"I wouldn't say we were fooled," said Rarity. "More of being bad friends, you might say darling."
"That's right," added Fluttershy. "We were all being very bad friends and that was a mistake we all wish we could take back. But, we are all glad you were there for us when we needed you."
"We all had the honor and privilege of working with someone as wonderful and as caring as Princess Cadence," said Applejack who then got a small glare from Rarity and chuckled slightly. "The real one that is, of course."
"Indeed so," giggled Pinkie Pie, remembering the chicken dance they did while preparing for the wedding reception. "Why she even does the chicken dance so well and she is so fun to be around."
"I'd bet you are so lucky to have her in your life for so long, Twilight," said Rarity, shedding a happy tear away just like her friend. "Your brother chose a beautiful mare to spend the rest of his life with."
"Well, I could only say that this is the beginning of a new chapter for all of us," said Twilight. "It seems that everything that has happened has only made our relationship and bond stronger than ever."
"Absolutely, Twilight," replied Applejack as she and the others advanced towards her. "It had to just take a little time for that to happen. Come here, y'all."
The five mares and Spike gathered around Twilight and they all hugged around their friend in a tight embrace.
"We love you, Twilight," said Fluttershy, who became the latest to be overcome with emotion.
"I love you too, girls," cried Twilight and they all stayed in that embrace for a good long while as from a tower just above the bridal suite, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna looked on with happiness in their eyes, for they knew that Twilight had once again saved Canterlot and all of Equestria from grave danger. However, there was something else that Celestia was thinking about and as they walked back inside, Luna could not help but wonder what was troubling her sister.
"Sister, I cannot help but wonder," said Luna, as they walked back into the throne room. "Ever since the Changelings were defeated, you've been acting differently than your normal self. Maybe it is because your subjects are now despising you for failing to protect them."
"That doesn't matter, Luna," replied Celestia, trying to hide her feelings. "What does matter is that Cadence is back with those she loves and that Twilight is back in the wedding where she belongs."
But the Princess of the Night could still see that her sister was hiding something and she was determined that Celestia tell her the truth. They walked past the stained glass windows of Twilight and her friends defeating Discord and Luna's alter ego, Nightmare Moon. Luna looked back at her sister and could see that she needed to come clean.
"Sister, you are hiding something from me and I need you to tell me what it is," demanded Luna, her voice slightly raising and Celestia walked back to her throne and sat down on it. The events of recent had weighed heavily on her mind and knew that Twilight's time would soon come.
"Luna, Twilight has already proven to me that she will soon be ready to become one of us," explained Celestia. "She still needs to learn more about the magic of friendship, but her time will soon come. She trusted her instincts and succeeded whereas I failed."
Luna was shocked and amazed by what her sister was saying and could see the pain of her actions deep in her eyes. Celestia's actions may had ruined her reputation in the eyes of some of her subjects, but it didn't seem that important to her.
"Ever since I became her teacher and mentor," continued Celestia. "I have always sense that Twilight would one day be one of us. Unlike Sunset Shimmer, she is dedicated to learning the magic of friendship and soon she will spread her magic of friendship throughout all of Equestria as a princess. But, for now, she needs time."
Luna was shocked and wondered just exactly if her sister was telling the truth about what was to come in the near future. But, despite everything she had said to Luna, Princess Celestia knew that she herself would have to face Twilight next and somewhere in her mind, she knew that it was not going to be easy in any way.
But in her mind, she was going to preside over her niece's wedding with a clear conscience and that she knew that Twilight learned another lesson on friendship; something of very deep importance, and it would only be a matter of time before that lesson's revelation was revealed.