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// Fork in the Road 
// Story: Caught Between Dusk and the Dawn 
// by Dragonaion 
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Vonhoover was just as Whisperquill remembered it, and as she trotted into the thick of the city, more and more of the streets and buildings become familiar. It did, however, get bigger while she was away; by the time she was starting to remember landmarks she felt as if nearly all of her energy had been sapped away. 
She was walking with her head low, her mane barely touching the ground, and with all effort going into lifting her hooves and taking another step. While the lullaby was still playing soothingly in her ears, she was too worn to even hum it and she was focusing on reaching the home that stood in front of her.
The other mares and colts around her were bright and chipper, greeting her and others with smiles that were infectious. Whenever they waved or said ‘hello’ to the tired mare, she would always bring her head up and return their delightful, encouraging smiles with a wave in reply. When they left though, she would try to keep her head up for as long as possible only to let it wilt again. 
“Agh, this is agony…” She mumbled, coming beside a tall tree and sitting beside it with her saddlebags slipping off her back. Leaning against the reassuring trunk and basking in the shade, Whisper closed her eyes for a brief moment and took a deep breath. She could feel her inner well of energy still emptying, but while it was pouring out of her before it was now slowed to droplets.
She raised her head and opened her eyes, easing herself down to the grass and laying comfortably down while she saw little fillies and colts running around playing some sort of game. She watched as the sun played alongside them, the rays reaching and tagging them one by one as they dashed around the few trees and moved around the buildings. They were getting more energy from the sun, she knew, but it was still amazing to watch.
“I wonder what that’s like. Getting energy rather than losing it, I mean.” She whispered idly, looking from the children to the saddlebags she had dismissed behind her. She let her magic flow around them, covering them in the familiar, shimmering blue aura, and she moved them beside her.
“Is that you, Whisper? What are you doing here? Talking to yourself, of all things?”
The unicorn raised her head- nearly dropping her bags- and she looked into the bright, blue eyes of a familiar, yellow Earth Pony. She had a woven basket in front of her, and when Whisperquill looked up at her, a smile slowly grew.
“Mom!” Whisper grinned, quickly whisking her saddlebags aside to stand and rubbing her muzzle against her neck. “I was just looking for you!”
“Here I’d thought you’d stay with your father!” Sunglimmer said as she rubbed her muzzle in return and stepped back a little, looking her up and down. “You’ve grown up so much since you left! I’m surprised that you kept your mane and tail color, though.” She said as she brushed the unicorn’s mane playfully.
Whisperquill’s ears dropped slowly as she gave a meek chuckle, her spell on her bags holding steady as she returned them to her back. That was one thing her mother was always good at; reminding her of memories that weighed more on her heart than the bags on her back.
“Of course I’d keep them black, mom.” She replied as she looked at her mother patiently, grinning still although her ears were still down. “Blond just didn’t suit me. Anyway, I was heading to my new home and I wanted to come by and see how you were doing.”
“’New home?’” The mare tilted her head to the side curiously. “Wow, so soon? Where?”
“Um,” Whisperqull said gently as she levitated the brown basket off the ground and looked at Sunglimmer apologetically, “Would you mind if we headed home first? The sun’s been wilting me slowly and it’s been horrible. I’ll tell you all about it on the way, though.”
“Oh, sure.” The mare nodded, trotting beside her daughter and reaching to take the basket into her mouth, which Whisper allowed and let her magic fade. Sunglimmer looked at her daughter questioningly, and Whisperquill winced a little when they emerged from the shade, although she still had her smile.
“I wanted to continue writing,” she started, ignoring that weighing feeling in both her heart and hooves, “and I figured the closer I was to Canterlot the better, for publishing and all. I’ve already got a home there, like I said,” she said quickly, raising a hoof and pointing it at Sunglimmer’s face with a jesting smile before moving back beside her, “and everything’s in order.
“Well,” she said with a chuckle and perking her ears, “everything will be once I start writing. I already have a piece that’s really close to being finished though.”
Sunglimmer’s ears perked as she listened and she gave a little nod, looking at her daughter curiously before slowly stepping up to the front door, looking at it thoughtfully. Whisper knew that look well, and she let out a short sigh and used her magic to turn the knob just as her mother was about to set down the basket. She nodded in thanks, and after she stepped in Whisperquill followed suit and closed the door behind her.
Coolness overwhelmed the unicorn, and she couldn’t hide a sigh of relief as she levitated her saddlebags and started to put them beside the door, but found there wasn’t any room. The home was small and modest, but when Whisperquill looked around for the first time in a long while she found pockets of clutter exactly where they’d been in her youth. She found a table near the small staircase that had an empty spot, though, and set her bags there.
“Well, that’s great.” The Earth pony said with Whisper in tow, having moved into the kitchen and set her basket on the counter. There was a lingering note at the end of it though, and Whisper raised an eyebrow as she tilted her head and sidled beside her mother. “And I’m happy for you. But…”
There was that word.
“’But’…?” Whisper prodded, an ear going lopsided as she kept her eyebrow raised.
“But I would have thought you would do something… different-” She struggled for the word for a moment and glanced at Whisperquill’s flank, “-with your special talent.”
The unicorn followed her mother’s eyes to her cutie mark; a gray and black quill etching a smooth, curled line across her flank. She had received her mark not only before the other fillies and colts in her class, but she had received it in her first year when she had been given her first writing assignment. Writing came as easily as walking and breathing, and even when she was young she knew what made her happy.
“What do you mean, mom?” Whisper asked as the one standing ear dropped and she looked at the yellow mare quizzically. “My special talent is understanding written words- what do you expect me to do with it?” That was only part of it, but it was the most relevant to a career, and she had to use what tools she had to prove her point.
“But that’s only part of it.” Sunglimmer said with slight bitterness in her tone, looking at her daughter with the same raised eyebrow. “Writing speeches or even singing could earn you a better life than just writing pony’s tales. Sweetie, you know that I say this out of love,” the mare turned towards her and put a hoof on Whisper’s shoulder, all bitterness leaving and tenderness taking its place, “and you know that I worry about you. What did your father say?”
She’s expecting me to say that he thought the same thing. The unicorn realized, and her head lowered a little while her eyes stayed on her mother’s.
“He said he was worried,” she answered gently, “but encouraged me. He helped me double check I had everything.”
“See? We’re both just worried, and this is what happens when you grow up so fast on us.” She said, trying to smile and after a quick muzzle rub she turned back to the basket and carefully pulled out a few carrots and apples from a bed of hay. “If you like, your room is still upstairs and you can stay for as long as you want. I haven’t touched it, since I didn’t know when you’d be coming back.”
Whisperquill’s ears didn’t come back up, and while her mother’s attention was elsewhere she looked back at her cutie mark and let out a quiet sigh.
“Thanks mom,” she said softly, “I appreciate it, but I won’t be staying long; just until the sun goes down. There’s a train going to Ponyville that runs at night, so I’ll be taking that. Can’t let dust settle before I’ve moved in, you know.”
Sunglimmer paused suddenly, and she turned to the unicorn with her eyes practically sparkling.
“Wait, you’re moving to Ponyville? That’s amazing! You may make it in time to see Princess Celestia and the Summer Sun Celebration!” The Earth pony turned to face Whisper as she turned to walk up the stairs with her saddlebags in her mouth. “You wouldn’t mind if I came along?”
Whisperquill raised an eyebrow and set her bags down on the stairs, looking at her mother with her head tilted.
“Wait, the Summer Sun Celebration? You’ve gone to those before, but only when they’re hosted here. I don’t remember you traveling for one.”
“Oh, but this one is special!” The mare pressed, trotting to the unicorn’s side with her eyes wide and a smile across her muzzle. “This is the one-thousandth year the Princess has raised the sun, and so it’s more important than all of the other ones!”
Whisperquill paused, looking to her saddlebags with her eyes narrowed.
One-thousandth year… Why is that so important…? Her eyes suddenly flared open and she levitated her bags off the stair and hurried to her room.
“Wow, yeah, thanks for letting me know, I’m going to go take a nap before I travel! I’ll let you know before I leave!” She said hurriedly without looking back, and before Sunglimmer could say anything Whisperquill already had the door closed.
She set her saddlebag on her small desk hurriedly before pacing about the room, her head low enough that the sun didn’t sting her eyes when it peaked through the open curtains.
I have to talk to dad about this! I didn’t know the Princess’ time would be so soon!
“I mean, I knew- of course- I just didn’t keep track of the years.” She amended with a short sigh, her tail curling back and forth as she quickened her pace back and forth across the room.  “And, of course, I bet he already knows this, but he didn’t mention it to me.”
When the unicorn raised her head with a long sigh the sunlight shined right in her eyes, and she was forced to squint until she wobbled to the window and forced the curtains closed. She wouldn’t be able to talk to him until nightfall anyway, and now she just had to bide her time.
While her magic focused on opening her saddlebag and bringing out a large metal container, covered ink wells, and a few quills to the surface of the desk, Whisper’s thoughts were entirely elsewhere. She knew she had a habit of thinking aloud, so she hushed her voice to a mere whisper as she contemplated.
“If the Princess does escape-” she said as she absent-mindedly popped the lid on the inkwell and levitated three thick rolls of parchment onto the desk, “-what will we do? The Children-” Dad. “-will definitely side with her and fight for her right on the throne. I suppose Celestia could use the Elements of Harmony as she had done before,” she shrugged, “but she’s not heartless enough to enjoy beating up her sister. I wonder if she can even use them anymore, since it’s been so long.”
She opened one of the smaller scrolls and opened one of the wells, letting the back of the scroll tumble until it hit the wall as she raised her quill. After she dipped it in the ink, she used her hooves to keep the parchment taut and even, and with her magic sent the quill scribbling madly back and forth across the parchment. She knew the story well enough that while she was staring at the pages and lifting more parchment with her hooves when she needed to, her thoughts were still buzzing about Nightmare Moon. Moonshade would certainly fight with her against Princess Celestia, but what about Sunglimmer and the rest of Equestria?
“One mother has more Children than the other…”