I leaned back on my couch as I finish another day working to rebuild relations between Sionnach and Equestria. I look down at my enlarged stomach and bring a paw down to rub it while I wonder how much longer I have left. After Twilight found out that I was pregnant there was nothing keeping her out of the Sionnach library to study up on it. I was now currently in my seventh month and from what Twilight found I had anywhere from one to five months left to go. She was annoyed at not being able to provide an exact timeframe, but there were many variables that were still unknown and no research was really done into the fact.
Keeping Twilight from going overboard on the research was relatively easy since distracting her with the books in the castle library worked well enough. In fact organizing everything in there took longer than expected as the librarians had to constantly chase her out when she got distracted by a title that interested her.
“I’m just glad that I was able to create a portal from here to the castle so I don’t have to walk so far. I wonder what ever happened to that cloud that I left here when I left to town centuries ago. I could really use it when my paws start hurting from walking all over the place.” I was starting to doze off for a short nap when I heard someone beating on my front door. I sighed and was about to get up to answer it when I noticed Oraiste leaving my study heading towards the door.
Right, I forgot that she was back here organizing my schedule for the next few days. At least I’ve been able to cut things down so that all my time isn’t taken up. I’m hoping that I can eventually turn everything over except for the biggest problems to the council. Really until we get our numbers up again I’m better off doing what I can to improve our image with the neighboring kingdoms. I heard the door open and some frantic words being exchanged before Oraiste came rushing back into the room. And I’m guessing this is the end of my rest period.
I watch as Oraiste comes back escorting one of the diamond dog guards from the Everfree Castle. He looks to have been running most of the way judging from the layer of sweat on him as well as his troubles at catching his breath. “Princess! *gasp* Dragon in the mountain! *wheeze* Heading this way!” I sigh as I get up and prepare to deal with this latest emergency when something occurs to me.
“Guard, do you happen to know what colors the dragon is?” The diamond dog had finally caught his breath by now and looked at me strangely.
“The report said purple and green, but why does it matter princess?” I just smile as I shake my head since I know exactly who it is and where the dragon is going.
“I think I know who that dragon is then. Head back and inform the guards and council that there is no problem and that no aggressive actions are to be taken against this dragon. We wouldn’t want to anger Princess Twilight by injuring one of the members of her family.” The two look at me like I’m crazy as I make my way out of the manor and head towards Twilight’s place.
I almost regret my decision to take off towards the castle so late in the day as my legs were sore by the time I arrived. Seeing Twilight hugging a dragon that was a good deal larger than her took my mind off the pain as I realize that my guess was correct. “Well, well. Look who has grown so much over the centuries and is flying around everywhere. How are you doing there, Spike?”
The dragon’s head swivels around to look at me and his jaw drops at the sight of me. I take a moment to see how he’s grown over the year and am a bit impressed. His wings are like a larger version of the kind that thestrals have and look to be able to spread far enough to encompass his entire body. His body had also elongated over the years and it looks as if he would be more comfortable walking on all fours now even though he could still stand upright like he used to. Looking between him and Twilight I almost laugh as Twilight could ride on his back like he used to do with her in the past. My observations were interrupted as my mission was filled with green as Spike grabbed me up in a hug.
“Flarenza! I just knew that you weren’t dead. Anyone that can take on an army of zombies would never just die without word of it making it back here.” I struggle against his tight grip and do what I can to protect my stomach from his squeezing. As I feel myself getting short of breath I look at Twilight who was laughing at my predicament though she soon moves to help me.
“All right Spike; put the pregnant princess down before you hurt her. You know you aren’t as small as you used to be you know.” Spike looks over at Twilight before he holds me away from him to get a better look at me.
“Whoa! How did this happen to you?” He sets me back down again as I look over at Twilight and we roll our eyes at each other.
“I’m pretty sure twilight already taught you how something like this would happen, or at the least given you a book on it by now.” Spike looks between the two of us as he tries to think of what I was talking about before a red tinge grew on his scale.
“Oh right. I wouldn’t have figured you to have found someone to do something like that with.” I glare at him as he says that and swat him across the snout with a tail. He jerks his head back as he digs himself even deeper. “What? You’re always off on your own and it’s not like you were one for romantic things.” Twilight flies up behind Spike and slaps him in the back of the head with a wing.
“Spike, just stop talking. Remember what happened last time you started saying things like that.” I raise an eyebrow at this as I don’t remember anything like that happening. It seems there were some more embarrassing stories out there that I hadn’t heard of yet. I sigh as I just shake my head at the dragon.
“How about we go somewhere to talk so that we can catch him up on what’s happened before he says something else that he’ll regret. Besides, I really need a place to sit down for a while before I collapse. This extra weight isn’t that easy on my paws you know.” The two look at each other before turning to me and nodding before leading the way into the library. I wonder how Spike is going to enter the tree library when he starts shrinking down while being surrounded by a magenta glow. I just shake my head as I follow them inside to catch Spike up on the news he had missed.
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“And this is probably the most awesome thing invented while you were gone. The Television!” I look over at Twilight who just rolls her eyes at Spike’s antics. After explaining everything to him he had taken it upon himself to show me around Twilight’s castle and let me know what I missed over the centuries. “It’s just too bad that the war has been the only thing shown on it in a long while. It used to show some great shows and music before that started.”
I didn’t have to pretend to be interested as some of the things were rather interesting in their own ways. After seeing some of the things that the ponies had created over the years I was rather confused over the mix of technology and magic that they used. The television from what I could tell was purely magic; a mixture of scrying and image sending spells using crystals, while much of the industry was using dirtier technologies. I could see that the damage from the previously mentioned civil war did more damage than I’d heard.
Currently the television was showing the state of the war with Luna leading a group into what looked to be somewhere near Appleloosa. Whatever they are using to record the images is a good distance away, but I believe I spot a few buffalo in the distance in some kind of prison camp and it doesn’t look good. I shiver as they get closer and things start getting blurred out but I can tell that things aren’t pretty out there.
“Please turn it off Spike.” I look over at Twilight when she says this and notice that she seems to be close to tears right now. Spike sees how the images are affecting her and quickly shuts it off. “I can’t stand seeing all the horrible things that they did to the country during the war. So many were lost that only wanted to live their lives in peace.”
Seeing that Twilight was being hurt by what she saw both Spike and I moved to comfort her. I knew some of what she was feeling, and only now did I realize that her overworking must have been so that she could occupy her mind so she didn’t have to think on it as well as to help how she could. Now that things were finally turning around she couldn’t use it as an excuse and with the presence of two of her closest friends she finally could let it all out.
I lose track of how long we sat there comforting the purple princess but by the time she had fallen asleep the sky had fallen dark. I help Spike put her to bed for the night and once we left her room I turned towards him. “Think you can give me a lift home? I’m not sure if I could make it on my own and I’m pretty sure you owe me at least one for all the years I helped carry you around.”
Spike pauses for a moment before he nods and lowers himself to the ground for me. “While I don’t do this for just anyone, I think I can make an exception for the pregnant lady.” I just roll my eyes as he tries to sound like a gentledrake as he says this. As soon as I climb onto his back and make myself comfortable we are soon off towards the manor on the outskirts of town.
I look up at the back of his head as he plods along towards my home and think about Twilight’s reaction. I wasn’t sure what to make of it as this was the first time I’d seen her break down like this, but I had only been back a few months now. Even then there was a lot of time where we were each busy with our own separate duties. I then remembered what happened when I showed her to the monuments built by Discord and sigh. “So how often does that happen with Twilight?”
Spike turns his head to look back at me before he shakes it and sighs. “It happens much more often than I would like. Twilight never really got used to seeing others dying around her while she lived on. She tried making friends after the loss of her first ones, but eventually she gave up trying to make more. From her letters to me it sounds like she has gotten better since you returned, but I don’t know what will happen when you or I eventually die as well.”
I wince when I hear that she had stopped making friends since it really didn’t fit her. Remembering her student I realized that there still was a bit of her yearning for some kind of companionship or else she wouldn’t have taken on a student like that. As for her other issue I do have something that may help her later. “I really don’t think she is going to have much of a choice about avoiding making friends for a little while. Do you happen to know any of the ponies currently living in Ponyville right now, more specifically a rather hyperactive pegasus that lives at Sugarcube Corner?”
Spike looks back at me for a moment before his eyes widen in realization as I nod to him. “Yeah, I don’t think Surprise is going to give her much of a choice about making some new friends. If she hears about how sad Twilight has been and how she doesn’t have many friends she’ll go out of her way to change all that. If I didn’t know how badly it would turn out I’d be one of the first to say that their needs to be some research done on the Pie family.”
Spike chuckles as I say this before shaking his head again. “Oh yeah, that would really be a bad idea. I still remember how badly it turned out for Twilight when she tried to study Pinkie’s Pinkie Sense. I still have the notes from then as one of the few examples of her failing at any kind of research. If Surprise is anything like Pinkie then she definitely will take Twilight’s mind off of things for a while, at least until she passes on as well.”
Before the mood can go downwards to far I continue to address his other issue about Twilight. “As for her losing us though, while I’m not really sure how long dragons can live but I’ve found out that my kind varies on how old they can grow. A kitsune that never gets their second tail often doesn’t reach a hundred, while a six tail can live for thousands of years.” I pause for a moment and let out a sigh as the weight of what I am about to say hits me. “Things change once one gains their seventh tail though. It’s so rare that it is akin to the alicorn ascension in that so few get that far and they are just as hard to injure. They are so rare that it is unknown how long they live since the few record cases have always reached nine tails.”
I can hear Spike sighing after I say this and can almost feel his mood swing upwards from the feeling of his strides. “That’s actually great news. Twilight needs someone that she can speak with that knows her extremely well. It’s just not the same with the other princesses as they weren’t there with her and her friends all the time. Selene might have been in Ponyville for a good part of it all, but she spent more time with you and the Cutie Mark Crusaders than with Twilight.”
Soon enough we arrived at the door to my home to find Oraiste waiting for me. She looked a bit nervous at seeing Spike approaching but she didn’t do anything rash when she noticed me on his back. “Thanks for the lift back Spike; it’ll be nice when I can get around on my own again without the extra weight throwing me off. Where are you staying while you are back in town anyways?”
Spike points off along the edge of the Everfree somewhere towards the other entrance into the forest. “There’s a mountain on the edge of the Everfree that used to belong to a red dragon until Fluttershy chased him off. Once I got my sweet wings I took it for my own and have used it ever since.” Remembering hearing about that incident myself I figure it would be a good place for him since it wasn’t in use and it is relatively close to town.
“Well that’s good to know. I’d better make sure the guards and my council knows about it so there isn’t a big panic. Granted even if they did it would be nothing like how the ponies do it. Diamond Dogs tend to bite instead of run away and I’d rather not have them cause a political incident before we have even settled in completely.” Spike helps me down from his back as I make my way indoors after bidding him goodnight. My assistant follows me inside while she writes something down on the scroll she carries around.
“So are there any other odd friends we should let the council know about before they show up and cause another panic?” I pause for a moment and think about anyone else that may still be alive and can only come up with one other.
“Well there is one that is kind of a friend though he does have his moments which make me question why. I’m not sure where he is now but if Discord does show up again just have a bunch of children have some fun with him before sending someone to me. I really don’t think he’ll show up here without bothering the pony princesses though.” Oraiste just glares at me as I laugh while heading to my room for the night.
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I’ve broken many bones over the years and have been injured in so many ways that only the other princesses would come close. Yet none of those prepared me for the pain that comes with childbirth. I lost track of what I was screaming throughout the hours I spent in the hospital room but I know that I was cursing out my husband through some of it. After all was said and done though I was finally able to look upon, not just one, but two of the most beautiful beings I had ever seen.
On my left was a female kit with fur that was as white as snow. Just from that I could tell she was special as the summer kitsune never had that color of fur and even the winter ones had an alternate color outside of the snowy periods. On my other side was her sister who was on the exact opposite side of the spectrum with a pelt of dark ebony like her father’s. I was so exhausted from my efforts that I wasn’t really sure what I was feeling right now as I looked over the last bits of my husband I had left.
“What are you going to name them?” I look up at Surprise who was remarkably calm considering how she usually is. I look around at all the ponies that had come to see me through this event as I think over the question. My gaze passes over Aurora, Twilight, and Selene before it settles on Luna and Celestia. Suddenly I get inspired while looking at the two and answer as the kitsune doctor and pony nurses finish cleaning the area up.
“Dawn,” I nod to the ivory form before turning to the ebony kit, “and Dusk.”