We woke up in the morning as the Sun shone brightly through the trees at the edge of the meadow. Shysage and I just hugged and sighed together. The warm sunlight felt very nice. Being together and alone felt even nicer...
Yesterday, late in the afternoon, Princess sent everypony off to find some food. Shysage and I came here to the East meadow with the Fluttershys and Shynas, and four Panther friends, like we normally do.
Well, Shysage and I never went back. We sent the Fluttershys and Shynas off to the Castle with the Panthers. Shysage and I, we spent a quiet evening together and alone, just us! It was a nice warm night, and the Moon was high and bright...
Well, maybe we did a little more. And we finally crashed on this hill late, and slept as close to each other as possible. It seems like every day with my Stallion is even more amazing... I love him so much...
It was morning now, and there were four Panther friends spread around us. They were waking up too, and yawning and stretching. Well, stretching still hurt Rose, anyway. Her leg looked a lot better. She had cleaned most of the blood off, and we could now see the long gashes Phantasma's teeth had made. They were healing though.
Both Fluttershys wandered over a little while later, and we all hugged together briefly, then everypony fussed with their animal friends. Panthers headed off together for some breakfast, and us four ponies ate and drank some too.
While we were eating, Sis pulled me aside. Evidently, some of our friends were concerned that we were gone last night. Princess Celestia smiled, and asked "Is there a lake nearby? They are probably there."
I blushed, and Sis just hugged me.
I was thinking though, and am not sure how I got here, but Fluttershy knew exactly... She said quietly "I know, we will wait and see..." I hope I never have to keep a secret from my family!
Once four Panther friends came back, we did a little more fussing, then we headed slowly back to the Castle. Rose was walking quite a bit better today.
We stopped briefly to hug Dawn and her family. Dawn (the elder) was sitting outside, enjoying the Sun! Well, she had to walk out there by herself. That was just so very good to see...
Equestria's Princesses were sitting together, waiting for us when we arrived back at the Castle.
My sister... She said quietly "They were at the lake", and Cel and Lu smiled. I just blushed. Shysage hugged me tightly. I think Cel and Lu expected nothing less.
Still, Cel (Princess Celestia) addressed us officially.
"Mom and dad, the Shyna Twins have been tasked with flying to Canterlot and making contact with Shining Armor. We want you both to accompany them this time in case they need any sort of protection. And I would prefer that you all leave soon, and come back before dark tonight."
I... This was fine, but I asked timidly "Can I hug Lu for a little while first?"
I guess this was ok, Lu and I hugged and cried together some. Cel and Shysage hugged briefly too.
Both Fluttershys had us wait as the two of them led all four Panthers to her Cottage for some animal time and napping in the Sun. None of us wanted our animal friends to try to follow us.
And listening to my Sis sing to her animal friends... Both Fluttershys were equally talented at this!
And Fluttershy's Cottage seemed to have weathered the years well enough, except for a few windows needing attention, and some walls that needed adjusting as the tree grew over the years.
The Shyna Twins were ready to go, and we were soon on our way. We made sure to skirt Fluttershy's Cottage by a long distance.
It was a nice warm day, and flying a long distance really felt very good. We didn't have a strong wind, either to fight or to help. Still, it was a very good workout. Well, it was the middle of Winter in Shysage and my present, when the Portal moved us here over two weeks ago, and we really couldn't fly there. But here...
And flying up over Ponyville was just sad... Almost no ponies, and a number of collapsed roofs. But once we were away from town, the trip, the countryside of Equestria looked a lot like it always had. That part was just strange.
The Shynas let Shysage and I set the pace. I am positive that the Shyna Twins could have made the trip in maybe half the time it took us. Still, it was just fun to fly together like that.
On the way though, I realized that the Weather Works in Cloudsdale was certainly not operating, and had been off for decades. Well, Cloudsdale depends on the rest of Equestria for food, and so Cloudsdale was probably totally vacant. That was just sad for a number of reasons.
...
I put a question to Shysage as we flew. I have occasionally thought about this, but kept forgetting to ask him. Well, he was here, and I don't think the Shyna Twins being with us mattered. Plus, I remembered the question!
"Shysage, I remember from Princess Twilight's description of her first fight with Sunset Shimmer, it was clear that Sunset wanted to bring a zombie army to Equestria and take it over..."
And I stopped there, because the thought of our fight with whoever we thought was Sunset Shimmer, here in Equestria, that just made me... I was fighting back tears. Whatever it was...
We were flying, so Shysage couldn't hug me or anything. But he did think for a few minutes, then tried to answer my question.
"Summer, I don't think that would have worked...
"As far as I can tell, the Portal will only allow passage, in either direction, if a Twin exists on the other side of the Portal. The Portal wall granted me passage when I fell against it, because I had a Twin here in Equestria, even though I didn't know that. And your Twin had a similar experience..."
Remembering my Twin, Equestria Girls Summer Rain, that made me cry though... Shysage paused briefly, then continued.
"I don't quite understand why the Portal brought Equestria Girls Shyna through, even though her Twin was alive almost 1000 years earlier in Equestria..."
Both Shynas wept softly at this, and I don't think that was his goal; he was just trying to explain. Still, the Shyna Twins were originally allowed contact across this 1000 year chasm by the Twin Link through the Portal. That was just amazing... Shysage worked on continuing.
"I... It is very unsettling that the pony Sunset Shimmer was allowed passage to the Equestria Girls world. This strongly suggests that her Twin, Equestria Girls Sunset Shimmer, probably does exist somewhere in the Equestria Girls world. That could be very scary..."
This really was a scary thought. Still, I appreciate how my Stallion carefully thinks through stuff like this.
"I think the Portal has a certain amount of sentience. This is why we don't see a huge flow through the Portal in either direction. Most are just not allowed to pass."
Shysage was done, and after this, it was just very quiet for a while as we flew...
The Shyna Twins wept softly together for a while. They had both bonded so closely, as Twins do, and we all were so amazed at them just being together in the same time.
I just wanted my Twin, and spent most of that time trying to not cry. But I was sure my Stallion knew this.
We could soon see Canterlot off in the distance. Whether Past or future, that strange stepped mountain is striking, and very hard to miss in the air.
And I gotta say, the upwards flight, almost 1000 feet up maybe, to the top deck of that mountain, where the Library and the Audience Hall are located -- that was a good workout. Shysage said quietly as we were almost to the top that he was glad we did not have to do that again. I think he let me set the pace, and he felt pushed.
Seeing Canterlot from the air was also strange. Very few of the buildings had collapsed roofs. The upper crust used to live in Canterlot, and they could afford the best materials. After three plus decades, this showed.
But everything was so clearly overgrown... Untended grass, weeds, huge untrimmed trees... Many trees had fallen over due to age, and were rotting right where they fell. It was clear nopony had been tending to this amazing city, the seat of Equestria's rulership.
Shysage decided we should land in front of the Audience Hall, and just wait there, to see who we could find, well who would find us. And as he guided us all over the large Commons lawn in front of the Audience Hall, the picture changed dramatically...
The word Shysage used was macabre... We could easily see the deeply rutted low spot where Phantasma likely spent the last 30+ years, presiding over a dead kingdom... And the Commons lawn was littered with bones from countless ponies... It was hard to not weep softly at this ghastly sight... Equestria in all it's glory... reduced to this graveyard...
Almost at the same time, all four of us had to turn away...
...
"I'm sorry you ponies had to see this..." It was Shining Armor. "Probably tomorrow, a huge group grave pit will be dug, and every single bone here will be placed in it, and a full military funeral will be performed for them all... That's the best we can do right now..."
Still, it was quiet for a few minutes. Nopony could talk.
After those few minutes, Shining Armor led us to the Canterlot Library, which did not directly face the Commons, and we all worked on calming down.
The Library really was sealed off, and it looked like the lobby was currently the primary command post for Shining Armor and his men.
Shining Amor himself quickly led us into and through the bulk of the Library. Overall, it looked like the Library had endured the years well. The building was fine, and we guessed neither Phantasma nor anypony else cared about reading once Canterlot fell. If any books were missing, Shysage couldn't really tell.
Just Shining Armor and Shysage went into the restricted wing, and Shysage saw basically the same thing. If any books were missing, it wasn't very many.
I guess having Shysage available for this evaluation proved very helpful for Shining Armor. Shysage had spent a lot of time here some years ago, and had visited off and on since then (and got kicked across... never mind...), so he was in a pretty good position to offer his input. When we came back to the lobby, Shining Armor used his magic to pick up both a piece of paper and a quill, and quickly made some notes on that paper.
That same piece of paper was then rolled up and placed inside one of two matching bags, also on the table. The material on the bags was dark, some form of animal skin. A single draw-string pulled the bags closed.
Before Shysage and I even knew what was going on, one of the bags was slipped around each of our necks.
"Equestria's Princess will appreciate having their crowns back. Needless to say, guard them carefully until they get where they belong." Shining Armor said this, and did not have to explain further. He wasn't done. "The paper I inserted into one of the bags includes a status report of our findings regarding Canterlot up to this point, along with some recommendations. I would prefer that our Princesses read this first, but I doubt you both will pursue any other course anyway."
"Of course" Shysage answered quietly.
"And Shynas, I think you flying here to the Library Lobby every two days will be helpful for now" Shining Armor said.
Both Shynas bowed a little. I guessed that was a yes.
...
I think our official visit was done at that point.
"Please come with me, and I will show you to a meadow for some food and water prior to your return to Ponyville" Shining Armor said a little more calmly. "You four may rest there some before you fly back."
Our walk to this small meadow was fairly short, and it was away from the Commons, which we appreciated. We passed a few ponies as we walked. Evidently, Canterlot was already getting repopulated.
Shining Armor told us to take our time in the meadow, but he asked us to wait for his return before we left for Ponyville. Shining Armor was soon off about his duties.
The four of us stayed close together, but found plenty to eat, and a small lake too. We were still surrounded by Canterlot though; this meadow wasn't anything like the seemingly endless meadows around Ponyville.
After we ate and drank, we just sat together in a line, looking across the meadow, at a basically empty Canterlot... Nopony said much. This was just heartbreaking. Hopefully, this city would soon change though. Well, the good news was now that it could change...
"Oh, my goodness... Shyna!"
The four of us got up and quickly turned around. A mare was quickly crying, hugging both Shynas. It was Mildred... A simple, amazing mare with just the knack to keep Princess' lives simpler... This was very good news...
The five of us cried together for a while.
Shining Armor found us like that.
"Who?" Shining Armor asked.
Shysage pulled away from the rest of us and answered quietly. "Shining Armor, this is Mildred, who was our Princesses' secretary."
Well, that was clearly 35 or so years ago. Mildred should be very old by now...
"How???" Shining Armor asked again...
Shysage quickly and quietly explained. "This is not widely known, and should stay that way, but Mildred used the Portal briefly, and so has not aged, well, for a long time..."
Shysage thought a minute, then added quietly "I think our Princesses will be overjoyed at her return."
Well, evidently Mildred was sure she would never see Princess Celestia or Princess Luna again... "They are alive???" Mildred clearly knew the answer now, and was sobbing as the Shynas and I hugged her and cried with her.
After a little while, Shining Armor said we needed to head back to the Library, and we tried to calm down. On the way, he spoke officially with Mildred and asked if her allegiance to Equestria was such that she could be trusted with her old position back.
Mildred started crying again, which was probably a yes.
Shining Armor discussed a detailed evaluation of the Audience Hall, focusing initially on the food stock in the kitchen, followed by Princess Quarters etc.
"I can easily do that" Mildred said quietly. Mildred wasn't bragging... Keeping track of everything in the Audience Hall was her job. Well, it used to be.
I think Shysage wanted to help bridge this gap. "Shining Armor, Mildred was our Princesses' trusted secretary over a thousand years ago. This will work out very well. I don't think you need to worry. I think you will find Mildred a big help."
Mildred just cried.
Once back at the Library, Mildred cried with the Shyna Twins some more.
Shining Armor asked me "May I?"
I nodded, and he carefully pulled the bag from my neck with his magic, opened the bag, and took the paper out. He was clearly adding some notes, probably about Mildred. Shysage and I both knew Cel and Lu would be overjoyed.
The bag was soon back around my neck for the return trip.
Shysage warned Mildred about the Commons, and Mildred said she knew already.
Mildred asked when she should begin her evaluation of the Audience Hall. Shining Armor called another guard over. I guess the answer was now.
"The guard is for your protection, please allow him to accompany you, but we need the information you are after, so be as thorough as you can."
Mildred and the guard were soon on their way.
Shysage and Shining Armor hugged briefly, and Shysage, both Shynas and I were on our way too. We tried to avoid flying over the Commons lawn, but that was pretty hard due to it's location.
Still, the long glide down from Canterlot was amazing, and we made good time back to Ponyville, arriving maybe in the middle of the afternoon.
We still skirted Fluttershy's Cottage by a good distance because we didn't know where Rose and Alyssa were.
When the four of us landed together in the grass outside the Castle, we were surprised to find nopony else there.
Still, I noticed my Stallion, well, looking at me. I didn't think much of that, I am his Mare, after all, and he always tells me I am beautiful. I just smiled back at him.
"Summer, that was amazing, what you just did!" he said softly. Shysage didn't wait for me to ask what... "After you landed, you stood up straight, put your right foot forward some, stretched your wings out all the way, with the ends curved up just a little... Then you stretched your head and neck straight, and up at an angle towards the sky, closed your eyes, and smiled..."
The Shyna Twins were with us, but I realized that Shysage really appreciated what I did. I looked into his amazing blue eyes. "Shysage, I am a Pegasus, and I love to fly. Is that ok?" I asked back, also softly.
Shysage smiled, and hugged me tightly. I guess it was ok. He suggested it was a "Pegasus Mare Curtsy", whatever that is.
Both Shynas were smiling too, and Equestria pony Shyna said "She's been doing that since she got here, Shysage. And now that we know why, Twin and I are gonna start doing it too. It's a Pegasus thing!"
I guess it is. Shysage and I had discovered quite a few Pegasus things. I just wondered if Earth ponies and Unicorns had stuff like that. I don't know...
And I showed the Shynas what I actually do. It was not like the day they taunted Dark Melvain. That was definitely a menacing gesture.
This is so different. And I had to explain that it is done in motion, over maybe 5 seconds. With my wings stretched out flat, I arch my back, curl my wing tips up some, stretch my neck towards the sky, then after a few seconds, I reverse everything. I don't stop along the way, it is just a constant, fluid motion.
They understood, and tried it too, and couldn't help but cry. We all did. Well, we all love flying!
...
There was still nopony outside the Castle, so we walked inside, and headed for the Library. Both Twilights and both Filias were there, surrounded by a few open books about magic. Unicorn fun, the rest of us guessed. Maybe books about magic is a Unicorn thing.
Still, I had to interrupt, and said quietly "Princess, these bags around our necks are Cel and Lu's crowns... Can you find a safe spot for them for a while?"
"Of course, Summer" Princess said with a smile. "I am sure our Princesses will appreciate these!" Both bags were quickly off Shysage and my necks, and Princess assured us she would find a nice place for them.
Our next destination would be Fluttershy's Cottage, and our animal friends. As the four of us headed out the door of the Castle and down the steps, we found two Fluttershys and four Panthers lounging in the grass, in the late afternoon sunlight.
Rose and Alyssa got up quickly as we made our way down the steps. Rose seemed to be walking even better today. Still, Rose and Alyssa cried briefly. They had missed us.
"I think Rose knew you were back" my Sis said quietly. Well that was ok, we were glad to be back.
Animal friend time was next. Of course, the Shyna Twins helped us with that.
Soon after, the Applejack and Rainbow Twins walked up, probably from the farm. Equestria pony Applejack didn't bother waiting for anypony to ask. "Got the main roof beams back up for the house."
Both Applejacks then said together "Thanks R.D.!"
The four of them laughed, then hugged together.
"Applejack, how are your trees?" I asked quietly.
"I think the first decent harvest will be in a few months. And we definitely need to trim more trees... I guess we need to ask Princess Twilight about helping with that. She and the Filias and Fionas trimmed them far faster than I've ever seen..."
Applejack paused a minute.
"Well, we still need to get the roof weathered back in. But the farm seems to have stood up fairly well."
Everypony talked together quietly.
A little while later, the Fiona and Rarity Twins wandered over. I guess the Pinkie Pie Twins were helping them too.
Both Raritys were moaning over the material that was ruined...
Equestria pony Pinkie Pie smiled and said "Aww Rarity, how much of your material is fine?"
Both Raritys stopped moaning a minute. "Well, ok, a lot of material weathered the years ok. But to even watch one beautiful piece of fabric get ruined... Just terrible..."
That was just Rare. A few of us hugged them both briefly.
"Rare, is your roof doing ok?" I asked.
"Thankfully yes, otherwise a lot more amazing material..."
At that point, everypony was back from whatever their days held for them.
Princess, her Twin and the Filia Twins came out, and said we should all grab some dinner, then return to the Castle. As we usually do, the Fluttershy and Shyna Twins came with Shysage and I to the East meadow. Oh wait, the Pinkie Pie Twins came with us.
And, of course, our animal friends came too.
We all stopped at Dawn's briefly, and hugged our amazing neighbor, who was again sitting outside enjoying the Sun. "Summer, don't even open the door, there's barely enough room. I think Camille and Dawn have their helping hands full!" Dawn the elder said this, so we just headed out to the meadow.
Four Panthers streaked quickly across the meadow and were gone. The rest of us headed towards the lake, and had some dinner.
We were surprised to find the Celestia and Luna Twins on the little hill we often relax on. Well, they were relaxing there now!
Everypony walked quickly over to them, and bowed. Cel and Lu surely didn't like this, but smiled, and got us quickly back up.
Cel told us to finish eating then come back and fill her in on our trip. I don't think we ate a lot. After Cel, Shysage, Lu and I hugged briefly, we all laid on our bellies around Equestria's Princesses and their Twins.
Still, Shysage jumped in right away, and said this. "Cel, I am not sure how much we should tell you. Shining Armor sent back what is surely a status report, and you should probably read through that first. Then, we can fill you in on any other observations."
Cel realized this was best, but wasn't real happy. "Well, ok, I guess you are right." After pausing briefly, Cel said "Let's head back to the Castle."
We all got up, but Cel quickly called Equestria pony Fluttershy over.
"Fluttershy, I haven't forgotten your amazing help to me in the distant Past... Thank you so much..." The two of them hugged tightly and cried softly together for a little while.
I think Cel had recently remembered this again, I don't know. Well, Fluttershy came with us from our present, and Sis was still wearing that amazing hairpin that was an exact copy of her Cutie Mark; Cel (Princess Celestia) had given that to her, buried in the distant Past. That might have been a hint!
Lu and I hugged too. She said she was doing a lot better. She was even smiling. I just cried...
As the Sun headed through the trees to the West, we walked back to the Castle. We were soon in the Library, relaxing on our bellies, waiting for everypony to gather. I could tell Cel just wanted to know what was going on!
Soon, everypony else had joined us, and we were talking quietly together.
I think Princess Twilight was feeling better. She called Princess Celestia and Princess Luna over, and quickly got their crowns out! Cel and Lu worked on not crying, and used their own magic to place their crowns where they belonged. Equestria's three Princesses cried together. They were all Princesses again...
When Cel and Lu turned around, the rest of us were all bowing before them both. This just made them cry more... Cel got us back up, then she and Lu cried together for a while...
After that, Princess Twilight got the status report, and gave it to Cel. She and Lu were still standing, and the rest of us just watched.
Cel started reading, clearly from the top... Lu must have started at the bottom... "Sister, Mildred is back already!"
Cel and Lu cried together again. Having the Master of Details back and helping them, this would be a huge help...
The rest of the evening was fairly calm, even though most everypony wept softly at some point.
I think Princess Twilight was right. My dream made this part, the rebuilding of Equestria, well, it looked so easy as Shysage and I wrote it. But now, actually living through this process... We needed all the help we could get, and Equestria was certainly helping.
But more, I sensed among the devoted friends and family around us, a growing gratefulness for the chance to start over. The past was gone. The future could be amazing, and we needed to work towards that. I think we all were.