//------------------------------//
// Chapter 23 
// Story: Sweet Pea 
// by CartoonNerd12 
//------------------------------//

Rarity and Fluttershy were meeting in Rarity's apartment for their end-of-the-week tea party.

"Fancy should be here soon." said Rarity.

"Discord, too. He's just finishing to feed the animals and you know hard it is to convince Angel to eat anything."

"Opal is the same way." she looked down to the cat next to them, "Isn't that right, Opal-wopel?"

Opal hissed at her.

"Goodness! What's wrong?" Fluttershy asked.

"She's just cranky because Dignity pulled on her tail this morning."

"Where is the sweetie?"

"With the nurse, so we can enjoy this time together without interruption."

"Oh." her eyes widened.

"Are you alright?"

"Sorry, the baby kicked."

"Don't be. I remember when I was pregnant with Dignity. He was quite the kicker."

"Only one more month…" Fluttershy rubbed her stomach.

"You're lucky. I have wait a while." Rarity looked at her small bump.

Fluttershy giggled.

"As I told Sweetie Belle, I'm only a few months in. Speaking of which… do you know if she's called on the magic mirror?"

"No, we haven't heard anything from the girls."

"I haven't heard or seen them since the night of the talent show. I do hope everything is going alright…"

"Me, too…"

"Luckily, Applejack and Rainbow Dash haven't spilled the beans yet or we would have received a scolding from Twilight right about now."

"I still don't like hiding this from her or Pinkie…"

"You know Pinkie would have been worse than Applejack when it comes to blabbing the truth out. Remember…?"

A flashback happened of when the sisters confronted their mother about where they have been for the day.

Celestia turned from her grief and gave out a cry of joy, "Girls? Oh, thank heavens!" She ran up to them and gave each a precious hug and kiss on the forehead. Suddenly, her expression soured and she demanded, "Where have you been?!"

"Um…" Twilight rubbed her hoof, "About that… we were… we were…"

"You were what?"

The girls had cringed faces, not sure how to answer.

"You were what?!" she repeated, "Girls, tell me!"

Pinkie gulped, blurting out, "We were in Pony-Ville!" She quickly covered her mouth and hid behind Rainbow who glared at her.

"Pony-Ville? Pony-Ville?! Girls, do you realize how dangerous that could have been?!"

"But Mother, that place was simply divine!" protested Rarity.

"Yeah, nothin' happened there!" proclaimed Applejack.

Pinkie babbled on, "Yeah, it wasn't until we went into the Everfree Forest that we found a scary-looking castle and fainted at the sight of it!"

"PINKIE!" her sisters screamed at her.

"Oopsie…" she shrunk down.

Rarity shook her head.

Fluttershy said, "That may be so, but we could have made her Pinkie Promise that would have guaranteed she wouldn't say anything."

"True… but this is a small matter and Sweetie Belle has been handling the tests very well and has no need for our help. I am so proud of her."

Fluttershy nodded in agreement.

Rarity sighed, "You know, seeing Sweetie Belle dancing with the prince at the ball reminds of when Fancy and I were falling in love…"

Another flashback happened and it's a montage of Rarity being with Fancy back at Canterlot castle.

"Well, I… I figured in a time like now, you would want me to…"

"Never! Never in a million years! I want you to use my name, because I feel I can be myself around you… and you can be yourself around me…" she had big sapphire eyes when telling him this.

"Rarity…" he whispered.

"Don't worry," Rarity wrapped her arm around Fancy, "I won't let him touch a hair on your head, cousin or no. That was such a wonderful thing you have done… I don't know how to thank you…"

"You don't have to thank me. I can take other ponies' insults about me, but that was downright disgraceful of what he tried to say to you. You are, in fact, quite the opposite of what he said. You are very fashionable and you're certainly not attractive, but very beautiful…"

She put her hoof to her heart, going in awe.

"And you are anything but nasty… you have a generous soul that does you well…"

"Fancy… I…"

"Nonsense! I can tell you are very good! You should pursue this talent!"

"That's very kind of you," he smiled, "but I like serving the royal family, mainly… to serve…" he stopped and turned his head away.

"To serve… who?" she raised her eyebrow.

He turned back and whispered, "You…"

Her eyes widened, "Really?"

"Yes…" he sighed as he couldn't hide it anymore, "Rarity, seeing you every day always makes me happy… You always treat me as I was equal, even if you're a princess and I'm…a lowly butler."

"You are nothing of the sort!" she protested.

"Let me finish. I know you have feelings for me as I have feelings for you…"

She gasped, "You… you do?" her eyes filled with tears of joy.

"Yes… It pained me to tell you we couldn't be together. How could we? You are to marry any day. At this point, what hope do I have of being with you…?" he lowered his head after he had finished.

"Oh, Fancy…" she lifted his chin, "If there's any pony I'm going to marry, it'll be you…"

"What…?"

"Let me explain: my sisters and I have a secret plan of making sure suitors leave us alone so we can marry whoever we want… So… Fancy Pants, if you'll have me, will you be my very special some pony?"

He smirked, "I think this will answer that…" he started playing a different song on the piano and started singing…

Fluttershy sighed as well, "I know what you mean… It was like when Discord and I were on the verge of discovering we were in love all along…"

A montage of Fluttershy and Discord's moments appeared.

"…There's music in the tree-tops and music in the air… All around us music fills the sky!" she vocalized. As she did, a long figure moved from shrub and bush watching her sing. "There's music by the river and there's music in the grass! Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah!"

Just then, an off-key voice sang while something held her arms, "There's music in the tree-tops and music in the air!"

The animals complained and covered their ears while Angel threw an acorn at the bad voice.

"Ow! Hey!"

She gasped and turned to face a creature with mismatched animal body parts, having horns and red and yellow eyes, but her face soon softened and smiled, "Discord!" She ran into his arms for a hug.

"My dear Fluttershy…" he had her look up to him.

"Discord?" Fluttershy went around the gardens, knowing he wouldn't be here, but it was worth a try, "Discord?! Oh, please… I am sorry about what I said before! So if you can hear me, I really need you now!" When no answer came, she deeply sighed and starting going back into the castle with her head held low until she felt a bump. She looked up and saw him.

He smiled at her, "My dear, that was all you had to say, but you know I'll always come when you call." He moved his paw though her soft pink mane, causing her to slightly blush. Luckily, since it was nighttime now, he didn't see it.

"Listen, the girls and I agree. We want our right to marry whoever we wish. So, thank you for trying to make me see that sooner. Somehow, you must have put the idea in my head."

"Guilty as charged." he chuckled.

"And we could use your help!"

His eyes widened in surprise, "You mean… you girls need my help?"

"Yes… With your magic, I'm sure we can get rid of these suitors out of our lives."

His heart started pounding with joy. Already, he was thinking up mischievous schemes for the colts to take a hike and to stay away from his Fluttershy. It seemed he had a chance with her after all, so he picked her up and began twirling her around.

She said between giggles, "Discord… Discord… wha… what are you doing?" She was laughing away now with that adorable laugh he loved so much.

He declared, "That you are the sweetest mare there is for thinking about me! I will gladly help out with this little suitor problem you're all having." he gently set her back down.

"Really? Oh, thank you!" she wrapped her arms around him, giving him a hug.

Feeling touched by it, he wrapped his arms around her, too, not wanting to let go.

"Discord?"

"Yes, my dear Fluttershy?" he had her facing him.

"I can't ask you to put your life on the line for us."

"What?"

"I was inconsiderate to forget what would happen if you got caught…"

"Oh," he scoffed, "Like anyone could catch me. You have nothing to worry about…" he patted her head.

"I'm serious!" she moved away from him, "My parents caught you once, didn't they?! So it could happen again!"

"That was a fluke, I assure you!" he mumbled, "How Celestia did it, I don't know…"

"I was selfish to think about myself when I should have been thinking about you! I don't want to lose you!"

His eyes widened to her statement, "What…?"

"I can't lose you… not now… not ever…" she nuzzled her head under his chin.

He was agape of how this was happening, he finally had her… His one true love. He had her facing him once more, "Now you listen to me, Fluttershy: I rather be stone again than to lose you… Without you, I would be in stone still… but if something were to happen to you, I would gladly give up my life to be a statue… For I cannot live without you…

The words echoed in her head as she went back to conversing.

Rarity pointed out, "Ah, young love… That was a magical moment for us… even though we were forced to marry other princes at the time."

"But that didn't stop us."

"No, it didn't…"

Once more, a flashback happened of when the girls took the boys to the underground kingdom.

The boat began moving as they took in the sights surrounding the gold and silver castle. Once they reached the castle doors, they opened and the guys were astounded by the bright golden ballroom much like when the girls first came to the place.

Rarity had thought out loud, "You know for such a formal occasion like this, we should all be properly attired!" she squealed as she said, "I wish for all the guys to wear black tuxedos!"

"Excuse me?!" Discord exclaimed and the next thing he knew, he was wearing a tux. He was about to snap it off when Fluttershy's sweet voice said.

"Oh… Discord… you look so handsome…"

He looked at her in surprise, "You… you think so?"

"You do…" her cheeks went pink.

He then conjured up a hand mirror, "Yes, I suppose I do look good, don't I?"

She giggled.

Fancy told Rarity, "I say, Rarity, this is quite nice."

"I was hoping you would like it and you do look so good in it!"

Rainbow told her coltfriend, "I hope you don't mind my sister's need to fashion everything…"

"That's okay. When you're a Wonderbolt, you get used to dressing up when making an appearance at someplace important."

Pinkie kept bouncing up and down, "Oh, Cheesy! You look so great!"

"I do my best." he smiled at her.

"Now, don't you look all gussied up?" Applejack told Spike.

"Think I look okay?"

"More than okay… you're fine-looking…" 

"Aw, thanks…" he rubbed his neck.

Twilight nearly gawked at the sight of Flash, "Flash… wow, I almost didn't recognize you…"

He slightly blushed, "You're just saying that…"

"No… I'm not…" she stared at him and he returned the stare until Rarity announced out.

"Now it is our turn, girls! I wish that we would all wear gowns that make us look gorgeous and that they match our personalities!"

The flowers obeyed and in a magical dust storm, all six of them began glowing so bright that the guys had to avert their eyes. When the glow had died down, Spike shouted out, "Whoa! You all look…"

"Amazing…" all the guys said.

The princesses looked at each other's gowns in awe.

"Rarity, you look so lovely…" Fluttershy said, admiring her sister's magenta jeweled dress.

"So do you!" She looked at Fluttershy's simple nature-designed gown.

"I can get used to this!" Applejack looked at the saddle green dress she was wearing.

"I guess this is pretty cool." Rainbow noticed the cloud-like gown that had rainbows on it.

"Mine looks good enough to eat!" Pinkie jumped in her pink dress with candy corn and lollipop designs on it.

"It is pretty…" Twilight twirled in the blue gown with white stars she was wearing.

"Why, they could be our gowns for the Grand Galloping Gala that's coming up!" declared Rarity.

"That would be nice, but I don't think they're going to stay like this all night." pointed Twilight.

"So let's make use of them and part-ay!" Pinkie grabbed Cheese as her dancing partner and shouted out, "I wish for all the music that you got!"

Once again, the instruments showed up and created the music for them to dance to.

"Shall we, my lady?" Discord bowed to Fluttershy and offered his arm.

She tittered and accepted as he moved her to a nice waltz.

One by one, the princesses were asked by the boys they liked to dance with them and the ballroom was filled with dancing ponies.

"Now it's the girls' turn." Fluttershy gestured.

"Sweetie Belle is on her way to be the prince of Marendelle's lover. Scootaloo and Apple Bloom, though… I'm not sure if they have found special some ponies, too. I know Apple Bloom wanted one, but Scootaloo said she was going to stay single."

"I think it would be wonderful if she got married, then she wouldn't have to feel lonely."

"Darling, if that girl ever does get married, it will be when Rainbow gets a hooficure!"

Suddenly, they heard a shout, "DISCORD!"

They went to look out of the room and saw Rainbow getting chased by a hoof file.

"Oh, come now, Dashie! Those hooves need a good shine!"

"No way! I don't like any pony touching my hooves!"

"Well, technically, I'm not even touching them, am I?!"

"Discord!"

He turned to see his wife and gave a cheesy grin and small wave, "Oh, hi, honey… Am I late for tea?"

"Fortunately for you, you're on time, since we're still waiting for Fancy." said Rarity.

"But I would like to know is why you're chasing Rainbow Dash with a hoof file?!" Fluttershy demanded.

"What hoof file?" he innocently said.

"This one!" Rainbow threw the file in front of him.

"Oh! That!" he slightly chuckled, "Well, I saw how Dash's hooves were muddy from patrolling the Everfree today, so I thought I'd help her out by shining her hooves up!"

"Then he sent this flying sharpener out at me!"

Fluttershy shook her head, "What am I going to do with you…?"

Discord coiled his tail around her, "Well, you could always love me for all eternity…"

"And so I will, but you're going to apologize to Rainbow Dash first or else you'll be sleeping on the couch tonight."

Rainbow snickered.

"Oh, fine… but I bet Rainbow never does this to Soarin'…"

"Maybe not," said RD, "but he's had his share of heartbreak and tough love…"

She recollected her moments with Soarin', the good and bad.

Rainbow had eventually gone outside to do some cloud busting to keep her distracted from her thoughts of suitors and marriage. She was so into it that she didn't noticed a light blue pegasus stallion heading her way and kicked her hind legs to the clouds, nearly hitting him.

"Whoa!" he dodged.

She heard him and turned to see her favorite Wonderbolt, "Oops… sorry Soarin'…" she gave a cheesy grin.

"Had I known you were angry, I would have just come back the next day or next month." he joked.

"Heh, you goof-ball… but a very wise decision, nevertheless… If you were one of those pompous princes or a snobby regent, they would be flying though the air even they didn't have wings!"

He gave a slight laugh, "I believe it…" he grinned.

Suddenly, she let out all of the emotions that she bottled inside her, "Just why?! Why did this have to happen now?! We were happy! I was happy! Then she had to go and ruin it by saying we have to get married!" she crossed her arms.

"You… You weren't planning on getting married, at all?" he questioned.

"I didn't say that. I would like to get married someday… but not right now, and not with some pony I don't even know!"

"I hear ya. Just… why is the Queen enforcing the marriage law on you guys?"

"She claims she's doing this for our benefit and making sure we're taken care of… What bunch of baloney!"

"Yeah… right…" he hesitantly said. It never occurred to Soarin' that he might not be able to support a princess. As a Wonderbolt, sure he had enough to get himself by, but for a princess who had everything in her life, how could he fulfill that? He couldn't ask her to give that all up for him, being the awesome princess she was. 

"Yoo-hoo." she waved her hoof in front of him, "Earth to Soarin!"

"Huh? Oh, sorry…" he rubbed his neck, "Listen Dash, uh, I mean, Princess…"

"Princess? But you never-"

"Perhaps it's time I do… Seeing how we won't be able to see each other again…" he solemnly bowed his head and started flying away.

Rainbow was flabbergasted to what she just witnessed, "What…? Soarin'! Soarin'!" she called out to him, but he just flew out of sight, leaving a trail of dark smoke, his signature Wonderbolt mark.

"It's… great seeing you again…"

"Is it? Because I recall… That you broke up with me!" She yelled into his face, causing him to wince.

"Broke… broke up? But we weren't dating!"

"Yeah, well, we might as well have been! You broke my heart!" She turned away from him.

"Dash…" he reached out his hoof.

"Oh, so now it's Dash? Not 'Princess' or 'Your Highness'?!"

"Do-do you want me to-"

"No! I rather you call me by my name, like you always did!"

"But then why-"

"Because the last time we were talking, you said we wouldn't be able to see each other again! Well, I proved you wrong, didn't I?!"

"Not really!" he finally had the chance to yell back, "You came here with other guy! How is that seeing each other?!"

"Blueblood was an excuse for me to get out of the palace while I was…" She made air quotes with her hooves, "hanging out with him. My original plan was for me and Scootaloo to show off our jousting skills to him and then try to convince him to joust with him to see if he was made of hard stuff."

"I don't think he is, so why…?"

"For two reasons. One is to get him out of the castle so none of us becomes his bride and two. He hurt Rarity by being a… grrgh, he's got me so mad I can't even say it."

"So this is also payback… whoa… Sure am glad I stay on your good side. Uh, I am still on your good side, after what happened…?"

"I've gotten over it, but I'm still pretty ticked you would leave me like that. I suppose you've been flying hard to keep your mind off that day."

"Actually… I haven't been flying, not since I told you we shouldn't see each other again… I couldn't fly until Fleetfoot told me she saw you here, and I lifted myself off the ground just to see you…" he did a bashful blush and turned away so she wouldn't see his cheeks.

Her mouth was wide open from bafflement until she scowled and scolded at him, "Let me get this straight: you couldn't fly because of me? Of all the… Soarin'! I refuse to be held responsible for a Wonderbolt not being able to do their job of being the greatest flyers in Equestria! If you cared that much about me, then you should have say so! Or better yet, to never say those words to me about us never seeing each other again!" her face softened, "Now, you tell me that you care and I will say the same thing…"

He lifted his head in surprise, his eyes filled with hope, "You… you do?"

"Nah-ah. You won't get anything out of me until you say what you have to say."

"Alright… since you really want to know…" he smiled, "You're awesome. You're this amazing flyer that I don't think I could ever keep up to… You may be a princess, but you sure don't act like it and I don't have a problem with that… And, I'm afraid to tell you this, for fear you might give me a black eye, but here it goes…you're the most beautiful mare I've ever laid eyes on… I know that's cheesy, but that's the way I see you…" he lowered his head to avoid her gaze of how she'll react. 

Suddenly, he felt his head being quickly lifted and could see his lips touching with hers. He slowly closed his eyes to the bliss. After what seemed like a while, they finally broke away and gave each other loving glances.

"Now it's my turn…" she told him while smiling, "Soarin', you're the first colt friend I have ever made… I never liked any boys until I met you… You may think you can't keep up with me, but you're wrong. You're the only guy who can keep up with me… and that's what I like about you… by the way, as cheesy as that was about me being beautiful, you're not so bad yourself…" she swished her tail on his face.

"I see your point." Discord said.

Fluttershy clear her throat, reminding him what he still had to do.

"Oh, right… Rainbow Dash… I'm… s-s-s…"

"What's that? I can't quite hear you." RD egged him on.

"S-s-sorry! I-am-sorry! There… I said it…" he crossed his arms, but he uncrossed them when his wife kissed his cheek.

"Thank you, dear…"

"Only for you…" he beamed.

Rarity grunted, "Where is Applejack? She promised she would make some fritters for us!"

"Hold your horses, girl, I'm here…" AJ came up with a cart of apple fritters.

"Thank goodness!" Rarity took the cart in.

"Applejack, where's Spike?" Fluttershy asked.

"Cleaning up after we made the fritters together."

"Is this the first time you guys made something together?"

"Heavens to Betsy, no! We've done several things together even before we got married…"

A montage happened of when Applejack and Spike were together.

AJ folded over the next flattened piece of dough. She kept humming until a voice said.

"Now what's going on here?" Spike was by the door, "I thought you would still be upset?"

"There's no reason for me to be upset anymore…" Then, she moved him closer so Apple Bloom wouldn't hear them or the rest of the kitchen staff, "Not when we got a plan to getting those suitors to leave on their own before one of us is chosen."

"Really?!" he nearly shouted out until she shushed him. He noticed a very interesting thing as he was standing close to her. He could smell apples off of her and how her emerald eyes were shining and her soft blond mane was touching his scales; it felt good. He had the urge to run his claws through that soft mane. But why would he think that when he was interested in Rarity? 

AJ was having troubles with her own feelings of Spike being so close to her. She had to fight off the fact she wanted to wrap her hooves around him and give a great big hug just to see how he would feel against her body. His green eyes looked like they were staring straight into her soul. His scales looked smooth and rough, but she bet that with one touch, they would be soft and even.

AJ was about to return to the kitchen counter until Spike stopped her by pointing out, "Wait, Applejack, let me tell them. It is, after all, my job to deliver messages between the royal family." 

"That's sweet, but I don't want you to overwork…"

"Overwork? Overwork?!" he practically shouted, "I'm anything but overworked! I haven't even started on my duties for today because you haven't given me anything to do yet!"

"Spike, please, it's not nec-"

"No! I'm going to do it and you will not stop me!" He was about to stomp out.

AJ was flabbergasted until she had a look of anger and shouted, "Oh, yes, I can! I order you to stay put!" Then she gasped and covered her mouth while Spike stopped dead in his tracks. Realizing what she done, she had never used her royal status on any servant before, but to use it on a servant that was more of a dear friend to her and her sisters since they were little was alarming.

He slowly turned back to her and she saw the shock in his eyes as if thinking the same thing she was.

"Spike… I… I… I'm so sorry, I didn't mean…"

"Just why…?" he nearly whispered with his green eyes growing big.

"I…" she slumped down, daring not to look at him, "I don't want to see you working so hard when you hardly get anything in return… All those years I've seen you do things for Rarity for you not to get anything in return… I don't want you thinking you have to do stuff for me if I can't return anything to you…"

"AJ…"

"And that's why I can't let you work for me. It'll be much more work than what you're used to and I don't want you to get hurt-"

"AJ." he lifted her chin, which surprised her to see him so close to her and smiling at her, "You don't have to return anything… I did that stuff for Rarity because I wanted to. And I want to do stuff for you now for that same reason… and honestly, I don't care how hard it'll be. Just as long as we do it together, I'm sure we'll make it much easier…"

"You're… you're sure about that…?"

"Positive." he smirked.

A smile grew on her face and then, with a determined look, AJ said, "Then move your tail. We got pancakes to make!"

He saluted and exclaimed, "Aye-aye!" That caused both of them to laugh.

Meanwhile, the ponies and Nightmares were still fighting out to win. The unicorns were blasting as much as they could. The earth ponies were using their hind legs to kick away the figures. The pegasi were flying above to use an aerial strike. Spike was trying his best from kicking to using other items to keep them away. Suddenly, something caught his eye when he saw a Nightmare about to hurt Applejack! 

"AJ! LOOK OUT!" he moved between the Nightmare and Applejack and with all his might, he pushed her away. However, he was struck with the heavy blow instead and crashed up to the ceiling, causing a piece of it to crack and fall down with him before landing on top of him.

Applejack saw the whole thing and screamed, "SPIKE! NO!" 

Her cries were heard throughout the hall as the fight stopped and their friends looked on in horror.

Applejack kicked the rubble away and took hold of the dragon in her arms, spilling tears while blubbering, "Spike… of all the noble things to do… Why did you go and do a stupid thing like that?!"

"Because…" he coughed, "Ponies… do… crazy things, for the ones they… love…" he smiled weakly at her.

She started breathing heavily as she couldn't believe what she was hearing, "You… you love me?"

"I do… I think… I always have…" he coughed severely.

Applejack was crying harder and moaned, "No, Spike… No…"

He took hold of her hoof, "I'm sorry… Applejack… I… tried… I love you…" He took a final breath before closing his eyes, becoming lifeless in her arms.

"Spike… No… Spike…" Her heart was breaking in half and her voice had broken from sobbing. "No! No!" she kept bawling onto him.

Everyone else was crying as well and standing in mourning as lovers clung onto each other.

Discord and Fluttershy finally made it back, only to see the heartbreaking scene before them.

"Oh, no… Spike!" Fluttershy cried out.

"No…" Discord whispered.

The others turned back to them with glistening eyes, unable to say anything. They lost a friend today: a noble creature who was always willing to help others out and who was always there for them… 

"He's not… he can't be…" Discord couldn't believe it.

Twilight could only solemnly nod her head to give the answer.

His eyes grew big as he looked at the dragon, "Oh, Spike… if only there were some way-" Then he realized, "The bottle…"

Applejack looked up to him, "What?"

"The bottle!" he took out the vial that Luna gave him, "Applejack! Give this to him, quick!" He handed it over to her.

"But why? What does it-"

"Just give it to him now!"

She quickly opened the cork and poured the water into his mouth. Once it was all gone, she was silently praying, "Please… Please… come back to me… I never had the chance to tell you… that… I love you, too…"

There was silence for the longest time, and just when they thought it didn't work after all, there was a huge gasp for air and he coughed out his fire.

"Spike!" they all cheered.

"Whoa… it was so dark… but then… I heard a voice…" he looked to Applejack, "Your voice. Was it true?"

She beamed at him and said, "Yes… I do love you… I always have…" She pressed her lips to his and they kissed for a long period of time while the others applauded to them.

Tears were glistening in Applejack's eyes.

"Ah, AJ? You okay there?" Rainbow questioned as she, Fluttershy, and Discord were looking at her in confusion.

"Uh? Oh, sorry…" she wiped her eyes, "I was just thinking about how close we were to losing Spike that day…"

The three of them exchanged glances and gave small smiles while nodding.

"Discord, if you hadn't… I can't thank you enough…" Applejack looked up to him with big eyes.

Discord just waved it off, "Don't thank me. Thank your aunt. She's the one who gave me the vial. I merely assisted by handing it over."

"Still…" she went over to hug him, "It was the best thing any pony could have done…"

Discord blushed red at how embarrassing it was to receive hugs other than from his wife.

A thought then occurred to Applejack, "Have you heard anything from Apple Bloom or Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle?"

He stepped back and shook his head, "'Fraid not… They haven't used the magic mirror to call me or to see what the rest of you are doing."

AJ sighed, "Well, then, I'll just head back to give Spike a hoof. See you guys at dinner tonight."

"Oh, right…" Rainbow groaned, "The dinner party we have every weekend mainly because Twilight just wants to celebrate what good job we did with our royal duties for the week."

"Oh, but they're so fun." said Fluttershy.

"If you say so…" RD shrugged, "Well, I got to get going and play with Whirl Wind before getting ready for tonight. See ya." she waved and flew off.

Fancy Pants walked up then while magically carrying a tea pot, "So terribly sorry that I'm late, but I was selecting the proper tea set for our afternoon tea."

"Think nothing of it, old boy!" Discord popped on waiter wear, "This way, my good stallion."

Fancy rolled his eyes, knowing that his brother-in-law was making fun of him of when he was a butler in the Canterlot castle serving the royal family before marrying his princess and becoming a prince himself.

The four of them took a seat at a small clothed table and Discord changed from his waiter outfit to a classy blue outfit and had a monocle. Fancy set the tea pot in the middle of the table and Rarity set down the fritters.

Fluttershy took the sugar bowl and asked her husband, "Sugar, dear?"

"Oh, if you don't mind, I would like a whole cup full."

"Alright, but just one cup." she dumped the sugar in his cup and it was a pile.

"That's one cup?!" Rarity exclaimed.

"It is for Discord." Fancy pointed out.

"Besides…" a voice said, and out popped Pinkie from the tea pot, "You can never have enough sugar!"

"Pinkie!" the sisters shouted.

"What in the wide world of Equestria were you doing in there?!" Rarity demanded.

"Oh, I saw Fancy picking out a tea pot, and I thought, 'Gee, what fun!' So I went into the pot and went along for the ride!"

"Pinkie Pie… as much as I encourage chaos of any sort, but the way you do things is too much even for me!" gestured Discord.

"It's a good thing Cheese is the only one who can keep up with you…" said Fluttershy.

Pinkie sighed dreamily, "Yes… my Cheesy… He's always there when I need him…"

Another flashback montage happened, showing Pinkie and Cheese's moments.

"Oh, Cheese!" she sobbed to embrace him, blowing into his shirt, "It's awful! Just awful!"

"I know…" he whispered over her shoulder and patted her back.

"I don't want to get married!"

His eyes widened, "You don't… want…"

"I want to marry the colt I love!"

Relief washed over him, "For a second there, I thought you didn't want to get married at all."

"No way, silly! When I do marry, it'll be for love!"

"I thought so…" he smiled, and then reached into the basket he had, "Hey, look who I brought?" he held out a rubber chicken.

Her hair immediately poofed up at the sight of him, "Boneless!" She took the chicken and squeezed it into a hug.

Boneless was Cheese's companion in the shop and whenever Pinkie came by to pick up supplies, she and him would always play with the chicken.

"And he's yours to keep in a time like this…"

"Oh, Cheese… really?" he questioned him with her big blue eyes, knowing he would rarely part with Boneless.

"Really… You need him… You need…" he wanted to say 'me', but quickly went through the basket and took out a rubber duck, frog, ball, and a few other things that were made of rubber, "his pals!"

"Cheesy, you are the best!" She hugged him again.

"Oh, Pinkie…" he sighed and took off the glasses as she had asked, "I figured with you having to get married, I didn't have the heart to have fun anymore… So I thought it would be a good idea for me to move onto a new business to keep my mind off of you…"

"What?!" her hair slightly deflated, "But… don't you like me anymore?"

"Yes! No! Of course I do like you! I just… don't have any fun without you… You always brighten up any pony's day. You brighten… my day… Knowing I was going to lose you, I didn't know what else to do…" he stared at her with pleading eyes.

"Cheese…" she had near tears of joy as she got closer to him and nuzzled his head, surprising him as she kissed his cheek, "You know what I feel about you?"

"No… what do you feel about me?" he asked curiously.

She gave him a one moment gesture and zipped out, only to bring back a pony named Octavia who had a cello. She whispered a request and Octavia started playing just as Pinkie started singing.

"Hmm… Um…" Pinkie looked over the glass and pressed her face to it, "Everything looks so super yummy that I can't chose!"

"What about the chocolate cupcake? That looks good enough to eat." Cheese pointed out.

"Hm, that would go well with a chocolate chip cookie!"

"Or chocolate cake?!"

"Chocolate pudding!"

"Chocolate fudge!"

"Chocolate shake!"

"Chocolate truffles!"

"Chocolate muffins!"

"Chocolate sticks!"

They kept blathering on different chocolate combos and eventually, they just got all of them.

Pinkie jumped out of the pot, "Yup, that's my Cheesy. Well, have fun at your party!" she hummed as she bounced out with the others giving her funny looks.

"She scares me…" Discord pointed out.

They slowly nodded in agreement before going back to have tea.

That night, the sisters and their husbands sat at the large dining table. Twilight gave a loving glance to Flash as he returned the glance. They've come so far since that first meeting.

Flashbacks of Twilight's and Flash's time together appeared.

She and the pony had both fallen over and she regained herself by saying, "I'm so sorry! I didn't see you there! I was…" she stopped and looked at the pony. He was a pegasus in golden armor and she could see from his helmet opening on top that he had a blue mane to match his beautiful blue eyes. She ended up staring at them distractedly.

He, in turn, was apologizing before getting a clearer view of her, "No, no, it was my fault, I should have…" He saw the most beautiful mare in his life; the highlights in her hair, the violet in her eyes… He, too, ended up staring at her, "…watched where… I was… going…"

"I… I don't think I've seen you around here before…"

"That's because… I'm new. And… a bit lost. You see, I'm trying to find the servant's quarters."

"Servant's quarters? It's downstairs. Here, let me show you." she began to lead him.

"Thank you very much. I am most grateful for your help."

"You're quite welcome." she told him as they descended down the steps.

"So… have you been in the palace long?"

"All of my life."

"Whoa, really?!"

"Uh-huh, ever since I was a baby."

"Oh, does that mean your parents worked here?"

She realized then that he didn't know she was the princess! She was amazed, yet found it refreshing that no colt would refer her as her highness. She decided to go along with it so she could know him better and that he could know her better, "You… could say that. And, you, have you always been a guard?"

"I went into training last year and have been hired on to protect the royal family this year. Say, have you… ever met the princesses or the queen?"

"Oh, yes, in fact… I happen to be very close to the youngest princess."

"Really? What's she like?"

"She's a bookworm. She spends her days in the library learning important things like spells and magics."

"Does she know anything on zebras?"

"Well, yes, but why do you ask?"

"I met one today on my way here. I wasn't sure if she was good or bad, given of the stories I've heard during my training session."

"And… was she bad?"

"No! In fact, she was good to me and was grateful I saved her life from a Timberwolf."

"You saved her from a Timberwolf?! What was that like?! Are they as vicious as the books say from my- uh, the princess's collection?"

"Very vicious… I was lucky to figure out a way to stop it."

"Goodness… that was a good thing…" Then, she noticed they made it to their destination, "Oh, we're here already."

"Great…" he suddenly took off his helmet, which made Twilight's knees buckle at the sight of seeing his face completely. She thought to herself of how better he looked without it, "I was getting hot in this thing and it's been a long day…"

"I bet. After saving someone's life from a Timberwolf." she smiled at him.

He slightly blushed, "It was nothing, really…"

"Well, I think it's something… By the way, what's your name?"

"Flash Sentry. But you can call me Flash for short."

It was her turn to blush, "Okay… Flash…"

"What's your name?"

"My name? Oh! My name…" she panicked, for she didn't want Flash to know her real identity and to feel he had to keep his distance like every other guard in the castle. She liked him and wanted him to not be afraid of her, so she said the first thing that popped into her head, "It's… Twily!" Then, dread came over her. That name was only used by her father when he called for her when she was little. She felt like she could die from embarrassment.

He raised his eyebrow, "Twily?"

"Uh, yes! It's not a very good name, but it is my name…" It was partly the truth and she slightly chuckled.

"Huh… Well, I like it."

"You do?! Seriously?"

He laughed, "Seriously… It's kind of interesting."

"Well…" she was still blushing, "Yours is interesting, too…"

"May I…" he rubbed his neck, "May I see you again, Twily?" he blushed again.

She gasped and grinned widely, saying, "Yes! Yes, of course you may!"

"Really?!" he caught himself, "I mean… I am most happy you've accepted…"

"Shall I meet you here tomorrow night?"

"If you think that's best."

She started to go, "Until then…" She gave him a small wave and he returned it.

"Until then…" he repeated when she was out of sights.

Twilight quietly moved down to the servant's quarters. Once she had reached the room, she opened the door and spotted Flash in a bed. She tip-toed towards him as to make sure she didn't wake up the other servants sleeping there. She had reached him and slightly shook him awake.

He moaned out of his sleep as he was facing her. Once he saw her face more clearly, he nearly yelled out, "Twily-" But she covered his mouth to shush him and gestured for him to follow her.

They slowly walked out the room and once they got out, she took him to her library, making sure they were all alone.

"Twily, what happened this afternoon? Did I offend you in some way? Cause when you didn't come back, I was afraid I would never see you again."

"Oh, Flash, no… Nothing's your fault. I was just upset at myself."

"But why?"

She gave a deep sigh and said, "Because I haven't been very honest with you…"

"What do you mean?"

"For starters, my name isn't Twily. Well, it is, but that's more a nickname since I go by another name."

"So… what is your real name?"

She took a deep breath and said without hesitation, "Twilight Sparkle." she waited for a moment to see how he would react.

Flash stood still and was processing what he just heard. She had just said one of the princesses' names. That was her name. She was the princess. He thought, "Oh no… I must've sounded so stupid to her!"

"Flash?" she questioned as he was not moving, "Well, say something! Anything!"

"I… I… I can't believe it! The princess! You were the princess! This whole time!"

"You would have found out, anyway…" she lowered her head.

"But why? Why not tell me sooner?"

"For the very reason you were just standing around when I told you the news. I wanted you to know me for who I was… And I wanted you to know me…"

"Oh, Twily… Uh, Twilight…" he did a chuckle, "Personally, I like Twily better…."

"Strangely enough, so did I…" she smiled at him, to which he returned it, and they both began to laugh.

Once they finished with their amusement, all they could do was stare at each other.

"I… I should be getting back…" she blushed while starting to turn to go, "And you should go back to sleep. You have important guard duties to do tomorrow after all."

"Not as important as it is to guard the princess right now." he smirked.

"Oh, you… Don't worry, I'll be fine."

"Sure you don't want me to escort you back to your room? It would be my privilege if I did so." he bowed.

"Well… Alright…" she gave in.

Flash and Twilight took a brief stop to face each other.

She said, "None of this would have been possible without you or the others… I can't thank you enough of coming after us and finding our father…"

"It was nothing…" he blushed, "Really…"

"It was something… and I am… so happy to have you here…"

"You are?" his hopes rose.

"I do… I love you…"

"And… I love you, too…"

They stared into each other's eyes as they leaned in slowly before kissing fully on the lips. They broke apart and before they knew it, Twilight had a dark pink glow coming from within her and it surrounded her. She didn't know what was happening and neither did Flash as he stepped back. The gang looked back in surprise of what was going on with Twilight, but Sombra seemed to be grinning.

In a burst of light, Twilight was gently taken back to the ground.

"Twilight? Are you alright?" Applejack asked.

Twilight lifted herself up and suddenly, she spread out wings!

The crowd gasped in astonishment.

"Oh, my goodness!" Fluttershy exclaimed.

"Twilight's got wings!" Rainbow gestured, "Awesome!"

"Darling, you're an alicorn! Like Mother!" motioned Rarity.

"Do you know what this means, Cheesy?" Pinkie led him on.

"I sure do!"

Both of them said together, "Alicorn party!" They blew noisemakers.

Discord found himself sputtering, "But-but-but how is that even remotely possible?! Even I can't do something like that! How did you do that?!"

Twilight found her voice after getting over the shock of having a pair of wings, "I… I don't know! All I did was kiss Flash and now I'm like this!"

Flash apologized, "Twilight! I'm so sorry! I didn't… I didn't mean…"

Sombra came up to them and chuckled, "You have nothing to apologize for, Flash Sentry. This was to be expected for the chosen heir of Equestria…"

"Father?" Twilight raised her eyebrow.

"You see, Twilight, when you were the last born of your sisters, your mother and I knew you would be the one to take our place someday. You may have looked like a unicorn, but you had a power within that could only be revealed when the time would come for to have true love's kiss and earn your wings… Love is the emotion that can reveal one's true potential…"

Discord pointed out, "Well, that's certain a little cheesy!"

"Hey!" Cheese whined.

The group couldn't help but laugh.

Twilight stared back at Flash, "I just can't believe… we're true loves… destiny to be forever…"

"Forever and ever!" Pinkie jumped in excitement.

"But we've only known each other for such a short time… and yet, it's seems longer than that…" he took her hoof as he moved her closer to him and they shared another kiss.

Twilight then tapped her glass, causing everyone to be quiet.

She spoke, "I just want thank every pony for doing a great job as usual every week."

"It's the same thing we always do, taking turns doing the duties! It's not a big deal!" Rainbow mentioned.

"Perhaps, but whenever I see us together like this, it means we have a bond that will last for a very long time… Before the guys, it was just we sisters. But our family has grown since then in the last six years. We lost our father at one point, but because we found love, we got him back. Not only that, but we had three new sisters added into the family. After that, most of us gained children, but the rest of us will also have a chance to have a little one soon enough." she beamed at Discord and Fluttershy and Applejack and Spike. They beamed at her in return. "I wish I can share this moment with our younger sisters, who aren't with us now, but I know they're doing alright in the meantime where they are right now." she raised her glass as everyone followed suit, "May their future be just as happy as ours… To a bright future!"

"To a bright future!" they all shouted out and clanged the glasses together.

A last flashback happened and it was about their wedding day and the reception.

The night air filled in the reception at the gardens as each newlywed took a slow dance for their first dance as husbands and wives. When the music stopped, the couples clapped and a microphone sounded off as Sweetie Belle's voice filled the area.

"Heh…hi, every pony! I just wanted to tell you how lucky I am to have such amazing sisters, even if we weren't sisters at first… but Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and I are happy that we are and we just want to thank the princesses and wish them luck in their new lives with their cool new husbands." That got a couple laughs and awes from the crowd, "And to do that, we've been working on a song just for them as a wedding present… Here it goes…" She gave a signal to Vinyl and the latter started the music up.

The newlyweds each got in a carriage-for Rainbow and Soarin', a chariot-to go on their own honeymoons. Each carriage was going to take a separate direction and as they waved off their fellow couples and they waved up to a balcony that Celestia, Sombra, Luna, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo were on waving goodbye…