Chapter six: Leaving everything behind
Flitter and Cloudchaser sat nervously in Celestia’s room, waiting for her to discuss the last details of their move. They weren’t really looking forward to it, but they had little choice. Maybe, just maybe, the new town would allow them to live their lives as they wanted.
White Lightning sat in another corner, playing with her mane as she looked at her daughters. “Now will you two finally brighten up a bit? You’re looking like you were banished from Equestria or worse.”
Cloudchaser sat forward and glared at her. “It is worse, mom. You haven’t been around for over a year. You have no idea how hard we’ve worked for everything! The new house, all of it; it was our dream!”
Flitter laid her hoof on Cloudchaser who sighed and slumped back down against her sister again. Lightning looked hurt and shocked, but she had to concede that her daughters were right. She hadn’t been there; she wasn’t supporting them.
Just as Lightning opened her muzzle to speak, the door opened and Celestia walked in. She didn’t looked too amused.
“Sometimes I wonder why I bother with those nobles at all. I’d have a more intelligent conversation with a wall, and it would be less stubborn too,” she sighed before sitting down beside Lightning, who unfolded a wing and laid it over her.
“What happened?” Lightning asked.
“The nobles denied funding to move your cloud home to Ponyville. Their reasoning is it that there would already be a cloudhome floating over Ponyville, and that yours would be far too big. Ponyville is only a small town.” Celestia focused on the sisters. “I’m sorry, but it seems like we have to change a few parts of the plan.”
“So we have no home now? Great! Bucking great!” Cloudchaser blurted out before Flitter laid a hoof on her muzzle to silence her.
“Hey, we’re together — that’s all that matters,” Flitter whispered to Cloudchaser as she ran her hoof down her sister’s muzzle. “I don’t care about where we live, as long as you’re there, it will be home to me.”
“But… everything we worked for?”
“Means nothing to me. You’re all I care about, Cloud.”
Cloudchaser tried to stay angry — she tried. It was a fruitless effort. Looking into her sister’s eyes, seeing the cute bow she always wore in her mane and the adorable look on her face. It melted her heart.
Flitter smiled before turning to Celestia and her mother to ask, “so, what do we do now?”
Celestia smiled upon the display of affection. “I found a small, cozy house for you two. It’s near a sweet shop at the center of Ponyville.”
“And about our work?”
“You will work at the local weather team under your old captain, Rainbow Dash.” Celestia smirked. “She’s already agreed to hire you both. She sounded eager, if you ask me.”
The twins smiled at each other, at least they were going to have one friend in this new town.
“And…” Celestia paused with a sly grin on her face.
They looked back to her, confusion on their faces. “And what?”
“Well, since the nobles were too stuck up to move your house, I politely informed them that it’s against the law to simply take another pony’s property. As such they had no choice but to pay you full market value for it.”
“Wait… you mean?”
“Yes, there should be a nice amount of bits deposited into your bank account in the next few days.” She leaned in to whisper the next part. “The truly stupid thing is, it will cost them ten times more than it would have cost just to move the house.”
All four mares snickered at that.
“It’s not enough to retire off, mind you, but it’ll be enough to help you settle very comfortably into your new place.”
Cloudchaser laughed at that. “I could have all bits in Equestria, but all I truly need is my sister.”
At that moment, Flitter leapt at her, drawing her in for a deep, passionate kiss.
Celestia smiled as she watched the sisters display their love like that. She had no worries for them in Ponyville. It was a small town, relatively new with only a few high class ponies in it. Even if they were outed there, nopony would care.
“I’ve already called for a chariot to take you back to your cloud house and ordered a few royal guards to help you pack up.”
“Wait… now?” Flitter asked as she sat up on top of her sister.
“I’m afraid they want you gone at once. So yes, now.”
“Oh, okay…” Flitter said as she stood back up onto her hooves. She knew that they were moving, she accepted it even, but… she thought they’d have a least a day before they had to move. It was fast — a little too fast.
A muzzle pressed against hers, causing her to sigh as Cloudchaser pressed her face against her sister’s. “It’s fine. The sooner we get this done, the sooner we can move on with our lives… our lives together.”
Flitter pulled back and saw the smile on her sister’s face. It became contagious as they pressed their lips together once more before both sisters pulled back and rested their foreheads on one another, staring into each other’s eyes.
“I’ll help too.”
Flitter, Cloudchaser, and Celestia all turned to look at Lightning, shocked expressions on the sister’s faces. “What? You were right Cloudchaser. I wasn’t there… I want to make up for that, if you’ll let me that is.”
“I think it is a good start.” Cloudchaser smiled for a moment before her expression turned darker. “But what about father?”
“He’s still in Fillydelphia, but at some point we have to talk to him. For now, we should focus on getting you two settled.”
A loud knocking on the door startled them all. “That should be them now,” Celestia said with a sad smile.
LIghting noticed this and returned to her side. “I’ll be back soon enough.”
“Yeah, I know,” Celestia said. “It’s just been a while since we spent any time together.”
“Then we’ll have to make up for that,” Lightning replied.
“Get a room, you two,” Cloudchaser jokingly said.
Both, Celestia and Lightning blew her a raspberry. A gesture that was very unlikely from Celestia and caused Cloudchaser to gasp back.
The knock sounded again, more urgently this time. “Come in,” Celestia replied with a lackluster tone in her voice.
A royal guard walked in and saw the four mares. Without so much as a double look he simply gave his report. “Princess, the chariot is ready.”
“Well… you heard him,” Celestia said, keeping the sigh out of her voice.
“Let’s go, girls,” Lightning replied as she started walking out the door, followed by her two daughters walking side by side. A little closer than they should but they had just win a court case over it.
Buck em, they can’t prove shit, Lightning thought with a smile.
The three mares walked the length of the hallway and out of the palace. To the twin’s surprise, the entrance was cleared. They did not know if the crowd had dispersed by itself, of if the royal guard had asked them to leave, but either way they were glad for it.
“Have you given any thoughts to what you want to take with you?” Lightning asked as the chariot started to take off.
Both sisters shared a knowing look. “A few things.”
Lightning didn’t know why their answer was so cryptic, but she decided not to push the issue herself. She smiled as she watched her two daughters so close to each other. Flitter and Cloudchaser were side by side, their coats touching as they pointed out odd the sights to each other on their flight back to Cloudsdale — things they had been too apprehensive and nervous to notice on the way to the trial.
She chuckled a little at the sight before her. It should upset her — she should be shocked at the fact that her two daughters loved each other, that they made love to each other, but oddly, she wasn’t.
They had always been close growing up, taking baths together, looking out for each other, and even sleeping together far longer than they needed too. It was a special bond they shared with one another. Was it so wrong, so unusual that the bond might become something more? That they might want to express that love in more intimate ways?
She didn’t think so. Seeing them now, seeing the love they have for each other, the love they’d always had for each other, only brought a smile to her face. Her daughters loved each other — they had empathy, compassion, and respect. Sure, it might mean that she’d have to hope they adopt for her to have grand foals, but she’d love them all the same.
No, Lightning wasn’t disgusted by her daughters’ actions. She was proud, just as any good mother should be. Sure, her family may not be considered normal by any stretch of the word, but normal was abnormal anyway. Every family has skeletons in their closet — hers were just a little more obvious than the most.
“Hey, sis, look at that!” Flitter yelled as she pointed over to a new mountain chain.
“Oh that-”
They were cut off as a hoof wrapped around both sisters and pulled them away and to a pony’s chest.
“Mom!” both sisters yelled at the same time.
“Mother’s prerogative,” Lightning said as she held her two daughters tightly to her chest. They both moaned and complained about it, but neither did anything to actually get away from her.
Neither really wanted to.
When a tear fell upon Flitter’s muzzle she couldn’t help but look up. “Mom?” she asked.
“Girls, I’m… I’m so sorry,” Lightning cried. “I thought… I thought you wanted space. I thought you wanted to be left alone so I… I…”
Flitter and Cloudchaser both wrapped a hoof around her and hugged her tightly. “Don’t cry mom,” Flitter said, her voice muffled by Lightning’s mane.
“I want you to know that I’m proud of you — both of you. You two girls are amazing — more than I could’ve asked for. I love you both and I’m happy that you two found each other the way you did.”
Cloudchaser was taken aback by that — part of her couldn’t believe that her mom had just said it. It was one thing for her to say she was okay with their relationship, but… this was something different. “Do you mean it?” she asked.
“Yes, I mean it Cloud. I’m happy for you both.” Tears were falling freely now as she held her daughters tighter.
Cloudchaser sobbed. “Thanks, mom.”
The three mares were able to enjoy each other’s company after that. They laughed and talked like a family — like the family they were. Flitter started a game where she would test her mom’s knowledge of all of Equestria’s landmarks, only for her mother to ace every single one.
Sadly, all good things must come to an end. The last landmark that was pointed out on their journey was Cloudsdale itself, and not by any of the sisters.
“We’re here,” said the guards pulling the chariot.
His tone of voice killed the fun for the three mares. They all stepped off the chariot and Lightning gave her thanks for their assistance, only to be meant with a stern nod in return.
“Well, he’s just a basket of joy,” Cloudchaser said.
“Too bad he’s not a basket of kittens,” Flitter replied, earning herself a laugh from her mom and sister.
“Don’t ever change, Flitter.” Lightning kissed her on the top of her head. “C’mon, let’s get you two packed up and to your new house.”
When they went inside Cloudchaser’s jaw dropped as she saw ten royal guards waiting on her. “What are you…”
“Remember, Celestia said she had sent them to help you move. Just tell them what you want to take with you and they will handle the heavy lifting.”
Cloudchaser looked over to her sister. She looked nervous — beyond nervous. “What’s wrong?” she asked Flitter.
“I… can you handle this? I want to hoof carry a few thing from upstairs.”
“LIke what?” Cloud asked, unsure what items Flitter was so apprehensive about that she wanted to handle personally. Their more… intimate items were kept in a nonchalant box in the closet. There was little risk of the guards seeing them.
“I… they’re precious to me,” Flitter said.
“I guess…” Cloudchaser said.
“Thanks,” Flitter said before running up the stairs.
Cloudchaser gave her sister one last curious look before turning back to the guards. “Okay, you three start packing dishes. The pantry is empty so there is little that needs to be packed up as far as food goes. I want you three to get into the living room and you four follow me up the stairs to start working there.”
Once she saw that everything was going according to plan and all the guards seemed to take their orders without issue, Cloudchaser turned to her mother. “Mom, will you keep an eye on things down here?”
“Of course.”
“Thanks.”
Cloudchaser gave her a warm smile before leading the last four guards up the stairs. She directed one of them into the extra bedroom, a room they hardly ever used. The next guard she sent into the bathroom to pack up there. The last two she had follow her into the master bedroom.
“Alright, the dresser goes, and the clothes in the closet,” Cloud said as she gestured a hoof to the dresser. The two pegasus guards got on either side and lifted it together, careful not to let the drawers open up as they did so.
Cloud looked around, wondering where Flitter had gone. When she checked the closet there was no sign of her, although the box was still there. “What did she want?”
“What did who want?” Flitter asked from the doorway.
“Oh, I was just wondering what was so important.”
“I’ll show you when we get to our new home.”
“Uhmm... okay.”
The two sisters started to unpack the closet and throw their clothes on the cloud bed. They both sighed as they saw it. As much as they’d love to take it with them, it just wasn’t doable. The bed was part of the house — it couldn’t be removed.
Flitter grabbed the box out of the closet and put it on the stack of clothes. Cloudchaser threw a few extra clothes on top of it before the guards came back.
“You can take those too.” Cloudchaser said as they came back to get the rest.
The two guards nodded and picked up the stack of clothes to carry it off.
Flitter looked at her sister. “I can’t recall why we bought so many clothes. I can’t remember even wearing half of them.”
Cloudchaser approached her, whispering into her ear. “Maybe because you look stunning without clothes.”
Flitter blushed and shrieked silently. “Cloudy! Not now!”
Cloudchaser removed the tip of her wing from a very unsisterly place to touch. She smiled as she sniffed it. “You’re right, after all, we’ll need to break in our new house anyway.”
“Yeah, if we can get rid of mom for that long.”
“Getting me rid for what?” Lightning stepped in with a raised eyebrow. “What are you two planning now?”
“Downstairs all packed up?” Cloudchaser asked, ignoring her mother’s question. For her part, Flitter just blushed at almost being caught by her mother. It was one thing to know your mother’s okay with your actions, quite another for her to see it.
“They’re packing up the boxes now. I have to say for a bunch of stuck-up-their-own-flanks guards they move pretty quick. Although it’s helped by how little you two have.”
“Hey, we did just move in after all. It ain't cheap to furnish a house.”
“You’re telling me?” Lightning asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Oh, yeah, right,” Cloudchaser said as she lowered her head.
“C’mon you two, let’s get going.”
“Yeah, okay,” Flitter said as she walked out the door. She didn’t go downstairs though. She wanted to take one last look around just to make sure they didn’t forget anything.
Cloudchaser smiled as she went to follow her sister, only to be stopped by a wing from her mother. “If you two want some alone time, all you gotta do is ask.”
“Wait, you knew?”
“C’mon, it’s not my first time around the block. I’ve seen the blush that was on your sister’s face more than once, you know.”
“Who knew you were so cool?” Cloudchaser said with a smile.
“There’s a lot about your mom that you don’t know,” Lightning said, wrapping her daughter in a wing.
“Yeah, I’m getting that.”
“I’m learning a lot about you two too.”
“Oh, like what?”
“For starters, that you both need to go shopping.”
“Hardy har har.”
“And that I’ve raised two wonderful daughters.”
“Thanks, mom.”
“No need to thank me. I… I failed you two. No, don’t interrupt, I did. I’m going to make it up to you though — to both of you. I promise you that.”
“Well, you’ve gotten off to a great start.”
“Hey, Cloudy! Mom! They’ve got it all! We’re ready to go!” Flitter called from the doorway.
“Well, do you want to say goodbye to your home before we leave?” Lightning asked Cloudchaser.
“No. I’m not leaving my home. Home is you two — this is just a place.”
Flitter cried a little at that as she walked up to hug her sister and mother. They both returned it in equal measure. After a few moments they broke apart, smiling.
“Let’s get going,” Flitter said.
“Right behind you, sis,” Cloudchaser said with a smile as she let Flitter take the lead. Together, the three mares made their way downstairs. “I’ll double check the kitchen,” Cloudchaser said.
“No need — already did,” Lightning said.
“They finished that quickly?” Flitter asked.
“You two don’t have much. We’re going shopping for… everything when we get to Ponyville.”
“We don’t have a lot of—”
“My treat!” Lightning cut off Flitter’s comment.
“Thanks, mom,” Flitter said as she wiped a tear away.
“Alright you two, let’s go.”
“Eh-hem.” One of the guards cleared his throat.
“Oh, yeah, you’re all dismissed. Thank you for your hard work.”
As one they turned and left.
“Wait, aren't they going to help us unpack?” Cloudchaser asked.
“No need. A Miss… Pinkie Pie already has everything ready for us.”
“Who?” both Twins asked at the same time.
“I don’t know. Apparently, she’s the town resident party pony. As soon as she found out you were coming, she started to prepare everything for your arrival. Apparently she had to be talked out of throwing a huge ‘Sorry you got kicked out of your home town’ parade.”
“That’s nuts,” Cloudchaser said.
“Yeah, a little,” Lightning agreed. “C’mon let's get out of here.” She led the way, her daughters trailing a little behind. When they got in the chariot, Cloudchaser noticed a little silver box tucked under her sister’s wing. Lightning noticed it too.
“Is that?” Cloudchaser asked.
Flitter noticed what she was gesturing it. “Yeah, I hadn’t intended for you to see it until we got there though.”
“Can I see it now?” Cloudchaser asked.
Flitter looked at her sister and then to her mother. She sighed and placed the box down. “I guess, can you block the wind though?”
Both mares opened their wing as Flitter opened the small box. What they saw surprised both of them. There were pictures in the box, little photographs of the twins.
She moved through each photo one at a time. The first one showed them both on a slide in Cloudsdale. The next their first day of school. The one after that was Cloudchaser helping Flitter with her bow. The next showed them both opening their acceptance letter for flight camp.
In each and every one, Flitter looked nervous and Cloudchaser was always right by her side, there to cheer her up.
“I… I don’t understand,” Cloudchaser admitted.
“These…” Flitter said under her breath, “these are the most precious moments of my life.” She continued going through each picture for the two to see. “These are the memories I’ve always cherished with you, Cloud.”
Both of them watched as Flitter went through the rest of the photographs with tears in their eyes. The last photo made Lightning gasp.
“What is this?” Lightning asked
The photo showed a big, shaped cloud with lots of slides on it and a big, home-nearly shape on top. On its sides, Flitter and Cloudchaser’s cutie marks were shaped out of the cloud. “That was our cloud. We shaped it for each other. First at Hearth's Warming Eve, then at Heart’s and Hooves Day.”
“I never knew that you took a photo.” Cloudchaser said, tears starting to form in her eyes at the memory.
“I took it before we had to destroy it.” Flitter sobbed slightly and Cloudchaser unfolded a wing to hug her close.
“It’s simply beautiful.” Lightning said, smiling at her daughters.
“You should’ve seen it at night from the inside. The inactive thunderclouds in the walls and roof made the bedroom glimmer with blue light at night,” Cloudchaser said, smirking.
As her daughters embraced each other, Lightning carefully packed up the photos and placed them back in the silver box. Now they all understood why Flitter didn’t want anypony else to carry these. Next to her sister, these were the most precious possession she had.
White Lightning held the silver box tightly under her wing with tears in her eyes. In front of her were two wonderful, beautiful daughters, and she didn’t even know a day ago. Her girls had grown up and she wasn’t there. She missed it. That realization stabbed her in the gut. She silently renewed her vow that she wouldn’t miss anything else. She’d be the mother they deserve.