When Spike woke up that morning he had gone about his usual routine of stretching, making his bed and going into the kitchen to make breakfast. This morning, however, something was off. Twilight hadn't come home last night and she was not in the kitchen like she usually was. At first, the baby dragon thought she might have stayed over at a friend's house. He went to Rarity's who hadn't seen her. The rest of her friends made vague insinuation that Celestia would know where she was. He had returned home and written a letter to Celestia. His worries were assuaged when Twilight herself wrote back telling her everything was fine. What the letter didn't say was why Twilight was over at Celestia's or what she was doing there. Was there some sort of emergency? Had Discord returned? Sombra? Had the dark crystals left over by Sombra obtained sentience? Had some new foe been let loose?
To calm himself, he had taken a nice, soothing bath. Life was hard for a baby dragon. By the time his bath was done he heard Twilight trotting inside.
"Spike! I'm home!" She called.
Spike dried himself off and had to stop himself from running into her arms. He still ran to the living room though.
"I'm sorry I worried you." She offered.
"Where have you been?" He responded, like a worried mother. The role reversal must have amused Twilight because she had to hold back a giggle. The unicorn took her number one assistant into her arms. Spike gratefully returned the hug.
"Me and Celestia were just talking about a few things." Twilight said.
"Do you want me to make breakfast?" Spike asked. "I mean, I did make breakfast, but it got late and I was worried and when I'm worried I eat so I ate it. Sorry."
"No, I had breakfast with the Princess." Twilight said. She wandered over to the library shelves and began to browse them. She paused at one familiar work, the Diamond Dog epic entitled The Song of Ruffland. A few weeks ago she and Celestia had worked together on translating the ancient text. She had gone to the castle or Celestia had come to the library and they had worked together long into the night.
They had worked together on several projects throughout the years, sometimes as mentor and student, other times as equals. They shared a love for ancient epics. Celestia, for her part, actually remembered the times that the texts were written and the exact cadence that the long-lost verses would have been spoken or sung in. By candlelight she had recited lost poetry to Twilight while Twilight had only listened in awe. They had translated Beewolf, the Odyssey, the Tales of the Knights of the Round Stable. All of the epics were on a shelf while the copies translated into modern Equestrian were gathering dust in her drawers, their copies having been published throughout Equestria. It had been about a month since their last joint venture to translate an ancient work. Perhaps they could translate something new. Surely, the Crystal Library held some work unknown or lost to modern Equestrian scholars.
She could imagine it. Late night, the princess and herself reading over an ancient texts, their tails slowly twining together as they forgot about whatever old saga they were supposed to be translating. Suddenly, there lips would meet...
"Um, Twi? You okay there?"
Spike's voice jolted her from her less-than-academic fantasy.
"Oh! Yes, I'm fine. I'm looking for books for..."
"For what?"
For courting a Princess. "Oh, just books about...the Gryphon-Minotaur War."
"But the history section is on another book case."
"No, I'm looking for one of the epics about the war...here it is." She pulled off an actual epic written by a Minotaur about the conflict (heavily biased, in Twilight's opinion), then another one called 'The Art of Love.' Spike had gone onto his chores. She took the two books and went up to her room. She put the Minotaur epic to the side to read later and sat down at her study. It wouldn't be right to bribe Celestia into loving her, but Twilight thought it might be possible to impress her enough that it would sway her heart. Several generations of her ancestors had won love that way. The first chapter of the book covered basic stuff, the philosophy of love, the holiness of love...how one must be worthy of one's love.
Twilight gulped. Was she worthy of Celestia's love? She was of noble blood, true. Her ancestors had been aristocrats, but their power had dwindled over the centuries. Their domain now barely stretched as far as her mother's kitchen. Besides, Twilight was only a librarian. A wielder of the Element of Magic, sure, but what right had she to court the God-Princess of Ponykind? Celestia was a goddess-there was no denying it. Twilight was a mere mortal and not a very important one at that. That was why Celestia was hesitating, that had to be it. Twilight simply wasn't worthy of her love, but Celestia didn't know how to tell her that.
'Then, I will make myself worthy. But how do I make myself worthy of a Goddess's love?'
She continued reading. A very large chapter was dedicated to giving gifts to woo the beloved.
'I thought of sending her flowers or making her a song...those are good ideas, but a little cliche. Besides, how many admirers send her flowers and around a thousand songs have been written in praise of her.'
That was another problem that had begun to worry Twilight. She had rivals. Unnamed rivals with rank and power that Twilight could never hope to match. Her only advantage? She knew the princess. She knew her better than anypony else besides Princess Luna. Celestia loved tulips, cakes and Jasmine tea, she loved books both new and old.
Books...
Twilight thought back to that shelf of books they had translated together. The happiest Twilight had ever seen the Princess was when they were bent over an old manuscript and Celestia was reliving the vigorous days of her youth. The princess would let down her guard and tell Twilight of battles won and lost, of friends fondly remembered, of old lovers that secretly made Twilight jealous.
The more Twilight thought about it the more convinced she became that the best gift she could give Celestia was another old book that they could work on together. They had already worked on so much together. What could they do next? Then, a fragment of a memory came unbidden to her mind. On one of those late night sessions Celestia had mentioned something. A companion piece to Solid Shield's "Songs of Venus." It was a book of love poetry now lost to the ages. A crystal pony poet had written it and Celestia had sought for it in the Crystal Library when the Empire had been restored, but had not been able to find it.
What if I could find it? It would make her so happy! Twilight smiled at the thought of bringing a smile to her beloved's face. But, how could she find it? If even Celestia couldn't, it was hopeless. Still, at the very least she could try. Maybe she could get her friends to help her? She bit her lip. If they helped then it really wouldn't have been her finding it. The sooner she got started the better.
"Spike!" She called.
The little dragon ran up the stairs and into her room. "What's up, Twilight?"
"Clear my schedule. We're going to the Crystal Empire."
Spike's eyes widened. "We're going where?"
...
Twilight sat around the table in Rarity's kitchen. Her friends and Spike were sitting with her. After making her decision, she'd realized just disappearing without a word would worry her friends so she had decided to round them up and tell them.
"You're going to the Crystal Empire? What for?" Applejack asked.
"And why aren't you bringing us?" Dash asked. "I'd love to get a chance to joust again. There was this crystal pony guard who kept offering to show me his moves."
"Well, you see...I've decided to get a gift for the Princess. A book of love poems. It's been lost for centuries, but I think I can find it."
"Oh my." Rarity said. "That sounds lovely. Do you need our help?"
"I'm afraid not. This is one of those things I have to do myself."
"Good luck, Darling."
The sentiment was repeated by all her friends. Pinkie promised to throw her a party when she returned. After talking for a while longer Twilight decided it was time to go. She bid them all farewell and then left.
...
It took three hours to get from Ponyville to the Crystal Empire. While the hills and valleys went by in a blur of green, Twilight stared out the window and sat. Spike was beside her flipping through a comic book.
"So, how long do you think this will take?" He asked when he finished the comic book and placed it down.
"I'm not sure, Spike. Celestia herself was unable to find it."
"Then what makes you think you can?"
She bit her lip. "I'm not sure I can."
The green gave way to white as the snow-peaked mountains of the North slowly came into view. The Crystal Empire was getting closer. The train crested several hills before entering into the territory of the Empire. The crystal towers of the great city that had once served as capital to a much larger territory rose up from a valley between the snowy mountains.
The train came to a stop, letting the passengers off. Twilight and Spike walked into the city. Things had changed since their last visit. The city was still as vast as ever. The sun shone upon the multicolored crystals of which the city was built giving the whole city a rainbow hue. The crystal ponies were going about their daily business. A market had been set up in the city square. The air was filled with laughter and talking and merchants calling out their wares. There was an atmosphere of an ordinary day unlike the sinister atmosphere that had been present last time she had visited. Twilight and Spike walked through it on their way to the library.
When they entered the library they found it to be in a state of pandemonium. Ponies were carrying boxes full of books. Other ponies were sifting through them and handing them to others who were placing them on shelves. The bookshelves nearly scraped the ceiling they were so high, but most were only half-full. She accosted a librarian who was hurriedly trotting.
"Hello, Sir. What's going on?"
"We're reorganizing the library. We found vaults and catacombs filled with books. Some of them date back to the Republic. Some sort of magical enchantments on them keep them preserved. It's not the...er...former emperor's doing. Empress Cadence has ordered us to do a full reorganization of the library."
Cadence is having a library reorganized and didn't tell me? We're going to have to have words about that."I'm a librarian. Can I help?"
He shrugged. "Suit yourself."
...
Celestia walked among the roses of her garden, what remained of the morning dew tickling her bare hooves. The co-ruler of Equestria was having a brief respite from the duties of her office. Her crown and rainment had been set aside. In an hour she would have to speak with the Caribou king, Dainn. She was looking forward to it. Caribou were known for their manners, their high regard for gender equality and general respect for others. King Dainn was the last in a line of philosopher-kings who shunned war and violence unless it was a last resort. Still, her mind had been troubled since this morning and it had nothing to do with Equestria and the Caribou Tribe's trade alliance. A certain purple unicorn was haunting her thoughts. The minute she resolved to tell Twilight that her feelings were purely platonic she began to doubt if that was really true. Then, she decided to tell Twilight she genuinely returned her feelings. But was that the truth?
How long had it been since she had opened her heart to love? How many had she lost? It had been a thousand years.
"One-thousand years..." She whispered. One-thousand years of loneliness. She did not wish to blame her sister, but after that loss she had made no friends nor had she taken a single lover. She avoided learning the names of her servants or guards and when time took them she did not mourn their passing. "I have closed my heart for one-thousand years."
"I am sorry, Sister, for all the good it does."
The Night Princess trotted up to her sister. She had entered the garden so quietly the elder hadn't noticed her.
Celestia turned to face her. "Sister I...I didn't mean for you to hear that. You know I have forgiven you."
"I haven't forgiven myself. And if you have closed your heart to love because of what I did I could never forgive myself."
Celestia raised a hoof and stroked Luna's cheek. "Oh, Luna. We will both heal in time."
"I know, Sis." Luna said. "I want you to be happy. I want you to love. Tell me, do you love Twilight Sparkle?"
"Of course. I just don't know what kind of love I feel for her." Celestia looked away. "But I did kiss her back."
Luna blinked. "She kissed you?"
Celestia nodded. "Last night, Twilight teleported into my room and she kissed me. I was confused at first, but I kissed back." She paused. "Twilight is attractive, I can't deny that. And she is intelligent. And brave. And she is so eager, always willing to please."
Luna raised an eyebrow. "Sister. You're in love."
...
Twilight sighed as she looked through the pile of books. She took the current one, a history of the Crystal tribes, and placed it on a stack of history books. She was in the basement surrounded by seemingly endless piles of books. The shelves continued far into what appeared to be catacombs. The high ceiling of the chamber sparkled with the gems that covered it. The gems provided an ambient light that Twilight could read by.
Crystal ponies were trotting to and fro, carrying stacks of books to organize. Twilight had decided to make things easier for herself and had made several stacks that now surrounded her like the book forts of her childhood. In one stack were several volumes of history she would come back for when she wasn't so focused on her mission. Beside that stack were books of poems.
None of them were the book of poems she was looking for. There was a stack for epics, a stack for mathematics, a stack for sciences, a stack for philosophy (including a particularly bleak political textbook written by Sombra) and a stack for miscellaneous books. Spike was seated on a table as well, but she'd instructed him not to help. The only reason Twilight had brought him was that she just didn't feel comfortable leaving him at the library by himself. It was different when he went away on royal business, but even then she worried over him. Though next year he would be able to be left by himself more.
"Why can't I help?" Spike asked, breaking her from her reverie.
"I have to do this myself." Twilight answered, engrossed in a book of poems.
"Why? What's so special about this?"
"It's very important. I need to find this book."
"The Princess didn't ask you to find it though. Why put yourself through all this trouble? You've been at it for hours!"
Twilight looked up at a clock. For three hours she had done nothing but search for the book she wanted to give as a gift to Celestia. Every time she thought of giving up and going home she thought of Celestia's smile. Bringing a smile to that radiant face would make all of this worth it.
"Because I want to show the Princess how special she is to me." Twilight answered.
...
Celestia and Luna trotted through the alabaster halls of her palace. They shone pink and orange in the light of the afternoon sun that filtered in from the high windows on either side. Down this hall were the chambers where guests were received. As was traditional, the chamber had been decorated in the style of the visitor's culture.
Soft brown tapestries portraying the heroes and folktales of the Caribou. Her particular favorite was the one that showed Great Mother Who Gives Birth To the World. The image of Mother Goddess was one shared by both Caribou and Ponies. Celestia had met Her once and been mentored by her as well, long ago when she was preparing to fight Discord. The tapestry was vibrant, shades of shimmering blue framing the white-winged, silver-maned alicorn.
The Caribou King was seated at the table. He rose and knelt his head at them. They knelt back, all three brushing their horns together as was customary.
There had always been a quiet dignity to the Caribou royal family and Dainn was no different. His antlers were covered in golden rings and his muscles were well-developed, showing military training. It was military matters he wished to speak of. They got down to business. The Flutter Valley Republic had assaulted the Caribou's eastern frontiers with the intent of reclaiming lost territory and to spread their fanatical brand of Mooism. Dainn didn't have the military force to repel them and needed aid. Celestia and Luna listened with interest. In the end they offered the services of their elite 107th Unicorn Battalion just as the Caribou had aided them in the Roan War. Then they moved onto trade and a few other issues. Dainn and Luna kept giving Celestia strange looks.
"Princess Celestia, are you alright?" Dainn finally asked around the seventh time Celestia's eyes wandered to the window.
"Yes, Sister. You seem distracted." Luna said.
Celestia returned her attention to the conversation It was something about preventing the distribution of certain obscene and speciesist comics portraying the Caribou in an extremely lewd light. "I'm sorry, your Highness. I find my attention slipping."
"Have I bored you?" The king asked.
"Not at all. I'm dealing with personal issues."
"We've known each other a long time." Dainn said. "And I'd even go so far as to call you a friend. Tell me what troubles you. Perhaps, I can help."
"Sister is in love." Luna announced, earning a glare from Celestia.
"I see. And who is the object of your affections?"
Celestia sighed. "It is my student. And I'm not in love with her. Or, I don't think I'm in love with her."
Luna patted her back. "Sister." She said in a nearly pleading tone. "Can you not allow yourself to be happy?"
Dainn looked from one sister to the other. "What are your feelings for this student?"
"I don't know, that's the problem. It has been a long time-centuries-since I've been in love. I feel like I've forgotten how."
Dainn smiled sadly. "Love is a scary thing. You remember when I lost my wife don't you?"
"I do."
"I vowed I would never love again. I thought there could never be another like her in all this world.Then, I met a noblecow from another Caribou tribe. Oh my, Princess! How I denied my feelings for her. I felt like loving her would be a betrayal of my wife. Then, she confessed her feelings to me. She asked me if I thought my wife would want me to be alone and unhappy.No, of course she wouldn't have. She helped me to remember how to love."
Celestia could almost have sworn she saw tears in the old stag's eyes. "I understand what you're saying Thank you, both of you, but this is something I need to work out on my own."
"Of course."
There being no further business they knelt to one another once more and Dainn left.
...
Twilight leaned back onto a pile of books and sighed. It had now been four hours since she'd began her search. It wasn't there. It simply wasn't. Spike had fallen asleep. Loyal as he was, he wasn't inexhaustible. She closed her eyes and began to weave a spell. This was her last attempt. If this failed, she'd have to find some other way of proving herself in Celestia's eyes. Magic flowed from her horn and searched the vast catacombs. As she scanned the library with her spell she realized there were more catacombs just beneath this level.
She scooped up Spike in her magic and laid him on her back. He wrapped his arms around her and they set off. She lit her horn, illuminating the darkness. A row of stone stairs, cracked and decaying, led into darkness. She gulped and began her descent. The light of her horn revealed chamber filled with more books. She picked one up in her magic. It was a book of love poems. She began her search once more, sometimes picking up several books in her magic.
"Solid...Spear? No, not spear." She murmured to herself as she sorted through the books. "This is Old Crystalish...not very good at it...Shield! This is Soldid Shield's work! I found it!"
Twilight began to prance around the room shouting yes. Spike woke up and held on tight.
"So, you found it?"
"Yes! Yes, I did!"
...
Celestia was out walking in the garden, this time among the gardenias. They smelled sweet this time of year. Her student was still on her mind. Or was Twilight still her student? At some point, Celestia couldn't quite recall when, her faithful student had become her beloved friend. Her meditation was interrupted by a puff of smoke. A letter appeared before her. She held it in her magic and unrolled it. Tears sprang to her eyes as she read it.
'Dear, Princess Celestia,
I have been searching for the words to say to you. I have found a book of poems and this poem expresses the words I've always wanted to say.
‘You are the goddess of my heart,
at secret altars I have knelt to you,
I long to drink with you
the wine of desire,
oh how shall I quench this thirst
in my soul,
this longing for your touch?
My soul is parched and dry without you!
Kiss me
and quench my soul’s thirst.’,
I found a copy of Solid Shield’s work. If you’d like we could work on translating it together.
Yours Forever, Twilight.’
"My gods..." Celestia breathed. “Solid Shield. She actually found Solid Shield’s work.”
Grinning a bit, she teleported into her chambers. There, she found a scroll and a quill.
‘My Faithful Student Twilight Sparkle,
How on Equestria did you find Solid Shield’s work? I searched for it, myself. The poem is very beautiful. I’m touched that you feel that way about me. If you’d like, we can certainly work on it together."
With a flash from her horn, the letter was sent off.