//------------------------------// // Ever your Faithful Student // Story: Friendship is Forever // by fabrosi //------------------------------// Chapter 19: Ever your Faithful Student It was unsettling living in fear of Celestia's return, but Twilight was ready to defend Maneheart should she be called upon to do so. Even though she now knew she was stronger than Celestia, she still practiced magic harder than ever, visualizing her second victory again and again, in every way she could imagine achieving it. Now that Luna's secret was known to Celestia, there was no need for the blue alicorn to spend most of her time in Canterlot, so she would watch as Twilight performed her spells, marveling at just how far she had come. The fillies would press Twilight to tell them again and again about the parts of her battle with Celestia that had taken place away from Maneheart, and each time she would roll her eyes and retell the experience as they hung onto her every word. … One day, Twilight came back from her practice with Perseus to find Applejack, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash gathered around a table. As soon as she entered the lodge, they all looked up at her, strangely startled. "Oh! Hey, Twilight!" greeted Applejack. "Yeah… hi!" added Rainbow Dash. Twilight raised an eyebrow. "What's going on?" "Oh, nothing," replied Rainbow Dash, waving dismissively. "We were just talking about…" "…about how great it was that you defeated Princess Celestia," finished Fluttershy. Twilight studied her friends carefully, but they seemed disinclined to give up any secrets. Rainbow Dash was probably calling me an egghead or something, she thought to herself. "…I did what I had to," she replied, trying not to sound suspicious of them, "Honestly, when I was up against her, I wasn't even sure I'd stand a chance." "Well," said Applejack, "we're all endlessly grateful that you did stand up to her. We owe all our lives to you." The other two chimed in with their agreement. "Anytime," said Twilight, just as her stomach started to rumble. "Oh… Right now, though, I think I'd better focus on defeating hunger." Her friends watched her silently as she headed into the kitchen. When they were sure she was out of hearing range, Fluttershy whispered "I'm sure she wouldn't lie to us about something as important as this." "And I'm sure," retorted Rainbow Dash, "that it doesn't add up for a unicorn to be able to defeat an alicorn. I mean, we all know Twilight's magic is strong, but how could it be that strong?" "Alright," whispered Applejack huffily, "let's say Celestia did throw the fight—why? Why would she take the trouble to come here and then just leave? Your lil' theory just don't make sense." "Maybe they meant to fight at first, but couldn't go through with it. Twilight adores Celestia, and I think maybe Celestia still feels the same way about her. I mean, did you see the way she reacted after she sent Twilight to the moon? She was just as worried as the rest of us! If you ask me, those two could never get into a serious fight with each other, and that's why I don't think they did… and at the end, there, it sure looked like Twilight was letting Celestia get away." "That don't prove"— They fell silent again as Twilight passed through the room, taking her food upstairs so she could eat while she studied. Once she was far enough away, Applejack resumed her sentence: "That don't prove nothin', Rainbow. I mean, if you had to choose between us and the Wonderbolts, it wouldn't even be a contest, now, would it?" "That's"—Rainbow Dash looked at the wall, blushing. "It's not the same, okay? That comparison isn't fair." "Neither is you accusing Twilight of being a bad friend," said Fluttershy sternly. "Celestia's not who we used to think she was at all, and I think Twilight knows that. She knew she had no choice but to fight the princess." Suddenly, Applejack remembered something. "Y'know, I can't believe I forgot somethin' so important, but there's somethin' I need to show you two." As their curiosity was piqued, the hostility vanished from their demeanors. "Just promise me y'all won't tell Twilight, you hear?" "I promise," said Rainbow Dash, nodding. "Me too," added Fluttershy. Applejack walked them to the room she shared with Rarity, who was still out in town. They watched apprehensively as she looked through her bag and pulled out a bent, tattered photograph. They both stifled gasps as they laid eyes upon it. "You see?" said Applejack, still whispering to ensure that Twilight wouldn't hear from the next room over. "It's even worse than we thought. Rainbow, you've got to understand that Celestia isn't just bad—she's a monster, pure'n simple, and Twilight did the right thing fightin' her." Rainbow Dash was still staring in shock at the photograph, but after short delay the words registered. "I'm sorry… I didn't know." Applejack let out a soft grunt before taking back the photograph and putting it away. They went back downstairs as quietly as possible, all of them unable to dispel from their minds the terrible image of Celestia goring the form of a lifeless unicorn. "We could really use a beanbag sofa in here," Rainbow Dash chuckled nervously. Fluttershy looked at her strangely, causing her ears to droop. "Just thought I'd lighten the mood." "Thanks fer tryin', Rainbow," said Applejack, "but it'll take more than that to come to terms with the troubles that might lie in store for us." "You mean Celestia coming back?" asked Rainbow Dash. "We've got Twilight for that—and I was wrong not to trust her, by the way." "I'm not worried 'bout what she'll do to us," said Applejack, "so much as what she's been doin' to those ponies back in Equestria. It's probably still goin' on right now, and there's nothin' we can do about it." "Well… we could tell Twilight," suggested Rainbow Dash. "I'm sure she could put a stop to it." "Agreed," said Applejack. "We should tell her first thing in the morning." … That night, Twilight was just about to drift off into sleep when she was startled by Pinkie Pie's voice. "Twilight?" "Yes, Pinkie?" "I'm… kinda worried about Mr. and Mrs. Cake." "Oh… well, now that Celestia knows we're here, there's no need for her to interrogate anypony, so I don't see why she would hurt them." "But what if she already did?" Twilight was at a loss. "…I don't know," she said softly. A few seconds passed in somber silence. Then, Pinkie Pie asked: "Twilight? What do you think happens when we die?" The question startled her. "Well… if we're lucky, our loved ones give us a funeral and bury us, and then we decompose in the ground and the compounds in our bodies return to the ecosystem." "But what about, you know, us? What actually happens to us?" "You mean to our minds?" "Yeah, those things." Twilight was silent for a moment. "They just stop working. Brain activity ceases completely at death. There's no more us to do the thinking at that point." There was a long silence. Then, Pinkie Pie said softly, "Okay. Thanks for telling me what you think, Twilight." Twilight marveled at how serious Pinkie Pie had become during the course of this adventure. "Pinkie, there's something I need to tell you, too… something that's been bothering me." "Sure, Twilight. Anything." Twilight took a deep breath. "When Princess Luna gave me that magical telescope, I thought I'd only be discovering small, specific things: you know, stars and comets and whatnot. But it occurred to me that with so much information about the universe and new ways to measure it through magic, I might be able to understand more about the motion of galaxies. I started recording my findings in a more thorough, organized way than ever before, and trying to find some grand, overarching pattern. To make a long story short, after a couple of weeks, I found one." "During my studies in Canterlot, I was taught that the size of the universe fluctuates, but stays fairly steady—a sort of 'breathe in, breathe out' motion that takes a massive amount of time to repeat itself, like the orbits of planets. Over centuries, scientists have gathered enough information to write equations that model this process. With this new telescope, however, I gathered data which contradicted the model I'd been taught: the universe isn't staying steady. It's expanding uncontrollably." "I don't understand," said Pinkie Pie. "Why would that bother you?" "Because it means that as stars die and new stars are born, all of the matter in the universe will follow a trend of moving outward faster and faster—the science behind it is complicated, but the bottom line is that all life in the universe will eventually die out. Our own sun, which sustains all life on Earth, has a few more billion years of life left, so we have plenty of time to find a way to travel through space—hay, I've already done it myself. The problem is, we can only run away from dying suns for so long before we run out." "But, Twilight, if the sun's going to be around for billions of years, what does it matter? We'll be long gone by then!" "Exactly! That part upsets me, too! I've always believed one the most important things we can do while we're alive is to help make the world better for the next generation, and the generation after that, and so on but if those generations are doomed to just run out, then it's hopeless!" Twilight couldn't see it in the darkness, but Pinkie Pie's jaw dropped. "That's it!" "That's what?" "That's what my Pinkie sense was trying to warn me about back in Sustria! It wasn't that something bad was about to happen… it was already happening, and you were just about to realize it, and… wow, Twilight, I'm really sorry—I mean, it's heartbreaking to see you having to deal with something like this, but I really don't know what to say to make you feel better, because I know you're a lot smarter than me and understand this stuff much better than I do, so"— "Thanks, Pinkie. Your concern means a lot to me… unfortunately, I think I'll just have to find a way to deal with this on my own." "Right… but you know, if it helps at all, you can always talk to me, or Applejack, or Rainbow Dash, or whoever. You know that, right?" "Of course. Why wouldn't I be able to count on my friends?" … As the night wore on, however, Twilight left a number of her troubling thoughts unsaid. She thought of carnivores; of the great storms that decimated helpless villages; of Sustria and the cruel ways that the pigs treated other living beings; and, above all, she thought longingly of those wonderfully innocent days back in Canterlot, when she had known Celestia as a wonderful, caring teacher and the world as a wondrous, joy-filled place where the sanctity of life was always meticulously protected… "Spike, wake up. I've got a letter for you to send." He looked around groggily at the still-dark lobby of the lodge. (He'd fallen asleep next to the fireplace.) Twilight was standing over him, levitating a rolled-up scroll in front of his face. "Twilight, it's way too early…" "Come on, just send it now, before anypony wakes up!" He looked at her quizzically, but said nothing and did as he was told. As the green smoke vanished out the window, Twilight slipped out the door. "Wait, where are you going?" he asked as he chased after her. "To Canterlot," she said uncomfortably. She wasn't sure how Spike would react to what she was about to do. "Oh, right!" exclaimed Spike. "We're bringing the fight to them, huh? Gonna bring down the royal establishment?" "Not exactly…" He cocked his head to the side. "Then what?" Twilight sighed. "Look… it's kind of complicated, but the gist of it is that I'm going to do something that I really don't think the others will agree with, but I'm convinced it's the right thing to do, and I feel like there's no time to waste waiting here or trying to convince them. What I want to know is, are you willing to come with me, and stay by my side, even if it means leaving behind everypony else? Because if not—and I hate to say this to you, because you're a wonderful assistant and I love you, I really do—but if not, you'll have to stay here." He stared at her, seeing for the first time the seriousness of the situation and the extent of her resolve. "I wish you could tell me exactly what it is you're up to… but if there's no time and I have to choose right now, then I choose…" He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "…I choose you, Twilight." "Thank you, Spike. That means the world to me. Now, hop on my back." As he did, she took one last behind her at the lodge where all of her best friends were sleeping. Then, before she could change her mind, she closed her eyes, focused her magic, and teleported away, leaving nothing behind but a rapidly fading flash of light. … In Canterlot, Princess Celestia was rudely awoken by something landing on her head. She sprang up and lit her horn, thinking immediately of an assassin. Looking around, however, she noticed a scroll balanced precariously on the edge of her bed. She opened it and read: Dear Princess Celestia, They say that power corrupts, and that absolute power corrupts absolutely, but I don't think that's what happened to you. I think that as the ruler of Equestria, you had just enough power to realize how helpless you truly were in the grand scheme of things. You did what you did in order to give the ponies of Equestria something you yourself could never truly have: hope. I understand now that you're just as afraid and desperate as anyone else in this cold, dying universe, this beautiful, terrible universe. By making Equestria into isolated, protected bubble of hope in this hopeless world, you meant to save everypony from the awful truth. You were right when you said that we were the same, that we both know too much. I know just as well as you the crippling, unending fear of dying, the absolute terror inherent being alive at all. I know what you have been through, Princess Celestia, and I have come to understand the same despair you have known for centuries. I think I'm ready to forgive you. Still your faithful student, -Twilight Sparkle By the time she reached the end of the letter, Celestia's eyes were brimming with tears. She felt a jolt as she heard hoofsteps approaching her from the dark hallways of the castle. Slowly, almost silently, the door opened, revealing the unicorn standing outside. "Twilight?" "Sorry to come at such a horrible hour," she said as she stepped into the room. Spike hopped off her back and held back, watching the two ponies from the doorway. "Not at all… I…" she trailed off. Celestia rose to her hooves and they began taking agonizingly slow steps towards each other. "I never wanted any of this," said Celestia, fighting tears and losing. "I just"— "It's alright, Princess," said Twilight softly. "I know." They stopped less than a foot from each other, and looked each other in the eyes uncertainly for a few seconds before surging together in a close embrace. They both cried openly now, and as Celestia pulled Twilight in close, it was as though nothing had ever changed, and she was the princess's faithful student once again, and everything in the world was perfect and right.