Starlight
Chapter Twenty-three: Starlight
Ace, Twilight, Prim and Proper all sat at the dinner table, enjoying their meal. Primrose had cooked one of Ace’s most favored dishes, Fontal Polenta with Mushroom Sauté. Twilight looked at the dish, served within a bread bowl gratin filled with the cheese and milk broth that was topped with more cheese and mushrooms, as well as a number of veggies.
“Is the meal not to your liking, Twilight?” Ace asked, noticing that Twilight was doing more viewing than eating. “I will happily relieve you of it if that is the case?” Twilight shook her head, Ace sitting by her side at the round table.
The dining room that was connected to the ballroom consisted of numerous such tables, and a long narrow table that could easily seat seventy or eighty ponies ran down the center of the room. Twilight shook her head, taking the first bite of the polenta. The savory taste of the mushrooms conjoined with the texture of the melted cheese merged together, along with the crisp crunch of the veggies as the flavors danced upon her palate. Twilight’s expression brightened as she took another bite, the other three smiling as she enjoyed her food.
Primrose beamed as she watched Twilight’s expression change from scrutiny to delight as she sampled the dish. “Do you cook much, Twilight?” she asked from her place across from the mare. “I could teach you how to make it, and then you could surprise the young master one day when he comes home,” she said with a wink.
Twilight’s face flushed at the suggestion, only just then remembering that Ace had said she was his wife. “Well, I – uh…” Twilight shook her head to clear thoughts, as well as dispel some of the added color from her cheeks. “No, I don’t cook very much, I’m afraid. My assistant and I often eat out.”
Prim and Proper shared a look for a moment before Proper turned and asked what they were thinking, “So, you’re Ace’s student and wife, and you have your own assistant?” Twilight nodded, Prim and Proper sharing another look. “Please don’t tell me your assistant has a secretary.”
Twilight raised an eyebrow at the question, and then she realized from a chain of command point of view, the situation must seem pretty odd. Twilight covered her hoof to hide her laugh before she spoke.
“Oh no, nothing like that,” she explained. “Spike is actually my friend. He helps me with the studies Princess Celestia tasks me with. In fact, he’s the dragon I hatched during my entrance exam for Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns.”
The twins shared another look, Prim expressing awe, while Proper appeared as though he was thinking of something. A flash of realization flooded over Prim’s features before she fixed her brother with a reprimanding glare. He waved it off as Prim shook her head, Proper turning to face Ace as he spoke.
“You’re not just using Twilight to get to Princess Luna, are you?” he asked. Ace wore a sour look and slapped Proper with a hoof hard enough to turn him back towards Prim. “Jus’ ha’ ta make shore,” he said, rubbing his jaw.
Prim covered her mouth, laughing as she spoke. “I told you not to make the young master upset,” she said. “One of these times, he’s going to get really mad and actually hurt you.” Proper stared into Prim’s eyes before she spoke again. “Perhaps, but you should still watch what you say.”
Twilight looked to Ace as if to confirm the twins’ sanity. Ace just nodded as he swallowed another bite of the polenta, “You see, the twins are both magic-touched hornless Pegasi. Their magical affinity is that they can communicate with each other telepathically.” He had another spoonful of the dish before he continued. “Normally they make eye contact when they do it, but they could just as easily do so from a mile away.”
Twilight looked at the twins in a new light, two beaming as she did – at least, Proper did his best to, as one side of his face was starting to swell. “That must really come in handy. When did your magical affinity first develop?” The twins looked at each other for a moment, Prim speaking for the pair, presumably because talking would cause Proper pain, already having trouble eating the soft food, though he still seemed to be all smiles.
“Well, for as long as we have been able to speak, though perhaps longer, Mistress,” she said, the new title bringing a bit of a flush to Twilight cheeks, as it was intended to claim her as a head of the house. “When my brother and I were foals, we thought that everypony could do it.”
Twilight took another bite of her polenta, and as she did so, she noticed that Ace had already finished his and was preparing to eat the bread bowl. With a shake of her head, she laughed inwardly at how much he seemed to enjoy the dish.
’Maybe I really should learn to make the dish?’ she thought to herself, a light blush forming on her face as she thought about really being Ace’s special somepony…
After lunch, the twins left, saying they would be late tomorrow because they were going to visit their mother before coming over. Ace nodded that they could come whenever they pleased, then thanked them for the work they had done. Once they had left, Ace and Twilight headed up to the library to do a lesson or two before bed.
The pair sat at one of the tables, Twilight in her magical form surveying the books with Ace’s avatar strolling beside her to be sure not to repeat the previous mishap. “Are there going to be any lessons about the Ritual of New Life?” Twilight asked as they viewed the books.
Ace’s avatar shook his head as he spoke, his voice reverberating through her though his lips didn’t move. “Likely not, as it is a heavily kept secret. Before long, however, I will need to perform the ritual; most likely at the end of this year or the next.”
Twilight nodded as she passed by the shelf that held the blood magic tome she had viewed upon earlier. Her stomach turned as she glanced at the book. “Did you wish to learn blood magic?” Twilight hastily shook her head, though it wasn’t until moments later that she was able to avert her eyes from the grimoire.
“Ace, what do you know about life magic?” Ace froze in place for a moment, staring at the shelves of books, before he turned his head to look at her.
“Twilight, Life magic is something far more grave than any magic you know as of yet.” Ace shook his head for a moment as he turned his magical self to face her. “What do you know of Life magic, and why do you ask?”
Twilight sat as she looked at her mentor, before he closed the distance to sit across from her. “Well, I have only heard that life magic is unlike any other magic, in that it does not use a pony’s magical power, but rather their very life force.” Ace nodded.
“Life magic is indeed powerful, and ‘tis true that it drains a pony’s life force rather than their magic,” Ace said before shaking his head, his magical features taking a solemn look. “It is possible for a pony to deplete their magic by using it. The same applies to life magic; only instead of being without magic for a week or so, the pony would be without life for eternity.”
Twilight had expected as much, but was taken aback nonetheless. Twilight feared the answer would bring back haunting memories, but she asked, “You have had to use life magic before, haven’t you?” Ace nodded.
The room around Twilight disappeared, fading to darkness, save for Ace sitting before her. He motioned with a hoof to the side, and when Twilight looked, she saw what looked like an old hospital room. Ace strode to the side of a bed, and Twilight followed. In the bed was a pony with a sapphire blue coat, and emerald an emerald green mane and tail. The pony looked as though she had just been through a rough battle; a rapier laid on the table close by, bent and broken like the body of the one who once carried it into battle.
As they observed the barely breathing, broken mess of a pony that laid upon the bed, the doors nearby burst open, a doppelganger of Ace came through, followed by an elder looking Unicorn mare with a dark coat and a mane as black as pitch. They quickly ran to the opposite side of the bed, staring at the same pony with all the color from their faces paled and tears forming in their eyes. Another pony came into view as they watched the pony, a doctor.
“I am sorry, but I fear that this pony will not live through the night,” the doctor said, nearing the patient, hanging his head low as his voice carried sympathetic sorrow for the couple. “There is simply not enough magic in all of the realms to mend her broken heart, nor her broken soul or body.” The doctor turned to leave, his voice mournful. “You may spend as much time as you need with the patient. Should you require me, you need only call.”
When the doctor left, the doppelganger’s horn glowed brilliantly in its black glow, the same light surrounding the injured pony. The wounds looked as though they were beginning to mend, but would reopen as soon as the magic had faded from her, the bones never being able to properly set.
The pained pony started to move a hoof, turning her head to face the two, one eye flooded with blood and nearly torn from the socket, the other bruised and swollen, though Twilight could vaguely make out the red Al Bhed swirl that matched Ace’s. “Fa…ther… Why?... Why… do th…ey… hate us?...” The voice came in labored rasps, only vaguely audible, and only slightly reminiscent of a mare’s voice. “We… are… just… ponies… like them… Why?...”
Twilight looked at the three ponies who were sitting in the room, each rendered catatonic with tears as they watched the mare. Ace and his doppelganger both spoke in the same voice, both being worn by their tears, “Because, Forest Wave, they are afraid. They fear that we are better than them, and it scares them. It was never your fault, my blessed daughter.”
Forest Wave coughed up a puddle of blood before she was finally able to speak again. “Night… Sky and I… we… I… loved him… Why?... Why wou…ld he…” The mare’s question was never finished, her head lolling to one side, eliciting a sickening sound as the last of the words escaped her lungs.
The doppelganger let loose a howl of pain, his entire body brightening in a glorious white glow. The real Ace turned his back as his only daughter’s corpse laid before him. The doppelganger’s glow spread across the heap of a mare.
Again, the Aces both spoke in unison, though the false copy’s voice was tainted with pure anger and rage while the real Ace could only mutter in sadness. “Heed my words, Fates! Take my own life, and spare the life of my daughter, Forest Wave! Take from me what you will, only grant me my daughter’s health and I shall offer the ultimate price!”
The elder mare shook the fake, pleading him to forego his action as the luminescent stallion’s body began to all but decay on the spot. Twilight could tell whatever magic he was using was incredibly strong, as the broken body of Forest Wave was stitched and mended, but her eyes remained closed and her chest remained still. The elder mare, desperate for action, picked up a nearby object that was clouded in the memory and landed a solid blow to the back of faux-Ace’s head. The world faded to black again before Ace and Twilight emerged in the library once more, now in their physical forms.
Ace wept, his back turned to her as Twilight moved towards him. “Such is the power of Life magic, Twilight. Strong enough to take a life, but not powerful enough to grant it.”
Twilight circled around to the front of him, Ace raising his head to meet the gaze of the beloved mare. His body shook once with the pain of the memory as streaks of tears marred his features. Twilight took the tormented stallion into her caring embrace, Ace wrapping his hooves firmly around her as they were both reduced to sobs at the memory.
Several long minutes passed before they broke the contact, wiping the tears from each other before Ace nodded softly. “I will not forbid you practice the art, my student, as I know you know how to perform life magic after watching my past self perform the technique,” Twilight only managed to nod that she had, a grim look on her face at the idea of needing to use such a skill. “I instead make the more painful request that you practice the craft, should you choose, with the utmost of care.”
Twilight nodded, her hoof over her heart as she spoke the promise. “I swear that I will use Life magic, aside from the few training sessions, in only the most dire of circumstances.”
Ace shook his head slowly before returning his gaze to hers. “Never give your life for the life of another, Twilight. There is no equivalent exchange where lives are involved; no one life is ever worth the same as another life. Let the Fates decide who shall live, and who shall return to the network of souls. The only time that death is justified is in self-defense, not self-sacrifice. Do you understand?”
Twilight took mental note of the lesson for a moment before nodding. Ace smiled half-heartedly, but nodded in return. Ace looked to the ceiling, Twilight’s eyes following soon after. The mural on the ceiling that once showed a glowing sun as the two princesses ruled separate halves of Equestria now had a darkened sun and shining moon.
“The hour grows late. Will you accompany me to the roof, that we may admire the stars before we retire for the evening?” Twilight nodded with a soft smile. Ace’s horn lit up the area around the two, the light temporarily blinding Twilight before she appeared on the roof of the house.
When Twilight’s vision returned, she noticed a few things: The first, Ace was now beside her rather than in front of her, already admiring the stars. The second, the pair were high above a wooded area, seemingly North of Hoofsdale. The third, they sat upon a cloud rather than a rooftop. The last thing she noticed, aside from Ace’s delighted laughter, and the fact that she had been sitting upon the cloud without falling, was that somewhere in her observations, she had all but melded to Ace as she clung to his side.
“Sorry, I forgot to mention this, but I live in a cloud mansion above White Tail Woods.” Twilight, still clinging to him, cocked her head in an angry tilt that conveyed ‘You don’t say?’ Ace laughed, though not as heartily as before, “Um… Surprise?” he said with a hopeful smile.
Twilight sighed, climbing down off of the stallion to rest flank-to-flank beside him as she looked up at the stars and the moon as well. Being as high above and as far away from all the major cities, the stars were bright and numerous in the sky, not having to contend with city lights for their rule over the darkness of night.
As they admired the stars, Twilight felt Ace grasp her hoof in his. She blushed, still watching the stars as the moon crawled atop its throne in the sky, waning slightly after the recent full moon; the full moon that was aloft when Twilight had first met him, her… special somepony. The pink in her cheeks brightened at the thought, as she wondered if Ace was thinking the same thing.
“What are you thinking of, right now?” she asked, still watching the stars, as though they would answer her question as easily as Ace might. From the corner of her eye, she could tell that he was blushing lightly as well.
“Nicknames,” was the only word he offered. Twilight averted her gaze from the starfield to raise an eyebrow in response, which afforded her a nod in reply. “I was thinking; it’s become a custom in recent years that couples have meaningful nicknames for their special somepony,” he said before looking to her, still blushing lightly with his goofy-but-attractive smile. “And I think I’ve found the perfect one for you.”
Twilight’s blush deepened as their gazes held, delighted that he had been thinking of her as well. She smiled softly as she watched him, anxious to hear the name he had chosen for her.
“Starlight.” Twilight continued to hold his gaze, neither wanting to look anywhere but one another’s eyes. “In the darkness, you shine brightest. When I am lost, you give me direction like the North Star. When I look at the moon, and I feel that I am alone, I look to all of the stars and I smile, because I know that my Starlight will always remain by my side.” Twilight’s blush deepened further as Ace kissed her cheek, the two still holding hooves beneath the stars.
“Thank you, it’s beautiful – really beautiful, but…” A look of worry started to cross Ace’s face as she paused. “I don’t have one for you…” Ace used his other hoof to stifle a laugh as she spoke.
“Worry not, my dearest Starlight,” Twilight couldn’t help but smile sincerely as she heard the loving name. “The name will come to you as it did to me. It is not something you think about; it is something you feel,” he said as he pressed his hoof against her chest. “I look forward to the name you find, but it is something that will sound only sweeter with time.” They shared a soft smile before their gazes drifted back to the starfield that was portrayed above them. Twilight gazed upon the twinkling lights with a newfound passion, the stars above becoming her new namesake.
As Twilight admired the stars, she felt Ace relinquish his grasp of her hoof. Before she could look to him, he wrapped the hoof around her shoulder and pulled her more firmly against him. She smiled and wrapped a hoof around him as well, resting her head against his shoulder, still watching the stars, only a light blush on her face as she relaxed.
After a time, Twilight yawned, her eyes beginning to feel heavy. Ace shared in the yawn as well before stroking her mane tenderly once as he spoke. “I believe we should retire for the night, my dearest Starlight.” Twilight nodded against his shoulder lazily. “I had Prim prepare a guestroom for you, should you choose,” he said, Twilight lifting her heavy head to look her special somepony in the eyes as she shook her head.
“I… I want to sleep with you. I-in your bed I mean… with you.” Ace smiled warmly as his horn glowed mutely before he teleported the pair to his bedroom, standing on different sides of the large bed before they both got in, meeting in the middle as they got comfortable, only a hoof’s width apart from each other.
Ace leaned his head forward to meet hers, and she greeted him with a brief but deep kiss before they each said their goodnights. As they did, the canopy over the bed was alight with tender starlight, much like the stars they had just watched together.
“I am truly blessed to never be far from my beloved Starlight,” Ace said as they both closed their eyes in slumber.
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3133299
In my eyes,this has two possible meanings.
1) Pleather is leather used by ponies and is a substitute for leather
2.1) Pleather is made of ponies, meaning Ace goes around killing ponies so that he can cut their skin off and turn into leather
2.2) Ace knows Pinkie rather well, and Pinkie has a teleporter in her room that goes to Ace's mansion. Perhaps this story takes place in the "Cupcakes" universe, and Pinkie sends the pony skins over to Ace
3134078
I amended the phrase to be made from plants. Ace does not wear the skin of dead ponies!
3135134
It can be rather confusing, seeing how leather is animal skin, and 3133299 said it was made from ponies. Maybe you should say anything except leather (twine, string, cord, etc.) so that no one gets confused.
3135289
I'm telling you that I changed that line already.
The new line is:
I changed it the first time you mentioned it. ;-;
3135648
Sorry, I didn't notice that.