Not Quite an Average Morning
Celestia awoke to nothing more than a soft but insistent pressure tugging at the base of her horn: It was time for the sun to rise. With the blanket drowsiness still clouding her mind, she yawned and twisted her neck every which way, trying to work out some of the stiffness that snuck in every time she slept upright while idly wondering why she had fallen asleep on the balcony.
Save for the tension in her neck, she felt well and truly rested for the first time in centuries. More than that, she felt... unhurried and relaxed. Without the almost obsessive need to keep herself busy. She surveyed the land below her, looking out over the fields and the forests, and listening to the sounds of the night that her sister would almost certainly have appreciated. The world looked and sounded she felt: Sleepy and peaceful.
All of that drowsy gentleness she appreciated would come to an end the moment she raised the sun, however, and she chuckled softly at the irony. She rolled her neck one last time and got up, feeling the brisk morning winds ruffle her feathers as she spread and flexed her wings, looking to work out the same morning stiffness there.
Another sound made itself known; a soft whine and accompanying shiver that originated from a small purple ball of fuzz at her feet as it curled in on itself. Twilight’s complaints against the absence of the comfortable warmth she had been resting against made Celestia smile, in spite of their purpose. To compensate for her slight, she sat back down and drew the snoozing filly closer with a wing before depositing her between her own hooves, which immediately put an end to further complaints.
Despite her student’s protests, it was time for morning to arrive. Celestia yawned once more, shaking her head to remove the last vestiges of sleep before reaching out to touch the sun with her magic A second yawn echoed her own, followed by a small, sleepy muzzle nuzzling against her chest.
She released the sun and let her magic diffuse into the air around her, making it shimmer lightly. Raising the sun would mean the start of a new day and all the hurrying that came with it, at least until she got her scheduling problems dealt with, and unlike the one on paper, item one on her mental agenda was snuggling close to her chest. Twilight needed to know that her magic, powerful as it was, was not something to be feared; and Celestia figured that she had just the thing.
A gentle nudge from a muzzle did little to return Twilight to the land of the living, and neither did shaking her with a hoof. For a second Celestia toyed with the idea of shaking the filly awake with her magic, but better judgement won out and instead she nudged her young student again. “Twilight? It’s time to wake up.”
Twilight barely responded, raising her head only to briefly look around, rubbing her eyes and yawning again. “Can’t be mornin’ yet, sun’s not up,” she mumbled before crawling back into the warm comfortable spot between Celestia’s legs and making an effort to recapture her dreams.
Celestia was astonished. In theory, her word was law across the entirety of Equestria, and even though ponies sometimes questioned the commands she gave them, nopony had ever outright refused her; but now she had been blown off by the smallest of fillies. The thought made her laugh, even though it probably shouldn’t have, but she’d had little to laugh about in far too long. Two purple irises looked up at her in sleepy confusion, and Celestia answered with a smile. “Very well, Twilight,” she said, still chuckling softly. “I guess seeing me raise the sun from up close isn’t as interesting to the youth as it once was.”
It took less than a second for the words to reach Twilight’s ears, five before her lethargic brain realised their meaning, and a mere instant for the filly to be on her hooves, nearly goring Celestia with her small horn in the process. “I get to watch you raise the sun?" she asked excitedly, trotting in place with a huge smile.
With her purpose as makeshift bed discontinued, Celestia rose to her hooves as well, giving the filly an amicable nod. “Yes, you do. And perhaps you could even help me.”
For a moment it looked like Twilight would explode with excitement; her eyes grew to the size of dinner plates and she trembled from horn to tail, a suppressed squeal making itself master of her vocal cords.
“However,” Celestia continued, putting a disappointed smile on her face. “Only ponies with magic can help me raise the sun.”
“I have magic!” Twilight all but cheered, hopping around in little circles as she imagined herself putting the big ball of flames in the sky.
“Oh?” Celestia stepped up towards the railing and looked back at the filly over her shoulder. “I was under the impression that you were never going to use magic again?”
The hopping came to a halt mid-jump and the smile fled Twilight’s face in a hurry, leaving her looking like she had just swallowed a particularly sour grape. “Oh... yeah...”
“Twilight...” Celestia sighed and beckoned the filly over with a small motion of her wing. Even with all her smarts, Twilight was apparently too afraid to have her cake and eat it too, even if there was virtually no way things could go wrong. Another approach was in order. “Twilight, have you ever tried to look directly at the sun?” Celestia asked when the filly sat down next to her.
“I’ve tried to,” came the meek reply, Twilight hanging her head like she had gotten caught stealing cookies, “but it hurt, so I looked away… sorry.”
Celestia merely nodded. “There is no need to apologise, Twilight. Looking directly at the sun can be dangerous. There is too much light for your eyes to handle which can damage them if you look at it for too long.” Her headache spiked and she rubbed her temple with a hoof as the sun let her know that she was officially late with the morning. It can wait, she told herself. Just a little longer.
“But what does that have to do with anything?” Twilight asked, restlessly shifting from side to side, glancing at her mentor every so often.
“Tell me,” Celestia asked her, choosing to ignore Twilight’s interruption. “If the sun hurts to look at, and could even be considered dangerous by certain standards, why would ponies want it around?”
Twilight looked out over the lands below while she considered the question. “Because... if we didn’t have the sun it would always be night?”
While her answer had been phrased as a question, Celestia nodded at Twilight. “So even though it could hurt you, you’re not scared of it?”
“I don’t... think... so?” The look of uncomprehending confusion she received from Twilight told Celestia that her student needed another puzzle piece before it all clicked.
Celestia lowered her head, bring her face close to Twilight’s to look her in the eyes directly. “Exactly. So tell me, Twilight, do you think that my sun is any different than your magic?” When Twilight looked back at the horizon without an immediate response, Celestia allowed herself a more genuine smile. Rhetorics, that is, things usually pondered about by the intellectual elite of Canterlot, were helping a filly as young as Twilight put the puzzle together in her head.
“So... I shouldn’t be afraid of my magic?” The filly finally asked, earning her a laugh from Celestia and a squeeze from a white wing.
“Exactly, Twilight.” Before she said anything more, Celestia had to briefly press a hoof against her forehead again; the constant pressure was starting to become rather painful. “Do you still want to help me raise the sun? It doesn’t like to be kept waiting.”
Twilight took a deep breath and nodded. “Yes, Princess. I just... uh... what should I do?”
Celestia lit up her horn with magic once more, sending a dancing line of gold towards the mountains where the darkness of the night was already giving way to the twilight just before dawn. “The sun is there, just below the horizon. It wants to rise, but it needs a little help. All you need to do is try and focus a basic levitation spell enough to give it a little push, and I will do the rest.”
Looking back to her student, she silently watched as Twilight waged a war with herself. She had done all she could to convince the filly that things would turn out alright, and it had seemed like the message she was trying to get across had been understood. If there was one thing experience had taught her, however, it was that fear, despite being a bad advisor, had a lot of influence in the decision making process. Having already begun to think of other ways in which she could stimulate the little unicorn to use her magic, she was pleasantly surprised when Twilight finally nodded to herself and lowered her head, pointing her little horn towards the horizon.
The first sparks of Twilight’s magic were tentative, and looked like they had been as afraid to leave the safety of her horn as the filly herself had been of casting magic. Before long, however, the sparks increased in quantity before turning into a soft glow around Twilight, which intensified further as she poured more magic into her spell.
It was a fascinating sight; one Celestia hadn’t seen in a long time. The air crackled and Twilight’s hair fizzed in a few places, rising into the air as the spell went on. Celestia was reminded of another young little pony who had tried with all her might to raise a celestial body into the sky, and she braced herself for the pain she could never seem to forget.
The pain she expected did not come. In its stead, she remembered the previous evening, and how much of a relief it had been to have somepony to comfort her. Another thing I should have done years ago... she thought with a frown.
“I— I’m sorry, Princess, I can’t even touch it...”
Twilight’s voice broke her introspective musing. The filly sounded winded, and indeed, when she looked up Twilight was panting and sweating heavily. Her mane was plastered to her face and her entire tail drooped as if she had just run a marathon. Just in time, Celestia schooled her expression back into the warm comforting smile, remembering Twilight’s tendency to take any sign of disapproval as being directed at her specifically.
“Don’t try to force it, Twilight. It’s not quite the same as lifting a book,” she said with a small chuckle. She hadn’t been paying close attention to her student’s spellcasting, but seeing Twilight’s posture now, told her that there was definitely room for improvement. Nearly every unicorn colt and filly made the same mistake: They braced themselves physically to lift a weight that was being supported wholly by their magic, often leading to difficulties in spellcasting because of strain they put on their body.
Stepping closer to Twilight, Celestia used wings and magic to adjust Twilight’s pose until the filly no longer looked like she was trying to carry the weight of the sun on her shoulders and treated her to a smile. “Close your eyes, Twilight.”
The filly dutifully did as she was told and Celestia returned her gaze to the horizon, closing her own eyes as well. “Imagine the sun on your face early in the morning when you’re still in bed. Can you feel it?” She waited for Twilight to nod before continuing. “That gentle warmth is the sun touching you.” Celestia let out a pleased sigh, basking in the warmth of her charge. “Now, imagine the sun as you see it during the day, just below the horizon, and imagine your magic traveling back along those rays until it touches the sun.”
Celestia hadn’t intended for Twilight to actually do anything that could be considered of importance. It was just supposed to have been some encouragement to get the filly to stop being afraid of her own magic. Now that she had told Twilight how she herself touched the sun, however, a feeling of expectation crawled out of the depths of her mind. She wanted to see just how much potential Twilight had, and how much of it remained hidden.
Only a few seconds after Twilight once again began to channel her magic, Celestia could feel the change. Something, or rather, somepony, was pulling at the sun, small enough that it was nigh on imperceptible, but most definitely real. Had somepony been capable of appreciating the sun at that moment, they would have been hard pressed to indicate any notable movement. Still, she had most definitely moved the sun. But it didn’t come without a cost.
Unlike before, Twilight only showed the least amount of exertion that came with casting a spell of any kind. Instead of the exertion increasing, as would have been the case if she had run out of natural magical reserves, the glow surrounding Twilight’s horn intensified and slowly grew in size, apparently without the filly noticing.
“Twilight?” Celestia kept her voice gentle but stern. Having Twilight slip back into a magical maelstrom would be a disaster. Not because it would cause anywhere near as much damage as it had in the tower of the Scholar, but rather because it would convince Twilight that she couldn’t do anything right. Perhaps it was due to the momentary resemblance, or maybe because the filly made her laugh, but Celestia felt fiercely protective of her student and wanted to avoid giving Twilight another bad association with the use of magic.
The glow around her student’s horn faded quickly and Twilight looked up curiously. “Did I do it?” Her expression fell when she found out that the sun hadn’t moved, but quickly perked up again when Celestia poked her in the side with a hoof.
“You did very well for your first time, Twilight,” Celestia said smiling down at the filly. “But...” She leaned in close and continued in a conspiratorial whisper. “I should have raised the sun some time ago.” She gave Twilight a wink and lit up her horn. “You’ll get another chance, but right now ponies need to wake up.”
For Celestia, raising the sun was just part of the routine. One she made no spectacle of, to the point where she sometimes did not even go to her familiar spot on the balcony, but simply making it rise while she made her way to the dining room. Today was anything but routine. Not only did she still feel much more relaxed, but she also wanted to give Twilight another demonstration about all the ways magic could be something wonderful.
She launched herself with a mighty beat of her wings, focusing on weaving a myriad of spells at the same time. Morning Shimmer for the air, Radiant Coat for herself, a simple sparkler spell... For the first time in forever, she didn't mind showing off a little. If only because it can further inspire, Twilight, she thought with a smile. That wasn't the real reason, or at least not the only one, but it was as good an excuse as any.
Each flap sent her soaring higher and higher until she had passed even the tallest spires of the castle, her smile growing wider the higher she got. When she reached an altitude where she was certain a stray spell wouldn't inadvertently hit something or hurt somepony, she let loose.
For creatures all over Equestria, the dawn arrived suddenly, like the sun had finally decided that it had waited long enough, and quickly ascended until it was in its proper place in the sky. More than that, its ascent was accompanied by a series of magical explosions that not only set the sky ablaze like fireworks would have done, but also revealed a curtain of shimmering lights that waved back and fro like a tapestry of light. The display woke up everypony who was still asleep and awed the ones already outside.
But it didn't end there.
Using her magic, she gathered up a large formation of clouds and pulled at them from every angle until a light drizzle fell on the citizens of Canterlot. Making it rain unexpectedly was taxing to do, and likely wouldn’t be appreciated by some ponies; but Celestia felt that the rainbow which formed over the horizon as a result, was worth the effort. She took a moment to reign herself in before descending, and finding Twilight beaming at her. “So, Twilight,” she began with a wink, “are you ready to start on your—” The rest of her sentence came out as a grunt when one of the guards hit her in his haste to get to onto the balcony proper.
Celestia only barely managed to keep her footing, her wings flaring and flapping as she tried to retain her balance. The guard wasn't as lucky and landed on his rump, his spear clattering away on the marble. "Your Majesty, is everything alright?" he blurted out, his head and ears swiveling in every which direction in alarm. His helmet had been shaken to the side in the crash and now sat on his head backwards, making actually seeing anything rather difficult.
Twilight giggled at him, and even Celestia’s smile was a smidge wider than the one she usually spared for her guards while her magic helped the poor stallion with his obscured vision problem. “We are fine, Aegis. I was simply demonstrating the application of some advanced magic to Twilight.”
“I... I see.” Aegis smiled sheepishly and nodded his thanks. He got up and dusted himself off, bowing to Celestia after he had made himself look presentable again. “My apologies for the interruption, Princess.”
“Was there anything you needed, Aegis?” Celestia asked him, already running through possible problems in her mind.
“No, Your Majesty. We were alarmed by the explosion but Rook was... hesitant to go out onto the balcony.”
Celestia nodded at him. “Thank you for your concern, Aegis. You may be at ease.” The guard bowed again and headed for the entry archway, leaving Celestia and Twilight by themselves once more.
The playful mood that had gripped Celestia fled with the knowledge that she had likely worried several ponies by letting loose, and since Twilight had gotten a healthy dose of motivation, she decided that the best time to start the first lesson was right now. A plan made rather difficult by the knowledge that she didn’t have a first lesson planned out as of yet, which in turn made her remember that she had called Sunny Scrolls to her chambers the night before.
“Are you going to teach me now?” Twilight asked her, full of innocent curiosity and, judging by her restless hooves, more than a little excited.
Celestia shook her head ruefully. “Not quite yet, Twilight. There are still a few things we have to take care of.”
“Oh...” The filly deflated like a balloon. Her hooves stopped moving and her ears drooped to the point where Celestia felt the urge to reassure her that it wouldn’t be long now. Twilight preempted her by looking up and giving her a weak smile. “I understand... It’s because you’re the princess.”
There is that. Though I have apparently let my schedule get away from me, in more ways than one... She shook her head. No more.
“It’s not that, Twilight,” she said reassuringly, striding towards the entrance and the stairs that lay within. “I merely think that it is important for us to get some breakfast before we get started. Follow me.”
For Twilight, every trip through the castle was an experience. It seemed like every three steps she stopped and asked questions about life in the castle. Normally Celestia wouldn’t have minded, but today, more than any other day, she wanted to talk to Sunny Scrolls as soon as she could. Feeling unprepared to deal with something, and worse, feeling like she had made a promise she couldn’t keep, weren’t things she was used to feeling; moreover, they weren’t feelings she particularly enjoyed having.
She responded to Twilight’s questions almost absentmindedly, while devoting a large portion of her attention into the basic framework of a lesson plan and subsequent adjustments that would have to be made in her schedule. And while Twilight seemed satisfied with the answers she received, Celestia wasn’t paying any attention to her surroundings; that is, until Twilight came up with a question that wasn’t directly related to the castle.
“Princess, who is that?”
When Celestia actually assessed the ponies coming around the corner into the hallway they were traversing, she saw an elegant-looking unicorn that never failed to make her hairs stand on end. The mare in question had a white coat, long blonde hair, and a burgundy dress with so many layers that it looked like she was drowning in it. And the day started out so well, Celestia thought with a sigh. Thinking quickly, she ducked into one of the side rooms, grabbing Twilight with her magic, and before the unicorn even had the chance to yelp, closed the door behind them.
Suddenly, they were no longer standing in a brightly lit hallway where the early morning staff had already started to make their rounds, but in a dark, damp, broom closet. It wouldn’t have been her first choice, but it had been the only room close enough to escape undetected. It was a bit of a tight fit for a pony as big as Celestia was, but if she had to choose between spending any amount of time in here and spending several hours talking to the mare in the hallway, she would gladly lose the few that would have seen them to the dining room.
“Princess?”
She could hear Twilight stumble around, banging her head and shins against the cleaning supplies. She was completely disoriented by the sudden change in scenery, which Celestia made a mental note of, for when they eventually got to teleportation lessons. “I’m here, Twilight.” She channeled a minute amount of magic through her horn, just enough to make it shimmer.
The first thing she saw was the light reflecting in Twilight’s eyes. The filly had backed up and gotten her rump stuck in a bucket which she was trying to get out off, unsuccessfully. “What happened?” the filly asked while trying to leverage her hooves against the wooden contraption.
Celestia opened her mouth to reply, but hesitated; Showing off to inspire her student to greater heights of magical ability was one thing, but admitting that she had no desire to talk to one of her subjects... “Just a simple mistake,” she said, using a tendril of magic to separate Twilight from her wooden captor. “Have you decided what you want for breakfast yet?” she continued, trying to divert Twilight’s attention from what she was doing.
Twilight shrugged helplessly. “Oatmeal?”
“A good choice. I myself was thinking about getting a serving of crepes.”
“Creepies?” Twilight echoed her, seemingly even more confused than she had been a moment ago.
At least she isn’t asking about Blueblood. “Crepes.” Celestia repeated slowly, accentuating the syllables. “It is a dish similar to pancakes, but it comes with fruit, and whipped cream on top.”
“That sounds yummy,” Twilight said with a smile that only lasted for a few seconds. “But mom said that I shouldn’t eat sweets for breakfast.”
Celestia rolled her shoulders and sighed softly; hiding in a cramped room hadn’t been one of her better decisions, and it became even worse when one of her wings bumped into a shelf containing hoof-worn brush shoes. The bump rattled the shelf which subsequently showered them in bristles and wood. She winced in sympathy when one of the brushes hit Twilight’s horn, resulting in an ‘ouch’ from the unicorn.
“Sorry, Twilight,” she said with a guilty smile. “There’s not really enough room in here to house a pony of my size.” No sooner than she had finished her sentence did she realise her mistake.
“Princess? What are we doing in here anyway?”
Celestia winced again. Not wanting to lie, yet not particularly enamoured with the idea of having to explain herself to the unicorn she decided to try for a half truth. “We are... hiding.”
“Are we hiding from the pretty mare?”
“...Yes.”
In political dealings, there was a certain amount of truth bending that was inevitable. Politics was the art of civilized lying after all. However, Celestia had learned from experience that lying outside of that setting always backfired on the perpetrator in one way or another; which was why she tried to avoid doing so whenever she could.
Her latest half-lie was no different, and she could already feel something brewing before the unicorn next to her had even opened her mouth.
Twilight gasped and bounded over to the door to peek out the keyhole. “Is it because she’s a super villain? Pretty mares are almost always evil.” Twilight’s growing smile faltered briefly. “Except for you, of course.” She followed it up with another gasp and a look of determination. “Is she trying to steal your magic?”
Celestia blinked, completely bewildered by the leap of logic the filly’s mind had taken. “Twilight she’s not—”
Twilight started pacing as best she could in the limited space available to her. “She’s probably like a vizier or something; those ponies are always plotting to steal either the magic or the kingdom from the fair prince or princess... or both!” Twilight looked up at Celestia with a look that was clearly meant to convey calm, but looked ridiculously out of place. She put a hoof on Celestia’s cutie mark, having trouble reaching any higher than that in the confined space. “Don’t worry princess I’ll protect you! Although...” She looked around and grabbed a mop which she put on her head. Next were a pair of the brushes which were swiftly turned into a makeshift beard and mustache that made her look even more ridiculous. “Maybe we could disguise ourselves while we make a run to the rebel encampment where the plucky sideki—”
The rest of her sentence was lost against a gold-shod hoof.
“No, Twilight, she is not a super villain.”
Twilight almost looked disappointed, likely having thought herself a certain famous explorer on a mission to save a certain country’s fair princess. Her frown was short lived, and she followed Celestia when the alicorn made her way to the door. “Are we done hiding?”
Celestia took a long look through the keyhole, trying to make sure that the mare she was hiding from had been held up. “Yes, we are,” she eventually replied, throwing open the door and stepping back out into the hallway.
She waited for Twilight to come out of the closet as well, brushing off the strange looks many members of the staff were giving her while trying to anticipate the next question Twilight would have. And though Twilight did have a question, it wasn’t the one she had been preparing herself for; the question in question didn’t come from Twilight’s mouth. In its stead, a dull roar from her stomach politely requested that they hurry up already. It earned Twilight a smile from the ponies that recognised it for what it was, and a fearful yelp from the few that didn’t.
Celestia chuckled. “Are you ready to get some breakfast now?”
“Uh-huh,” Twilight replied with a nod, trying to hide her embarrassed blush by hiding behind her mentor’s legs; a position that was quickly abandoned when they started moving again. “So, if that mare wasn’t a supervillain, why were we hiding from her?
“Duchess Blueblood is a very... driven mare,” Celestia began. “Whenever she sets her sights on something, she does not stop until she gets what she wants, and ever since I accepted you as my student, she wants me to accept her son as well.”
“Is he good with magic?” Twilight asked excitedly. “Maybe we could be study buddies!”
A snort escaped Celestia, which she quickly masked with a cough. “Ahem, no, Twilight, he isn’t.” In fact, he isn’t mature enough to handle any sort of education. “But the reason we were hiding from the Duchess was because she has the tendency to draw out conversations, and if I heard your stomach correctly, it would like to have breakfast rather than dinner.”
The main dining hall was big by anypony’s standards; spanning the length of any decently sized hoofball field and sporting some of the most varied architecture in the castle. The original room, of which only the floor remained, had been carved out of the mountainside, and shared its dark grey color. After that, every time the room had been expanded to make room for more inhabitants eating at the same time had added a layer of contemporary architecture for the time. Marble for the classical era, alabaster for the neo-tribal one, and so on until the layout of the room resembled the rings in a tree stump.
Even though ponies still called it ‘The Grand Dining Hall’, it had long since outgrown the literal description. With the nonstop sounds of ponies laughing, talking, and sometimes fighting, it felt more like being at a tavern and made it one of the most lively places in the castle.
That is, whenever the Princess wasn’t around. As with everything, the moment Celestia stepped into the room a wave of silence rippled outward, tempering the atmosphere into something resembling a respectful peace, which was one of the reasons she didn’t often show herself there. Today was an exception; even though Celestia’s mere presence seemed to disrupt the friendly camaraderie, that didn’t mean that Twilight couldn’t find herself a few friends here once she found her place in the castle.
For now, however, breakfast was the priority which wasn’t difficult to find. No sooner than they’d sat down at the table specifically reserved for the princess did the head chef appear. He was a heavy-set earth pony with a brown coat and scruffy mane, a little rounder than most ponies ever became, but all smiles from the moment he had stepped out of the kitchens.
“A great morning to you, Princess. Spectacular sunrise today. Any occasion?” he said jovially, giving her a friendly nod before leaning down and smiling at Twilight. “And a great morning to you as well, little miss.”
“H-hello,” Twilight replied, shyly. She didn’t look at all comfortable and his attention quickly shifted back to Celestia.
Celestia returned his warm smile. “Good morning, Mead. Could you get us two servings of crepes? I’d rather not have to explain on an empty stomach.” Her words were given extra weight by Twilight’s stomach which once again made it clear that she needed some food in her.
“Sun and stars, little one, you sound like you’re about to pass out!” he exclaimed. “Wait right here. I’ll be back before you know it!”
After he had disappeared back into the kitchens, Twilight scooted a little closer to Celestia anxiously looking around the room, and Celestia quickly figured out why: Normally, ponies kept their gaze averted from the table she was seated at, almost as if merely looking at the princess constituted a crime. Now, however, a lot of the usual conversations had started up again bringing back some of the atmosphere, though it wasn’t hard to guess what ponies were talking about. Everypony, it seemed, was looking at the table, or more specifically, they were looking at Twilight.
“Princess, why are they all looking at me? Did I do something wrong again?”
“No, Twilight. They were simply interested because I don’t usually eat here, and because they’ve heard that you’re my student now.” Celestia replied in way of explanation. She let her gaze drift across the room, meeting the eyes of anypony brave enough to continue staring until they wisely went back to what they had been doing. Her actions would see even fewer ponies muster up the courage to do anything like it in the future, but right now Twilight was her biggest concern. “They’ll go back to laughing and talking about other things soon enough.”
Honey Mead came back soon after carrying, not only the crepes, but a glass pitcher filled with freshly squeezed orange juice as well, all of which he expertly balanced on his back. “Here you go, ladies. The finest batch of breakfast I’ve ever made!”
Celestia shook her head with a smile. “You say that every time, Mead.”
“And I mean it every time!” the chef replied with pride. “I learn something new every day, and it shows in my cooking.”
Twilight fidgeted in her seat, keeping her eyes on her plate until Mead was done talking. She raised her hoof like a filly in class and waited until Mead was looking at her. “Uh... sir? My mom always says that I’m not allowed to have sweets for breakfast.”
“Nonsense! A small filly like you needs good, tasty food so you can grow up strong and beautiful like the princess here,” Mead said, indicating Celestia with a hoof and then laughed when he saw Twilight looking between him and Celestia. “Yes, if you eat too much you’ll end up looking like me, but you have a lot of growing to do before anything like that happens, little miss.”
It was unclear whether Twilight had been convinced by his cheery disposition, or if she simply couldn’t resist the scrumptious looking meal in front of her, but with a small, thankful smile towards the chef, she dug in. Or at least she tried to. Picking up a fork with her hooves apparently wasn’t something Twilight was used to, making her fumble and drop the fork within seconds. She tried again with the spoon on the other side of the plate, but again she botched the attempt and dropped it. The knife was next, sailing through the air and embedding itself in the backrest of the wooden chair, inches from Celestia’s head.
Twilight didn’t even seem to have noticed, though Celestia certainly had. It was the closest she had ever come to an unintentional assassination attempt, and she was keen to prevent a repeat experience lest the headlines of tomorrow’s paper read: ‘Princess killed with salad fork’. “Twilight?” she said quickly, disrupting the focus of the filly who was wrestling with her thankfully less lethal dessert spoon.
The smaller spoon went clattering to the ground as well and Twilight looked annoyed and frustrated when she finally met Celestia’s eyes. Her annoyance melted like snow before Celestia’s sun when she noticed the knife, leaving shock and fear behind to guard its retreat. “Oh... I’m so sorry, Princess. I was just...”
Celestia conjured a smile to hide her own shock and held up a hoof to forestall any more apologies. “It’s okay, Twilight, but perhaps it would be better if you used magic to eat?” She pulled out the knife with her magic and tapped the shocked Earth pony cook on the flank with the handle, breaking him out of his own stupor. “Could you bring us a fresh set of cutlery, Mead?”
Honey Mead needed a few seconds to recover, and shook his head to clear it, before remembering that Celestia was looking at him. He nodded and bowed, taking off towards the kitchens at a brisk pace, while muttering to himself about the dangers of mishandled cutlery.
Celestia’s own attempts at breakfast were interrupted in another fashion. Somewhere between the knife and her fourth bite of the delicious fruit that came with the crepes, Sunny Scrolls had appeared at the table. The ever industrious mare was carrying stacks upon stacks of papers, which meant that open court was once again on the schedule today. She felt that she spent more time preparing for court than actually holding it, the realization of which brought her back to the most important thing she wanted to discuss with Sunny: Her schedule.
“Late morning today, Princess?” came the question from the other side of the paper, which was the closest anypony had gotten to a public chastisement these days, and Celestia felt that she should at least make an effort to look both guilty and sorry at the same time, even if her assistant couldn’t see it.
“I wanted to apologise for yesterday, Sunny. I was more tired than I had expected... which is also the reason morning was a little late.”
The antique oaken table groaned when Sunny heaped her cargo onto it, only barely holding under the weight of so much bureaucracy. The mare herself walked around the wall of paper, wearing a skeptic expression that demanded explanation. “Such things happen, Your Highness, though I cannot help but wonder about the reports I got from the guards stationed at the gates.” She sat down next to Celestia and began levitating over the papers one by one. “It seems there was an artistic—and wholly unsanctioned—explosion of magic released right over the castle.”
“Simply an idea that came to me in the early hours.” Celestia picked up another strawberry and chewed on it daintily, sparing a look for her still tableware-less student. “And it seems to have worked out as I hoped it would,” she continued, directing Sunny’s attention towards Twilight by inclining her head. The young unicorn had given up waiting for Mead to come back with another fork, and was attempting to use her magic to lift the food itself.
Rather than start with a single fruit, she had elected to try and pick up the plate as a whole with a flourish of her horn. Unfortunately, she hadn’t yet had the chance to find out about the power disparity getting her cutie mark had caused, and, much like the knife, it was sent sailing through the dining hall before landing on an unsuspecting guard.
The unicorn in question had been laughing with some of his buddies from the force after a long shift on southern wall, and in his state of lessened sobriety, didn’t link the pancake on his neck with a young filly having troubles with her magic. Rather, he thought it was a prank pulled on him by one of the other guards, and he wasn’t the kind to back down from a challenge. He retaliated with a beer mug, throwing it in the general direction he believed the pancake to have come from. It in turn soaked a class of foals who were on a tour of the castle, and before long he wasn’t the only one intentionally pelting others with food.
Twilight watched with growing horror as what would have been a simple mistake grew into a full-fledged food fight. The air was filled with omelets, hash browns, and more oatmeal than she had ever eaten in her life. Even the ponies that didn’t have breakfast with which to participate found their drinks a close enough substitute, filling the air with cider, orange juice, and the mugs it had been served in.
While her mentor had shielded herself and Sunny Scrolls with one of her impressively large wings, keeping her magic in reserve for unforeseen projectiles, Twilight hadn’t been as lucky. She had been sitting too far away to enjoy any of the additional protection, and while she scrambled for safety, and managed to dodge as many foods as she was hit by, she still looked like a breakfast monster before the fight had really gotten underway.
Unseen by the two ponies closest to her, Celestia was wearing a smile. This was only the third biggest disruption of order the Dining Hall had seen in its lifetime, a long shot from the dragon whom she had mistakenly summoned after a particularly infuriating evening; and even further removed from her confrontation with the dreaded Nightmare Moon. Even without, or perhaps because there was no real danger, it only made her feel more happy; the day was turning out to be the best she’d had in a long time. When two separate tomato salads came at her from different directions, however, she decided that discretion was the better part of valor.
With a flourish of Celestia’s horn, the three of them vanished from the battlefield, leaving the projectiles to harmlessly make a mess of both the table, chairs... and the stacks of paper that hadn’t gone anywhere. The ponies engaged in the food fight didn’t even blink and happily continued their assault on one another.
As the only one who knew what was going to happen, Celestia was also the only one landing squarely on her hooves. Sunny stumbled and only avoided falling over due to some fancy footwork.
Twilight landed on her face, dizzy and more and a little nauseous after being dragged through the magical ether for the first time in her life. She sat up with a groan and rubbed her aching muzzle with her hooves, tuning out the ponies that were talking in the background. When her muzzle stopped hurting, she looked around, trying to find out what had happened and, more importantly, where she was.
From what she could tell, the room they had landed in could have belonged to a Minotaur Monk. Perhaps like the one that had taught Daring Do how to fight her inner-demons after having been cursed in ‘The Shaman’s Anathema’!
While the walls were a soothing pearly white, and the light streaming through the many windows made the room seem more cheery, calling its furnishings sparse would have been generous. Despite the fact that the room was about three times as big as Twilight’s own room in the castle, it only held a pile of pillows, a plain desk positioned underneath the much more interesting tapestry on the wall, which depicted the moon with a stylized mare’s face in it; and finally a rug in front of an empty fireplace. The only things that looked even remotely ornate were the four doors, each in a different section of the wall, and each with a stylized imprint of the sun on them.
“Twilight.”
She turned back to her mentor to find both Sunny Scrolls and Celestia both frowning at her, though Celestia seemed to have a difficulty keeping a smile from her face; the corners of her mouth twitching upwards with increasing frequency.
“Twilight,” Celestia repeated gently. “You’re making a mess.”
All at once Twilight became aware of just how icky she felt. Her mane reeked of alcohol, mixed with orange juice and even some milk; an apple had somehow managed to land on her horn; and her back and hooves were sticky with maple syrup which hadn’t gone quite as far as her crepes had. To make matters worse, the sticky substance had made it possible for other things to stick to her coat as well; a few leaves of salad and even a few sandwich slices clung to her fetlocks. All in all she was wearing enough food to be able to serve as a walking buffet.
“Eeeeuuwwhhhh!” she cried out, tapping out an unintentional staccato with her hooves while looking for the nearest body of water. “Euwh ewh euww euwhhhh!”
She was quickly picked up in a teal aura of magic and steadily levitated toward one of the doors. “Young lady, you are in a lot of trouble for starting that food fight. Not only that, but you’re making a mess of the princess’ chambers. Get out of here and go clean yourself u—”
Sunny halted when a gold-shod hoof landed on her back. “Let her use my personal bathroom, Sunny.”
The unicorn gasped. “Princess!” She looked at Twilight, then over at a door at the far side of the room, before looking back at Celestia. “You cannot be serious.”
Celestia smiled at her aide and gave her a gentle shove. “It’s only food, Sunny, and Twilight couldn’t help what happened.”
“I... but... it’s my job to... and...” The mare stopped and took a deep breath, before bowing to Celestia and letting the spell that held Twilight fade away. “As you wish, Princess.”
Using her own magic to nudge open the door on the far side of the room, Celestia motioned for Twilight to go ahead. “Go on, we’ll get started on your first lesson after you’ve gotten cleaned up.”
“Okay, Princess.”
After Twilight disappeared into the bathroom, Celestia walked over to her desk and started scribbling down ideas for a lesson plan. Sunny followed her closely and took up a position next to her, watching over her shoulder intently. “Princess... where are the documents?”
Celestia calmly dipped her quill into the ink and continued to put down her thoughts on paper. “What documents?” she asked innocently. Leaving the documents behind when she cast the teleportation spell hadn’t been a conscious decision on her part; she had simply reacted in the spur of the moment. Just this once, a mistake she had made came back to her in the form of a blessing; without all those documents around, she could finally have a conversation about her schedule without being buried under to-do lists.
One of the reasons Sunny had held out as Celestia’s personal aide was the fact that she had a lot of patience. No matter how wise or all-powerful a pony was, it meant little when they were overworked to the point of forgetting appointments made mere minutes ago. She let out a quiet sigh and continued as though Celestia genuinely did not know which documents she was talking about. “The documents pertaining our court preparations, Princess.”
“I left them behind.”
From the corner of her eye, Celestia watched Sunny deal with a facial tick, an eye twitch, that had become a tell for when her patience was tested. Sunny took another deep breath before asking, “May I ask why?”
It was one of those things Celestia could never get used to; an hour ago she had woken up fresh and had composed a rhetoric which would persuade the mare in charge of her schedule with ease, but now that she actually faced the mare, all of the social and political savvy seemed to have fled her skull.
She considered simply not responding. Letting the silence drag on, to try and give herself some time to come up with a new approach. Sunny’s demeanour, however, made that far from easy.
“Princess? I can’t find the...”
Both mares turned towards the door leading to the bathroom, from which there were a lot of sounds of a filly banging her shins and dropping the toiletries. A few seconds later, it was followed by a loud CLANG which was in turn followed by a filly groaning loud enough for them to hear through the walls.
“Nevermind... I found it!”
Celestia, who had halfway gotten up—worried that something might have happened to the filly that was quickly becoming her favorite student—sat back down and turned back to her desk. Or at least she would have, hadn’t she come face to face with a mare whose patience had run out.
“You’re being too familiar with her, Princess.”
Celestia snorted. “What would you have me do? She’s a young filly that still has to learn most everything.”
“I would have you be a responsible princess,” Sunny replied without missing a beat. “You are her mentor, not her mother, and she does not need you acting like one.”
“Sunny,” Celestia began, reprovingly. “She is a foal, and foals, especially ones as young as she is, need guidance; but that doesn’t mean I am trying to act like her mot—” She paused, gauging the validity of her words. There might have been some truth to the accusation, but she didn’t regret her actions either. Still, perhaps it would be wise to take a step back. Jealousy is the last thing I’d want Twilight to suffer from. “I’ll try not to get too attached, if that’s your concern.”
Sunny’s expression hardened. “You saying too attached is exactly what concerns me! Think of how the nobles might exploit that fact when they learn exactly how much you care about that filly.”
Again, Celestia did not reply, though this time it had less to do with not being able to find the right words. Rather she was doing one of the hardest things in existence: She forced herself to consider the possibility that Sunny might be right, even though she would rather have dismissed the words outright.
“You may have a point,” she finally conceded after several minutes of silence with only the occasional splash or giggle coming from the bathroom. Her aide’s shoulders slumped; Even with the time Sunny had been standing next to the desk, patiently waiting for a reply, it was clear that going up against Celestia, if only for a moment, was taxing for her. It made Celestia feel like she had to apologise for being stubborn.
Sunny nodded, letting a small smile creep onto her face. “I’m sorry I had to—”
Celestia stopped her with a shake of her head. “Don’t apologise. I should thank you for telling me something I did not want to hear, Sunny,” she said, scooting over a smidge so she could drape a wing over the unicorn’s back. “So... thank you.”
“Princess, you’re being too familiar again,” Sunny said, her smile growing until any trace of her discomfort had vanished.
Giving one last squeeze with her wing before letting go, Celestia drew herself up to her full height and stuck her muzzle in the air in a fair imitation of the nobles parading around high society canterlot. “And why shouldn’t I be allowed to give a hug to the closest friend I’ve had for centuries? I am the princess! I can do whatever I please.” She held the pose for a second or two longer, before breaking out in a fit of giggles, which got a chuckle out of the other mare as well.
The humor of the situation didn’t last long, and Sunny was ever eager to get back to the matter at hoof. “Princess, why did you leave the documents behind?”
“Because we no longer need them.”
“But what about morning court?” Sunny asked, confusion evident in her voice. “You’ll need them to prepare.”
Celestia let out a sigh. In the few unguarded moments after sharing a laugh, Sunny had steered them into the heart of the problem, and she still didn’t have a clear plan on how to proceed. Once more did she wonder if taking on Twilight as her student had been a mistake. She had cried, and laughed, and had been unprepared for more things than she was comfortable with. Once before had she wished she could undo a decision she’d made, and now, as then, there was nothing for it but to go with the flow. “That is what I wanted to talk to you about, actually.”
“Morning court?” Sunny asked, growing more confused by the second.
“Not just morning court, but my schedule as a whole. I want to start delegating much of the workload, and make time to actually be a teacher." She sat back down in front of the desk, and showed Sunny a rudimentary list of ideas ranging from ‘basic levitation’ to ‘Star Swirl’s theorem on coagulating magic’. “Twilight has been here for two days, and I haven’t even gotten around to formulating a lesson plan.”
“But, Princess, morning court is much more—”
“Less,” Celestia cut her off. “Court is less important than teaching Twilight how to control her magic. Presiding over disputes and answering questions could be done by any competent pony, but I am the only one that can teach Twilight what she needs to know.”
“Even if that were true, who could take over? Your advisors?”
The contempt apparent in Sunny’s voice left Celestia floundering. It had seemed like an obvious choice to give her advisors another chance to prove themselves. If she was honest with herself, however, the disdain Sunny held for her so called ‘advisors’ was shared by many of the castle staff and something they richly deserved.
She smiled deviously when she reviewed the mental list of ponies with the required skills and experience to lead the morning court procession. The list was embarrassingly short, but all she really needed was a single pony. “Actually... no,” she said, turning her devious grin upon the pony who was about to become a hapless victim of Celestia’s on-the-fly schemes. “I was thinking of somepony more suited to the task. Somepony who has a good head on her shoulders and whom I trust implicitly.”
Perhaps Sunny hadn’t been her steward for long enough, for she didn’t recognise the smile for what it was. “I will try my best to make the arrangements and brief them on their new task before court starts. Whom might it be, Princess?”
Celestia considered her for a moment. I would have thought you had become a little more savvy after a decade of experience with political dealings... she thought, though what she said was: “I was thinking...” She lifted a hoof and let it wander around before letting it point towards Sunny. “You.”
“Princess... I’m flattered but...” Sunny replied a little too quickly, giving away just how nervous she was about the sudden promotion. “Surely there is somepony more qualified to handle something as important as this?”
“Somepony more qualified than the mare that always memorizes any and all documentation that may be important for court that day? Who then brings them along anyway, simply so that the princess can read them over herself if she would like, even if all the princess has to do is ask her trusted assistant?” Celestia chuckled heartily and couldn’t resist giving Sunny a friendly nuzzle. “I’m sure that if I were to ask, you could recite any of them from memory.”
Perhaps even moreso than the simple things, Celestia delighted in the astonishment of ponies when she told them about things they thought they’d kept hidden from her. The only thing better was that very same look of astonishment coupled with happy or grateful smile, both of which Sunny Scrolls was currently the proud owner of.
“Thank you for the confidence and the honor, Princess, but I have two conditions before I would consider accepting something like this.”
Celestia simply nodded and waited for her to go ahead.
“I want to remain in charge of your schedule. Morning court should only have a slight impact on my performance and I... I love my job.” For a brief moment, she looked like the young, nervous, unicorn mare that had started a job as an apprentice under Celestia’s former schedule keeper. The sentiment made Celestia smile a little wider.
“I would like nothing better. What else?”
“I don’t want to work with those… those...” Sunny snorted and made an irritated gesture with her hooves, “—those idiotic stallions that call themselves your advisors.”
“You won’t have to. Leave them to me,” Celestia said amicably. “It will take a little maneuvering, but I think we can work something out. You will even be able to choose your own advisors should you so wish.”
Sunny trembled with suppressed excitement, and even when she allowed herself a smile it was still restrained. “I humbly accept this promotion,” she said, bending her excitement into a deep bow to Celestia. “And since my new responsibilities are due to begin sooner rather than later, I should head towards the throne room.”
Celestia got up and dipped her head towards Sunny in turn. “I’ll come with you to officially hand over responsibilities.”
Sunny shook her head. “There’s really no need, Princess. Ponies know me, and they know that I wouldn’t do anything like this without your approval. Besides, you wanted to clear your schedule so you had time to teach Twilight Sparkle, did you not?”
Celestia had already been making her way to the door but paused when Sunny’s words reached her. “Oh… yes, that’s right...” She walked back to the desk and softly chewed on the inside of her cheek for a second before nodding. “Alright then. But if you need any help you can find me in the west wing observatory."
“You’re mothering again, Princess.”
Celestia smiled sheepishly. “Sorry.”
Sunny smiled, bowed once more, and made her way to the double doors that lead out into the hallway. At the same time, the door at the opposite end of the room opened, and when Celestia turned around, she came face to face with a sparkling clean Twilight...
...and a very messy bathroom.
It wasn’t just messy in the sense that somepony had been in dire need of a bath, but it seemed like Twilight had gone through every single one of her shampoo bottles, which were scattered all over the place.
“What did you do in there, Twilight?” she asked in disbelief.
Twilight frowned and looked over her shoulder. “I tried to find the wavy-rainbow shampoo because I wanted to try it out... but I think you left it somewhere else.”
“Wavy… rainbow?” Celestia asked.
Twilight nodded. “You know, the shampoo you use to get your mane to do that...” she pointed at Celestia’s mane which was flowing through the air, undisturbed by the conversation about its origins.
“But this isn’t due... to...” Celestia cut herself off and shook her head. “Nevermind, we will get to that some other time. Are you clean enough to begin?”
“I think... yes! I’m ready for my first lesson, Princess!” the filly cheered, looking very pleased with herself after giving herself a quick once over. Celestia smiled, but kept her desire to laugh to herself. She made a mental note to ask the first maid they came across to see about cleaning up her bathroom before the end of the day; which was only just getting started.
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IT LIVES! Filly Twilight will be the death of me.
Somehow, that is the second most adorable thing I have ever seen.
The first was my first sight at my newborn niece.
VERY nice chapter!
I've seen four newborn lambs today. Two of them was from a very old one that I raised myself with a bottle 10 years ago. And then... there's this.
Filly Twilight is turning out to be absolutely adorable in this story. Of course, the big focus is on Celestia and her little struggle of maintaining tutorship of Twilight (Looking at Duchess Blueblood, who Might be willing to discard the filly in favor of her son) and ruling Equestria (The advisors probably probing her all the time with petitions and ideas coming from nobleponies currying favor), but by God, do I love this execution.
Yes, an update. Twilight is so cute!!!!
Oh gods! Twilight is just too adorable!
"Princess Slain by Salad Fork". Now that's a headline.
And Twilight unintentionally started a food fight. That was priceless!
Tia's life just got so much better all the while it's headed to who knows where
FOOD FIGHT!!!
I think that Filly Twilight in this story is the most damn cutest thing I have ever read. I couldn't even get through this chapter without stopping to laugh/cry at least three different times. This is even cuter and fluffier than Fluffle Puff and Chrysalis.
4178093 or Celestia
I can see her face now...O.O
Still enjoying it. I suspect going 'hooves off' will prove harder than expected with governance, but I'll let you develop things as you please.
still nothing to eat for poor twilight >__<
Any bottom-feeding scumbag noble that tries to take advantage of adorable little Twilight is going to find out what it feels like to stare down a Mama Bear who's also a goddess.
And if she happens to leave anything other than a scorch mark, there's a few hundred readers getting in line to tear them a new one.
Oops.
Missing the word sized I think.
Poor Twilight. Just can't get a good breakfast around these parts.
awesome
sometimes i don't like sunny.
wavy-rainbow shampoo?
That is the most adorable thing I have ever heard.
Story's got a nice combination of fluff, humor and seriousness. It's a wonderful combo when pulled off right, and so far, you've been doing it right.
I love that this story actually has Twi acting like a kid. I've seen way too many stories where she's just so damn mature for her age, and while that may be true intellectually, she's still got the emotional mind of a...7-year old? I guess fillies' ages can be debatable but you get the point. Also dig that this is from Celestia's POV. This story is very pleasant to read, nice job!
4178394
Good point, shouldn't Twi still be hungry?
Filly Twi isn't half as cute as Momlestia.
4179135 Well I assume she had to do something with all the food stuck to her, I mean it would be pretty hard to get it down a bathroom drain I would think!
Seriously though why isn't she still hungry? Or did her did she forget her hunger due to her embasressment?
"No, Sunny," Celestia replied, calmly. "I would rather think about how the nobles might react when I show them the interior of my Sun... for a few moments anyway... before they burn in fire. Now, you were saying...?"
"N-Nothing Princess," Sunny rasped, sweating beneath her fur. "Nothing at all...!"
"Good" Celestia replied, smiling serenely.
a
dor
able
!
Oh my god could not stop grinning throughout most of this chapter!
Uhh .. isn't it all but confirmed that all three races are able to use magic? I understand that Celestia may be using small phrases so that her new student may understand, but such a statement seems to be a gross oversimplification.
Yay, I finally got my recommended dose of fluff for the week! I can just see Twilight trying so hard to use her silverware, complete;y unaware of the delayed shock on Celestia's face as a butter knife quivers a couple of inches from her eye. So cute!
Next chapter better start with the chef bringing Twilight some food. She's about to pass out!
4180039
Twilight had decided to not have magic out of fear. Celestia was countering that.
Residing over disputes
This sounds odd. Perhaps it should be "presiding", or something else.
After stumbling on to this story and reading through the first three chapters, I couldn't have been more pleased. This is a heart-warmingly adorable take on Twilight's early years in the castle, with just enough comedy and humor, along with some bouts of political dead-weight rearing its ugly head, to add some spice to it and prevent readers from going in to a sugar-inducted coma. All in all, it's a wonderful blend.
It goes without saying that rambunctious filly Twilight is absolutely adorable, and watching Celestia interact with her is an absolute treat. You have done well in combining Twilight's natural curiosity and diligence with the undeniable feeling of adventure (and simplistic uncertainty) a child her age would feel in her position.
Likewise, it's interesting to watch your Celestia slowly mellowing out in Twilight's presence, and above all else this is exactly what Celestia needs - a little sparkle (har har) in her life to revitalize her and give her something else to focus on, something positive, that would serve as an anchor to drag herself out of the dreary monotone she had long since fallen in to.
Because, above all else, that's what Equestria needs - a Celestia that greets the day with a real smile, anticipation and genuine things to look towards to (and focusing on things that are actually important in the running of her government) - not one that sits through the pointless proceedings like an empty husk without paying attention and cries herself to sleep on moonrise. The miffed nobles can go hang themselves for all it matters, the emotional well-being and happiness of the being that controls the sun (and thus ensures the whole world keeps on chugging) is a mite bit further up on the ladder of importance.
It was also a pretty interesting thought that Twilight excites Celestia exactly because of how powerful she is (and could become), a pony that could be close to her in terms of magical prowess, or at least playing in roughly the same ballpark. Of course Twilight isn't exactly about to start raising the sun and the moon anytime soon (or who knows ...), but I imagine even as much as touching the sun and giving it a tug is a thing of wonder, especially as she is an untrained little filly as of now.
Indeed, I can see why Celestia would be looking towards having someone else around of that magnitude, if not feel kinship towards them - for a thousand years she has been alone not only on the throne of Equestria, but also in terms of peers who could understand her and relate to her - truly relate to her in terms of the power she wields (which, as noted, she tries to keep hidden for the most part), and how it feels to be like a lone giant striding in between ants, so to speak.
If nothing else, Twilight will be someone who can understand because of her power alone - and perhaps be a companion to Celestia in front of whom she doesn't have to pretend to be less than she is, lest the poor onlooker wet themselves in terror and flee on sight. Being able to do (or simply show) the things she can do with someone who can potentially share in them in earnest would be a pretty exciting prospect for her, would it not? The best thing to happen to her in a long time indeed.
So ... yeah. This has been wonderful so far, and I am looking towards the rest.
Part of the reason I've got this on my read list- it's easy enough to overfocus a story.
This one doesn't. Good fiction makes you fall in love with more than a character, it's the entire world. Which is getting done with flying colors here.
4181434 depends on your POV.
Anyone from deviant art here? If so, PLEASE do me a favor and draw me that
So happy to this updating!
Adorable chapter, and welcome back
Poor Celly, still trying to get into the swing of things. She'll be fine, for Twilight's sake, she'll be fine
4182415 So, you think the author intended to convey that her living space is above where people argue?
4184920 more like where she is when listening to said arguments
4185075 Perhaps we disagree on the definition of "reside".
4185428 fair enough
4185428 though I guess it also depends on your opinion of morning court
4184920
With the amount of time Celestia spent in that place, it might well be her residence;
However, you are right, and it has since been changed.
4180039
All 3 races have natural magic, yes, but only unicorns can focus said magic into spells, that being said, that is the only thing that unicorns can do with their magic. Because Twilight refuses to cast spells, that is the equivalent of not having magic at all.
This story is ridiculously adorable and wonderful.
Impressive how Tia can close her eyes when they're already closed
4247789
I have no idea what you're talking about.
4247789 Alicorns have two sets of eyelids. Factual facts.
4250819
k up, silly
No they don't. Its just a grammar f
4287267 It is a fact!
I have dissected an alicorn in my lab!
They also have seven spleens...
4287580
4467500 It's ok! It was only a red alicorn with black stripes.
Nothing important was lost.
4467699
Okay!
I really want to read how they slowly fall in love with each other
But first, let's see how Sparkle was raised by an inexperienced Celestia in the care of small and restless fillys xD
I am eager to see the transformation in their feelings.
Complex? Oedipus / Electra? Nice fic, When's the 4 chapter? xD x3
4476637
I've recently been writing a story for the Twilestia contest (which you'll probably like) And I started writing chapter 4 yesterday
4476716
I'm gonna read that fic, thanks for the info