Daughter of Sun
Everything had been just perfect. Despite all the little hitches, all the problems and difficulties that had tried to stand in their way, Celestia had managed to give her beloved niece a perfect wedding. The threat against Canterlot had been defied, and now a beautiful reception was in full swing. Cadence and Shining Armour sat together at the head table, enjoying their wedding cake together with a loving smile.
Yes, despite all the stress, all the difficulties and trials, things had gone absolutely perfect. Well, almost perfect.
Celestia’s eyes darkened as they settled on the empty chair to the left of Shining; the seat reserved for the best mare. Twilight had never showed up. Somehow, even though expected, her absence left a sour taste in Celestia’s mouth, like a bad omen on a dark night.
The Princess closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh, clearing such thoughts from her mind. Yes, Twilight hadn’t come, but after the argument her and Shining had had, perhaps it wasn’t that surprising. He had implied that she was no longer welcome, after all, and Celestia knew that her student could be sensitive enough to take such heat-of-the-moment things a little too seriously. Why, Twilight was probably in the back of the library right now, flipping through some random black-bound magic book and plotting everyone’s demise, just as she always did when she was mad. The thought made the Princess chuckle softly to herself. Oh, Twilight was probably indignant, and absolutely furious; Not that Celestia could entirely blame her.
She had found out from Shining about an hour after the rehearsal that he had failed to mention the upcoming wedding to his sister- Meaning that the pony Twilight had found out from hadn’t been him, or even her old friend and foal-sitter Cadence, but Celestia herself. Twilight had every right to feel angry about that, she should have been one of the first people told of the happy news. Instead, she had only found out a few days before hand, and not even from the couple themselves. Of course Twilight would be indignant. It was only natural, especially when one considered how close she had been with her brother when they were younger… But that didn’t mean she had the right to bully Cadence just because she was upset and stressed.
Heck, they were all stressed. Shining had been forced to split his time between the demands of his job, and the needs of his bride. Cadence was so worried and stressed about her wedding that the poor mare was visibly cracking under the strain- And really, Celestia wasn’t doing much better. The Solar Princess had been so busy trying to fix everything for her dear niece, as well as help her guards with protecting Canterlot, that Luna had actually resorted to outright forcing her to get some sleep last night. It had gotten to the point where her younger sister had simply given up trying to reason with her, and had just cast a strong sleeping spell on her instead. Celestia had been so exhausted that she hadn’t even managed to put up any resistance to Luna’s magic, instead collapsing into a desperately-needed sleep for nearly an entire day. That was why Celestia had been so utterly relieved to have Twilight and her friends coming to assist with the wedding- She had been absolutely positive that it was a task she could entrust her dearest student with, leaving her with some more time to assist her little ponies with other things. She had been wrong.
Celestia sighed again, and although her eyes were following Shining Armour and Cadence as they took their positions on the dance floor, her mind was still several hours in the past. Twilight’s choice of actions still surprised her. Yes, Twilight had always been a bit dramatic and paranoid, but she had been getting better, more reasonable. Then, just like a terrible blast from the past, at the worst possible time, over-emotional clingy teenage Twilight showed up in full tantrum. They were all very stressed, over-tired, and cranky. Celestia knew that, and therefore had restrained herself from blowing up at her student. Perhaps putting her in time out had been a bit, well, childish, but if Twilight was going to act the part…
A third sigh escaped Celestia’s lips as she watched the newlywed couple part, and the groom walk over to hug his parents. His mother’s smile faded as they spoke, a look of concern replacing it. Celestia raised an eyebrow as she turned her ears towards the group, wondering what it was that Shining was trying to brush off as Velvet’s look of concern deepened into anxiety and what looked like a tinge of anger.
“I’m going to go look for her,” Velvet said softly, her brow furrowed as her eyes looked past Celestia and towards the Royal Library.
Probably talking about Twilight then. Yes, that’s where she would still be… Most likely half-way through that old book of Luna’s by now. Celestia could see it if she closed her eyes; A furious Twilight tucked away in the corner of the library, old horror books stacked all around her like a fortress, a book of nightmares under one hoof, and a quill and notebook under the other as she plotted how to use the new dream spell she had just researched to wreak revenge.
“Have I missed anything?”
Celestia looked up with a smile as at the sound of her sister’s soft voice. Having Luna nearby seemed to ease her nerves even more, and she draped a wing over the darker alicorn as the two settled down to watch the wedding party take the floor.
“Only the first dance.”
It was a shame that Twilight was missing all this, Celestia decided. Although she was absolutely terrible at it, her student positively adored dancing. Perhaps once the wedding began to wrap up, Celestia could sneak over to the library, and speak to Twilight. The two of them could go have a cup of tea alone in the gardens, and talk this whole mess of nonsense out. She probably just needed somepony to hear her out after all, so she could vent out all her frustrations and anxieties, and get them off her chest. Celestia knew that feeling quite well- It was why she was so truly glad to have Luna back. Having a kindred soul by your side is surely the greatest thing in this world.
The sound of anxious hoof-steps on marble drew a sliver of Celestia’s attention as Velvet pushed her way back into the reception. The grey mare made a beeline for her husband, hastily pulling him away from the astronomers he was talking to and into a slightly less noisy corner of the room. An alicorn’s hearing is quite good, and so Celestia could just barely make out what was being hissed in desperate tones.
“I can’t find Twilight.”
“What do you mean you can’t find her, Honey? Isn’t she off sulking in the library, like she always does?” Night Light asked gently, placing a calming hoof on his distressed wife’s shoulders.
“No, she isn’t, that’s why I’m scared! She isn’t in the palace library, or the archives, or even the library down the street she loved so much. I don’t know where she could have gone…”
“Maybe she went to the Vault of Tomes? You know, that big bookstore that had those big books on jinxes? She might have decided that nightmares weren’t going to do the trick this time,” Night Light was laughing, trying to hide his own anxiety as he attempted to ease Velvet’s; But his wife was shaking her head, and his weak smile was slipping.
“They’re not open today... I called to ask. There’s a colt there doing stock, but he said the store isn’t open during national events. I even winked down to Page Turner’s little place to see if Twilly was there, but he says he hasn’t seen her all month! I’m really worried, Nighty, this isn’t like her.”
Celestia frowned, dropping her attention away from Twilight and Shining’s parents, and instead onto her red-tinted reflection in the goblet of wine she was holding. Velvet was right, this wasn’t like Twilight. The sound of Spike’s stuttering apology made her look up again. Velvet was going to Twilight’s friends, asking them if they’d seen her, if they knew where she might have gone, about what had happened. First Spike, then Applejack, then onto Rarity, each of whom had shook their head sadly with looks of bemusement and a tinge of shame. Finally, the grey mare pulled Pinkie aside, who refused to meet the older mare’s eyes.
“It’s Pinkie Pie, isn’t it?” Velvet asked softly, as she tried to catch the younger mare’s gaze, “What happened? Where’s Twilight?”
“I-I don’t know. We had a bit of a-a fight… And when I went to apologize, I-I couldn’t find her… She’d already left…” Pinkie’s ears were folded back, her bottom lip starting to quiver as she struggled not to cry.
Velvet seemed to freeze, her fur standing on end as she processed this new information. It seemed to take a moment for her to find her voice again. “T-Twilly had a fight with you too? With… With all of you?”
Pinkie nodded slowly, as she finally looked up to match the unicorn’s gaze. Velvet’s mind seemed to be racing a mile a minute, her eyes shifting back and forth, as if she was reading a novel.
“Oh... Oh no. Oh no no no,” Velvet was muttering, visibly paling under her grey fur, as she backed up a step, bringing a hoof to her forehead as her mind raced faster “I need to find her, I need to find her right now.”
Velvet span around, her age doing little to stifle the grace she held when she was younger. The mare was ready to gallop full-speed out of the reception in a mad search, willing to knock any fool standing in her way across the room in her rush if she had to- Until Celestia very calmly stepped in front of her with an outstretched wing to slow her to a stop. Velvet came to an uneasy stop in front of the princess, her eyes still darting around the room in an attempt to keep up with everything that was going through her head, while still remaining respectful of her ruler.
“Come and talk with me for a moment, Velvet,” Celestia said softly, wrapping her outstretched wing around the frantic mare as she gently steered her over to a quiet corner reserved just for such meetings as this.
Already, Velvet wasn’t having any of it, and the unicorn was practically prancing in spot even as they came to a stop. “I am very sorry, Your Highness, but can this please wait? It would be my greatest honor to have a lovely conversation with you- Once I have my daughter safe and sound at my side.” Her voice was one of perfectly trained respect and manners, an epitome of politeness. There was steel underneath them however, steel that wasn’t hidden by the polite bow that preceded Velvet’s attempt to dart around Celestia and out the door once more.
Celestia closed her eyes and sighed as she blocked the attempt, drawing the grey mare back to where she stood not a minute before. A flicker of exasperation, and a stronger one of anger shone across Velvet’s face, before disappearing once more behind a cool mask, only cracked by the panic that was rolling off her in waves.
“Twilight Velvet. Your daughter is fine. I assure you. I know my student just as well as you know your daughter and we both know that she’s-“
“Most definitely not fine.”
The anger had broken through the mask, and through all pretenses of respect that had been held between them. To say that Celestia wasn’t startled by being cut off would be an outright lie, as would saying that Velvet wasn’t entirely willing, in that moment, to commit grand treason if it meant getting to her daughter. Steel met steel as Velvet and Celestia stared each other down, each gathering the measure of the other, as they had countless times before. This had nearly become routine in the early days of Twilight’s schooling. Each, a mother and a teacher in their own rights, had disagreed in many, many ways about the beloved filly they shared. This, however, was the first time Celestia had felt such hatred and anger from Twilight’s biological mother. The aura between them was enough to be unsettling the guards that stood nearby. Even they could feel the murderous intent that coated Velvet’s next words.
“I do ever so apologize, Princess, but I must correct you on one little thing. Twilight may be your student, but she is my daughter. And she will always be my daughter. I know Twilight. I’ve known her for far longer than you have, and I know her far better than you ever can, because there are things she would never bare to you. I know her pain, I know her fears, things that you could never understand, because you are a goddess. A being above us. And I respect that. I honor you as my ruler, but I will never honor you as my sister, or as a fellow mother. Now, move aside, so I can save the mare that you helped break.”
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Ooooh, that's gotta hurt Celestia
im glad this is back
Go Velvet!
I'm glad you updated. I wonder what they'll discover first: the fact that Discord is missing or that fact that an unnervingly quiet Twilight is having TEA with him! And I wonder how they'll respond, and if Discord ends up revealing the truth to them.
Ouch. Velvet is no push-over, that's for sure.
Love velvet in this chapter.
Just goes to show you that a mother's love is one of the most powerful forces in existence.
It's not made very clear so I'll ask, I'm assuming that Cadence is still Chrysalis in disguise? The vibe I'm getting from this is that it was never revealed at the wedding that Chrysalis was disguised as Cadence, she let them continue to think Twilight was just, crazy.
Hopefully this is updated sooner, I really wanna see where this goes.
Ouch, 'dat burn. That must've hurt Celestia right to the bone. Velvet's showing her Angry Mother Bear side, and holding back doesn't really seem to be in the plan.
Glad to see you're writing again, it was a while since the last update. Looking forward to seeing what happens next.
I will laugh my BUTT off if Discord (and Twilight) saved the day without the big throwdown.
~~~
Discord: So what *is* the problem, Twilight?
Twilight: It's Cadance. She's supposed to marry my brother but she's not the Cadance I knew growing up. I tell you - she's a MONSTER!
Discord snaps his fingers and freezes Twilight while he checks and sees it IS a monster - Queen Chrysalis singing the "This Day Aria".
Discord: Oh now - we can't have that.... Celestia finding out Twilight was actually right all along would spoil my fun.
Chrysalis: Wha? Where'd you come from? Who are you?
Discord: Leave and don't return. It's a stupid plan anyway. Conquering ponies won't make them love you. Trust me, I know... : snaps fingers - Chrysalis vanishes. :
Discord: Hmm - now where DID she hide the bride to be? :snaps fingers again : Oh, there you are! : waves his fingers: By the way - this is all a bad dream brought on by pre-wedding jitters, the dress looks lovely, and I was never here.... : snaps his fingers again and vanishes, leaving a VERY bewildered Cadance in his wake. :
Discord: Oh - where were we again, Twilight? Your friends don't believe you when you say Cadance is a monster? How cruel of them...
~~~~~
It's actually the perfect play from Discord's standpoint.
If Chrysalis never attacks and unveiled as a monster - Twilight is never vindicated.
If Cadance "returns to normal" after the wedding - it all can be written off as pre wedding jitters by everyone, and "just another Twilight overreaction".
It widens the gap between Twilight and her friends, hurts Celestia, AND scores bonus Chaos points by screwing up someone's carefully laid plan. Win all around...
Oh snap, an update with mama bear Velvet. I hope the next one comes soon.
I forgot everything about this story! Now I have to read this awesome peace of litterature all over again!
... hell yes!
I'm just waiting for more. This is a good story I'm glad to see again.
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i would think in this story, Discord has every incentive to humiliate Celestia by rubbing her fault in, Twilight is already in a receptive state of mind. proving her right will reinforce her 'trust' with Discord...
plus, no Chaos would happen in that scenario...
4105250
Wow. I like that. If I hadn't already written how it works out, I'd probably use that. I'm almost tempted to write two versions of how things go down now.
4105490 If you leave the lot of them to try and remove chrysalis, and take twilight to watch, poison further that they did nothing, and deal with the invasion sans twilight, who was instrumental. let them win, just barely, but forced to either choose canterlot manages, or twilight does. And you've got your chaos, celestia's gem is marred, and you have her pride and joy. Even better, you break the elements against chaos, as you know, one or two of them might stay. and the elements need to stand united, to think how one or two stayed and left twilight behind?
Mama Ursa on the loose!
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sorry, it's morning here and i haven't slept yet. i couldn't follow...
4105918 No worries, sorry. But that discord goes ahead with the reveal, the bearers, and celestia might win, they might not, its pretty uncertain without twilight, and everyone at odds with each other.
He forces a choice, they can save twilight, or save canterlot, either way, he still wins, because one will burn if they leave it, or, twilight refuses to believe them because of what they left canterlot to. Either way, twilight is lost to them, and discord has his day.
He has plenty of ammo to show twilight just how accepting every pony is of the false cadence, and she won't turn, so really, if they chase her, celestia loses her city, and her peoples trust for 'abandoning' them.
4105918
...Neither could I.
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Okay, hopefully I've managed to ping everyone
My sister was reading this for me, when she noticed that the first paragraph of Celestia and Velvet's conversation somehow got deleted. I blame my glitchy track-pad. Either way, it's in-story where it should be now, if you just want to scroll down and read the now complete speech. Sorry for the screw-up guys.
4106110 Thank you for an update to this, and no worries, it still held strong as it was, so icing on the cake!
4105490
I was mostly working off the fact that the invasion didn't appear to happen at all in Chapter 4; and how funny it would be if the Discord was the secret reason why everything went "smoothly" for the wedding. Obviously - Chrysalis changed her plan for SOME reason, because swarm didn't start wrecking the place as it did in canon.
Anyways - that's one way to look at it. It really depends on the TYPE of Chaos Discord wants to sow...
Sure - chocolate rain and such large things are fun. But taking the faithful student of a "former friend turned enemy" and COMPLETELY turning her against her former mentor? Especially one of the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony? That's a deeper, more subtle chaos...
Yeah - showing Twilight she was right would be one way to improve her "trust". But she didn't seem THAT distrusting of him in chapter 3, so it doesn't *have* to happen. Heck, Discord COULD show Twilight she was right, and STILL take out Chrysalis the way I wrote (leaving everyone else utterly clueless about Chrysalis) - and have an even larger win. Twilight gets proven right, making her happier AND proving (to herself) she was right to free Discord. Celestia still has no clue what happened, and everyone else thinks she just had an episode. Rubbing Celestia's face in it doesn't have to happen immediately, after all...
And by wrecking Chrysalis's plans, he is certainly causing Chaos for HER...
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Thanks. Feel free to do whatever you wish - it's your story. The idea just struck me as amusing...
hmmm.. Very interesting. I look forward to see how this plays out. I can't wait to see why the invasion never happened in your story. I look forward to the next chapter. have a fav and
.
For some reason I am really into Canterlot wedding stories, and this one is different from any others I have seen so far.
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That did not answer my question at all. And I wouldn't have even known anything as missing had you not said anything.
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Yes I'm afraid that I'm going to have to make a lot of you wait till next chapter for me to answer your questions.
Hopefully I won't leave you cursing me and my blasted cliffhangers for too long.
So Twilight's mom calls out the princess? About time some one did that. Also, it's great seeing another chapter.
Awesome! Looking forward to more!
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um, you're going to fix the chapter 2, right? we know Pinkie has 3 sisters...
Hmmm, do go on
*Hands Celestia a jar of burn cream"
"That should help with that tiny little burn all over your body"
4108541
Nope. AU.
I personally don't consider Season 4 canon- *ducks angry mob* so I won't be making any changes to any of my AU stories when it decides to add something out of nowhere. It's the fun of tacking on that Alternate Universe tag, you see, I get to explore certain concepts, ideas, and older theories, regardless of whatever the new show writers decide to do.
Damn straight you call her out
Well Celestia, it looks like you don't need a price tag, cuz' you just got OWNED.
Ahhh, so good to see this updated. Good to see that the quality has only improved, really enjoyed Velvet's outburst, as well as the allusion to the fact that Twilight has had outbursts before, even before the show. Can't wait for the next installment.
Black
Daaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyuuuuuuuum.
You go Velvet.
quite an interesting chapter. I look forward to seeing what happens next
More please
Uhm, if Chrysalis was smart enough not to throw Twilight into the cave, wouldn't she have been smart enough to not go ahead with the utterly pointless wedding in the first place?
And instead have tons of changeling agents in place, not send out the needless alert (assuming she did... who did send that out? And why? That's such a nagging plot hole from the episode.), so that they could just all attack from behind, take out both Celestia and Luna (not kill, cuz they kinda need the Sun... maybe not the Moon... they would totally kill Luna.)
Anyway, yeah, emotions don't work for me without substance to back it up.
You GO, Velvet. Mom powers, activate!
4104973 Yeah. It looks like the Armor-Piercing Statements are flying rather thickly through the air today...
4108993 technically it predates season 4 because of that book. Not like it takes a lot to change two to three. It's obvious Maud's a traveler, like Cheese, so it's perfectly simple to write around her anyway. Can still say three and get away with only using two! Bam, fix't!
And she's basing this on what, exactly? Surely not the 'mysterious figures' hovering over Shining's protective shield.
Arg! Wall of text, wall of text! My eyes, they're bleeding!
It's nice to see Celestia put in her place from time to time, and to see Twilight velvet doing it is the icing on the cake. Still, I ended up skipping around a bit because of the style of this chapter.
In the meantime, I have to wonder why it is Chrysalis hasn't enacted her devious scheme yet. I mean it's pretty clear she still intends to invade, else why would her changeling army be there in the first place?
4108993 dude, Season 4 IS cannon. so AU has to apply
I love that line. It's just so powerful
4108993
That's what I do too. I haven't watched much past season 3.
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Damn. I think I just fell for Velvet
This chapter convinced me to upvote the story.