So...What Now?

by MythrilMoth

Twilight's Family (Part 2)

Twilight had left her family in the care of Pinkie Pie while she led Trixie and her wagon off to the palace and left her in the care of Amber Glow. When Twilight returned, she found her family at Sugar Cube Corner, where they had taken over a table and were laughing uproariously. A number of ponies had gathered to gawk at Cadance covertly.

Twilight smirked as she approached. "Mom, you're gonna get fat. Shiny, you're gonna get fatter."

"Oh, don't be a party pooper, Twilight!" Pinkie said. "It's a special day! Everypony should eat as much as they want on a special day!"

"Pinkie, we don't all have your bizarre hyper-fast metabolism," Twilight said. Then, with a smile, she added, "But you're right. I want my family to enjoy everything Ponyville has to offer." With that, she joined them and helped herself to the massive platter of assorted baked goods that the others were eating from.

"Spike and Pinkie filled us in about that Trixie character," Velvet said. "Frankly, I'm surprised you're even giving her the time of day."

"I'm surprised she isn't rotting in the dungeons in Canterlot," Shining muttered.

Twilight shrugged. "Everypony deserves a second chance. Besides, I've been keeping tabs on Trixie since she last left Ponyville. She's been keeping her nose clean. She's stopped showboating the way she used to, and she's performing simple, family-friendly magic acts. She's even played Carneighgie Hall." She smiled. "She still has an ego, but...I think that's really more her eccentric personality than anything."

Cadance smiled. "You really are Aunt Celestia's student," she said. "You have her kindness and her forgiving nature."

"All because of the friendships I've made," Twilight said. "My friends have made me the pony I am today. The princess I am today."

"So where are you all going after you're through here?" Pinkie asked.

"Hmm...well, I guess the next logical place would be Fluttershy's cottage," Twilight said.

"Cool! I'd love to join you but I'm gonna need to deliver some more food out to the workers at the palace," Pinkie said. Then, brightly, she added, "Oh, but I'd love to throw a party for you all!"

"Oh, that's not really necessary, dear," Velvet said.

"Well of course it's necessary!" Pinkie insisted.

"How about tomorrow?" Twilight suggested. "I'm sure by the time we're all done running around Ponyville, my parents will be too pooped to party."

"Hmm...okay!" Pinkie nodded up and down rapidly.

* * * * *

"Good thing it's a long walk to Fluttershy's place," Cadance said with a smirk.

"Okay seriously, knock it off," Shining Armor said in a low growl.

The group was still several minutes away from Fluttershy's cottage when they encountered Angel Bunny running in their direction. Angel saw them, twitched an ear, skidded to a stop, and began waving his paws at Twilight.

Twilight frowned. "Angel? Is something wrong with Fluttershy?"

Angel nodded rapidly and turned to run back to the cottage. The others glanced at one another worriedly. Twilight spread her wings and took off, followed by Cadance. The others chased after them on hoof.

When the two princesses arrived, they followed Angel through the open front door. Inside, the various animals were all visibly agitated. "Where's Fluttershy?" Twilight asked.

Angel trotted to the back of the living room and waved a paw anxiously at a stone passageway Twilight had never seen, which stood where she knew Fluttershy's bookcase to stand. "What the hay?! Where did THAT come from?!"

Angel twitched both ears, then disappeared from sight. Exchanging worried glances, the two princesses approached the passageway, which led down. "I'll take point," Twilight said.

"What's going on here?" Cadance whispered as they descended a narrow stone staircase.

"I have no idea," Twilight replied.

At the bottom of the stairs, they emerged into a large circular room lit by several electric lights arrayed around the edges. Twilight's jaw dropped. "What in the world—?!"

Nearly every inch of the room, from floor to walls to ceiling, was covered in yarn.

Baskets full of balls of yarn and knitting needles lay everywhere. Wool scarves and socks lay draped on a scrubbed wood table. All around the room were dozens of random things, all hand-knit from wool yarn: butterflies, parasprites, balloons, stormclouds, birds, stars, bunnies, and an enormous, sinuous wool dragon which hung from the ceiling and circled the entire room with its ponderous length.

In the center of the room, Fluttershy hung trapped in a cat's cradle of pastel yarn.

"My goodness," Cadance said, blinking.

"Umm...hello Twilight...Princess Cadance..." Fluttershy said softly. "Umm...could either of you help me get down from here? If it's not too much trouble, I mean."

Twilight's horn lit up; in a bright flash, Fluttershy was no longer hanging trapped in a web of yarn, but standing next to the princesses. Fluttershy nibbled at a bent feather, fluffed out her wings, then settled them at her side. "Thank you," she said softly. "Sorry to trouble you."

"Fluttershy, what...what IS all this?" Twilight asked.

Fluttershy blushed. "Oh, this? It's, well...umm...it's my..." She swallowed, then ducked her head. "I—I guess I never told you about my secret hobby, did I?"

"No...I think I'd remember something like this," Twilight said, looking around in awe.

"Well...in that case..." Fluttershy took wing, fluttering in midair in the center of the room. "Twilight, Princess Cadance...welcome to my..." She took a deep breath, then...

"CHAMBER OF EXTREME KNITTING AND FRIENDLY PONY GROTESQUERIES!"

She landed, then blushed and ducked her head, sheepishly adding, "Umm...I like to knit."

"No kidding," Cadance said, looking all around. "You did all this by yourself?"

"Yes," Fluttershy said.

"Fluttershy, this is...amazing!" Twilight tilted her head. "But how'd you get tangled up like that?"

"Oh, well...I was stringing up some new rigging to hang some projects I'm almost finished working on," Fluttershy said. "I got my hoof caught in one of the crossthreads, and..." She dug her hoof into the stone floor.

At that moment, the others descended the stone steps. "Wow," Velvet said. "This is..."

"Holy guacamole!" Spike cried. "How long has THIS been down here?"

"Eep!" Fluttershy squeaked. "No! I—I don't want so many ponies to know my terrible secret!"

"Terrible secret?" Twilight asked skeptically, raising an eyebrow. "Fluttershy, this is nothing to be ashamed of! This is...this is something you should be proud of!"

"I can't believe you don't have a knitting cutie mark," Cadance said. "It takes real talent to pull off something like this."

Fluttershy blushed. "I...I just have too much time on my hooves," she said. "Umm...could we please all go upstairs now? If...if that's okay."

"Sure, Fluttershy," Twilight said. One by one, the ponies all made their way back upstairs. Once they were in Fluttershy's living room, Fluttershy swung her bookcase closed; Twilight heard a secret switch click. "So...!" Twilight began awkwardly. "You remember my parents, right? They're spending the week in Ponyville, along with my brother and Cadance."

"Oh my, that's wonderful!" Fluttershy said.

"It's a good thing we were coming out here to visit you," Cadance said. "Seems like we came along at just the right time."

"Yes," Fluttershy said meekly. "Thank you again."

"So how long has that basement been there?" Twilight asked.

"Oh, for ages," Fluttershy said.

"You shouldn't hide your knitting talent from the world," Velvet said. "Why, such beautiful art should be shared!"

"Oh my...I couldn't," Fluttershy said. "I just couldn't!"

"I think once things settle down at the palace, we should have an exhibition!" Twilight said. "Ponies would love what you've done down there!"

"An...an exhibition? Oh no...I couldn't..."

"How did you make that awesome dragon?" Spike asked. "It's enormous!"

"Oh, well...I used chicken wire for a frame, and—"

"I've decided!" Twilight said cheerfully. "By royal decree, I'm going to set aside one room in the palace to display Fluttershy's extreme knitting!" She tilted her head. "Of course, that also means I'll have to give Rarity a showroom, Pinkie Pie a party room, and...hmm." She tapped a hoof on her chin. "This will require some thought, and I also haven't really seen the complete map of the palace yet..." She shrugged. "Oh well! It's a huge palace, it'll all work out, I'm sure of it!"

"Yay," Fluttershy whispered.

Cadance tapped Twilight on the shoulder. "I think we're all upsetting Fluttershy," she said. "Why don't we talk about her knitting later? Let's move on to a more comfortable topic, like animals."

Fluttershy perked up. "Oh yes, that would be lovely."

* * * * *

After spending time with Fluttershy and her animal friends, Twilight showed her family a few more of Ponyville's more interesting sights, then took them to Hay Burger for dinner. The sun was low in the sky when she led them to the Rich manor. "And this is where you'll be staying," she said.

A pink filly bounded up to the gate. "Princess Twilight!" she squeaked. "What brings you to my humble abode?"

"Hello, Diamond Tiara," Twilight said coolly. "Your father has agreed to let my family stay here for the week while they're visiting, since the palace isn't ready for guests yet."

Diamond Tiara gasped. "We're hosting nobility?" She glanced at Cadance. "AND a Princess?" She hopped in place. "Oh, wait until everypony at school hears about THIS!"

"If my family are disturbed by unwanted attention during their stay in Ponyville, I'll be very upset," Twilight said. "Now, if you would please show them in?"

"Of course, Your Highness," Diamond Tiara said. She opened the gate. "Come right in!"

Velvet turned to Twilight. "We'll see you in the morning, dear," she said.

Twilight nodded. "Have a good night, Mom. Dad. Cadance. Shiny." She waved. Spike climbed onto her back, and she soared off toward the palace.

Diamond Tiara looked up at her houseguests. "Well then! I'm Diamond Dazzle Tiara, and...just let me go find our butler, I'm sure he's got your rooms ready...just follow me, please..."

Velvet leaned closer to Cadance as they followed the filly. "Twilight didn't seem to like this girl very much, did she?"

"She certainly didn't, and I think I know why. I know an alpha when I see one," Cadance whispered back.

* * * * *

Twilight landed outside the palace just as workers were filing out and trotting over to the large picnic tables which had been set up. Local cooks and volunteers were spreading out a buffet dinner service for the workers and guards. She trotted over to Amber Glow, who was flipping through forms on her clipboard. Trixie was mingling with the workers, amusing them with simple illusions.

"Ah, Your Highness. Excellent timing."

"Hello, Amber Glow. How's it coming along?"

"Good for ze most part," Amber Glow said, "but ve haff hit a small snag."

"A snag? What kind of snag?"

Amber Glow held out a map of the palace for Twilight's inspection. "Ve haff completed ze exploration of ze palace, und..." She tapped her hoof on sections she'd flagged. "Zese rooms are arranged in ze same fashion as your royal suite."

Twilight studied the map, counting the rooms and noting their layout, and nodded. "They're meant for my friends," she said. "See? There's five extra royal suites, one for each of them."

"Ja, Princess Celestia said ze same sing," Amber Glow said. "I believe informing zose who vill inherit zese rooms is a matter you must personally attend to."

"I'll take care of it tomorrow," Twilight said.

"Wow, our friends get to live at the palace too?" Spike asked.

"If they want to," Twilight said. "Even if they don't, at least they'll have their own place to stay here." She smiled happily. "This is wonderful!"

After speaking with Amber Glow for a few more minutes, Twilight flew up to the royal suite with Spike on her back. Once they landed in Twilight's bedroom, Spike said, "Hey, Twilight?"

"Yes, Spike?"

Spike shuffled his feet awkwardly. "For what it's worth? I'm glad you're immortal now." He looked up at her, and his gaze was as earnest as she could ever remember. "I...I never told you this, but one of the most painful thoughts I've ever had was that I'd outlive you." He shuffled over to her and hugged her. "Now that you're an alicorn, I don't have to worry about that anymore."

"Spike..." Twilight embraced Spike, tears welling in her eyes.

Spike spent the night with Twilight, in her bed.

* * * * *

Filthy Rich treated Twilight's family to a lavish continental breakfast, the equal of anything they could find in Canterlot. All during breakfast, Diamond Tiara attempted to impress them with how fabulously wealthy her family was, and how much more graceful, elegant, and intelligent she was than any of her peers.

"Really, we're practically Ponyville royalty," she said, bouncing her mane with a hoof.

Shining Armor raised an eyebrow. "Uhh...yeah, you know what? I think you're forgetting that my sister is Ponyville royalty. Or did you miss the part where she's an alicorn princess with a huge palace?"

"Shiny!" Cadance hissed.

"No, Cadance, I'm not taking any more of this brat's garbage," Shining said, setting his coffee cup down. "Mr. Rich—"

"Oh, I completely agree, Prince Armor," Filthy Rich said with a frown. "I'm sorry for my daughter's behavior. I'm afraid she's rather full of herself." He sighed. "I've tried to instill some humility into her, but..." He gave Diamond Tiara a stern glare.

Diamond Tiara ducked her head, ears wilting. "I'm sorry," she mumbled half-heartedly.

Cadance daintily wiped her mouth. "I think I want to do some shopping this morning," she said delicately. "Shiny, you're going with me, right?"

"Of—of course, dear," Shining Armor said.

"I think we're going to head up to the palace and see what kind of trouble we can get into," Twilight Velvet said with a grin.

Night Light chuckled. "Sounds like a plan."

A short while later, Cadance and Shining Armor were leaving the Rich estate, saddlebags strapped on, when the Rich's butler approached them. "You'll have to excuse Miss Tiara," he said. "I know how very trying she can be, but she really can't help it. I'm afraid being a spoiled brat is her special talent."

"Now that's just sad," Shining Armor said.

"Be that as it may, my husband should know better than to pick a fight with a child in our host's house," Cadance said. "Please convey our deepest apologies to Mr. Rich for that scene."

"Of course, Your Highness," the butler said with a bow.

Once they were out on the road, Shining Armor whined, "Oh, COME ON, Cadie! She had it coming!"

Cadance sighed. "Couldn't you have just short-sheeted her when the maid wasn't looking or something? Maybe put pepper in her tea? Something civilized?" She rolled her eyes. "Come on, let's get to the marketplace. I'm dying for a fresh carrot."

"Yeah, crystal carrots just don't taste the same as good old-fashioned earth pony carrots," Shining agreed.

* * * * *

Twilight glided gracefully down into the hustle and bustle of breakfast in the work camp. Pinkie and Applejack were already present with their respective food carts. "Well mornin', Twi!" Applejack said.

"Hi Twilight!" Pinkie greeted.

Applejack tilted her head in the direction of Trixie, who was drinking coffee with some of the Royal Guard. "So what's that'un doin' back in Ponyville?"

"Now, Applejack. I know Trixie's record isn't exactly clean, but she's behaving herself," Twilight said.

"Ah'm just sayin', sometimes it seems like we let an awful lot of shady characters back into Ponyville. The Flim-Flam Brothers, Discord, Trixie...ain't there some way we could keep th' undesirables out? Ah'm just sayin'."

"If she causes trouble, I'll deal with it," Twilight said. "Until then, just let her be. She's trying to be a better pony. Now, I need you two to find Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy and bring them here immediately," she said. "Don't worry about your food carts, Spike can take care of things."

"Sure thing, Twilight," Applejack said, tilting her hat. "Is somethin' wrong?"

"No, but there's something really important I need to discuss with all of you, preferably before today's work assignments are passed out."

"No problem be back in a few!" Pinkie said, zipping off into Ponyville.

While she waited, Twilight helped herself to breakfast, chatted with a few of the guards and workers, and spent a minute in deep discussion with Amber Glow, during which she made a copy of the palace map for her own use. Once her friends had returned, she led them off to a clear spot some distance from the camp. "Girls, we've found something in the palace you all need to know about."

"Oooh! Oooh! Is it a swimming pool?" Pinkie asked.

"A spa, perhaps?" Rarity suggested.

"A menagerie?" Fluttershy asked.

"Why don't we just let her tell us?" Rainbow said, folding her arms.

Twilight spread her map out on the ground and pointed to the six royal suites. "You know how each of you has a throne? Well...each of you also has your own royal suite."

Applejack blinked. "Our own whut now?"

Rarity gasped. "You mean...we're all going to live at the palace?" Her eyes lit up. "How fabulous!"

Fluttershy frowned. "But...I can't just leave my animal friends..."

"Ah don't feel right about movin' off th' farm," Applejack said.

"Nopony's forcing any of you to move into the palace," Twilight said. "I already expected at least two of you wouldn't want to move, and that's fine. But even if you don't intend to use these rooms, they are yours, so it's going to be up to each of you to see to it that your suites at the palace are decorated exactly the way you want them." She smiled. "It'll be fun!"

"Oooh, that does sound like fun," Pinkie said. "Also, I'm pretty okay with moving into the palace. I need more space anyway."

"I'm absolutely moving into the palace, darling!" Rarity said. "But of course, I'm sure you all knew that."

Applejack chuckled. "Well, Ah reckon it'd be nice t' have a little...home away from home, like. Just fer grins."

Rainbow shrugged. "Yeah, it'd be nice to have a place to crash where I can actually take Tank's harness off at night. Besides, I've never tried living in a place that wasn't made of clouds before. Could be cool."

"I don't know how much time I'd actually spend there, but...okay," Fluttershy said.

"Great," Twilight said. "Going by the checklist Amber Glow has, it should be about two days before enough of the heavy work is done that we can actually go in and explore. Think about what you might want for your own little piece of the palace." She rolled up the map and put it back in her brand new saddlebag. "I need to go have a quick word with the may—with Polly, then I'm going to go meet up with my parents."

"They're kiiiiiind of already here," Pinkie said, pointing with a hoof.

"Huh. Okay then, I guess I'll drop by Town Hall later."

* * * * *

As Shining watched his wife pick through an assortment of fruits and vegetables, something in the corner of his eye caught his attention. "Hey, is that...?"

A gangly, cream-colored stallion with a short brown mane and tail, round glasses, and a scattering of acne was browsing the asparagus stand. Shining reared happily. "Hey, Poindexter!" he cried.

Cadance looked up from her browsing, as did Poindexter, whose eyes widened behind his glasses. "Shining Armor?" Poindexter asked.

Shining charged over and gave Poindexter a noogie. "Dude! I haven't seen you in years!"

Poindexter laughed. "Heh, yeah...well, I moved to Ponyville about a month after graduation." He looked over at Cadance, then smirked at Shining. "Heard about the wedding. Congratulations."

Shining grinned. "I'd have invited you, but I had no idea where to find you."

"Eh," Poindexter said with a shrug. "I don't think I could've made it anyway. Mom's been sick for a while now."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," Shining said.

"So what brings you two to Ponyville?" Poindexter asked.

"We're visiting Princess Twilight," Cadance said.

Poindexter tilted his head thoughtfully. His eyes widened. "Oh yeah, that's right! I forgot she was your little sister." He shook his head. "Man...your sister's a princess, your wife's a princess...you are living the dream." He chuckled. "And to think back in high school you were just another band nerd..."

"So what are you doing with yourself?" Cadance asked. "Is there somepony special in your life?"

Poindexter shook his head. "Nope, still single. Right now I'm just doing odd jobs. One week I'm selling tonics, the next I'm doing maintenance on the windmill." He shrugged. "I mean yeah, it's not a very exciting life, but I can't complain." He scratched at his cheek. "Except for the acne. That, I can complain about."

Shining Armor winced. "Yech. I can't believe it's still that bad."

"Yeah, I've got some kind of...I dunno," Poindexter said. "Been to every doctor in Canterlot and Ponyville. Basically, I'm stuck with this."

"Wow, that sucks."

Poindexter shrugged. "Eh, that's life. Well...I gotta finish the shopping. Mom wants vegetable soup for lunch. If you're gonna be in town for a while, maybe I'll catch up with you later."

"Awesome. Stay cool, dude!"

* * * * *

"You know who'd love to see this place up close?" Velvet asked as she sat next to her daughter and peered up at the castle. Night Light was moving among the guards, joking and snacking on whatever was left from the breakfast service. "A.K. Yearling."

Twilight's brow furrowed. "Doesn't she stay away from public places?"

"Well, yes, she's notoriously reclusive," Velvet said. "I mean, whenever I receive a manuscript for editing from her, it's always in some out-of-the-way place..."

"I mean, I wouldn't mind seeing Daring again," Twilight said, "but maybe the Ancient Castle of the Royal Sisters would be more her speed..."

Velvet blinked at Twilight. "What?!"

"I mean, she could actually stretch her wings, explore without worrying about her disguise..."

Velvet stuffed a hoof in her daughter's mouth. "Back up there, sweetie." She looked around, then leaned closer and whispered, "You...you know?!"

Twilight arched an eyebrow. "Really? Rainbow Dash randomly showing up in Daring Do and the Ring of Destiny wasn't a big red flag?"

Velvet frowned. "Okay, I'll admit that struck me as odd..." She tilted her head. "Wait...you mean you and your friends were there for that one?"

"Yeah, but it was mostly Rainbow. The rest of us fought some of Ahuizotl's goons, but mostly we were just sort of...there." Twilight frowned. "So you've known all along?"

Velvet nodded. "Daring and I are old college buddies. Before I married your father, I even went on her first couple of digs." She smirked. "Things weren't quite as exciting back then, of course. The very last time I went on an expedition with Daring was the first time Caballeron tried to kill her."

"Wow."

"So yeah, I've been publishing her memoirs as adventure novels," Velvet said. "She does the bulk of the writing, I edit and publish..."

"Well, if Daring wants to see the palace for herself, that's fine by me. But I really think she'd enjoy the old castle in the Everfree Forest more." She rustled her wings. "Actually, it might not be a bad idea to call her in anyway. We're about to move most of the library from the old castle to my palace, and there's a lot of scary and dangerous things in there. I wouldn't mind a hoof from an experienced archaeologist and treasure hunter."

"You mean you actually know where the Ancient Castle is?" Velvet asked.

"Well, yeah," Twilight said. "My friends and I have been cleaning it up for months. We have picnics there!"

Velvet shook her head. "We really need to sit down and just catch up one day."

Twilight giggled. "Well, we're sitting down right now..."

* * * * *

"Hey, Shiny?"

"Yeah, Cadance?"

"Is it me, or is half our graduating class living in Ponyville now?"

"Yeah, now that you mention it. I know the Mayor of Ponyville went to school with us. I think I saw...oh, what's her name, she used to have that frizzy mess of a mane..."

"Cheerilee?"

"Yeah, her. Then Poindexter, and a few others I can't place off the top of my head..."

"The school DJ's little sister lives here. She played our wedding reception, didn't she?"

"Hm? Oh, DJ P0N-3? Yeah, Twilight said she's a good friend of Pinkie's."

"How did so many of our class wind up in Ponyville?"

"Well, the way I understand it, Ponyville had a growth boom not long after we graduated. I think a lot of those ponies moved to Ponyville right around then. Maybe they just wanted a change of pace."

"I can see that. I mean, Ponyville's nice."

"Quiet. Peaceful."

"Idyllic."

"...is that a manticore?"

"No, that's a griffon. That's a manticore."

"Oh, right, my bad..."

"..."

"..."

"...should we maybe do something...?"

Comments

[Seirs]

Soooo Twilight's mom publishes Yearling's books.......I see what you did there.

[MythrilMoth]

4826010 Yeah, my headcanon (so as to iron out the wrinkles between canon and the comics) is that Velvet is Daring's editor/publisher.

[Twilight978]

Well this just got way more interesting.

[Rokas]

Those last lines.

Griffons, manticores and bears, oh my. Seems things will be interesting.

[Tatsurou]

I like how you're incorporating the comics and smoothing out the plot wrinkles in the process.

Also, that bit at the end about the griffon and the manticore...on one hand, I'm laughing hysterically at the fact no one else is screaming about the manticore and just how blazeh Ponyvillians have gotten about the random craziness. On the other...is the griffon going to be Gilda, also here to reconnect with the few she once was close to the way Trixie wanted a hug from Twilight?

[MythrilMoth]

4826204 The griffon IS Gilda, yes. But she's not back for hugs and warm fuzzies. That's why there's a manticore with her.

[Tatsurou]

4826283
Ah.

[Awesomo3000]

Yeeeeah, the downside to being immortal, Twilight? You... Stay the same age while getting to watch your friends age and eventually...

[MythrilMoth]

4827811

[WiseIdiot]

4826283

Okay, there's getting back at your ex-friend for being snubbed, and then there's...whatever the hell Gilda is doing.

[djthomp]

Nice take on Twilight's mom and Daring Do.

[dragonspinner33]

4826164 l know right

[OmniFox]

Don't forget the owl!!!

[The Chronicler]

Lol, loved those last two scenes...

[FanOfMostEverything]

Ah yes, one of the more tragic interpretations of Diamond Tiara's talent. I prefer "draconian leadership." At least that way she's not destined to be completely insufferable. Just mostly.

Very nice job incorporating disparate elements of canon, from the CHAMBER OF EXTREME KNITTING to the Canterlot-to-Ponyville wave of immigration to reconciling the authorship of Daring Do. And the two Twilights really do need to catch up.

Looking forward to more, especially Pinkie Pie's requests for her suite.

[NobleValor]

Boy, seems you are bringing source material from all over the place.

[BenRG]

Only Fluttershy would have a whole secret life that she considers shameful and not suitable for her friends to know (and, of course, for that to be purely her insecurities and low sense of self-worth talking.

Is that a Manticore? Yes, this is Ponyville. It wouldn't be Ponyville if some unnatural horror hadn't loped out of the forest to cause a panic. Most likely, this one is semi-tame and associated with that Griffon in some way but that won't stop there from being a stanmpede.

[ggg-2]

Go Shiny! about time somepony lets the little brat have it!

[Stewie91]

You know Celestia and Luna are the only two who are really immortal in the canon. It's cause every time they raise the sun and the moon it rejuvenates their life force thought technically Twilight will probably live a bit longer do to raising the sun once.

[Tatsurou]

Oddly enough, I like the idea of Twilight as an immortal alicorn.

But I don't think ascending triggered the immortality.

I think getting sucked into the box for the Rainbow Power did it. Which means her friends are immortal, too.

[Night_Moon60606]

with this story getting a retooling, i would have expected the end of this chapter to be changed from the original...

[MythrilMoth]

6042088 No, it'll just play out differently when I update.

[OminousBrony]

...When will there be more? I just started reading and want more. More please.

[MythrilMoth]

6506848 I'm glad you enjoy the story, but please understand I'm busy with other things and at the moment don't have time to work on all of my projects. This one's not going to be updated for quite some time.

[Troublesome Beast]

6507178
I hope you get a chance sometime soon! This was wonderful; I'm heading to look at Scoots' and Turnovers next but the main line is really, really interesting.

[Midknight Defender]

*eyes the cancelled tag sadly*

Another good one, left undone.