Mixed Feelings and Empty Stomachs
Skyla stepped out of the study and quickly closed the door behind her, her wings shifting anxiously against her flanks as her magic went dark and she took a deep, steadying breath. Well… that was a ton of fun, she though sourly as she stepped away from the door, her ears folding back against her head. I knew that Princess Twilight was going to ask a lot of questions about home and what it was like there, but… she closed her eyes and swallowed in an attempt to remove the acrid taste of bile from the back of her throat. I had no idea that talking about it again would be that… awful.
She swallowed again, hoping against hope that the simple repetition would make her throat feel less like she’d vomited multiple times in quick succession, but as she did her best to chase the awful taste away she noticed a gentle, teasing pressure on the right side of her head, a tickle that caused her lips to curve up into a smile that she knew must have looked very awkward on her dissatisfied features.
“So you were out here listening to everything,” she said softly as voices from within the room behind her began to filter through the door. She let out a soft sigh and turned to her right, her eyes flashing open and focusing on a small credenza that sat between two potted plants near the study’s door. “You might as well come out now – otherwise, who knows who else might find you.” She took a step towards the piece of furniture, but for a long moment nothing but silence answered her verbal challenge; after that moment passed, however, the plant farthest away from Skyla shivered as if it had been bitten by a Wendigo, and from the shadows between it and the credenza stepped Flurry Heart, her eyes narrow and curious.
“…how did you know I was there?” she muttered, her muzzle scrunching as she peered intently at Skyla. “I thought I was hidden pretty well in there…”
“If it makes you feel any better, I couldn’t see you.” Another smile touched Skyla’s lips, but she could feel the weight of her interrogation pulling it down at the corners, keeping it from really blossoming. “I could feel you, though – the brightness of your magic gave you away.”
“But I wasn’t using my magic!” protested Flurry, her muzzle scrunching even further as she glared up at Skyla. “I made sure that I wasn’t, because magic glows and that’ll give you away when you’re hiding!”
Now Skyla chuckled, and the laughter made her feel like the clouds inside of her were parting to let the sun shine on her again. “No, I meant your innate magic,” she said, her smile growing bigger as Flurry’s indignant glare became a frown of curiosity instead.
“My innate magic..?” she mused softly, but even as Skyla opened her mouth to explain further, Flurry’s eyes opened wide and she smiled brightly. “You mentioned something with the Aunt Twilight from your world last night, something about how it felt like she was wearing magic around her like a cloak… is that what you’re talking about?"
Skyla nodded. “That’s right.”
“So I’m wearing a cloak, too?” Flurry Heart’s wings fluffed slightly as she beamed up at Skyla. “That’s so super cool!”
“No… no, Flurry,” giggled Skyla, her smile growing larger every moment she was with the smaller filly, “it’s not like that with everypony. That was just how the Twilight from my world felt.” Flurry’s smile dimmed a little, and Skyla could clearly see the gears in her head turning at full speed. I swear this filly doesn’t even try to hide her inner thoughts, thought Skyla to herself. I’d heard the expression ‘wear your heart on your sleeve’ before, but I’ve never met anypony who actually did it.
“So… you’re saying that it feels different for each different pony?”
Skyla nodded and started down the hallway, leaving the door and the adults who were no doubt discussing her future behind. “It’s really hard to describe sometimes,” she said as Flurry fell into step with her, “because it doesn’t always work with every pony. Like, I could always feel Queen Twilight, and I can feel your Aunt Twilight just fine… though she feels totally different in this world.”
“I’m glad that she does,” muttered Flurry, her ears drooping. “She didn’t sound very nice when you described her to Aunt Twilight.”
Skyla slowly turned her gaze to the smaller pony and raised her eyebrows. “So you were listening through the door,” she said. Flurry Heart’s cheeks colored slightly, but to Skyla’s surprise she smiled sweetly and stuck out her tongue, her eyes squeezing shut with the might of her sassiness.
“What was I supposed to do?” she said as her tongue retreated and her eyes opened again. “You guys all left me behind and I wanted to know what was going on.” She shrugged, her wings bobbing with the motion. “Besides, now you don’t have to try and explain all of that stuff to me from the beginning, right?”
“Well, yes, but…” Skyla’s protests died on her tongue, and with a resigned sigh she shook her head. “I guess I can’t really blame you,” she said after a moment, “because that’s what I would have done, were I in your place.” She smiled at Flurry, and as the younger pony grinned up at her she felt a wave of warmth blanket her heart in a way that she’d not felt before: a happy, sunny sensation that made it feel like all of the bad feelings that she’d had while talking to Twilight and the rest had faded away, and before she could stop herself Skyla raised a hoof to her muzzle and giggled again. “You really are a troublemaker, Flurry Heart,” she laughed.
“Only when I’m bored,” replied Flurry with a mischievous glint in her brilliant blue eyes. Skyla rolled her own eyes and dropped her hoof back to the floor as the two fillies made their way out of the hallway and into one of the many larger rooms in the Crystal Castle. As far as Skyla could tell, this room in particular was just a sitting room, decorated modestly with several couches, tables, and a smattering of low bookshelves, and as they passed through it Flurry Heart took the lead in their walk, stepping up just slightly ahead of Skyla and turning towards the passage on their right. “So tell me more about this whole ‘feeling magic’ thing,” she continued with a glance over her left shoulder. “What do you mean it doesn’t work with everypony?”
The sunlight from the windows in the sitting room faded away as Skyla followed Flurry into the corridor, her brow furrowing as she tried her best to find the words that she’d need. “I mean that I really can’t feel normal unicorns,” she clarified. “Like, if Starlight Glimmer or Sunburst were around and not actively using their magic, I wouldn’t be able to feel them.”
“But if they started using magic?”
“Then I could, yeah.” Skyla sighed. “If a unicorn uses magic around me, it’s like I can… I dunno, see what kind of spell they’re using before they use it, and I can also tell a little about how they intend to use that spell… does that make any sense?”
Flurry Heart shook her head slowly, her shoulder length mane swaying gently across her back and wings. “I’ve never heard of a pony being able to do that before,” she admitted, “but that doesn’t mean that it’s something that ponies can’t do.” She turned a smile back to Skyla, and again the pink alicorn felt a warm blanket wrap around her heart. “I guess if it’s happening to you, it doesn’t need to make sense to me – it just has to make sense to you!”
Now Skyla’s smile shrank slightly, and she let out a sigh that echoed in the hallway as her shoulders slumped. “Only it doesn’t really make sense to me,” she muttered as the pair approached another room. “I don’t really know why it happens, or even how to make it happen – it just kinda does.” Her tail swished behind her as the familiar prickling feeling of irritation settled against the back of her neck. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, it was incredibly useful to be able to sense when my mother was coming, but it didn’t do a lick of good when it came to my father and that made it more dangerous than helpful…”
Flurry’s eyes widened. “So you can feel mommy, too?”
The prickling of irritation solidified along Skyla’s shoulders and caused her to stiffen sharply, inhaling briskly as she did so. The warm blanket around her heart squeezed tighter as it felt like her insides were suddenly caught up in a whirlwind, and it was all she could do to keep a calm face on for Flurry.
“W-well yes, I can,” she muttered after a moment, but as she inhaled to continue her thought Flurry Heart bounced closer to her, their sides bumping as the smaller filly’s tail lashed back and forth with excitement.
“Oh that is so cool!” gushed Flurry, her gaze so open and warm that it halted Skyla’s words on her tongue. “What does mommy’s magic feel like?”
By Saint Celestia’s holy raiment… Skyla swallowed loudly enough that she was sure that Flurry would have been able to hear it if they’d been standing still; thankfully, the clip-clop of their hoofsteps echoing in the hallway around them covered up the guilty sound and allowed Skyla the momentary respite that she desperately needed.
“She… she feels a lot like you,” said Skyla with a smile that she didn’t feel. “And speaking of that, don’t you want to know what your magic feels like?”
Flurry’s face split into a grin so broad that it practically consumed her face, and the smaller pony darted out in front of Skyla to bound happily about in a strange semi-circle that caused her backside to swing out wide while her eyes remained locked on Skyla, and before she knew it Flurry Heart was walking backwards in front of her, tail swishing eagerly.
“Oh please, please tell me what my magic feels like!” she whispered excitedly, her ears perked to full attention as she backed into an intersection of corridors. Without looking, Flurry turned her rump and pointed it down the hallway to Skyla’s left, leading the pair on towards an unknown destination.
At that moment, however, Skyla didn’t care that she was following Flurry Heart’s butt wherever it chose to lead; in fact, she could only breathe a sigh of relief as the topic shifted away from her mother and this world’s Cadence. There’s going to be a time and a place to talk about that… but I’d really rather it not be here or now, she thought.
“Well, you feel kind of… sparkly,” she said as her shoulders relaxed. “Like somepony sprinkled glitter in the air around you and it just kinda stayed there,” her smile returned, “or like tiny ice crystals in bright sunshine. You feel… cool, but happy and bright, and that was easy to pick out against the desk and potted plants.” She shrugged and felt her face grow warm as she glanced away from Flurry’s expectant eyes. “I know that’s not much to go on, but-,”
“That’s amazing!” interrupted Flurry Heart, and Skyla blinked before bringing her gaze back to the smaller pony. To her surprise, Flurry was staring at her with her mouth slightly open, her expression stuck somewhere between wonder and absolute adoration. “I never knew that my magic felt like that,” said Flurry as her hooves slowly clicked away beneath her. Her eyes narrowed suddenly, and her ears flattened against her mane in such a way that Skyla flinched warily away from her as the little alicorn spoke again. “All right, now you have to tell me what everypony else feels like! Aunt Twilight, Great Aunt Celestia and Luna, everypony!” Skyla’s lips twitched into a smile that she knew must look as awkward as it felt, and after a moment’s hesitation she managed to nod.
“A-all right,” she said softly, her wings rustling against her sides, “I think I can do that.” She took another step after the backwards-walking Flurry Heart, a frown touching her face as she tried her best to clear the vestiges of her sudden defensive mindset away. The only pony who ever looked at me that seriously was mother, she thought, and the mere memory of her mother’s stern expression caused her to shiver. Flurry Heart really does look a lot like mother…
The thought hit Skyla deep down inside, in a part of her heart that she couldn’t remember ever feeling before, as she realized that the young filly walking in front of her truly did look remarkably like her mother. Sure, she didn’t have the predominantly pink coat like Skyla did, but the tinge of pink in her wingtips and the way that she looked when she got serious were more than enough to prove Flurry’s lineage, at least as far as Skyla was concerned; and, as they walked together through the next hallway in the Crystal Castle, a single fact slowly blossomed in Skyla’s chest – a thought that made her stomach clench and her wing muscles tighten so quickly that it forced her pinion feathers to clap together audibly.
Flurry Heart frowned and tilted her head to her left, her voluminous bangs falling over her right eye as she did so. “What’s the matter, Skyla? Why’d your wings make that funny pop?”
“O-oh… it’s nothing,” Skyla muttered as her cheeks flushed in embarrassment. “It was just… I was trying to decide who to tell you about first. Do you have somepony besides mo-…” she coughed, “your mother that you’d like to hear about?”
The smaller filly bounced eagerly on her hooves, causing her mane to bounce into complete disarray on her head. “Oh! Oh! Talk about Great Aunt Celestia first!” Flurry grinned brightly as she turned right, her backside leading them further into the Castle. “I bet she feels like the sun – that seems like it would be right.”
“You’d be sort of right,” said Skyla, her face furrowing into a frown of concentration as she tried to think of the right words to describe Princess Celestia through the twitching, strangely giddy emotion that had filled her up thanks to her previous thoughts. “She felt warm like the sun, that’s for sure… but it was such a strange sense of power that I felt off of her, ancient and greater than anything I’ve ever felt before…” She shivered as she thought back to that moment in the throne room when she’d first seen Celestia, and the overwhelming flow of emotions that had filled her then. “It was like looking at the sun through a stained glass window, but all around her… like she was wearing it for a royal robe.” Skyla lifted her right hoof and gestured slowly with it as her eyes lost focus and began staring at the wall just above Flurry’s head. “Her raiment glowed, and she just felt… like a queen. I’ve never met a pony who felt more regal.”
“Not even Queen Twilight?” piped Flurry, and Skyla couldn’t stop herself from laughing sharply.
“If Queen Twilight could feel what I felt, she’d surrender Equestria to Princess Celestia in a second,” she quipped as she brought her eyes back to Flurry. She grinned and made a sharp, horizontal gesture with her hoof before dropping it back to the floor. “Nopony has anything on Princess Celestia.”
“Woooww…” muttered Flurry, her eyes wide as her smile melted into a look of awe. “And what did Great Aunt Luna feel like?” Skyla’s muzzle scrunched into concentration again as Flurry led her into a long corridor that had large windows all along its left side, and this time she could even see other ponies walking its length. A few maids bustled along, their heads close together as they spoke in quiet tones, and a guard stood at attention at the far end, his eyes locked dutifully on the wall across from him despite the pretty maids nearby.
“Princess Luna felt… smaller,” said Skyla finally as Flurry’s rump headed for the guarded door at the end of the hall. “But not physically – magically. It was like Princess Celestia was letting all of her magical might flow around her, like the robe I talked about before,” she gestured with her wings around her, her pinion swooping down her body in a motion she hoped made Flurry think of sweeping royal robes of state, “but Princess Luna felt like she was keeping it all inside.” She sighed and flicked her wings before drawing them back to her sides. “It was like all of her magic was in her eyes, waiting to be called out… so I really can’t tell you what her magic felt like.” Her ears drooped. “Sorry, Flurry Heart.”
The younger filly shook her head and giggled. “Don’t be sorry, Skyla! This gift you have is so amazing, I’m just really glad that you’re telling me about it!” Her wings rose from her back slightly, and her eyes practically glowed with excitement. “Now tell me about Aunt Twilight!”
Skyla smiled in spite of herself, and slowly her ears rose out of her mane as she nodded. “Um… Princess Twilight felt… well… she felt… happy.” She shrugged and chuckled. “I know that’s probably the silliest thing I’ve said all day, but that’s the best way to describe her. She didn’t have a real sparkle to her, like you do, or a mantle of power and authority like Princess Celestia… but there was this aura of warm, happy feelings around her… like you could never really be sad while she was around.” Her smile grew ever so slightly and she sighed. “She was like a crackling fire on a cold evening, or the warmest, fluffiest blanket that you’ve ever felt… and it was so different from Queen Twilight that it was kind of hard to believe that they’re practically the same pony.” Her eyes met Flurry’s gaze, and the same feeling from before teased her heart yet again. “Or maybe it was weird that it came from a pony who looked exactly like another pony who didn’t feel like this pony… ugh, it’s complicated,” she finished with a good-natured grimace.
To her relief, Flurry Heart nodded vigorously. “I totally get that,” she said solemnly. “It’s gotta be weird for you to see ponies like Aunt Twilight who don’t feel anything like you think they should…” Her eyes narrowed, but it wasn’t in the same way that she had before, and as she frowned Skyla was surprised to see sympathy written boldly across the smaller pony’s face. “Can you tell me what mommy feels like?” asked Flurry, her tone soft and unassuming.
Like a collar being tightened around her neck, Skyla felt a wave of panic fill her to the brim at the mention of her mother. A sick, slick taste rose up from her throat and filled her mouth as she tried to find words to say to Flurry, but before she could even begin to organize a sentence, the smaller alicorn shook her head.
“No, never mind – we don’t have to talk about her,” she said gently.
Skyla swallowed against the tension in her throat, her mane swaying as she shook her head. I don’t want her to think that I’m weak, she thought desperately. I need to answer her somehow, even if it’s a lie.
“No, Flurry, I-I can talk about it,” she began, but to her surprise Flurry stopped in her tracks so suddenly that Skyla almost walked into her. She gasped and skittered on her hooves for a moment before taking a step away from the smaller filly, her brow furrowing indignantly. “Why’d you stop like that?” she muttered angrily. “I almost plowed right into you!” She felt the heat of anger rise up in her throat, focused by the invisible collar that squeezed her, but as she opened her mouth to scold the other filly, Flurry Heart plopped herself down onto her rump, reached out with a hoof, and pressed it gently against Skyla’s chest.
“Skyla,” said Flurry softly, looking up so she could meet Skyla’s gaze squarely, “please don’t try to talk about stuff that hurts. We have plenty of time to talk about mommy, and about everything else we might need to talk about someday, so I don’t want you talking about that stuff if it makes you feel bad, inside or outside.” Her lips curved into a tiny frown. “Got it?”
Skyla stared down at the other filly for a long moment, her head swimming as her old conventions clashed with her new. “B-but I,” she started, but Flurry Heart pressed her hoof against Skyla a little more firmly, the hard curve of her hoof digging into the soft flesh of Skyla’s chest just enough to stop the taller filly’s words.
“Nuh-uh,” chided Flurry. “No more right now.”
“But-,”
“Nope. Done.” Flurry shook her head as if that made everything final and dropped her hoof back to the floor. “Besides, we have a much bigger problem to deal with.” She rose to her hooves once again as Skyla frowned.
“Bigger problem… like what?” she asked.
Flurry smirked and turned towards the guard by the door. “Crystal Lance, if you would be so kind,” she said sweetly, gesturing towards the door with her right hoof. The guard at the door gave a single, precise nod and reached out with his left hoof, his muscular leg pushing the swinging door open just slightly.
Skyla frowned, and as a moment ticked past without anything changing she opened her mouth to ask Flurry what made this a bigger problem than what she was dealing with; that, however, was when a waft of warm air from beyond the door hit her squarely in the face, a current that carried with it the unmistakable scent of warm bread. Her eyes widened as the smell filled her head in an instant, and before she could say anything her stomach let out an enormous growl, one so loud that Skyla felt her face flush even hotter than the last time as Flurry Heart let out a giggle.
“We have to deal with getting some lunch!” she laughed. “We only ate a little bit this morning, and you were in that meeting with Twilight and everypony for forever.” The smaller filly bounced once, her eyes sparkling. “Plus, you’ll feel all better if you eat some of Butter Flake’s rolls! He knows just how to make ‘em nice and fluffy and it always makes me feel better!”
The guard, the pony that Flurry had addressed as Crystal Lance, gave a sage nod. “She’s right, you know,” he said in a deep baritone voice.
“Well…” Skyla coughed lightly into her hoof, “I guess I am a little hungry…”
Flurry’s smile filled her with warmth as the smaller filly bounced closer to her and extended her left hoof out towards Skyla. “Then come on – let’s go together!”
Skyla looked down at Flurry’s leg blankly for a moment, but after Flurry gave it an inviting shake the taller filly felt a smile curve her lips. She sighed loudly and extended her right hoof so that it looped through Flurry’s.
“All right,” she conceded, her smile breaking any illusion of disinterest she might have attempted, “let’s go get some lunch… together.” Flurry gave another nod and tugged her along into the kitchen as Crystal Lance held the door open for them, his stoic façade cracked by a smile of his own.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Luna’s magic pulled the door closed behind her, and the slam that echoed through the hallway caused a wave of satisfaction to wash over her despite the tumultuous state of her emotions. The nerve of that mare, she thought vehemently as her magic went dark and she turned to her left in the hallway, her tail swishing angrily behind her as she started away from the study. I cannot believe that the pony whom Twilight Sparkle has taken as her apprentice would have such terrible manners, or such abhorrent lack of respect for the rulers of her land. Her jaw clenched tightly enough that it made her teeth ache, and as she stalked down the hall she could feel all of the frustration that she’d bottled up inside of her rising to the surface; her cheeks flushed, and it felt as though a fire had started behind her eyes as she came to a bank of windows and stopped, her eyes looking out the window while her gaze turned inward.
I truly cannot remember the last time that I was this angry, she thought as she stared unseeing at the city that stretched out below her, her left ear flicking violently in response to her restlessness. I have been irritated by nobles before, certainly, and even vexed by Celestia’s lack of decisiveness about certain affairs of state, but this… The alicorn took a deep breath and held it for a heartbeat before exhaling again, her wings fidgeting at her sides. This is an anger that I was not prepared for. Those other occasions are situations that anypony would grow angry about… but when we were speaking about Skyla, and Starlight Glimmer said the things that she did… The mere memory of Starlight’s blithe words and blasé attitude about Skyla’s plight caused the fire in Luna’s belly to flare up once more, and she felt the muscles in her shoulders tense as her ear flicked again, harder this time. I’ve half a mind to return to the study and give that insolent unicorn an honest piece of my mind!
She simmered for several long moments, her mind playing loosely with the idea that she should, indeed, go back and tell Starlight Glimmer exactly what she could do with her suspicious attitude, but before she could make up her mind she heard the slow, measured cadence of hoofsteps coming from the direction of the study. They were unhurried and casual enough, but Luna stood up a little straighter despite not taking her eyes off of the cityscape below as the hoofsteps approached her, then slowed to a stop.
“Well, that certainly was a fun way to spend a morning,” said Celestia lightly as she stepped up to the windows, the white of her coat glowing at the edge of Luna’s vision. “Although there were a few more surprises than I would have liked… and speaking of surprises, Twilight was quite surprised with how strongly you came on in there, Luna.” The Moon Princess felt more than saw her sister frown. “What’s put a burr under your saddle?”
Luna snorted. “Do you truly need me to explain my position to you, Celestia?” she said quietly. She shifted on her hooves, her tail swishing behind her legs once as she tried to cool the flames inside her. “Do you honestly need an explanation of why I do not and cannot support the blind distrust of a filly like Skyla?” She wrenched her eyes from the city below her and turned them to her sister, who met her gaze without batting an eyelash. “Can you not understand my anger and frustration at watching a mare like Starlight Glimmer simply shrug her shoulders and present wild theory after wild theory as to how Skyla could be lying to us all, instead of accepting her story with a smile of goodwill?”
Celestia shook her head. “Quite the contrary, actually – I can totally understand your frustration as far as that is concerned.” She offered Luna a soft smile. “But you need to understand that Starlight Glimmer was trying to help just as much as everypony else was… even if she had a bit of an unfortunate way of doing it.”
“That is the understatement of the century,” huffed Luna, her muzzle scrunching. “She was rude and loud and outspoken and only showed some decorum when I glared at her.” Celestia’s smile grew and she brought her right hoof up to cover it demurely.
“Yes… that sounds quite a lot like you when we were younger,” she said, her eyes shimmering with mirth in the early afternoon sunlight. Luna’s eyes widened as a jolt of disbelieving shock ran through her whole body, but before she could give voice to the very unkind things she wanted to say to Celestia, her sister’s hoof darted forward to forestall her. “But that’s not the issue here: the issue is that Starlight put forth some very important ideas that the rest of us would not have thought of. In fact, it’s exactly as she put it.” She dropped her hoof back to the ground and she shook her head, her smile taking on an edge of sad acceptance. “The two of us trust everypony readily, almost to the point of carelessness. She was simply doing what she felt was right in the situation: being cautious and prudent.”
Luna frowned. “But she-,”
“Yes, she was quite rude about how she said it,” interjected Celestia, “but we both know that sometimes we have to look past how a pony says something to see the value of what they were saying. And, perhaps more importantly, we both know the value of an opinion that runs contrary to our own. It allows us to see more than one point of view, and that makes for better decisions.” She took a step forward and placed her right hoof onto Luna’s left shoulder, her eyes meeting Luna’s once more. “I know that Skyla reminds you of yourself,” she whispered, “and I understand why you’re so angry about Starlight’s words… but we have to put these things aside if we’re going to help Skyla.”
Luna frowned, but even as she did so she knew that her heart was no longer in it. “Yes… you’re right,” she admitted after a moment, her ears drooping into her flowing mane as the flame of anger sputtered and faded inside her chest. “This whole situation… it reminds me of when I returned to Equestria after being Nightmare Moon.” Her chin dipped towards the floor as she lowered her head in shame. “The fear and distrust that other ponies had for me… the struggles of trying to adjust to a brand new world… it all seems so fresh for me, despite being almost a decade past...” She sighed and brought her head back up so that she could meet Celestia’s gaze once more, her jaw set in determination. “I want to help this filly, Celestia,” she said after a moment. “I want to help her in any way that I possibly can…” she sighed and managed to smile up at her sister, the edges of it quivering, “…because I want her to have somepony to be there for her, as you were for me.”
Now Celestia’s smile returned full-force, and she dropped her hoof back to the floor before stepping forward and laying her neck across Luna’s, their ornate chest pieces clicking together gently as she did so.
“I think she’d really like that,” she whispered. “And I know that everypony would appreciate your help.” Luna let out a sharp sigh and nodded against Celestia’s graceful neck, her eyes hot and stinging as she leaned heavily against the taller alicorn. The moon take you, Celestia, thought Luna wryly. Somehow, you always know exactly what to say and what to do… I truly don’t understand how you manage it every single time. She took a deep, steady breath in before letting it out slowly and stepping back from her sister, her eyes red but determined; before she could speak, however, Celestia arched a stern eyebrow at her. “So does that mean that you lashed out at Twilight because you were irritated with Starlight..?” she mused, her eyes narrowing at Luna suspiciously.
The Moon Princess’ eyes widened, and she felt her cheeks flush so hot that she was certain that she must be glowing like a full moon. “W-well, I…” she stammered, but a giggle from Celestia cut her off.
“All right, no need to explain,” the white alicorn said with a wink and a wave of her hoof. “But you might consider apologizing to Twilight the next time you see her. She takes your criticism to heart, you know.”
The Moon Princess sighed and nodded before shifting to her right and starting down the hall, her hooves moving almost of their own accord. “You’re right… I’ll be certain to do that.” She glanced at Celestia and offered her a sincere smile. “Shall we attempt to seek out lunch? I’m certain that Cadence and Shining Armor will have something prepared for us.”
Celestia nodded emphatically and fell into step with Luna, their shoes clicking smartly on the crystal beneath them as they headed back the way they’d come. “Oh, please, let’s do that,” Celestia said softly. “I’m afraid that all that talk about parallel worlds and whatnot just about wore me out.”
They moved down the hallway together and passed the door to the study, where Luna could hear the voices of Twilight Sparkle, Sunburst, and Starlight Glimmer speaking alternately. Her eyes followed it as they hurried by, and with a sigh she turned her gaze back to Celestia.
“Tell me truthfully, Celestia – do you believe that Skyla may be dangerous?” she asked carefully. “You studied many various worlds and portals with Starswirl while I was gone… did any of your research indicate that ponies like Skyla may be poisonous to our world?”
The white alicorn’s smile melted away, and as the pair walked she stared at the wall far ahead of them for several long moments. The silence stretched on for so long, in fact, that Luna was just about to cough and change the subject when Celestia finally spoke.
“I don’t believe for a moment that her presence here will damage our world,” she admitted softly. “However, I’m going to place my trust in Twilight for the real answer to that question. She’s brilliant, and she’ll be able to give us a reliable answer now that she has all of Starswirl’s notes on the subject.”
Luna nodded. “And what of her own world?” she muttered. “It did not sound as if it was a very happy place…” She sighed. “What do we do if somepony from that world tries to follow her here?”
Now Celestia’s eyes became as hard as diamonds, and when she met Luna’s gaze the Moon Princess was taken aback at the look on her sister’s face. “I would feel nothing but pity for anypony who came to this world looking for trouble,” she said, her voice quiet, “because while that world may have forgotten our power, we are still here to protect this world.” She offered Luna a smile and a nod, her eyes burning with righteous fury. “And if somepony came here with anything but the noblest of intentions, they would quickly learn why our enemies feared us.”
Luna felt a surge of determination at her sister’s words, and she couldn’t help but give Celestia a steely grin. “I couldn’t have said it better myself, sister.”
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FWIW, ever since it was established as canon history in Testing, Testing, 1, 2, 3, I always thought it was significant that Equestria hadn't needed a standing army before Luna's fall. Simply put, the two alicorns were considered able to defend the nation against any conceivable threat unaided. That's worth thinking about.
Remember how Twilight fought Tirek to a stand-still? Just imagine what that sort of power could do to a mortal army!
Alright, fellow readers, start stockpiling popcorn, I think we've got a confirmation of an interdimensional invasion, followed by a duel of alicorns.
And I do wonder, just what has Skyla so worried about Cadence? My theory is thatCadence in this world feels exactly the same as the Cadence from her world.
Spoiler tag added as a precaution.
7651100 Honestly, I almost feel sorry for any would-be invaders of Equestria that aren't packing at least angelic-tier mystical power themselves.
And now there are six alicorns in Equestria, albeit two are fillies (and Twilight and Cadance are probably notably less powerful than Luna and Celestia, but that's not actually saying much, when you consider that a regular unicorn - if a fairly strong one - was able to protect a shield that locked an an entire army out of Canterlot.)
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To be completely fair here, Shining Armor's barrier spell is anything but regular. If Twilight is right, it's more powerful than one even Celestia could put up. It may be that the past didn't have so many powerful ponies around like Twilight, Twilight's friends, her brother, and Starlight.
Actually, thinking about it, it makes sense. All the threats that were locked away for ages all return at around the same time, while a crop of incredibly strong ponies pops up in Equestria. They even have five Alicorns when only twenty years before, they had one. Maybe it's not coincidence.
I love stories that acknowledge the fact that Celestia and Luna are nigh immortal gods who can only be challenged by other nigh immortal gods (i.e discord, or powered up Tirek), and its only Celestias benevolence and willingness to find non-lethal solutions that prevent them from solving all their own problems.
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Another thing to consider is that Tirek needed the power of all the ponies in Equestria plus Discord to equal up to the power of four Alicorns, and as some of you put it, two of them where what could be considered juvenile Alicorns, thats how much power an invading army would have to bring to the table.
Who needs an army when gods walk among you?
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"Establish" might be a better term than "acknowledge". The interpretation that she isn't it a god, nor invincible, is perfectly valid going by the show itself.
As for needing an army: Celestia did. In the timeline where Sombra rose to power.
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Honestly, I'm enjoying writing the Flurry Heart and Skyla scenes WAY more than I am anything else in this entire story, and that's saying a lot. :D They're just so much fun to write!! X3
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I like the fact that you pointed this out, because it plays very significantly into ANY story that I write that even halfway involves Celestia and Luna. I always write them as two parts of a whole -- day and night, sun and moon, yin and yang, one never being complete without the other -- and as such, neither of them are as strong on their own.
While Luna was banished, Celestia had to rely heavily on her subjects to help her police and defend the kingdom, while she had to deal with very few major threats on her own (unless you count her defeat of Chrysalis in the comic series, but all she was able to do to the Changeling hoard was lock them in a volcano -- something that a single dragon freed them from.)
With her sister back, Celestia knows that if the two of them team up and use their full power, there's really nothing that they can't accomplish. That's how I write them, at least. :3
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Without giving away spoilers... I think you might need to tone down your expectations for combat just a wee bit. XD This isn't an action/adventure story, after all! I can't promise that things aren't going to get exciting, but if you want to read about exciting combat, you'll have to read one of my other stories, I'm afraid. XD
And in regards to your guess at spoilers, you're pretty close to right -- but I'm not going to tell you HOW close you are! I have to keep a few secrets, you know! XP
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While I was writing Celestia in the last bit, I could only hear Professor X from the X-Men movies say "I feel a great swell of pity for the poor soul who comes to that school, looking for trouble." THAT is how Celestia feels, right there. XD
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That's one of the reasons I love Celestia so much and why I love writing her this way so much. It's one thing to negotiate because you want to avoid casualties, but it's quite another to negotiate because you want to avoid killing your enemies, and I've always felt like Celestia does the latter rather than the former. She only fights when she has to because she KNOWS she can win, and exerting her will through sheer power or force isn't the way to lead a peaceful, loving nation.
In fact, that very idea plays heavily in another of my fics, "The Moon and Stars: Shades of the Nightmare". I haven't gotten to writing Celestia in there yet, but I named her particular style of fighting "The Sacred Sun" because she will simply take your damage and take it and take it until you're exhausted and she's basically untouched. She would sacrifice everything to find a solution that doesn't require bloodshed, and if that means she has to tank you into a standstill, then so be it. X3
7653039 Terribly sorry about that. I suppose I should more accurately be saying "incursion of a particularly unwanted pony" or something akin to that. I'll try to limit my language in future.
Also, oh, now that does leave me wondering. However it turns out, I can't wait to see!
I'm going to assume that was suppose to be 'her' and not 'hear'
(Also really enjoying this story. It's just I can't help but point these things out as it's something I wish people would do with my stories. ^^; )
So halfway through, a couple things stick out to me:
1)It's implied that this world is ~10 years after Luna's return. Flurry Heart is 6-8 years old, can barely fly.
2) Skyla on the other hand, is 15. So either he worlds desynced a bit, the Crystal City returned a few years early, or time travel shenigans ensued.
Current theory:The wendigos are due to return. Alt!Cadance was possessed. Better hope the Crystal heart will be enough...
Ah. Finally. A Sunbutt with the old fire in her belly.
I'm reading this fic now in 2022 (up to the sentence above), and I just suddenly had a theory on why skyla can "feel" the presence of other ponies' magic, and I'm too excited to not comment about it;
Although I realize that many chapters after this one are already out years ago, which could make my theory sound stupid. I won't be bothered if it's wrong, I just need to express my excitement somewhere.
My theory is that skyla is part draconequus, she inherited partial of the "magic sensing" ability from discord, this theory has room to be validated since the currently known history of discord in the mirror universe is blurry, up to this point
(also I'm not a native English speaker so I apologize if my words doesn't make sense)