— Chapter Thirty-Three —
--- A Dragon's Desires ---
A lazy Monday morning about the house was just what the doctor ordered after everything Twilight had been through as of late. It was a wise decision to heed Dash's advice, to take the time to calm down after this whole ordeal and process everything that had gone on. Everything she had learned thus far, as well as her own emotional state. There was no shortage of things to sort through on either front. It had only been just a few short days, but it felt more like a lifetime looking back. It was bizarre, and the opportunity to stop and cope with all of it was a much-appreciated one. It was almost akin to meditation, really. And the time did well in helping Twilight calm her skittish nerves.
It also made for a nice way to wait for Spike to once more return to the waking world. The young dragon strolled out into the living room with a weary stride, lazily pulling himself up onto the tacky couch next to Twilight and almost falling over onto it while doing so. Whereas before he was the victim of not having enough sleep, now he looked to be suffering from the aftermath of too much sleep. Groggy was one word that could be used to describe his current state of being, half-lidded eyes unfocused and fighting to keep themselves open.
"Hey, bud. Sleep well?" Twilight noticed him almost as soon as he plopped down next to her, giving a gentle nudge to help draw his attention to her. The answer she was given in response was something between a groan, a growl, and a gurgle. "That well, huh?"
Spike nodded slowly, gently allowing himself to fall over to lean on Twilight for support. He yawned loudly, doing everything he could to fight through this unexpected bout of grogginess. Twilight couldn't help but giggle a bit at the dragon's plight as she gave him a reassuring pat on his head. The little guy had to be doing all of this on purpose, how else could he be so adorable? It was something he was indisputably the master of, intentional or not. And even if he didn't know it, he was doing a spectacular job at elevating the alicorn's current mood just by being here.
"So... what's next?" The dragon was slowly coming around to being fully lucid and starting to support himself without the help of his primary caretaker. "Did you get Dash to spill the beans? Or whatever it was you were doing last night."
"Oh... that... it... w-went well!" A brief moment of hesitation came before the cheery sounding answer, Twilight not wanting to cause any more distress in her young companion's life. "Not as well as I had hoped, but I can't... really complain..."
"That's good. So what're we gonna do next?"
"I... haven't figured that out yet. But you don't need to worry about that. You've got enough to deal with already." Her posture was adjusted to better face Spike as she continued to talk. "Speaking of, is there anything you want to talk about?"
"Uhh... like what?"
"I don't know, whatever's on your mind..." Twilight gave a half shrug in an attempt to indicate she didn't know either. She was "Like... are you still upset about anything that's happened?"
"Hmm..." Spike looked back to Twilight with a look similar to the one she was giving him. Laced with uncertainty and hesitation, it was equally clear he was now just as lost as the alicorn was. "... Maybe? I haven't really been thinking about it... I kind of... don't want to..." That didn't sound good, and Twilight was quick to try and address this issue.
"Well, maybe if you talk about it you could—" But she was swiftly interrupted by a cheery sounding knock on the front door, which had an instant effect on her mood. Gone was her loving but confused outlook, now she bore the look of pure outrage and annoyance. "Of course. Why not?... Spike, you know what to do."
"... Yeah..." He answered almost begrudgingly, hopping down off of the couch and scrambling to hide underneath the sofa. Once he was firmly out of sight, Twilight gave a solemn nod of approval before checking to see if she still had her cloak on. Another nod came just as the knocking on the door resumed, prompting her to finally stride over and see just who this unwanted intruder was.
"Hiya Twilight!" Pinkie's happy voice chimed loudly as the door opened, the pink earth pony becoming momentarily airborne in her own excitement. "How've you been? I haven't seen you since the train-station incident yesterday!"
"Oh ... right... that." Twilight had completely forgotten about most of that interaction, having had far more prevalent things to worry about than a giant balloon filled with vinegar. "I've been... fine, I guess. And you?"
"Eh, I've been better." Pinkie's happy-go-lucky demeanor she bore was suddenly replaced by one of dull indifference. "Had to help Rarity and AJ round up their sisters after what happened, plus Scootaloo. That took a few hours, those kids can run really fast."
"Oh... I'm sorry to hear that...?" Twilight's response was slow and unsure, not knowing where this conversation was going or what exactly to say next. In all honesty, she was looking for a way to try and get rid of Pinkie quickly so she could return her attention to Spike. "How did that go?" She didn't know why she answered like that, considering she wanted this conversation to be brief, but there wasn't any going back now.
"Pretty well. I know the girls got a serious talking to, but I wasn't there for that part. But that's not what I came here to talk about!" Viciously shaking her head, Pinkie returned to her normal demeanor in a flash. "Anyway, Rarity and I were going out to get breakfast, and I randomly thought of inviting you along! You don't really get out that much aside from work, I figured it'd be good for you!"
Twilight cringed internally at the generous offer but managed to keep an outward smile to save face. While the offer was kind, she wasn't exactly eager to take it. On top of just not being in the mood for such humdrum formalities with everything that was going on, she also knew that doing this now wouldn't be the best thing for Spike. While she hadn't exactly neglected him in any true regard, she had been putting him on the back burner as of late in favor of the messy web of conspiracies she had gotten herself tangled in. Much of her time in these past few days had been dedicated to solving these mysteries and putting a stop to whatever sinister schemes were going on behind the veil, not so much spending time with Spike and helping him through his issues. And while the long dragon had stated he was okay with Twilight's investigations—or at least, was pretending to be okay with them—but she wasn't sure if going out for a casual breakfast with ponies she hardly knew was going to fly.
"Uhh... Thanks for the offer, Pinkie..." Twilight did what she could to respond in a respectful tone, not wanting to just bluntly refute the heartfelt offer. "But could we take a rain check on that? Today... might not be the best day."
"No problemo! All's good! But if you do change your mind, we'll be at Sugar Cube Corner! Bye!" Taking the refusal shockingly well, Pinkie strode off without another word leaving Twilight standing in the doorway with a befuddled expression.
That mare was nearly impossible to get a read on, but she meant well enough at the end of the day. And she had at least saved Twilight the trouble of coming up with a proper excuse, so for that, the alicorn was grateful. She sighed deeply as she shut the door, locking it swiftly after with a flicker of her horn. She stood there and sighed, working to quickly recover her train of thought from before the untimely interruption distracted her from her talk with Spike.
"Did you want to go?" The dragon asked in an almost apologetic tone as he scurried out from underneath the couch. The distinctive sound of ripping fabric could be heard as the spines on his back brushed up against the underside of the sofa. The centerpiece of the room had been damaged, without question, but that was a problem to be dealt with later. "Pinkie and that other pony. They're your friends, right?"
"Uhh... something like that," Twilight murmured back softly, scratching the back of her head. "I mean, Pinkie's pretty nice... I'd say she's at least a close acquaintance. But Rarity? I've talked to her maybe four or five times. And not all of those times were good." The night that Twilight had been introduced to Knox's memory magic was brought back to the forefront of her thoughts, and a ghastly chill ran down her spine. "But I don't need to go out to eat with them, we already ate."
"But did you want too?" It was simple enough to see that Spike was being very pensive right now. His foreclaws fiddling and twitching with one another as he changed to a seated posture, his brows drooping in a nervous and worried manner. "You know, to talk with other ponies?... About stuff that isn't Knox... or wolves or... whatever?"
No effort was needed on Twilight's behalf to see that there was something more going on here. She narrowed her eyes slightly as she tried to get a read on him, not getting much deeper than the surface level emotions that the dragon was displaying. "I'm not really sure... why do you ask?"
"Well... I was wondering..." There was a slight glint of hope hiding within the slow and hesitant words, accompanied by a shaky grin and a slight shrug. "Maybe I could have... tagged along... to meet them?"
Time stopped.
The soft words hit Twilight like a ton of bricks at terminal velocity. She never once expected Spike to ask such a thing in a million years, and the seemingly impossible action caught her off guard more than anything else that had occurred within the past couple of days. Maybe that was being a bit overly dramatic, but it felt appropriate given the circumstances. Over the past two years of their travels, Spike had only been seen by other ponies three times. The first two times did not end well, to say the absolute least. After all, one doesn't just see a dragon-like creature in the middle of a town without making a big deal out of it. Thankfully enough those two events had ended well enough, with Twilight and Spike managing to slink away before any serious consequences could be established. And while the third encounter—the one with Fluttershy—had gone exceptionally better, Twilight was still skeptical of her kind's ability to accept a dragon of any kind with open arms.
"Spike, you know what's going to happen if we do that," Twilight answered with a weary voice, not wanting to just shoot him down outright. "I know you remember what happened the last time."
"Yeah, but it'll be different this time. It's not like some random stranger's gonna find me while your back is turned. You know these ponies, and you'll be there." As Spike went on, his tone became more and more pleading. He wanted to meet some new faces, it seemed. "And there's also Fluttershy! She didn't freak out! Maybe she could help, too! She's already been helping us out a lot already!"
He had a point, she couldn't argue with him on that front. But even still, Twilight had her trepidations about what exactly Spike was asking of her. "Spike, where did this come from?"
The hopeful glee in the dragon's smile faded slightly as he was confronted with the question. "I dunno... you were asking me about what I felt, and then that Ponkle person showed up, and I just thought it might be nice..."
Twilight bit at her lower lip as she watched Spike sink into himself in shame. Even if this was just an impulse caused by an unfortunately timed coincidence, he still seemed to feel strongly about doing this. No, it couldn't have been an impulse. This wasn't the kind of reaction one would give about rethinking a hasty decision. There was a long-since repressed desire at work here, that much was starting to become obvious. Twilight had kept Spike in almost complete isolation over the past two years, outside of herself and the odd creature that didn't care about him being a dragon. Though, even then, these encounters were almost surgically brief. Nowhere near long enough to forge any kind of connection.
But before their travels? Spike had a far more varied social circle. Twilight's family, Cadence, the Queen, her personal guards, and even a small number of biologists and other researchers who had helped to determine his draconic status. But once the duo began the two-year trek for long dragons, Twilight had effectively cut every single one of them out of Spike's life.
Yet in the past few weeks, Spike had finally received a meaningful contact with another pony in the form of Fluttershy. And those interactions might have stirred some unfulfilled need for social development. It would only make sense, Spike had spent quite a fair bit of time with that timid pegasus over the past weeks, almost to the point where her home was his second home here in Ponyville. It wasn't exactly a ludicrous stretch of logic to say that this sudden change in his way of living would stir something inside of him. And with those thoughts in mind, Twilight couldn't help but feel like she had been hurting Spike more then she had been helping him. So as such, there was only one reasonable course of action she could take at this juncture.
No matter how bad of an idea that she thought it was.
"Alright... I'll go figure something out," she sighed in defeat, "But I want you to wait here while I go get them."
Spike took on a look that gave the impression of hurt and confusion. "Wait. Why do I have to—?"
"Spike, if this is going to happen, I want it to happen in a controlled environment, with ponies who're ready for it." Twilight interrupted as she fetched the saddlebags. "I don't want to parade you around the town and cause a big panic. I'll talk to them and bring them here, and we'll see where it goes from there. Does that seem fair?"
The long dragon wasn't exactly on board for that exact version of the plan at first, but it didn't take much to persuade him to meet Twilight half-way on this. Pinkie and Rarity were currently in a public establishment, and who knew what they were going to do after that. The best course of action was to persuade them to come back to the house after breakfast, using that time to prep them for what was to come. She assured him that it wouldn't take longer than an hour or so, telling him that he could use the time to prepare for this encounter himself. With that, Twilight was able to go on her way without any further complications.
Aside from the ones within her own head, that is. Despite folding to her young dragon's demands, Twilight still wasn't sure about this at all. It seemed like a phenomenally stupid idea that was coming to have extraordinary consequences to follow. But at the same time, Spike had made it clear that this was what he wanted. What was she supposed to do? Just shoot him down without even considering what he wanted? She couldn't exactly call herself his "mother" if she did that.
She spent the whole of the walk thinking these things over and preparing herself for what was to come next, good or bad. With that time, she decided that maybe starting with just Pinkie Pie by herself would be the better course of action. After all, Twilight knew her better, it'd be easier than trying to explain the situation to two ponies at once. Plus, assuming it went well, Pinkie could be an invaluable asset in helping introduce Spike to other individuals. As would Fluttershy, now that Twilight was taking a moment to actually think this through with some real effort. But that was about six or seven steps ahead of where she was now, first she needed to cross that first hurdle. There had been a short moment where Twilight considered fetching Fluttershy to assist in this endeavor, but she decided against it soon after. Spike clearly wanted Twilight to be the one to introduce him to other ponies, making Fluttershy do it would hurt the sentiment. Especially after how Twilight had tried to deny him this experience at all. So for now, she needed to go find Pinkie Pie and bring her back home.
Luckily enough, she wouldn't be hard to find. Pinkie had at least given her the location where the purple pony could easily find her at the current moment. And it wasn't long at all before she came upon the aforementioned Sugar Cube Corner, one of Ponyville's more notable eating establishments. It wasn't anything outstanding or mind-blowing, just a simple eatery that specialized in baked goods and other things of that nature. And it was one that Twilight had grown very familiar with over her time in this town.
After all, they had the best coffee in town.
Walking into the establishment known as Sugar Cube Corner, Twilight was greeted by the unmistakable scent of a bakery hard at work and the chime of the little bell above the door. Beyond the barricade was what one would expect from a restaurant of this nature. A long counter with a series of glass windows to show off a series of pre-made goods—mostly muffins and some pastries that could be left alone for some time and still be alright to eat later—along with tables and wall-side booths for customers to sit down and enjoy themselves. It was a fairly busy day here today, given the sheer number of ponies in here at the moment. Even still, it didn't take her long to spot her targets upon walking inside. Pinkie Pie and Rarity were sitting at one of the corner booths in the midst of a discussion. Swallowing her anxieties and her pride, the disguised alicorn made her way over to the corner booth of the table.
"I'm telling you, they're into each other," Pinkie continued with absolute certainty, "You've seen how they look at each other. Everyone has!"
"Well, of course, they've been friends since childhood, it's only natural they care about one another," Rarity countered with a nonchalant wave, part of her attention focused on the newspaper crossword that floated in front of her through a veil of magic. She was just as invested in the discussion as Pinkie was, she was just multitasking while doing so. The unicorn must have been that confident in her stance on this subject. "You look at ponies like you care about them all the time, that doesn't mean you're in love with them. Or am I mistaken?"
"That's different, I'm a weirdo who still fully doesn't understand most social boundaries," Pinkie admitted bluntly, tapping her hooves against the table. "But those two? They're a perfect match. They'd make such a cute couple!"
Rarity gave a dignified chuckle to that point. "I won't argue with you there. But even if they were in love, it would never work out. Rainbow Dash is out of town most of the time, and—Oh! Hello, Twilight!" The unicorn's point was cut off as she suddenly noticed the debate's newfound audience. "So sorry about that, didn't see you there!"
"I, uh, wasn't trying to interrupt you or anything," Twilight nervously stammered back, "I was just—"
"Taking the obvious plot hook I left for you so you could advance the metaphorical narrative we all play a part in?" Pinkie interrupted with a smug grin, raising an eyebrow at the nervous pony standing at their booth. "Well, I'm glad you did! The more the merrier, I always say! Come on and sit down, we already ordered, but I'm—!"
"It's fine, I already ate... I just came to talk..." Twilight did as she was told with a small sense of trepidation buzzing in the back of her head, almost falling over herself as she took a seat on Pinkie's side of the booth. "You can, uh, keep going if you want. I don't mind."
"Oh, it wasn't anything important," Rarity smiled as she shifted more of her focus onto her crossword, "It was just a bit of gossip between friends... that we go through just about every time Rainbow Dash is back in town." The alabaster unicorn's eyes rolled in response to that before falling back upon the newspaper. "Besides, it'd be uncouth of us to continue a conversation that'd would more than certainly exclude you."
And it isn't uncouth to do a crossword when you're talking to your friend? Twilight didn't dare to let that thought come out of her mouth, not wanting to derail this conversation into a heated discussion of the right and wrong ways to have a conversation. She was a mare on a mission, and she was going to be damned if she didn't see it through. Even if she had no idea about how she was going to see it through. For now, at least, the best course of action was to sit through this little meet and greet, to see where it went. Afterward, she could invite Pinkie back home and finally get this bad idea off the ground.
"So... how have you been since yesterday?" Twilight shrugged at Rarity, not knowing exactly how to continue this conversation naturally. The question got a visible reaction out of Rarity, who seemed to fight back a shudder at that incident being brought up.
"Oh... not as mad as I was in that moment, that's for sure." The unicorn shook her head slowly before a smile came back to her face. "I don't know where those girls got that catapult, but it's water under the bridge now. And you, Twilight?"
"Oh, I'm... I'm fine... Certainly wasn't expecting to see a Wonderbolt yesterday, so that was a nice surprise." It wasn't a complete lie, Rainbow Dash's arrival had been an unexpected one at that. Though just not for the reasons that she was conveying to these two.
"Ehh, Dash isn't that impressive once you get to know her," Pinkie casually insulted of the cyan pegasus without any tact before imminently backtracking. "That wasn't what I meant! She's good at what she does don't get me wrong, but she's just a regular pony at the end of the day. You don't need to get all star-struck around her like you did!"
Sure. Let's go with that. Twilight mostly ignored that statement, her eyes begging to wander about in a fruitless search for something to advance the discussion. She had only been here for a minute or two, and she was already at a loss for words. And considering that the three hadn't even gotten to order their food yet, this was going to be a very long second breakfast. And it wasn't exactly like she was just going to come out and ask Pinkie if she wanted to meet a dragon. She needed to ease into it, she was certain of that much, she just wasn't sure of how to do that.
The search was ended when Twilight's eyes fell upon the front page of the newspaper in Rarity's grasp. And just like that, the rest of the world just seemed to fade away as the young alicorn skimmed the headline article. She could feel the sweat begin to form on her brow as her eyes grew wide, a sudden sense of bitter nostalgia rushing over her once her gaze drifted down to the photograph that accomplished the article. Twilight could have sworn she felt her heart skip a beat in response to this, and all other thoughts were driven from her head as her next words began to form on their own accord.
"H-hey, Rarity? You done with the front page?"
"Hmm? Oh, certainly," Rarity was soon to deliver on her word and pass the sheet of paper across the table without a second thought. "Interested in the coronation, hmm?" An answer wasn't given as the sheet was hastily shipped by Twilight's own magic, the alicorn almost in a frenzy over the piece of news that had been worthy of making the front page. It was far too important of an event to be anywhere else in the newspaper, a fact that was only further solidified as Twilight re-read the headline now that she had a better view of it.
Crystal Empire Coronation.
The article itself was exactly what one would expect if given that title. An admittedly wordy summary covering the events of the past few days over in Equestria's Northern neighbor, specifically going into details covering the aforementioned coronation. Empress Mi Amore Poesia had finally passed down the torch to her heir, the former Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, and had fully stepped down from her position of power upon the Empire's throne. A significant event, considering that Poesia had been on the throne for nearly three hundred years now. It was about the average length their rulers spent on the throne, but seeing as how that term was longer than any normal lifespan it was no shock that it was front-page worthy news. Even in Equestria. But as for the article itself, there wasn't anything spectacular or noteworthy aside from the notification that the Crystal Empire was now under new management. And in all honesty, that wasn't what had caught Twilight's attention though. No, she was far more interested in the photograph that accompanied it.
Three smiling ponies were front and center for all to see before the immaculate Crystal Palace, all of them being individuals Twilight was well familiar with. Princess—or rather, Empress—Cadenza was front and center, rightfully so all things considered. And aside from the new regalia to mark her new status, she was the same as Twilight remembered her. She hadn't aged a day in these past two years, from what this photograph was portraying. The same could be said for Queen Celestia, who was standing to the left of the newly crowned monarch with a proud but professional smile. Seeing the eldest alicorn again, even in a photo, made Twilight feel a bit uneasy. Though it was only natural that Celestia was there, Cadence was her niece after all. And speaking of the centuries-old alicorn's nieces, the third individual was also a pony who shared the same royal bloodline of the first alicorn.
But at first glance, this individual just looked to be some random pegasus mare who couldn't have been any older then sixteen, if Twilight were to make a guess. Compared to the two alicorns standing beside her, this third pony stuck out in an almost hilariously contrasting fashion, hardly even coming up to Celestia's leg for crying out loud. Her natural colors were nearly identical to that of the newly crowned empress, so much so that it would be easy to assume that she was Cadence's younger sister at a moment's glance.
And there was an honest moment on Twilight's behalf where she didn't recognize this young mare, but it didn't take her long to correct the mistake. And while Twilight didn't know this third pony as well as Cadence or Celestia, she still knew her all the same. Albeit in a very brief fashion, back when Cadence and her brother began seeing one another more intimately. And the mere sight of this young mare was enough to rip Twilight's heart in half. Because while Twilight may have learned this lesson a long time ago, seeing the actual proof of it was something else entirely.
The alicorn spell is absolute, Queen Celestia's words echoed horribly in Twilight's mind, a terrible reminder of her ultimate fate. To undo it is to send one back to whatever they were before the spell was cast.
"Hey, who's that?" Pinkie asked abruptly, pointing to the youthful pegasus in the photo. "She looks... familiar..."
"That's... Empress Poesia..." Twilight's answer was slow and automatic, the forefront of her thoughts dominated by what she was looking at on this page. Saying that name out loud was the final nail in the coffin, solidifying it in her mind that this was the very same pony she had met once before. "... Former Empress Poesia, I mean..."
"... No, that's not her." The cloaked alicorn was too distraught to even notice, but Pinkie furrowed her brow at the unsatisfactory answer. "I've seen pictures of her before, and I know she's an alicorn. That's a pegasus."
"Well, of course, she reverted," Rarity made her way into the conversation to try and help explain, not that Twilight cared right now if Pinkie understood this all or not. This was what finally got the unicorn to put her crossword down, partly due to her frustration in trying to find an eight-letter word for the word giving. "It's been a tradition in the Crystal Empire for centuries. When the Emperor or Empress feels as though they have done enough for their nation, they appoint a successor and renounce their alicorn status." It wasn't surprising that Rarity knew this, it perfectly public knowledge. Something that was brought up, at least in passing, in any world-history class you could find in any school. In all honesty, it was more shocking that Pinkie didn't know.
"Wait, they can do that?!" The pink pony expressed legitimate shock at the information she was presented with, this showing clearly on her overblown expression and in her flabbergasted tone.
"Of course, alicorn's aren't born, Pinkie. They're made, through an ancient spell known only by Queen Celestia herself."
"That's so cool! But..." The ecstatic look on Pinkie's face was soon to sour, indicating that the mare was beginning to ask more questions about the nature of alicorns. "Why would they give up being alicorns? Like, they live forever, right? Why would anyone give that up?"
Mercy, Twilight internally grimaced at Pinkie's unintentionally painful question. They do it for mercy.
"Well, I'm exactly sure about that myself," Rarity's kind and helpful persona had been diluted by her confusion at the question Pinkie brought up. "If memory serves, they started doing it shortly after the great shadow war, but I don't think anyone outside the royal family knows exactly why. It is a good question though."
"Yeah, I guess I'll have to try and ask when the Queen comes into town in a couple of weeks. I'm sure she knows!"
Pinkie's words were enough to pull Twilight out of her own head and back into the discussion. "I'm sorry... what did you say?" It was Twilight's reaction that got Pinkie to notice what she said, her hooves quickly darting up to cover her mouth to keep herself from saying anything else. "What did you say?!" There was a panicked aura emanating from the repeated question. Twilight knew full well what words had come out of Pinkie's mouth, but she desperately needed more information. Especially if that meant what she thought it meant.
The pink pony held out for a few seconds before slouching over with a look of utter failure upon her face. "Ugh... I guess the cat's out of the bag... Can you two keep a secret?"
"Of course, Pinkie," Rarity was quick to reply, "But I'm also a bit curious as to what you mean."
"Well... Rainbow Dash wasn't the only pony from Canterlot to show up yesterday..." Pinkie slowly explained, almost painfully so in Twilight's honest opinion, but the alicorn remained silent so she could soak in the explanation. The pink pony leaned closer towards the center of the table and her two companions did the same as she continued in a hushed whisper. "So after the little party, I had to back to work because Maud needed me to run the front desk for a while. And while I was doing that, there was this skinny weirdo with a briefcase who came in." Pinkie's words came fast and hot, only getting faster as she continued on with her story, demanding the full attention of the two magical ponies if they were to have any chance of keeping up.
"At first, I was thinking he wanted to check-in. You know, because it's a hotel and that's what ya do at a hotel. But no! Instead, he told me he wanted to reserve every room on the third floor for a few days during the Summer Sun Festival. I... kind of told him he was a lunatic because that would take a LOT of bits. I didn't know the exact number off the top of my head, but I knew it would be a lot. So Mr. Skinny takes his briefcase and pops it open—and it was filled with money. Like, more money then I've ever seen in one place in my whole life. Almost overflowing! And then he tells me that there's more where that came from, and this was just a down payment! This guy's just walking around with a butt-load of bits as a down payment! So, obviously, I had to tell him to wait for a minute while I went and got Maud. Because I didn't exactly know what to do in that situation. So Maud and Mr. Skinny start talking while I'm just standing there like a doofus. And while he's talking, he pulls out this badge and this letter and says he's here on behalf of Queen Celestia herself. Apparently, she's coming into town for the Summer Sun Festival with the Pillars of Equestria, and they needed a place to stay. Why are they coming to Ponyville? Heck if I know! But the only ones who're supposed to know are us at the inn, and the higher-ups at City Hall."
"So... yeah..." Pinkie leaned back into her seat and took the time to catch her breath. "That's happening. I don't think Maud bought the story, but she agreed anyway and took the down payment."
"Oh my word, that's incredible!" Rarity stammered out with equal parts astonishment and disbelief. It was a bit of a ludicrous thing to believe without taking a few grains of salt alongside it, but she seemed to be about as convinced as Pinkie was. "I mean, that would be a massive event for Ponyville! I can't even put it into words..."
Twilight was also at a loss for words in response to this, mostly because of the ceaseless internal screaming that dominated every corner of her mind. The idea of Ponyville being so close to Canterlot had previously caused her an intensive sensation of unease and worry back when she first arrived in this little town. And the idea of going up North to pop in and visit her loved ones had been one she had previously entertained once or twice in her short time living here, eventually deciding that it'd be for the better if she didn't go through with it. But now that choice had been pulled out from under her, leaving Twilight to haplessly fall into a seemingly endless downward spiral of panic and despair.
She was coming here.
Queen Celestia was coming to Ponyville, right to Twilight. That alone would have been enough to drive Twilight to this state of mind by itself, but as if to add insult to injury the eldest alicorn was also bringing the Pillars of Equestria with her on this visit of hers. Most of them didn't mean much of anything to her, but there was one, in particular, that really made this whole scenario far worse then it should have been. After all, Twilight's own mother was one of the ponies who was counted among Equestria's most important political figures, and she would be right alongside the Queen in this endeavor. Along with any number of Royal Guards who might very well be able to point Twilight out in a crowd if given the chance. While her cloak made hiding her true nature as an alicorn a lot easier, it also made her stick out in groups, especially for trained professionals keeping an eye out for anything suspicious. It was all but guaranteed that she'd be noticed and confronted by those two individuals, and the young alicorn wasn't certain if she was ready for that. She didn't even know if she wanted that in the first place.
"Sorry for the wait, it's been a busy morning!" One of the unicorn ponies working at the restaurant began as she sauntered up to the table. She had two plates of food floating alongside her, each of which was swiftly presented to Pinkie and Rarity respectively. But it didn't take her long to notice that there were only two plates of food and three ponies at the table, a shocked look of embarrassment overtaking her demeanor. "Oh! I didn't notice you added a third to your party, Pinkie!"
"Oh, no worries, Twilight only just got here five minutes ago!" Pinkie answered with one hundred percent sincerity, taking it upon herself to answer for the stunned alicorn. Five minutes. That's how long this whole event had been. A measly five minutes that felt like it had dragged on for eternity from Twilight's point of view. "And I think she said she was just here to hang out... if that's okay?"
"Well... I suppose that's fine," the waitress continued, seemingly unsure about how she should react to someone taking up a seat without ordering any food. "But I should at least get her some water... Or maybe coffee?"
"I'm good..." Twilight lifelessly mumbled back, slowly drawing herself up to her hooves as if she were a puppet on strings. "I was... just on my way out, actually..."
"Twilight, are you feeling alright?" Rarity was the first one to notice the cloaked pony's sudden shift in attitude, visibly growing concerned over her wellbeing. "You don't look well..."
"I'm fine... I just need to go home and lay down... does anyone else feel hot?" She tugged at the collar of her heavy cloak in an attempt to ventilate some of the built-up heat held within the thick garment. She couldn't quite recall when she had started feeling this overheated, but she was practically starting to melt underneath her disguise.
"Well, I'd be hot too if I wore that big blanket everywhere I went," the waitress commented in an almost sarcastic manner, "Seriously, it's June. Take that thing off!"
"I hate to admit it, but she has a point, Twilight." Rarity was hesitant in agreeing with the waitress, but her hesitation wasn't enough to hold her back for long. "I can understand self-expression more than anyone, but if you don't mind me saying, I don't think I've ever seen you without that dusty old thing. "
"The cloak's not the problem," Twilight deflected through haggard breaths as she began to stride towards the exit, "I just need... to go home!"
"Are you sure you're alright?" Pinkie called out, growing more concerned by the second. "Do you want me to walk you back?"
"I'll be fine, don't worry about me!" Twilight chimed back, fighting the oncoming mental breakdown and the sudden sensation of heat she was feeling with a cheery sounding voice, "I just need to get some rest!" Nothing else was able to stop her before she was able to get out of the door and out of that conversation. If there had been any other attempts at checking up on her on any of their behalfs, she wouldn't have noticed. Especially considering how she had just stepped out of the frying pan and into the fire when she bumped into a certain someone on their way into the eatery, someone who added a whole new layer of anxiety
Knox Onwud hadn't been the face she wanted to see right now, and that sudden shock was far from welcome at this current moment in time. Though in all honesty, the sarosian wasn't looking to be in top form himself. He appeared to be even wearier then Twilight did, with eyes slightly reddened and squinted and hair that looked like he'd just woke up in some ditch. He looked about how Twilight felt, like a hot pile of garbage.
"Oh... Hello, Twilight," the librarian murmured with a strained smile, "Wasn't expecting to see you so soon... how was your weekend?"
"F-fine, I guess..." The alicorn began to sidestep around him, not wanting anything to do with this conversation or this person in her current state. But, through her hazy thoughts, she was at least able to grasp at one moment of clarity. "I, uh, don't think I'll be coming into work today. I don't feel so good."
"Heh, I can understand that. I'm not exactly in top form myself." When he tried to chuckle at his own statement, he winced in pain as he held a hoof to his obviously aching head. "Ugh, I don't think I'm going to open the library today, anyway. Last night, a... colleague of mine convinced me to have a few drinks, and now I'm paying dearly for it..." He swung his head lightly in some attempt to try and shake out the hungover sensation he was feeling. It didn't work. "I need coffee. Badly."
The sarosian's plight was far from Twilight's top priority at this moment in time, doubly so when she was able to catch glimpse of a few town guards who seemed to be eyeing him from a distance. Even now in her current state, she was able to tell what was going to happen very soon, but she wasn't exactly willing to give the hungover stallion a fair warning. There were far more prevalent things dominating her attention that needed to be addressed, so she was quick to give Knox at least a somewhat meaningful goodbye before being on her way. He didn't need to know that it was very likely the last time he'd speak with her as a free stallion, he'd figure it out sooner or later.
But for now, none of that was Twilight's problem. Nothing in this town was her problem right now. There was only one thing that she was able to bring herself to care about, and that was the visitors this little village would be receiving in the very near future. The time between now and then didn't matter much either, a plan of action needed to be made. Twilight couldn't afford to sit and wait on this, it needed to be adressed now. So she hurried back home under the sweltering sunlight, fighting for all she was worth to keep the oncoming panic attack in check.
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Well, this chapter might have taken a while, but it was WELL worth the wait. The exchanges, characterizations and future chapter set-up are quite well done in all the right places. I ADORED Twilight and Spike's chat before Pinkie showed up, how Spike DID manage to talk Twilight into accepting Pinkie's invitation after all, the chat Twilight had with Pinkie and Rarity concerning the nature of alicorns (as well as Twilight ADMITTING that she DID know Cadance, but not much else) and the brief appearance by Knox.
You can almost see the giant chess Queen being ponderously placed on the Ponyville square.
Literally my favorite story on this website right now.
10318713
That means quite a bit. Thank you for reading!
Guess they should high-tail it out of there now.
...yes
Hmmm, so alicornhood can be undone but it reverts you back to how you were before the transformation... I'm starting to think something rather terrible happened to Twilight before she became an alicorn, otherwise I can't see many reasons to turn a young filly, who clearly doesn't want be an one, into an alicorn, or to keep her like that.
Especially since doing so just increases the risk that they would turn on the one who transformed them
Oh...boy. Celestia's coming. Honestly...it might not be so bad. If Celestia's guards get suspicious of Twilight, eventually word will get back to the Queen and she can tell them to ignore her. Twilight could probably use a chat with her mother. Some familiar faces who know about her status.
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Yeah, that's probably what Twilight's going to want to do.
So.
When will Twilight put together that Celestia (and company) coming to Ponyville soon and Knox's plans and related complications are all probably not a coincidence?
10320661
I was actually referring to how alicorns can still die, as shown in that first Selene Flashback. They just don't die of old age or other natural causes.
Good guess, though. That was actually something I considered at one point.
Such an interesting convergence of subplots!
The fact that Spike was brave enough to ask Twilight to introduce him to other ponies, despite all the negative encounters he's had so far, really shows how much Fluttershy (and perhaps, to a small extent, even Rainbow Dash) has had an influence on him. Especially since he hardly even knows the other ponies himself, even getting Pinkie's name wrong.
That Twilight would acquiesce to his request, and so quickly, even with the dangers presented, shows just how seriously she's taking the responsibility of not only looking after Spike's physical safety, but also his mental and emotional development. In fact, the whole segment where she was encouraging him to talk about his thoughts and feelings, just before Pinkie interrupted, was a great display of this, and very mature for somepony her age.
Interesting little tidbit on the romantic subplot between Rainbow and Applejack. Apparently, it's obvious enough that their friends have picked up on it quite some time ago.
Then the twist with Celestia's arrival. I'll admit, I've had several interesting hypotheticals run through my head almost since the start of this story, of what a chance encounter between the two in Ponyville would be like, depending on which friends knew about her alicorn status and about Spike. It almost seems like Twilight has her classical anxiety attack over the situation, (which is actually somewhat humorous, because usually it's Pinkie here who has anxiety attacks, but Pinkie is actually just fine with Celestia staying in the inn), except that instead of trying to impress Celestia, she's wanting to avoid her, and also Twilight's own mother, altogether. This part is somewhat contrary to the progress she just made in trying to progress Spike's social development, since Celestia and Velvet know Spike and would undoubtedly be glad to see him. So in this respect, her own instincts are overwhelming what's best for him...unless she's afraid that maybe Celestia doesn't approve of the danger she's put Spike in, but I don't think that's really so much a factor as Twilight facing a physical representation of her fears of the consequences and responsibilities of being an alicorn.
Speaking of, up to this point, it seemed to be implied that part of the attachment/bond between Twilight and Spike was that she needed him socially, since he would provide a source of constant emotional support for her near-immortal lifespan. But now, we find out that the process of being an alicorn can be reversed? An interesting twist, but it calls much of her motivations and resulting emotional turmoil over her "identity crisis" into question. Why did Twilight choose to become an alicorn in the first place? It's implied she had a choice and was given the option as a reward for hatching Spike, but made her decision before she fully realized Spike's sentient nature, so it wasn't because she wanted to be immortal to provide a support system to her long-lived dragon. Did Celestia realize Spike was imprinting on Twilight instead of her and urged Twilight to become an alicorn for that reason instead?
Twilight thinks the town guards are watching Knox...what if they're really watching her instead?
I understand Twilight is going through a type of panic attack, so-to-speak, but does she really need a plan to avoid Celestia to begin with? Couldn't she just stay inside her house for the whole visit? Or with Fluttershy on the edge of town? Even with Zecora in the Everfree? Yes, Rainbow Dash knows she's in town, but Dash isn't under any obligation to tell Celestia that (at this stage anyway). So, just stay out of sight and it should all be avoided, right (I mean, of course Luna will interrupt and everything, but Twilight doesn't know that yet).
And will Twilight even tell Spike? Given his new boldness for wanting to engage with others socially, he may want to to see Celestia and Velvet. Will Twilight avoid telling him just so she can avoid them while not having to disappoint him? That would out a serious train on their relationship.
So many possibilities. Can't wait to see what happens next!
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All I'm gonna say is this. Out of everything that's happened in the show: AppleDash becoming cannon has had the biggest impact on this story.
Also, you've singlehandedly made me rethink the events of Chapter 34. Not much, but just enough to make them make a bit more... logical. So thanks fo that :D
If Twilight is so stunning, why haven't we seen her get hit on yet?
I'm... Actually starting to get really sick of not knowing why Twilight is so terrified of a family reunion. Does she even have a reason, or is she just insane?
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Thats why the author is doing it for, they are making sure you get more and more annoyed by the fact that we have no idea why she is terrified of this family reunion. So when its revealed we can finally breath a sigh of relief. Or annoyance if the reasoning is garbage.
Poor Spike, wanted to meet new ponies and instead Twilight gets distracted by panic and doesn't even bring it up.
I need to ask, because I clearly don't get it even reading so far.
WHAT IS TWILIGHT'S PROBLEM WITH CELESTIA?
Why is she so freaked out? Arent they related? What did I miss?
Could someone tell me? If it Was mentioned I missed it completely
11287240
Probably something that will be revealed down the line. Sorry if my comment doesn't help