Azure Edge

by Leaf Blade

85. You Need You

Twilight took deep breaths as she watched the Rarity and Rainbow Dash leave for their mission, and she shut the library door once they were out of sight.

Deep, deep breaths.

She wished she could just stop the overwhelming pain in her chest, but there was nothing to be done about it right now, and worrying only made it worse.

It was her own fault anyway; she knew she had to take a day each month to rest and recover her magic outside of the city where no one could see her, but because she’d been spending nearly every day either with Rarity or making plans to see Rarity, or one of the others, she never found the time for herself.

How fitting, Twilight thought, for friendship to be the thing that ends up killing me.

“Twilight?” Spike’s voice chimed in from the stairwell he descended, and Twilight looked up at him and waved, affecting a smile that was meant to be endearing but was probably as painful to look at as it was to make. “Twilight, Rarity just left, didn’t she?”

“Yeah,” Twilight sighed, sitting down on a chair because standing was painful and exhausting, “she left to fight a—”

“A dragon,” Spike gulped, “I heard. Applejack and Pinkie Pie left on the train this morning, right?”

“Yeah,” Twilight nodded, trying to focus on her breathing, “and?”

“’And’? What do you mean ‘and’?” Spike balked. “Twilight you gotta go to the mountains! Look at yourself!”

“I can’t just go galivanting up into the mountains while Rarity’s in danger!” Twilight said, aghast at Spike’s total lack of concern for Rarity’s safety, although a little voice chimed in from the back of her head that she wasn’t being fair to Spike and that’s definitely not how he meant it. “What if she gets hurt? What if she comes back? What if she needs me for something?”

“Twilight, right now you need you,” Spike pleaded, and Twilight could see tears wetting his eyes and she realized just how selfish she was being. “And I need you to be okay! You told me that magical exhaustion could kill you, Twilight! I don’t want you to—”

“Spike,” Twilight said sternly, Spike immediately shutting his mouth and listening to his mother speak. “I apologize. You’re completely right, of course, and I can’t believe I didn’t take into consideration how my exhaustion was making you feel. I’m sorry.”

“Twilight, this isn’t about m—”

“I’ll go tonight,” Twilight took a deep, pained breath. “I can’t hide in the mountains under the daylight, but come nightfall, when the Canterlot ponies retreat to their beds, I’ll go into the mountains and recover my magic.”

“You promise?” Spike trotted down the staircase and flew up onto Twilight’s lap, giving her a trembling hug.

“I promise,” Twilight said, petting Spike’s mane. Seeing the distress on the little pegasus’ face hurt her far more than any magic ailment ever could, and she was kicking herself now for not taking his feelings into consideration sooner.

Twilight giggled to force herself to cheer up a bit, and just like whenever she needed to think happy thoughts, her mind went to one place: Pinkie Pie.

“Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye,” Twilight said, mirroring Pinkie’s eccentric gestures as well as she could from memory. “Pinkie Promise. Now you know for sure I’ll do it, because I would never break a Pinkie Promise.”

Twilight held out her littlest finger, and Spike intertwined his with it, the two smiling at each other before erupting into a fit of giggles, Twilight holding her precious son close to her chest.

“I love you, Spike,” Twilight said, smiling brightly as her heart filled with affection for her favorite boy.

“I love you too, Twilight,” Spike giggled, and Twilight could feel the love and affection he had for her in his voice and his nose as she nuzzled her nose against his.

A knock at the door.

Twilight’s ears perked up. The sign said they were closed, didn’t it?

Another knock. A chill up Twilight’s spine.

“Spike,” Twilight said, her tone measured and calm, “go to your room, okay?”

“Uh, is everything okay, Twilight?” Spike asked hesitantly, though he was slowly following Twilight’s order.

“Everything is fine, Spike,” Twilight smiled at him, careful to make absolutely sure he didn’t see the fear that she felt.

As Spike did as he was asked, Twilight approached the door, and a knock rapped at it for a third time. Twilight knew who was behind that door; she had magic around the perimeter of her library, much like the magic Fluttershy must have used to survey her entire forest, though hers wasn’t quite so automatic like Fluttershy’s seemed to be.

Twilight was certain this day was going to come much sooner, and when it hadn’t, she allowed herself some relief, fooling herself into thinking that she had somehow avoided the inevitable.

But she knew she couldn’t hide forever.

Twilight opened the door and smiled innocently at the woman standing on the other side.

“How can I help you,” she said politely to the pitch-black alicorn staring sternly down at her, “Princess Luna?”

Author's Note:

Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed!

Comments

[ShadowLDrago]

“How can I help you,” she said politely to the pitch-black alicorn staring sternly down at her, “Princess Luna?”

Oh boy...

[AppleTank]

*panic panic panic panic*