Arc 1: Chapter 9
Twilight stepped out from below deck as the HMS Moonlight touched down in Canterlot's Royal Airship Hangar, the sound of ponies rushing back and forth across the deck catching her attention.
As the airship settled upon the struts holding it in place, everypony above deck did their part to rig the ship up, close the sails and slid the boarding plank down.
Walking over to the edge of the ship, Twilight looked out upon the relatively empty hangar with a calm smile, knowing that Celestia would most likely still be in Day Court.
Luna wandered up behind the Princess and stood at the edge next to her. Leaning over, she rested her head against Twilight's shoulder and sighed.
"I'm glad we arrived home a week early. 'Tia will love this surprise," Luna sighed, nuzzling against Twilight's neck.
"I'm sure she will, my love. It's been too long since we've seen her," Twilight agreed, leaning into the affection as the boarding plank finally clattered down, allowing them to disembark.
"We should go," she suggested, smiling as Luna leaned up and kissed her.
Pressing back into it, Twilight closed her eyes and rubbed her hoof along Luna's neck, holding the Princess tight.
Luna's hoof ran along Twilight's barrel, feeling the taut muscles underneath as she let out a soft hum of pleasure.
Unfortunately, both Alicorn's needed to breath and pulled away, opening their eyes. Twilight held a warm smile on her face upon seeing Luna gaze at her lovingly.
"Let's go, Luna," she whispered, pulling away and walking over to the boarding plank.
Disembarking, Twilight turned back towards Luna and noticed several of the bat ponies standing on the edge of the ship watching them.
With a quick smile and a wave, to which they replied with a salute, Twilight stepped in line with Luna and began to make her way towards the tunnels connecting the hangars with Canterlot proper.
Several minutes of walking down rather drab tunnels, and hallways, later and the Princesses had arrived inside their Palace. Twilight took a long, deep breath and let out a happy sigh.
"It's so good to be back!" she laughed, clip-clopping her hooves against the floor.
"I'm sure every pony will enjoy having us back, my moon."
"Princess Luna, Princess Twilight!" a voice shouted, gasping. "It's so good to see you back!"
The pair looked over to see one of the maids bowing, her wings splayed out across the floor. Glancing to Luna, Twilight neared the pegasus and used her magic to raise her up so she could see her face.
"What's your name?" she asked, looking over the mare's wings.
"Soft Touch, your majesty!" she stammered, eyes trailing over Twilight as she fought to keep a blush off her face.
Luna smirked, but said nothing as she moved over to stand next to Twilight.
"Well, Soft Touch, would you mind finding a spare room for Luna and I?" Twilight asked, her own warm smile appearing. "We'll be in the Throne Room when you find one."
"Yes, Princess, at once!" she squeaked, galloping off down the hall and finally turning.
Twilight kept her eyes on the mare until she disappeared, the turned to Luna. "Did I frighten her?" she asked, looking rather worried.
Luna chuckled and shook her head. "She definitely wasn't frightened," she answered, beginning to walk off towards the Throne Room.
"Wait, what do you mean?" Twilight asked, confused.
"Twilight," Luna giggled, rolling her eyes. "I can't believe I have to tell you this."
"Tell me what?"
"You're attractive," Luna stated, grinning. "Well, you were before you left, without a doubt. But now, you toned up and gained a few inches of height. Every pony will swoon as you pass by."
Twilight rolled her eyes in disbelief, then giggled. "If you say so, Luna."
Luna shook her head upon hearing Twilight's words, but simply followed the mare, nearing the Throne Room.
Twilight couldn't help but smile upon seeing Celestia sitting atop her throne at the other end of the room, her heart fluttering with the thought of being in Celestia's legs.
Arriving just as a pony was leaving Day Court, the pair decided to slip inside at the last second, mumbling apologies to the citizens waiting.
Twilight watched as Celestia held a clipboard in her aura, a quill levitating in and out to write down upon it. Standing there in front of the dais, she waited patiently for her Princess to greet her.
It only took a couple of seconds, but to Twilight it felt like a couple of hours! Her wings fluffed at her sides while she felt her heart beat faster and her anxiety flare up just from the wait of a few seconds.
Placing her clipboard down, Celestia looked over and froze. Her eyes widened upon seeing Twilight and Luna standing there in her Day Court.
In an uncharacteristic burst of speed, Celestia had rushed down the dias and snatched Twilight up and cuddled her tight, peppering the mare's face with licks and kisses.
"My moon, I have missed you so!" she cooed, before looking over to Luna and pulling her in with a wing, only to dote on her sister as well. "I would have met you if I had known! Somepony told me next week..."
Luna giggled and cuddled close to her larger sister's frame, basking in the warmth. "We thought you'd enjoy the surprise!"
Twilight nodded and did the same as Luna and cuddled close, her own wing having extended to wrap around Luna.
"Something tells me she enjoyed it, Luna," she chirped, grinning.
"Of course, I love it! You've made my century!" Celestia giggled, then leaned down and kissed Twilight for a few seconds, leaving the younger Princess wanting for breath.
Celestia turned to Luna and nuzzled her affectionately, not wanting to let her feel left out. “Lulu,” she whispered, gently licking the Alicorn’s cheek and causing Luna to giggle.
Pulling away, Celestia looked over to the guard nearest to the door. “I will be ending Day Court early. Please set up room and board for any who have travelled from outside of the city.”
The guard saluted and bowed, before trotting outside. A few seconds later, a loud collection of groans filled the hallway.
Giggling, Celestia rolled her eyes. “They’ll be fine once they come back tomorrow.”
Just then, Soft Touch hesitantly entered the Throne Room and walked over to the trio. “Uh, Princess Sparkle,” she whispered, chewing on her bottom lip as she kept her gaze firmly on the ground, only flicking up to see if the mare was listening. “The room you asked for is ready.”
“Oh, perfect!” Twilight grinned, gesturing for the pair to follow. “Thank you, Soft Touch,” she stated, smiling down at the mare, who flushed crimson. “Please,” she said, gesturing for her to lead them.
The other Princesses followed Twilight and Soft out of the Throne Room; Luna’s gaze holding on the mare from behind. It didn’t take long until they had arrived at the readied room, a small selection of snacks being left out for them.
Soft had selected a room with a balcony, for which the door was currently open, gently blowing the curtains about as Celestia’s sun filtered in from outside. The room was spacious, decorated with a large coffee-table in the centre of the room, around which was placed a plush, red couch and three lounge chairs. The rest of the room contained several dressers and paintings of the Princesses hung up.
Walking in, Soft Touch turned to Twilight and bowed. “I shall take my leave,” she stuttered, waiting for the Princesses to move past her before rushing out.
Twilight went to speak, but a hoof holding her shoulder stopped her. She glanced over and found Luna shaking her head.
“She’s embarrassed,” Luna began. “It’s best to simply leave her.”
Hesitantly nodded, Twilight turned back and used her magic to close the door. Turning back, she watched Celestia lay down on the couch, with Luna taking a seat next to it.
While Luna quickly snatched up some crumbly biscuits, Celestia’s eyes were firmly on the one thing she wanted more than anything; Twilight. A calm silence filled the room as Twilight began to make her way around the table and over to the open balcony door.
She stopped just inside, sat down and closed her eyes as the cool breeze washed over her. A warm smile spread across her face when Celestia’s sun warmed her. She heard the sound of hoofbeats, then relaxed upon the feeling of soft and silky feathers encompassing her. She let out a throaty purr as Celestia brushed up behind her, hooves sliding down to cuddle her barrel up against Twilight’s back.
“What is on your mind, our moon?” Celestia asked, her voice low as she whispered into Twilight’s ear, causing it to flick back and forth.
“The usual, ‘Tia,” Twilight replied, opening her eyes. “I have to go back, and when I do…” she trailed off, heaving Luna walk over to join them.
“You will have to woo us all over again,” Luna chuckled, sitting besides the pair and smirking. “We remember it fondly.”
“Luna,” Celestia warned, eyes flicking over to her sister.
“I know, ‘Tia. I can still tease though,” she murmured, flicking her tail and looking away. “Either way, I look forward to it.”
Twilight stared over to Luna for a second, taking in the Alicorn’s features. No matter how often she saw her, Twilight never found her want fading. Lighting her horn, Twilight’s magic affectionately caressed Luna’s cheek, before turning her head to look at her.
“Kiss me, Luna,” Twilight ordered, leaning her head up as she puffed out her chest, showing off her taut, steel fibres underneath.
Luna closed the gap and pressed her face against her marefriend’s chest, nuzzling away as she hummed. “My light,” she purred, pulling her face up to gaze deep into those luscious, violet eyes. Quick as a flash, Luna leaned in and kissed her mare, while stroking her cheek with a bare hoof.
Celestia, on the other hoof, was content with cuddling up behind Twilight her legs wrapped around her barrel while she nuzzled deep into her mane. “An eternity with you is not enough…” she sighed.
Eventually, the pair had to pull away, leaving Twilight breathing heavily and rather red-faced. “I don’t really want to go back now, knowing I won’t get any of that,” she joked, rubbing her leg.
“It will be hard, but I’m sure you’ll manage it,” Celestia giggled, nibbling at the mare’s ear playfully. “Besides, I can tell you one thing about our past selves.”
“What’s that?” Twilight asked, her attention fully on Celestia.
“Both of us really enjoyed your new body.”
Fluttering her wings to slow, she touched down just outside of her old castle then furled her wings, holding them tight to her sides.
The first pony she would have to see would be Starlight, and with any luck, Starswirl. This would be quite the reunion, as Starswirl hadn't seen Twilight since her coronation, deciding instead to see the world.
Making her way around to the front of the castle, Twilight's magic wrapped around the handle and pushed the door aside, allowing her to walk straight in.
She didn't feel as if it was really her castle anymore. Partly because she never actually lived in it, preferring to share Canterlot Palace with the Princesses, and partly because Starlight was the one that had actually lived here now.
Smiling as she wandered the recursive halls, Twilight made for the one place that she would most likely find Starlight; the Laboratory.
Reaching a long set of spiral staircases, Twilight began to climb down roughly twenty hooves, her horn the only illumination as it glowed bright.
The deeper she climbed down, the colder it became, until she reached the bottom of the shaft and stood in front of a thick, steel, blast door which held a set of nine indents at eye level.
With a grin, she looked it over and pressed her horn against several of the indents, lighting them up. A couple seconds of silence, then the door let out a hiss and slid to the side, revealing an adequately furnished study, lined with bookcases.
In the centre stood a dais, with a chalk pentagram already etched out, around the outside were several circled pre-filled with runes. Stretching out from the dias were lines connecting the pentagram to three others, each filled out.
The rest of the room was quite spartan, with a few tables and chairs, along with chalkboards and recording orbs set about.
In front one of the chalkboards sat Starlight, her back facing the door and obviously lost in thought as she had not turned around to greet Twilight.
Smirking, Twilight snuck up on the mare, making sure to stay quiet until she wrapped her lavender wings around Starlight face, causing the poor mare to yelp and tense up.
"Guess who," Twilight asked, laughing.
"Twilight! You're back early!" Star gasped, turning around. Suddenly, her eyes widened upon actually seeing Twilight. "I, uh..." she mumbled, eyes trailing over her body.
The Princess, to her credit, didn't notice. "I missed you, Star," she sighed, pulling her wings back against her sides.
Starlight shook her head and smiled. "I missed you too, Twilight," she replied, leaning in and hugging her. "I'm sorry I didn't get out to see you."
"It's okay. I only saw a few ponies. Obviously Pinkie came up, and so did Dash, but I was more focused on not dying than anything else," she joked, grinning. "Reading all the time really didn't help my fitness."
Starlight giggled and shrugged. "You seem to always look pretty fit whenever you save the world."
Twilight waved a hoof. "Oh please. I was always sweaty and out of breath. Thankfully Luna toughened me up!" she laughed, puffing out her chest. "I can now run from the castle down to Canterlot without dying!"
Rolling her eyes, Starlight moved around the mare, her eyes roaming Twilight body. "I can definitely see that," she agreed, watching as the firm muscles rippled under that lilac fur.
"Anyway, uh, what have you been up to? Seven months is a long time," Twilight asked, gesturing around. "I hope you haven't sequestered yourself down here all the time?"
"Oh, no. I've actually spent a lot of time with the girls," Starlight answered, levitating some of the books off the floor and back on the shelves. "Pinkie's been helping me learn to paint."
"Paint? I didn't know you painted, or that Pinkie had the patience."
"It's a new hobby. I found that I had, as you say, 'sequestered' myself away while. I tried to figure out our little time-travel trouble," Starlight explained, giggling at her alliteration. "So, I started to leave the castle and make some more friends, not just the girls."
Twilight's smile couldn't help but grow as she listened, a warmth spreading through her. Starlight didn't need her.
"I kinda, maybe, found a marefriend as well," she muttered, turning away and playing with some papers.
"A marefriend?" Twilight asked, smirking. “Who?"
Starlight flushed as she placed the papers down, her hooves shaking slightly. “Trixie,” she mumbled, just loud enough for Twilight to hear.
She walked over and wrapped the mare up, cuddling her. "My Starlight, all grown up!" she laughed, even as Starlight groaned.
"She's cute and treats me right. What more can I ask for.”
Twilight nodded and rubbed a leg, awkwardness filling the room. Turning around to face the pentagrams covering the floor, she asked, "I assume you created something for our problem? These are massive... How much magic does it need?"
Starlight sat next to Twilight; her turn to puff out her chest with pride. "At least fourteen guard unicorns, per pentagram. Celestia was kind enough to garrison a squad for testing."
"You didn't-"
"Of course not. She'd flip if she knew what I was doing here, and by extension what you did," Starlight explained, looking over with a reassuring smile. "This ritual bends the very fabric of time to my will, Twilight. Celestia doesn't scare me," she joked, letting out a mock mad scientist laugh.
Calming down, she simply grinned and nudged the Princess. "I just told a few white lies here and there. Plus, Ponyville kind of needed the stallions. There's really not that many here, if you hadn't noticed."
Twilight turned back to the pentagrams with an amused chuckle. "What does it do?" she asked, trying to read some of the runes and finding that not even she could understand some of them. "Are those... New runes?"
"Yup! Starswirl helped with that. We didn't have any that could handle the amount of magic that would be needed, so we had to formulate our own," Starlight began, closing her eyes. "That took about three months, but once we were done, the runes could adequately process what we needed."
Twilight listened intently; her ears perked up. Twilight knew Starlight was smart, but this was on a whole new level. Blinking, she asked, "Speaking of Starswirl, where is he?"
"Oh, yeah. He helped here and there, but eventually he demanded to know what this was for. But, if I wasn't going to tell Princess Celestia, I sure wouldn't tell him. So, he left. A shame actually, he was nearly as good as me."
The Princess's face showed several different emotions, until it settled on one: regret. "I'm sorry you had to lie, twice," she muttered, leaning over to nuzzle her friend.
Starlight closed her eyes and leaned into the affection. "It's not like I'd tell them, is it. I think it would probably give the poor stallion a heart-attack."
With a sigh, Twilight nodded when she pulled away. "I suppose you're right. Still, it doesn't feel right that I've made you lie. Once this is all over, I'll come clean. They deserve to know."
Once again, a silence filled the room until Starlight spoke up. "You’re not going to ask what it does?"
"Oh, right. What did you slave away for half a year to create?" Twilight asked, raising a brow. She found Starlight adorable when she was excited about showing something off.
"So, we theorised that it might be possible to 'shift' a pony out of time. That way, they are unaffected by what occurs in the past due to-"
"Me."
"Something like that," she mumbled, rubbing a leg. "So, while we couldn't enchant a whole pony permanently, due to some weird interaction with the ambient magic in the air, we could enchant a bracelet to provide a small aura to the pony."
"That's incredible," Twilight praised, receiving an eye roll in return. "No, I'm serious, Starlight."
"Twilight, I appreciate it, but we don't even know if they work and I hope we never find out if they do. All readings point to the pony being ‘out of phase’ with the universe, but we don’t know if it’s the fact that it contains enough magic to light up a continent, or if it actually works-“
"Put one on and don't take it off-"
"Twilight."
"Please, Starlight."
With a sigh, Starlight shook her head and wandered over to the nearby bookshelf. With a flick of her horn, a thick tome levitated off the top shelf and opened up, revealing its hollowed-out insides as well as three bracelets.
"These are all I was willing to make, so far," she explained as the three, plain, silver bracelets hovered in front of her.
While looking extremely plain, Twilight could feel the air fizzle and pop with the magical potential that was contained within. It was on par with the fully powered Bewitching Bell.
One of the bracelets levitated down and snapped around Starlight leg, the latch fusing shut and sealing itself around her.
Twilight hesitantly reached out and ran her hoof over the smooth, polished silver, finding the latch to have faded until it was smooth all the way around. Circling the bracelet, etched onto its surface, was a stylised image of a snake that, once the bracelet was fused shut, was eating its own tail.
Her smile returned and quickly wrapped Starlight up in her legs, followed by her wings! "Thank you so much," she whispered, holding her tighter.
"What for?" Starlight grunted, being squeezed.
"For putting up with a silly Princess."
Starlight rolled her eyes, then nuzzled up and down Twilight’s neck, letting out a giggle. “Oh please, Twilight,” she began, pulling away. “I’ve had a lot of practice.”
Looking down at her bracelet, she nodded to herself and then slid her gaze back up to Twilight. “Let’s go and see the Princesses. I think it’s time you go back, right?”
Twilight furled her wings and winced. “Yeah. I had planned to go back as soon as I arrived back. There’s no sense in pushing back the inevitable. With you being here, I’m a little less worried that I’ll buck everything up.”
Starlight held a hoof up to her lips and giggled, trying to hold back laughter at Twilight’s foul language. “Well, I’ll certainly try my best, Twilight,” she replied, waving a hoof dismissively. “Come on. I’d really like to get these on the Princesses quickly. It actually makes me feel calmer, though I’m sure it’s just a placebo.”
As soon as she and Starlight had arrived back in Canterlot, they had made for her private chambers. It wasn’t a long trek from the palace entrance, but Twilight wanted to take in the mighty architecture of her home one last time, before it would be replaced with fire and the screaming ponies of Stonewall.
Using her magic to push open her door, Twilight held it open for Starlight and entered after. Walking in, she looked up to the second level and saw that the Princesses were standing there, their backs turned and looking out of the window.
Twilight and Starlight glanced at each other for a second, then ascended the stairs, a worried look on their faces.
“Princesses?” Starlight asked, before noticing the tear in space-time that was suspended in the middle of Twilight’s chalk pentagram and going wide-eyed.
“Starlight, it’s lovely to see you,” Celestia said, radiating warmth. “It’s a shame that we haven’t seen more of you lately. How have you been?” She asked as Twilight wandered over to Luna, a loving grin on her face, then kissed her.
“Oh, I’ve been well. Thank you, Princess,” Starlight replied, fiddling with the bracelet as her eyes drifted back down to the runes written on the floor.
Luna, on the other hoof, was more interested in Twilight. “My moon. It’s been torture without you here. ‘Tia simply won’t stop worrying,” she groaned, flicking her eyes over to her sister. “She knows what happens, but still refuses to listen to reason. Please talk some sense into her.”
Twilight nodded, an amused smile on her face. She brushed past Luna and nuzzled up Celestia’s side, planting several kisses up her neck. “My Princess. You’re so tense… you know everything that happens. I’ll be back before you know it.”
Celestia sighed, her body visibly relaxing under Twilight’s touch. “I- I know, Twilight,” she mumbled, causing the mare to hesitate and lean back. “That’s what I’m afraid of.”
“’Tia,” Luna warned.
The Solar Alicorn’s attention flicked to Starlight, who was hurriedly trying to keep herself occupied by reading the runes, her ruby cheeks highlighting just how much she had listened to.
“Starlight, would you mind?” Celestia asked, giving the mare her usual maternal smile.
In return, Starlight bowed. “Of course, Princess. I’ll be outside if you need me.”
Celestia made sure that Starlight was out of the room before lighting her horn and shooting a wave of magic out, covering every inch of Twilight’s chambers with a shimmering glow.
“Good…” she sighed, shooting Luna an apologetic look, to which her sister simply rolled her eyes. Looking back over to Twilight, who was slightly more on-edge than normal, she closed her eyes. “Twilight, there’s something you should know about Luna and I.”
Luna simply turned around and stared out of the window, gazing down at the valley below while an annoyed frown appeared on her face.
“Celestia, Luna, what’s going on?” Twilight asked, finding herself growing worried. “Did something happen? I can sta-“
“No, our moon,” Celesta interrupted, holding up a hoof to brush along Twilight’s cheek. While her hoof was covered in gold, the gesture was still rewarded with a slightly less frazzled Twilight. “It’s not something happening now… at least, not yet,” she said, glancing at Luna, who closed her eyes and raised her muzzle.
With a deep breath, she continued. “It may not be a surprise, but you were not our first lover.”
“Of course. I wouldn’t have assumed. You had at least one hundred years to find somepony,” Twilight nodded, noticing the tenseness that was simply oozing off of Luna.
“Yes, and we did find somepony-“
The sound of Luna’s huff rang out as she turned around. She frowned at Celestia, who winced and averted her gaze, then turned to Twilight. Unable to hold her annoyance upon settling her eyes on her love, she began, “What my sister is really trying to say is that we had plenty of ‘lovers’, but we did not love anypony, at least not in the same way we love you.”
She let out another huff to try and calm herself, then turned to Celestia, her annoyance fading. “We found that when our lovers died, there was nopony else to ease the grief. We didn’t know what to do, so we simply swore off physical contact with all others.”
Celestia let out an airy laugh. “Remember how long that lasted, Lulu?” she asked, her cheeks tinting crimson.
“How could I forget,” Luna answered, a warm smile appearing on her face as she scooted closer to her sister. “I-“ she said, hesitating. It took a second to Celestia’s smile to cause Luna to falter. “Fine.”
Celestia leaned over and nuzzled her sister’s cheek, gently giving her a lick. “You know she’ll find out eventually anyway, right? It wasn’t as if we specifically hid it,” she whispered, idly sliding their spiral horns together.
“I guess. But it feels like we’re breaking her rule.”
Twilight’s eyes darted between the pair, growing ever more confused as time went on. “Hid what? What’s going on?!”
The two sisters rested against each other, then turned to Twilight. Luna’s face held a bashful smile, which she hid by pressing her face against Celestia’s shoulder. Celestia simply chuckled and raised a hoof to brush at Luna’s mane, eliciting a small hum from her.
“Luna and I were lovers,” Celestia stated, her tone neutral. Though, a hint of worry could be seen.
“Wait, what?!” Twilight gasped, taking a step back, confused. “You two were…”
She didn’t know what to think. On one hoof, she could understand the reasoning; but on the other, she couldn’t see them doing that sort of thing. It only took a second of imagining the pair, in bed, for her cheeks to darken and for her to look away.
’Damnit Twilight!’ she chastised herself, hoping the Princesses didn’t see that.
“Our moon,” Luna cooed, pulling away from Celestia and taking a step towards Twilight. “We had buried our past lovers and the thought of spending our immortality simply watching our ponies turn to dust was too much to bear. Ironic isn’t it.”
Twilight couldn’t find herself disagreeing, at least not really. Celestia’s logic was sound, considering that everypony in the room was immortal. Even worse, at some point, she’d experience that with her friends. It was only natural to find comfort in the one pony she knew wouldn’t leave her.
“From what you said,” she mumbled, scuffing the floor with a hoof, “I assume you were still together when you met me?”
“Yes. Luna and I were still lovers when we met you. We didn’t want ponies to know, let alone somepony we had just met- even if you were immortal like us- It wouldn’t have been right.”
Twilight opened her mouth to speak, then paused, realising something. “Were you… together, after I would inevitably leave?”
The pair glanced at each other, then back at Twilight. “Yes,” Luna replied, nodding. “We were up until I had my lapse in judgement.”
“But we haven’t, since you brought her back to me, if you’re worried about that,” Celestia hastily added, showing some fear. “I didn’t think it would be a good idea, considering.”
“Considering?” Twilight asked, her ears flipping back. She looked back down to the wooden floor, clearly in thought.
Luna took another step forward and tenderly took hold of Twilight’s chin, pulling it up to look into her eyes. “Considering she was the one to send me away, Twilight.” She glanced back at her sister, receiving an anxious smile. “ We had been talking during these long seven months and we’ve watched you grow into the perfect mare we remember; you rekindled something we thought lost.”
“I want us all to be together, Twilight. It’s been called many things throughout time, but modern ponies call it a herd.”
Twilight’s eyes widened upon hearing that. Somewhere, deep down, she knew Luna would suggest that the moment they revealed their secret. It wasn’t as if the two Princesses would just throw her away. Despite this, she still didn’t know what to say- but she didn’t need words.
After several seconds, of which both sisters were growing increasingly nervous, Twilight’s horn lit up and dragged Celestia over, causing her to let out a gasp, her golden horse-boots scraping along the wooden floor.
Twilight brought her hooves up, using her wings to balance herself, and gently pressed one against each of the Princess’s chest. “I’m not as experienced, nor have I gone through what either of you have… but I love you; both of you.
“It hurts to know that you two waited so long for me- but knowing that you had each other soothes that pain. So, Luna, Celestia,” she said, watching the two share a look. “We can be a herd.”
The effect was immediate. Celestia leaned in and wrapped the pair up in her fluffy wings, holding both of her ponies close to her chest. She closed her eyes as tears began to silently roll down her cheeks, the Solar mare trying her best not to make a sound.
Their hug lasted for the better part of a minute, simply holding each other and letting their emotions out. While Twilight could feel her heart fluttering at their touch, the mare was still nervous about the future, their future.
She didn't want to make a mistake, say something wrong or hurt either Princess. She loved them both, but was it the same amount?
Finally pulling away, Twilight reached up and brushed away Celestia's remaining tears with her hoof.
"This isn't the time for tears," she giggled, fluttering her wings.
Luna held into Twilight tight, her front legs wrapped around the mare's right leg. She affectionately nuzzled her love's ear, nibbling it a little before she whispered.
"None before you knew of this, our moon. We hope none after will."
"You have no idea how honoured I am, Luna, Celestia. I..." she mumbled, biting her lip and hesitating, her eyes flicking between the sisters. "I've never been in one before.'
Celestia giggled, placed her hoof on Twilight's shoulder and gave her a reassuring squeeze.
"There's nothing to worry about. We both love you and nothing you could ever do can change that."
"I..." Twilight started, biting her lip. After a second of thought, she nodded and let her wings droop down, thoughts crashing around her head. "I'll try my best."
Luna shook her head while she pulled away, a warm smile appearing on her face. "You don't have to be perfect. This isn't some test."
With a sigh, Celestia stepped back and ruffled her wings, then gestured to the door. "I'm sure you have a lot to think about, Twilight. Thankfully you'll have a lot of time to grow accustomed to such things. But for now, I think it's time for Starlight to come in. She's been waiting an awfully long time."
With a pulse emanating from Celestia's horn, the spell that was plastered across the entirety of Twilight's Chambers began to fade away.
"There we go," Celestia sighed. "It's nearly time."
Twilight rubbed her leg and nodded. "Yeah. I mean, I could just stay with you two, right? Is there a rush?"
The sisters shared a look.
"If this was a normal excursion into the past, no. But dark forces gather, Twilight," Celestia explained, then began to walk over to the tailing that overlooked the door to the hallway. "Forces that are stronger than you have ever faced. Time may have stopped for you, but they know no such limits."
"Sister, you can't tell her these things!" Luna warned, looking annoyed. "It will only hurt the timeline."
"To Tartarus with the timeline! I will not stand by as she gallops headlong into something she doesn't know about!" Celestia replied, stomping a hoof.
She turned her attention to Twilight, her annoyance fading. "Your training was essential for your growth as an Alicorn, but enjoying time with us is not."
"But-"
"No buts, Twilight. Your future self was quite adamant about it; you’ve got to go back in..." Celestia closed her eyes for a few seconds, before continuing, "four minutes and fifty seve- six seconds."
"That's really specific. Why then?" Twilight asked, leaning into Luna's kiss on her cheek.
"I am unsure. You wouldn't tell me,' Celestia replied, shrugging. "Either way, you must go back," She gestured to the door. "Go and collect Starlight. We believe she wishes to see you off, however brief it may be."
Nodding, Twilight managed to pull herself away from Luna and walk over to the door. Even behind the wood, she could hear Starlight pacing back and forth, obviously worried.
Her magic swung open the door with a. Flick of her horn and peeked outside. "You can come in now, Starlight."
The mare let out a startled yelp and nodded, walking through the open door and back into Twilight's room.
Twilight leaned in and gently stopped the mare with a hoof. "Don't worry. We just had some personal things to discuss," she explained, nuzzling her. "Give them the bracelets."
Starlight nodded once more, then hesitantly made her way up the stairs and back onto the second level. "Princess Celestia," she said, bowing. "I..."
Starlight glanced behind her to Twilight, who simply smiled and gestured to keep going.
"I haven't been completely truthful. Those guards you sent down to Ponyville weren't for some study on gender imbalance."
Celestia raised a brow, but stayed quiet to let the mare continue.
"I needed their magical energy to-" she sighed. "To create these." With a flash, Two more bracelets appeared next to her.
"Pray tell, dear Starlight. What are they?" Luna asked, studying them intently.
"When I heard that Twilight had gone back in time, I wanted to help... In my own way."
Starlight turned and walked over to the window. "I wasn't given a chance to make it up to her, to everypony before. They- Twilight forgave me too quickly. It didn't feel like I had earned it."
Ignoring Twilight as she neared, Starlight continued.
"But when she went back, I could at least protect the two of you. Twilight is unaffected by any ripples in time due to her having cast the spell, but you are not. We may be standing here now, this is one of an infinite combinations of realities. Even me saying this will change what happens when Twilight goes back."
"Starlight, the very act of us standing here proves that she succeeds," Celestia retorted, shaking her head. "I should know, we were there."
Sighing, the Princesses slid up beside Starlight and wrapped her wings over her back.
"Starlight. You're one of Twilight's best friends and it's natural that you would be worried," Celestia began, letting Luna continue.
"We trust you and if you wish for us to wear them, we will. But I can promise you that things will turn out fine."
"Please," Starlight muttered, levitating the bracelets onto the sister' legs. The bracelets enlarged to fit on, then fused shut.
Celestia held her own up and pressed her horn against the surface, before jerking away with a wince. "So much magic," she hissed, rubbing her horn.
"I used up those Stallion, multiple times. You're now safe from any ripple effect," Starlight said, her gaze drifting to Twilight, who simply mouthed: 'thank you'.
Luna hummed and turned walked over to the portal. Her horn lit up for a second. "I believe it's time, our moon," she said, looking over to Twilight. "If I remember correctly, you had just teleported us out of the town. We were quite upset; Celestia was sobbing uncontrollably for our new escort."
"I did not!" she protested, letting out a huff and a stomp of her hoof. "I was merely worried about, uh, my new friend. It's not often we get attacked in a town like that!"
Luna giggled and rushed over to Twilight, hiding behind her. "Escort! Protect me!" she joked, pointing at her sister.
Celestia rolled her eyes and gestured to the portal with her wing. "Twilight, it's time. No deception, okay?" she asked, wrapping a wing around her, before pulling the mare into a tight hug. "Be careful, our moon," Celestia whispered, nuzzling her ear, then pulling away.
Starlight took a step over and hugged Twilight as Celestia released her. "I know you'll be in and out before we notice... But I'll still miss you. I don't know what you get up to, but at least have a little fun. You are travelling with two cute mares, after all."
Twilight laughed and savoured the hug, finding herself beginning to grow nervous. "I'll try my best, Starlight and I'll try and be back soon... At least for me," she giggled, nuzzling the mare.
"Twilight," Luna began, placing a hoof on her shoulder. "Please."
Twilight pulled away and quickly covered her eyes with her hoof at a sudden, quick burst of light.
Luna levitated a brand new saddlebag, stuffed with various items, such as bits, bandages and food. "You will need this."
After a quick nuzzle, Luna placed it on her mare's back and grinned. "You're going to make us the luckiest pair, Moonlight."
Blushing slightly, Twilight leaned up and kissed Luna, then Celestia. Pulling back, she sighed. "Alright. Time to do this..."
She turned to face the portal and took a hesitant step forward, then another, before looking back at the Princesses. "See you in a sec."
By now, that sensation of being spaghettified and then strained through a cosmic blender was becoming rather familiar to the mare and before long, she was plopped out on the other side of the portal.
Stumbling back into the alley, Twilight let out a choked cough and held herself against the stone wall, trying to keep herself from vomiting like last time. Looking around, she remembered that the town was being attacked by some sort of cult- or at least they looked like it to her.
Taking a few moments to compose herself, she pushed herself over to the entrance of they alley and peeked her head out to glance around for any ponies. Seemingly the streets had, luckily, been deserted.
Stepping back, Twilight looked up into the sky and narrowed her eyes, unsure of what she was seeing. Using her magic to pull her saddlebag around, she dug through and pulled out a spyglass. Placing her saddlebag back onto her back, she extended the spyglass and scanned the sky for what she saw.
“Gryphons?” Twilight mumbled, closing the spyglass and tapping her hoof on the cobble.
Stowing the spyglass, Twilight backed up into the alley and closed her eyes. It was a long while, but she could remember the general area to which she had sent the Princesses and Sunset. Charging her horn, she felt the air fizzle with static and with a ’crack’ of magic, she was gone.
Unfortunately for a family of squirrels, their day was about to get ruined. just as Twilight’s first ’crack’ reached their ears, did another hit the dirt next to their tree, causing them to scatter as the magic arced off of the mare and blew the bark off the tree.
Stretching her neck, Twilight scanned her surroundings and found them relatively tame. She had appeared within a thicket, of which she was thankful, due to hiding her teleport- not that she’d expect them to know that yet, especially if the Princesses didn’t.
Now came the hard part for the mare; finding the Princesses. She knew they were around this area, but didn’t know exactly, considering that she was being attacked at the time. Pushing her way out of the thicket and through some nettles, Twilight saw that she had managed to teleport them well outside of Stonewall and even past the fields which lay just outside.
It seemed that they were on the opposite side that they had entered on as well, which was lucky, as she doubted that they would need to go back to Trottington anytime soon, especially with those Gryphons flying above.
Keeping to the tree line, Twilight closed her eyes and charged her horn, letting out a low-yield magical pulse. The pulse itself would only be detectable by Unicorns, and Alicorns, and the familiar magical aura would allow the group to find her. Unfortunately, it had a rather small area of effect, which she could increase at the cost of being detectable by other races.
Wandering through the forest, she made sure to keep her pace slow enough that the group could catch up to her as she periodically sent pulses out for them to pick up. Sure enough, barely five minutes later, the group stumbled through some bushes.
The Princesses gasped and rushed up to Twilight, hugging her tight.
“Moonlight! I thought we had lost you; you silly mare!” Celestia whispered, nuzzling through her mane.
Luna simply kept quiet, holding onto Twilight tight.
Sunset stood there; her eyes locked onto Twilight’s wings. Her magic aura appeared around the Princess’ shoulders and pulled them away, before she pointed to the new appendages.
The pair gasped and took a step back, unsure what to think.
“How did-“ Luna began, her eyes glued to Twilight’s wings, just the same as her sister. It wasn’t until Luna looked over Twilight’s body that she realised that the mare was actually taller than her as well as looking stronger. “What happened?!”
Twilight sat down and opened up her wings to show off her wingspan. Even though she had prepared herself for this, she still felt like it was too soon, but now it was too late. “I was always an Alicorn, like you two.”
“That- That’s…” Celestia stammered, her eyes wide as she looked on in shock. “You were an Alicorn the whole time?!”
Twilight winced at the shouting, then looked up at the sky to try and spot any Gryphons. “I know it’s a lot to ta-“
“A lot?! How could you not tell us!” she yelled, gesturing to the outstretched wings. There was a mix of anger and confusion, of which her sister emulated, but to a lesser degree.
“I- I was going to- I mean, I am!” Twilight huffed, closing her eyes. “When do you suppose the best time would be to tell you? A strange pony helps you in your time of need and just so happens to be an Alicorn? It looks pretty shady, doesn’t it?”
Just as the Princesses were about to retort, Sunset stepped forwards and ran her magic up Twilight’s wing, twitching and wiggling her feathers, causing Twilight to gasp and shudder. “Incredible,” she mumbled. “I’ve not had another Alicorn to study… especially one so,” her eyes ran across Twilight’s body, “well maintained. Tell me, how did you craft such an illusion spell? It looked so realistic!”
Taking her eyes off of the Princesses, she looks down at Sunset. “It wasn’t an illusion spell. It’s a spell designed take away the external traits of an Alicorn. My ma-“ she paused, “my teacher taught it to me when I ascended.”
Looking back at the Princesses, she sighed and furled her wings back to her sides. “Luna, Celestia,” she began, glancing between them. “I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you before now, but I was afraid of what might happen if you knew. Now, I know that is a risk that won’t happen.”
Luna turned to Celestia and gave her a look, before she focused on Twilight. “Moonlight, I’m grateful that you have allowed us to know… but know this, there should be no secrets between us if we are to continue.”
“My sister is right,” Celestia added, smiling over to her. “If I cannot trust you, I cannot travel with you, even if you are another one of us.”
“I understand and I will not keep secrets from either of you,” Twilight replied, pressing a hoof to her chest and bowing. Rising up, she smiled down at Sunset. “That include you as well, Sunset. If you are to travel with us?”
“Of course! I will need to make plenty of notes detailing everything about you!” she gasped, nodding quickly. “We’ll have to travel to Springwallow. It’s on the border, just before the Gryphon Badlands. We’ll be able to gather supplies and find transport over the border.”
“Great,” Twilight nodded, standing up and giggling. “I hope you don’t mind being smaller than me now,” she teased, smirking over to the Princesses, “my little ponies.”
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I think you're missing the end of the paragraph.
Huzzah the update has been doubled!
9935455
Thanks, fixed. ^^
HOLY SHIT!! 2 chapters at once!! you're a fucking god bro! Yes imma read this shit right now!! Keep up your work, damn the wait was worth it now I get two chapters of superb storytelling! Fuck yeah!
Double upload?
thumbs.gfycat.com/GraciousDirtyKissingbug-size_restricted.gif
Are you saying Twilight was the one who invented this catch phrase in the first place? Only to have it being said back to her unicorn self a thousand years later.
Oh, it's uh incest. While I absolutely love this story and your work is beautiful it's just not my cup of tea.
Keep the like though it deserves it.
This is still a really nicely done story, but I'm not really comfortable continuing to read with the "surprise". And the time travel is starting to give me anxiety, haha, I'm a bit of a weirdo like that (unstable timeline dynamics always do that to me, so I probably should have predicted it). Anyway, I'm out, please have a nice day.
Hold on. So Twilight, who has been an alicorn for a few years by this point, is now taller than Celestia and Luna? When the sisters are already centuries old at this point?
That seems kinda odd to me. Unless the sisters are smaller due to their link with the sun and moon being broken at the time...
9936024
Heya. The past Princesses are only about 100-ish years old and haven't had the same training that Twilight was given. Essentially, Twilight's alicornism had been sped up slightly, while the Princesses don't have that luxury.
And its really only a few inches, at best. The Princesses were average pony sizes at this point in the story.
9935938
9935621
Of course. No worries. Thank you for reading this far.
"Suprise"? Huh? What surprise?
The time travel is starting to grate on me now, tho, ngl.
Also, a couple things that really bothered me while reading: "foal language" foul; and "uncharismatic" you meant uncharacteristic (once in this chapter, and once in the previous one).
9935615
I wouldn't say that. Luna used it in chapter 3, but in a less... teasing way.
9936067
Starting to grate on you? In what way?
It won't really come up again for many chapters, if you're worried about that. It might get mentioned/thought about, but not actively done.
Another good chapter, thank you for sharing. I really like how you are handing the two sisters and Twilight. Looking forward to seeing what happens next.
Ah, the little troll's making us proud
Oh, and it's hangar, not hanger. A hanger is something you use to put clothes in your closet, a hangar is a aircraft storage facility.
9936393
Thanks. Fixed. ^^
Twilight will only get trollier ;)
Spoilers!
9936393
You're right about hangar, though I can't stop thinking that in case of airships hanger is appropriate too:
3
: a device by which or to which something is hung or hangs: such as
a
: a strap on a sword belt by which a sword or dagger can be suspended
b
: a loop by which a garment is hung up
c
: a device that fits inside or around a garment for hanging from a hook or rod
Ahhh~ Those 2 chapters were just adorable.
I was wondering how you were going to tackle all three of them being together without Twilight having to always juggle both Luna and Celestia's feelings.
With how quick you seem to release these chapters I was wondering if you have the entire plot laid out already?
9936515
Heh. I have a general guideline which I use. But things can change depending on how I feel.
Wow, two chapters at once! I knew you loved us, but you spoil us so!
First for chapter 8, I knew it would break my heart when Luna found out, poor mare, though I'm glad it was solved out fairly fast. But poor Shiny, being teleported out so he couldn't scout back to the Princess of love, or food (depending on race). I do hope that Cadence finds out that Celestia and Luna are in a relationship, but don't know who they are in a relationship with. Small hijinks like those are always fun in fluffy stories. Also can't wait for the Mane six and Twilight's family to react to Twilight's new body and relationship. Herd master!
Lastly, chapter 9. The end definitely got me pumped for what's to come next since we are back in the past and ready for adventure, secrets to be told (again) and fluff! With how this story has been going and moving forward, I've got the idea on how this time travel works, but I have no way of writing it down, excepting that everything is theoretical and that no one can know without it playing out first. If that makes sense. Like theoretically, Starlight solution does work and doesn't work at the same time because the Princesses have already lived the past but theoretically, they only llved and know about the past because of Starlight's solution. I hope that makes sense and me not just talking out of my ass. xd
9936543
haha. I think I get what you mean, don't worry.
I'm glad you're enjoying it, still :3
9936515
I was a little worried about that, tbh, but I'm happy that not everyone is hating it :P
Awesome update! Nice little surprise after getting home from work.
I wonder if "no more secrets" means she is actually going to tell them about the time travel.
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I didn't actually mean to 'lie'. chapter 8 & 9 were supposed to be one whole chapter and be a lot longer, but I realised that it would be so boring, so I split it up. I think it gets the point across, what with how harsh the training is, in the beginning, and everything. Plus, having cute stuff is always good.
And who knows what secrets she might accidently spill in a moment of weakness
I kindly demand more... MOOORE !!! I NEED MORE!!!!!!!
*ähäm* sorry...
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media1.tenor.com/images/fc5162c340f4fac6a10991716d7b0bb0/tenor.gif?itemid=11515428
This story is beautiful. Unlike Twilight, I'd go in the future. To see this story complete lol
9941000
Yeah, River\Pond is my favorite support character of those series.
9938872
I’m with you on this one.
Mooooore!!!!
9948101
Alright, I will. I'm actually enjoying the story, but the time system is confusing me. You portrayed it to be a time loop (like in "It's About Time"), but then Twilight created an alternate timeline (like in the "Cutie Re-Mark"). The toaster confirms a time loop, so Twilight changing the present isn't possible (unless there is a third-party causing the paradox).
Again, I like the story, but the two time travel systems are clashing with each other.
Truthfully, I wonder how the rewrite will clarify this. Best of luck to you.
Let me just come out and say, that i adore stories that ship our book horse with any of the princesses. Let me just say now, that shipping her with both is quite a treat. And finally, it taking place mainly in old Equestria. I LOVE this. I am in for the rest of this ride. I cannot wait to see what happens next. Chapters seem to be releasing at a steady pace and you seem very driven about this project. I will be watching with rapt attention. Well written to, and characters are believable. I love it. Get a follow to!
9948923
Thanks! I'm very nearly done with chapter 10 and it looks like the story is going to be much longer than I initially expected (when isn't it), haha.
Finally, someone who gets why I don't like Starlight
Snorted Pepsi through my nose when I read that. There needs to be a "don't drink and read" warning on parts of this.
When you get through 9 chapters in one day and still hunger for more, you know it's a great fic.
Amazing work, Valtyra. Amazing work!
No secrets, hmm? Wonder when she'll let them know she's from the future then... The rings would make that safe to do, unless i'm misinterpreting?
Now that's something you don't hear a lot.