Red Thread
A/N: please consider reading my latest blog post! I have been working with another musician for the past six months on an album, which is finally out! thank you for your support!
Sabbatical
Chapter 5
“Red Thread”
The sun was already well below the horizon by the time Celestia materialized on Luna’s windowsill. With a swift kick, she knocked in the windows and fell clumsily into Luna’s bedroom. The noise of her window slamming open and a body slamming into the floor made Luna jump about three feet into the air from her position on the floor in front of the television. Her headset flew off one direction and the PS3 controller she had been holding flew off in the other as she let out a cry before tumbling down into a heap of legs and unkempt mane.
“For the love of Mother do not do that to me,” she hissed, standing up and flipping her ragged hair out of her face.
“Sorry, I…” Celestia grunted as she rolled to her feet, and dropped her Amber disguise, resuming her normal imposing goddess form. “I meant to teleport to your window from Ponyville and knock, but when I got up here I realized I didn’t have wings. In my panic I just kicked the window in and leapt.”
The two paused and stood there, each huffing and trying to calm their racing hearts. Finally it was Luna who broke the tense silence with a laugh.
“Has the one day away from being in a Castle made you stupid, sister?”
“Actually, I was going to ask the same thing.” Celestia, without bothering to ask, made herself right at home on the side of Luna’s bed.
“Uh oh, I know that tone.” Luna was joking, but at the same time still wary. She sidled up next to Celestia on the bed.
“There’s a lot that happened today, but before I tell you all about that, I need to ask you about your sudden inexplicable decision to put Ponyville through hell this week.”
“What?” Luna frowned. “What on earth are you talking abouuu...oh...hohoho, you mean the Spring Festival.” She adopted a sheepish look. “Surprise!”
“Do you know…” Celestia said, rubbing her temples, “That I am now involved in the tiny planning committee responsible for making the Festival a success? That on my sabbatical, my vacation, I’m still doing royal duties?”
“Why on earth would you… what?” Luna scoffed. “I changed the location to Ponyville to bring the party to you, not give you extra work.”
“Yes well in the process you’ve dumped all the work on my star student, so I’ve naturally gotten involved.”
“Actually,” said Luna with a laugh, “That works out perfectly. I was hoping maybe you’d get to enjoy the Spring Festival with your star student. But now you get to work on the project with her and have the perfect opportunity to ask her out-”
“You have overused that joke so much that no longer is it unfunny, it is also infuriating.”
“... and perhaps this experience planning the festival with your star student,” continued Luna, pretending she had not been interrupted, “will help you in the future planning your wedding with your star student.” She laughed and leaned away from Celestia, in an attempt to dodge the blow that Celestia would aim at her head.
But a friendly sibling cuff to her ears did not, in fact, ensue. In fact, when Luna looked over, Celestia seemed to be stuck, her eyes staring off into the distance, and her mouth partially open. As though she were in the middle of speaking a thought, but had been frozen in time. Luna’s brow furrowed.
“Sister?” she asked. “I… was just kidding.”
Celestia did not respond. In fact, she did not even move. She continued to stare off into space, apparently lost in her thoughts.
"Did you hear me, sister?" Luna asked again. "I said I was only joking about
=-=-=
The Wedding.
The wedding was absolutely beautiful, as all weddings should be. A large and elegant cathedral had been selected for this, the happiest of occasions. Row upon row of gorgeous well-kept mahogany pews were set facing the pulpit, which had been flowered and adorned with white lace. The cathedral’s many rows of towering stained glass windows threw an ocean of vibrant color over the congregation that had gathered to witness the joining of two ponies in love.
But there was no love here.
Weddings were supposed to be times of rejoicing; tears shed were to be shed in the name of joy. But for the first time ever, Celestia felt no happiness at a wedding. No tears of happiness fell from her eyes. And no words of congratulation would be uttered from her lips this day. Outwardly, she wore a smile of course. It was a rare sight to see the Princess of Equestria take time out of her schedule to attend a pony’s wedding, so those gathered here today greeted her with a mixture confusion, surprise, and adoration. So she maintained an external presence or regality and benevolence. But inwardly, she was grim. This wedding was something she knew had been coming for a long time. But no amount of emotional preparation could truly have made her ready for this day.
She politely asked an usher for directions to the rooms where the bride and groom were preparing, and was directed to a series side rooms along one of the adjoining halls.
Walking this hall, a simple affair adorned with a red carpet and few light fixtures, felt like the longest journey she had ever taken in her life. The rooms were down at the end, and the hall seemed to stretch further and further the more steps she took. She could not get to these rooms fast enough. Yet at the same time, she was glad for the seemingly physics-ignoring cathedral halls. The conversation she was about to have was one she did not ever want to engage in. This conversation was going to be the end of many things.
When at last she reached the first room, that of the groom, she reached up and lightly knocked on the wooden door.
“Enter.” The voice from within was deep and kind. Happy, too. Not surprising considering the time and place.
Celestia came into the room, lightly closing the door behind her. She cleared her throat politely. The stallion, the groom of course, was sitting across from the door at a small table and mirror, straightening his tuxedo. Through the mirror, he looked back at who had entered, and nearly fell out of his seat when he saw who it was.
“P-p-princess!” He nearly shouted. He stumbled out of his seat and turned around to bow to Celestia. “I had no idea you would grace my humble wedding with your presence!” He spoke in a manner that denoted a lifelong presence in Equestria’s most bourgeois of societal circles, which was not surprising given his title and family.
“Lord Blackriver,” spoke Celestia in a very official manner (for it was all she could truly muster), “please rise. Bow not to anypony today, for it is your wedding day. You should be rejoicing.”
“Yes, Princess.” Lord Blackriver rose to stand almost eye-to-eye with Celestia. He was tall, an imposing young Lord of the southern Equestria regions.
“I am here,” continued Celestia, “to give you my blessing upon this joyous occasion.” There was hardly any joy in Celestia’s voice, which was filled with nothing but royal officiality. “For, as you know, today you wed one of my most trusted advisors. Amber Skye has been invaluable to me these past few years, and I would hope that she will be to you as well.”
“I thank you deeply, my Princess.”
Celestia knew she could not be unkind to Lord Blackriver. For as much as she did not want Amber to marry this stallion, she could not fault him for it. The blame was not upon him for her heartbreak.
Suffice to say, she thought to herself, this situation was fucked.
“I am afraid,” she said, “that I cannot stay for the proceedings. Business calls, and I cannot ignore it, even if my dearest advisor did invite me.” This was a lie. There was no business, there was nothing for her to do this day. But she could not, would not, absolutely refused to stay for the entire wedding. She knew that nothing good could ever come of it. “But I had to come to give you and her a few words nonetheless. So hear me now: Amber is, without complaint, without a single word, and without any ounce of resistance whatsoever, leaving my employ for this marriage. There is no real reason for her to do so, but she is doing so regardless. Understand that she is giving up a position of power and wealth in Canterlot to care for your household and land and… future children, so dedicated is she to a marriage that neither of you chose. Take this, young Lord, as a sign. A sign of her purity and devotion to you and your family.” It was all Celestia could do to keep the bitterness out of her voice.
“Of course, Princess. I fully understand this. I regret that Canterlot will be losing a valuable advisor because of our family’s marriage proposals of the past.” Lord Blackriver shifted uneasily.
“Do not be.” Celestia assured him. “ Know that I give you my congratulations and best wishes. Now, if you’ll excuse me,” she said as she opened the door to leave, “I must give a few words to your bride.”
“Of course, Princess.”
Celestia shut the door behind her as she left, and walked across the hall to another set of doors, upon which she knocked with a heavy sigh.
“Come in, Celestia.” Amber’s voice called from within.
The sight that Celestia beheld within the room was one that twisted her heart. Amber, beautiful as ever, wore a most graceful wedding gown, white as new-fallen snow. It fell around her body lightly, as though it were made from the softest down. Amber stood, wearing what was probably the most expensive piece of clothing she had ever touched, and it was for a wedding Celestia wanted no part in.
“I knew it was you,” Amber said as she stood and turned to face her lover. “I knew you would come to see me before my wedding to tell me you would not be able to stay.”
“I…” Celestia was not sure exactly how to word her thoughts.
“You can’t stay, of course,” she continued. “You wouldn’t be able to. You can’t sit in those pews and watch me make vows with a stallion you have just met. You aren’t strong enough.”
“No,” said Celestia, finding her words. “I am not.” She stepped forward.
“I know.” Of course Amber knew, she had always known. “But that is all well.” She sighed. It was sad, but she did it with a smile. “This is farewell, Princess. Not in the traditional sense. We will have many opportunities to see each other and greet each other and exchange pleasantries. But from this day forward, nothing will ever be as it was. So, goodbye, Celestia.”
There was pain, Celestia thought. There was pain all over her. In her chest, in her lungs, and in that metaphysical part of her that nopony could touch. But she did not cry. There were no tears left. They two had cried all there was to cry. So she too smiled through her pain and replied, “Goodbye, Amber.”
It was then that Amber stepped forward and gave Celestia the last kiss she would ever receive from her for the rest of her life. It lasted but a moment, but the surprise and love behind it twisted the pain in her chest beyond belief. There was a brief burning sensation in her heart.
When the too-short kiss ended, Amber turned back to her mirror with these final words:
“Don’t forget the books.”
Celestia said something, but she would never remember exactly what it was. It wasn’t important anyway, there was little else to be said. With a heavy heart she turned to leave, trying her best to keep composure and mentally calm herself. It would be alright, she told herself. She would be
=-=-=
“...alright, sister?” Luna’s voice was laced with worry.
Celestia snapped from her reverie and looked over at her sister. “Hmmm?”
“I said,” repeated Luna, “are you alright? Your eyes glazed over there for a second.”
“I…” Celestia faltered. “I was lost in a memory, that’s all. Sorry, what were we talking about?”
“We were talking about the Spring Festival. Are you sure you’re alright?”
Celestia cleared her throat. “Yes, yes, I am fine. As I was saying earlier you…” she thought for a moment. “...you really shouldn’t have put all that pressure on Ponyville.”
Luna rolled her eyes. “Yes, I understand.” After a moment, she continued, “Well in any case, the decision has been made. Besides, I have never liked the Cloudsdale mayor. We’ll have to give the Festival to her next year, but at least this year I got to rile her up a bit.”
“You really shouldn’t push that,” Celestia warned, though she did so with a laugh. “She does control the weather, after all.”
Luna rolled onto her back. “You know, that’s exactly what Magus told me earlier today which, by the way, he has been a great help. I still think he’s an insufferable stuffy old buffoon, but he never fails to make sure the royal duties get done.”
“It’s why I hired him.”
“Well enough about that.” Luna waved a hoof at Celestia. “Tell me all about your lovely day with Twilight. And her friends.”
Celestia did.
=-=-=
Rarity, as was often the case, felt extremely suspicious.
After the dinner meeting, she had followed Twilight back to the Library so that she could extract details from her purple friend. Details about Amber, that is. But as the two chatted away into the late night at the front desk of the now-closed library, Rarity let her mind wander off from their conversation. There were pressing issues that needed to be sorted out in silence. Twilight’s words had shaken her that afternoon, after their first meeting with the amber mare.
Shaken in a bad way, Rarity decided. She was, after all, suspicious.
But why, though, she wondered to herself. Where was this uneasy feeling coming from?
It definitely involved Amber. The whole thing was far too suspicious. A morning of heart-to-heart with her dear friend Twilight about Twilight’s platonically-inclined brain clashing with her lonely mind, and then that very afternoon a single mare walks through the doors of the library perking Twilight’s ears, interest, and possibly sex drive? It was very convenient, Rarity thought. Far too convenient.
But the natural-born shipper that lived in the darkest depths of Rarity’s mind was shivering with giddy anticipation. She was going to get to play matchmaker! She loved doing that. So suspicion be damned, she decided against her better judgement. She was going to put the two together if it was the last thing she would ever do.
Rarity’s knee-jerk advice to Twilight would, under any other circumstances, be that Twilight slowly get to Amber over the course of many months. But the schedule was going to be accelerated since neither pony knew how long Amber would be around. Of course, this subject was not brought up at all during the conversation, Rarity was only thinking it to herself. Twilight seemed perfectly happy to babble on and on about Amber and their shared love of literature.
Then there was the issue of Amber’s name. This too did not come up in the conversation, but Rarity put a lot of thought to the subject. She knew she had heard the name before, but she couldn’t remember where. Rainbow Dash had almost pulled a hefty social faux pas earlier that evening by bringing up the pornography industry. As Rarity thought about it, she realized that Amber Skye was likely the name of a porn star; it had the right kind or ring to it. But Rarity was quite sure that wasn’t the origin of her recognizing the name. She rarely partook in pornography, and only if her body became especially needy beyond her normal remedies. So that was out.
But the trail stopped dead there. Rarity was completely unable to put name to origin. It was a bit of a dilemma, and it annoyed her to no end. She was certain that she would remember in due time, but until then the name would nag at her from the back of her mind.
She faded from her thoughts and brought her mind back to the conversation she was having with Twilight. If Twilight felt suspicious or apprehensive about anything, it certainly didn’t show.
And, Rarity supposed, that was probably good enough.
=-=-=
“Why on earth would you need to see that?” Luna asked.
She and her sister lay next to each other on Luna’s bed, a position they hadn’t moved from for over an hour. Their conversation had taken many twists and turns since its beginning, Celestia moving from talking about her day, to some of her thoughts, and finally to the topic the two of them found themselves currently discussing.
“There is something I need to know,” replied Celestia. “And to do that I need you to show me the Threads.”
“This wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with what I’ve been saying about Twi-”
“No.” Celestia didn’t even let Luna finish. “I need to check the Threads between Twilight and Fluttershy.”
Luna scoffed. “I see how it is. You’re going to play matchmaker for the Spring Festival, aren’t you?”
Celestia waved a hoof. “What do you think I’ve been doing all these years with you gone? Only the Princess of the Moon can tug the Threads, but Hearts and Hooves had to continue on even with you trapped away. I had to take your place as Cupid.”
“Cupid?” Luna raised an eyebrow. “I do not recall such a name. I do recall that at one point there was a festival dedicated to orgies and I had to often sift through the Threads to make sure lovers made their way to each other.” Luna laughed mirthlessly. “That was a chore, let me tell you. Who would have thought that partaking in a giant mass orgy would actually be detrimental to one’s unspokenly monogamous relationship with the opposite sex?”
“Yes, well, times change. As do legends, and the characters of such legends. A while ago, not long after you became forcibly preoccupied cataloging moon dust, there was a fire in the East Wing here, and a large portion of historical records were burned away. That, combined with the ever-moving sands of time caused quite a bit of historical knowledge to be twisted and warped. If you’re really interested, go look up the legends of the god ‘Cupid.’ In any case, the traditional ritual orgy was replaced with a less sexualized holiday, and later a festival was added. I had to change it.”
“Why did you change it?” Luna was aghast. “I know that the Spring Festival is one of your favorite times of the year, but if I recall correctly, you used to wait with such eagerness for those days of feasting and flesh rubbing.”
Celestia chose to ignore the latter half of Luna’s words. “As I said, only the Princess of the Moon can sift through the Threads of Fate, and see the lover’s destinies. I couldn’t view the Threads like you could, so I had to make a holiday with a lot less chance of cheating and sexual deviancy so I could still do your duties.”
“It’s just as well.” Luna shrugged. “Those holidays got pretty hectic. But anyways, you need to see them for what, again? Something to do with Twilight?”
“Just show me.”
“Very well.” Luna hopped off of the bed and walked over to the window. “Come,” she called to her sister. “We shall have to leave this plane first.”
The two of them sat before the window. Luna closed her eyes as her horn began to glow. Celestia followed suit. This was a spell the two had done many times throughout the years, and was one of their most useful. Celestia felt herself get cold as all warmth left her body through her horn. Then, when it seemed like all traces of heat were gone from her, she felt herself leave her body from her horn.
This felt a lot like dying, though Celestia didn’t know it. She wouldn’t come to know the feeling of death for many millennia, but when death would eventually embrace her, her last thought would be of how much dying felt like casting this spell.
To a casual bystander, it would have looked like the classic cartoon death. The two sisters seemed to lose all energy, their bodies falling to the side. And from their cold unmoving bodies, two small horse-shaped clouds rose. Like ghosts.
Astral projection was an ability they had both learned from their mother, countless ages past. It was how they traversed great distances, communicated with each other from different countries, and once or twice it had been used to spy on other world leaders.
Celestia, now a formless haze of pure spiritual energy, turned to look at her body. Making sure her physical form had fallen to the floor safely, she turned back to her sister, who was also hovering a few feet from the ground.
“Ready?” Lunas voice seemed to echo from everywhere at once.
“Show me.”
Luna’s ghostly form flew out the window. To be precise, it flew through the window. Once outside, she did a small loop and there was a bright explosion of light. Celestia followed her outside and watched as this light, visible only to them, spread across the landscape below them. And where it touched, thin red bands of energy began to appear, stretching this way and that, across the city below.
“Looks like you’ve done well for yourself,” spoke Luna.
“Hmmmm? Oh.” Celestia saw what she was talking about.
Millions of these thin red threads stretched from all directions at once, some she could see coming from nearby windows and others seemed to go on forever into the horizon, converging just outside Luna’s bedroom window. Through the window, she could see them all sticking directly into her own chest.
“Your subjects love you, that’s for sure.” There was a hint of bitterness in Luna’s voice.
Celestia looked over at Luna’s body through the window. There were many threads from throughout the kingdom, and beyond the horizon, converging in her chest as well, but it wasn’t even half the amount that Celestia had.
“Well…” Celestia wasn’t exactly sure what to say. “The Threads aren’t exactly the best way to gauge-”
“The Red Thread of Fate,” recited Luna, “is a manifestation of the metaphysical connection a pony has to those they love. Whether this be the platonic love of a strong friendship, the reverent love one has of their gods, goddesses, and rulers, the strong romantic love one has with their soul mate, or the lust a pony has for those they desire. Each of these threads represents one of those kinds of love. They are the best gauge for which of us is more loved and respected, and which is more feared.”
“I never knew…” Celestia breathed. “I never knew that it was… like this.”
“You never asked.”
“I’m…” Celestia wasn’t sure how to proceed. “Well, I…”
“But forget that bullshit,” Luna spoke up, her mood becoming suddenly chipper. “That’s boring. Let’s talk about this!”
Luna’s spectral form reached a hoof out and plucked a particularly thick string that was coming out of Celestia’s corporeal body. It made a sharp twang! sound. Celestia wasn’t sure one was supposed to do that, but she didn’t say anything.
“What is it?” Celestia asked.
“See this?” Luna pulled it out of the large mass of threads so that it could be seen better. “The way it glows, how it pulsates? And every few seconds, a light shoots along it towards your body?” She smiled wickedly. “This one, whoever he is, is madly in love with you.”
“How can you tell it’s a ‘he?’”
“I can feel it,” Luna answered. She plucked it again. “Feels like a dude.”
“How sad,” Celestia thought aloud. “That there is anypony out there in love with me when I have no intention of returning any of it.”
“Oh don’t say that, dear sister,’ Luna’s smile grew even more wicked, if such were possible. “Maybe he’s nice. Or maybe he has a nice big black coc-”
“I really don’t think we should be on this subje-”
“Or maybe,” Luna interrupted, pretending she herself hadn’t been cut off. “he’s an important prince and it would be a good political marriage. Really, you’ll never know unless you meet him. And if I just give this string a little tug…” she made another twang! with the Thread. “I can get him to come running for you like nothing you’ve ever seen.”
“I’m quite certain you’ll do no such thing.”
“Yeah, you’re right.” Luna let the thread go, letting it settle back into place. She shrugged. “I don’t think the Powers That Be would appreciate me abusing the Threads. Anyways, who was it we were looking for again?”
“Fluttershy.” Celestia was glad to get away from the previous topic.
“Right, right, that’s that Kindness one, right? She has butterflies on her flank or whatever, something pansy like that.” Luna muttered to herself as she began picking through threads in the air. “Her Thread’s got a real distinct smell. Dandelions and birdseed, oddly enough. Probably fits her perfectly though. Ah!” she exclaimed. “Here it is. Come on, follow me.”
Luna put a spectral hoof on the thread that evidently lead to Fluttershy, turned, and then her astral projection shot off into the distance. Celestia barely had time to realize what was going on before she too shot after Luna, trying not to get left behind.
In a matter of seconds, the two ghostly forms found themselves hovering outside the window of Fluttershy’s cottage. They passed through the pane and sat in the air above Fluttershy’s sleeping form.
“We’re looking for Twilight, right?” Luna spoke. The two of them could not be heard from the form they were in, so Luna did not bother to whisper.
“Right.”
Luna began picking through the threads running into Fluttershy’s chest. “It’s lilacs, if I remember correctly,” Luna said under her breath. Or whatever passed for breath in their plane. “Lilacs and something else…” Luna nosed through the threads. “Ah, parchment!” she exclaimed. “A smell of lilacs and parchment paper, how like her.”
Luna pulled a thread out carefully and held it out to Celestia.
“Well?” Celestia asked.
“Well what? You wanted to see it, now here it is.” Luna twang!ed this one louder than the others.
“Yes. But I’ve never seen these before. I have no idea how to read them.”
“Oh. Right.” Luna brought the thread close to her face to inspect it. “Well, these little pulses of light…” She traced a small dot of light that was moving along the thread with a hoof. “They’re going from Fluttershy’s chest, along the thread to the other side. But nothing’s coming back. Not to mention…” She tugged the string a bit, testing its strength. “It’s pretty strong. Thick too.” She sniffed it. “It has both their smells.”
“And that means…?” Celestia crossed her forelegs, waiting for the answer.
“There is love here.” Luna let the thread go and it snapped back into place. “Most of it coming from Fluttershy. She has a lot of love for your student. Twilight, however…” Luna rubbed her chin. “There is potential there, but no love. Not yet. But all it will take is a small push.”
“Then I have my work cut out for me.” Celestia floated back through the window.
“So what are you going to do, then?” Luna joined her and the two made their way back to their bodies in her room.
Celestia turned to her sister and smiled, at least as far as a smoky projection can smile.
“That’s easy,” she said. “I’m going to have fun.”
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Lil bit of greek mythology in here with the soul mate threads, I approve! ^^
I have to admit, I lost it at this line.
4517621 You sure it's Greek? I thought it was Chinese/Japanese.
4517882
4517621
The "red string of fate," also sometimes called the "thread of destiny" is from Chinese legend, though you often find references to it in Japanese legends as well. The original myth states that gods tie a red string around the ankles of those that are meant to meet. In Chinese mythology, the god who is in charge of this is Yue Lao, who is also is the deity who presides over marriage.
In Japanese mythology, I don't believe there is a presiding deity, and the strings are said to be tied around your pinky finger. The whole "red thread" legends make their way into Shoujo manga quite frequently.
The concept is similar to our western ideas of a "soulmate," which is Greek in origin.
Cupid is a Roman god, though he appeared in Greek mythology as Eros.
This is going to become chaotic quickly.
Celestia is trying to ship Fluttershy with Twilight.
Rarity is trying to ship Twilight with Celestia.
All we need now is Fluttershy trying to ship Rarity with Celestia...
As for myself , I hope that the story is going to be a Twilestia and not a TwiShy... but that means hurting Shy so...
Or alternatively , since Luna is back , let's bring back the orgy and the royal harem. Problem solved.
4518086
agreed
4518074 I might've gotten my wires crossed(no pun intended) I was thinking about the whole story where man kind used to be paired up in one body but zeus split them down the middle to keep them from defying the gods. Thanks for the point to the right direction though ^^;
I'm still having trouble telling whether this is a Twilight/Celestia story, or a Twilight/Fluttershy story. I really hope it's the former, rather than the latter. I'm having enough problems reading the flashbacks with Celestia madly in love with Amber. I only ever read Twilestia stories, and don't like seeing them shipped with anyone else. But I'm weird like that.
Other than that, good story so far, I'm just understandably.... wary.
I'll be happy with any pairing, but I wanna see Celestia with somepony. She needs to be happy! Luna could use some lovin' too.
Nothing worse than two very imperfect near-divine beings playing with the hearts of mortals because they think they know better than the owners of those hearts. Celestia means well but the road to Tartarus and all that!
Agh, noooo. I remembered this story fondly, but I tried to read it again and now it strikes me as unpleasantly crude.
Humm, so if I get this right, Rarity is shipping Amber(Celestia) with Twilight, while Celestia is (presumably?) planning to ship Twilight with Fluttershy...
And then there's Twilight, who thinks Amber is hot, which could be taken as an implication that she's at least thinking about shipping herself with Amber...
Yeah, this is going to be fun.
I'm hoping for a Twilestia, myself.
Also, ouch! Poor Luna, it's one thing to think you are less loved than your sister princess, and another altogether to have blatant irrefutable proof of it every time you view the Threads. No wonder the whole Nightmare debacle happened.
I would have thought the Threads would have been more Cadance's thing, though, with the whole Princess of Love shtick she's got going.
Luna just continues to deliver with the great lines XD Great Chapter!
4520155 I think many people try to pretend that Cadance doesn't exist. For good reason if you ask me.
I wonder who the stallion who really loves Celestia is? Somepony we know? Big Mac?
I have a feeling that using Amber as both name and appearance is going to bite Celestia hard at exactly the wrong moment.
Interesting role for Luna, though it feels odd that this threads duty didn't end up being passed to Cadance.
I usually hate Red Thread mythos, but the mere thought of it being Luna of all ponies controlling them is great. It fits in nicely with Nightmare Night. I really like how you portray the sisters here.
Almost died when I seen this was updated. Good to see it's not dead.
Can't wait for all the drama to hit.
4522848 I have a feeling that Rarity is going to call her out on her disguise, being into romance novels and all, she might have some of the books that Amber wrote for Tia.
Dude, honestly I am enjoying this souley out of your characterization of Luna. Don't get me wrong, the story's great, and I'm enjoying it all, but I just your interpretation of Luna's character. To many fics have I read where she was uncertain, regretful or mopey of her pats transresssions of Nightmare Moon. Or still pained whenever Nightmare Moon, her banishemnt, or even the fact her sister is still more loved than she is.
But in this, she doesn't even bat an eye, and I love that! She looks to not give two shits about it, and that makes Luna awesome. She's confident, so shameless, so....less about feeling sad for herself and mor about haveing fun. That's the kinda Luna i'd lke to see more of.
Oh yes, I'm ever looking forward to more of this. And now I'm sad cause I'm waiting for more again.
I too enjoy your Luna, very fun and upbeat! Excited to see where this goes!
Please keep writing, I'll keep reading!
Did he really just repeat himself here (which seems odd to me), or is there something missing?
4523578 Well, Rarity is kind of giving off that vibe, but didn't Amber say that she was going to write her books under a pseudonym? Of course, it's possible she got outed in between then and now...
I've greatly enjoyed this story, and still do, and expect to continue enjoying it regardless of my impending complaint. Nevertheless, there's something in this chapter which bothered me a bit at the time which, at the time, I was willing to overlook, but it's just grown in proportion ever since into a massive gaping flaw in my eyes.
Luna and Celestia check up on Fluttershy's suspected attraction to Twilight to verify whether it exists, which it does, and whether it is reciprocated, which it is not. Okay so far, and very entertainingly presented, too. But if I'm not mistaken—and please do correct me if I am—there is no explanation given for the fact that they do not check Twilight for the existence of outgoing attractions, or other incoming ones, for that matter. To overlook such a measure while (I presume, and again correct me if I'm wrong) about to undertake a mission of matchmaking between the two mares seems very foolish, if there is no good reason not to do it. I realize that, if they did so, it would forestall certain individuals working at cross-purposes in potentially highly entertaining ways, but this is just too obvious a step for the sisters to take for me to ignore it without them having a reason not to do it. If they did check on Twilight, could the fact that she is attracted to the disguise prevent Luna from recognizing just who she is fancying? That would, at least, let the Twilight/Amberlestia relationship develop without further Lunar interference, even if it discouraged Celestia from meddling in the potential FlutterTwi—although, come to think of it, it might not dissuade her entirely.
Very iinnnteresting :)
4529485 yes, if I remember correctly, she did, but that doesn't explain how she recognises Amber's name, unless like most others seem to have, she heard it from a porno.
I gotta say, this is a pretty good story, but I feel like you're going to have the same problem most other "love triangle" stories I've seen. The whole "let's string out the drama of the triangle for as long as we can then set up one couple and pair off the leftover one to 'clean up' the loose ends." I'm not saying that it can't be done well, I'm just saying that it's uncommon for it to be done well.
Regardless, it'll be impressive if you do pull it off. Good luck.
EDIT: And since everyone else is voicing their opinions, I'll throw my support to the underdog couple of TwiShy.
4601844 Not when she with the same girl over and over and over again.
TwiShyLestia? Different, but I'd ship it regardless. Yes please, dont leave Celestia hanging @.@
3919202 Because it sets me up to make a couple funnier jokes.
I love this story so much! didn't expect it to have twishy, but I'm not complaining! (You better update soon!)
4529671
Yeah, not checking up on Twilight is pretty suspect. It would be hilarious if Luna were to have a little peek at that later... who knows what she might discover.
A sensible mare like Luna shouldn't allow Celestia to create any conflict. It's one thing if the Twilight---Fluttershy is reasonably strong to begin with (read: more than the others), but for Celestia to encourage a particular outcome just to get out of a corner is highly unethical and wrong.
Also, if Twilight is really into Celestia that's serious in more than one way. Aside from other realities, it would be Celestia destroying any possible relationship with herself. I'm not sure Luna or Celestia should be tampering with such things, at least not lightly and not for their own benefit. I guess that means, aside from being beautiful, Luna can have any stallion she wants...
Should I be worried? I feel like I should be worried. Looking forward to more.
Keep up the good work. Deus tecum.
oh, this has potential: Rarity and Luna are trying to get Twilight and Celestia together (but Rarity doesn't know it's really Celestia), but Celestia is trying to get Twilight with Fluttershy...
[CANCELLED]
It's a shame this fic appears to be dead, as I liked where it was going. Oh well, I'll track it anyway. Maybe someday you'll feel that spark of inspiration again and finish this story.
Latent.
An interesting story. Celestia's memories of Amber and your portrayal of Luna, I think, are my favorite parts. (I, too, support the underdog ship TwiShy)
Twas sweet and fun.
Thanks for writing 🙂