Chapter Eight
For a moment, while the Council Room was utterly silent, Twilight’s mind raced. Her? A Princess? Was that even possible? Why her? What was happening? Was Luna joking.
No. Luna wasn’t joking. She was staring at Twilight silently, her calm blue eyes giving nothing away as she stood there. Her body was leaned in slightly, as though she were as nervous as Twilight was about what the unicorn would say. Her wings had subtly shifted, as though they had moved to settle themselves, but had stopped when the mare consciously forced them to still. It made only the faintest movement, but it did cause one or two feathers to stick out of place, and she wouldn’t be able to smooth them back into place without drawing attention to her discomfort.
Twilight herself was uncomfortable. She had just been asked, without warning or preparation, to marry a Princess. She liked Luna fine. The alicorn was witty, charming, and delightful company. She was also, Twilight was fully aware, very attractive physically. Her long, thin frame, silky fur and exotic mane were things that engendered lust in even the most barren individuals.
Sexuality aside though, and Twilight wasn’t immune to her physical charms by any means, there was the overwhelming factor of her position. She was one of the Princesses. She ruled her country, just as Celestia ruled Helios, and the prospect of marrying one with so much political clout both within her own realm and in the countries of others would be the stuff of many a noble’s wet dream.
As if those were not reasons enough to strike Twilight speechless, there was also the sheer magical power that Princess Celestia and Luna could call upon. They were, in every effectual sense, goddesses, even if they both despised being referred to as such. They held sway over the heavens, and the sun, moon, and stars danced to their whims. They were both kind, and terrifyingly intelligent, and had the accumulated experience of centuries to help guide their decisions. They were never wrong, never.
Except, apparently, that one of them had just asked her; young, weak, secluded her, to become her bride.
In the thought-filled second after Luna spoke, the room was silent. Many of the ponies were smiling slightly, sure that this was some joke, or that they had heard wrong. More of them looked about themselves confused, wondering if the impossible words they thought the Princess had uttered could have true. A few of their faces turned to Twilight, and here and there, a friendly face smiled at her, those few friends she had in attendance showing her their support. General Stormfront nodded his grey head solemnly when she looked at him, and the Colonel was grinning from ear to ear. Twilight had never seen the sheep sitting in on the Council meetings before, but there he was. Spike was smirking to herself, and obviously enjoying some joke, though Twilight tried not to envision what her mirth was based upon.
For every smiling face she saw as her eyes swiftly flicked about the room, there were at least five glaring at her. They were the upper crust of the nobility, those whose rank was her equal, or more. They knew that they hadn’t misheard or misunderstood the Princess, and they were all furious that they had been passed over. They were the nobility, with pedigrees that would take an hour to recite, most of them, every one wealthy and powerful both in magic and in their devious, political minds. And they had just been told that a filly barely old enough to foal was better than they, than their children, to rule a country. A filly who had been nothing but a disappointment magically, as they all knew from their children’s accounts from their school days. That was who the Princess of Selene thought more worthy.
Then, as the moment passed, Twilight felt her heart finally thud out another beat. She hadn’t been struck down by the announcement, as she had feared and half hoped she would have been. She took another breath, and as she inhaled, she saw many of the puzzled and amused faces slowly fade away, replaced by anger and disbelief as they began to realize that Luna hadn’t been jesting. Then, as more and more faces contorted in fury and shock, the outcry began.
Twilight didn’t hear what they shouted. A soft humming had been resonating in her ears since Luna had finished speaking. There was a song hidden within the complex weave of the music, a lullaby that sounded familiar. Twilight was sure she had heard it before, though she was at a loss to recall from where, or even what the words were to the sweet song. Still, the humming was a comfort to her, and it sheltered the poor unicorn from the uproar as nobles stamped their hooves and shouted over one another, voicing their complaints.
She was grateful for the song, and even though it was rude of her to have so rudely invaded Twilight’s mind, the purple mare sent a silent thanks to Spike, who winked. Then, the green scaled head turned back to the crowd, and a brilliant jet of emerald fire erupted from the dragoness’ maw. Her wings flared out behind her as she spat flames into the air, narrowly missing the crimson trappings of the room.
Everypony backed away quickly as the flames appeared, even the General taking a startled step back. The humming abruptly ceased, and Twilight was aware that everypony was silent, every eye was locked on Spike. The dragon’s head came back slowly, arching on her long neck. Then, with deliberate slowness, she spoke.
“You will be sssilent.” Her voice was low, threatening, with a reptilian hiss on the s. “If you must speak, do so civilly, without this racket.”
As a group, the crowd nodded. They didn’t take their eyes off of the dragon, or move at all, until she had settled once more on her cushion, wings tucking back to her sides. As the leathery wings folded back against her flanks, the dragon glared at the assembled ponies once more, before resting her head on her crossed front legs. The taloned toes attached to her legs, feet she called them, clicked against the marble with a sound that made even Twilight shudder, and briefly try to imagine what it would be like to have those jet black claws sink into her body.
I don’t eat ponies. Just their crops.
One reptilian eyes rolled back, fixing itself on Twilight as it shone with amusement. Twilight felt her own lips quirk at the thought. It would certainly fit the mischievous dragon’s personality, swooping down out of the sky with a roar, frightening ponies away, only to daintily munch on a cabbage or five.
After another long moment, one pony stepped forward through the crowd. The mare was one of the first to catch on to the fact that this wasn’t a joke, nor a prank. Hers had been one of the first faces to flush with rage after Luna uttered Twilight’s name. Apparently they had chosen her to speak for them, for that was obviously her intent.
Taking a long stride forward, seperating herself from the crowd, the Grey Lady as everypony knew her, stood insolently. Her eyes, bright silver like the light glinting off of a knife edge, locked on Twilight for a moment, before shifting to the Princesses. Even though she had only caught her gaze for an instant, Twilight shuddered.
High Lady Snowdrop, the Grey Lady, was one of the most powerful and influential ponies on the Council. She held the far Northern border, a region so barren and frigid than even the gryphons left it in peace. Rich in minerals and home to arguably some of the most beautiful works of nature in the world, the icy mountains she called home were even less hospitable than the molten heartlands of Ryais. Nothing grew in those passes during the winter, and even in the summer, only sparse grass and one kind of flower, her namesake, bloomed.
She was a force to be reckoned with, borne and bred of ponies who were survivors. She had more innate magical power and aptitude than any unicorn in Helios, and her wealth made her nigh untouchable in politics. Alloyed with her sharp, starkly beautiful features, dangerous and sly mind, and her utter ruthlessness, her name was one to conjure with. Though she rarely spoke on any issue, her opposition or support was more than enough to sway the Council’s vote, nopony willing to risk losing the future support of the mare, and her enormous wealth.
She had no scruples, as far as Twilight knew, and seemed to be without fault. She rarely voiced an opinion, and was never contradicted. To her credit, while she had no compassion for others without her drive to survive in spite of hardships, it was also true that she was not cruel either. That was likely all that one could say in her favor, though.
All in all, the Grey Lady was likely the last pony you would want to be glaring at you, offended and angry. Her eyes slid away from Twilight as the mental dossier flashed through the mare’s mind, and she cocked her head as she stared at Luna.
“If I may speak, Princess Luna.” She paused, bowing her head when the black mare nodded her head. “I think I speak for all, including Twilight Sparkle, when I ask what you mean by this. Please, forgive my bluntness Princess, but there are many here who would question the wisdom and validity of your choice. Many of those same ponies would resent your choice as well.”
She spoke softly, with only the hard light in her eyes to reveal that she was one of those ponies who felt cheated by the Princess’s decision. It was a well known fact that she prefered mares, for all that she was married to a stallion. She doubtlessly would have found an alliance with Selene, and personally becoming a ruler herself, to be desirable in many ways.
Luna seemed to notice the angry shine of her eyes though, because her own voice hardened as she spoke. “I do not need to justify my decision. She is suitable, and she is the pony whom I have chosen.”
“Actually, you do need to justify your choice. Meaning no disrespect Princess, but we would all like to know why you think that this mare,” She gritted out, eyes flicking back to Twilight. It was clear that Snowdrop was forcing herself to remain polite and proper, to control her anger. “Why she is more suitable a match than another.”
Luna opened her mouth to protest, but caught a look from Celestia. With a snort, her mouth closed and she took several deep breaths.
“She is your equal in rank, Lady.” Luna spoke, her clear voice carrying to everypony in the room. “My reasons for my choice are not your concern, so you will satisfy your curiosity by knowing that she is suitable.”
“I really don’t think that-”
“My choice is my own, and was made for reasons I will not disclose. If you wish to challenge my choice, then so be it, but know that you will only be able to challenge it on the grounds of illegitimacy. I rather think that is not a claim you would be willing to press, hm?” Luna hummed her question, eyes hard. She knew that the only way Snowdrop could challenge Twilight’s suitability was to challenge the legitimacy of her birth, and in doing so cast blame on her parents, the Princess, or both.
The Grey Lady backed down, though her own hard edged gaze was locked on Twilight. She obviously blamed her for this entire event, convinced that the unicorn had somehow manipulated them all. Or maybe she was simply furious to have been cheated out of such a juicy political opportunity.
Still, she backed down, stepping slowly back into the crowd. When she was once again entangled in the mass of nobles, Luna smiled slightly and nodded.
Twilight suddenly resumed an awareness of her own body, something that had fled once Luna had spoken to her. In a rush, she realized that she was still standing perfectly still, with her sides barely moving enough to draw in her shallow breaths. The muscles along her back were quivering, and her shoulders burned where the muscles were locked hard and tight like bands of steel.
Twilight took a moment to relax, letting her body loosen its death grip. Slowly, with her eyes closed, she felt the release of her strained body, and her rigid stance slackened. Shuddering slightly, Twilight took a long, deep breath, and felt the sudden relaxation spread throughout her body. Once again, the sense of serenity entered her, though this time she wasn’t seperated from herself, she was aware of each deep breath, how the stifling heat of the small room pressed against her.
“Please, everypony.” Twilight, and everypony in the room, turned their head at the soft tone. Princess Celestia panned her eyes over the crowd slowly, seeming to stare at every pony in turn before she spoke again. “This is a shock to everypony here, not the least to Twilight herself. If you would, I would like to adjourn for the evening. I think that until Twilight has decided, this matter should be dropped, with the promise that should Twilight decline the offer, then the Council will meet to determine who is a suitable candidate, and chart a course of action. If, that is, that such a plan is acceptable to Princess Luna?”
Twilight, Celestia, and everypony, looked to the black alicorn who glared at Celestia for a silent heartbeat, before clearing her expression of its stormy clouds, smiling and nodding her head slightly. “That sounds acceptable.”
Turning back to the group, Celestia nodded. “Then please, go. Once Twilight has made a decision, a message will be sent. Thank you everypony. If you would excuse us.”
With a subterranean grumbling as they pushed against each other and shuffled about, the nobles slowly exited the room. Before they turned to exit though, many of the ponies gave Twilight one final, venomous glare, one that promised great discomfort for the little mare for daring to consider Luna’s proposal.
And she was considering it, to her own shock. Once her initial panic subsided, replaced by dispassionate thought, there really was nothing that truly made her unacceptable as a candidate. While it was also true that she had no outstanding virtues to recommend her more than the rest, she had no glaring vices either. If, as Luna had said, her status was the only consideration that was publicly known, then there was nothing that discredited her.
Even if she was the maid to the Princess, that did not detract from the basic fact of her social standing. She was, courtesy of the posthumous honors bequeathed upon her parents, essentially a viscountess, though without the land to give her title political weight. In a city where every other pony was Lord or Lady Whatnot, Twilight’s titular rank was less than impressive, especially once compared to those pony’s very real wealth and influence.
In a technical sense at least, Twilight could find nothing that invalidated herself as a candidate. Which left only the long list of other faults that obstructed the matter. Her weak magic being paramount among them, followed closely by her naivete concerning politics. After all, weren’t Princesses meant to be wise, powerful, and kind? She wasn’t any of those things, except kind. Even then, she was not above the occasional irrational fit of jealousy or loathing, look at the vindictive manner she had attack Blueblood only a week ago, jumping on the first opportunity to cause the arrogant prat suffering for once in his life. That wasn’t the actions of a just, kind ruler, it was what an upset filly would do.
The door swung shut behind the Colonel. The little sheep winked at Twilight as he tapped the locking bar with a hoof, slipping the door closed as the heavy crossbar came down with a thunk. Twilight chuckled as the small black hoof waved once, before slithering back through the small gap between the door and the wall, letting the door lock behind him. Now, there was nopony who could disturb them.
As the door closed behind the little sheep, Princess Luna’s face dropped out of its cool, confident mask, and she exhaled gustily. She shook her head, looking at the heavy oak wood of the door and frowned.
“Tell me, Celestia, are they always this obstreperous? Or is it merely in honor of my presence?” She turned, and the corner of her mouth quirked up in a wry smile.
“Oh,” Princess Celestia chuckled. “I’m afraid that was only slightly more animated than the usual. Normally they are close to pulling each other’s feathers out, if they don’t get their way. Are the nobles in Selene so different? When last I visited, they seemed very similair. Or did you have them all exiled, so you could have some peace and quiet.”
The white alicorn’s posture also began to relax, and her voice was gently teasing as she tossed a small smile at her friend. At her words, the small smirk that was hovering about Luna’s lips grew, stretching into a full smile as she laughed. “Alas, no. They have become more tempered though, and less prone to,” She broke off, making an annoyed humming noise to indicate just what she felt about the constant rabble and infighting amongst the nobility.
“Politics?” Spike suggested innocently. Her words brought everypony in the room a renewed fit of the giggles though, and it took them a few moments to remember the fourth member of their little party. When they saw Twilight though, they sobered at once.
“Twilight?” Princess Celestia asked, taking a small step towards her maid. “Are you well?”
“Am I well?” Twilight whispered. The muscles lining her back were tight, hunching her shoulders behind her neck as she glared about. Her voice was calm, but in the same controlled, ferocious manner that spoke as plainly of strong emotion as the screaming she refused to indulge in. “Of course I am not well, Princess. I have just become the default target for every noble in Helios, up and and including the senior members of the Council, and they all know as well as you do that I am about as magically competent as a slug. And all of this, because somepony I only met a few weeks ago asked me to make probably the biggest decision of this century and MARRY HER!”
Twilight knew she was being rude, almost unpardonably, but she had had enough and more than enough. There was just no way that they could expect anypony, any rational pony, to simply accept such a proposal. Even without the rest of the Council to worry about, Twilight was barely old enough to marry at all.
Twilight saw the Princess’ eyes widen in shock at her outburst, and her mouth twisted into a ferocious snarl. She didn’t care. How dare they push her into this corner. She couldn’t accept the proposal. She was just a filly, and the political machinations in Helios and Selene would eat her alive. She wasn’t even skilled in magic, so that should somepony challenge her, she would have no choice but to back down. On the other hoof, she couldn’t refuse the damnable Princess either. Luna was charming, kind, and witty, and Twilight genuinely enjoyed her company. She couldn’t bring herself to take away the obvious happiness the black mare was showing.
Twilight’s eyes began to burn, and she closed them tightly before her frustrated tears could fall. Her hoof cracked down on the marble floor, and Twilight screamed. She was acting like a filly, and she knew it. She just didn’t care right now.
Her outburst caused any remnants of amusement to leave the room, and all three of the ancient ponies looked at her as though expecting her to burst into some fiery conflagration. Spike was the only one of the three who seemed to have expected her fraying patience to snap though, Twilight could see a self satisfied tilt to the scaled pony’s lips. The other two looked as though she had suddenly sprouted a pair of wings though, and Luna’s mouth was hanging open ever so slightly.
Twilight stamped a hoof again, hard enough to send a ripple of pain up her foreleg. Twilight stared hard at all of them, letting her frustration show through. Her eyes were watering, and the assembly swam in and out of focus as Twilight blinked her eyes repeatedly, trying to hold back the agonized tide.
“How can I be well? How can you even think that?” She whispered, her voice harsh and rough. “You just... just asked me to make a decision that could affect everypony’s future. To choose how the rest of my life is going to be spent. And you did it so that every noble in Helios will want nothing more than to crush me and take my place. Would you be all right?”
She glared at them, and this time she didn’t break and look away, blinking her eyes clear. She let the furious tears flow one by one down her cheeks. She raised her hoof again, as though to slam it a third time into the marble floor. She lost the will to complete the action halfway through though, and slowly, jerkily, returned it to the floor.
Her anger fell away as her hoof touched the stone, and the pain, the hurt and betrayal it had been keeping at bay suddenly swelled up to consume her. How could the Princess have let this happen? How could she have planned this? She had to have done, since Luna had obviously been looking to the older mare for approval before she made her speech. Celestia had set this entire meeting up, Twilight was certain, and that certainty made her feel as though somepony had kicked her in the tummy.
“Twilight...” Luna spoke softly, taking half a step forward. Twilight wasn’t looking at the black alicorn though, and didn’t see the pained expression in her teal eyes. Her gaze was locked on a pair of lavender irises, eyes that looked almost as pained as Twilight felt.
“How could you?” Twilight whispered. The pained look in Celestia’s eyes vanished as the white lids closed, and the alicorn looked away.
Twilight whirled, and shoved her way through the door, unlatching it as she neared it. She burst into the hall at a gallop, eyes streaming as she ran away from the three of them. From the three who had done this to her, who had forced her into this posistion. She almost didn’t hear the hoarse whisper from within the Council chambers over her own pounding hooves.
“I’m sorry.”
Twilight was nestled deep within the bowels of the library. Surrounded by the heaping, unorganized mounds of literature, she finally felt safe once more. She flicked the page of her book over with a gentle nudge from her nose; even the thought of using her magic right now was too much for her. The page made a pleasant crinkling sound as she turned it, and Twilight took a moment to inhale the crisp, slightly musty scent of the old parchment.
She even loved how this place smelled. The thought, conjuring as it did the happy memories of many a free afternoon spent cooped up in this room, brought tears to her eyes. She would miss it. Miss the old smell of the room, miss the little fort she had slowly built up about her favorite plump white cushion, the one with the golden tassels that she had fallen in love with the moment she saw it for the first time, resting on the floor looking almost exactly like the Princess standing beside it.
Twilight had been a filly, just starting school then, and the Princess had needed some old scroll from the library. Rather than just conjure the material with magic, the white alicorn had stood, stretching, and told her maid that they were off to the Library. They had spent almost an hour in the messy room, searching high and low for the record of a land sale between the ancestors of a pair of nobles who were arguing over the possession of a small fig orchard. Twilight was sure that the Princess had found the scroll after only a few moments of searching, guided by either her magic or her nearly infallible memory, but the filly had loved the exploration.
At the end of the hour, the exhausted unicorn had flopped down onto a small red cushion, only to see the Princess drop onto another cushion, one that matched her colors perfectly. They had talked then, whiling away another hour on their cushions, laughing and chatting. The Princess told her the history of the great library, and how nopony ever visited it anymore, as almost nopony enjoyed reading the dry accounts and scientific studies stored there.
When she spoke about how the library had been abandoned by everypony save the very few who actually enjoyed researching, the white alicorn had seemed immeasurably sad. It had seemed to Twilight then, and now as she recalled the scene, that perhaps the Princess had felt a certain kinship to the ancient repository of knowledge. Maybe that was why she had seemed so pleased when Twilight stood, and proclaimed that she would make sure she visited the library as often as she could.
The Princess had laughed at Twilight’s antics, made all the more amusing by her utter seriousness, but she had been touched by her statement all the same. Twilight could almost see the way her eyes had shone happily at her maid’s declaration. Since then, whenever Twilight visited the library, she would steal away along the shelves, until she reached this cushion, the white and gold sanctum that was hers, and hers alone.
Twilight had made up her mind. She couldn’t turn Luna down. Too much had been risked in her proposal, both for Selene, and the Princess herself. If Twilight declined the offer, it would be seen as a slight, by the nobility of the dark country, if not by the Princess herself.
Once the shock had faded away, Twilight had been able to think about the proposal as dispassionately as she could. It had taken almost an hour for her eyes to clear enough to read the book she had cradled to her chest the moment she had arrived. Plants, Animals, and the Magical Properties They Contain.
Twilight had thrust the book away from her in disgust, brushing her chest with one hoof. The book was a vile, if highly detailed, treatise on the harvesting, use, and magical properties of many different plants and animals. The thought of pulling the teeth from the mouth of a baby manticore was enough to make Twilight want to burn the wretched tome, bibliophile or not.
Her reaction had gotten a half choked laugh out of her though, and she magicked the book back to where it belonged, far out of reach and hopefully out of mind. Instead, she had pulled another book down at random, and begun reading. She had paused only once, lighting the many candles scattered about the library when night fell. She had carried several of the fat, white little things back with her, arranging them all around her nest, so that she sat in the middle of the warm, flickering glow they cast.
“I thought you’d be here.”
Twilight looked up, snapping the book shut as her heart thudded in alarm. Cadance was standing outside the ring of candles, lit from below by the nearest one. Her eyes were soft, and a little sad, but they turned up as the mare smiled at her young friend. “Mind if I sit with you?”
Twilight shook her head slowly, and pulled the book away from her chest where she had clutched it as an impromptu shield. Not that a record of Cloud Crasher’s historic speeches was likely to protect her from the entirely verbal attacks she had expected, but the nearness of the hard cover had been a comfort.
Cadance stepped daintily over the candles, hopping her back legs lightly over them. They landed with a muted click on the stone floor, and the unicorn smiled down at Twilight. “It’s okay, little one.”
Cadance smiled and slid onto the cushion beside Twilight. She wriggled slightly, jostling Twilight, then repeating the action, making the lavender mare giggle. It was an old game they had played, and still played every now and then. Cadance would keep nudging and poking Twilight to get her to move, even resorting to swatting her lightly with her tail if Twilight refused to budge. Though the older mare obviously wasn’t feeling playful, her actions had the desired effect, and Twilight relaxed.
She shifted after a moment, and curled her body around Twilight’s until her head was resting over the smaller pony’s shoulder, cupping her against the warm pink fur. Twilight hummed as Cadance nuzzled her neck softly, and leaned back against her friend.
“Are you okay?” Cadance asked, some time later. Twilight had stopped humming, but still reclined against her warm body. At this though, she twisted about, taking her eyes off of the book. She stared hard at Cadance for a moment, before looking away with a sigh.
“Yes. I guess you heard what happened?”
Cadance chuckled, an action that Twilight felt more than heard. “Yes. When you didn’t return, I was worried. So was Pip, but I told him that you were busy, and to go to bed. It didn’t take long to figure out that something had happened, not when all of the nobles I past glared at me like I had just insulted every member of their family personally.”
Twilight laughed in her turn, easily imagining how most of the uppity nobles would act. They would see Cadance, then glare, and turn their heads aside with a dignified sniff. Occasionally one would do this with such vigor that they would stop looking where they were going altogether, and walk headfirst into a wall.
“So when they wouldn’t tell me what happened in the meeting, I went to Celestia and told her to tell me what in the name of Light she had done.”
“You didn’t?” Twilight asked, both horrified at the rudeness of the act, and touched by how much it showed Cadance cared. “What happened then?”
“She told me that Luna asked you to marry her, and I asked if she was going senile.”
Horror at her friend’s rudeness was lost in the amusement and mingled guilt at having caused her friend so much worry. She was pleased that at least somepony cared enough to stand up for her, though. Guilt suddenly overpowered her at the uncharitable thought, and she rubbed her head against Cadance’s side.
“Then I left, and I know you always come here when you’re upset. You seem a lot more calm now though.” Cadance finished , and Twilight could tell by her voice she was remembering her actions with a smile. “Given it any thought?”
Twilight felt her conviction falter, and suddenly she had doubts about her decision. Maybe she really wasn’t good enough for the task. She was smart, but what if she messed up horribly before she could learn what to do? What if she only made enemies amoung the Selene ponies? What if she never... never saw Cadance again?
“Shh, sweetheart.” Cadance murmured, and wrapped her neck around Twilight’s in the closest thing to a hug she could manage. “It’s okay. It’s not the end of the world.”
“B-but what if I never see you again?” Twilight asked, and she could hear the terrified tremble in her voice. Not the stuff of a ruler, but she wasn’t one, not yet. Even if she did take Luna’s offer, she didn’t have to be strong yet.
Cadance could feel the soft heave of Twilight’s sides as the mare tried to stop herself from sobbing. She didn’t say anything for some time, just pulled Twilight close and held her, humming a lullaby to her quietly. After several minutes, Twilight’s panic attack faded, and she began to breath more calmly.
“I... I know that song?” Twilight mumbled, sniffling. Cadance’s humming froze for a moment, then resumed. She pulled away from Twilight for a moment, and pressed a soft kiss to the lavender pony’s forehead, just above her stubby horn.
“I used to put you to sleep with it.” Cadance whispered, then shifted so that she wasn’t quite so close to the younger mare.
“Cadance?”
“Yes, little one?”
“P-promise me we’ll keep in touch?” Twilight asked, suddenly afraid Cadance would be furious with her. She knew that her friend didn’t much like Luna, and she had almost no respect for either Princess beyond a grudging admiration for the difficulty in running a kingdom in a constant state of war. What if she refused to talk to Twilight again? What if the last thing she would ever say to her was that she was disappointed in her for going with Luna? Twilight couldn’t bare that thought, never seeing her friend, her mother again.
Her body stiffened as panic set in once more, and her breathing became a shallow pant. she couldn’t do it, not if it meant she would lose Cadance. Honor, duty be damned, she wasn’t going to make the pony who had been there for her, who cared for her more than anything-
“Of course I will.” Cadance said, soft and a little sad. She kissed Twilight again, before putting a hoof gently on her friend’s cheek. Gently, she pushed Twilight’s head until the mare was looking into her honest, azure eyes. “Twilight, you mean more to me than anything, even more than Shining. I will never, never let something come between us. I think you will make a wonderful ruler. Luna is a very lucky mare.”
Relief washed over Twilight like a tidal wave, burying her in grateful happiness. She nuzzled her friend, laughing and crying. She fell asleep like that, still with tears clinging to her lashes, the combination of relief and the soft lullaby from her foalhood gently letting slumber steal her away. Her last thought swirled muzzily through her mind as she felt sleep coming to claim her. Luna was a lucky mare. But she was even luckier, because she had somepony who cared so much about her.
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... the only problem I have with this story is that I have to wait for the next chapter. A large part of me wishes that I had stumbled upon this story after it had been completed so that I would be able to experience the entirety in one sitting. You've done an amazing job of drawing me into your world.
Wow, is a lot happening here. Good chapter though.
Aw, and here I thought she might faint from the stress at the meeting. Still, excellent chapter, well worth the wait.
And so, the plot thickens from a sauce into a gravy.
Dawww
Yeah Twilight you are luckier. You get Luna, kind, caring, witty, immortal Princess who's most likely amazing in bed. And Cadence who's probably one of the most caring and loving characters in the story, not to mention being close to Celestia who controls an entire country. Oh and you have Pip who is probably the cutest (as in adorable) colt in existence as your personal servant.
Anyways great chapter as always man!
I take it Celestia and Luna are not related in anyway in this story; maybe only figuratively, since Twilight marrying an aunt would be odd. Or, they are sister's and Celestia is not Twilight's mother. Nadake, you like screwing with people don't you?
Is Twilight just above average in magical potential but woefully behind in aptitude or are you making her with very high potential but utter crap in using it?
"Attacked"?
WHO IS TWILIGHT'S MOTHER! This is cruel and unusual reader punishment.
You don't like canon much, do you?
Argh! I always feel a small pain when I reach the bottom of every chapter. Damn! I need to know more! D: You can't leave me with a sad and crying Twi, that's playing with my feels!
In other words, this chapter is amazing ,as always. Keep it up!
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I wonder, was your avatar what you looked like when you read this story?
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How do you mean?
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With less wings, definitely less wings. I think this better describes my rage of facial expressions, from the proposal to me realizing I smashed a couple keys.
24.media.tumblr.com/045f8440b52681dda541ee36ce59664d/tumblr_mjxzbuv4y31r3xauuo1_1280.png
Some clues? Or am I left with only some chuckles?
I'm almost starting to think Twilight may indeed be what she thinks she is, the orphaned foal of her parents, who was in effect, adopted by Celestia.
Though there's still the Celestia/Cadence and the nighttime visits issues to work through, it may be that it was more emotional than literal.
As for Twilight's potential, I think she has incredible potential, and plenty of aptitude, but she is very much a late bloomer. Nobody ever really taught her as other unicorn foals are taught, so she's only now starting, but she's already proven quite capable once she begins.
Not quite the reaction I was expecting from Twilight, but the way you explained it made me wonder how I could've been blind not to see it coming. Well done.
As with the others, I lament the long wait for the next chapter.
Still, progress is progress.
*sigh*
---
Isn't this a question?
Also:
...I see what you did there :p
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Luna's... love, because I cannot see anything else possible behind this
, seems to have come rather quickly. Maybe there is something else...
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It's not love. This is purely political, but there is (or maybe was now) a budding friendship between Twilight and Luna.
I love this tale.
I'm always happy to see this story get an update! I love the character development and the world building~!
Please, keep up the good work!
Wow... that is about what I expected Twilight's reaction would be.
Still got me right in the feels though...
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Well, it was implied that all the nobles that courted her were unpleasant to be around, where as she seemed to like Twilight.
Even if it wont be the case i still want Celestia to be Twilight mother...
Then again maybe you will never reveal the truth (explain it completely) to give everyone a chance to imagine what they like, cruel and merciful at the same time...
well My bets are effectively off Cadance being the mother (unless one of the princesses is guiding Twilight by being Cadance, but I doubt this as I believe they were all shown in the same room earlier) My bets are definitely of Celestia, she was there when Twilight was born and 'found' her in the wreckage of the attack, and I don't think Cadane was in that meeting room when someone started humming the tune that seems to be Twilight's lullaby. And I doubt Luna would marry her daughter, as for spike; Twilight isn't a dragon so that's pretty much out, unless of course she is a kirin.
So yea Twi's going to accept luna's offer, and I'm still cursing you for the cliff hanger More soon please.
Good, good. The USS Twiluna will now disembark from port.
i had forgotten where the last chapter ended!
looking forward to the next chapter immensely!
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i can almost see you grinning madly while rubbing your palms together...
This keeps getting better and better!!!
A couple of minor spelling errors, but some pony already caught them.
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I don't!
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Everytime I want to take a stab at the pacing, I can't bring myself to do it! For all the grief it's brought me the slow speed has served the story well.
Waiting patiently it is.
Well, that went well... So is this really a TwiLuna?
And I'm still worried about the Nightmare Moon tag...
Good Job on this chapter. Think it may be one of my favorites.
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Luna looks like NMM but has the normal Luna's personality, as far as I know.
I asked this the previous chapter but didn't get an answer, i thought it had been said that luna was going for big mac, was that rewritten or was it just a court rumor?
I can't wait to see where this is going, i imagine that there will be other of the main six in the future
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Guess I read too much because I totally forgot about that...
fc01.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2013/019/9/1/nightmare_moon_in_socks_by_90sigma-d5p764l.png
The 'she' there is missing capitalization.
So far, i've encountered this story twice. The first time i did when it first came out. I remember not particularly liking that chapter and passing. Not two days ago did one of my friends say something about this story when it updated. I told him that i read the first chapter and passed on it and told him to 'spoiler away' like we do when we don't plan on reading the story, but want to know a little more about it. He then proceeded to pique my interest in one sentence. Luna asks Twilight to marry her, in front of a giant council (or something to that extent).
I knew then i had to read it, just to find that one scene. Now that i have, i can say without a doubt, that i was an utter fool for passing on this the first time around, and have now rectified it with being completely caught up, and having given a fave and thumb.
I've got my ideas on who Twi's mother is, but... i'm not going to reveal them. I bet the idea's already been said in the comments on a previous chapter, but i've not looked through them to confirm it. Either way i'm keeping those thoughts to myself, and am possibly cackling like a madman at their implications.
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I think you encountered a red herring.
I think the closest it came to mentioning Big Mac during Luna's first visit was something like "a large red stallion" if even that.
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Blueblood also wanted a meeting with Celesita bout disregarding "Macintosh, Big Mac, Apple" as a marriage candidate.
2314503 Considering that Helios and Selene are monarchies, wouldn't it be HMS Twiluna?
A good read, can't wait for more
Any updates?
sadpanda.us/images/1624058-RXXZE0O.gif
in relation to chapter seven
WHAT?!!!!
That's it... No more chapters :'(
I'm sad now, you left it on a cliffhanga...
Extremely good story
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There are more chapters, but I am trying to finish the story I started more than a year ago first. Which is almost finished, so you can expect Her Mother's Daughter to update soon.
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/)
good luck on other story.
PS I found a few miss spellings in the last three chapters. Nothin major...
sooo... when can we expect an update? I want more.... this Twilight is SOOOO Awesome!!!!
Mystery, secrets and politics. This is not my normal fare, but I find it to my liking nonetheless.
Keep up the good work!
Also, have an upvote.
I am COMPLETLY Knocked out of my chair! I can't take it anymore! Who IS TWILIGHTS MOTHER? Cadence? Luna ? Or even Celestia in the end? or its like this:'' Hey there i am a absolut backgroundpony and HEY i am Twilights mother and i show myself to say one sentence at the end of the story.'' Good good work mister!
2889554 You know, changing Spike's gender is kinda fishy to me. I personally think it is either her or Celly.
not to be pushy but i'm really hoping you get the next chapter out soon
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Put it this way, if my editor doesn't say anything by tomorrow, I am posting the chapter anyway
I would continue this story, but the end of chapter 7 killed it. I finished up till this chapter, and with great reluctance will not finish the story. Good story so far, but I won't support it... I will not finish reading this with reasons I believe will provoke hate... I'm sorry.
I won't down vote, but I won't favorite it either.
2340301 surely the fact that neither of them are the United States would stop it from being the USS TwiLuna?