Survival of the Wolves

by JNKing

Chapter 15: The Alicorn Reunion

The next few weeks felt like an eternity. As Star watched the wolves and ponies hesitantly settle into being neighbors, she wished that they could find a way to make peace… faster, if that made sense.

Granted, they were already doing their absolute best to try and get along with each other. Celine and a good number of the wolves had moved into Ponyville, with Kodo and his followers creating a safe path for visitors, which several ponies used to semi-move in with the wolves, curious in their way of life.

Star had been ecstatic when two pony mares named Bon Bon and Lyra actually asked to join one of the hunts. Shiva had seemed rather suspicious of Bon Bon at first, but despite her suspicion, she allowed it. And the two mares did very well, helping Artemis and Celine bring down a Hydra of all things.

Star had hoped against hope that it would finally mean they were ready to take Canterlot. But Shiva still had her wait.

Until one fateful day when Ventus - a younger wolf - approached with a pegasus mare around his age. Both looked wracked with nervousness, but were carried forward by a strange determination.

“Alpha?” Ventus asked.

“Yes?” Shiva replied.

“I know it’s only been a few weeks since we started letting ponies around us, but… Rose Luck and I...” he paused, extending a wing to the mare by his side. The mare - Rose - gratefully snuggled up against him.

“I think we’re…” she said nervously. “I think we’re in love.”

Shiva tilted her head, as Star tried to resist squealing in glee above them. “Explain,” Shiva replied curiously.

“Well…” Ventus said. “We started talking about a week ago.”

“I was curious about how you guys handled gardening,” Rose admitted. “And Ventus seemed like one of the kinder wolves.”

“Anyway, we… started talking…” Ventus explained nervously. “And we hit it off pretty fast. Before we knew it, we just wanted to keep spending time with each other. Meetings started to become more like dates, and now…”

“I-I mean, if this is a problem for you…” Rose added, though both looked like they were hoping it wouldn’t be.

Shiva, for her part, just grinned, before settling herself into a more relaxed position.

“If you both truly desire to be with each other,” she assured them. “I’m certainly not going to try and stop you.” Her grin faded. “But you also must understand: love is going to take time and it’s going to take work. You’re going to have to be willing to go through a lot with your significant other; both good and bad.” She turned to Ventus. “Ventus, what do you enjoy about being with Rose?”

Ventus chuckled. “What isn’t there to enjoy?” he admitted. “She’s smart, she’s kind… and she always smells wonderful.”

Rose chuckled, before Shiva turned her gaze to her.

“And Rose?” Shiva asked. “What do you enjoy about being with Ventus?”

Rose blushed. “He’s kind,” she admitted. “He’s polite and sweet. He reminds me a lot of Winona; the Apple Family dog.”

Shiva nodded. “But you understand that he’s different from Winona, yes?” she noted, turning to Ventus. “And Ventus, you know that she can’t smell wonderful all the time.”

The young lovers blinked in confusion. “Huh?”

“Every creature has flaws,” Shiva explained. “Things that might get on others nerves. It’s important that you identify those flaws and figure out what you can do to live with them. Being able to stand each other, even when they aren’t doing the things you like… that’s the sign of true love.”

Rose and Ventus hummed at the thought, but looked up with determination.

“If it means we still get to enjoy the good,” Ventus said. “Then I think I’m willing to endure the bad.”

“Me too,” Rose agreed.

Shiva grinned softly. “Let’s make sure of that.”

And as she coached the two through identifying pet peeves and being able to take care of each other, Star felt her hopes begin to rise. If such a thing as love could exist between the two species, could Shiva finally see that she was denying Star a different, more powerful type of love?

She got her answer when Shiva eventually sent the two young lovers off. Looking right up at Star, Shiva’s face split into a grin.

“It’s time?” Star asked eagerly.

Shiva nodded. “It’s time,” she agreed. “Let’s tell Twilight; we’re going to Canterlot.”

#

Star shifted from hoof to hoof, her wings struggling under the armor she had on.

She stood by Shiva and Kodo at the train station in Canterlot, the rest of the Mane Six around them. Since word still hadn’t left Ponyville about the wolves, Shiva was disguised as a foreign unicorn noble, with Star and Kodo as her bodyguards. Star’s wings were concealed under her armor, though she didn’t need a disguise to appear pony-ish, she still feared that others would see who she really was.

Yet, despite her fears, any unicorns who noticed the newcomers seemed to only have eyes for Shiva. Not that her unicorn form was anything to sneeze at; thin and attractive, with brilliant white fur that shined from beneath a see through satin robe. Her cutie mark being a bright red sun with a faint imprint of a howling wolf. Her face regal and turned up. She would have fit in perfectly in the Canterlot nobility circles.

Of course, that was assuming they didn’t know how kind she could really be. Or the fact that her upturned nose was due to her disgust.

“It’s been a thousand years,” she mused. “And yet I can still smell the stink of superiority.”

Twilight winced. “Some things… take a long time to wash out,” she admitted.

“Too long,” Star grumbled.

“Hey, come on, it’s not that bad,” Pinkie insisted. “We can give you a tour.”

“Or rather, Twilight could give us a tour,” Rarity noted. “You were raised here, were you not, darling?”

Twilight’s eyes shined brightly. “Yes, actually. I know just the place.”

She led the group through the marble streets. The unicorns mostly stayed out of Shiva’s way; recognizing the aura of a pony that was there strictly for business. Yet Shiva’s regalness faltered when Twilight brought them to the Canterlot Museum.

And to a section dedicated to the Wolves of Equestria.

Within, Shiva, Star and Kodo found displays of various items ranging from sentimental gifts, tools, weapons, and even a set of intact armor used by her hunters. There was even a to-scale and accurately detailed statue of Shiva with her wings spread in a proud pose, standing tall over a beaten prey.

Under the statue was a plaque like the one back in Ponyville, only in gold rather than brass. It read.

“Shiva.”

“This is the Wolf Alicorn named Shiva, leader of the Wolves of Equestria; their greatest hunter and a powerful mage. Shiva was known for initially being mistaken for an alicorn, similar to Celestia and Luna; however, she never took part in ruling Equestria, rejecting Celestia’s offer to join the alicorn royalty so she could look after her own kind.

According to various records recovered, Shiva was said to be a firm but fair leader who gladly listened to what others had to say and took their opinions into account. It was she that kept the peace between ponies and wolves for the longest time, despite the manipulations of the nobles and the anger of her own wolves.

Sadly, it is unknown what became of her after the Nobles encouraged the Massacre of the Wolves. It was said that she was killed in a battle with Star-Swirl the Bearded, though eye-witnesses also reported the wolves recovering her body and escaping with it into the Everfree, making the confirmation of her death impossible. Many believe she has passed into legend, along with the rest of her kind. Many more firmly believe she survived and is still out there, waiting for the time to return. Whether it will be for peace or for vengeance is unknown.”

Kodo huffed. “Peace or vengeance, huh?” he mused.

Star grinned up at Shiva. “I guess we answered that question, no?”

Shiva simply hummed, before turning back to Twilight. “We need to stay focused,” she decided. “Take me to Celestia.”

#

Twilight did not disappoint, and before long, the group found themselves before the Solar Princess.

Star resisted the urge to glower, hoping others would just assume it was her being a serious guard. Celestia may have changed - her mane was now a rainbow of colors - but Star could still remember her sitting just as she was now. Blindly agreeing with the flank kissing nobles over what punishments Star should get next for the crime of being alive.

If Shiva sensed Star’s trepidation, she didn’t show it, regarding Celestia with more of a curious air. Celestia, for her part, was more focused on Twilight.

“Twilight, my beloved student,” she said warmly, before glancing at Shiva and her guards. “Who are these fine mares?”

Kodo grimaced, crossing his hind legs as Twilight chuckled.

“They… have something important to share with you,” she admitted, turning back to Celestia. “May we move somewhere more private?”

Celestia tilted her head at Twilight’s odd request, but nodded all the same. The group walked to her personal tea room. Once seated, Celestia turned to Shiva with a warm smile.

“So, my little pony,” she asked. “Who would you be? I’m glad to see Twilight is reaching out to others already.”

Shiva returned Celestia’s smile, placing her ‘hoof’ on the necklace projecting her disguise. “Well, I’m not sure if you remember me, but…” she took the necklace off, her form shifting back into her wolf form. “I remembered you, Celestia.”

Celestia’s jaw fell open. Her eyes nearly popped out of her skull. Star resisted the urge to burst into laughter.

“Kodo, please tell me you have a camera,” she whispered.

“Don’t need one,” he whispered back through his own snickers. “I know that spell for recording sight. And this sight is going to be my new wallpaper.”

Luckily, everyone else was too busy struggling not to laugh to hear him. Celestia recovered quickly however, letting out a sigh of relief.

“So, my instincts were right,” Celestia said, standing and striding to Shiva with happiness in her eyes. “After all these years, you did still live.”

Shiva tilted her head. “You knew I was alive?”

Celestia hummed. “Not… directly. But I’ve always had a sort of sense related to other alicorns. It’s hard to explain, but even though we only met briefly, I always knew you were one.” She grinned. “Besides, from what I’ve heard about you, you were always crafty.”

Shiva chuckled. “I had to be. It’s a dangerous world out there.”

Celestia nodded, chancing a glance at Star before sighing. “Shiva… I know it’s a thousand years late, but… I’m truly sorry for what my ponies did to your wolves.” Her face hardened. “Once I found out what they had done, I stripped them of all their titles and power. Lord Ego - the one behind it all - died rotting in the deepest, darkest dungeon in Canterlot.”

Shiva’s gaze hardened as well. “I hope you’ll forgive me not feeling pity for him or those who followed him.”

“I don’t expect you to,” Celestia assured her. “If I had known beforehand, I would have stepped in. But after Luna…”

Star’s glower deepened. Shiva noticed her shaking with suppressed emotion. “Where is Luna, by the way?” the wolf alicorn asked. “I believe I have someone she’d be interested in meeting.”

Celestia chanced another look at Star, and her expression brightened. “She would be delighted to see her.” She took a moment to hug Twilight. “Thank you, Twilight,” she whispered in her student’s ears. “A thousand thank yous… you truly are my best student.”

Twilight nearly went catatonic in glee, as Celestia led Shiva - who quickly re-disguised herself - and her ‘guards’ to Luna’s tower, the Mane Six staying behind to tend to the giggling Twilight.

They found Luna still staring wistfully out of the tower, dark bags under her eyes.

“Luna,” Celestia said, breathless with glee. “There is somepony who wants to meet you.”

Luna gave a tired look to Shiva’s unicorn form, but Shiva just shook her head.

“Not me, your grace,” she replied, before Star paused.

“‘The ace-the ace!” Star recited from one of her stories.

Luna’s eyes widened. She got to her hooves and crept towards the ‘guard.’ “Star?”

Unable to stand the suspense, Star ripped off her helmet. Her wings - which had been squirming and writhing under her armor - ripped the breastplate apart, flaring to life. And Luna gasped as Star Wing stood before her, falling to her flank in shock.

“S-Star?” Luna whispered. “M-My little Wing?”

Star surged forward. “Did she hurt you?” Star asked, looking around at Luna’s surroundings; her royal room; her lack of bruises or injuries. “O-Okay, maybe that was a dumb question, but…” Star blinked up at her mom, and Luna blinked down at her daughter.

A mere second passed, before the two fell into each other’s forelegs,

“It’s you!” Luna sobbed in relief. “My sweet little star child…!”

“You’re okay!” Star whispered through her tears. “I was so scared they were being mean to you again.”

Luna hushed her, stroking her mane. Yet, Star’s words caused Celestia to flinch. She turned back to Shiva, who was watching the whole thing with a heartfelt smile. Even Kodo was grinning despite himself.

“Um… so, Alpha Shiva,” Celestia said. “I-I have something that you might want to see…”

However, Shiva turned to Celestia with a knowing look. “Celestia,” she said gently. “Star has told me a lot about you. And not a lot of what she had to say was good.” She nodded at Star. “She has a lot of unresolved issues with you, and I really don’t think it’s a good idea to let them fester anymore.”

Celestia grimaced. She knew Shiva was right, but at the same time, it felt wrong to break up such a touching reunion.

Unfortunately, at that moment, Luna looked up to them with eyes filled with more joy than Celestia ever remembered seeing.

“W-Where did…?” she paused, seeing Celestia’s expression. The memories of her time with Star came back, and Luna reluctantly looked down at her daughter. Star hadn’t even acknowledged Celestia’s presence, apparently trying to burrow her way into Luna’s fur.

A mutual understanding passed between the two sisters, and Celestia reluctantly stepped forward.

“Star Wing?”

Star tensed, keeping her back to Celestia. She chuckled, wiping away her tears.

“It’s so good to see you again, Mom,” she said. “I-I bet you’re wondering where I’ve been, yeah?”

“Indeed,” Luna agreed. “But first…” she looked up at Celestia. “I believe my sister has something she wants to say.”

Star grimaced. “Her or the nobles? Because you know how great of a ventriloquist Auntie Celestia was. She’d be speaking, but all we’d hear were the nobles.”

Star laughed - a bit too loudly. Celestia winced, while Shiva just sighed.

“Star,” Shiva prompted. “Please… just go ahead.”

Star turned to Shiva, her laughter high pitched and almost insane. "Go ahead and what?" she demanded, finally glaring at Celestia. "It's not like I can go back to being three years old, you know?! I-It's not like when Mom found me in the dungeons for - oh, what was it for, Auntie, 'not bowing the right way to Lord-Ego-Creep-tic-or-whoever-he-was?' It's not like whenever I asked, 'What did I do to make Auntie Celestia so mad at me?' you can just... walk in and be like, 'oh, it was for these reasons!'" She'd pause. "Oh, wait, you did do that! Except all the reasons were completely unfair!" Her voice grew angry as she pulled one of her wings. "’Crying too loudly?’ 'Having leather wings?' Well, forgive me, your most high and mighty grace, I'm very sorry no one gave me a customization option at birth! I’m most certainly regretful I didn’t know it was a crime to cry when I was only five months old!"

Celestia started to tear up. "I... made mistakes..." she said. "Star Wing, please know, I deeply regret everything..."

"No," Star Wing growled. "I don't need that, okay? I never needed you. I didn't need you to teach me how to be a hero for the people; I learned!" She turned to Shiva. "And I did good, didn't I? I mean, I don't want to brag, but I was okay, right?"

Shiva nodded. "You were perfect," she'd say. But Star was on a roll; whirling back on Celestia, who backed up.

"And I became a hero," she'd rant, bearing right after Celestia until she had her cornered against the wall. "For the right ponies; the wolves. The ones who loved me without me needing to save them. The ones who showed me how to be the best mare I could be. They showed me how to fly; they showed me how to fight. I had a THOUSAND spectacular birthdays without you; I didn't even need you to send me a dang card! Okay? WHO NEEDS YOU?!"
Celestia looked away, tears streaming down her face. Luna tried to rest a hoof on Star's shoulder, who was breathing shakily, staring at Celestia in a bit of horrified shock.

Oh-gosh-oh-gosh-I just yelled at Princess Celestia! Was running through Star’s mind in a panicked chant. She's gonna kick my tail and... wait, why is she backing down? Is she for real? Did I just botch a possible bad guy turning good scenario?! With these conflicted thoughts, all the fight drained out of the young alicorn. Her own eyes teared up.

"Curse it," Star grumbled, wiping at her tears. But then, with a voice like she was only three again, she whispered, "What did we do to you?"

Celestia broke down, and embraced Star. Luna embraced her, Shiva embraced her - even Kodo embraced her. And all five alicorns, for that moment, just held each other, and let their emotions out.

When everyone had calmed down, Celestia sighed.

"I have made many mistakes," she admitted. "More than any creature on this planet. But one of the biggest..." she gave Star a sincere look of regret. "Was the way I treated you and your mother."

Star contemplated her words.

"You don't have to forgive me," Celestia admitted. "I know I can't ask you to forget. But just know that I am very different from the mare I was back then. And I will do everything I can to prove that... if you'll let me."

To prove it, Celestia let her horn glow, and summoned something very familiar to Shiva: a large plushy around the size of a large pup of a wolf alicorn. It was the very same one Shiva’s parents had given her as a pup; it was all she had left of them.

Shiva gasped in shock and delight, taking the plushy and holding it close.

“Prince… Celestia…” she stammered. “I… thank you.”

Star watched as Shiva held her old plushy, and took a slow breath, turning to her mother. Luna looked just as equally worn out, but accepted a hug from her daughter all the same.

"For Mom's sake," Star would say. "For my Alpha’s sake… I'll try." She'd crack a smile. "But it's gonna take way more than a montage to do it." She'd grin at Shiva. "Seriously, you remember when I thought I'd be able to become super buff with just a training montage."

Shiva smiled and chuckled, while Luna looked on in confusion. “What montage?” Luna asked. “What did she do?”

Shiva struggled to hold back her laughter. "She did five push ups, then immediately ran away to try and do something else."

Luna cocked an eyebrow. "Which was...?"

Shiva grinned at Star Wing, who blushed. "Scare away some prey as part of a comical mishap," she'd admit. "Wasn't as funny when Alpha Shiva had me hunt down the prey myself." She shook her head. "Took me a whole week, and that was certainly not covered in a montage."

Luna would laugh. "Oh, Star..." she'd coo. As the group chuckled and laughed, Luna gazed to Shiva with gratitude in her eyes.

“Alpha… Shiva. Thank you for looking after my little star.” She looked down. “When I was banished to the moon… the most painful part was knowing I had left my daughter alone in a place where she was hated.”

Celestia winced as well. “When she came back, she said that she thought she had seen you,” Celestia admitted. “But I wasn’t sure if either of you would still be alive. After Star vanished… that night… I searched everywhere and never found a trace.”

Luna gazed at Shiva in confusion. “How did you find her?”

Shiva smiled. “A few days after we got chased into the Ever-Free, my daughter found her and got me. Star was keeping herself together as best she could, but we could all tell she was at her limit. I couldn’t just leave a foal out on her their own. And after I nuzzled her… and she started crying…”

Star blushed. “Well… to be fair, Alpha Shiva was the first… no, second… third? Okay, she was one of the few creatures who showed me any love. And after what happened… I just… really needed it.”

Luna smiled. “I’ll bet.” She turned to Shiva again. “I’m very grateful to you, Shiva. To know that my filly was safe after so long… it’s a feeling I can’t put into words. All I can say is thank you. Thank you very much.”

Shiva nodded, and hugged the alicorn. And for a while, the five sat there, willing to just stay in that embrace forever.

Comments

[Okamiluver]

Damn you making the water works pour...

[Alex80]

Good chapter 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[The_Chill_Author]

Ten outta ten, best game.