Energy swirled around Twilight Sparkle. Six beams of light emanated from the Nexus, leaping to the pillars above. The floor glowed with power, and the crystals overhead spun at a blur. Twilight concentrated on the spell, on seeking the right point in the timeline. To her surprise, it was easier than she remembered, ten years ago. Where leaving her time felt like pushing the apparatus up a hill, returning felt like going down it. The apparatus settled on a time like a record needle settling into a groove. The crystal floor glowed bright, along with the spinning gems, brighter and brighter, blinding. Twilight squeezed her eyes closed.
Everything was white.
The light faded, along with the magic. Twilight peeked her eyes open. The spinning gems slowed, and the landscape beyond came into view past the swirling energy.
Slowly, steadily, the apparatus came to a stop. Twilight suddenly found herself wet. Water cascaded down onto the unicorn. She looked up. Rain poured from the black clouds in the sky. A flash of lightning flickered overhead.
She walked off of the apparatus's slab, magically picking up her Nexus and wedging it into the saddlebag that her daughter had given her. The floating gems descended to the ground, landing softly in the new puddles. Twilight looked out towards Canterlot, its lights dotting the spires barely visible in the haze. She turned towards Ponyville. Her Ponyville.
She took a deep breath, then let it out. Twilight Sparkle concentrated on her horn. A wave of purple swept her across the miles.
Twilight looked up at where she had arrived. Rows of apple trees greeted her, rain streaming off of their leaves. She looked along the path she stood on. Ahead was a red barn with a small farmhouse, windows aglow, next to it.
She walked towards the house.
She trotted towards the house.
She galloped towards the house.
Her hooves thundered through the puddles, splashing mud across her belly. Her eyes saw the farmhouse approaching; her heart saw its contents.
Before she realized, before she knew what to do, she found herself standing at the door. Shaking, Twilight raised her hoof and rapped on the door.
She shivered at the sound of a voice. A voice she'd thought she would never hear again.
"Now who in tarnation could it be in this weather?"
The door unlatched and swung open. And Twilight saw her. Orange coat. Blond mane. Green eyes. Brown hat. Dropped jaw.
"Applejack!" Twilight sprang forward, embracing her friend.
"T... Twilight? Is it really you?" Applejack reached her foreleg around Twilight's neck. "It is you. It is you! Twilight! You came back! Am I dreaming, Twilight? Tell me this isn't a dream!" Tears mixed with the rainwater on Twilight's neck.
Twilight sniffled. "It isn't, Applejack. I'm home. I'm finally home." She pulled back. "We need to tell the girls. I need to see them again, too."
"Oh, right. Here..." Applejack turned, and came back with an umbrella. "Let's go find them."
The pair trotted through the rain away from the house and towards the town. "Oh Celestia, it musta been ten years since you left, Twilight. I thought we weren't ever going to see you again. What the hay happened, Twi?"
Twilight took a breath. "Let's wait until we're all at the library. I mean, the library's still there, right?"
"Yeah yeah, of course it's there. I'm sorry, it's just... I still can't believe it. All of a sudden it's you, and you're here... Celestia's sake, Twilight." Applejack shook her head. "Wait'll I tell Apple Bloom and—"
Applejack stopped. "Wait a second. Twilight, where's Sweetie Belle?"
---
Rainbow Dash raised a hoof. "Whoa whoa whoa. Okay. Time machine, sure, I saw it happen. Mechanical heart, maybe. Flying trains? I've seen weirder. I guess. But no clouds? That's it, you're making stuff up."
"I am not making anything up. The future didn't have any clouds."
"Then how did anything get watered? I know Applejack wouldn't like it if I didn't make it rain on her trees or anything."
Twilight Sparkle looked at Applejack. "Maybe I shouldn't say anything else."
Rainbow flung up her hooves. "See? Ask how it works and she goes quiet. Told you Twilight was making it up. I bet it looked just like how it is today. Maybe a little shinier. Hey Twilight, do you think you could take us to the future, so we can all see how awesome it's gonna be?"
Twilight looked at her Nexus, which she had sat in the corner. "I'm sorry, but I think I've had enough time travel for one lifetime. And I don't want to risk anything happening again."
A explosion of confetti interrupted the conversation. A cake the same color as Twilight's coat landed on the table.
"Twilight's back! I knew you'd come back! We even left a memorial for you to see but your time machine kind of blew it up when it came back."
Twilight eyed the cake. "Pinkie Pie, how did you find the time to bake this already? This is fresh, right?"
"Of course it's fresh, silly! I made this just for you!"
Twilight took a bite. It was the best tasting cake she had ever had. Outside, the rain beat against the windows.
"Hey, Twilight." Rainbow Dash hovered near the ceiling. "If I'd known you were coming back, I would have cleared the skies out for you. This weather really doesn't suit the mood. I can go out and clear this up in a snap, though."
"No, Rainbow." Twilight looked out the window at the dark clouds filling the sky. Thunder rolled past the library. "Keep it. I like the rain. Come on, girls, I want you all to have a slice. Together."
Rarity sniffled. "I just can't stop thinking about my poor dear Sweetie Belle. I wanted to see her again, too. But she's alive, and she's happy, and... that's all that matters. I'm sorry, Twilight, I appreciate what you've done and I'm happy to see you again, too."
Twilight looked at her slice. "It's all right. Sweetie Belle... I had adopted her. Raised her. Sweetie Belle became my daughter. She called me... she called me 'Mom'."
Spike rolled on his back laughing. "Mom?! That's hilarious! Just try to imagine it!" He laughed again until he noticed the glare of two unicorns. "Oh, uh... I'll keep dusting the shelves."
Rarity turned back to Twilight. "I hope you don't mind, but Spike has been helping me around the shop while you were gone. And I do hope you don't expect me to refer to you as my mother too, Twilight. I prefer to think of you as my friend."
Twilight cracked a smile. "It's all right, Rarity. Sweetie Belle became a stage singer. She's a very beautiful mare, and I'm very proud of her. I know she'll go on to be a great pony. Here, Rarity, Sweetie Belle wanted you to have this."
Twilight opened the bag Sweetie had given her. She withdrew a large book and two scrolls. She gave the book and a scroll to Rarity, and saved the other for when she saw the two former Cutie Mark Crusaders again.
Rarity opened the book. Within, the pages were filled with photographs. Pictures showed Sweetie Belle playing in the magic sprinklers, learning how to use her own magic, practicing plays with her friends, and more. The photograph of Sweetie Belle's new cutie mark was on a large print, on a page of its own. As the book progressed, Sweetie Belle grew older and older, culminating in the full-grown mare that Twilight had left her as. Teardrops fell onto the last page.
"Twilight... thank you so much for taking these. I can't... I'm sorry, I need a moment alone."
Rarity excused herself, moving to a far corner.
The library door opened and two figures, dry despite the rain, entered. Twilight looked up.
"Princess Celestia."
Celestia swept into the room before kneeling down and embracing Twilight. Her sister stood by a shelf. The remainder of the room shifted away from the un-princess-like behavior.
"Twilight Sparkle!" Celestia cried. "You've returned! I had become so worried about you!"
Twilight hesitated, lost in thought.
"What's the matter, Twilight?" Celestia pulled back. "Are you not happy to see me again?"
"Oh." Twilight looked at her. "You were, uh... still there three hundred and fifty years in the future."
Celestia smiled back. "Then this is my reunion and not yours. And I know I have something to look forwards to now."
Twilight flinched, then sighed. "Yes." She paused. "Yes, you do."
---
Dear Apple Bloom and Scootaloo,
It's funny how I remember you as fillies, instead of the grown mares you must be reading this. I bet you both got your cutie marks in something you love. I got mine for singing, and I drew it at the bottom of the letter for you. I know you heard me sing before, so imagine that but better. I'm going to be a big Broadneigh performer, too. That reminds me, I should try to find out what cutie marks you two got. I think I know how.
Oh yeah, I don't know how far you've gotten by now, and I need to preserve the timeline or something like that, so I'll just say to keep up the dream. It'll be worth it, I promise. You two have done something incredible.
Cutie Mark Crusaders for life.
---
Dear Rarity,
I'm sorry I didn't get to see you again in person. I hope all those pictures Mom took will be enough to remember me by. I got my new heart valve and I'm okay. The doctor said I'll live a long time with it. And by the way, Twilight was my Mom for the past ten years. I hope you don't mind. Don't let Spike give her too much trouble over it.
The Princess preserved a bunch of the fashion magazines with your designs in them. I haven't read them all yet, but the dresses I've seen are beautiful. I don't know if you'll believe me, but you're going to get even better at making them. I am definitely going to try to get some of these made into costumes. Or just to wear and feel pretty in.
And Rarity, when the fashion photographers take your picture, make sure you smile as big as you can, because your little sister will be smiling back.
I always hate goodbyes
Somehow I have the feeling there's more - Twilight's reaction, mostly - but this is a good way to end.
Nice finish with Sweetie's letter.
Pretty snazzy ending. Sad to see it end, but tis a worthy one and made me smile :)
Good job, great fiction and look forward to more of your work
I really should stay away from timetravel fics, mainly because they mess with my head
Because right now, I can't stop thinking about why Celestia was so adamant about keeping Twilight in the future. Was it just because she missed her/lost her once? Or was it because of what Celestia did to Twilight in the future made Twilight drift away from Celestia?
'Bashes head on keyboard'
All in all though, I really enjoyed this story. It had its funny moments, serious moments and allround awesome moments. Thank you for writing such a compelling story
You should've taken a little more time with this ending.
If I were Twilight, I would've been devastated after leaving my daughter of ten years behind, never to be seen again. In this timeline, Twilight had known Sweetie Belle longer than Rarity had; she could've shown some emotion.
As for Sweetie Belle's letters; c'mon, not even a full page? These were the last things your best friends and sister would ever hear from you.
I really liked all of the chapters leading up to this. They were happy, adorable, and heart-wrenching all at the same time. The ending just felt... rushed is all.
One question: did Twilight return shortly after she left or ten years afterwards?
This story is just amazing.
What a trip.
It had to end some time...
I think the ending could be a bit better, give it more detail to the setting and emotions of each person, and Twilight's senses instead of just dialogue. Still, wonderful story and devotion.
Congratulations...you finished
So we don't get to see if Twi forgives celestia?
I had hoped for a longer story, but I guess I can't really complain. You put in everything that was needed and even got a nice bittersweet ending done.
Good work and thank you for sharing this with everyone.
Best Ending Ever
a enderdragon destroyed my mansion and now this. tears are coming.....
I hope you're happy...
These bittersweet endings get me every time someone cry with me
Thanks Rarity.
I... I can't... this is... this was something so beautiful and perfect and sad, that no word can express my feelings right now.
This story is so amazing, so awesome. It has so many feels. It has everything. But that ending... god dammit man... I... uh... just give me a second...
...
Okay. That ending hit HARD! In very confusing way towards my feelings...
Feels: *rocking back and forth* "It's okay feels... it's all okay... hehe! *sniff* You're just confused, and sad, and happy... and too many other things..."
Yeah... he's broken...
Philosopher: "Mind if I talk a bi-"
NO!
Philosopher: "K. Jeez man..."
Anyways, that was... eh... I want to end the post with something awesome... uh...
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This was an amazing story. You did an excellent job with it.
I have only 2 things I would have changed:
1) I would have loved to see the initial reaction to Twilight re-appearing, the joy that each of the ponies felt to see that their long lost friend had returned, but also the shock, heartache, and slight feeling of betrayal that rarity would have felt when she saw that Twilight had not brought Sweetie Belle back to her as promised . Thinking that twilight failed in her mission to save her little sister and got stranded in the future, or maybe even was afraid to return because of that fact, it would have taken her longer to accept the fact that Sweetie Belle was alive and well, and chose to stay on her own accord. She would have thought that Sweetie belle would not have made such a decision and would have chosen to come back to her sister (rarity unintentionally putting her own feelings above those of sweetie's in the drama of the moment). I would also imagine a huge, tear-filled argument between Rarity, the sister who has mourned over her missing sister for the past ten years, and Twilight, the one who just left her daughter in the distant future never to see her again. even though Twilight let Sweetie make her own decision to stay, seeing Rarity deny the fact that it was the truth and even accuse her of doing it on purpose, would have brought the tears and rage of a mourning mother to the surface. All in all, I just felt the reunion could have been dragged out a little longer.
2) The letters should have been more emotional as well. Sweetie belle had decided to stay behind, leaving her sister and the original CMC behind. Even though she moved on and accepted that she wouldn't see them again outside of the memorials, she would have made her final goodbyes more heartfelt. The letters (particularly the one to rarity) had the potential to bring close to the same amount of feels that the MLD letter brought. I mean, even though they are a memory for her now, rarity was her big sister and the thought that she would never see her again would have brought tears to sweetie belle's eyes, even though she had already accepted the fact long before she wrote the letter. The same goes for the CMC letter, giving very subtle hints to what happens to the CMC in the future without giving away spoilers (I don't believe it was said when the CMC became a nation wide organization, so Sweetie Belle would assume it wouldn't come so early as 10 years). When people think about the fact that when someone dies they will never see them again, it will always bring tears to their eyes, or at least put them in a somber mood. Based on Sweetie Belle's personality, she would have felt those feelings and wouldn't have sent those letters until they were absolutely perfect.
TLDR: the ending was decent, but not nearly as much emotion as I had hoped.
But overall, i loved it!
Great story!
Oh, and I'm sorry for the brick of text.
So, there's her answer. Masterfully done.
Damn. That last line... that sure was something.
this epilouge was done masterfully and almost had me crying, and that's a feat for any mlp fanfic
One of the greatest Fan Fictions I've read. This truly was a masterpiece.
Well done!
A good epilogue, it was everything we wanted.
Many tears were shed on this day.
I'm very glad you decided to post it after all-- And yeah, there was much tear-shedding and sniffling to be had on my side of the computer screen.
I did get a giggle or two out of things (especially Rainbow's 'no clouds, wat?' bit) and overall I loved the story-- Real life doesn't wrap up tidily like tales, and someone like Sweetie Belle still ended up with the chance to have a future, let alone choose one. That, in my book, is a damned good finish to an excellent story.
J'adore! Bravo!
Bravo.
This story is beautiful. I would have liked to have Sweetie Belle come back, but you hinted (intentional or not) that wasn't going to happen when there was that statue of Scootaloo and Apple Bloom. After all Sweetie Belle wasn't carved along with them. I'll miss this story a lot.
ITS SO BEAUTIFUL!
Hold up to everyone saying the letters should have been longer. Think about it. Sweetie Belle didn't have a whole lot of time to write these things. Look back on the story, Twilight practically had the teleporter thingy up and running in under a day!...Now I still think they could have been longer, but writing a heartfelt masterpiece is a little difficult when under a mass of emotions like the ones Sweetie Belle must have been under in those hours...And it might be a little stressful for an author to please his readers so thoroughly after every chapter.
Time for the obligatory
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Rushed rush is rushed.
...time to re-read the entire thing...such a sad ending, but it was a bit rushed...
No...just no. This ending, I really did not want to dislike the story but ...
This story is like a painting, each chapter being a small portion of the painting, everything before chapter 12 looks nice not a Master Piece but still nice. Then we get to chapter 12, it's as if you threw buckets of paint at the canvas and hoped something pretty would come of it. I liked the first portion of the story enough so I won't dislike the story but no thumbs up for you either.
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I know I should be happy but I just can't help but feel saddened by how it ended. Did they live happily ever after? Not sure, but I think I'm content at how it ended.
Thank you for that great story and good job!
2275873 stop complaining that it didnt end the way you wanted it. Im not saying it was perfect, but if your going to criticize something, put some ammo in the gun first. give actual reasons to why you think it was a bad ending. which, by the way, wasnt bad at all. it was a perfectly logical and acceptable way to end it.
That was a beautiful ending, just...
I can't say any more after an emotional ending like that. So just good work on such a wonderful story from start to finish and I was glad I read it from start to finish.
Thank you for such a great tale.
Damn. That was a hell of a story man. Great ending to it even though I was hoping for a little more Twilight hating on Celestia. That matters little though.
Damn good story man. Damn good.
That was the most beautiful ending I could have imagined. You sir, need to write more.
Still think Sweetie abandoned her old friends. But I'm glad this ended as well as it did, I s'pose.
Like many have said, the end felt a little rushed, but the story was great start to finish!
I am still saddened by certain turns of events. I really feel that Twilight should have stayed in the future with her daughter. She could have always sent a message back to the past and make sure it lands in the Castle or Ponyville.
So, while I still don't think Sweetie Belle would stay in the future, I have to say that this is one of the best fanfics I have ever read.
Hmmm, I was hoping for a slightly longer epilog but still, I liked it. It was a good ending. Bittersweet but i think it ended the only way it could have.
The feels, these feels are too much. Two things, I noticed that it is never mentioned if Twilight forgave Celestia, but that's alright, and also this is one of those stories that make you just... feel at the end and want more, a story you don't want to end. Thank you.
fuck you tears. get back in my face. stop dripping everywhere.
2276868 But I think Sweetie spent more time in the future than she had in the past, and part of the time that she spent in the past was when she was a baby that was barely even sentient. She had moved on and started a career and made friends and stuff, so I think her decision is logical -- although it might have come a little bit too easily.
Like many have said before me, I think the ending was a bit rushed. Would've liked to see more of Rarity's emotion, and I definitely don't think Twilight would have let Sweetie go that easily.
On the other hand, Sweetie's letters are just beautiful. Was listening to this, and I nearly cried --
This story was amazing and has definitely become one of my favorites. That said, I have some trouble believing that Twilight would leave her daughter in the future with no way of ever getting into contact with her; it suggests that she cares about her friends more than her own daughter. I think that the ending would work better if you left the possibility of Twilight returning to the future to visit Sweetie Belle.
I personally find this to be a satisfying ending to a story that could have had a HORRIBLE ending.
However, I would have preferred the scene with Twilight and Celestia to go something like this:
Celestia walks in, sees Twilight, goes and hugs her. Twilight, still feeling slightly conflicted, hugs her back. During the hug, she sees that Celestia truly means the best, and she forgives her of her future actions.
That way, we can get some better closure for the two, instead of leaving it ambiguous like that.
>Rarity accepting Sweetie staying
>Rarity's parents haven't flipped shit yet
>CMC aren't gonna lose it
>Twilight can live with herself
*Flips table*
I didn't have so many sad feels that I teared up at the ending. Nope, none at all.
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That was a cheap shot, you sick bastard y these feels hurt so much but feel so good
Lost my shit with Rarity looking at the pictures of Sweetie Belle growing up. As a big sister myself, I'm feeling all the feels right now.
::shakes fist at the author::