Surrender
Luna walked down the familiar stone-tiled hallways, extra length in her strides as she made her way with haste. Her starry mane billowed and lashed like it was in the midst of a hurricane, her eyes hardly blinking.
"Asklepios, remind me, what symptoms has she been showing?" Luna asked, her gaze not moving from the door at the end of the hall.
"Severe fever, inflammation of the lungs and bronchi, along with an increased heart rate. She has been comatose for a day now, despite our best efforts, Your Highness." The blue unicorn beside her kept her eyes glued to her clipboard.
"Has she made any sign of recovery or cognition?"
"I am afraid not, princess. In fact, her temperature has increased by half a degree since ten last night."
A shudder passed through her spine. Luna tried to reject the calculations logic gave her. She would be just fine.
Arriving before the heavy timber door, Luna pushed it open and walked inside. A glow of daylight leaked in through a window, heralding the infant day. The room was coated in white paint, a myriad of medical instruments lining the walls. To the far side was a cot, wires running to and from like a power plant. Underneath the light green sheets, gleaned with sweat and spasming ever so slightly, was Equestria's newest princess.
How could they have been so stupid? Of course, sending her out to the Zebrican homelands, with no experience in the grasslands, to spend a week with the Great Shaman in his meditations. Diplomacy could have been handled later. If... if only they knew what would come of their failed attempts, Luna and Celestia would've kept her within Canterot until winter came, until the mosquitoes of the savannah died away.
But no, Twilight assured them she'd be okay. She promised she'd be careful, that she'd take all the necessary precautions before joining the zebra monarch in the untamed fields. Luna's heart felt as if it was to tear itself asunder.
"What has she been treated with?" Luna demanded as she arrived beside the freshly-minted alicorn. She lowered herself down, peering closely as she watched Twilight breathe ever so slightly. Her body trembled, as if she were freezing cold.
"Two 600 milliliter doses of anti-quatzilate hemoglophins to help ease the burden on her heart, along with thirty-minute treatments of pure oxygen every hour." A nurse on the other side of the cot began flipping between pages. "For her lungs, we've been using budesonide to try to control the swelling in her bronchioles, but I'm afraid it's only slowing the constriction down."
"The swelling in her lungs is the biggest threat to her life, correct?" Luna stood over Twilight, the ponies around her and the dignity that she commanded the only thing keeping her together.
"Correct, Your Highness," the nurse responded. "We've had Dr. Ship Shape look at her as well, but he cannot determine the cause of this. He has noted, however, that it also appears her kidneys and liver are failing."
"I see." Luna studied Twilight. She looked into her eyes, prying her eyelids apart, to find them red and bloodshot. Her skin was boiling hot, and her reflexes non-existent. She was shutting down alarmingly fast, meaning only one thing.
"Nurse, Asklepios, I'm afraid I'll need you both to leave the room." Luna kept her gaze on the shivering Twilight. Her voice was cold and hard like steel. "Under Royal Edict, nopony is allowed to enter or disturb this room until I confirm she is okay. Sanction off the entire wing, even from maids cleaning my bedchambers. Nopony is to come anywhere close of this room, is that clear?"
"Of course, Your Majesty." She watched over the mare as the two left the room with a shuffle of hooves.
Finally alone, a light flared from Luna's horn. Shockwaves of blue light shimmered down her body and around the room. Within seconds, the blue-lit room showed a beam of energy between Luna and Twilight. It met at their chests, linking them together.
Luna sighed as she steadied her nerves. It'd be much easier if Celestia could cast this as well, but apparently consciental magic was beyond her grasp. The sun goddess could very well alter a mind with her smooth charisma, but empathizing with and understanding a psyche took a gentler approach. Some things wilted under the sun, only thriving before the soft glow of the moon.
Closing her eyes, Luna forced herself through the link. She imagined herself as the mare before her, confused, sickly, and afraid. She had just returned from Zebrica, of course. Luna had spent two weeks in the savannah. She had returned from a long trip, weary and feeling odd, but nothing to be worried about. But within a few days, she told herself that she had fallen asleep, and nopony could rouse her. She was aware of herself, but powerless to control her body. She was so very, very alone.
The world snapped into white, a thick fog that enraptured all of her senses. As if within gentle light, slowly it cleared, and Luna saw the room before her in a new world. No longer did light pour in through the windows, and the various machines did not beep or glimmer. Instead, she could only see the white rivers running through Twilight, diverging into the smallest tributaries of blue-white light that arced throughout her body. Her ley-lines were crossed and overlapped like an intricate spiderweb, earth pony, pegasi, and unicorn magics rippling throughout her being. They were sick and dying, shriveled up like desert ground under the peak of dry season.
Now came the hard part.
As if she were holding a foal, Luna tried to cradle the spell she created. Care was key, for a wrong slip could cause a rupture in her magical flows. Internal arcane osmosis was a fate not even reserved for the worst of criminals, but sometimes the risk was outweighed by the reward.
Luna held her breath between each layer of the spell, whispering incantations as layer upon layer of magic built up. A white ball of energy grew before her, glimmering and its edges fuzzy. It hummed on a frequency close to the hushed tones of sweet nothings, the night alicorn putting every ounce of sensitivity she could into the probing spell. No offshoot of ley-vein could be left unsearched. Every trace of the ancient parasite had to be destroyed.
Anxiety shook her hooves like an earthquake as Luna readied her spell. It wasn't complete yet, and it never would be. However, unlike most of her days as an alicorn, time was against her. Feeding her the magic like a mother would a foal, Luna eased her spell in. Twilight's ley-lines shimmered and glowed in Luna's vision, waves of indigo working its way down.
When they reached her hooves without a hitch, Luna let out a breath she didn't know she held in the first place. As soon as her relief began, though, it was replaced with hopelessness and despair.
Green dots appeared everywhere along Twilight's ley-lines, populating her like bacteria on a forgotten crumb.
Luna licked her lips, exhaling with a tremble to match her body. No time to worry, though, she reminded herself. Time was not with her. Time was her enemy. Another soft wisp of magic went through their link. Akin to plucking diamonds from magma, the room for error was slim.
The first, and the largest, was a blockage by Twilight's mind. At the reservoir of her wellspring, striking here first would help in increasing her flow. Luna inched her spell around it, almost feeling the tough, fibrous, prickly burs that congested her pathways. Millimeter by millimeter, Luna tugged it in one direction or another, unhooking each barb that had been sunk in. As long as there were no major tears, she would be okay.
With a sigh of relief, the bur came loose. Luna guided it out of Twilight and into the link, where she vaporized it with a jolt of magic. Twilight squirmed momentarily, and Luna held her breath once more. But the younger alicorn fell back into her slumber, for once releasing a low, long exhale.
The arcano-poison burs were removed one by one. For even the giant arteries, it was tough, painstaking work. Luna had to stop every few minutes to wipe the sweat away, the salt already burning her eyes. Slowly but surely, her ley-lines began to clear and expand, creeping back up to the capacity they once held.
The smaller tributaries posed a greater problem. Magnification and fine-tuning of Luna's spells became necessary, placing an exponentially greater strain on her concentration and magic. Her mind protested, throbs of pain lancing up and down her temples. Her body threatened to give in, legs weak and breaths heavy. But her heart remained true, pounding at her ribs until they would seem to vaporize into dust, keeping her on guard and focused. Now was not a time to relent. The small leg on the clock trekked onward.
Seven burs were left. Seven auto-injectors of alicorn-crippling poison still remained. Maneuvering her spell with the barest of touches, Luna grasped one of them, unhooking each spike with utmost care. She should have warned Twilight about the Discordian remnants that still remained outside of Equestria. The chances were so very slim, and the fool inside her had dismissed the possibility of this, of the soul-wrenching scenario before her. If only she had been more careful, if only she hadn't been so reserved, this all could have been avoided. The alicorn trap wouldn't have been activated.
A red strobe of light burst forth from the ley-line she was working on.
Fracture the moon and extinguish the stars, she was destined to be a failure! In the midst of her reverie, she had lost focus and torn a breach in the vein!
Panicking, Luna did the only thing that came to her mind: suspension. Suspension on a normal pony was taxing. Casting suspension on an alicorn, well, her limitless wellspring might well just run dry and snuff out forever.
But there was no alternative. The whole plan was already dire enough, another gamble was the only option she had. Every ounce of magic was summoned, incantations screaming from her mouth like a spirit possessed. She desperately prayed to the heavens, to Creation and to Uncreation, to even the sun that she had enough.
"I'm sorry."
Luna watched through the link as a tidal wave was exchanged between herself and Twilight. The flaring wall of indigo worked up to Twilight's wellspring, hovering there for a moment as an aura began to form. Her magic then solidified around Twilight's reservoir, forming a temporary, invincible barrier that protected her from further harm. Her mind would not be able to function, but her body would be able to run and heal as normal, as if nothing had transpired to begin with.
The urge to succumb to unconsciousness was overpowering. It tempted Luna like a horizon oasis before the desert traveler, whispering her name. She was depleted, she needed to refill and rest. There would be no harm done, it assured her.
But the mirage could not fool her just yet. Her heart threatened to abandon its duties entirely if she did, submerging her into sleep forever. Drawing the last wisps of arcane willpower she could, Luna set to work on the fissure in Twilight's ley-line. She infused it with ancient rites, words of old that rebuilt mystic tissue. She infused her magic with whatever passion she could, extra bits of energy to aid her cause. The gash began to creep back together, as slow and agonizing as waiting for a flame to go out on one's skin. The mending completed in over an hour, a stitched-scar forming over the wound.
With the world around her beginning to grow hazy, Luna ordered herself to remove the last of the burs. The order of an alicorn could be ignored by nothing equestrian, no matter how large or small. Even their conscience and magic obeyed when their true voices came to the fore. Like the forces of the heavenly bodies, their will was not disputed or challenged, only surrendered to.
The last bur was obliterated from existence, crushed between planes of existence as Luna let her pent-up fury come down upon it. With every green dot in her vision gone, Twilight's ley-lines began to oscillate and grow. Her body had been cleansed, but at a cost. Suspension had been placed upon her wellspring, and now her entire being and soul relied on what ruled beneath the mind.
The heart was a wild, swaying, moveable monarch. It was manic, prone to tsunamis of mood-swings, and impulsive. But if it was anything, it was not a fool. It could argue and dispute as well as any cranium could, but its reasoning came from a different source.
Luna fell to the floor, holding herself up by the frame of the cot. Her crown fell to the ground with a muffled clatter, and her muscles had long since grown numb, just now losing all semblance of support. Her vision was failing her further, clarity slimmed down to tunnel-vision. Her ears were ringing high-frequencies, nausea holding her stomach in a vise. The thoughts streaming through her shredded conscious tangled themselves like idle cables, bleeding into each other like mixed ink. In a sense, she too had rendered her mind incapable, sanctioning off the luxuries of her wellspring and hindering everything else with its depletion. Only her heart remained.
And so the two must converse, one to save another, to catch it as it ran through the fields before it slipped over the edge.
"Twilight?"
"Twilight, are you there?"
"Please, Twilight, heed my worried call. I need to know. I cannot rest until I am assured you are well."
"I am safe." A voice replied. It sounded like Twilight, but also not. Its high frequencies were gone, the bright, raised, learned crisps of her tone silent. In its stead were more of the lower variety, of warmth and life and rumbles and heartbeats. In the absence of thought, emotion filled its place.
Butterflies fluttered.
"Oh, how joyously relieved I am!" Luna rose high. "The very sound of your voice, it mellows my qualms, as it always has. Are you well? I wish to do whatever I can to help you recover."
"Luna, please..." Anxious tremors reached her heart. "You've done more for me than I can ever do for you."
"Do not feel as if you must repay me. Your attention and care given to this old soul has been more than enough."
"That isn't what I mean. The feelings that hold me down, I couldn't ask you to shoulder them."
"I promise you on my moon, I can. We can do it, together."
"Please..." The beats from Twilight's heart softened to a murmur. "You don't know what ground you're walking upon. You don't know what you're doing."
"Twilight, I have seen meteors rain from the sky, I have watched fire burst from the earth. I have repulsed and mitigated them with brawn, I have channeled them with grace. Think not of what challenges I must overcome, because I can rise above them. And I will, as long as it ensures you are well."
"Luna..."
"Twilight, I understand your trepidation. You have been in immense peril, and you have had to watch, muffled and unable to communicate, the horror taking over your body." Luna whimpered. "Please, allow me to help you."
"You don't understand."
"What?" Luna cried. "What do I not know, what can I not comprehend? My mind may be dormant, my logic may be undone, but here, we can only speak in ways we know how. Your feelings, your fears, I have been alive long enough that they are no foreign tongue to me."
"I said you do not understand! You cannot look in the mirror and tell me you understand!" Twilight's heart skipped a beat altogether.
In the link between them, silence placed its boot. No messages could be relayed, no telegram could spark through the asphyxiating fog. Luna waited, the information linking itself together with its lost piece. She felt her physical body slump to the ground.
At long last, a light shone through.
Twilight reached out to her. "I'm sorry."
"Think nothing of it."
"No... Luna, you are as dead and dying as I am, held aloft by the barest of sparks on the tile floor. On top of everything I feel for you, now this guilt weighs heavy, trying to pull me under."
"Twilight, tell me what I must do," Luna plead. "I may be hanging by a thread, but on this thread I'll still move mountains for you." For moments, only silence awaited her, stretching out like the voids of eternity.
The soft pitter-pattering of Twilight's heart slowly faded in. "Please, Luna... stop. Just... forgive me, and let's go back to how it used to be."
"I can't."
"Please..." Twilight begged, the soft hum of her heart starting to slip away.
"I won't." Luna's body stirred, hooves twitching. "I am not going to let you go down a similar path I did. The mind can poison the heart with its worrying and doubts." She picked up her head, shuffling her legs. "Your mind may not remember these words, but your heart will still remember how it feels."
"Luna." The night alicorn could feel her tears, burning through her like lava.
"Twilight, let your emotions free. I will not be angry with you, regardless of their tone. The mind may have its secrets, but the heart needs its confidante." Unsure hooves hooked back onto the cot, pulling herself up. "I have done this all for you, I have put my own self on the line, you are correct. However, I want you not to feel guilt, but instead to feel safe. I tell you this bluntly, because you must realize, somepony cares enough to go these lengths. In light of this, what does a few errant worries matter?"
The throbs of Twilight's heart shook the very link they talked through. "They aren't useless or unimportant," Twilight whispered. "They've been with me for years now, growing and hoping and deflating and crying at each glance, at each conversation. To open them up and lose them, I don't think..."
"Do not think. Twilight, tell me what you feel, what you want." Luna rose further from the floor.
The link rumbled and screeched further. "I can't..."
"Yes, you can. I trust you."
"Please..." The sobs disrupted the link altogether, her sniffles cutting in and out.
"Twilight–"
"Stop."
"I won't."
The link glitched and flashed, on the verge of collapse. But Twilight still wasn't secure, and the lingering poison in her body could very well overcome her if she remained in her distress. The heart of an alicorn did much more than pump blood, and all of its healing properties would be needed, not tied down by old chains.
Defibrillators primed, the jolt could either revive or extinguish, and she had no clue which.
Luna cast her voice out into the abyss. "Twilight, I love you."
All held calm. The link prevailed, the soft thumping of a foreign heart still in the background. Luna couldn't tell whose it was, but something told her that her own had stopped seconds ago.
Then, as quick as it came, the link shattered completely.
-~-
Consciousness drifted in and out like a light on its dying filament. Each stumbled step passed between eons, and Luna could barely make out the form in her aura's grasp. There she was, Princess Twilight Sparkle, Ducissa ad Crepusculum, The Seventeenth Grand Mage, The Empress of Magic, and The Overseer of Literature, curled up like a foal before her. The magic cradle balanced on a disciplinal pinprick, summoned from a wellspring that gave up long ago.
Before the door Luna stumbled and fell, bloodying her nose on the tiles below. Pain signals were beat out by those of horror, lifting her head up as her nose grew numb. Twilight still hovered in the air, set in a flickering basket. A tiny breath escaped her lips.
Pawing at the door, she managed to haul herself into a sitting position. She crudely used her hooves to grapple at the doorknob, her magic incapable of anything more than keeping Twilight afloat. Even if she put her down, her magic wouldn't respond to the knob anyway.
Her shoed hooves wouldn't respond. They simply slipped off, the maxurite accessories too smooth to grip onto the brass machination. Luna felt hot tears ring her eyelids, threatening to pour out as despair welled up inside her.
She sat on the floor for minutes on end, beginning to numb over in her hind legs. It would be too easy to collapse here on the floor. The temptation worked its smooth tongue like Nightmare Moon had all those years ago. But she couldn't. Something felt wrong, something felt as if the cool ground would sap the very last heat from her and Twilight. It could not be. It would not.
Drawing a foreleg up to her face, Luna tried to pull off one of the shoes. The gemstone hurt in her mouth, feeling as if her teeth would come out as she gripped it with all her might. She brought her hoof down, but her jawed vise was not good enough. The shoe budged an inch away from it's normal spot.
It felt like her molars had been wrenched out. Pain shocked up her face and around her jaw like a thunderbolt arcing down a tree, burning everything in its wake. Tears began to roll down her cheeks. Yet there was no alternative. The lancing process was done again. And again. And again. And again. With a clatter, the first shoe came off.
Time began to pass like the trees under a pegasus as she worked her second shoe. Her face grew numb, along with the creeping non-sensation in her hind legs, now halfway up her back. Twilight hovered over her, as absolute and vital as ever.
Grasping the doorknob, leaning and holding on to it for dear life, she twisted as best she could. The door opened and Luna fell inside, collapsing again on the floor.
She tried to shake her head, but the haze in her vision refused to go away. Picking herself up onto her dead hooves, Luna stumbled forward. Each step came between barren seconds, steadying herself for each climb. Inching across the room, the fuzzy blob of a bed grew in size.
Beginning to smell triumph, her senseless legs gave out again. Temptation sent Luna sprawling to the floor, hitting her nose again as a fresh wave of pain seared her neurons. Coughing and whimpering, she looked up. Twilight remained, but her aura did not.
Her magic didn't even have the extra energy to emit light. Every arcanon was dedicated to keeping her afloat. Breaths growing rasped, Luna used her naked hooves to crawl closer.
Her astral mane and tail died out, replaced by its native light azure. They trailed limply behind her, slow, solemn, and staggered, like a funeral procession. Her form shrunk, the very last essences of magic depleting from her as they were consumed for one final task.
Darkness edging into her obscured sight, Luna set Twilight down, so gentle her body hardly moved the mattress. With one last look, she watched the purple form breathe softly, her chest rising and fall in placid rhythm.
With one last smile, Luna let the darkness overcome her.
-~-
The midnight mare awoke in a world devoid of light, warm and cramped as if the Umbra itself was threatening pull her underneath the plane of existence, into the realm of dead stars and lost gods.
But as she shuffled in her daze, white shafts of light that poked through her windows pierced the sky like javelins. With a groan she put her hooves up to her eyes, brushing her leg against a familiar texture. Feeling around, she discovered them to be feathers. Peeking through her blinds, she spied a particular mare sleeping against her.
Looking up, Luna saw the outstretched wings covering her like a shield. Poofs of foreign breath swayed her azure mane. The familiar scent of sandalwood and lavender coalesced about her senses. Resigned, accepting peace made way for energy.
Luna's heart leapt as realization sunk in. Hooves trembling as she pushed them outward, she touched Twilight's shoulder. Her coat felt as soft as ever. Luna blinked and prodded her again.
Twilight's eyes cracked open. Her lovely violet irises settled on Luna for a moment, the breaths between them freezing over. Eternity could freeze-frame, and the lunar alicorn would be none the sadder. They stared for eons on end, daring existence to bear its head. Under the aether of dawn light and indigo blankets, reality forfeited its grasp.
She smiled. No teeth showed, and only the barest of dimples rising in her cheeks. Her eyes widened, revealing more of their gorgeous hue. Purple hair laid mussed and frayed over her forehead, while her horn glowed in the faintest of auras. But what struck Luna most was the halo of light enveloping around her in the white, infant sun.
With less than a cognitive spark, Luna reached forward and kissed her. Bliss and nirvana achieved, death could strike her once again and she'd smile all the way down.
Twilight was, at first, shocked into paralysis. But as Luna wrapped her hooves around her, so did her faculties reignite. The kiss was soft and tender, like the dance of an idle feather in the wind, swaying and moving when the time was right. She let out a long, satisfied breath through her nose, nudging her way closer.
The warm glow of peace settled in Luna's chest, her stomach too filled with butterflies for any extra room. They pressed up against each other, feeling the other breathe and live, eyes closed and life slowing to the wonderful rhythm of the moment. Lost in it, the two surrendered themselves to the present, letting time pass by with reckless abandon.
Their kiss died like a crackling fire, winding down a long slope of lighter pecks, nuzzles, and holds. Luna kissed her forehead, before burying her nose in Twilight's mane. The long draught was enough for a lifetime, settling her soul like an old dog on its porch.
Twilight kissed once more, before pulling her head away. "Luna, that was..." Color still remained on her cheeks. She gesticulated with her hooves but could only come up with an excited giggle. "I don't even know. I'm so confused but– but I really don't care."
"Perhaps I shouldn't explain," Luna murmured between a yawn, setting her head on a pillow and watching Twilight with content, relaxed eyes.
Twilight squeaked, her face turning volcanic. "Wait, what?! We didn't– I mean I've never drank before– Oh my gosh on my first time my first time and I don't even remember and that explains why I'm in your bed and what if ponies think that I'm some sort of hwuhff fwufff fwuff uff!"
Luna had planted a hoof over her mouth, having the dignity to look flustered herself. "No. Nothing of the sort, not ye– not, it's not like..." She sighed, trying to regroup. "We only slept in the same bed. Nothing of that sort happened, I think," pulling her hoof away, she set her head back down, her voice lowering into a more somber octave, "and last night wasn't worth remembering, anyway."
"What? Why?" Twilight gave her a confused look.
Luna averted her eyes, trying to find the words to say.
Soft lips pressed up against her own. It was another blanket of bliss, even if only lasting a fraction of their previous encounter.
Twilight looked into her eyes, but a smirk still touched her face. "Luna, what is it? We just kissed–" a giggle escaped her as she still had difficulties comprehending the notion, "–for the first time, and you're getting mopey on me already? Come on," she nuzzled her warmly, "smile a bit, you goof."
Pain lanced through Luna, unable to stomach destroying Twilight's delicate ecstasy. Part of her wanted to give in and enjoy their simple, complete moments together. But the longer suspension was still on her, the more they ran the risk of adverse effects. As noted with Twilight's glowing horn, her ley lines were still running wild.
"I'm sorry."
A pit sunk into her stomach. It would only be a matter of time before the unsuspended mind began replaying memories.
As if on queue, Twilight's face began contorting with discomfort. "Oh... You... You came to help me, you were looking down at me like you were terrified." Twilight frowned. "What magic did you cast on me, Luna? Why– why were you so scared? ...It was all just a dream, right, Luna?"
Luna gulped, chewing at her lower lip. The dam had broken, and now the water would begin pouring in.
Twilight blanched, distress forming in the creases along her forehead. "Luna, what happened? You– You look so weak!" Quick exhales streamed through her lungs. "This is, this is a dream! Luna, tell me this is a dream! It can't be–" She squeaked as Luna knew what happened next, time flicking by in her gush of memories. Her mouth hung agape in horror.
Luna inched herself closer.
Twilight's hooves were trembling like autumn leaves, the cruel projector of the mind running non-stop. "Luna..." With a final shudder, a broken sob escaped her lips. She dripped down to the blankets below.
The mare of the moon pulled her into an embrace. "It's okay, Twilight."
The younger alicorn looked up to her, eyes beginning to puff and redden. She sniffled. "It's– it's not!" she blubbered. "You! You almost... for me!"
Guilty chains battled against underlying compassion. "I know, Twilight." Luna massaged her back. "It was a risk I was fully prepared to take."
"But... but..."
Luna silenced her with a kiss. "Shh, it's okay. We are both safe now." she whispered in her ear. "I know it must have been scary, Twilight. Let it all go."
"But– but– but I could've... I could've never told you," Twilight wormed in closer to Luna, holding her tighter.
Luna nuzzled her chin, forcing the young mare to look into her eyes. "Of all those times we have spent together, amongst all we have been through... I knew. You were sincere and open, traits nopony, not even my own sister, grant me. I was valued not for my power, or intellect, or fame, or my beauty, but rather myself, whole, for my faults and my strengths, most of which few ponies but yourself know. Even before... all this, you had given me so much." She could feel her chin begin to tremble. "I know it appears cliché, but it's true. And from those memories, those experiences of midnight reprieves into the gardens, or reading together in silence while nopony showed up to Court..." She closed her eyes, two tears eeking out and rolling down her cheeks. "There was always somepony there with me, for me. You never gave up on me, no matter how heated or annoyed or aggravated or ridiculous I became." She sniffled, blinking as her chin trembled and tears flowed again. "And so I was not to give up on you. Twilight, I love you. And come hell or high water, I always will. Always."
Twilight's horn finally went out.
With that, the world popped. A seal on the door broke, and the sounds of the world around them exploded into life. The pounding on the door, the murmurs of hundreds outside, all that came crashing down upon them.
The ebony doors burst open. Celestia strode in.
"Luna, Twilight! Are you both alright? It's been a week and we've been trying forever to get inside."
Luna cleared her throat, wiping her eyes as best she could. "Sister, she is fine. Now could we–"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I am quite sure. It appears her suspended heart had taken things into its own hooves." Luna looked past her, to see a whole host of guards, doctors, mages, and the like waiting beyond the doorway.
Celestia put a hoof over her chest. "Thank the heavens." She sighed. "I am glad to see you both are doing okay."
"I appreciate it, Celly. Now–"
"How about the long-term effects of suspension? Are you confident she hasn't been harmed? Perhaps she should see a doctor."
"I promise you, she is well. I will get her to Doctor Ship Shape in due time." Luna cleared her throat. "Now, if you would be so kind..." She flicked her eyes from Celestia to Twilight. "We could use some privacy."
Celestia froze for a heartbeat, before her lips worked into a sly, knowing grin. "Of course, of course. It finally happened." She gave them a wink. "Well then, I shall leave you to it. Enjoy your day, both of you."
The door closed soon after, but the world did not revert to its previous state. The low roar of life, of all its noises and sounds muffled by the blanket of distance and walls, continued to work its way between the them. The placid silence was gone.
Twilight nuzzled her chest.
Luna gave her a look, reversing a frown she wasn't aware she held. With that, she returned the gesture and fell back to her pillow.
Twilight smiled, tear trails still lingering on her cheeks, and worked up beside her. She let a long breath go through her nose, looking at Luna with content eyes.
Luna yawned.
Twilight's smile grew, dimples popping up on her face. Her aura grabbed the blankets from further down the bed and pulled it over them. Her hooves found Luna's shoulders, and she pulled her closer.
A kiss set the midnight mare down.
Luna opened her eyes to find Twilight's, just as she had before. Nothing had changed, they were still the beautiful rings of amethyst as always. They remained like that for a while, blinking occasionally as their chests met in tune with their breathing.
Serenity was settling. The moon could ascend and the twilight could dance with it.
As her eyelids began to falter and shut, Luna found that same smile upon her lips, the same as when she laid on the floor, on the last wisp of life. She had been ready to give in, to succumb to the fates. But this time, it was not surrendering to time or space or destiny or science.
It was to her.