> Love for Honor
>  by Warwolf
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> No.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


 Love for Honor



Chapter One:



No.


 


  


















    Remind me again why I love this? Yugure Kirameku thought to herself as she slammed her locker shut. She was a girl in her late teens—just on the cusp of turning twenty, in fact—of Japanese-American descent, with a lush figure, dark purple hair with a pink stripe in it, and purple eyes set into a face with a petite nose and full ivory white lips. Hers was a face that was what many would consider to be classically beautiful. Her figure attracted as much, if not more attention than her face. She smiled as a face flashed through her mind. Oh. Right. She chuckled. Then picked up her bag and headed for the exit.

    "Having fun yet?" a male voice asked her, causing her to turn with a playful roll of her eyes. The speaker was a male about her own age, a few inches taller than her and of caucasian appearance. His hair was brown with auburn highlight that were natural so far as she could tell, and had hazel eyes. Though she would swear that at times when he was angry, they changed color. But every time that thought came to her she shoved it away. Had to be a trick of the light. Right?

    "You know me, Marc. This is one of the few things I absolutely adore doing." Yugure said with a snicker. "Not the least of which is because it gives me an opportunity to try to peep on you in the locker room."

    "Oh, like you really need to peep in public, you perv." Marc replied with a laugh and a light nudge in the side. "It's not like we don't see all of each other at home."

    Blushing, Yugure looked down the street. Times Square wasn't far. Perhaps a block or two.

    "Wanna hit 2 Bros.?" she asked. "I know you can't resist a slice after a workout like this."

    "You know, I kinda think I would. But don't you have an appointment to keep?"

    Eyes going wide with shock, she let out a yelp and dashed off, her cry of "Shimatta!" echoing in his ears as he laughed.

    "Go get'em, hot stuff." he said, turning towards the pizza parlor, shaking his head in amusement, and making a mental note to himself to get a box. Yugure would kill him if he didn't save her a slice. Then again, the reverse was also true. It was just how they were. 





    Yugure ran down the street. She was going to just make it, even if she did hit a few don't walk lights. That didn't stop her from checking her watch every few minutes though. If there was one thing she hated, it was being late, or even the prospect of being late.  Passing another two blocks at a brisk jog, not yet feeling the need to run all out, Yugure thought she saw a flash of white pass through a window. Had it been dark enough for the cars on the road to be turning on their headlights, she might have thought nothing of it. But it was the shape of the light that had her slowing to stare at the window of the clothes shop where she had seen it dart past.


    No...I must be imagining things. she thought to herself, shaking her head to clear away the image and began her trek again. I don't know why I'm even thinking about them at all.

    It was when the odd shadow passed her by again on a building that was almost entirely mirrored glass that she began to think it hadn't been her imagination. The shape was fairly recognizable. Something she never thought to see in her life again.

    Forget it, Yugure. You're imagining things. Now get your tight little ass in gear or you'll be late. The voice in her head sounded suspiciously like that of Marc, and so with reddened cheeks at how the voices in her head were starting to sound like him, she headed off again, this time at a dead run.

    Had she stuck around a bit longer, she might have noticed the shape of the light change, as though it were looking for something. Or that the shape seemed to be tracking her path as she ran full bore down the sidewalk.





    Yugure, clad in only a nightshirt that was deliberately a size and a half too small, flopped down onto the bed when she returned to the apartment she and Marc shared. He was pretending to be asleep, like usual. But she knew him too well by now to be fooled. So when his arms wrapped themselves around her, she didn't so much as give it a second thought, and snuggled deeper into his embrace and gave a happy little sigh of exhaustion at the kiss he planted on the top of her head.

    "Put you through the wringer again, huh? One would think you were too tired to say hello." Marc asked with a light laugh. Yugure rolled her neck a bit.

    "Mmm. Sensei's still as much a slave driver as he ever was." she replied, nipping at his neck playfully after a moment or two. "But I'm never too tired for you, Goshunjinsama." she said, and gave him a sultry look. Marc raised a brow. Yugure blushed and looked away.

    "What happened?" he asked. She shook her head.

    "Nothing." Yugure replied, though she made a point to keep her eyes averted.

    He gently cupped her chin and drew her gaze to him.

    "You don't start calling me that unless something's bothering you."

    "I do so. I call you that all the time." she protested.

    "Only when I already have you tied down and squirming in ecstasy." he replied. "I can't remember the last time you called me that without being upset. Or when you feel the need to hurt. And that one I still don't get." Marc said. He refused to let her look away this time when she tried to avoid his gaze. Yugure shivered. Despite the fact that she didn't want to talk about it, she loved when he was firm and commanding with her like this. "What. Happened?"

    "Nothing. Watashi wa chikau." He didn't look convinced. "I'm serious. I just...I just saw an odd distortion of lights today and it...well, reminded me of things I haven't thought about in a long time."

    Marc let his grip on her chin ease and pressed in for a rough kiss which Yugure returned with a hungry abandon, their tongues wrestling with each other, as she let out a little 'mmff.." of pleasure at the kiss as they held it for a few moments. He cupped one of her breasts and she arched herself into his palm, pressing as close as she could to it. They came up for air a few moments later.

    "Onegai, Goshujinsama." she said, giving him her best look of desire and submission. "Watashi wa anata o kou, watashi wa, kono kon'ya o motte mimashou."

    "You know I can't understand more than ten words of Japanese. And those are all Kaiju names." he teased. But then nipped her nose playfully. "Get up. Stand at the foot of the bed. The usual position."

    "Hai, Goshujinsama." She replied in as soft a tone as she could manage. Yugure slid off the bed, moving to the foot of the bed as instructed, and moved her hands behind her back, forcibly thrusting her large breasts out as she held her arms behind her, palm gripping the opposing elbow, and cast her eyes down to the floor submissively. With Yugure's eyes focused downward, she had to depend on her other senses, and with the rustle from the bed, knew Marc was in motion. The light thump of bare feet on the carpeted floor sent a shiver of anticipation up her spine. He was nude. He always was on nights this hot. Even with the air conditioner on, he preferred to sleep nude more often than not. She never minded. He came up behind her, running his hands slowly upwards, teasingly lightly. His fingers barely made contact with her skin as they slid up her legs, towards her thighs. She shivered again, this time from the contact.

    His fingers slid up to her shirt, barely making an impression as they moved up along the sides of her stomach and ribs. When Marc's hands came up to her breasts, they came forward from where they had been running up her sides, cupping them each in one palm. She had been blessed here as she had everywhere else, with a beautiful set of 37DDs. Yugure felt her neck and head seemingly go limp over his left shoulder, her hair dangling almost past her knees at this angle as he caressed her chest through the shirt, even as she let out a low moan. With her back arched like this, she couldn't help but have them press into his grip. This strained the shirt even more around her breasts, giving them more definition, and showing Marc— as if it wasn't obvious to begin with— that she wore no bra beneath it. He smirked, and let his fingers dig into the shirt, and popped it open, sending the buttons flying. She gasped in pleasure, arching her breasts up still further as he pulled the shirt down from her shoulders, exposing her chest. Between her breasts sat what seemed to be a gem that had melded with her flesh. A gem in the shape of a six pointed star. The gemflesh moved and rolled with her breasts as she leaned back mode heavily against him as he nipped her ear, causing her to turn her head to face him.

    "Mine." he said, his tone possessive and tinged with sexual aggression. She shivered at the tone and nodded.

    "Eien ni." she replied, and they kissed again. She still held her arms tightly in the position he had demanded. Their tongues danced for a few moments as he kneaded her breasts, before playing with each nipple, rolling them between thumb and forefinger, pinching them as they stiffened in response to his ministrations. This kiss was shorter than the first they had shared. He nudged her and she stood straight again, eyes once more aimed straight down at the floor through half-lidded eyes. He pushed lightly on her shoulders, and she sank down onto her knees without any argument or resistance.

    "Goshujinsama. Anata no dorei wa anata o yorokoba seru nodesu ka?" Yugure asked as she felt him move his hands to her arms and pull them apart. She released her grip obediently and let her pull her shirt free entirely, revealing her nude form to him, as her arms came to rest on the floor at her sides. He put a finger lightly at the top of her head, and she bowed it, eyes closing. She had spoken out of turn and knew it. But with a simple gesture, he allowed her to make amends. "Wakarimashita. Watashi wa sarugutsuwa sa reru niataisuru. Kono ataishinai dorei no kuchi o damara shite kudasai." she said. He didn't know much Japanese, but he knew a few phrases. This was one she had helped him learn.

    "Good girl." Marc replied. He pulled his finger away and Yugure could hear him moving to the closet on the far side of the room, opening a chest within it. A small shiver of anticipation wove its way through her. When he stepped back her way, Marc knelt behind her, and lifted her chin with a finger. She did not resist. "Keep your eyes closed, slave."

    "Hai, Goshujinsama...." she replied in little more than a whisper. She soon felt metal pressing against her lips. Metal surrounded by leather, and with a center of leather inside the ring. Yugure blushed as she opened her mouth and felt the ring gag slip behind her teeth. She pushed her tongue against the plug that sat in the ring's center, feeling more leather against her face and quickly being cinched up behind her head, though he was considerate enough to move her hair out of the way, so that the straps could not be easily seen from the back or sides, with an inverted y-strap going over her nose and also being added in. The plug was connected to the leather that snugged against her chin by a chain. The harness plug gag was a favorite of hers, partly for the helplessness it engendered. "Mmmppphhhh..." she moaned into it. "Thhhnnnkk yhhh, mssstrrrr..."

    "Are your eyes still closed?" Marc asked, and she nodded. "Good girl." He took her by the arms and she pulled herself to her feet with his help. "Keep them closed. Bow your head." When her head bowed, Yugure soon after felt the coolness of a lace sleep mask slide over her face, effectively blindfolding her. A few moments later, she felt the cool leather collar he had bought for her birthday being fitted snugly about her neck and she shivered when she heard it snap in place, locking itself about her throat. He took her by the shoulders again, and guided her back onto the bed. Yugure offered no resistance. When she was laid down on the bed, Marc pulled her arms up over her head and cuffed them to the headposts. She felt his fingers tease over her sides down to her hips. A few moments passed, while those fingers weaved patterns along her outer thighs. She squirmed in pleasure from it.

    "Mmmpphhh...dddnnnhhh tssss mhhh..." she said. Or tried to. If there was one thing they both agreed on, it was a love of how the gag muffled her words. He reached up with one hand and tweaked her nose.

    "Slaves don't talk back to their owners." Marc said, with a laugh in his tone. She still made the effort to look as apologetic as she could with her eyes and mouth obstructed. He brushed a finger over her inner left thigh, making her wriggle at the sensation.

    "Mmmppphhh! Thhht thhhkklllsss....!" she whined through the gag. And he laughed with her, before blowing gently on her nipples. The move took her by complete surprise, extorting a gasp from her as she tried to arc her breasts into it. He stopped blowing on her nipples, and instead moved in to nibble on the left one, playing thumb and forefinger around the right. He had left her legs unsecured, and she felt incredible temptation to try to pull him closer to her with them. When Marc pulled his mouth from her nipple she let out a little whine of frustration at the teasing. He smiled at her, though she couldn't see it. Then leaned in to begin laying a line of kisses up from the strange jewelflesh that rested between her breasts— which she jumped in surprise from. The sensation of feeling him paying attention to that bit of her when blindfolded always took her off guard— up to her collarbone and then along one side of her neck to nibble at the undersides of her jaw, even as he slide onto the bed. She opened her legs to invite him to use her. It was as much as she dared. She felt him move to rest between her legs, still nibbling and licking at her jawline, but made no move to accept the invitation she as a slave had offered her Master. Not yet at least.

    "Mssstrrr..hlssss... Nddd ihhh....hlsss...ngg yhhh...ihhhsssiidd...." she pleaded as his hands were now both occupied. One at her right breast, the other groping her left buttock.

    "Your Master chooses what you need and when, slave." he whispered sternly into her ear and she shivered in pleasure at the tone . But nodded.

    "Ysss mssstrr...." she whimpered into the plug gag. Though inside her own head, she was far from happy with being denied her role. Please, please don't tease me, Master. she thought. I need to serve tonight. I'm bound, gagged....perfectly helpless to do anything but serve. I need to be put to use....


    It seemed that between the whimpering moans and her trying to keep from pulling her legs together around him without permission, Marc had picked up on how hard she was trying not to give in to her needs. For he chuckled lightly. "Alright..no more teasing." he said.  She let out a sigh of relief through her nose. She was already aroused, and so when he entered her, she was slick enough that he slid in with little trouble.

    "Mmmpphhhh...." she groaned as her hips arced up to meet him as he buried himself to the base even as he laid himself against her so they laid chest to chest. He gave a low rumbling growl of pleasure. One that she would melt for every time. She unconsciously wrapped her legs around his waist. he raised no objections as he began to roll his hips, never fully exiting her, and each stroke of his hips was firm, though not intended to harm. She tried to meet his rhythm, but with her arms bound she was dependant on his grip on her ass, as he shifted his arms to hold her steady, to allow her to respond to the pleasure she was receiving with equal pleasure for him as she squeezed as much as she could along his member. Pressed against her as he was, and with her arms bound, Yugure couldn't do much from an upper body standpoint but try to rub her breasts against his chest, nuzzling at his cheek as best she could. He pulled the plug loose and moved to give her something resembling a kiss, their tongues meeting in a strange kind of dance. The pleasure Yugure was being subjected to meant her breath came in short pants, all the while pulling at her cuffs and arching her breasts as much as she could into him, wishing that she would be free to hold her Master. But Marc left her bound to the headboard, thrusting inside of her with rough, but not painfully so, strokes of his shaft inside her. She shuddered at one particular thrust which hit a particularly sensitive and pleasurable spot. She gripped tighter with her legs, trying to guide him back to that point. Marc allowed himself to be guided, and soon he was once more counting his blessings that they had thought to have their bedroom soundproofed as Yugure was soon screaming in pleasure as she came, and not long afterwards he came as well....



 
   As Yugure's eyes cracked open, the first thing her eyes slid to was the alarm clock. The digital numbers glowed a bright red in the darkness and told her it was about four in the morning.

    I never do seem to ever get a full eight hours sleep. she thought to herself, looking over to Marc, whom had his arms wrapped around her. He had released her arms from the cuffs while she was still recovering from their last bout of lovemaking, at which point she had been tired enough that she hadn't even felt it. But she had clearly moved to reciprocate the grasp he had on her as one of her arms was draped over his back and shoulders. How the hell does he manage it? Does he get in a power nap when I'm not looking or something?

    That thought brought her up short and she shook her head, snorting through her nose in mild anger. No. If he was able to do that I'd catch him at it at least once in awhile. He's the type who sleeps like the dead unless something wakes him up and he hits the snooze button so much when he first wakes up it's a miracle he gets anything done.


    Yugure took a few moments to pull herself free from Marc, not wanting to disturb him. While he might sleep like the dead, he could be awoken, given the right conditions. She remembered the first time she had had a nightmare after moving in with him. He had been up in seconds, working to calm her down and offering what comfort to her he could. He had left the gag on her, as he sometimes did. Mostly because she'd asked him to do it since she felt that the gag would prevent her from waking him up if she were ripped back into wakefulness. He wasn't happy about the idea any more than he was about her occasional need for pain. But he indulged her. It was something she loved about him. She removed her gag and set it on the nightstand. She might put it back on later if she were to feel the desire to either go back to sleep or just to continue playing the role of the submissive slave. They both enjoyed how she sounded when gagged, after all, and it always made her happy to see him enjoying himself while around her.

    Stepping into the bathroom, Yugure caught sight of the collar still around her neck when she flipped on the lights, leaving her looking at the mirror across from the doorway and light switch. She ran a finger over it, smiling. If she could have, she would have worn it all the time. But since neither she nor Marc wanted people looking at them funny, she wore it only every so often at home. Usually during their nighttime fun. She undid the collar and set it on the table just outside the bathroom before closing the door and starting up the shower, which she stepped into once the water was warm enough.

    Yugure found her mind wandering back to earlier in the night. That shape had resembled nothing so much as an Alicorn. Frighteningly so, in fact. She wanted to play it off as a trick of the light. As old memories cropping up as they did now and again. But the more she thought about it, the more she realized how unlikely it was that what she had seen was an optical illusion.

    But why would I see the shape of an alicorn? And what was it doing here on Earth in the first place? she thought to herself, as she scrubbed herself down. No answers presented themselves, so she shook her head, trying to put it out of her mind again. She turned to washing her long hair, and was starting to forget all about her worries over the shape when an odd feeling ran through her. A feeling she hadn't felt in far longer a time than she wanted to think back on. No. I'm imagining it. she thought to herself shaking her head with a wry smile. Letting bad memories make me jump at shadows, that's all. She was rinsing her hair of the shampoo when she heard an odd set of noises. Like something heavy thumping around on the carpet out in the living room. Her eyes narrowed. Marc's still asleep. And the door is locked and double bolted. Yet she would swear that those sounds were familiar. And they weren't stopping. Stepping out of the shower, she quickly wrapped a towel around herself. She wondered if someone had managed to find a way in via one of the fire escapes or something. But that would have meant having to go in through the living room window, or else go through the bedroom she shared with Marc. And she couldn't recall if either of them had been locked tonight. The thumping stopped and Yugure cautiously reached for the doorknob that would let her into the hallway between bathroom and living room.

    Going out in nothing but a towel isn't exactly the smartest thing to do. But staying in here is no better, assuming someone's even out there. Yugure thought to herself. Maybe it's just Marc. He does sometimes wake up out of the blue at times like this. And he's never been able to tell me why since even he doesn't know. Or maybe something in the living room just fell? Cracking open the door slightly, she peeked out. But could see nothing in the hallway from the small angle she was afforded. She wished she had a weapon on hand. Something more easily explained as a method of self defense if she needed to do so. She opened the door and quickly stepped out, sliding it closed and grateful that it was well oiled and made nary a sound. She began to creep towards a closet in the hallway. In it was a taser that Marc had bought her a year and a half ago for her protection due to a string of attacks that had occurred during broad daylight by masked individuals who had been preying on anyone who looked like an easy mark for robbery or worse. She hadn't been thrilled with the device at the time since the crooks were caught less than a month afterwards, but now she was glad of its presence. She was also glad it was waterproof since she was still dripping wet.

    She crept closer towards the living room, hugging the wall as best she could. The thumping began again and this time she could hear it clearly. Yugure's eyes went wide for a moment, before narrowing. The thumping indicated more than one set of feet, which meant multiple intruders. Taser fully activated, she stepped as boldly as she could, ready to plunge the thing into the first unfamiliar form she saw, only to stop dead in complete shock at just what did stand before her.

    What she had mistaken as a pair of intruders was in fact only one. One that had an alabaster coat, wings, a horn, and golden regalia about the hooves and neck. A blue gem sat on the collar about the neck of the intruder and a golden crown sat above the horn, while multi-colored hair flowed in an unseen wind. A tail of the same colors did likewise. The figure before her was one that would have had most people wondering if they were in some kind of bizarre dream. Or if they'd been drugged.

    Yugure felt nothing less than murderous rage at the sight of a being she had hoped would never cross her mind again. However she was still so stunned by the sight that none of that hatred registered in her expression.

    "I imagine this must be quite the shock for you, Mrs. Kirameku." The alicorn said. And oh how well she knew that voice. "I want to apologize for intruding on your home like this. But I need to speak to you. My name is—"

    "Watashi wa anata ga daredearu ka o shitte, bakemono." Yugure snarled, leaving the figure confused as she slipped into Japanese.

    "I beg your pardon?" the alicorn said.

   "You damned well ought to." Yugure snapped, switching back to English. "What do you want?"

    The alicorn looked even more confused. "Forgive me, but you don't seem that surprised to see me." she said.

    "I don't see how that answers my question." Yugure replied. "What do you want?"

    "Mrs. Kirameku—"

    "I'm not married." Yugure cut across the alicorn. "And you still haven't answered my question; What. Do. You. Want?"

    The Alicorn frowned. But sighed. "As I was saying. My name is—"

    "I don't care about introductions. You invaded our home. Get to why you're here."

    The alicorn opened her mouth to retort, but yet another voice cut her off.

    "Yugure, yelling at Celestia is going to get about as much information out of her as trying to get a rock to tap dance." The two females turned to see a still half-asleep looking Marc emerge from the hallway.

    "How is it you know my name?" Celestia asked, her brief shock at seeing Marc in the nude— he hadn't bothered to dress himself— turning to confusion as his words caught up with her. "For that matter, why are you both taking my presence so easily?

    "...." Yugure shook her head in disbelief. "Did the last twenty years make you senile, Celestia? If you were expecting me to start screaming at the sight of you, be glad I'm not. After what you did, I'd love to put a knife in your brain through your eye."

    Princess Celestia's eyes went wide. "....You remember? How?"

    "None of your business, demon!" Yugure snapped. "You were the one I saw earlier today, weren't you?"

    The alicorn nodded. "I was." she said slowly, trying to get a better idea of the situation that she now found herself in, which was far from what she was anticipating. "Twilight—" Celestia was cut off as Yugure moved with surprising speed, lashing out with a sweep kick that sent her splaying to the floor and was on her half a second later, the taser right near her eye and crackling.

    "Don't ever call me that again." Yugure hissed at her. "My name is Yugure. Yugure Kirameku. And so help me if that name ever comes out of your mouth again, we'll find out just what it takes to kill an alicorn. So help me God." the taser crackled again menacingly. "Frankly, I'd love to see if the application of electricity from a taser at full strength to your eye would blow out your brain. But given that the mess would be incredible and having an alien corpse in our apartment would be too hard to explain away and the government would do its damndest to sweep you under the rug and turn us into permanent 'guests' at some hellhole or another, I'm going to be merciful. But next time I won't be so forgiving. Clear?" At the surprised nod, Yugure let go of the diarch and got to her feet, picking up the towel since it had come loose when she attacked, while Celestia did her best to recover her own dignity as she got back to her hooves.
    
"T— Yugure....how do you remember me?" Celestia asked as the girl re-wrapped the towel about her body.

    "None of your business." Yugure repeated. "Why are you here? You made it very clear what you thought of me the last time I had the displeasure of laying eyes on you."

    "Yugure, I just got up. You're pissed, I get it. But let's not draw too much attention to the fucking alien in our midst, hmm?"

    Yugure sighed and nodded. "Hai. You have a point."

    Celestia frowned.

    "I still don't understand how you remember what happened. But I'm here to tell you that your exile has been repealed." the solar Diarch said.

    "Oh how sweet." Yugure retorted. "And let's say I had lost my memories the way you intended. How in the hell would I have been expected to even want to go back to Equestria? I wouldn't have known anything about it."

    "I...have a spell that would have restored your memories." Celestia said, eyes sliding away from the glare her one time pupil was directing at her.

    "I call bullshit." Marc said, causing Celestia to turn to him in confusion. "There's something else going on here that you aren't saying." He was coming more awake now and Celestia briefly winced. "You wouldn't come looking for her after what you did unless you wanted something from her."

    Celestia outright flinched this time. This one's smarter than he seems. she thought to herself. Then looked over at Yugure, who had clearly been watching her reaction with a cold expression. "Yugure, you can come home now. I still don't understand how it is your memory remains intact, but this actually makes things easier. You can surprise them. They were expecting you to have to deal with getting to know them all over again, since the spell would restore your memories but not the emotional connection that you had with them. Think of how happy that will make them, and your family."

    "You really are going senile, Celestia." Yugure snapped. "I told you. I. remember. everything. And they would be no happier to see me than I would to see them after what happened."

    "Even Spike?" Celestia countered, and this time it was Yugure who looked away. "He'd welcome you back with open claws, Yugure. You know that."

    "He'd be the only one." Yugure said. "And I think he'd understand why I wouldn't want to return."

    Celestia couldn't argue with that. She still remembered her last conversation with the young fire breather. "Yugure, please. Come home. The fact that you remember Equestria proves it's where you truly belong. A pony could never live among the people of this world for her entire life."

    "Never seemed to bother Sunset Shimmer any." Yugure bit off. Again Celestia winced. She remembered the great detail with which her former pupil had described the world to which she had gone. In fact had she not noticed certain differences on Earth, she would have assumed that her student had ended up in that same world again. "And I lived an entire life here. This is my home. I'm not going back, Celestia. Whatever it is you're really after, you can forget it. You cast me out twenty years ago. I have no interest in returning."

    "It...hasn't been that long in Equestria, I'm afraid." Celestia replied, shifting uncomfortably. "It's been three years at the most."

    Yugure actually looked surprised at that. But brushed it aside. "That doesn't change anything. I said no, and I mean no. I've got a life here, Celestia, one I'm happy with. Equestria threw me away almost two full decades ago. It has no claim on me. Not now, not ever again."

    "Yugure, please..." Celestia began but the girl turned her back. Marc came up to her, wrapping her in a hug which she readily accepted. He turned to look at Celestia.

    "I don't know how you got here, Celestia. I don't see any open doors or windows. So I'm going to assume teleportation. Do yourself a favor and show yourself out. Or else I'll kick your ass." He said, in a tone that brooked no argument. He still looked highly suspicious of her. She nodded, and sighed.

    "Very well. I'm sorry you don't want to come home, Yugure. Equestria would have been glad to see its lost princess return to her throne." Celestia said. "I...hope to see you again sometime." she added, before she began to glow, vanishing in a burst of light.

    "Kuso." Yugure muttered. "There's no way anybody missed that."

    "Depends on what they're looking for. Magic isn't exactly easy to pin down." Marc returned. "C'mon, let's go back to bed." Yugure didn't argue, letting herself be led into their bedroom, picking up her collar along the way. She moved to put it back on, but he stopped her, nibbling along her neck briefly. "No." he said. "You don't need to wear that again tonight."

    "...Please don't stop me, Marc. I do need this tonight. More than I think you'll ever manage to grasp. Believe me, I know how much you do to try to understand why I need this kind of thing. But after tonight...I really need to wear this. To remind myself where I belong. ...And to who." she smiled, kissing him. It was a hungry kiss. Almost a desperate one. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him as close as she dared, pressing her mouth hard to his, to the point of being nearly painful. When they broke apart, he gave her a sigh and a wry smile, taking the collar from her and closing it around her neck himself. She hugged him a moment later. "Arigato, Goshujinsama." she whispered into his ear.

    "The things I do for you." he replied teasingly. "Let's get to bed, Tenshi."






    Celestia emerged in a burst of light in her throne room, and saw her guards already having snapped to attention when the light had appeared. It wouldn't be long before the others arrived. She slumped onto her throne, trying to process the turn of events she had experienced.

    Finding Twilight— or as she was now called, Yugure Kirameku— had been a task in and of itself. She had no idea where to even start looking for where her former pupil had gone, and when she found her, it was still almost as if she were looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack anyway, as she was in a city that hosted nearly ten million people and on a world that was...different, to say the least, from Equestria. It closely resembled the world beyond the Mirror. But the differences made it clear that 'Earth' as she learned the planet was called, was an altogether different planet. Finding Twilight on a planet with a population of nearly eight billion was bad enough. Narrowing it down had been hell. And when she finally had a bead on her, Celestia had realized that she had no real idea how to approach Twilight at all. She had tried to plan out her meeting with the former princess in every scenario she could imagine.

    All of which went flying out the figurative window when she finally saw Twilight face to face. Or rather, Yugure, as she now insisted on being called.

    The sound of hooves approaching her brought Celestia back to the present, as her sister, niece, nephew-in-law and the Element bearers, along with Spike made their way into the throne room.

    "Well?" Luna asked as she came up to her elder sister. "Did you find her?"

    "I did." Celestia answered with a nod and sigh of emotional exhaustion. "But things didn't go anywhere near what I anticipated. She remembers everything. I don't know how." The look of stunned amazement on the faces of her companions almost brought a smile to the solar diarch's face. Almost. "And she...doesn't want to come home. She has a life in that other world. One she doesn't have any intention to give up."

    "I thought you said she wouldn't have any memories of Equestria?" Shining Armor asked. He sounded almost accusatory. She winced. She honestly wasn't sure how to even approach the idea that when she'd found his sister, it turned out she was far from alone. For the briefest  of moments, she imagined telling Shining Armor that his sister had a lover in that other world, just to see how he would react to it. But dismissed the idea. For the moment at least.

     "I don't understand it myself, Captain Armor." Celestia said after a few moments of contemplating how much damage her nephew-in-law would have tried to do to his sister's love interest. "But she knows who I am, who you are...and about the only one she associates with anything positive is Spike, for obvious reasons."

    "We need to talk to her." Applejack said. "We shoulda been smarter about what happened. I mean, after the Changelings and all....."

    "We all know that this was different." Luna replied.

    "Like tartarus it was." Spike snarled. Luna turned to rebuke him, but the glare the dragon sent her way made her think better of it. He had grown a bit in the three years since Twilight's departure, this time having nothing to do with greed. With his size came greater strength and a willingness to use it. Only the fact that he wanted to be there for Twilight when she came back— assuming she ever would have (though he had no doubt she would be cleared eventually)— kept him around ponies at all anymore. Or at least around them. "I told you then, I'll tell you again now. It wasn't her."

    "Be that as it may," Celestia interjected, as Luna looked entirely ready to argue with Spike, "I told her that she was free to come home, and she refused. She...may also suspect that there's more to the situation than I first gave hint at."

    "I don't see Twilight making that kind of a leap in logic." Cadance said, speaking up for the first time. "She'd more likely think we found some kind of evidence exonerating her." Celestia winced. She didn't think it was the best time to mention the boyfriend.

    "In any case, return to your homes and keep on alert in case of another attack. Cadance, Luna, I need to speak to you two in private." Though the girls, Spike, and Shining Armor were reluctant to leave, they did so. Though Spike gave the three Alicorns the evil eye before doing so. Luna bristled at his disrespect, but made no move to go after him. With a bugling snort, she turned back to Celestia.

    "What happened?" Luna asked in a clipped tone. She was clearly not having a good day.

    "Twilight Sparkle's new life as Yugure Kirameku comes with something we didn't foresee. She not only remembers everything about who she used to be and what happened to her, she has a lover."

    "Twilight? Really? I thought that was never going to happen, not after the way she stalled so long in trying to pursue Flash Sentry." Cadance replied. "And I have a hard time imagining her getting physically intimate with anyone after the fact that she spent almost half a year dancing around the issue of her feelings for Sentry and even then she was far too timid to suggest anything more risqué than holding hooves with him and light cuddling."

    "I used to feel the same way. Then I teleported into their apartment, and it was drenched in the scent of sex." Celestia said with a snort and something approaching a smile. Cadance couldn't quite help herself and let out a laugh. Luna, facehoofed, but she was lightly blushing at that line.

    "So, Flash Sentry probably wouldn't be a good way to draw her back then?" Luna asked. "He learned what we did after the fact and is still as firmly convinced she was innocent as Spike."

    "I don't think so, no. She's lived nearly twenty years on Earth." She held up a hoof. "That's what they call their world, strangely enough. No idea why. But she's fairly taken with her current paramour. And you're right, she wasn't the one to so quickly suspect anything. Her lover was. Frankly, that worries me. He wasn't completely awake at the time. Looks like I woke him up. But even without being completely awake, he was able to make that kind of deduction. I don't know if the people of that world are just naturally suspicious, or if he's had a similar situation crop up and because of it he saw right through me, but now that Twilight...or Yugure, as she now insists on being called...has heard his input on the matter, I expect that she'll defer to his point of view. Partially because I didn't really have the wherewithal to come up with an excuse on the fly to deflect it."

    "Oh, Tia, why do I let you go anywhere?" The voice was male and the trio of alicorns saw Discord flash in, shaking his head in exasperation.  "This is why I suggested I go in the first place. Even if she doesn't like us very much, I could at least have come up with something that she might have found believeable." He sighed. Then conjured up an odd item. What appeared to be a stick of meat packaged in red and yellow. White letters proclaimed the product a 'slim jim', and he bit into it, munching contentedly on the odd food product. "Ah well. Water under the bridge and all that. So, at least we know where we stand with her. But she might have had the same reaction anyway once she got her memories of her old life back even if things had gone your way." He pondered. "You know, maybe you should consider a different path to acquiring her help though."

    "Discord, why are you here? You've expressed no interest in helping us since this entire mess started." Cadance asked, one ear flicking.

    "To be honest? I still kind of don't. But Fluttershy has asked me to keep an eye out on you, and to offer some aid if I can. Frankly, looking back on the whole debacle I'm as convinced now as Spike and Flash Sentry that Twilight is innocent. I can't quite put my claw on it exactly. I wasn't here when all that happened, after all. But still, something tells me that there's more than meets the eye to this entire mess. So! I have a perfect idea for how you can get Twilight back here." the draconequuis said, grinning widely. The three Alicorns looked at one another with dubious expressions. Usually when Discord offered to help in anything outside of combat— his friendship with Fluttershy meant he actually did try his best for her sake— he had his own twisted view on what was 'helpful'.

    "I'd prefer you didn't do anything without our approval, Discord."

    "Moi? Oh I'm not going to do a thing right now. I can only offer up that I know how to get Twilight back here. But I wouldn't dream of it right now. I'm having more fun watching you squirm over it." And with a flash, the spirit of chaos was gone.

    "So....what do we do now, auntie?" Cadance asked.

    "Think on it for the moment, I suppose." Luna replied, looking out the window of the throne room onto Canterlot.

    The city, and indeed even much of the countryside had seen better days. Scarred and burnt, the kingdom of Equestria had been under siege for some time from an unknown enemy. The attacks came and went with lightning speed and uncanny precision. The only clues they had to the source of their woes was a lone report of strange bipedal attackers wearing some kind of armor, and a single glaring eye from their helmets swivelling from one side to the next.

    "I'll go see how the girls, Shining, and Spike are doing." Cadance declared after a few moments. "Shiny's probably taking it harder than he'll admit to, given his involvement in Twilight's current situation."





    "Leave it be, Rainbow Dash." Rarity was saying as Cadance found their rooms. "I can't really blame her for not wanting to come back."

    "But she's our friend! And we're her friends! How could she just turn her back on us like this?"

    "Uhm...w-well, we did kind of do the same thing, didn't we? We h-had the best of intentions. But still, we did kind of imply that we thought she needed to be locked up, even if it was just to get therapy." Fluttershy said timidly.

    "And I still say you're all sick in the head." Spike snapped from where he had been reading a book. "I told you, I was there with her. And what did you do? You called me a liar, said she should be in a rubber room, and then just let those damn alicorns throw her into who knows what kind of other world. I'm astounded that she didn't try to beat Celestia's brains in when she showed up, if she really remembers what you all did."

    "Now that's enough of that." Applejack said with a severe frown. "Look, Spike. Ah get that yer still upset with all of us. But we did what we thought was right. Hell, we had witnesses all up and down Canterlot, plus we were all here at the time ourselves. So you'll have to forgive us if we take the evidence of our own eyes and the eyes'a hundreds more over a single dragon who would'a said anything to protect her."

    "Yeah, and it never once passed through that hillybilly haystack between your ears that Twilight had already told you where we were going to be that day, and that you saw us off a full week and a half before you went to Canterlot, did it? Or maybe the fact that, I dunno, you didn't see me there with her at the time?! Good grief, Applejack. I know you're prideful to the point of stupidity, that applebuck season when Mac got hurt made that pretty bucking obvious. But seriously, I didn't think you were so far gone as to just ignore solid facts, or ignore when facts don't match up just to keep from seeing when you're wrong!" Spike snarked back. Applejack growled angrily and moved his way a few steps, but she backed up when he responded with a deeper growl than her own and a brief burst of flame from his nostrils.

    "If I may interject," Cadance said, drawing the attention of the girls and the dragon, "fighting isn't going to help matters any. We need Twilight's help if we're going to figure any of this out. But she's clearly not ready or willing to come home. Add in her boyfriend, and that just makes things harder."

    The collective surprised shout of 'Boyfriend!' was expected, but Cadance still laughed about it anyway. She found herself inundated by questions from the girls, while Spike just grinned and went back to his book. Just outside the open door, Cadance missed seeing Flash Sentry had arrived to speak to her. Having overheard the entire thing, he had a thoughtful look on his face. But after a few moments, he knocked.

    "Princess Cadance, Princesses Luna and Celestia would like to talk to all of you. I've already sent Captain Shining Armor on ahead."

    "Thank you, Flash." Cadance said. "We'll be there in a few moments."

    With a nod, the orange pegasus guard was off on his way.





    Yugure lay practically on the edge of the bed she shared with Marc, curled up into a ball in the blankets. The sudden reappearance of Celestia in her life had shaken her to the core. So much so that she had called in sick to both college and her job. She just didn't feel she could have withstood the rigors of a normal day after that. She was pretty much terrified. There was no way the government could have missed Celestia's appearance. Not with all the high-level technology they had developed in the last ten years. And that last teleport had to have set off something. How long would it be before they came banging at the door? Or if they discovered the jewel-like flesh between her breasts and got a good reading on it? They'd try to take her away from the life she'd had for twenty years now. Her parents, her friends...Marc...all of it could be lost, and all thanks to whatever selfish reasons Celestia had had for coming here. She hadn't believed for a minute that Celestia was serious about having her return to Equestria. She hadn't even been entirely sure she was looking at Celestia. At first she assumed it was a construct, or even a Changeling. She had dismissed the latter theory though. They wouldn't have known what had happened to her or even where in the multiverse she was.

    Marc had been the one to raise the possibility that Celestia wanted something from her, and looking back on it she realized that it should have been obvious. Once she had learned that Yugure remembered everything, she tried to act conciliatory. As if she were trying to brush the entire thing off as if what had happened was no more a problem then accidentally being hit in the face with a pie or something. But clearly she had been hoping that once she 'restored' her memory— and Yugure was pretty sure that she wouldn't remember why she had come to live on Earth at all or at least not the truth about it had the white alicorn had her way— that Yugure would have leapt at the chance to return to Equestria. She tried to imagine how she might have felt if things had gone Celestia's way, and found herself relieved to realize that she would still not have wanted to go back. She had an entirely different life here. A loving family, great friends...and someone she had grown to love almost more than life itself. She wondered if Marc would ever want her as more than just a girlfriend. If he ever thought to propose, she would accept in less time than it would take to blink an eye.

    Marc himself was in the kitchen making breakfast, and she had to smile. He had called in as well, citing a need to help her out since she wasn't in the best of sorts. She knew how much he enjoyed his work. But in this case, he had prioritized her situation over his, and she loved him all the more for it. She wasn't hurt, or even sick. Just terrified out of her wits. He never thought twice about calling in to take off from his job.

    A familiar scent wafted through her nose as Marc came back into their bedroom, laden with a pair of trays bursting with food. Particularly bacon, a lauded favorite of both of them. He set them down on the little table at the far end of the room. Then walked over and gently took her shoulder in one hand and chuckled. "C'mon, Tenshi." he said. "You gotta eat at least."

    Yugure curled herself in a bit tighter. Marc rolled his eyes, and soon Yugure was yelping in surprise as he yanked off the covers from her and then picked her up. He carried her bridal style to where the food had been set out. He settled himself in behind her, letting her back rest against his chest. She didn't make any move to touch the food. Marc rolled his eyes, though she couldn't see it and gave a low snort of bemusement.

    "Do I have to feed you, too?" he playfully scolded her.

    "Maybe." Yugure said with a weak smile. "I'm sorry, I just...I'm scared out of my mind right now. I keep wondering when everything's going to go to hell and whether or not they'll take me away, or if they'll take you away, or if they'll take us both away. And then the entire thing will be hushed up, and our parents will never know what happened. And all the while, they'll do who knows— Mmpphh!"

    She was silenced as his hand came up to her mouth, effectively gagging her.

    "None of that now, Yugure. You're going to work yourself up again. Calm." he said, and she sighed, nodding a bit. But he kept her gagged with his hand. "I'm not falling for that." He said. " I can hear how heavy you're still breathing. Take it slow, Tenshi. Calm. Remember that little exercise you told me about?"

    Despite the reminder of Equestria, which caused another shoot of panic to run through her, she nodded again, and went through the motions that Cadance had taught her back when she had once helped get things ready to try to tempt the inspector for the Equestria Games to choose the Crystal Empire to hold the Olympics-esque event in her sister-in-law's realm. Much as she hated to admit it, the technique still worked. Though she thought part of it was due to the fact that Marc was right there, sitting right behind her, his skin pressing against her back and projecting a sense of calm that she desperately wanted to have. Once her breathing calmed, he released her mouth, and she sighed, bowing her head.

    "Arigato..." she breathed. "God I needed that. How do you always know how to get me to calm down like that?"

    "I've lived with you for three years, Yugure. I'd be a pretty lousy boyfriend if I didn't know how to help when you start spazzing out." he joked, planting a line of kisses up the left side of her neck. "Are you okay now?"

    Yugure nodded. "H-Hai." she said, her voice hitching briefly due to the pleasure of feeling those light kisses. "I love you...you know that, right?"

    Marc laughed, and after a moment to reposition himself, kissed her hungrily. "I know. I love you too. No matter what." He pulled one of the plates closer to them. "Now eat, already. I didn't spend two hours making this for it to go to waste, y'know."

    Laughing quietly, Yugure dug in, and Marc did as well, as much as he could from his position behind her. Once they were done, she settled back against him with a contented sigh as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

    "Marc?"

    "Hmm?"

    "Do you think...if we'd met in Equestria, that we would have fallen in love?" Yugure asked. Marc quirks a brow at her as she turned to look up at him as best she could.

    "Hard to say. The way you tell it, sounds like you had a beau back then." Marc said, thinking about it. "But...I like to think so. I mean, there had to be a reason you fell for me, right?" He teasingly poked her nose with one finger. "Aside from the fact that we both enjoy you being tied up and playing the role of sex slave."

    Yugure nodded, blushing. "Hai. I like to hope I would have found you in Equestria if you had been born there instead of here. Don't get me wrong, I liked Flash Sentry. A lot. But he's not you."

    "That's a relief. Could you imagine waking up and finding yourself in bed with someone else and wearing skin you don't recognize?" Marc joked. She elbowed him playfully.

    "Your jokes suck, you know that?" she snorted.

    "Have I ever denied that?" he laughed. "But when it comes to sucking, my jokes are the bad kind. Your mouth, on the other hand..." she gave him a light mock headbutt, tapping him with all the gentleness of a snowflake.

    "Hentai."

    "Maybe. But if I am, then at least be glad I'm your hentai." he said, cupping her breasts and kneading them. The move took her by surprise and she let out a hissing gasp, arching herself into his grasp. He chortled in amusement. "Not just yet, hon. You just got up. I'm not going to let you end up sleeping through the rest of the day. Come on. Let's go hit the movies. You need something to take your mind off all this crap."

    "You're a fucking tease and I hate you." she deadpanned. But the wide smile she wore took the sting out of her attempt at pretending to be serious.

    "Sure you do." Marc said as they got to their feet. "And I'm secretly the King of England." After another round of badly hidden laughter, the two dressed and hit the theaters. They chose the new Godzilla, as Marc was a lifelong fan. Yugure had found it ironic, since despite her Japanese ancestry in this life, she wasn't quite as interested. And she was as big a sci-fi geek as they came. Marc was sort of a sci-fi geek. He certainly loved comics and movies. And even better, was an anime fan. But when it came to Godzilla, he was the fanboy, and she was more of a casual viewer. She didn't hate the character or the films. She just wasn't that interested. She put up with the films, books, comics, games, and even some of the toys and models that were in the apartment because Marc loved them.

    Had either of them been paying closer attention, they would have noticed three sets of eyes on them as they entered the theater, and a fourth seemingly emerging from nowhere that was eyeing them and those already spying on them.

    Discord sat in shadow, hidden from all eyes which were glued to either the screen, where Dr. Serizawa was investigating a skeleton, or else they were trained on the two young lovers enjoying the film and each other's company.

    So this is what you've become, Twilight. And....is that magic I feel from you? The chaotic spirit had assumed a human form, in case anyone happened to see him. But his brows were furrowed in curiosity. This bears some looking into. Maybe that's why you remembered everything. No wonder you were so pissed. Celestia is still walking off that limp you gave her.

    Deciding to keep an eye — or maybe both— on the couple for awhile, Discord settled in to watch the movie as well, finding himself intrigued by what humans could dream up.






    Shining Armor paced.

    It had become something of a habit that he'd picked up some years ago from his father, who often paced when he got into deep thought. Twilight had picked up on it as well. But she was far worse about it than he was. She had been the type to pace and freak out about every little thing.

    Shining Armor paced because he had a legitimate reason to freak out. His sister was, by all accounts, alive and well, and even remembered him, no less! But that was half the reason he was pacing. She remembered everything about the life she'd lived in Equestria. Which meant she remembered his part in the whole mess that had been the last few months of her time in  Equestria. Something he regretted and would have done anything to take back if he could. Part of him wanted to beat Celestia into the ground for what she'd forced him to do.

    "You're gonna wear a hole in the floor."

    Shining looked up to see Cadance walk in. The sight was enough to make him smile.

    "Maybe. But I can't help it, Cadance. Just knowing that she's known about what happened for all this time, it makes me wonder. Does she hate me? Or you? Or mom and dad? Princess Celestia said the only one she seemed to remember fondly is Spike. And I can sort of see why. ....And I gotta admit, I feel jealous of that fact too. Because if I could have had my way, I would have been right there with him supporting her, even if I know for a fact what I saw with my own two eyes."

    "So even despite seeing her when all this happened, you would still  have defended her?" Cadance asked. She wore a proud smile. Shining nodded.

    "I know what I saw. But I also know that Twily's so far removed from what I saw that something in me just rebels at the idea that she was guilty of any of it. I know what I saw. I know what I heard and felt and even what the magic detection spells told us. But Spike swears up and down the line that Twilight is innocent and something in me just desperately wants to believe it. I have a hard time imagining Twilight doing anything like that."

    Cadance wrapped her arms around him. "You know she won't hate you. Not for long at any rate. She knows you were forced into the role."

    "That's not the point, Cadance. I could have given up my position as captain. Could have demanded I be recused from the trial due to conflict of interest. I could have done anything, and instead I let myself be roped into it." Shining said, and he scowled. But then smirked. "Did you notice the bruise on Celestia's right foreleg? I don't think Twily took her arrival well."

    Cadance rolled her eyes, giving her husband a shove. Then grinned mischievously. "Well I know one thing you don't know." she sing-songed. Shining Armor give her a confused look. "About Twilight." she added. Now she had his attention, and she skipped off. "And I'm not tel~ling..." she teased, before darting away, her husband in hot pursuit. He was smirking, and she was outright smiling.

    "Get back here Cady!"

    "Nope! Don't wanna!" she called back. It was good to see him smile again. It was the first real smile he'd shown in the last month since news had reached him that Celestia had possibly found the world to which his sister had been reborn.

    Woe betide Twilight's lover if Shining ever found out about him though. That protectiveness certainly ran in the family.





    Celestia sat in her chambers, reading various reports. But she was barely paying attention. She was too preoccupied with what had happened on Earth.

    Twilight retaining her memories should have been impossible. But she had managed it. Part of her actually felt happy about it, as it gave her one less thing to feel guilty over. However that came with its own downsides, such as the fact that Twilight had nothing for her but contempt, even outright hatred. She looked at her right foreleg, and noticed the massive bruise that had formed there. Her former student had attacked her without hesitation. But she couldn't be claimed to have attacked unprovoked. What Celestia had done, even if she had had good reason, was something Twilight clearly found unforgivable. Celestia still didn't want to admit it, but that day had broken her heart. Not just for the fact that she was exiling her student, but the fact that even till the very end, she had proclaimed her innocence and disbelief that nopony would believe her.

    "Of course we didn't." Celestia mused to herself. "Spike couldn't be called a reliable witness, not with how loyal he was to you."

    "Thinking about the day of the sentencing?"

    Luna had walked in and Celestia sighed and nodded.

    "I was. To this day I don't know why she insists she was the one wronged. Her crimes were blatant, Luna. I don't want to believe it myself. But Twilight Sparkle is guilty of crimes against all of Equestria. Yet she never once admitted to her misdeeds, even with all of Canterlot, and even her friends, saw firsthand what she did."

    "All save Spike, who to this day maintains they were on the other side of the Kingdom." Luna interjected. "I've been in his mind, sister. He's telling the truth, insofar as he knows."

    "What we saw was no changeling, Luna." Celestia replied. "Twilight was here that day. I don't know how she managed to con Spike. Maybe she put a spell on him that allowed him to see somepony else as Twilight, so that he would be her perfect alibi. All I know is that what I saw and fought was no imposter."

    "Perhaps. But until we get a look inside Twilight's mind, we can't make any assumptions on what she remembers about why she did what she did that day." Luna nodded. "Unfortunately, her mental shields are so great that she has to willingly disable them. She created quite the powerful defense after Chrysalis' attack on Canterlot."

    "It will be a moot point if we can't get her to return." Celestia said with a sigh. "And much as I hate to say it, we need her to return. Ever since she left, the Elements have gone dark, and we can't even find the Element of Magic. Thank goodness Discord is so devoted to Fluttershy, or he might well have taken control of Equestria again in a heartbeat once Twilight and the Element itself disappeared."

    Luna wrapped a wing around her sister in a hug.

    "We'll figure something out, sister. I think perhaps we should focus on something that would help convince Twilight that coming back will be beneficial for her."

    "I'm not sure what would convince her of that. She seems to be pretty happy where she is." Celestia shook her head. "She has family there, and for all we know she may have a better relationship with them than she does with anyone else here. Add in her lover, and there's nothing we have to offer her."

    Luna pondered that for a moment, before nodding. "I have work to do, sister. I'll see you in the morning." With another quick hug between the siblings, the lunar diarch departed, still somewhat lost in thought.





    Yugure worked dinner duty that night.

    It hadn't been easy, trying to put the encounter she'd had behind her. But somehow she managed it. But she found herself distracted as she worked on the tacos that night; Marc never liked veggies in his, though he didn't mind cheese sauce. She loved tacos with lettuce and ranch dressing. Neither of them particularly liked the meat sauce often provided by Old El Paso. But  it often did in a pinch. With cheese sauce unavailable due to both of them having forgotten it earlier while shopping, it was going to have to do tonight. Luckily she remembered to buy some kraft brand grated parmesan and romano. Marc loved the stuff and she found he had rather eclectic uses for it. She sprinkled some of the powdery substance liberally on the meat inside the shells for Marc's dinner and carried the entire platter into their living room.

    Dinner was pretty normal for them. They flipped through a few dvds of Star Trek: The Next Generation, before settling on the second TNG film; First Contact. The story was one of the more interesting ones in her opinion. The fact that the first time they'd watched it had meant a geeky discussion on sci-fi style time travel vs. the version she had experienced in her first life had just made it that much more dear to her heart, as it was one of the few memories of her life as Twilight Sparkle that she didn't consider 'tainted' by what happened to her later in her life. But even then, her mind wasn't completely on the film. Marc noticed right around the time Picard was shooting the Borg to death in the holodeck and paused the movie.

    "Out with it." he said, as she gave him a confused look. "You're usually egging Picard on when we get to this scene. But you're quieter than a mouse. What's eating you?" Yugure had the good grace to blush at being so noticeably distracted.

    "Gomen ne." she apologized. "I'm not really sure. I mean today was wonderful."

    "But?" he prompted. She shook her head. He gave her the same hard look he'd given her last night. "Yugure..."

    "I don't know. I just....I feel distracted, that's all." she said. She gave him a smile, and after a few moments, he resumed the movie, but she could tell he didn't entirely believe her. She wasn't sure she did either. Particularly when after the film ended, she went to pick something new for them to watch, she passed the live action Masters of the Universe, and the reason for her distraction came into sharp focus. She slammed the thought out of her mind. Marc would have done it if she asked. But she didn't want to upset him, not after everything he'd done to try to get her mind off the whole thing today. As much as she was tempted to ask, she couldn't truly bring herself to do so.

    Eventually, she picked out Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure. It was a goofy film, and soon enough the two were enjoying the odd pop culture references and sufer slang of the 1980s. For some reason Marc always seemed to have a better understanding of it and so got more of a laugh out of it. When the film ended, they set their plates away and got ready for bed. As she was undressing, Yugure's eyes fell on a chest in one of the closets in their bedroom. Again she shook her head to clear out the thoughts that invaded. That would be for another time.

    "You ok, Yugure?" Marc asked, after noticing that she was staring at the closet. Then more specifically he noticed what she was staring at. She looked over her shoulder at him and gave her a smile.

    "Given what happened last night, I think I'm doing pretty well." she replied with a chuckle, turning and leaving the closet behind. Though she seemed very reluctant to do so. But the feeling of need for what was in the chest lessened when she climbed into bed with Marc. She shot another look its way, but then closed her eyes altogether and snuggled into the crook of his neck.

    Marc himself gave the closet a look. He knew full well what had been in there, and had to admit, he was surprised Yugure hadn't asked. He smirked as she snuggled closer, and laid a kiss on her head, and felt her lips on his neck a few moments later. That quickly led to a make-out session, as Yugure effectively crawled atop him and their tongues were soon dueling even as Marc ran his hands along her body.

    The events of the previous night had made Yugure hungry for more mundane intimacy, and soon she was kissing up Marc's jawline and soon along his neck, nipping a spot she knew turned him on. And soon enough, they were engaged in another session of sexual pleasure.





    Discord peered at the couple through a dimensional window from the self-created limbo he now rested in. He found them an interesting subject of study. Twilight— Yugure, as she was known now— had certainly changed from being the bookish filly he had known. He had quickly learned that there was a differential in speed between dimensions. He'd seen other versions of Earth where time kept perfect pace with Equestria, no matter if that Earth was as advanced as this one or one that was still in the middle ages. He'd seen some for whom an hour on Equestria was equivalent to a century on Earth. This one was only slightly ahead of Equestria timewise, but it seemed to be partially slowed down. He suspected that was due to Celestia's visit followed by his own. But these two were becoming more and more interesting the more he watched them. Something was emanating from Yugure that he couldn't place. There was magic, but something else was there also. Something he couldn't quite understand, and in a dimensional limbo such as this, whatever it was shielded them from his view. As the Spirit of Chaos, Discord held great sway in most realities and worlds. There was little that could evade his sight or his ability to learn about those around him. It was how he'd been able to pick up on everything about the girls when he had first fought them.

    What secrets do you hold? he thought to himself, as he coiled and undulated about in the limbo between Earth and the rest of the multiverse. He coiled around himself before vanishing, and his self-made limbo vanished from existence.





    Yugure woke up with a scream, almost doubling over on herself. Marc was up less than a second or two later, pulling her into his arms, and whispering gentle nothings into her ear as she trembled against him. She tried to keep from crying, but the nightmare, coupled with the recent arrival of Celestia herself into the life she'd built for herself did little to aid her in that regard.

    "Why now?" she mumbled into Marc's chest. "Why after all this time is she suddenly showing up and trying to act like she wants me to come home?"

    "I don't know, Tenshi. She wants something. I know that much. I've seen that look in people's eyes. Whatever it is, she's pretty desperate about it, too." Marc hugged her closer she she shivered at that. "But she already knows we want nothing to do with her."

    "She won't leave it at that, though." Yugure said with a shake of the head. "If she wants something that badly....she'll try again."

    "And she'll be disappointed again." Marc said, laying a kiss on her earlobe. "You made yourself more than clear to her."

    "You'll stay with me if she tries to take me by force, ne?" Yugure asked. Marc pulled back just enough to look her eye to eye.
    
"I'm not even going to dignify the fact that you even felt you had to ask with a response. I'd snap her neck myself before I let her take you from me."

    Comforted, Yugure pulled him into a rough, passionate kiss, and then snuggled up to him. They lay back down and soon enough, she was able to drift off to sleep. And hoped that it would be the last time in a long while when she'd have to relive that horrific day. She would never forget those words as long as she lived;

    "You are a monster Twilight Sparkle. I hereby exile you from Equestria for all time. May whatever hell exists for you have mercy on your soul. For your crimes here will earn you none from those who suffered at your hooves."
 




 
 
 
 
 
 
 

> Equestria and Earth
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


 



Love for Honor






Chapter Two:






Equestria and Earth






















    Celestia pondered what to do next.

    With Yugure refusing to return home, things were going to get worse. She turned back to the reports she had been looking through since returning to her private rooms. They were only marginally better than they had been in some time. the strange armored bipeds hadn't been seen in the last few weeks. It had been why she'd taken the risk to leave on another search for her wayward student. Reconstruction was almost finished in Ponyville. Pinkie Pie was supposedly planning the biggest 'Ponyville's back!' party ever. Celestia shook her head in amusement. Somehow the pink party pony was constantly topping herself. The appearance of a new party pony calling himself Cheese Sandwich added to the merriment being planned as when Pinkie had learned of him, she had immediately roped him into helping her plan the party. Rarity had expressed something akin to a cross between amusement and horror at the thought of there being two such ponies like Pinkie running around.
 
   Perhaps a little more fun in the world is what we need right now. Celestia mused to herself.

    She turned to the reports of the borders of her kingdom. Nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary at all, and that worried her. The strange armored bipeds that had appeared in Equestria rarely left the borders unattended. Wherever they might be based, a few of them always seemed ready and willing to harry anyone at the edges of the kingdom. There hadn't been a sign of them in a good while now. As thankful as she was at the seeming turn of fortune, it worried her that when the proverbial other shoe dropped, it would sound like thunder.
  
  "Sister, the reports haven't changed since you read them ten minutes ago." Luna said as she walked in, gently shutting the doors behind her, carrying in two trays of food. "You nearly missed lunch. Be glad I've got my eye on the clock right now." she continued as she levitated the reports away and set down a tray of food, which Celestia looked over before picking up a carrot in her magic and nibbling at it.
 
   "Sorry about that, Luna. It's just that things have been so quiet lately that I'm getting worried. They attacked for weeks on end, lightning fast and now they've gone completely quiet. I don't like it, Luna. They're up to something. I can feel it."

    "Maybe so," Luna shrugged as she munched on an apple, "but right now all we can do is wait. I've gotten an invitation from Pinkie Pie for the royal family to come to the party she's planning in Ponyville."

    Celestia smirked. "And how badly did Blueblood take it?"

    "Actually," Luna said with a shrug, "he seemed receptive to the idea."

    Celestia almost choked on the carrot she was eating. Luna gave her a few quick slaps on the back to help her clear her throat.

    "He's actually planning to go?!" Celestia asked once she was sure she wasn't going to suffer from a blockage in her throat.

    "Seems like it." Luna nodded. "Don't ask me how, but somehow Pinkie managed to befriend him during one of the attacks." The dark-hued alicorn laughed at the look of surprise on her sister's face. "I know, I know. I wouldn't have believed it either. But there it is."

    Celestia shook her head in amazement as she turned back to the reports. She sighed and then set them aside and shoved herself to her hooves. She headed out of her chambers, Luna following behind her. She made her way through the halls of Canterlot castle, and eventually found herself knocking at the door of Blueblood. Luna was wearing an amused grin. Which got wider when Blueblood opened the door.

    The blond-maned Unicorn was surprised to see the two Alicorns but nonetheless invited them in with a genial smile before offering them some food. He had been about to settle down to lunch, and the servants were on standby to proffer more food to his guests. Luna decided to partake, while Celestia waved them off.

    "What can I do for you, Aunt Celestia?" Blueblood asked while sipping some coffee. "If you're looking for any more information on our attackers that might have come by, there's been no new developments."

    "Actually, I was just checking up on a curious development I heard rumor about." Celestia said, giving him a curious glance. To her surprise Blueblood actually laughed.

    "Let me guess. The party in Ponyville." he said.  "Yes I was invited and yes, I'm going."

    "How in the world did this ever come to pass? I recall you having less than charitable views on 'commoners' as you call them." Luna asked. She was just as curious about the sudden turnaround.

    "Blame it on two very...how should I put this...interesting...mares." Blueblood said as he buttered a piece of toast. Celestia gave him an askance look.

    Blueblood? Eating toast? The stallion never settles for anything less than scones! Celestia had to fight to keep herself from goggling at him.

    "And just who are they? I assume one is Pinkie Pie." she asked. Blueblood nodded and took a noisy bite from the toast.

    "Mmm-Mmmh. Delicious." He muttered to himself, further surprising the solar alicorn. "Sorry, got distracted. The other would be one Rainbow Dash. Fascinating, that one. She's the one who turned me on to toast, as it so happens." He chuckled as Celestia finally lost the fight to keep her face controlled and gawked. "You're going to catch flies that way." he said in a surprisingly playful tone, and lightly pressed Celestia's open jaw closed with an audible click with his hoof. This sent Luna into spasms of laughter. It'd been a long time since she'd seen her sister so taken off her guard.

    "So, I'm guessing you and Aunt Luna are coming as well?" Blueblood said as he munched on another piece of toast. "I know Pinkie's invited you. And I think she might be offended if you turn her down. She seems to have invited half of Canterlot."

    "I know I'm going." Luna said with amusement. "I've heard about Pinkie Pie's parties for a long time now, and they sound like they're nothing short of Legendary. Plus I want to see what this 'Cheese Sandwhich' is like."

    "Ah yes. Him I've heard of. Basically Pinkie's perfect match, the more I think about it. Of course, if he does anything to hurt her feelings, I'll have no problems spiking him on the business end of my horn." Blueblood said. The sudden silence caused him to look over at the two alicorns, who were giving him a completely thunderstruck look. "What? I know I have a reputation as being something of an ass, and it's probably more deserved than I like to admit to, but I look out for the few real friends I have, I'll have you know!"

    "Are we sure this is actually Blueblood?" Celestia whispered to Luna. "I can't remember him ever being so passionate about his friends' well being before."

    "Hey, you've known him longer than I have, so don't ask me." Luna returned.






    Preparations for the party in Ponyville were in full swing. Pinkie bounced and sproinged her way about town with the energy so usually associated with the pink mare. Rainbow Dash waved to her as she hopped past, and Pinkie waved back with a grin. They had had a pretty interesting discussion with Cheese the other day about party ideas. While Rainbow Dash wasn't the party thrower Pinkie and Cheese were, she had thrown her share of parties in her time before leaving Cloudsdale. And so she helped with a few suggestions here and there. Mostly, however, she was doing what she'd been doing since they had heard the news. Something that, were it not for what it was, would have given Twilight a heart attack from the shock of it; she had her nose in a book. Specifically, one of the Daring Do novels.

    The idea that Twilight didn't want to come home weighed on Rainbow's mind, preventing her from really enjoying the book. Fluttershy had a point, even if she hadn't liked to admit it. That and Spike was still giving them the eye now and then. The less said about his dealings with the alicorns the better.

    Gotta admit though, seeing him beat the crap out of Shining Armor was almost worth it. Almost.  Then Rainbow shuddered as she remembered the lesson she took away from that. Never fuck with a Dragon's loved ones.

    "You seem to be enjoying yourself about as much as you did the first day you were in the hospital before you cracked open the first book in that series." said a cultured voice and Rainbow turned to see Rarity moving to sit down next to her.

    "Hey Rares. Normally I'd be halfway through it." Rainbow said. "Guess this whole thing with Twilight's still rubbing me wrong."

    "I know what you mean." the alabaster unicorn nodded. "I know she's upset with us, but I never thought she would refuse to even consider coming home."

    "Thought Ah'd find you two somewhere around here."

    "Applejack!" Rarity had jumped about half a foot in the air and was clasping a hoof to her chest. "You nearly scared me out of my pelt!"

    "Sorry 'bout that, Rarity." Applejack said, lightly tipping her stetson in embarrassment. "Reckon Pinkie's pullin' out all the stops fer this one, huh?"

    "Indeed. I suspect that the recent developments might be part of what's behind it. Those constant attacks by those strange creatures being what they have been, and now with Twilight refusing to come home, I think she believes we need something to laugh about." Rarity said as she nodded.

    "So, who's on the RSVP list?" Applejack asked, watching as Pinkie and Cheese took a moment or two from putting up the decor to pull some goofy faces at one another before going back to work. The three friends smiled a bit.

    "Good question, darling." Rarity mused, as she pulled the list of invitees who had responded from under Rainbow, who looked just slightly panicked at Rarity, and began edging away from her rapidly.

    Fluttershy was just closing the door to her cottage when it happened. Everyone in Ponyville, and most of the surrounding countryside were talking about it for weeks. 

   "WHAT?!"

    

Fluttershy would need to be practically peeled out from under her couch with the jaws of life about two hours later by Applejack, after Angel had found her.





    Discord slunk through Midtown in Manhattan, using his magic to squiggle his way through the sky unseen. He phased through the floors of several skyscrapers as he went, usually between the floors and the ceilings below them. He would poke around here or there, trying to read the nature of this world. This planet, Earth, was one of the more curious places he'd visited in his long life. But even as he enjoyed the sightseeing, he kept his senses magically attuned to his target.

    Why do I sense something strange about you, boy? he thought to himself. And what did you do to earn the love of an Alicorn Princess, banished or not?

    Discord still couldn't piece together why he could feel magical energy radiating from Twilight/Yugure. But hew knew what he felt. There was genuine magic there, along with something else that was clouding his senses. That same occlusion also seemed to emanate from Marc as well. And that made him curious, because it seemed to be that it was stronger in Marc. Discord may have been the spirit of chaos and disharmony, but he could be hooked by intrigue as much as the next Equestrian.

    Unfortunately, aside from the fact that the guy was something of a comic book geek, he seemed to be as normal as every other human on this planet. The entire species seemed to be just like ponies, minus the lack of any kind of magic he could detect. Though there were times that Discord would swear there was something watching the entire species. But he couldn't put his talon on it.

    Celestia and Luna were fools, Discord reminisced to himself for the third time that quarter hour. They had the means to bring Yugure home, and yet seemed to be incapable of seeing it. How those two had survived as long as they had as co-rulers of Equestria after usurping him, he had no idea. No amount of pleading or cajoling would have convinced her and he'd always known that. Had Celestia really expected that Yugure would come home if she'd simply gotten her memories restored by the solar diarch? From what he remembered of hearing of Celestia's intentions when coming to Earth, it seemed like it. How in Tartarus was that even supposed to work? She'd have had no emotional connection to the memories. Why would she have wanted to come back to a world she only knew as empirical data?

    Discord shook his head. No wonder I always thought she was so one-dimensional, no matter how much she thinks she's some kind of grand chessmaster. She was banking on curiosity to be what she chose over a life lived with a whole new set of memories and a loving family.

    Discord frowned and darted down to street level, adding to his invisibility and general disguise by making himself both intangible and flat as a strip of paper, and began to 'swim' through the concrete sidewalks, keeping Marc in sight. Something about this guy had to be worthwhile, right? He was giving off something or other that was messing with his senses, and sending ripples through the very nature of order and chaos itself, the same as Yugure was. But why? Yugure almost made sense— not that Discord particularly had any affinity for things making sense, but still, principle of the matter— being that she was originally from Equestria and seemed to still have some tie to magic.

    Discord followed Marc for another hour or so. But ultimately found himself annoyed with the lack of anything interesting happening with the guy. About the most entertaining thing he'd done in all that time was to hit someplace called 'Midtown Comics' and pick up a bunch of different comics. He came to quickly understand one thing about these comics, as he shifted into a human disguise while following Marc. They showed a creativity that nopony in Equestria could touch. There were comic books of all types, and many collected from far earlier editions for consumption. Some had been turned into novels and films. Discord briefly flipped through one series called Transformers and found himself curious about it. Alien robots from another world who could change shape? It sounded interesting enough, and the world this comic took place in probably had its fair share of chaos. He resolved to see if there was a world in the multiverse that corresponded to this comic book sometime. It wasn't impossible, after all.

    The day had ended with Marc meeting up with Yugure for some pizza at a little place called 2 Bros. pizza. There were a few of these in the general area, actually. Probably a local franchise. He had to admit, as he slinked through the place unseen and intangible again, that it smelled almost heavenly. Pinkie Pie had turned him onto some oddly topped versions. But as it was, Discord found that the toppings they'd chosen (Pepperoni and bacon) along with the mozzarella sticks looked surprisingly scrumptious. The other pizzas being eaten didn't look bad either. In fact, Discord felt a bit peckish himself. He resolved to swing back later.

    Discord finally left them behind while they ate. Nothing new had presented itself to him about why the two of them seemed to occloud his magical senses, and he knew that there was a party in Equestria to help prepare for.





    Shining Armor sat on the train bound for Ponyville with Cadance, trying his best to enjoy the scenery. He'd never been to Ponyville in all the time his sister had lived there. It felt wrong to be going now, when Twilight was refusing to return to it.

    Cadance nuzzled him lightly. "She'll come around, Shiny. She's not the type to hold a grudge forever." she said, trying to cheer him up. He turned to look at her, and he looked less than convinced.

    "She wasn't the type to hold grudges forever." He sighed. "But you heard what Celestia said. She's lived twenty years in a whole other life, but she remembers everything that happened in this one. What if she is the type to hold a grudge like that now? Two lives lived, and one of them as a completely different person."

    Cadance nodded. She had to admit, she hadn't considered that possibility. But then she smiled and nudged him with her wing.

    "She's still your sister deep down though, and I'll bet she misses you. She always doted on you. In fact, your bond was what saved me from Chrysalis, remember?"

    Shining smiled, thinking back on that. Twilight had seen through the Chnageling Queen's disguise almost immediately, and while most of the people around her had dismissed her concerns at first, not only had she been vindicated, she had helped repel the invasion by enabling Cadance to get to Shining Armor in time to help empower his shield spell and save Canterlot. Perhaps even the entire kingdom.

    "I just hope Spike doesn't try to slice me up again." Shining said, rubbing at his side subconsciously. The scar under his pelt on his right side was likely never to fade. The best they had managed was to get his fur growing again and use it to cover the scar from sight. He didn't want to be pitied for the damage done to him by someone who he'd once considered his baby brother.

    Cadance grimaced. She remembered that day. Spike had been wrath personified, and she'd been lucky to get away with her wings intact. Celestia had probably received the most damage from him, leaving the solar alicorn very wary of being alone in the same room with him ever again. But she gave Shining a comforting pat on the back with one wing.

    "It's been three years, Shiny. He may not have forgiven us, but he still has friends in Ponyville, so I expect he'll be on his best behavior for them, if nothing else." she said.





    Eight p.m. saw Marc and Yugure snuggling together under a blanket on the futon they sometimes rolled out next to the couch and watching a movie. They'd decided to rent a few films, including Outrage, a Yakuza film directed by Takeshi Kitano.

    "I still can't believe you're into this stuff." Marc said, lightly caressing the underside of Yugure's breasts. They were both topless under the blankets, which were fairly light anyway due to the summer heat. Marc leaned against the sofa while Yugure leaned into him. She let out a low moan of pleasure as his fingers lightly sneaked their way up her flesh to play with her slowly hardening nipples.

    "Ā shite kudasai, anata wa watashi ga anata o odoroka seru toki anata ga sore o aisuru chi tte iru, goshujinsama." Yugure said, smirking as she heard him huff in annoyance by her slipping into Japanese, which he didn't truly understand, despite her best attempts to teach him the language. He hadn't been joking when he said that the majority of Japanese words he knew had been names of Kaiju. Though he did pick up the occasional word and phrase here and there over the time they'd known one another.

    "Whatever." he said, shaking he head, giving her a light groping, which made her jump slightly, but she she took it in stride. His playful little revenges for when she confused him were a fair trade-off in her opinion. "So, what do you wanna watch after this?" he asked, nibbling lightly on her ear.

    "Hmm. I think I'd much rather stage our own movie." Yugure teased, turning her head to catch him in a kiss. "It's been a long time since we did our last home movie adventure."

    Marc snorted in amusement. "Wanna play the helpless schoolgirl-turned-slave again, huh? You know one day our kids are gonna find this stuff and think we were both perverts."

    Yugure flushed a bit at the thought of having children, but laughed. "We've got more than enough time for worrying about that in the future...."

    Marc just snickered, and went back to playing his hands over her breasts. He liked good Japanese cinema himself, though his tastes ran more towards Godzilla films and Kamen Rider/Super Sentai stuff. Though he'd always had something of a fascination for their cinema in general. Maybe it was because Godzilla had been his gateway to the larger cinematic world of Japan. Maybe it was because his girl was of Japanese ancestry. Or maybe he was just a sucker for asian cinema and didn't know how to reconcile it with the fact that the only American made mafia-based stuff he'd ever liked had been the Godfather trilogy, and yet he could actually find himself entertained by a movie about a group that personally referred to themselves as ninkyō dantai.

    Yugure snuggled deeper into him, and Marc laughed, licking up the left side of her neck, eliciting a giggle from her. "Yamero." she said, but there was little force in it, especially when he lightly pulled at her earlobe with his teeth, rather than simply nibbling on it like before. She pulled her ear free gently, and he moved one hand from playing with her breasts to giving her hip a massage.
   
    "Anything interesting happen today?" he asked. "I'm sorry I was late to 2 Bros. Got held up."

    Yugure shook her head. "Iya, it was pretty much a normal day, all things considered. No drills or anything, and sensei was a bit lighter on me than normal, but that was because he got called away due to his daughter calling from the hospital. Seems his son-in-law had to go in for surgery."

    Marc whistled. "Wondered when that was finally going to happen."

    "Sensei keeps saying you should visit him more."

    Marc shrugged, the hand massaging her hip now coming to her shoulder and continuing there. "I'll swing by later this week if I can."

    "You know...we have the movies till next week..." Yugure said, her voice turning seductive. "We don't have to finish it right— Mpphh!" the rest of what she was going to say was cut off as Marc gagged her with the hand that had been massaging her shoulder.

    "Movie now, sex later."





    Meanwhile, in a large fortress of caves just outside the borders of Equestria, a massive armored bidpedal figure stood, silent as the grave. Until a brilliant white 'eye' flashed to life, and began to move about in its track, taking in the surroundings around it. A mission had just been assigned to it. Axe and Machine Gun at the ready, the massive being headed for the cave mouth.

    Equestria awaited.